Actually, imho (just mine but it does seem to be shared by a lot of others I play with) LS Imp has some of the most interesting (and in at least one case amusing) plots in the game- far more interesting and nuanced then DS Pub plots. As for the rest... I do know that my server before the merge, we were absolutely inundated with trolls Pub side for awhile at one point,, so a lot of the more mellow players like me wound up finding our focus shifting to Imp and many might have been just like me and never bothered to try and go back. Which brings to mind that something along those lines might still be having a slight effect on your server's population. I mean, I'm not saying that Pub side is still filled with more than its share of trolls (I'm pretty sure that effect couldn't have lasted long) but, merely pointing out that it could be just one of those "cultural" things that come to hit servers and games once in a while. In other words: certain kinds of players sometimes just find themselves congregating on a certain server or playing a certain game. I mean, for example, for awhile all of the PvPers found themselves loving one server and RPers seemed to all be going to another before mergers changed the set up. So, basically, at least part of it could just be more of the folks that like Imp than like Pub just happen to find themselves all on the same server at the same time. In a year, it could easily go the other way.

Exact same thing for folk who like to do just flashpoints, or have enough time to run a few heroics once a week as well. They are officially locked out. I think that's what everyone's really complaining about because originally, Conquest was pretty much a choose-what-you-want-to-do from the available options. NOW, it's just a list of whatever metric they want to push this week. LIKE WE DON'T GET ENOUGH LISTS OF CHORES FROM OUR BOSSES AND SPOUSES. Not only is there no time for a lot of us, but there's just no incentive. Period. You could put an instant level 70 level-up, or Revan's Mask back there and the average player is either still not going to be able to do it or just doesn't want to. But, I've been thinking about it and, I've said it before so, I'll say it again: They want to get rid of the average player with jobs and children so they can go after those kids' allowance money. Rightly or wrongly, they want that hard core, die-hard, I-am-always-at-my-computer kids because, for whatever reason, they have obviously determined that's where the money is instead of the average joe dropping a couple of $20s on the CM once in awhile. So, they are redesigning the game around that and that is what they mean when they keep talking about how the CQ is a big part of that "new direction" that they are taking the game in. . If you have kids, if you have jobs, if you have anything at all that takes you away from your keyboard for whatever reason, They. Don't. Care. And, it's pretty obvious that is their attitude to. They are making this game over into a "real game" for "real gamers" and anyone else might as well just leave as far as they are concerned.

I've posted this in another thread so, I should probably post it here for those who are wondering: What in the heck are they thinking?! I have gone through some of the posts from the developers that changed the Conquest system and like everyone else, been experiencing and hearing about the results and, the only conclusion that I can possibly come to is that they just don't want solo players or players with outside responsibilities any longer. I mean, the posts are there for all to read, they wanted CQ to require nightly playing and serious planning by large teams of people. They have also been quite forthright in their declarations that this is the way the game is going to go from now on. Now, granted, sadly, this, by definition excludes anyone else but they have already declared that they do not care about that fact. They want massive guilds going at it hammer and tongs and kids strapped to their keyboards 24/7 and anyone who cannot or does not want to take part in that is not welcome any longer. Rightly or wrongly, they have rolled the dice and made their bet and they have bet on kids with lots of time on their hands and against folks with jobs, responsibilities or even physical limitations that don't allow them to log in all day, every day. Granted, we can argue on which group has more money to burn (and who has been burning that money) on CM purchases and subscriptions but, I doubt that is going to change their minds in their decision that it is NOT the older crowd. It's sad and it sucks but, they are obviously moving the game in a direction that precludes a lot of us from participating in the majority of it because there will just be no way that we can advance enough in what little time that we can spend on it and do not care if we leave or not because they are betting that they can pull in 10 more hardcore raiders that don't have full time jobs or children to take care of than they currently have folks who can only play on week ends or in small groups. In short, they have already TOLD us what they are thinking and that is that they just don't want us. Personally, I've just started advising folks that it's time to just start shopping for something more friendly to play because this is not the first MMO in the world that has changed direction in order to deliberately shut out the solo/small team/limited time player in order to favor folks with large guilds and lots of time (I also doubt it's going to be the last either). And these kinds of shifts against folks with kids and jobs have never been stoppable once the developers have decided that those kinds of players are not wanted. So, imho, I honestly think it's best to start looking for somewhere to move now rather than after you've already sunk even more time and money into a game that is just going to get steadily more unplayable as you find yourself locked out of more and more content with each successive change. Because that is where the game is going, that is where they have SAID that the game is going and that is, indeed, where the game is going to go. Now, I'll grant that, maybe we are even more sickened by this development because, I have got to admit that of all of the MMOs that I have ever played over the years, I had never seen one so friendly to us before but, the facts are the facts straight from them. This game has indeed been officially declared not friendly to us anymore by the developers themselves and, sadly, nothing is going to change that fact. It was nice while it lasted- heck, it was great while it lasted but, for us? It's over.

