Even in the absence of exploiters, making Crew Skill Missions return faster does give some players an advantage. It vastly increases the returns that players who play a lot (especially subbed ones) receive, in relation to the returns received by those who don't play as much. The effect is magnified in the case of even regular players who happen to be Pref or F2P, just by the fact that they can only ever send out 3 Missions per character. Basically the faster Crew Missions return, the bigger the gap between the 'haves' and the 'have not's' becomes. A couple of things could be done to dilute this effect. One, as the OP suggests would be to slow the Missions down again somewhat. And another, maybe counterintuitively, would be to increase the number of Missions that Pref and F2P players can send out. Subs current max is 8 I think, so maybe Pref could have 6 and F2P 4 at level cap. If the claimed exploit relates to people somehow automating the reward collection and resending out of further missions, then the simplest fix would be for the Devs to insert a decision requirement between the collection and sending out stages. An obvious way to do this would be to randomise the available Missions list, so it's not always the Rich grade at the top of the list.

I'd love to see it added to GF. It's a neat FP, but hardly anyone ever sees it.

I second the request for Idle Poses. But for everyone, not just subs. And not as Cartel Market either!

Heh, the difference those Augs would make in ANY game mode is so vanishingly small I see no point in trying to aquire them. I couldn't afford to even if I thought they were worthwhile stats wise At one point the Devs added schematics to Rep vendors that were targetted at the various professions, which I thought was a great idea. I would have loved that to be developed as a way for making interesting crafted items. Schems also dropped from some Story chapters, I seem to recall a schem for a jedi chestpiece being available from a Kotet chapter. It also used to be possible to reverse some Supplies Section gear, eg I have various Campaign armour and weapon schems that were gained by reversing such items. There's a bunch of ways the Devs could liven up crafting generally. No need for it to be massively expensive and largely pointless things like these top tier augs.

The amount I undercut on GTN listings depends on a bunch of things. Sometimes I just want to get shot of stuff fast so it isn't cluttering up my bays/inventory, in which case I may list well below whatever the current lowest is, eg 10% or 25% lower. Other times, for example if there are only a few items listed that are very expensive, but they've been there for a while. I may chop the listing by say 25-50%. And I'll keep doing that till it sells. If I have to relist something, I'll definitely discount progressively harder till it sells. I hate relisting. When I list I want it gone. if someone wants to flip it then more power to them. In general I'd guess my base undercut is maybe 2.5% (very approximate:D) For stuff i craft, if it ever means that there's no decent profit in listing, I just stop crafting/listing.

I don't recall there ever being a choice as to what type of weapon Companions used. I think all that's changed since the early days is the particulars of what specific type of weapon certain Comps use, Eg Corso now using a pistol rather than the rifle he originally equipped. I seem to remember that C2 never used any type of weapon, hence the conversation where he mentions being not programmed for combat. I recall seeing people with C2 accompanying them in the Works on Coruscant, and watching him 'boxing' with enemies!

I think a lot of the problem is the devaluation of Credits. The game showers you in Credits for just about anything, and there seem to be no effective credit sinks. No training costs, no travel costs, and a very low GTN 'tax' on transactions. I've just returned to the game after maybe 2 years away, and the difference in prices across the board is stark. I started playing around the time the Hutt expasnsion launched, and back then F2P and Pref could contribute to the trade environment. The cred caps back then were 200k F2P, and 350k Pref. I'd say that to get even close to an equivalent effect these days the caps need to be increased to maybe 2mill F2P, and 5mill Pref. That would at least free up the GTN to a much wider group of players, with benefits to everybody I think. And while Bio are at it, they could bring back OP, WZ and FP Passes to the GTN!

