The system will be tolerable for me if they allow you to rip out armorings and put them anywhere to get the set bonus. That is the only way it will be mildly alright to gear up. If armorings are locked to specific pieces then just ripping mods is pointless and you would be better off destroying the item and trying to reroll. We will hopefully be able to craft or buy earpiece, relic, implant and hilt but the armorings with the set bonuses are going to be the biggest pain to get if they don't allow us to freely swap them in and out of legacy gear.

Posted this in the main thread but I had the same idea. Actually they could keep the entire system unchanged except add a guaranteed token drop from each crate and then let you cash in once you have earned enough tokens. So if RNG works in your favor then you can use the tokens to gear for alt characters or for a different spec. If it doesn't work in your favor then you can save up for what you want. Any change in which players actually get a choice on how to gear is what is most important. Funny how they say choices matter in terms of your story and character but then when it comes to gear they take all the choice away from players.

Since you ask for feedback I might as well add yet another suggestion for how to change the command crates so they work better and eliminate some of the RNG. How about every time you disintegrate an item you get command points but you also get some sort of commendation or currency which you could then accumulate enough of to buy whatever item you wanted off of a gear vendor. It won't take all the RNG out, but it seems like a solution where if you get duplicates or gear with stats you don't want you can scrap it and after scrapping 2-3 pieces of gear you can then have enough to buy the gear you need. The disintegrate feature in and of itself seems lacking and if you are going to put in the time and effort to rank up and then get nothing in return but a head start on the next level it doesn't seem worth it. If you had any alternate path to getting gear as well as expanding on the current system I think many more people would be accepting of this idea. I personally like the entire concept but like many others the RNG basis of gear with no choice is always going to be against what players feel is fair or acceptable especially if you are trying to encourage more engagement.

Well Bioware doesn't have good communication. Whether he is responsible for that or not is unknown but when they do communicate part of that responsibility is on him. For all the questions he has answered so far there are about 100 more really important things we still don't know about the galactic command system that didn't get answered in the stream/blog. How is the rank system set up how many points per level, is the gear scaling linearly on command rank or on a tier system, how many points per fp/op, how many points for disintegrating items, what other items drop in a command pack, how many items total per pack, is the stash per account or per character. None of these have been answered so far and that isn't even getting into other questions about WHY the devs are doing the changes which I also feel it is part of his job to communicate the reasoning behind dev decisions if the devs themselves don't want to explain it. Making tank/dps gear both drop from crates for example seems without logic and I would like to get an explanation about why they did that or if they will change it. They shouldn't unveil a system or plan this expansion if there is like a month before launch and they only half way even explain how it works.

The system itself isn't the problem. The overall concept of rewarding people for their own play style I have no problem with and the idea and system I actually really like the idea of. The problem is that they have the worst type of progression for the system in RNG and that it also marginalizes f2p and preferred which is going to shrink the player base and make ever getting queue pops even harder which will then hurt progression even more. Basically the way they designed the system works against the underlying idea. The goal is wanting more players to play all different types of content and for them to feel rewarded regardless of what they are doing. The way it is set up though you get randomly rewarded for doing content which may not even be a reward if you already have everything in the box and f2p and preferred have no point of playing at all once the finish the story.

Why? Classes with more than just dps get screwed and could take twice as long to gear if they get worthless stats. This is obviously such a no brainer dumb thing to do why would I play tank if I have a 50% chance of getting dps gear on every thing. Basically marauders will gear twice as fast as every other AC if you don't change this.

The thing is they already know RNG is a problem because they removed it from the game for the crystal and token system now they are going back to something that doesn't work. They can make changes easily within 6 weeks or start working on a patch to fix it now rather than having months of a broken system only for it to get fixed in 5.5 or something. There are plenty of simple changes that I don't think take months of work to fix. People have thought up dozens of ways to improve upon the system surely if Bioware just listened they could find a solution that works from both a developer and player standpoint. Even a small change where every 10 ranks or something you can choose any gear you want would be a much welcome change. Also they conveniently left out tons of info such as how many command points it takes to level, how much do you get per mission type, how much do you get for disintegrating gear etc. If you get 1 rank per flashpoint and multiple ranks per operation it won't be so bad but I highly doubt it will be that simple and I imagine disintegrating gear is going to give you like 1/10 of a rank or something stupid.

