As the title implies, I'd like to get an idea from the community on the idea of Story Class-specific Strongholds. The idea occurred to me personally when I finished the Smuggler storyline (for the billionth time) and recalled that there's mention that, canonically, the Smuggler player takes over Port Nowhere. Of course, if you actually travel to Port Nowhere following this, you're greeted with a red force field and can't do much more than stare into it. But wouldn't it be cool if, instead, you got a deed to Port Nowhere and could then turn it into your stronghold among the stars? Giving the Smuggler this means we'd have to have something for the rest of the classes too. Here are some of my suggestions: Jedi Knight / Consular - A Tython Chambers space of some kind, away from the temple (so we don't mess up the Shadows of Revan stuff). For the Consular's part, it would be a Jedi Council thing. Smuggler - Port Nowhere Trooper - A Base of some kind (think Fort Garnik styled, doesn't have to be Ord Mantel) Sith Warrior / Inquisitor - Sith Chambers on Dromund Kaas, perhaps with an outdoor space that has aesthetics similar to the Dark Temple Imperial Agent - Not sure on this one, I'd love to hear your thoughts. Bounty Hunter - The Spirit of Vengeance style ship maybe? Or a compound similar to Torch's Compound in Shadows of Revan? Anywho, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this idea. Cheers.

Hello, I was wondering if you all have experience with what happens when you begin leveling a character (did a few of the starter, level 1+ quests) and then use a Master's Datacron to boost up to 70, THEN start SoR / KoTFE from there. The dialog says it completes the class quest choosing the default options, but do you get your story titles (Master, Hero of Tython, etc.) or you don't? The verbiage makes it seem like it just auto-completes all those quests for you.

For the past few years, I've been floating around among a lot of different MMO communities, probably like many of you. During that time, I've taken notes on a lot of comparative attributes of those environments. You can't help but notice the general spirit, attitude, and passion certain communities have for their games, along with how they present those attributes within their dealings with other members of those communities. Warcraft, for example, is generally known as a toxic, sky-is-falling, nothing-is-good-enough community that would find a way to hate any possible result. Perhaps it's due to their size -- they have enough players that they can have a significant sample size of folks that are for and against literally any idea or change. Or even no change at all. By contract, games like FFXIV are generally known to have supportive communities that promote and embrace changes as they come, describing any concerns they may have in thoughtful, open discussions that lead to growing ideas and being supportive of the game, even if those ideas don't make the cut. I've heard streamers theorize that one possible reason for this is that the game is not based on conflict, but on story. Perhaps there's something to that. Naturally these attitudes bleed into the games themselves and reflect the kind of player you're probably going to encounter inside the game worlds. SWTOR has the benefit of being a game that has so many different sub-communities. There are the GSF folks, the PVPers, RPers, and people that just do the story. There's a diversity here that is unique in many ways. The story of SWTOR is richer than many MMOs, yet its end game can be involved and enjoyable too. My question to you fine folks is this: How would you describe the SWTOR Community?

What's the point of this thread? What are you hoping to accomplish? OP, you don't have any idea what the "majority of the player base" is thinking. If you did, you'd show data and your collection methods and use that to make a well-constructed point. You'd provide percentages and leave room for biases. You'd show your sample size. You'd do something -- anything -- to bolster your credibility as someone providing intelligent and constructive feedback to a game you enjoy. If you're concerned about specific elements that you've tested, there's a place for you to provide that feedback where it can be heard. This isn't it. If you've already done that, what more are you hoping to accomplish by posting this doom-and-gloom nonsense here? When I read your post, all I hear is "Well my friends said this or that, and since I can't be bothered to manage my own, personal expectations, nor conduct a more thorough investigation on what the facts actually are, I'm gonna go to the forums and tell everyone my opinion and frame it like it's fact instead." Let's not mince words here: You have no idea what you're talking about. It's possible that you might be right, and that people are "fearful" of 7.0. It's even possible that the fear those people feel is justified. But your thread here has done nothing to contribute to the resolution of this fear -- quite the opposite. This thread isn't going to be remembered as the prophesy by which you could say "I told you so!" because you haven't contributed anything except to bolster the fear you're saying exists. What do you suggest as an alternative? Better communication? A clearer roadmap? More player agency in the decision making process of changes and updates? Take some of that negative nancy energy and put it towards something helpful and maybe we can combat some of the "fear" you're so fond of discussing.