From the FAQ here: http://www.swtor.com/info/faq What are the system requirements for the game? Processor: AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core 4000+ or better Intel Core 2 Duo 2.0GHz or better Operating System: Windows 7 or later RAM: Windows 7: 3GB RAM So if your system is better than the above just try turning down graphics option to maybe Medium and see how you go. I play on Medium with no problems at all, and my system is ancient, see below: Operating System Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit SP1 CPU Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 @ 3.00GHz Wolfdale 45nm Technology RAM 8.00GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 400MHz (5-5-5-18) Motherboard ASUSTeK Computer INC. P5K Premium (LGA775) Graphics M1962D (1360x768@60Hz) 2047MB NVIDIA GeForce GT 730 (ASUStek Computer Inc)

I think the perfect solution to keep both camps happy would be to make all wz's 'Cross faction friendly' and to add a tick box to the Queue interface that would allow people to opt out. Much like the tick boxes in the Flashpoint queue interface that enables / disables in-progress FP pops. Everybody wins!

It's end game pvp for those of us for whom Arenas get old very quickly I much prefer a good objective / huttball match myself

I think enabling cross faction pops for wz's is a great idea It's something that's been requested repeatedly by a great many people. What would be great though, would be some kind of 'opt out' tickbox or something similar in the queuing interface. So people who really dislike the idea have a way to filter out such pops. While the Devs are at it, I'd also like to see cross faction GSF pops enabled too!

I think having possible Cross Faction pops for all types of WZ's (and GSF) would greatly improve all aspects of PvP for most people. My suggestion would be to have a tick box in the Queue Window that would allow people who don't want 'Cross Faction Pops Enabled' to opt out of that possible result.

Crafted Purple is pretty natty too!

I agree. Having the events running constantly would just dilute thier effect. Right now they provide a bit of focus. The event vendors could really do with some new items to sell though. The other reputation vendors too. What I'd really like to see would be a new event, something with a bit of meat to it like the Gree or Rak events, not like the Nightlife one.

You seem very invested in this Kotaku article being proved correct. And your efforts to paint people who disagree with your interpretation as 'white knights' does nothing to dispel this impression. The Kotaku article contains only conjecture and quotes from unnamed 'trustworthy sources'. You seem happy to accept all this as fact, which is fair enough, that's your choice. It would be reasonable for you to extend the same courtesy to those who require somewhat more in the way of actual evidence. Just sayin ...

Good grief people. It amazes me that many of you are treating this Kotaku article as if it was some kind of serious journalism. Kotaku is a marketing clickbait business, not a news business. This so called 'journalist', Jason Schreier, is on record as stating that Truth and Objectivity are not something he values or aims for. Want proof? Here's the link again that I posted a few pages back: Take a look at that, then reread the article the OP links to, and decide honestly whether any weight should be given to Schreier's supposed 'insights'. Why waste valuable brain cells debating his nonsense?

Little vid covering a similar 'story' by the same Kotaku 'journalist' that gave us the story this thread is discussing: Remeber, Kotaku is a Gawker offspring. Like I said, shovelful of salt

It's Kotaku. Clickbait is thier stock in trade, not news. Take anything they say with a shovelfull of salt!

Hi, I'm almost certain that the PvP weapons vendor in the Combat Training section of the Fleet sells a saber that looks identical. As an aside, though Bio removed most of the good stuff from the planetary 'Specialist Equipment' vendors, one at least still has moddable weapons, the Tatooine vendor. It might be worth taking a look on other planets too, though even before Bio removed most of thier inventories, only a few had useful stuff. Hope that helps.

Nobody here has any info on Bio's various priorities, but even so, I seriously doubt it's just one big list xD Regardless, they doubtless have several 'Big Tasks' and a load of 'Small Tasks' that will progressed alongside the 'Biggies'. No game is perfect, all we as customers can do is make suggestions we feel would improve things. Bio are the only ones who can decide what if any of our suggestions are cost effective and may be beneficial SWTOR. That said, the mere existence of the White Acute Module is a direct result of Bio listening to players. It did take them a LONG time to introduce it, but it was much appreciated by a sizeable chunk of the player base. Who knows, some of the suggestions in this thread may bear similar fruit.

