During the Consular Mission on Coruscant, "Secret Signals", there is an elevator in the back of the room that takes you to a balcony area above the first floor. I presume this would be one of the possible meeting places you'd be sent to if you activated a different signal than I did. However, just across from this balcony area, over a platform-jumpable sign, is a small alcove that seems to have nothing in it. However, upon jumping over, I noticed a holoprojector putting up images on the opposite wall. It may have just been my graphic settings or something, but I could only see the projection from a certain angle. It was a string of words in Aurebesh, and with a screenshot, I was able to catch enough of one projection to translate a word or two. However, I couldn't get it all. Long story short, it does say something, and this did look like other "secrets" I've seen scattered around, but I couldn't make out quite what it was. I know some Aurebesh signs are easter eggs or added flavor, but this one was just such a detour that if it does say something, it's probably a pretty good easter egg. anyone else run up on it? I'll submit a screenshot asap to clarify.

well what I mean specifically is that usually when you remove gear in swtor, you get that gray underwear. Unless there's a super secret checkbox I missed, I wasn't aware of anything that changed that bit (aside from the skimpy female gear on girl toons). I just wanted to know whether I should compliment your cleverness or painting skills lol. On that note, funny story-on my Sith Warrior, before I knew there was a cutscene bug that didnt load your companions' gear sometimes, I got to a point in the story where your ship gets attacked while you're on-planet. When my on-ship companions contacted me one by one about the attack, I saw they were all displaying as being in their undies. Before realizing it was a bug, my first thought wat "What in blazes was going on on my ship!? O_O

Question-How are you getting that much skin to show on a swtor model anyway? Or are you just "painting over" the pants/underpants?

I'm not TOO interested in placing the individual class stories in exact spots on the timeline, since I already know keeping those exact progressions of events will wreak havoc with any kind of continuity I try to create. Mainly I need to know how long the conflict between this incarnation of the Republic and Empire lasts altogether, from the Treaty of Coruscant being broken to what I presume will be the endpoint with the defeat of the Empire/Emperor. I'm already filing the proverbial serial numbers off the characters I meet (ie: for my Trooper, Rakton becomes "a key Imperial general" for the purposes of the story). I don't want to have to do backflips to try and cram everyone in as well. However, thank you to Temelechus for giving me a rough estimate for the amount of time the current campaigns roughly take. That helps me narrow down the amount of time I might need. The big wedge I have to cram in is time enough for my Trooper's adopted child to grow to the age he'd be at the beginning of his Jedi storyline (late teens/early 20s). So, if canon says it only takes 2-5 years from the Treaty of Coruscant to the eventual endpoint of the conflict, it kinda mucks things up lol. EDIT: Ah well...thanks Wookieepedia! Seems, according to the current timeline, the SWTOR-era Empire hangs around for at least a couple centuries, and since there's no death date/circumstances for Lord Vitiate/The Emperor, we can probably assume his death date is "whenever BioWare releases a raid where we kill him off". So I've got a decent block of time to work with lol. Thanks, and sorry if this little Ortolan wasted anyone's time!

About how long does the "war" depicted in SWTOR last? I ask this because I need something of a timeline when I plan out my Legacy. A more specific question might be this... Is there enough time for: -one of my characters to adopt a kid at the end of their class story's 3 chapters -That kid to grow to the age they'd have to be for Jedi/Sith training -Said kid to complete their 3 chapters Basically I need a time span of at least 20 years for the current Legacy "story" I've got in mind to work. If not, I've got a very poutey walk back to the drawing board to make.

Well, a lot of the powers classified as "Dark Side" tend to have adverse physical or mental side effects on their user. It's why Palpatine looked like a moldy raisin (even more than he should have, however old he was). For example, overuse of Force Lightning can actually do permanent damage to you, according to the lore. In fact, a key plot point (mild spoilers) for the Inquisitor storyline is finding a cure for some particularly nasty effects of a Dark Side ritual. This could explain it for Force users, although admittedly explaining it for tech classes is a little iffy. My guess would be that anger, stress, and a generally hard life (and possibly illegal tech implants) are just having ill effects on you. Of course, in the game itself, there is the option to switch it off if trying to shoehorn in a reason for it makes your lore-tuitary gland hurt.

