Along with the launch of the Cartel Market, coming out in Patch 1.5, Bioware have introduced some new features to the character preview screen. The first change is the ability to turn your weapon on and off. Using the center button highlighted in the image below will enable your character preview interface to equip or unequip a weapon. (Note: There seems to be a brightness issue with the preview screens that are on the test server at the moment. I'm sure this will be fixed before Patch 1.5 is released.)
Using your mouse wheel while your preview screen is open will zoom in and out on your character, giving you a high res look at all your equipment.
If you're fussy like me, the look of your lightsaber hilt is important, and so this new feature will be a pleasant distraction of your first visit to SWTOR once the patch comes out (in the next couple of weeks).
Apat from being able to preview weapons that you're not able to use normally, you can also preview color crystal effects on lightsabers even when you don't own them. Hit Control and then right click on a crystal to preview how it looks in your hot little hand. Note: You will have to have a lightsaber equipped, or be previewing a lightsaber hilt to experiment with crystal colors.
You can also preview your companion's customizations and weapon options, up close and personal with a rotate feature, which is a massive upgrade to the current preview screen.
I adjusted the brightness in this screenshot to show you the detail you can see when you zoom in.
BioWare's Lead System Designer, Damion Schubert, has been kind enough to answer a volley of questions that I threw at him about the future of our beloved SWTOR companions. The companions are a unique and popular part of the SWTOR game experience and as the game is tweaked and updated, many players are wondering how companions will change, myself included. Here's what he had to say:
Q: With the introduction of HK-51 will players have a choice of what crafting bonuses he has, similar to the way we get to choose our ship droids crafting bonuses?
A: He's been given a minor efficiency bonus to all mission skills, and a minor critical bonus to all crew skills.
Q: Will HK-51 have customization options? If so, how many? A: We have several paint jobs planned for HK-51 in the works. When and how players will acquire them is unclear as of yet.
Q: Are there any plans to advance on current Companion story lines? Some of us have developed intimate relations with our Companions, and even married them and now they won't talk to us!
A: I will put this as 'on our radar screen but not imminent'. Building companion content is very, very expensive for us (most people only play one of their companions heavily, so there is a one-in-forty chance that any companion content will be consumed). Also, the benefits of companions once you hit level 50 isn't great since you don't use them for operations or warzones. I'd really like to address the utility problem before we jump on creating more content for them. That being said, we know you guys love your companions and we know it’s something that's unique to SWTOR, so it’s definitely something that will get attention.
Q: Are there any plans for new Companion customizations whether it be connected to world events (like the Rakghoul plague) or Collector's Edition bonuses?
A: We do have plans for new companion customization options in the future. I can’t giveaway too many details now, but I will say that there was a round of applause for a new paint job for C2-N2 that we unveiled at a company meeting.
Q: Certain Companions had customizable gear that changed with a recent patch. Players leveling Lord Scourge now, for instance, can customize his look, including being able to choose the cool Sith armor. Conversely, players who have already leveled to 50 and completed the bonus series do not have access to the Sith armor. Is there a way to get hold of the Sith armor for Lord Scourge for those players and/or will one be made available in a later patch?
A: I will look to see what we can do.
Q: Currently in game the preview screen for Companions and for armor looks is very low resolution and low quality. Are there any plans to improve the preview screen? Also, are there any plans to include weapons in the preview screen? Some of us are fussy about the look of our guns and lightsabers!
A: We are currently looking at improving our gear preview screen as part of developing for microtransactions, since we definitely want people to be able to see what they are buying before they do so. So yes, these things should be on their way to you.
The possibility of high resolution preview screens will be a major benefit to anybody who likes the look of their characters.Thank you Damion for your time.
If you have any comments about the information provided, or an opinion on which companion's story line you'd most like to see updated, hit the comments button.
Bioware have just released a promo video for patch 1.3. The video tells us nothing really new but does provide some extra details about the new features. The video has received many dislikes and as I go over the details, you mind understand why. The changes are:
Legacy perks Group Finder Character transfer Scaling social gear
First, have a quick watch of the video (bottom of this post). As you will see the Legacy perks are specific to each individual character, and they don't come cheap.