On the subject of Difficulty / Leveling Speed, I've seen multiple new players in Fleet chat asking whether SWTOR ever gets challenging. Basically they were becoming bored because of the ease with which they were progressing. The crazy thing is, the systems to enable players to adjust thier own game difficulty ALREADY exist in the game. Legacy perks that enable XP gain bonuses, the White Acute Module, Cartel XP bonus items. All these use already developed systems and demonstrate that if only Bio actually cared to do it, they could easily supply us with the means to reduce our XP gain to taste, thus increasing the level of challenge we would experience in our battles. It would require only minimal effort on thier part. LOTRO sells an item in thier game store that enables players to halt XP gain entirely, and I believe that WoW may also have added such an item. There is obvious demand for such items/abilities. No button or difficulty slider needed, no new system development. It blows my mind that Bio appear to want to rush everyone through the game at maximum speed, regardles of how players themselves may prefer to progress. The rush to end game is not to everyones taste. Give people the option to play as they prefer and they'll stick around longer.

Hi, Basically I agree with Psandak on the qty of each crew skill which would be ideal. However while you still only have 8 characters, I'd organise them along the following lines. Split them into Crafters and Suppliers, and allocate the Crafters the recommended matching Craft/Gathering/Mission skills. Mainly to help keep things simple For the suppliers always start with Slicing, then add gathering and mission skills to compensate for likely shortfalls. Something like those below. 'Crafters' Char 1: Armormech, Scavenging, Underworld Trading Char 2: Armstech, Scavenging, Investigation Char 3: Artifice, Archaeology, Treasure Hunting Char 4: Biochem, Bioanalysis, Diplomacy Char 5: Cybertech, Scavenging, Underworld Trading Char 6: Synthweaving, Archaeology, Underworld Trading 'Suppliers' Char 7: Slicing, Archaeology, Treasure Hunting Char 8: Slicing, Bioanalysis, Diplomacy If you add further 'Supplier' characters later, just make sure they all have Slicing as thier first skill, then add whatever you've noticed have been in short supply. E.G. mine would prob look something like this - Char 9: Slicing, Scavenging, Investigation Char 10: Slicing, Archaeology, Scavenging One thing nobody has mentioned that can benefit from an emphasis on Underword Trading in your mix, is that all Universal Prefab crafting for decor requires the Fabrics gained from UT. Likewise all Universal Prefab crafting requires the color crystals gained from Archaeology. Just my 2 cents.

I coulbe be wrong, but thought the hat only ever dropped on HM.

Interesting thread, some suggestions: Keep producing group content. Update rewards and activities of all Events (LOTRO does a good job i this area). Add a new Event! An increase in the number of different events would enable them to be spaced out a little more, so repeats would be rarer, so more valued. Increase F2P and Pref credit cap by 5x - 10x (10x is prob more in line with what inflation has done to cred prices tbh). This would enable sales of cartel stuff (unlocks, passes etc) by subs to pref/f2p to become a viable practice once again, increasing revenue to EA. Sell Op and Wz passes again. Open up Command Sytem to Pref, at a reduced rate of gain, eg 50% or whatever. A Pass would temporarily open it up to say 80%-90% or whatever. 100% gain restricted to Subs, much as normal XP gain (and rested Xp) is better for Subs currently. Either increase the number of Crew able to craft or go on missions for Pref / F2p (currently 3), or sell unlocks which allow an increase. That or enable the current crew number to queue items, or sell an unlock to do it. Basically, return the game to something akin to it's initial F2P / Pref / Sub progressive approach. In my view Bio's complete reversion to a Hard lockout from meaningful end game activity for anyone that is not a Sub is really damaging to the game. It hurts Subs by reducing the pool of players able to fill queues etc. It's noticeable that almost all other MMOs are doing the opposite, Bio/EA are pretty much alone in thier approach, and I think the game suffers as a result. Just my 2 (dozen) cents.

Those all used to be available from the Artifice trainer, but Bio removed them quite some time ago, maybe on the 4.0 patch? I can't remember exactly. I have all those schems on my Artificer from back when 55 was the level cap I think.