Quite the cynical view. Here's another perspective though, maybe they don't want threads that detail the hacks so as to not perpetuate them. See, a thread which contains what the hack is and how to replicate it is not useful and should be deleted - an in-game report would be the way to address this. However a thread that nebulously talks about hacks in general and their effect on the game, like this one, is a proper way to discuss the issue. I've seen some of the detailed threads, and quite reasonably, they were shut down. I've also seen threads such as this that continue on as long as the participants wish to discuss the topic. Basically, the way to combat this is through reports, not through forums. We can commiserate here and talk to each other about the effect these hacks are having on our game, but the only way to combat this is through a good old fashioned report. BioWare has the metrics, they can review the report and see if, indeed, someone is hacking.

They said it would give you a boost, and it does. That is not a lie, that is truth. They said it would give you a boost, it does, and you are not happy with it. That is not a lie, that is disappointment. They said it would give you a boost, it does, you are not happy with it, and you call the XP perks lies. That is a lie.

Nope. Works for me. Group Finder is awesome. Anecdotal evidence works both ways.

In response to everyone who has had their settings reduced from one setting to the next. From the patch notes: What may be happening is that when you clicked the Optimizer upon logging into 1.3, the overall graphics performance may not have changed, but the Setting may have been merely renamed to better reflect the wider range of options. This may not truly explain the OPs issue - one shared by a couple other posters - but it is an explanation for some others.

And what he said was, "We're going to be in the business from a long term standpoint so absolutely we're going to embrace free access, free trial, ultimately some day we can move in and embrace that model." What seems to have most people up in arms is the last bit, "ultimately some day we can move in and embrace that model." Most of the sky-is-falling crowd and the forum haters have taken it to mean that SWTOR will embrace the F2P model. If, however, you read the article as a whole you would see that this is in reference to the current model WoW is using. Prior to the above quote, Gibeau was quoted as saying, "WoW is a free download that you pay a subscription to after a period of time. We're cognizant - we see that." Thus the reference to "embrace that model" is a direct follow from his previous statement concerning WoW's free download and subsequent P2P model. This is made less clear by the writer due to his interjection between these lines in the form of a paragraph that referenced a now deleted article that tried to use the exact same quote to give the appearance that SWTOR was going F2P. It breaks up the flow of the conversation and obscures the true intent of his dialog - the more cynical would see this as skewing a story to fit the writer's needs, but as I do not know the writer I will not pass judgement. So basically, both their assertions and what Gibeau said are relevant. The assertions are because they are misleading and should be recognized and addressed as such, and the statement by Gibeau is because, given a modicum of reading comprehension, it is clear what his intent is and it allays the imending doom of F2P. Link to article in question

Serious question: How many people who are complaining about the Shadow/'Sin changes have each of the tanks at 50 and have compared their performance to each other through playtesting rather than anecdotal evidence? I ask because I have a Juggernaut, an Assassin, and a Powertech, all at 50 and all involved in end-game PvE. Long before the balance changes were out it was my firm belief, gleaned through direct comparision of all three tanking styles, that the Shadow/'Sins were a cut above the others in terms of ease of play and survivability. i have stated before, and I reiterate now, that anyone who decries these changes as a nerf to an already under-performing class is using the worst kind of hyperbole and selective memory. These changes are designed to bring them in-line with the other tanks and are needed.