Looking at the warzone perks, the first one costs 20k and gives you a 2% XP perk to leveling in warzones. Another 30k will add an extra 2%, to the total of 4%. Each level seems to go up by 10k and add an extra 2%. So you'll be able to achieve a maximum of 10% bonus XP after spending approximately 200k. If you want to level another alt in PvP you'll have to spend another 200k. Please keep in mind that this is a guestimate as they only show us the costing of the first two.
Now is it just me or does that seem a little steep for such a pathetic return? 10% is not going to make much difference. I have three characters past act 2 and several others well on their way and I, like a lot of other players, am finding it really hard to have to re-do the standard missions found on most worlds. As it is at this stage, just to complete your class quests you have to level PvP for hours or re-do missions you've done 3 or 4 times already. I've been alternating characters to get the most out of rested XP, but it's still at the painful stage of going through this stuff for the 4th and 5th time for me. Don't get me wrong, I love the class missions and I am thoroughly enjoying every second of the story lines but I'm finding the leveling to be way more time consuming than it was originally in Beta.
Group Finder seriously should have been in the game from the start so although I'm pleased to see it being added, it's an "about time" feature, not a "wow" feature.
Character transfers are definitely going to help the lower populated servers and I hope that Bioware do the right thing and give everybody who has been gimped for months on dead servers the opportunity to move for free.
As for scaling social gear, since my main character is a Jedi Consular I can tell you now, this is broken before it's released. Currently all social gear is light armor but yet my Jedi Conuslar is still stuck in his fuggly rakata gear. As none of the promised armor bonuses transfer to other gear Bioware made a big deal about the customization abilities in patch 1.2. Apart from war hero and black hole gear, no other items in the game mods transfer. So if you're thinking of decking out yourself as a Sandperson, be prepared to loose your bonuses if you're not in the absolute state of the art gear.
I may seem a little bit annoyed about this last point, but it's one of the many options that Beta testers disputed. The change to lock-down epics was made about a month prior to the game being released. I had to do multiple videos to demonstrate the changes on mods as they were released in Beta. The community tried to advise Bioware but they did not listen and five months later we're still paying the price by having Jedis look like punces with wings on our sleeves in order to have our earned set bonuses. Unless the change is made to retro-fit older mods, this will plague the ability for players to customize themselves properly for some time.
About a week ago I had a very lovely pair of Champion Vindicator's Greaves disappear out of my bag. To be honest, I don't know if I sold them to a vendor or deleted them somehow, all I know is that when I went to equip them they were gone. BioWare allow up to three items every six months to be restored if you accidentally delete or sell them.
So I put an ingame service ticket in. In the ticket I included the date that I got the pants, how I got the pants, the fact that I purchased them using a token, which I had received from a PVP bag, and the last date that I saw them. To my surprise, I didn't get a response to my ticket for over five days.
After five days, with no response, I added a little bit more information, with the exact name of the Greaves and the name of the vendor I got them from. I also posted a message in the customer service section of the forums. I was very polite, asking if it was normal for a wait of five days on getting a response to a ticket. Lo and behold, within five minutes, I had a gamemaster contact me. It started off with the quirky role-playing droid introduction, but within half an hour, I was able to logout and then log back in and find my lost item in my mailbox.
I've been gaming for a long time and I can guarantee you that insulting an employee's grammar, getting angry at them, or giving them a hard time, will not get you better service. I've read other people's posts in the SWTOR forums doing these things and seriously guys .... who is that going to help? Even if you find that you've been let down by the service procedure, always stay calm and remember, this person probably has a lot on their plate and they're all just getting used to new jobs. You can't expect them to be a game expert yet. Help them to help you. Give them as much information as possible when putting in a ticket.
... well they got their accounts disabled anyway! Farmers, and some players, thought it was a good idea to venture into high level zones and camp high level reward chests for hours on end. On some servers, it got to the stage where there were four or five level 15 toons camped around one level 50 reward spawn. The clever little farmers thought they had outsmarted BioWare by venturing into zones that were neutral to their faction; so Republic toons would go into the Sith Heroic area and stand and farm among all the Republic NPCs that would not attacked them. The perfect spot for the farmer was in a safe place away from aggressive mobs, but close enough to be able to collect the respawn of the high level chest or crystal.
