I'd really like to know what these issues were (both as a programmer and a player) and exactly how 'serious' and 'difficult' they would be to resolve. Proper phasing (as WoW introduced) would really revolutionise the storytelling and open avenues for re-invigorating old 1-50 content

It depends on how interested you are in the state of the galaxy and of each faction. Any RotHC and SoR references in KotFE will go over your head, which I'm certain will play a big part in the new expansion. If you have time do RotHC/SoR on one character and then just do class stories, though you'll miss the 'KotFE tie-in' class mission at the beginning of SoR.

Something I would like to see is miniature 'upgrade trees' (one or two levels) for individual abilities, of which you may pick one path per ability to spend a Utility point on, rather than on a more 'general' Utility (e.g. Take 30% less AOE damage). This allows a greater diversity of skills on a player-by-player basis and a scalable method of adding new Utilities, whilst also maintaining a relatively simple method of class balancing. Here's an example: .....................Force Lightning: ........ ___________|__________ ........|......................|...................| Burn Effect Mobile Casting Stun Effect ........| Burn Spreads ...........................Shock .........___________|__________ ........|......................|...................| Slows Target 2nd Free atk. Hits 2 Targets ....................................................| .........................Weakens Target to Force Powers

I'm kind of with you on this. Everything has a use and you're gimped if the rare situation in which you need to use it arises, meaning you should really keep it in a quickslot. This being said, I still think abilities could use a re-think. In my honest opinion, some of this could be alleviated if we had the option to bind the same quickslot to two abilities, activated by keypress and keyheld triggers: i.e. Quickslot 4 is bound to Shock AND Force Lightning. Shock is activated by pressing '4', Force Lightning is activated by holding '4'. Quickslot icon and tooltips would need to reflect this.

Alright, I'm going to make this as clear as possible: As a player, I want an option to bind keys to two abilities by using a 'keyHeld' as well as the existing keypress event, in order to reduce the number of quickslots needed and increase the number of keybindings available. Acceptance criteria: - The keypress and keyHeld events may be bound through the existing keybinding menu - The ms delay before the keyHeld ability is triggered is selectable through a dropdown in the controls menu - The quickslot with two bindings is split between the icons for both abilities to indicate it is dual-bound - The keyHeld action should only trigger if the the ms delay chosen from the controls UI is met before the key's keyup event is triggered - Abilities which trigger a quickslot highlight should only highlight the half-icon affected - Controls UI updated to include a 'Key Held' field next to each of the quickslot bindings - KeyHeld bindings should be optional and not assigned by default

It's her eyelashes. They're just a solid flap, not individual hairs. It's downright weird. I can't stop staring at them.

Yeah, I'm with the OP on this. I've been saying pretty much the same thing for years. That being said, although classes do have several abilities which are effectively the same, or could be wrapped together neatly, this presents the problem of gameplay becoming incredibly tedious as we end up using the same ability over and over. Let's take the Assassin for example. This class has several abilities which are all variations of "stick 'em with the pointy end" (Saber Strike, Thrash, Maul, Spike, Low-Slash, Lacerate). We could reduce the effect of ability bloat by allowing the binding of onkeydown as well as normal keypress events. This could free space on the action bar as each button could serve up to two abilities. The quickslots may need some UI changes to reflect that the key is dual-bound (Horizontal break?) For example: Saber Strike - Keypress (1), Thrash - OnKeydown (1) Maul - Keypress (2), Spike - OnKeyDown (2) Shock - Keypress ®, Force Lightning - OnKeydown ® etc. Obviously the bindings would be configurable by the player, as they are at the minute. Additionally, the duration before the OnKeydown action is triggered should also be user configurable. As an aside, I'd also like to mention that I agree that channeled abilities are really annoying in melee when the target cannot be chased during the channel. Depredating Volts was a god send. It's a shame the mobile casting does not apply to all melee channels.

I've heard this from a friend, though he hasn't cared about this game for years so I've no idea how or where he came across this information.

I've read from several sources that with KotFE, the combat system is being modified to be more mobile and faster paced, but I've not been able to find any official information nor specifics. Is this misinformation, or can we expect an update on the changes to combat? Personally, I rather like the sound of increased mobility and pacing, I'd be excited to hear any new information on it!

The question I find asking myself is "What changes will the new expansion bring to existing gameplay?" Based on recent class and skill tree changes, allowing for greater mobility, can we expect a more fluid feeling combat system? Given some of the mission and world design on Ziost, can we expect a more interactive environment on the new worlds? What about special vehicles or vehicular combat, are these features we could see? What about mobs -- are we going to see a relative reduction in their hp to make them faster to kill with the trade-off of increased damage or numbers? Will we see new devices such as the GSI mining droids or binoculars introduced? Of course this is equal parts speculation and wishful thinking, but I'd be interested to hear what you all think the new expansion will bring, or whether you believe it'll simply be more story and more worlds.

I also had 2/3 and had them reset. Then I spent 2.5 hours stuck on the first boss of HM Blood Hunt. I'll probably take a break from SWTOR for a while, sort of losing track of why I keep paying a sub >_>

1. Star Wars 2. Story To a lesser extent there's the costume design. What keeps me logging in? Honestly, I'm not sure. I think it's mostly because I just like having some sort of Star Wars fix. If there were a nice sandbox SW MMO out there with faster-paced combat in which I could also play a Sith, I'd probably be in their forums right now.