This thread is a great example of folks not looking before they start complaining.

As a Systems Engineer by trade, I often encounter people who are impacted by a technical outage. I'd say that often, the following questions are usually asked. 1. What exactly is the problem? 2. When can I expect it to be fixed? 3. What are you doing to fix it? 4. How did this happen? 5. What do I do now? All of these questions are irrelevant when asked by the end user. Let me explain: 1. What are you hoping to gain from this? Are you going to diagnose the problem better than the engineers who are implementing it? Are you going to some how figure out what they can't? This information is pointless in the hands of the powerless. 2. This is a valid question for planning, but is setting the stage to be disappointed. Problems don't come in neatly packaged containers with cooldowns and minute-by-minute updates. If I decline to tell you a timeline, then you'll be upset. If I guess at a timeline and that time passes, you'll be upset. Committing to a timeline means that I now have to hold myself and any other technicians accountable for a timeline I may not have been prepared to meet. None of these situations are conducive to fixing problems. 3. Often, this is just like #1. Why is this a concern for the end user? Your curiosity is misplaced in the midst of a problem. 4. Root Cause Analysis is something that we do as engineers all the time. This doesn't involve the end user unless the problem originated from the end user. Nevermind that answering this question is pure speculation, 9 times out of 10, an End User wouldn't understand it even if the answer was correct. What purpose does it serve to explain a technical root cause to a person who will never again care about it once they know? So that they can further critique the process from the outside without understanding it? 5. The answer to this is similarly irrelevant. Asking it denotes two sub-problems. First, anything that an engineer tells you to do will be unacceptable, if it's not the thing that you want to do. And second, it isn't the engineer's job to tell you what to do with your life when you can't have what you want. Go outside, read a book, work on something else, etc. You knew this answer before it was asked. I'm posting this here because I have seen these questions in varying flavors come from SWTOR Players. Yes, you have the right to feel a type of way if you are a subscriber and you aren't playing the game when you should be. Yes, you have the right to post on here with your opinions. But when you back the developers into a corner with your incessant questions that delve into areas you have no business delving into, you're only gumming up the process. Let them work, it'll be up soon. Relax. Just my two credits.

At least this staves off the 500 Bengel Morr impersonators following the new race. At least for a while.

Where's the like button? WHERE'S THE LIKE BUTTON?? likelikelikelikelikelikelikelikelike

Isn't the Cartel Market how they make most their money? What makes you think that isn't a priority?