BioWare have taken the Wookie approach and have figuratively ripped the appendages off these farmers by first suspending and then banning any accounts that have been involved in credit trading.
To be honest, I am surprised at how little spam I'm getting in the game. I think I have had just two whispers offering me credits over the last three weeks. Unless the farmers find another loop hole that's hard for BioWare to track, it looks like BioWare have gotten it under control pretty quickly.
Some players have kicked up a fuss on Reddit and other social networking sites, complaining that they should be allowed to stand there all day and farm the chests, because the game allows them to and they're just collecting credits for their own use. What these players don't realize is that BioWare are not just cracking down on this because of farmers, they are also protecting the economy balance in the game. Anybody who believes their account has been unjustly banned can submit a petition to BioWare. Stephen Reid has replied, in detail, in the forums about this issue (see below).
If something in the game seems too good to be true, for example, being able to farm a level 50 chest every 10 minutes for 4000-5000 credits a pop, when you are only a level 14 character, I would suggest that you just don't do it, or you might get your arms ripped off ... ask any bot who has played against a Wookie :)
Our Terms of Service team recently took action against some accounts playing Star Wars: The Old Republic, and we wanted to give you some insight into what happened and why.
First, action was taken against a number of accounts for what's commonly known as 'gold farming' - or in our case, credit farming. These accounts were found to be exploiting the game in a variety of ways to maximize their credits in order to sell them to other players. Our Terms of Service team took action against these accounts and removed them permanently from the game.
Second, a smaller number of accounts were warned or temporarily suspended for exploiting loot containers on Ilum. To be completely clear, while players may choose to travel to Ilum earlier than the recommended level (40+) and may loot containers if they can get to them, in the cases of those customers that were warned or temporarily suspended, they were systematically and repeatedly looting containers in very high numbers resulting in the game economy becoming unbalanced.
None of these accounts were banned for their actions and no accounts have been banned for travelling to Ilum while still relatively low level. By comparison, the number of accounts that were warned or temporarily suspended was considerably lower than the number of accounts banned for 'credit farming'.
It's important to remember that our Terms of Service team is extremely careful and thorough in their investigation of any potential exploit or unusual activity in-game. Working closely with the development team and using extensive metrics based on player activity, they are able to determine what is normal player activity, what is unusual and what is exploiting. Our goal is always to ensure a fair game experience for all players while also protecting the rights of individuals, and if people are disrupting the play experience for others action will be taken.
While we will not discuss the details of any individual action, whenever we take action against an account we believe they have clearly broken our Terms of Service. Any action taken against an account can be appealed and in some cases actions have been rescinded.
While we understand people's concern about actions taken against accounts, please remember the Terms of Service team exists to help ensure a balanced and fair game experience for all. When you see reports of actions taken against someone's account, remember they are choosing to tell their version of the story - and there are two sides to every story.
In summary, our Terms of Service team took action against a number of accounts that were 'credit farming' to remove them permanently from the game. They also warned and temporarily suspended - but did not ban - a smaller number of accounts for activities on Ilum that were decided to be game exploits.
Some adjustments will be made to Ilum in the near future to discourage future exploits. However, the planet is still open to anyone who wishes to travel there.
The goal of the Star Wars: The Old Republic team is to maintain a service for our customers that is fun to play and equitable for everyone. Critical to this goal is making sure that gameplay is fair and reasonable and we are constantly on the lookout for anything that would prove to be a detriment to your gameplay experiences.
Thanks for reading, and we hope this gave you some insights.
I'm excited to join SWTORFace and can't wait to contribute to the site. I have been an avid gamer for the past 15 years, playing both PC and console games. I've played my share of MMOs starting with Legends of Kesmai and including but not limited to EQ, AoC, Anarchy Online, LOTRO, CoH, WOW and DCUO. A born Star Wars fan (early memories include Star Wars trivia during car rides with Dad), I'm stoked for SWTOR. What Star Wars fan wouldn't love a Bioware Star Wars MMO? I'm always up for good conversation so feel free to circle me on google + or email me at natassia@swtorface.com.