That's a complaint as old as MMO's. It's the way things used to be done so.... for the first expansions that's the way they did it. They got away from that idea for awhile (thankfully!) but, unfortunately, from what I've come to understand about the direction of the game is supposed to be going from this point forward, they not only want to get back to that, they want to double down by turning it into a hard core raider oriented game. What they're going to do about story... I have no idea but, with the changes to the end game content recently and the ones that are promised in the future as well as their frequent use of the words "new direction", I'm not sure that's their primary focus anymore.

Actually, judging from the proposed "fixes" that's not going to change- in fact, it's going to get worse because looking back at what the Eric's been posting, SWTOR no longer wants folks with kids and jobs and responsibilities playing this game anymore. I mean, he's flat-out said that he wants CQ to require nightly logging in and that this new CQ system is part of the "new direction" that he is taking the game in . So, that tells me that folks who need to help their kids with their homework, or work late a lot, or have to care for aging parents, or even just have disabilities that make it physically impossible for them to log in on a nightly basis are no longer considered valuable parts of the game. Which is fine, I mean, don't get me wrong, there SHOULD be games out there that are geared towards keeping the kids tied to their keyboards 24/7. It is, after all, a huge part of what being a young gamer is all about- practically living over your keyboard and almost going through withdrawal symptoms when you can't. Still, as folks get older, responsibilities do eventually encroach and you start putting your money towards games that are more friendly to your new time requirements. And, there should be games for those folks too and, I have to admit that I'm grateful that these days there a lots of different games out there that are for those folks too. I do have to point out though that I think that part of the problem is that, for the longest time, SWTOR was extraordinarily friendly towards the latter type of player and now it suddenly isn't so, I hardly think that it's fair to be surprised that the 180 reversal is giving some folks whiplash. I mean, as far as they're concerned,they woke up one morning and were suddenly told that they weren't welcome anymore. I mean, I do NOT blame folks for being ticked off because the "fixes" that are coming still are still specifically designed to exclude them. People know when their gaming style isn't wanted because it's in the system. It's in the way that the points are tallied and the rolls come out, it's in the way the missions are set up and in the way that the bosses are designed, it's in every, single part of the game and this new CQ system is telling all of it's players that this is now a young kids with lots of time only game. So, I guess that we should be grateful that it was fun while it lasted and that, these days, there are lots of other games for those of us with time constraints for us to go to. I mean, for my part, I had to "move" when City of Heroes declared the same thing so, recognizing the signs, I know that all of these changes just mean that now it's time to "move" from here as well. And, after a lot of thought throughout yesterday and today, I realize that I'm okay with that. I mean, I am absolutely sure that I'll probably even have to "move" quite a few more times before I go off to play with the Great Grand Game Master in the sky so, getting told that my kind of playing is no longer wanted, is hardly anything I should let upset me too much. I mean, it's not like Eric hasn't been honest about the fact that he doesn't want this game to be for players who can't log in on a daily basis, now is it? So, points to him for being honest. The misunderstanding was on our part and not his. After all, re-reading through his posts again this morning, I realized that he has been very clear that he does not want this game for folks who just can't grind on a daily basis from the very beginning. And, yeah, that does indeed mean that, by definition, folks who fit that category of not being able to log in are strictly not wanted anymore. So all of this has indeed made it crystalline clear that the game is indeed going into a direction that some of us just cannot follow. And, that is their right. I mean, those of us who aren't wanted anymore have just got to realize that there are other games out there and just let the kids with time on their hands have this one because we are the adults and, we should act like it. Yes, the way that went about this changeover was definitely not the best of ways that it could have gone but, they were honest and, we should acknowledge that and plan accordingly. This game is going over to a hardcore only direction and those of us who can't play like that are no longer welcome, so we should admit that it was fun while it lasted and move on instead of crying about how those mean hardcore kids don't want us to play. No, it isn't fair and yes, it is indeed mean but, tears aren't going to make this game friendly to us again. Eric has spoken and he has told us in no uncertain terms that we are not wanted and, it is, as simple as that. At least, that's my take on it all at any rate.