Species/Race: Human Name: Hannah Middle Name: Shu'tar Last Name: Okarr Nickname: Hanie Gender: Female Date of Birth: Unknown Place of Birth: Nar Shadaa Age: 31 Height: 5'5 Weight: 120lbs Hair Color/Style: Purple / Short Facial Appearance: Thin, light cosmetics, small scar under her left eye. Eye Color: Green Body Appearance: Average / Athletic Home Planet: Nar Shadaa Current Residence: N/A Allegiance: Credits Profession: Illicit Cargo Transportation / Slicing Armor/Clothes: Brown-and-green coat with several hidden pockets, belt with small but advanced data spike with integrated neural implant Primary Weapon(s): Heavily Modified WESTAR-24 Bolt Pistols with SMART-tracking aim adjustor and adjustable hue projection light assembly. Secondary Weapon(s): Heavily Modified WESTAR-24 Bolt Pistol with retracting energy bayonet and manual overload switch settings. Miscellaneous Item(s): Neural-Visual implant link to WESTAR blasters, adjusting shot accuracy to align with visual targeting. Biography: Daughter of legendary Smuggler Nico Okarr, Hannah Okarr followed her father faithfully across the galaxy on his many exploits. While her mother died at child birth, her father took the time to raise her as both his daughter, his side kick, his trusted assistant, and eventually, his heir. When the two traveled with their close droid friend T7-01 to the abandoned Sith homeworld of Korriban, the two were surprised by Republic forces as they were departing with artifacts from the dusty, harsh planet. Hanie hidout inside her father's ship as he negotiated with their captors, but the results didn't look good. Nico resigned himself to returning the artifacts as long as he could keep his ship, but Jedi Battlemaster Kao Cen Darach could sense there was more to his request than just the ship and so intended on releasing the smuggler with a stern warning. Nico continued to attempt to talk his way out of the situation while still in electrocuffs as he was escorted towards his ship by the Jedi and his padawan, a young Jedi Consular named Satele Shan. As they paced down a hallway, Satele -- an adept in Force visions -- sensed the encroaching and inevitable return of the Sith Empire moments before they dropped out of hyperspace and began attacking the spaceport they were on. Together with decorated Republic Special Forces commander Jace Malcom, Nico and the two Jedi hurried towards his ship, as it was the only ship that could outrun the assault fighters. As they approached the ship, Malcom's squad was ambushed by an explosive breach and several members were killed instantly. Nico, not typically one to face overwhelming odds, knew that if he did not stop their attack, his daughter would be in danger. In an act of heroism, Nico single-handedly stopped an Imperial boarding party long enough for Malcom to begin a counter offensive using a high process auto cannon. As the Jedi fought off a Darth Vindican and his apprentice Malgus, Malcom, Nico, Hanie, and T7-01 prepped the ship for takeoff. In an act of final heroism, Master Kao Cen Darach sacrificed himself to buy a fleeing Satele and company the time they needed to escape, thus warning the Republic of the Sith Empire's return. Following the events of Korriban, Nico knew that he needed to think of his daughter's safety more thoroughly than he had been, and used the Republic reward money to shed many of his debts. For nearly 10 years, Nico remained relatively unheard from, his legend the only whispers across the galactic underworld. Several years before the Great Galactic War, Nico at last gifted his famed ship to his daughter and resigned himself to performing tasks for the SIS and Republic Freelancer Guilds. Hanie, still very much in love with the Smuggler lifestyle, continued in her Father's former footsteps, traveling far and wide to expand her father's already legendary status and to augment it with her own name. As she became more and more known, word of her Father's mounting debts reached her, and she began taking on more and more dangerous smuggling missions to help him. Eventually, Nico went missing. Some say he did so to spare his daughter the burden of his debts, while others maintain he was finally found by the more infamous of his debtors. Now in her late 20s, Hanie has mad somewhat of a name for herself in the galactic underworld, always being sure to pay her debts and never letting the Okarr name fall under negative scrutiny. OOC Information: Playing through the Smuggler Storyline with this premise, the entire motive of the story changes. Instead of arbitrarily performing these actions, they're instead performed with the pride, history, and complicated backstory of being the daughter of the Infamous Smuggler. After Chapter 1, the Nico and Hanie meet up in special scenarios, one helping the other alternatingly until chapter 3 begins and the two go their separate ways for a time. At the start of Knights of the Fallen Empire, Nico learns of Hanie's deep involvement with the Revanites and of the Sith Emperor. Concerned for her safety, he tries to track her down. Unfortunately, he is too late and word of the destruction of Darth Marr's ship with Hanie aboard devastates the smuggler. Heartbroken, grief-stricken, and perhaps even in denial, Nico spends the next 5 years engaging with the Zakuulan underworld until at last he learns of Hanie's resurface. Determined to never let her out of his sight again, he finds her through his good friend Hylo Viz. At first, he attempts to talk her out of her quest, but when he realizes just how important her victory is, and just how determined she is to finish it, he resolves himself to help her however he can. Ever Since, Nico and Hanie have been inseparable, just as they were when she was a child. Nico operates their mutual ship when Hanie performs her tasks using the Gravestone, and refuses to sit on the sidelines during the bold missions Hanie volunteers herself for. Together, they will bring the fight to Arcann and maybe when its all said and done, they can finally relax.