In regards to the tanking changes discussed in this post, I think everyone, but most especially the Shadow/Assassin community, is over-reacting and employing quite the fair amount of revisionist history. To those of you who say your Shadow/'Sin is "already the worst of the tanks" are delusional. I have all one of each variety, all 50s, and all progressed through end-game content. By far and away the easiest class to tank with is the Shadow/'Sin. Case in point, as my 'Sin was the 2nd tank I levelled it lagged in gear behind my main, a Jugg. Even with far inferior gear, the class easily held it's own in PVE encounters and just felt easier to play. To say now, as our class is being brought in-line with the other two tanks, that we were in any way anything but better at the job than Guardians/Juggs and Vanguards/PTs is revisionist history to better sell the woe-is-me story of the "nerf bat." Insofar as overall PVE usefulness, I think that the more impactful change is that to the "smart" AoE functionality of abilities like Wither. Countless times in an Op have I been unable to maintain the use of two of my mainstay abilities as a 'Sin tank due to the fact that mobs surrounding the current target were CC'd. In fact, when asked about the differences in tanking styles amoungst the 3 tanks, my main "con" for the 'Sin was it's reliance on AoE abilities that triggered your defensive capabilities - thus forcing you to tank at less than optimal levels for certain fights. No longer is that an Achilles heel of the class. Again, this is not a knee-jerk reaction to patch notes, this is an opinion based on playing each of the tanks at 50 through end-game, PVE content. Even before the changes were announced, I would consistently tell anyone who asked about the tank classes that the Shadow/'Sin was by far the easiest to play - provided you were awake at the keyboard and kept up your Dark Ward, Discharge, and Wither. Hell, during the gearing process of my 'Sin, his survivability was on-par with a better geared Jugg. Any changes being levied againt the Shadows/'Sins of the world are less about "nerfs" and more about being brought in-line with the rest.

Please tell me this is sarcasm. Unfair to those who didn't have time during the event? Perhaps they should check with all of their subscribers to make sure our collective schedules are open before they run their next event. You know, so as not to be "unfair." *Edit* On my server, and I doubt this was an isolated occurence, all day there was talk over general about the event ending. As the scheduled maintenance approached the chatter grew in volume. General was full of "event ending soon" and "use your DNA while you can" chat. There were even cats complaining about the end of event and the removal of the Jawa vendor prior to it all occuring with the maintenance. I'm sorry, but if you spent the enitre event right up to server shutdown trying to grind out DNA, but not spending any time before the scheduled maintenance to go and spend it, then the fault lies with you. You may very well be mad to the degree of seven mad faces, but it ain't no ones fault but your own.

Amen, brother. Amen.

Umm, what was a lie? So SERVER SHUTDOWN IN 15 MINUTES isn't vital? Having a means for the Devs to ensure that everyone can see an important message isn't vital? Yeah, you may think some things may be less than important, but this was far from a lie. They need to ensure that, even with the myraid variances that will occur when customizable UI comes, there will be a method by which the Devs can get information to the playerbase. And before you dismiss the shutdown message as more information you don't care about, realize that during the emergency maintenance a week or so back (the one occuring on a Fri) there was an uproar on the foums about it. Despite the fact that it was posted to the site, posted on the launcher, and had the aforementioned 15 minute warning (and 10, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 minutes as well) there was still an uproar over the "ninja maintenance." You don't like their answer? Fine. Characterize it as a lie? Please.

So, what your entire post basically says is that you do not devote a great deal of time into Ops. You can invest the bare minimum of time into Ops and still come away with enough gear to justify your minimal investment. To increase the challenge and time invested would be a waste as the gains are outweighed by the horrific cost of "having to learn what we need to do in Nightmare modes." Running Ops does not take a ton of time invested to become good at. Hmmm... Let me sum up, you invest the minimum to gain the maximum. And yet, you still have an issue with (carfeul Gavin, incoming facts, you may want to duck and cover as per usual) players receiving a meager 6 BH comms from running every daily for a week. That is an inordinate time investment as compared to your aformentioned experience. So... We have a great invesment of time for a meager reward. Curious that "logic" would dictate that your scenario is, indeed, the one that is horrendously balanced. I mean, it's only logical that someone willing to invest more time and effort should get the best rewards. Right? You do punctuate so many of your retorts with a call to logic. Just sayin... Also, realize not everyone who runs Ops feels the same on this subject as you. I am perfectly fine with getting gear through my guild running Ops on a schedule, just as I am fine with someone who chooses not to do so getting it from a dedicated schedule of dailies. This is not an argument of "raid gear for raiders." This is not raid gear, this is merely PvE gear. If you want to get yours faster by running Ops, feel free - just don't impede someone who chooses to attain it their own way at their own pace. Play your game, let them play theirs. You need to seriously adjust your outlook on things if someone else's digital toon wearing the same digital armor as you causes such a fervor.

Hehe. You just keep ignoring the actual facts, eh? Yep, gaining a whopping 6 BH comms a week is exactly like merely handing out the gear. Seems you have quite the axe to grind, and won't let silly things like facts get in your way. Hyperbole and misinformation FTW!