IKR?! When they originally put out CQ, it was supposed to be solo-friendly, a way for folks who liked to solo or could only play on weekends to help out their guild. Now, they just got the middle finger. Worst part is that there's honest-to-goodness REAL rewards that folks with jobs and lives would really love but they'll never hope to get- like an instant Influence Rank 50 for their companion or decos for their SHs. I mean, talk about a nice F.U. to solo/small team players in small guilds. Frankly, at this point, I'm coming to the conclusion that the "new direction" that the game is going in is hardcore, big guild only and as far as they're concerned, everyone else can go play something that's else.

Shroud of Memory was actually kinda fun. As for what to do after finishing everything- Well, unless you can log in daily and/or are in a huge guild so can do a bunch of group content: Reroll an alt Seriously. It used to be you could at least do CQ to help out your guild but that's been revamped to make that impossible unless you can either play every day or can do a ton of teaming. Without that? You're pretty much down to generating funds with heroics and the occasional GF flashpoint.

Hear! Hear! I think that's the problem that folks are running into. CQ used to be about playing your way and still being able to help your guild. Now? That's gone. You have to look at this huge list of things that you have to do- a lot of which you can't if you're in a small guild that only has a few folks on at a time and/or are a more solo orientated player and that is preventing a lot of them from being able to hit their goals. Some folks just cannot log in daily, I'm sorry but, they just can't and, those are usually the more solo-orientated players who are mostly in? Yep, small guilds. That's a whole hunk of folks that just got told F.U.

Worst part is, as I found out- it is completely locking the more solo players and small guilds from ever being able to participate- like, AT ALL. Neither the guilds NOR the players can make any of the goals so, they're just walking away from the whole thing completely because what's the point? You're never going to complete it so, why bother?

Actually, according to my calculations, it's a little cheaper and a whole lot faster but what does it matter? With this new system AND all of the bugs that game with it, almost no one's able to hit their damned goals anyway....

I don't know what he SAID but the RESULTS are that solo players and small guilds and people who can't log in daily are being locked out of participating in the whole CQ system because NO ONE CAN REACH THEIR GOALS ANYMORE. This: once per day per legacy bunk is pure and unadulterated nonsense. This is insane! I mean the amount of time required is just crazy. Don't they realize that the age of the average gamer is 35 years old?! That means that folks have kids, jobs, LIVES away from this game and this kind of insane requirement to make an objective is just ensuring that none of them can EVER make that objective. So, why on EARTH would they even bother? The net result of this is that people aren't making their personal goals and guilds- particularly SMALL guilds, aren't hitting THEIR goals either as a result, SO PEOPLE ARE JUST WALKING AWAY FROM IT COMPLETELY. I'm serious too, I'm in a LOT of small guilds and NONE OF THEM HAVE BEEN ABLE TO HIT THEIR GOAL. And, I can't help either anymore because- Hey! lookit that! One mission per legacy per day.... I used to be all about doing CQ's and now? I can't even LOOK at the damned screen anymore. It's disgusting and it's mean and it's just plain wrong to lock out small guilds and anyone with a life outside of the game like this. I have subbed since 6 months after launch and I am seriously just considering walking the hell away from this crap because if THIS is the "new direction" they are going to go in I might as well just save my money now because anything from this point forward is going to be large guild and hardcore raiders only.

I should probably add that from what I'm hearing on Discord, this One heroic per legacy per day is apparently locking solo players and small guilds out of being able to even participate.