I think everyone agrees RNG is a bad idea. Hopefully they change this before or immediately after launch because people will burn out as soon as they get duplicate drops ten times in a row trying to fill their last slot. Since they move to packs that means they can easily change what drops from packs. IMO every pack should let you choose at least one piece of gear and then have everything else in it be random. Or at least let us choose from different types of packs to cut RNG. The fact that they didn't actually show what is in a pack on stream means it is still TBD and hopefully they don't launch 5.0 with a broken system in place.

Add a certain number of tokens per crate. Like how every cartel crate or whatever comes with some jawa junk make every command crate come with galactic junk. You can use that junk to buy the gear you need but the gear vendors require a certain rank so you can't just save up junk to buy your tier 3 mainhand straight away. I've posted and seen dozens of solutions to what is currently a very flawed system in the way bioware has described it. I really hope they actually listen to the players like they say they do and make some changes before or immediately after launch.

Please don't make this RNG. As everyone else has stated it is a terrible idea and will only cause problems. The comm system was working fine for a long long time and now you are just going back to the past for no reason. Simple solution is add another way to get gear via a token or points system independent of the crates or let you choose from crates to get the gear you want. You can have the cosmetic gear, companion gifts or whatever be random but stat gear should never be random if you want any kind of actual progression or incentive to play.

I found a way to remedy this problem maybe. Keep gear vendors but make galactic command rank be a requirement to purchase the gear. You can still have the RNG crates but once you reach a certain command rank you can then just buy the gear with credits in case you got unlucky or somehow didn't get a drop you need. So lets say from rank 1-30 you get tier one gear but once you hit rank 30 you can then just buy as much tier one as you want. Then once you hit rank 75 you unlock tier 2 and once you hit 100 you get tier 3. And then you can have an additional tier for rank 100 only through rng boxes like how 224 gear got introduced in kofte. There needs to be a separate path to get gear aside from RNG. It is a major step backward and will really hurt any player motivation if there is only a single RNG path for gear acquisition. I know you mention crafting but most crafted items on par with gear from vendors requires millions of credits which will still lock out f2p and preferred players unless items will be much easier to craft and have lower prices than currently. As it stands you are going to alienate all f2p and preferred players from end game since they have no reason to play as well as drive motivation for subs down since they have nothing to work towards with everything depending on RNG. This system needs to be fixed before launch or else you are going to have a month of activity and then dead servers once everyone finishes the story since there isn't even a reason to keep playing.

If commendations are being removed then what is the point of doing any quests pre-70? What is taking the spot of comm rewards for all quests? At level 70 I assume you just get bonus points for doing weeklies but if I have a level 65 with full comms how is that going to get transferred if I can't even access galactic command until level 70? Will I get a bunch of crates once I ding 70 or will I start above rank 1? Also what will happen to the existing comm vendors and their gear both in terms of getting those appearances and whether anything will replace them? Seems odd that an entire section of the fleet will now be empty if all gear is now acquired only through galactic command.

Need to know if gear is based on mods and can be transferred via legacy shells. Your galactic command and legacy systems will work against each other if you can't extract the mods from new gear and transfer it. Why even play on alt characters if you have to max out galactic command on each one and get no benefit from playing on your main once you have full gear. Also there needs to be a better system in place besides just random drops. You should be able to disintegrate items you don't need in order to get ones you do need rather than just having RNG dictate everything. Also please tell me the game knows if you are tank spec or not so you don't get worthless gear because that means any class with tank or heal spec will gear up slower than dps spec if you get the wrong type of drop. I play pretty much only heroics and tacticals right now so I actually like the system but it also seems to have some big flaws in that this is the only way to get gear. There should definitely be a secondary path of some kind from comms, boss drops or other means. Having gear being entirely RNG based from boxes is guaranteed to cause unhappy players. I mean why would I want to grind heroics, fp, or ops for my next level only to get total trash drops. It makes people want to quit playing if there is no guarantee you will get the gear you need/want eventually. That is why games implement commendation systems to begin with and you are taking a step back.