That reminds me. did the companions in Mass Effect have more to do after you maxed out their affection or whatever you do in Mass Effect? If so, what sorts of things could you do at that point?

i admit. i giggled. I was wondering how long it would take for someone to make that joke. Admittedly though, Vette seems more like the type to try to drag you to stuff she wants to do. "Honey i KNOW the Empire wants you to enslave a planet today but can we PLEASE go tomb robbing instead? I always go where you wanna go, and we haven't been alone together since you beat Baras. And why are you spending so much time with your apprentice, and getting her so many expensive gifts--gifts made of fragments I FOUND for you, no less! Wait, honey, where are you going!? What do you mean "out"? Well...be back before dinner...and don't forget your speeder keys.....HOLO ME WHILE YOURE THERE!!!!" <airlock slams>

So to pass time when I don't feel like doing dailies, I've been wanting to try soloing lower-level flashpoints for fun and alignment points. However, when I went into the Black Talon with one of my companions, none of the conversations (even ones where I picked things they'd normally like) gave any affection. My question is this: Do flashpoint conversations ever give affection? or will they just not give affection for companions you wouldn't have had at that level? The answer will probably determine whether I make this my new pastime or not

I do agree the prices should come down on some things. Not necessarily luxury items/non-essential stuff, but more like the necessaries. Am I the only one that occasionally goes broke just training new abilities and coughing up repair bills while leveling?

As a random thought, I'd also love to see more multi-companion conversations and "team missions". I want to see more of how my companions interact with each other, not just me. Watching Quinn and Pierce argue would give me a laugh every time. By the way, I'm sorry if it seems like I'm self-bumping here. I just really want this suggestion to be visible so there can be some good feedback on it from all of you guys, and mabye-possibly-someday-ifiwishuponastar the devs.

Thanks, I'm glad someone likes the ideas. I do remember reading from that press event a while back that more story would be opened up soon for companions, and that's great. But, something that lets you interact regularly, and in an engaging way, with characters you're supposedly really close to, even after their "story missions" are complete, would be great. Even if all they do is let me go on a date with Vette once a week or do combat drills with Pierce every now and again or something, that would give just a little more immersion and fun. However, if they don't tie in companion story missions with your Legacy family tree in some way, like going with your spouse companion to adopt a child or recruiting an ally with one of your other companions, that's a big opportunity missed. Doing your companion missions already brushes you up against the other class stories, but tying in the Legacy like that would give a lot of extra kick to it.

Having conversations with, and doing missions for, my companion characters has been one of the more enjoyable on-the-side experiences I've had in this game. However, it seems odd to me that characters I've worked so hard to get affection with basically do nothing but craft for me after 10k affection. This is most troubling when the companion in question is a good friend to, romantically involved with, or even married to the player character, and you basically never speak to them again! So my suggestion is that maximum affection with a companion not just be an endpoint, but that it unlocks new stories, missions and possible rewards. Here are a few ideas: Daily and Weekly Missions Each day you can speak to your maxed-out companion and choose one of 3 missions to go on with them. These missions would be fairly quick and easy to solo, comparable to most solo daily missions on Ilum or Belsavis now. They would reward some amount of credits, Legacy XP, and perhaps a lockbox/credit case. Weekly, companions would offer a choice of 3 more difficult missions, on par with some of the important story missions. These would be missions that in some way are very specific to your companion, and have greater rewards, like special custom (orange) armor designed for them or new Legacy unlocks for your player character. Repeatable Conversations Not necessarily something incentivised with loot or credits or what have you, these are more "RP" than anything. You talk to your companion character, and they offer you a choice of several leisure activities. You choose one, and are presented with a short cinematic depicting it. To illustrate this, I'll use some of the Sith Warrior companions as examples, since that's my main. I log in on my ship, and I go talk to Vette. She offers me a choice of 3 Daily Missions: Treasure Hunting on Korriban, Fighting the Exchange on Nar Shadaa, or Rescuing Slaves on Tattooine. Each involves a quick trip to the planet, a short mission in which i defeat enemies, gather items, etc. Optional side conversations may be available as well with local NPCs. Completing that, she then offers a choice of 3 Weekly Missions back at the ship. I can choose to: help her fight a bounty hunter one of her old employers has sent after her, rescue one of her friends, or go after a big treasure trove. This mission rewards far more credits, and gives me the choice of a max level lockbox, custom gear for me, or custom gear for her. At any sufficiently large Cantina or on the ship, I can also speak with her and ask if we can do something together. I can suggest: get some drinks at the cantina, something based on the planet we're on (on Tattooine for example it might be to browse the local Jawa market), and the third option changes depending on whether you're friends or romantically involved with her. If friends, the third option is to go take a walk (or not there), if you're in a romance it is "let's find someplace quiet to be alone". A short scene plays out, or a fade-out as appropriate These cantina pastime conversations would of course not reward anything, but would give a little character to the proceedings. Perhaps they could, with an appropriate cooldown or other restriction, shave a few minutes off any in-progress crew missions, or if you're not max level, give a small boost to your rest meter. Other Ideas -Maxed affection companions helping you to get your other companions' affection up. For example, Vette's offered missions might each have as one of its reward choices a high-grade companion gift of a different type. -If BioWare isn't going to increase the maximum companion affection, I feel something should be available to continue any personal stories you have with your companions, likely connected to your Legacy. For example, lets say my "Adopted Child" spot is open on my Legacy Tree. I can then talk to one of my companions (Let's say Vette) and get a mission to go adopt an orphan. The choices I'm given are hinted to eventually grow up into the different classes. If I then add a character of that class to my Legacy Tree as my Adopted Child, other missions open up for me and Vette regarding that child and how he/she becomes that class, and that character gets a bonus. Or for another example, an Ally/Henchman slot is open. Lt. Pierce then offers to introduce me to a BH or IA friend of his, or to deal with a pesky Trooper or Smuggler. If I then choose to make that person my Ally or Follower or something, and I make a character of that class and add it to my Legacy tree, their exploits are told to me and the linked character gets a bonus. Basically, getting certain companions for your class to 10k affection would allow you to unlock really good bonuses for specific Class/Legacy relationship combinations. These are just some ideas, but the main point is that you should still be able to interact in a meaningful way with your companions, especially those your character has a close relationship with, even after they've hit max affection.