Omg hahahahaha

Awesome replies!!! Such good ideas. I hadn't noticed the pattern of LI getting their own chapter, but makes sense. I bet we'll see a LI and 1-2 non-LI companions come back, kinda how Vette and Gault came back together. Really awesome replies you guys!!

So another starship? Or something you do locally? I'm imagining having a walker or some kind of land vehicle for some reason. There are the legacy perks that give you access to banks, mail, repairs, etc in the field. I wouldn't be against a new ship, so long as I have choices and can customize it.

What an awesome thread! Thanks so much for posting this one. I have two accounts, one that has a Main pub and a Main imp, a pure darkside, (Juggernaut) and a pure lightside (Sage). My second account is just a bank, crafters, slaves, etc. I also own a guild on each side and spend basically all my time focusing on these two characters and beefing up my empty guilds xD First Character - Cayde Rendar - Bounty Hunter This guy is probably the closest thing to a 'main' that I have. Since I'm on an RP server I have a pretty intricate storyline developed for them (though I don't do much RP, I just like writing stories). If you've played through the Smuggler storyline, you know that you're basically an underworld high-end and infamous smuggler that makes a name for himself through his quick wit, trusty blaster, and perhaps even a bit of luck. Well, imagine if that smuggler did all those same things, except also hunted people down for money, and generally funded much of his adventures through the capture of targets, in addition to being the smuggler we all know. That's the gist for my Bounty Hunter. Even in game, I've built him a measurement of wealth befitting a high profile smuggler crime lord and bounty hunter extraordinaire. Since the game's release I've made it a point to collect two versions of every armor set that has come out in the game via the cartel. One set I bind to my legacy, the other I keep in storage (hence the 2nd account). Additionally, I use all of the crafting producers to generate revenue and make my Bounty Smuggler rival the king of Dubrillion. If you've ever watched the anime Outlaw Star, I take much of his character from Gene Starwind. He travels around as this Space Pirate meets Smuggler meets Bounty Hunter meets Ex-Soldier/Mercenary type. I've replaced many of his original companions with others (ironically that we now have in KOTFE!) in his story, and added some special weapons to help him handle force users. When I write about the force users, I do an extra-special job of making sure they are all just a little pompous and arrogant about the force, especially when talking to a "low-life" non-force user like my dude. His official story is that he was the leader of the Republic Special Forces group Zero Squad; who specialized in Black Ops and Covert Strikes with the SIS. When the Havoc Squad situation occurs, Zero Squad is lost and Cayde is wounded (loses half an arm, and an eye) and as such is fitted with a cybernetic arm and advanced implants that Mako (yes I kept her) helped him discover during her search for her past. I altered their meeting slightly, in that Jewel'a Nightbringer found Cayde abandoned on the harsh environments of Sullust in a damaged escape pod, and recruited an as-of-yet unsuspecting Mako to program and initiate the Implants. Mako never saw Cayde, so their meeting later on through Braden has much more depth to it. His choices are a mix of light and dark, typically favoring money, pragmatism, and self interest. He doesn't needlessly kill people, but doesn't tolerate betrayals. He's typically much nicer to non-force users, loyal to team mates and squad mates even if they're wrong or screw up, but has no problems casting someone away. In KOTFE I made the pragmatic, yet clearly immoral choice of allowing Kaliyo to strike her secondary targets, which really pissed off Koth. My BH really liked Koth and OOC I put a lot of effort maxing his reputation. I had a lingering feeling the 'main characters' were not going to be as permanent, and we see examples of this with Koth and Senya. I'm waiting for when Theran and Lana bail on me. Second Character - Trent Jaston - Trooper Having been in the military for many years, I was drawn to this character in a lot of ways. Like my bounty hunter, I wrote a pretty extensive story line for this guy and I've tried my best to intertwine the stories of both characters, while keeping them separated in their own right. I don't want one to seem like a companion of the other, you know? His back story is more along the game's storyline; the Havoc Squad story, except that he was in Zero Squad prior to his transfer to Havoc just prior to Zero Squad's difficulty. Following Zero Squad's supposed defeat, Trent was recruited by Havoc Squad (the unbeknownst adversary of Zero Squad). Then the process of discovering them via the Trooper storyline has a little more depth and is a little more personal. Unlike the Bounty Hunter, this guy is a soldier through and through. Only cares about his the mission, his team, and the Republic -- in that order. If given the choice to save someone or complete the mission, he chooses the mission unless both are possible. When given the choice between his team mates and the Republic, he chooses his team mates. Makes for interesting dynamics as he butts heads with a lot of political parties who don't understand war. I loved reading about everyone's mains and how they play them; the vast and dynamic way people play this game is so unique. Thanks again for making this thread, it's a gem.