I really hope they fix this. I could have sworn I locked in my romance with lana but then I get to ch. 16 and realize I didn't get the romance scene. There are some definite bugs with this since I could have sworn I had locked the scene in previously. Now I have to roll another character just to get an inquisitor with the romance working properly. I really hope KOTET adds in the ability to change your romance status or replay the old chapters if you missed it. I'm all for having choices matter but it doesn't make sense when important options are not made very clear and you have only one chance at them. Hell make romancing Lana a dark/light choice at least then we will know for sure if we are locked into the relationship or not.

I created a new main character since I missed the Lana romance on my previous main and wanted a Togruta main. I made sure 100% to romance Lana and lock it after I finished Chapter 9. Then just recently I've been played through the final remaining chapters up to chapter 16 to have my main ready for the next expansion. I first finished KOFTE on an alt so I know that there is a Lana romance scene at the start of Ch.16 and I was shocked when I didn't get it on my main and then checked Lana's status and she wasn't tagged as being in a relationship. Now I'm pretty much 100% certain I locked in this romance I have level 50 affection with Lana I made sure to choose all the flirt options along the way but somehow my relationship doesn't exist at Ch. 16 anymore. Any one have any problems with the relationship resetting on them inbetween chapters or patches? Again I'm nearly 100% certain I did not miss this option during Chapter 9 but somehow in chapter 16 the romance flag has suddenly disappeared.

Just adding support for some helmets would be great. Would love to be able to have support for eyepatch, goggle, scouter and other helms in the game that wouldn't clip or cause problems or add a new category/make it part of the jewelry option for glasses, goggles, or cybernetics. Also please add some complexion options or make up options. Just having the 2 tone face patterns is a bit annoying and flat when it would be more detailed and realistic to have the option for different colored lips, eye shading etc.

You realize that in the comics and cartoons that the characters eyes actually change size, squint, and do things that are impossible for an actual costume to do because it is necessary for emotion right? You can't do this with 3D animation the way you do it in 2D so that is why you need an actual eye. Also Vader, Boba and most characters with full masks either are stoic ******es who don't show emotion anyway or have amazing voice acting along with it. The change isn't necessary but it wouldn't hurt anything either. I wonder how much Lucasfilm influences the game at all. We know for stuff like Togruta that Bioware had to follow the canon portrayal established in the clone wars series, but I wonder if they would even be forced to add or retcon the way Chiss look. T SWTOR is the only star wars story to cross over after the Disney purchase so they are in a unique and challenging position of having to respect previous legends material they pulled from while also incorporating new canon stuff as it is introduced. They know that Kylo Ren's saber is from the old republic so they added that I would love to see more stuff like that in the future.

More group finder content. Basically work on converting all the game content to have solo, tactical and hard modes. In the announcement it said that the new expansion will be co-op I hope that instead of the existing chapter based system that each "chapter" functions more like a flashpoint or heroic instead that you can queue for. Then update and convert existing content where you can queue in group finder for a planet's heroics and they automatically get added to your quest log as you complete each one. Be able to replay season 1 on hard mode in a group. Group finder for star fortress, eternal championship etc. So have bosses and difficulty modes for each chapter and then be able to replay the chapter multiple times. Maybe you have to play through on solo mode first and whatever decisions you make are official to your character but then you can play through again with a group.

I would like to see new abilities but rather than needing a new slot on the bar make them replacements or where you have to choose from different variations of an ability. So currently you upgrade from shock to ball lightning another level or variation of an ability for each class would be cool to see as your character progresses in power. Or make shock and ball lightning two different skills with different properties. Maybe ball lightning no longer stuns weak enemies but it explodes in an AOE and you have to choose between the two of them. Or introduce light/dark variants of abilities that you can choose between that would have cosmetic only differences. Lots of ways to introduce new stuff without increasing the quickbars.

Almost all the armor clips and with every new set of cartel items it gets worse. Coding the engine to have collision detection on stuff like capes and robes would probably involve a lot of coding but it still doesn't make sense how if my clothes can move when I jump why can't they move properly when I'm on a speeder or wearing some robes. Just FYI preview all items before buying and do so with weapon drawn since when you have your weapon out causes a lot more clipping issues due to the stance. I was really excited about the skirt from the handmaidens set but sadly seems like 90% of the chest pieces one part or another clips through it.