@Gavin_Darkl Research and find out where these comms drop... BH comms do not drop from dailies, the only way to get them on Corelia is a Weekly that gives 6 a week. Stop spreading misinformation, do your research, play your game, and quit worrying that other toon over there has what you feel you're more worthy and uber to deserve. These are not "WoW handouts," these are things a soloist would have to invest an inordinate amount of time to grind even one piece. You, me, and anyone who raids will have the gear long before someone who relies on the Weekly will. Maybe that will soothe whatever it is that makes you so perturbed by the fact that the lowly non-raiders dare don the same digital armor as you.

I see your use of sarcasm to counter his proposal but, to that point, I direct you to the Sith Inquisitor class story on Belsavis... I mean we're playing a game with lightsabers, blasters, Twi'Leks, Hutts, and on and on... I think the suspension of disbelief can be carried on to a convenient race change.

Pretty sure you don't know what pedantic means...

You've been here from the start and haven't seen a fix or improvement? Cool story bro.

Reclassification? As in change your AC? Why? Because someone rolled Merc to spam Tracer Missile? Now that it's being brought in-line (no, not nerfed) you want them to allow an AC switch because Merc is no longer OP in comparison? No. Just, no.

For brevity: Yes. I'm having fun. That is all.

Another vote for the Naga here. I was skeptical as well, but decided try one out when my kb/mouse needed replacing. Best. Decision. Ever. Though I use WQSE, A&D being remapped as strafe. Way back when (on my Commodore 64 IIRC) something used that keybind and I've used it ever since. Makes [Tab]ing with the pinky easy and also angles the hand inward in a more natural angle. As a bonus, the slight angle gives my left thumb a bit more room to play (more on that later). I thought the same, then decided that finger gymnastics and esoteric keybinds were just too much. If a buddy has one, try it. You'll love it. The learning curve is not nearly as bad as some claim. I don't have a problem with the size. Big hands, yes. Problem, no. --- Not to sound like a commercial, but while the keybinds discussed here are rather novel and useful in their own right (and prevent the aforementioned finger gymnastics default settings have you doing) having access to the numpad with your thumb is crazy simple and effective. And for the record, bought my Naga with an Anansi as a bundle on NewEgg a few months back. The thumb modifier keys really bring out the most from the Naga. Have the three left-most modifiers mapped to Shft-Ctrl, Shft-Alt, and Ctrl-Alt so with a flick of the thumb I can jump to left, right, and bottom-center ActionBar. Basically all four ActionBar buttons can/are accessed by two thumbs. Pricey? Maybe. But, when you factor in that most of us spend a good amount on our PCs and pay $15/month to play a vid, it's really not. Oh, and it'll save on future doctor visits, too, as you won't be seeing him for carpal tunnel anytime soon.

Take a breath. Relax. Actually, no. Keep raging. It's better than watching SportsCenter again.

And also this from the FAQ for those graphs... Ouch. Your credibility just got critted... *EDIT* I was too slow.... Well played Tyranoc, lol.

You can't be serious. For the love of the craft of game design they should eschew monetary gain and security for themselves and their families so they can produce a good game? And even if the game were good, by your rationale, if they did it "for the money" it's a fail? Yikes. There is such a thing called the real world. Therein you will find bills, responsibilities, and the need for oh-so-evil dollar.

Nope, mainly cause it doesn't need "saving." It needs what all MMOs do after launch, time to grow. As for me, I still dig it, my guild still digs it, and that's all I need to know. BTW, sources for this "dropping fast" bit?

And the most efficient way to do so is to implement things as they become ready. For various reasons things may be harder/easier to fix/implement. No need to wait. Fix what can be fixed, continue to work on whats needs work, and rollout the results as they are ready.

You call it cumbersome, I call it freedom in how my toon looks. You are aware there is quite a variety of Orange gear, right? What seems more contrary to wearing what ya dig: the Tier set that you have to wear cause it's armoring mod/set bonus is locked in, or the Orange options that you can slot the mods/set bonus from the Tier set into? Hmmm, one option v. many options.