All I know is that this daily lockout is making it impossible for mostly solo players and small guilds to hit any objective at any time so why in the hell even bother? You're never, ever, ever, ever, ever gonna get to that objective anyway. And all of the bugs are just making this lockout even worse: it's a total guessing game as to whether or not you can even do the damned thing AT ALL. Solo players and small guilds are getting basically locked out of the CQ system completely because the way it stands now, they just can't hit their objectives either personally or guild-wise. I'm in several guilds and NONE of them have been able to hit their objectives since this implementation. They seriously need to fix this mess.

The entire CQ system is borked right now. Supposedly, the system is supposed to get you one AND ONLY ONE of each type of repeatable per legacy per day- which I think is complete and utter BS because it basically cripples smaller guilds and locks them out of being able to participate at all. Not only is that little bad news something we have to look forward to but the implementation is completely bugged! Some people are getting locked out after 1 mission, others are getting put on a 15 minute cooldown and still others are still able to play it the old way; with missions being endlessly repeatable. They really just need to dump this whole "cooldown/lockout" idea completely. So, yeah, the whole CQ system is completely and undeniably broken whether they fix the bugs or not- it's not worth it AT ALL anymore unless you're in a top guild and a serious, hardcore raider capable of living at your keyboard 24/7 'cause otherwise, you are never, ever, ever, ever, ever gonna hit that objective. And, that's what is actually happening. I have been hearing from various small guilds ALL DAY that they can't participate in CQ anymore because NO ONE CAN HIT THEIR GOALS.

I see less than zero reason for it too. I also am disgusted by the fact that it's bugged as all get out with some people getting locked out at one and others being able to get one every 15 minutes and still others having it work as normal. Beyond that, as someone else posted: This is REALLY hurting the small guilds. They need to drop this "only one" BS entirely. It. Makes. No. Sense. All it's doing is driving people away which is entirely defeating the supposed purpose of changing the CQ system. They say that they want more people to get involved in it, but really, all they're doing is pissing people off and making it impossible for them to participate. Without being able to do more than one mission, folks aren't hitting their personal objectives and the guilds that they're in aren't even able to participate in conquests. This is just plain MEAN to tell folks that if they're solo players and/or in a small guild (or even NO guild for that matter) that they can't take part in CQ while giving hard core raiders in large guilds serious as hell goodies like insta-50 Rank companions! Guess the game's turning into hardcore raiders and large guilds only. I mean, given what I have been reading and hearing about all of this, the developers now think that people with actual lives outside of the game should go and sub somewhere that's else because apparently the end game sure doesn't want us anymore. Which is fine, I mean, don't get me wrong. Some games are just like that and cater to that kind of crowd and that's okay. After all, there are LOADS of other games that folks with jobs and lives and kids can play if the developers don't want us here anymore but, I am sure not liking the fact that they've been lying about it all this time. I mean, did they really think that we wouldn't notice that we were suddenly getting locked out of huge hunks of stuff that used to be FOR us? The CQ system used to be a way for the more solo players who can't go on operations every night to still be able to feel like they were part of a team and now it's just been turned into another: join that big group or F.U. That is just senseless to me. It just is.

This whole cooldown/lock out thing is just screwed up and they need to pull it completely. I mean, as it stands now it's a complete and utter guessing game: Can I or can't I get CQ points if I do this? What's the point then if you can't ever know if you can or can't make the damned objective? And why bother to slow it down at all anyway? Thought the whole point was to get more folks to want to do CQ so, how in the hell does confusing the hell out of everyone and locking them out of random parts of it at random times make it more fun to play? I'm calling B.S. on the entire thing from idea all the way to implementation and it's gots ta go. Simple as that: It. Has. Got. To. Go.

Firstly, thanks for the information and the link. As to this new CQ system... If they're going to have a "cooldown" they should damned well have that explanation somewhere in the game shouldn't they? So that folks can see that's what's going on! I mean, no other mission has a cooldown like that- so, how in the hell do they expect folks to know? Mind reading? I'll also point that that does not excuse the treatment I got from customer service when I reported it. I mean, just mentioning that little fact would have sufficed. So, right now I'm left with not only is the whole "cooldown" system messed up but they implemented it wrong AND have poor customer service! Well, they were right, this IS the place to post my suggestion and my suggestion is that I'm sorry, this entire thing is total BS and I'm still left with: They need to fix what they broke in the CQ system and implement better customer service training.