The extra is exclusive items not attainable any place else. So even if you don't want any items from the packs, if you want the exclusive armor from the reputation vendor there is no other way to get it, not even off the GTN. Basically they just added a real world money sink into the game. You have to buy packs to get the reputation to get access to the items that you actually want since there is no direct way to purchase those items. It would be like having to buy 50 loaves of bread before the grocer allows you to buy any meat even if you never wanted to buy bread in the first place.

This is more a comment on the cartel system overall, but also has to do with the new reputation. I dislike seeing items being gated behind reputation that can only be earned through spending real/virtual currency. This alienates a subscriber base, who in reality is your most loyal customers. Under the new system if I want max reputation and access to the items sold by those vendors I would be better off taking my $15 sub fee and spending it on cartel coins and crates every month instead. You can say that subs just buy these things off of the GTN yet that is an extra expense of virtual currency where if you are F2P you get the rep for free by spending cartel coins. Basically subs are having to pay more in terms of real time/money to advance this rep path than F2P players when the premise behind subbing is that you supposedly get more value for your money not less. This system entices me to stop subbing if I really wanted items from the cartel vendors. Also I think it is a wrong decision just in terms of game design to restrict items behind this virtual gate of reputation and certificates. There is no reason to embargo items it is just another restriction. I could have been saving up my CC or credits to buy an item and then it gets embargoed and I'm out of luck. The CC market should be about offering MORE choices and gear options for players not putting up barriers and hoops people have to jump through to get what they want. The investment to get an item should be either through real money or through the time invested in earning virtual currency (credits). This new system now requires both which makes these new items prohibitively expensive, even moreso than before. All this is going to cause is hyperinflation on the GTN as people start buying up packs and make it impossible for people to acquire the items they want without serious real money and time investment. From a design philosophy it just seems crazy.

Probably won't get in answer for this but won't this basically make existing pvp gear pointless? Will War Hero be completely removed from the game? As it is now why even bother getting war hero at all if the bolster adds expertise now it means that the top tier pvp gear is the best gear and anything else is pointless. Also how will the new gear be earned? If it is by existing comms methods it will make me sad. Getting elite war hero as of now is a waste and a major grind if not simply impossible because you can't solo queue for ranked warzones. The entire pvp gearing system as it stands is convoluted and needs a total overhaul. It just seems contradictory for them to say they are trying to make the pvp system more skill based and fair when at the same time stating that new pvp gear will come out and without diminishing returns in place if you don't maximize expertise with the best gear you will still be at a significant disadvantage especially if bolster stops adding expertise at a certain level. EDIT: After seeing the new post, I'm still wondering will the stat increases be linked to player level with different tier gear at 50 and 55 with a common pvp currency or will their still be a differentiation between gear requiring valor or ranked levels.

Well I closed and restarted launcher a few times and eventually it let me through. I guess just keep trying until they figure a real solution.

After playing a bit more this is definitely my favorite event ever in SWTOR. Even though I maxed out my weekly rep and I don't really care about getting champion level or grinding for weapons since I just want the armor I still found myself playing just because of how fun the open world pvp is and the crazy stuff that can happen. I will be really sad to see this area of ilum disappear and I wish that it could become a permanent fixture of daily missions even after the event ends. You don't have previous problems like random drops or quest items taking forever to respawn like in other events and aside from that one quest you don't have to travel all over and waste a bunch of time running you actually get to play the game. Only thing I am worried about is how the reputation system functions for 1.7 after the event. I was hoping the rep system would have some more significant rewards aside from just more palette swaps of existing armor and one mini pet it was kind of disappointing since nothing really jumped out as being must have from any of the reputation vendors. I also hope that they add more stuff or ranks because you can earn a lot of rep just by doing dailies and reach the weekly cap fairly easily. I know they don't want it to be a grind but having different tiers of gear or rewards based on your rep level seems better whereas now it is really Friend you unlock the 2 armors and champion you unlock everything else with nothing for the other levels is kind of disappointing.