Me! I've been playing since Beta! Then I got the Collectors Edition as an early Christmas present... SWTOR was my first "grown up" MMO--I had only played kid ones before, including Neopets and Lego Universe. I will NEVER forget the thrill of my first companion--good old Corso--joining the crew of my first character, and the thrill when she hit 50. I have been subscribed since day 1, but I've taken a few "playing" breaks. And so much has improved over time--achievements, legacy, collections, and of course things like Galactic Strongholds and Wardrobe Designer! I'm big into QOL stuff, since I do RP. Still love the game and looking to the future (as long as the game doesn't 't go overboard in changes). More story will be AWESOME, gutting stuff like end game, dailies, crafting, would not be (at least for me).

AND......this. I am now totally worried about this....I really love how crafting works now. . . I hope that the basics will remain the same; I'd like to continue to craft for my characters and other players leveling up as well as for people at max level, so I hope that if they do anything it isn't drastic. A gal needs her credits to buy her bling. As for subscribing to my "crafting newsletter," well its all about niche markets, so I totally wouldn't be giving you very useful information (like my markets). That said, there's tons of great advice already out there, including in the crafting forum.

Thank you very much for answering my questions, Eric. And you all made me laugh with your responses to my first question, but in real life if I wake up like 20 years later, I can assure you someone else is now living in my house and driving my car! So I just wanted to make sure.

As a frequent cartel market user and owner of 4 Strongholds, would just like confirmation that we get to keep all our gear, outfits, credits, pets, vehicles, decorations and strongholds and other stuff after the expansion hits. Also, I am big into crafting --its how I've made my SWTOR fortune. Will crafting remain the same after the expansion? I am confused about it due to the information on having to "find" old companions and gaining new ones. Thanks! I'm mostly excited about the expansion, but I'm pretty attached to my characters, companions, their stuff and the in-game economy.

This. 1,000x this. As a gal who has played since beta and has been subscribed since day one; please, please let us have Theron as a companion. I think out of all the characters that have been a part of this adventure, he has been my favorite.

Well I for one have not forgotten about this. EVERY single update I go and gamble 10 tokens to see if they have fixed the abysmal drop rates, and they haven't. The entire episode has broken trust with me and the game. It won't be repaired until the slot machine is repaired. I play less, and I certainly spend less in the Cartel Market. Obviously doesn't matter one bit to the developers; I wonder how many others like me are just silent about it? Make the item fun for my Stronghold again, and trust restored. You DO NOT have to include ANY crafting materials for this to happen. How hard is it to create a few prizes and fix the win rate???

Goodness, such a bunch of negative nellies on this thread. I, for one am very excited. I LOVED the story and characters in Shadow of Revan; more of that YES and more class stories especially? Fantastic! Also super excited about the Wardrobe thing (I'm hoping this means once unlocked I'll have forever access to the armor/outfits without having to keep them in my storage AND that there is a tab that lets us change our look without losing our mods (like this...here is your armor that you want your STATS from in tab 1...and here is your armor you want your LOOK from in tab 2). Ooh...that would be sweet. ALSO super excited about a new GSH...I hope they continue to also IMPROVE those including adding more hooks and MORE INTERACTIVE ITEMS (slot machine, I'm looking at you). And yep, hoping one reason they moved the patch to Thursday is to put a stealth fix in for the existing slot). I for one am looking forward to 2015 with SWTOR and beyond.

Well, not true if they fix this one first to be fun again. Which, really, is only what most of us are asking.

You know what I'd like to see? The issue of mats being separated from the issue of making the slot machine a fun interactive GSH decoration again (and the release of future fun slot machines for the GSHs). I just want to see some new non-mat prizes and rebalanced slot win percentages. At the very LEAST put the darn token purchase back to 500 credits--750 credits is abusive given the current iteration of the machine. The fact that they have not done at least a tweak of the pay percentages///added some new prizes absolutely boggles my mind. I will assume something is in the works...otherwise, that means that Bioware 100% doesn't care about players involved in their GSHs who throw LOTS of cartel market coins at them for said decorations. Evidently, Bioware only cared about the mat-barons who were unhappy and not me and those like me. Point noted Bioware.

Right?? For instance, now you NEVER see the awesome win animation with the disco ball and the confetti. I used to dance with my companion or a friend everytime that happened. And now, nothing. Like ever. I just want the fun back for my GSH. This may seem insignificant to many of you, but this "silly" issue got me out of like, never posting on the Forums (although I read them regularly). I'm a Founder, very enthusiastic about the game overall, and have spent WAY WAY too much on the Cartel Market. I don't have any way to communicate with the devs and team, evidently (since I certainly feel all communication on this issue has been cut off) so my only way to speak is to stop buying cartel market items. Sigh. I'd much rather continue to throw my money at Bioware.

^ this, definitely this. Every day I rush to the forums when I wake up to see if there is communication and/or if the item has been fixed. Every day I am disappointed.

^ This...just this. All us pro-rebalance slot machine people want is a middle ground. So the item is once again fun, can draw peeps to our GSHs to play, and so new slots can be made (and more CC packs happily sold). I cannot for the life of me understand why this is controversial, or why it is not done. No one is asking for a free crafting mat machine again. And I'm not in a rush...all it will take will be Bioware saying "hey, we hear you, we're taking our time and we are working on it." And then they can take their time, and the next slot adjustment will be a happy middle ground which fixes the machine.

I agree with the OP 100% with one exception...most slots DO make you lose over time. They just don't make you lose as badly as the currently over-nerfed payouts do the way the slot is now. And, there is always the chance...however small...of a jackpot on good slot machines. Really, the speeder just isn't jackpot enough to make up for the overall poor payout. At MINIMUM they should reduce the slot cost back to 500 credits. At slightly more than minimum, they should tweak the payout table to be a bit higher. At "hey, we really messed up with the over-nerf and want to fix this", they should remove the crafting materials and add some other fun prizes//fix the pay table so the machine is fun again! I AM one of those people who wants to buy LOTS of slot machines and make a "working" casino in my GSH that my friends will visit. Right now, as implemented, and with the event "communication" that they are afraid to release more slot machines, I fear this will never happen and it makes me sad because it is so darn easy to fix.

^This. Just this. I am still waiting for communication from Bioware as to when this will be fixed. I am usually quite jolly about the Cartel Market and spend like a drunken sailor there...until this is fixed, I have gone stone cold sober.

I agree with everything the OP has said.