I'm really not sure what they're planning for the considerable number of companions that have yet to return in the story line. With the next expansion around the corner, I thought it would be fun to come up with some plausible stories on how they could come back. Let's look at who's back and who isn't as of Chapter 16. Let me know if I miss one! Key: (R) = Romance Option (SR) = Secondary Romance Option (Less Chosen) (N) = Not Recruitable Empire Republic So with that in mind, let's look at trending. Based on what I've seen, very few Force using companions have returned (Just Xalek, really, and technically Guss.......), and only a very small number of romance options have come back (None for the Males, unless you count Kaliyo.) I'm thinking that maybe the force users could come back as their respective orders begin making their rising come back. I kind of expect Ashara, Nadia, Jaesa, and Kira to be together doing their Jedi thing, if you picked good Jaesa, or to see bad Jaesa coming in on the Sith along with Scourge perhaps. But what about non-forcey companions? A smuggler comeback is needed for Andronikos, Skadge, and Risha, a "soldier" comeback with Iresso, Rusk, Corso, Dorne, and others. I'm curious what everyone thinks on potential story twists they might see coming involving what we know. Thanks!

Thanks for your "contribution". I appreciate your reply. Jagaimee made some great points and it makes a lot more sense. Thanks a bunch.

I had never realized how incredibly disliked Koth was! Thanks for all your replies everyone.

Thanks for your reply. I guess that makes sense. They could always give us a new, post-KOTFE ship that isn't the Gravestone. My Mantis is a ghost town without my people standing around anyway.

Exactly. I think they're assuming we're not intelligent human beings, or that we're incapable of negotiating obstacles like that, so we're off to the forums to complain. But the truth is that we can negotiate it.. but that we have to at all is the real issue. One that should be voiced. Thanks for your reply.

Ahh.. Alright. I guess I expected that there would've been a bigger hype, or a bigger event, about Korriban being attacked and that Marr would've mentioned it in lieu of/alongside of the Emperor's discovery. That's just personal opinion. Rereading the conversation between Valkorian and Thexan, then Thexan and Arcann, it's hard to tell when it is happening based on contextual clues. Thanks for your reply, that helps a lot.