So, the CQ calculator is COMPLETELY WRONG! Check the math: NS Heroic missions are listed as providing 825 CQ points each There are 8 NS Heroics Now, NOT including the SH bonus of 150% which I DO have, this means that doing all of the NS heroics should provide: 8 x 825 = 6,600 CQ points So, I do the heroics, AND craft an Invasionary Force AND a Dark Project AND do a Flashpoint AS WELL AS the Rampage, and what do I have at the end of it? 4,600 CQ points At first I thought it was a bug but when I put in a ticket to get it fixed for my account because, I figured it HAD to be just me, I get told: "Thanks for the feedback but it's working properly. If you want to make a suggestion, please post it in our forums." So, that is EXACTLY what I am doing now. PLEASE FIX YOUR CALCULATOR BECAUSE IF IT DOESN'T WORK YOUR ENTIRE CQ SYSTEM IS BROKEN!!!! I mean, with these kinds of "calculations" it's like trying to level a character and only having SOME of your missions awarding XP or you're having to GUESS WHAT A MISSION MIGHT BE WORTH! I mean, what's the point if you have NO IDEA what anything it worth or whether or not it'll even register?! You are just NEVER going to get anywhere. And, that is EXACTLY where I got: NOWHERE. It's a shame too because I actually LIKED doing the CQ every week- and with the new vendor I thought that it would be cool but there is now NO WAY that I can even possibly look at it because I will NEVER, EVER, EVER GET THERE. So, now, it's not even worth pulling up. I mean, I honestly don't even see how anyone can get their objectives. I mean, I know that they ARE but, I just cannot see HOW they are doing it! I mean, with a 150% Bonus, those Heroics SHOULD be providing over 2,000 points EACH and, instead, they're only giving less than 100? And, why even bother to LIST them as 825 if they're not going to GIVE you 825?! And, what about the SH bonus then?! Is it just being ignored completely? Why tell people that you're going to make the SH bonus easier if you're going to get rid of it?!! And, this is all the way it's SUPPOSED to work? I MEAN, NONE OF IT MAKES ANY SENSE! And, you know, I have also got to say that the poor customer service sure didn't help either. The email that I got back was rude and condescending. I mean, at this point, I am honestly considering just unsubbing because not only is a big part of guild involvement for end-game characters broken and inaccessible but the customer service for this game has gotten seriously bad. So, there's another suggestion as well: You might want to improve the customer service training for your reps because the treatment that I got was just entirely uncalled for. But, you know what? I don't even care about that, I just want the CQ system fixed. So, please, please, PLEASE fix the CQ system! Either post the CQ points properly and TELL folks that the SH bonus has been removed or fix the calculator! Thank you.

I just wish that they'd fix the freaking math on the points. I mean check it out: Ignoring the Strong Hold bonus completely: NS heroic listed as 825 points each There are 8 NS heroics 8 x 825 = 6,600 I do the heroics, AND HAVE THE STRONGHOLD BONUS. So, what do I have at the end of it? 4,600 points. WTH?!!!!!!!!!!! I tried putting in a ticket to customer service but I got told that this is the way it's SUPPOSED to calculate. Screw that, I'm done. Hope they fix the system soon because that crap just ain't right.

Been saying this since Chapter 1 but I can't remember if I ever actually got around to posting it so, here it goes: It seems to me at least that all of the Love Interests will slowly get dribbled out over time because everyone seems to have a favorite and everyone wants to know what they've been up to and get them back in a slightly more satisfying way than in some recruitment group. So far, iirc, that theory seems to be tracking pretty well so I fully expect that Vector, Doc, Kira, Nadia, Risha, Corso- all of the Love Interests will eventually be brought back. I think that yes, part of the reason for the wait is that they want to stretch that out a little bit (wouldn't you if that kept you gainfully employed?). I think a larger part of it is just production though. I mean, it takes several months just to create an hour or two of game play and, if you can only concentrate on one or two companions per release because everyone's crying for a satisfying re-introduction...... Figure 2 Love Interests per character class of which there are 8 and, if you do the math you are looking at 16 x 3 = 48 months: 4 YEARS if they JUST concentrated on 2 Love Interests every release alone. Now, toss in the fact that sometimes the main plot is just not going to allow room for subplots (finally taking out Valkorian for example) and.... there ya go. It's going to be a very long while before everyone gets a chance to see their favorites returned to them. Which, since I'm already posting my opinion and you've already read this far, I might as well toss that in too: I would much rather have that wait rather than just some generic group release like they have been doing for: Talos, Blizz, Qyzen, etc, etc, etc.... TL;DR It's probably going to be a fairly long wait before your favorite LI (Mine is Vector too) will come wandering back into the plot. OTOH, I'm pretty certain that it will come eventually so, I would keep that character ready because we just don't know who that next release is going to contain.