For this week's Friday update, BioWare have given a link to their community blog. Essentially the blog will replace the Friday updates, now that the game is about to go live. You can find this new official SWTOR blog here. This will save you from having to filter through fifty sites all posting the same news every Friday. There have been a lot of fansites out there that have been replying on the Friday updates as their sole source of news; this new blog will force some of them to produce their own content or fade away.
Also in this Friday update is the character progression video for the Sith Inquisitor. I got to play around with a Sith Inquisitor, up to around level 20, in Beta. The storyline is awesome. I chose Assassin as my Advanced class. Check out the progression video below:
As December has gotten underway, we’ve already been lucky enough to enjoy a few beta testing sessions ahead of The Old Republic’s highly anticipated release on the 20th. With a number of positive reviews in thus far, there has still been a bit of objectivity levied from a few, including Activision’s president Bobby Kotick, who is said to believe that Electronic Arts won’t benefit much from the holiday release. This assessment has little basis on the game play and selling numbers that are expected, but it’s still a bit misguided.
Just this past week, Eurogamer was lucky enough to speak with a few major industry analysts who see strong profits on the horizon for both LucasArts and Electronic Arts. One of the analysts spoke of an expected $300 million in revenue generation, which would result in an excellent take home for both Star Wars the Old Republic developers.
Because Electronic Arts will be taking home about 30 percent of the total revenue for The Old Republic, they would stand to take in nearly $80 million if numbers came anywhere close to what some analysts are predicting, which would surely be a very good achievement. Subscriber totals are expected to be the driving force behind the possible revenue for both developers. Subscriber estimates are ranging anywhere from 1.5 to 3 million expected in the early months of 2012. If The Old Republic can garner in subscribers anywhere near 3 million in total, the end revenue could possibly reach the height of $500 million, which would be outstanding for both LucasArts and Electronic Arts.
Early doubt, especially that from Bobby Kotick has been totally based off the revenue and license share levels between Electronic Arts and LucasArts. Game play and the early reviews have been positive for the most part, especially after strong responses to the game play and storyline following the initial beta testing sessions, which saw over one million hours logged by hundreds of thousands of gamers.
With the strong initial reviews in hand, expectations have grown with the fact that the game will be released during the core of the holiday gift buying season. Many families are choosing to take advantage of this timing by pre ordering the game, instead of waiting to purchase it after the wide release on December 20.
There is only a minor risk of failure expected for The Old Republic, especially after the beta testing sessions throughout the month of November. Developers have set goals for The Old Republic to compete in long term users and sales with other MMO mainstays like World of Warcraft. Even though this level of success still remains questionable, the game looks to have a strong combination of inviting factors. If it is able to appeal to both casual gamers and the dedicated Star Wars fans, expect the franchise to assert itself as an MMO powerhouse in 2012 and beyond.
We've all seen the video demonstrations from Star Wars The Old Republic where the developers have talked about Light side and Dark side options in the SWTOR. When you set up a character, remember that you don't choose Light or Dark side at the same time that you choose the class, faction, race and look. You choose to act Light or Dark as you make decisions. A character is not simply either Light or Dark.
So in SWTOR will you choose the Light or Dark side for the sole purpose of achieving certain levels in Light or Dark that then open up your access to certain weapons and equipment (according to the developers)? Or will your decision be based on morals and the type of character you want to play? Would you, for example, take out a camp of children in order to get Dark reputation that might earn you an uber cloak?!
The SWTOR developers have also said that if you build up enough Dark Alignment your character can actually change appearance if you choose to enable that option.
From what they've shown so far in the videos, my concern is that your decisions are highlighted as either light or dark. So if you're having conversation with an ingame character you might be given three possible responses to choose from. Sometimes they are actually tagged as either Light or Dark as we have seen in the Flashpoint videos. I just wonder if this takes away some of the fun of it. Not all decisions can be as obviously Dark as slaying children. In Dragon Age, when attempting to build reputation with your companions, you have to guess what they may or may not like. Having the Light and Dark decision outlined makes it less realistic (and yes I know it's just a game, but it's role-playing isn't it!?).
What do you think? Are the highlighted selections just there for players who want to space-skip through conversations maybe?
General Game Testing Invites are now being sent to EU testers.