Is it just me, or does anyone else feel like the new content being brought to the game is just "more of the same"? Sure, there's new story, but once it's done, it's done. Then you're stuck with grinding the same dailies in a new zone. When an expansion is released, I'd typically expect one feature which is not simply additional content to play through, rather is something which brings a breath of fresh air to the game. Permit me to give a few examples: - Phasing missions -- Mission progress advances the world around the player with the use of phases. - Vehicular combat mechanics -- The introduction of these core mechanics, which may gradually seep into gameplay. - Inter-planetary manual ship piloting -- Nothing elaborate to start, but something to build on, perhaps a few token missions. - Re-haul of existing planets to add updated features -- e.g. Addition of interactive scenery and mechanics to existing worlds (Tusken Raider attacks, damageable scenery etc.), expanded worlds we can walk through. Obviously these are off-the-cuff thoughts, there'd need to be proper impact analysis and feasibility studies to each new feature. To be fair we *have* had Strongholds and GSF which are in a similar vein, but they feel bolted-on and not particularly integral to anything. I'd much rather have new functionality than new content tacked on, else the game feels insubstantial and stretched thin.

For me, it's time vs. reward. I've 10 characters of level 55+, I already know all the dialogue as I've probably listened to it several times. If it's a FP, I'll skip dialogue because it otherwise holds the group up, I'll skip trash because I just want to get the reward as fast as possible, it's not worth the time/credit trade-off (the same applies to side-missions). Long story short, if I enjoyed the combat mechanics, maybe I'd be more thorough -- just for the fun of playing.

Gonna be honest, I'm playing mostly for the story, gear customisation and opportunity to interact with other players. If I wanted immersion or excitement, I'd play something with a slightly more 'realistic' combat system and a more open world (such as Assassin's Creed or the Arkham games).

It's too bad about the ops group requirement. I'd really like to give them a go solo, though I'm not sure my tank dps would be up to it.

Good thinking. I'm the kind of guy who only does 3HMs a week for the Ultimate Comms because I _do not_ have time to raid (and even when I find time to look for a group, nobody will take a player without the acheivement). I'm all for an alternative method of gearing.

What I expect is more of the same: - More Cartel Packs - A couple of new FPs - A new Op - Maybe a new playable race What I'd like to see is at least one of the following: - Improvements to the combat system to increase fluidity - Phased missions - Free-flight space - Properly interactive scenery - Improved speeder physics and speed

Star Wars is space-fantasy, not sci-fi. Why? Science fiction is defined as "fiction based on imagined future scientific or technological advances and major social or environmental changes, frequently portraying space or time travel and life on other planets." whereas fantasy is defined as "a genre of imaginative fiction involving magic and adventure, especially in a setting other than the real world." If you analyse these you find that whilst Star Wars fits the 'life on other planets' and 'space travel' aspects possible within sci-fi, it is not based on the extrapolation of current scientific principles or technologies (they never try to explain how anything works, it just does), it does not even take place in this world. What it does do, however is fit every aspect of the fantasy genre, it's just set over many worlds rather than a single world.

Utility points are all well and good, but they aren't particularly thrilling. One hardly looks forwards to levelling another 5 levels to unlock a 30% damage reduction whilst stunned. Big whoop. No, my suggestion is to amalgamate many of these 'passive buff' Utilities in to the Skillful/Masterful sections and use some Masterful and Heroic utilities for something exciting that adds something new and/or augments existing abilities. What do I mean by that? Here's a couple off the top of my head for the Sith Assassin class: Force Mobility -- Force Lightning may be used whilst moving Shadow Step -- Dependent on charge: Lightning/Surging Charge: Using Spike/Maul whilst at a range from the target will teleport you behind the target and activate the ability. Effect may not occur more than once every 10 seconds, Dark Charge: Using Spike/Maul from a range teleports you face-to-face with the target and activates the ability Exuberance -- Overload knocks back all enemies within 5m Electro-magnetic Charge -- Dependent on charge: Lightning/Surging Charge: Whilst Force Speed is active, knocks back any enemies who pass within 1m of you, dealing 300 Force damage. Dark Charge: Whilst Force Speed is active, enemies who pass within 2m suffer 300 Force damage and are drawn towards you. Generates a high amount of threat.

This. Besides, as people gear up and practice, the HMs will naturally become easier.

Hmm, now that you mention it, the strong mobs do seem to be hitting harder than the elites. Not that I've had any trouble, being a tank and all. Still; it'll e interesting when I level up one of my dps/healer alts.

Yes. I'm fine with it. Skill trees may have been more versatile in that they allowed for hybrids, but that's as far as it goes. The only exception I take to the new system is that level-ups don't feel as if you're rewarded for your accomplishment (previously signified by the excitement of having a Skill point to spend). Are the Utility Skills worth the change? Not really. 30% reduced damage whilst stunned isn't something to write home about. Ideally all Utilities would mix up play styles a bit, add something tangible (such as Force Mobility does for a Sorc/Sage).

Use ruler. Me measure good. Ug.

I tried to solo Blood Hunt yesterday because I was curious as to whether the new FPs were also available solo. It wasn't until I had the first boss at about 70% I realised I'd made a mistake. In hindsight, the lack of combat support droid should have been my first clue.