Actually, we've found out that's not necessarily the case over in our place. All of us have had several runs that didn't work because one of the damned relays didn't blow like it was supposed to so we had to race back and, of course, that just ate up too much time to make finishing it possible. We've also had few unsuccessful runs where one of the relays targets as a friendly so you can't destroy it no matter what you do. Basically? It's a crap shoot really as to whether or not you get lucky enough to miss the bugs at the moment so a couple of us have just given up entirely. I've just decided not to bother with any melee characters because at least with an AoE, you stand a chance. So far, only one of us (out of three) has managed to get through the entire thing after 14 attempts over the course of two days. Now, granted, others may just find that challenging but, frankly, I consider it a mess. They need to either fix the bugs or dump the timer.

That's a problem we're stuck on with our meelee characters because here are the bugs that we keep encountering: At least one power relay targets as friendly or won't target at all necessitating multiple reloggings until that bug clears We're getting NO RESPONSE for attacks several times at first When the attack registers we're getting several "Cannot See Target" or "Not In Range" before the attack even lands Companion are NOT attacking on command Bays are NOT destroying in their entirety all the time. You set the explosion chain starting and move on but wait! There's one freaking bay just standing there untouched when the smoke clears so you have to stand there and wait the entire time for each bay. I've tried to do this on my melee at least 8 times, the hubbie has tried it 12. He's given up and is threatening to quit outright. I've logged a ticket. This mission is a freaking mess plain and simple. They need to remove the damned timer of fix the multiple bugs for the melee characters because you just cannot crawl through that mess in 2 minutes. You just can't. No one can so, all you can do is keep trying it over and over and over and over and over and over and pray to the gaming gods that you get really, seriously freaking lucky. That. Is. NOT. Fun. At. All.

Again! Read above, please. I have no problems with anyone. I just want to enjoy the game and let other folks enjoy it as well.....

It does seem a little excessive.... Then again, it could be a momentary thing that they have to go through in order to change the basic components of letting folks use whatever companions however they want and/or allowing all gear to go to appearance based.... Now, since can't really complain on that score (who wouldn't want to finally be able to keep Vector/Akari past level 50 or be able to pick their character's beloved as a constant companion because they're the one that character wants near them ever and always.....) Okay, so, this is a pretty major-core thing... Obviously messing around with it's going to take some time, wouldn't it? So.... I'm going to give them some time- the same time I'd give a brand new MMO.... They may get it together by then or they may not but... frankly? Until that time has passed and I know more... I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt on a lot of things first... We'lll see if this is worth continuing......

Well, sadly, I've been poking around and, apparently, the Pvpers would prefer that you F()*)(* them seven ways to Sunday rather than sit and do nothing.... (not sure I fully understand that but, there it is).... So, therefore, the current advice is to screw up however- they do not care. Honestly don't claim to understand that but, that seems to be the general idea.... Do whatever and damn the consequences (although I've been told to "ignore what they say" as well...) So.... F(&897 'em! Truthfully? My understanding is thus: PvPers really are the jerks we think they are and will cyber-bully you if you don't know their "rules" but, for some reason, you're supposed to "ignore" it all.... So seriously! Why bother to cater to bullies? Screw their crap up however you can without their realizing it! Keep posting "Oops" and "Sorry" a 100s times at the right moments and who's to know? You're going to screw their crap up anyway, and they obviously don't care so, why bother caring on their behalf? GL on getting that mission... Keep trying and eventually, you're bound to get lucky!