Sent Nov. 10: General Game Testing Invites Who was invited: Testers from all European launch countries What was sent: General Game Testing Invites Server locations: EU servers Invite status: Invites will continue to be sent during today. E-mails can take some time to be sent, so please check your www.swtor.com/tester page to be sure!
Did you get a golden ticket?
following countries: Austria Belgium Czech Republic Denmark Finland France Germany Greece Hungary Ireland Italy Netherlands Norway Poland Portugal Russia Spain Sweden Switzerland United Kingdom
At SWTOR Face, they not only want to focus on the game of SWTOR but also the gamers and the community in SWTOR. Even though the game hasn’t even started yet, the blogging and the fan sites certainly have! they want to provide readers with information about other SWTOR websites, blogs and guilds.
This section is going to grow faster than the Falcon on the Kessel run.
If you want your SWTOR site or blog featured here then contact SWTOR Face.
Agents are masters of stealth, seduction, and assassination.
Our Imperial Agent class page has now been updated with all the advanced class information (also presented to you below).
The Empire dominates scores of star systems across the galaxy, but not through the power of the dark side alone. Behind the scenes, the cunning Agents of Imperial Intelligence track down and eliminate the Empire’s enemies—from intractable Republic senators to traitorous Imperial Moffs to bloodthirsty rebels with Republic ties. Imperial Agents must master the arts of infiltration, seduction, and assassination to advance the Empire’s causes; they face the opposition of a terrified galaxy and the capriciousness of their own Sith overlords.
What's an advanced class you ask? Check out this post which explains further.
Advance Class: Operative Whether ambushing enemies from stealth or using advanced medical technology to keep colleagues in the fight, the operative will do whatever it takes to advance the agenda of the Empire.
Tree: Concealment (Melee DPS) Upgrades stealth and close-range attacks, allowing the Agent to strike without detection.
Waylay Passive Backstab no longer has an energy cost.
Slice Passive Sever Tendon has a 100% chance to root targets for 2 seconds.
Tree: Medic (Heal) Advances the Agent's healing technologies, keeping his allies both alive and effective.
Advanced Toxin Removal Passive Toxin Scan now removes mental debuffs, and heals for a small amount.
Reactive Healing Passive Critical direct heals refund 2% energy.
Tree: Lethality (shared) Leverages the toxic power of poisons to debilitate enemies over the course of a long fight.
Improvise Passive Critical poison damage has a 50% chance to make your next Snipe usable out of cover. The cost of your next Snipe is also reduced by 100%.
Corrosive Rounds Passive Weakening Blast has a 100% chance to refresh active poison effects on the target when the target is below 30% health.
Advance Class: Sniper Identified as the most elite sharpshooters in the galaxy, Snipers use their extensive training to eliminate sensitive targets and turn the tide of the battle in the Empire's favor.
Tree: Marksmanship (Ranged DPS) Teaches the Sniper to strike down targets from long distances and from the safety of cover.
Reactive Shots Passive Series of Shots and Snipe critical hits have a 100% chance to make your next Ambush instant.
Cover Screen Passive 100% chance to receive a brief defensive bonus whenever you leave cover.
Tree: Engineering (Ranged DPS) Empowers the Sniper's droids and probes to weaken enemies and give the Empire an advantage.
Cluster Bombs Passive After Explosive Probe is detonated, it drops an additional 3 cluster bombs on the target. When the target takes ranged damage, one cluster bomb explodes.
Sharp Burst Passive When you hit a target affected by Interrogation Probe with Takedown, there is a 100% chance a shrapnel burst occurs dealing damage to enemies within 8 meters of the target.
Tree: Lethality (shared) Leverages the toxic power of poisons to debilitate enemies over the course of a long fight.
Improvise Passive Critical poison damage has a 50% chance to make your next Snipe usable out of cover. The cost of your next Snipe is also reduced by 100%.
Corrosive Rounds Passive Weakening Blast has a 100% chance to refresh active poison effects on the target when the target is below 30% health.
Next up in our advanced class breakdown in the mirror of the Jedi Knight Class, the Sith Warrior class. All four Republic classes have a mirror Sith class that each have the same play style and same type of options ... but with a darker feel!
This is a smart move by BioWare as it will bring a yin yang balance to the two factions. Balance is crucial in any game and besides, there must be balance in the Force!