Introduction Hello fellow lore enthusiasts. I'm curious if one of you might review my understanding of the events leading into KOTFE. Here's the timeline chain of events as I understand them: Prelude into Knights of the Fallen Empire 1. Tython/Korriban. 2. Manaan. 3. Rakata Prime. 4. Rishi events happen. 5. Yavin IV. 6. Ziost. The Conflict During these stages we're ultimately exposed to Vitiate through Revan's desire to end him. Whether or not Revan could have accomplished his goal remains a debate I dare not invite. But we know that at the end of it all, the Vitiate departs Ziost into reaches unknown. Thus begins our search for the Emperor. As we begin Knights of the Fallen Empire, this is where I am losing track of the timeline. We drift through the edges of Wild Space and, as of yet, the Eternal Empire has not attacked the galaxy in full force. The evidence of this is overwhelming; no planet other than a few outlying settlements were attacked. Darth Marr makes regular reference to hunting the Emperor. There are no references to the Eternal Empire at all in game at the point. No world event or story line directed us to consider Zakuul and the Eternal Empire were even remotely a thing. All we knew was we wanted to kill the Emperor before he could hurt more people. Consider these points: 1. In the , brothers Arcann and Thexan are assaulting both the Republic and the Empire on the field of battle; Thexan even goes so far as to have a mini-lore piece where he discusses his thoughts on battle (posted here on swtor.com) 2. , we see Arcann and Thexan, still twins, stepping through Republic and Imperial forces alike, from Trooper to Eradicator. 3. , we see the forces of the Eternal Empire invading a blue world, which I believe to be Alderaan. 4. This continues across key places in the galaxy we all know, , and most importantly, . 5. On Korriban, the Sith Empire manages to nearly fatally wound Arcann, and he is fitted with his mask and robotic arm, all the while holding Thexan's hand for support, which is the cinematic's recurring theme, from when they were boys until the very end. Anytime Arcann needed help, Thexan was there. As we begin Knights of the Fallen Empire, none of these events could possibly have happened yet. Korriban wasn't invaded, nor was Alderaan or Hoth. Or any other world. As of yet, we had no clue who or what the Eternal Empire was and no full force resistance had as-of-yet occurred. Darth Marr explains that if they manage to find a threat, he can press the Dark Council into line and implores the Republic [player] to do the same. Yet when Arcann approaches Valkorian to tell him of our forces, he has his mask and cybernetic arm. Thexan has already died in Arcann's rage. Valkorian already accepted Arcann as his son following his actions with Thexan. The events of the cinematic are indisputably over. I have scoured every resource I can think of.. When could the events in the cinematic possibly have happened? The invasion could not have happened before we go into carbonite, because we were not invaded, even in the beginning of KOTFE, we had never seen the Eternal Empire at all up to that point. It would make the most sense and would fit perfectly if the invasion happened AFTER we go into Carbonite, except that Arcann has his mask, Thexan is dead, and Valkorian is betrayed and defeated by Arcann all BEFORE we go into Carbonite. After we're freed from Carbonite, Lana goes into detail about the invasion; the worlds were defeated easily, the Eternal Empire battled both simultaneously in full force and defeated them with ease. This sounds EXACTLY like the invasion scenes we see in the cinematic and would match them perfectly. Here in lies the inconsistency. How it Should've Ended Given this information, there's only two explanations I can think of. Neither of them are appropriately represented in the game, but if either of these were to have been the story, the remainder of KOTFE would have still fallen in line. Actual Story We search for the Emperor in Wild Space, are attacked and captured easily by Arcann, who is already wounded by an invasion that never happened across planets that haven't seen the Eternal Empire yet. Valkorion dies and Arcann takes over, we get thrown into carbonite for 5 years and the Eternal Empire invades the galaxy in our absence. We awaken to a changed galaxy under Zakuulan rule. Alternate Scenario 1 The Eternal Empire invades before we go looking. Events leading up to KOTFE could have included Arcann and Thexan's campaign across the Core Worlds. Perhaps a chapter after Ziost introducing the attacks as a mysterious force we didn't understand and couldn't compete against. We take our Empire/Republic alliance and set out into Wild Space to find not only the Emperor because of the events on Ziost, but the source of this enemy that has ravaged our worlds as well. The Reveal of the KOTFE trailer gives us the exposition we needed with contextual clues perhaps even more relevant it did in reality, and we'd know who Arcann is as their campaign would have occurred before KOTFE's release. Darth Marr explains the attacks in force, Arcann doesn't make his snide comment about 'you didnt even know who you were invading', and we'd be on a mission greater than just finding the Emperor. Scenario 2 The Eternal Empire invades after we're in carbonite. The events remained as they were -- with no build up other than the events on Ziost -- and we go in search of the Emperor and encounter the Eternal Empire as we did. When we're captured, we encounter not post-cybernetic Arcann, but Arcann and/or Thexan prior to their campaign across the core worlds. We encounter the Emperor, Marr bites it, and we get wounded and frozen in carbonite because, perhaps, an attack from Republic/Empire or something happens and we'll be handled later. During this time, the entirety of the cinematic occurs, including the invasion, Thexan's death and Arcann's wounds. We return from Carbonite with Lana's help, and during our escape, we are recaptured by the Emperor, we make our fateful choice to join or not join him and the Valkorian dies and is absorbed within us. In the commotion, Koth and Lana managed to exact our escape in a subsequently damaged shuttle. In a comatose state following Valkorian's power transfer, we experience the dream sequence with Valkorian, including Valkorian's ability to modify our experience of time, and awaken as the shuttle crashes in the Endless Swamp. We make our way, wounded and dazed, through the Gravestone story and Lana's exposition describes the details of the Eternal Throne's rampage while our players were in carbonite and the story picks up from there. I'm interested to hear everyone's thoughts on this. If there's something I'm missing here, please let me know. If you can shed some light on this for me, that'd be great! Cheers.

