Mystics were actually one of the original playable classes, but the devs felt it wasn't working out so they made them non-playable and gave them a planet.

Zalbar was very insistent that Wookies do not wear clothes.

Every time you finish a class companion's storyline you get a presence boost that applies to all characters in the legacy. Presence increases stats for all of your companions. At low levels my characters have higher presence than primary stat. You don't have to gear them as much and they still perform great. Another feature is legacy buffs. When you finish Chapter 2 of a class, you unlock that class's buff for all of your characters. Getting all of the classes to around level 40 gives you a full set of buffs. Makes you more powerful and you can also share the buffs with your friends that haven't finished everything yet.

I've been playing for 2 years. Finished every class story. I have never done a warzone. The lack of organized pvp has not affected my pve experience.

No, the lack of a day/night cycle is not a result of engine failure. The artists wanted each planet to have unique lighting. A cycle would destroy the uniqueness that the planets currently have.

Bioware designed a lot of mission rewards with gear for your companions. If you skip them and don't have a credit supply for GTN shopping then you might have problems later.

The artists decided that each world needed strong and specific lighting. As a result, time-of-day changes were eliminated, and each planet received a specific and distinct look that was unique.

Buy the character perks that boost affection from conversation and gifts. Then, choose to bring certain companions with you for certain conversations. Different companions like different things you say in conversations with NPCs. You could gain hundreds of affection on a planet by just pulling out the right companion at the right time. The companion missions appear when you reach the right level of affection. I suggest just doing them whenever they appear.

Loyalty chip is in Hard Mode Maelstrom Prison. There's a storage room at the very end of the instance. The crate is lootable when you're on the build HK mission.

I was really annoyed at first, but now I've gotten used to it. Don't change it back.

Well in the real world I wouldn't be able to get an infinite supply of medical probes that bring me back from the dead for only 15 credits a month. So I'd want to avoid most planets we visit in the game. Dantooine seems a nice choice. It's pretty and I haven't heard much about it during this time period (~3640 BBY). Hopefully they've been able to get a handle on the kath hound / kinrath problems.

The Empire destroyed Manaan's cities after the Selkath refused to drop neutrality.