So our Sith Warrior class page has now been updated with all the advanced class information (also presented to you below). Read up because if you intend to play SWTOR you'll need to understand the advanced class options available to you and other players.
Once you turn to the Dark Side, forever will it dominate your destiny ...
Sith Warrior Warriors channel anger and hatred to become brutal combatants.
Advanced Class:Juggernaut
Sith who train in the stalwart arts of the Juggernaut boast unrivaled stamina in battle. Through diligence and clarity, the Juggernaut shapes the Force to his will to become nearly invulnerable. Damage that would destroy others is shrugged off, and futility fills the Juggernaut's foes with doubt and despair. Protecting their allies and punishing their adversaries, they charge into the thick of any fray, and take the brunt of the assault and are even able to drain the energy of their enemies to further strengthen their resolve.
Tree: Vengeance (DPS) The Juggernaut stops at nothing to crush enemies, obliterating them with heavy hits.
Shatter Instant Cooldown: 9 secs Range: 4m Channels the Force into your Lightsaber and crushes your target under its weight, dealing 569 internal damage to a target afflicted by Sundering Assault, with a further 1476 internal damage over 12 seconds.
Unstoppable
Passive
Force Charge has a 100% chance to grant Unstoppable, reducing all damage taken by 20% and granting immunity to physics and movement impairing effects for 4 seconds.
Tree: Immortal (Tank) Uses the power of the Force to increase the Warrior's survivability in battle
Invincible
Instant Cooldown: 3 mins
Reduces the damage the Warrior suffers from all sources by 60% for 9 seconds.
Revenge
Passive
While in Soresu Form, parrying, deflecting, shielding, or resisting an attack has a 50% chance to grant Revenge, reducing the rage cost of your next Force Scream or Smash by 1. Lasts 10 seconds and stacks up to 3 times.
Tree: Rage (shared) Allows the Warrior greater control of the Force and further mastery of the Shii-Cho form.
Obliterate Instant Cooldown: 15 secs Range: 15m Jumps to a target, impaling it for 307-363 weapon damage. Strikes with both weapons if dual wielding.
Shockwave
Passive
Each tick of Force Choke and Force Crush grants you Shockwave, increasing the damage your next Smash deals by 25%. Stacks up to 4 times.
Advanced Class: Marauder
Wielding two sabers and unmatched aggression, Sith trained as Marauders slice through enemy ranks, dealing death with merciless efficiency. Able to intuit precisely how to attack in order to maximize every strike, their adversaries become victims in the blink of an eye. Whether annihilating a squad of Republic troops or cutting down a single Jedi, the Marauder sees and exploits every weakness to exact the greatest toll. Never hesitating, never faltering, there is no swifter bringer of pain and damage in the galaxy.
Tree: Annihilation (Sustained Damage and Survival ) Mastering the aggressive Juyo form, the Annihilation Marauder destroys enemies from within.
Annihilate
Instan Cooldown: 12 secs Range: 4m
Strikes the target with both Lightsabers for 547-633 weapon damage. Each use of this ability grants Annihilator for 15 seconds, lowering the cooldown of your next Annihilate by 1.5 seconds. Stacks up to three times. Requires two Lightsabers.
Inescapable Torment
Passive
Choked targets take 30% more damage from your next 5 bleed effects. Lasts 15 seconds.
Tree: Carnage (Burst DPS) Focuses on acrobatic Lightsaber techniques that strike quickly and lethally.
Ataru Form
Instant Cooldown: 1.5 secs
Enter an acrobatic Lightsaber form, increasing accuracy by 3%. In addition, your successful melee attacks have a 20% chance to trigger a second force strike that deals 148 energy damage. This effect cannot occur more than once every 1.5 seconds.
Gore
Passive
Impale now attacks with both Lightsabers when dual wielding.
Tree: Rage (shared) Allows the Warrior greater control of the Force and further mastery of the Shii-Cho form.
Obliterate Instant Cooldown: 15 secs Range: 15m Jumps to a target, impaling it for 307-363 weapon damage. Strikes with both weapons if dual wielding.
Shockwave
Passive
Each tick of Force Choke and Force Crush grants you Shockwave, increasing the damage your next Smash deals by 25%. Stacks up to 4 times.
