Interesting article. I would never have thought about mapping [W], [E], and [R] to movement. Then again, SWTOR was the first MMO I spent more than 4 hours in, so I've still got a lot to learn.

I promoted Dorne and I regret it. IMO, Jorgan deserves it more. I just picked Dorne because I thought it might have an effect on the romance side to her story (HINT: It does not).

Not bad, but I'm surprised about remapping [Q] and [E]. Did you give up on strafing altogether? I find the added mobility is worth giving up two keybinds. The Sent/Mara class needs to be mobile, and strafing helps a lot for me. I'm not saying your way is wrong, I'm just curious if you notice the loss of mobility.

By default, ctrl+[x] is bound to your companion skills. If you primarily PvP, and don't roll with your companions, then remapping those keys should be fine. For me, I break by skill bars into rows of 6. My top row are mapped to keys 1-6. The next row is atl+[1-4], alt+q and alt+e. I also have key binds for Shift+1-4qe and Alt+Shift+1-4qe. It's easy for me since I mapped one of my mouse side buttons to alt. Using this technique, I have access to 24 skills all easily within my left hand's reach. I also have alt+r, alt+f, and alt+c mapped to various buttons. I like to organize my rows by effects for easy learning. For example, 1-4 are my focus builders. alt+1-4 are my primary focus spenders. alt+q is Force Leap, and alt+e is Force Sweep (openers in a fight). 5 and 6 are my emergency cooldowns since they are the hardest for me to hit. the shift keys are CC, interrupts, and taunts, as well as healing, buffs, and stims. I don't think you need a Naga, but having a mouse with some side buttons helps immensely. Remapping those buttons to alt and control should help with the learning process of keybinding. If you do go with the keybinding route, be prepared for a learning curve as your hands have to train what button combinations mean what. Organizing them by effects like detailed above helps, but it will still probably take a few hours to adjust. Even if you don't get a new mouse, I still think keybinding is the way to go. Eventually, you won't even have to look at your toolbar, your hands will automatically know what key combination triggers the move you want to do. That frees up your mouse and time to view the battlefield and react to situations faster. tl;dr: Keybinding has a learning curve, but should definitely help you step up your game. A new mouse might help, but is not required, nor is an expensive one required.

I believe the idea is to add affection gains to him eventually. Giving them 10,000 affection starting out, then removing it when the change is made might upset some people. Also, stating the droid has max affection but none of the crafting benefits would confuse people more.

The devs have expressed interest in same-sex romance options. However, from what I'm hearing, it'll only be for new content characters. Any existing companions or NPCs in the first 3 Acts will not be same-sex romance-able. The idea behind this is they don't want people who have already leveled their toons to feel like they "missed out" while leveling. There's nothing saying current companions will become romance-able in act 4+. However, the current romance options will not change for the currently released Acts.

^This. My most memorable experience with KOTOR was landing on Dantooine and watching the manta rays fly overhead. It was a memorizing experience and one I would love to see again. It also had one of my favorite side quests in the game, where you had to solve the mystery of who shot whom. I would relish the opportunity to revisit the planet (and old Jedi enclave) again. Preferably as a full-fledged planet and not just a flashpoint/operation.

I agree that in most cases the trooper would have received better training, but don't discount the Mandalorian training. While not all bounty hunters are Mandalorians, the mandalorians' training would probably exceed that of the troopers. Republic troopers are a voluntary profession. Mandalorian military training is ingrained into their very way of life. I would take a typical Mandalorian over a typical trooper in a one on one battle.

Revan remains one of the most important characters in the Old Republic timeline. His mastery of both the light and dark sides of the force seemed to break the barriers between Jedi and Sith. Currently it feels as if following his teachings and not committing to one side is really a handicap, as players are blocked from both light and dark exclusive items. Are there any plans for supporting players that wish to remain force neutral (not light-side or dark-side)? Exclusive social items, emotes, color crystals, vanity pets, speeders, and/or armor sets would be fantastic.

Glad to see someone else appreciates the Defense Power set. I sunk more credits than I care to admit crafting purples for every armor piece but it was totally worth it. I look like a boss and still get people asking where I got the set. I'm level 43 and actually not looking forward to leveling up because I'll obsolete my gear eventually. If I could make an orange set of that gear I'd never change my armor. EDIT: The TH-15B War Medic set is very similar to the Defense Power set. It is orange, though I'm not 100% sure where to get the chest and leg pieces. Link: http://www.torhead.com/item/eYUUZFY/th-15b-war-medic-helmet#screenshots

It seems to be more difficult to exist in the void between light I and dark I than it would be to commit a character to one side. Currently staying neutral seems to only hinder a character as they don't get relic opportunities until endgame. Are there any plans to support the "force neutral" characters that avoid Dark I and Light I?