Thanks for your reply. I'll resign myself to it I guess. That it's mentioned, and that we've had this discussion in a space that it can be seen, is about all any of us can do. If nothing else, at least I'm not alone in disliking the whole thing.

Well, maybe it's me -- and perhaps the East Coast highway system -- but I've rarely had those issues. Though, I'll say I've had them coming out of Indiana a lot, oddly. Avoiding the PA Turnpike is something I try to do with every long trip. My GPS does a pretty good job of avoiding them. I've had some that didn't, or that forced me to take toll roads. I traded them out. That said, It sounds to me like your GPS taking you to places you didn't want to go was frustrating. That it not giving you the options to decide whether or not you wanted to go through an area based on a condition caused to lose time. While we might not be able to fix the GPS in real life, we can certainly fix the routing capabilities of the in-game map, so as not to repeat the same frustrations the GPS gave you. Unless, of course, you prefer to repeat those frustrating events over and over in game as well as in real life.

That's great, and you should feel fortunate that that situation is the one you typically find yourself in. However, getting flagged for PVP does happen on other realms, the guards can and do 1 shot you depending on where you're going, what planet you're on, etc, and the system still routes you through Imperil bases, often when there is another route nearby that isn't going through player zones. Whether or not negotiating the Imperial base is possible matters little. Those who enjoy world PVP attack bases all the time. But that the map, which is your only indication on where you ought to go (because while you're questing, the zone is completely hidden) leads you into a situation that it ought not to, is inherently a flawed system. The "shortest route / working as intended" reply seems ambiguous at best; arbitrarily I could argue that it is a much longer route from a time standpoint, given the need to negotiate the enemy base. Perhaps from a distance s tandpoint, it is. But that the system wasn't designed to avoid running people through their enemies bases without giving that said person any way of opting out of going through it short of discovering it's a base and turning around, then probing for another entrance, is a broken system. I shouldn't have to go to Google to find out where a hidden pathway was, or how people jumped across a cliff, or probe the countryside blindly for a way to where the map is telling me to go.

Thanks for your replies. My point here is a map router that runs you through bases of people that can one shot you -- or be a considerable challenge (nevermind it flagging you for PVP, and the potential for enemy players) is a broken system. At least include some kind of indicator that says it's a hostile route vs a non-hostile route. In real life, when you use a GPS to navigate somewhere, if you want to avoid tolls, you choose that as an option. A GPS that forces you to go through tolls when there are non-toll roads is a bad GPS and one you'd likely not use again. Now, applying this same concept to our routing, we can replace the word 'tolls' with 'hostile forces'. You get the gist.