I don't know about the rest of you, but speaking from experience, I don't think its just a "lol spend more time playing" trick. The trips to the fleet seem to serve two functions: 1-Pacing Every good story, even action-packed ones, need a little downtime to let the audience breathe. For those who play through the story at its "intended" pace, this breaks up the action into manageable chunks. There's nothing pulling you to the next planet, there's no one that needs saving, no imminent crises that need your attention, nothing urgent nagging you at the back of your mind to go and do. Even if you're not playing "for the story", the pacing is for you guys too. Gives you a chance between acts to gather your thoughts, rework your spec, or check on things you were too busy leveling to check on. 2-Catching Up Once you're on a planet or series of planets, whether you're trying to level fast or take in the story, you want to have as little interruption in the flow of the missions/story arc you're on as possible. So, you don't necessarily send your companions on missions immediately after they return. Maybe you don't immediately check on new rewards you might now be eligible for thanks to going up in alignment/social points. Or maybe you've just got a ton of companion gifts and don't want to sit for an hour giving them all away. One way or another, if you're not obsessively keeping up with every little thing, something's going to get backed up, fall behind, or otherwise get pushed to the side. These breaks between acts are the perfect time to catch yourself up when there's no pressing business to drag you away. Now is the time to put on some music while you catch up on crafting, play the Market a bit, spend any extra commendations, etc. This is usually when I give away all my companion gifts, so its when I usually get all my companion conversations done. In short, there does seem to be a legitimate design decision behind it-giving players a short break from the constant action to either take a breather or catch up on things. I'll admit, it confused me at first too, but now that I've been through at least part of a couple stories, I can see the value of it. This bit might just be me, but I've gotten into the habit of hitting the fleet between individual planets too, so what's one more NPC to talk to if I was going to go anyway? I will concede that the reasons I've said above, if they are the case, could be made more transparent through the mission dialogue. I also understand that it can be an inconvenience to do this if you don't have anything you need to do on the fleet. I will suggest however to take your commander/sith master/employer's advice and use that time to restock supplies and catch up on things you've missed before talking to the "back to action" NPC and you might see what I mean

I will have to jot that one down lol

A thread for funny Star Wars puns and jokes. I'll start us off: Star Wars fans are a fairly unhappy bunch. For every one that's content you "see three P-O'd" How did the astromech droid get around the road work? He took an R2-Detour. What do you call a Tattooine coffee shop? Java the Hutt. What do you call a Mon Calamari muffin stand? Admiral Snackbar. Why did the Nexu bite the Wookiee? It thought he would be Chewie! Post your puns!