Warzone issues to address

[TangTsu]

Brief intro so you know where I'm coming from. I'm a WoW vet, did tons of PvP in arenas, BGs, and open world up until WotLK. This is not a flame or a troll, but a list of issues I have noticed that need attention regarding TOR PvP. In no particular order:

 

1. Bolster sucks. All factors being equal, which they won't be as people at the level cap are acquiring better and better gear, level 50s will demolish people below them. The warzones need brackets, period. It sucks to load in only to discover 3 people on your team are under 20 and the rest are in their 30s while the entire other team is 50. It happened to me several times today until I gave up. I'm lvl 45 and have decided to quit PvP until level 50. If Bolster was intended to motivate lower levels to jump into PvP then its having the opposite effect. I would gladly trade a longer queue time for a guarantee that I'm fighting people of a similar level.

 

2. Voidstar needs an overhaul. The Huttball map is decent, and Alderaan is tolerable, but Voidstar is terrible. It is frustrating to no end to be stuck in a rez box while the other team passes ahead of you into another area. By the time you catch up they've already pushed another objective and moved on. Rez timers are fine, except when it forces you to spend half the match running to catch up. Find a way to guarantee that defenders actually get a chance to defend.

 

3. On that note, potluck BG queues need to go. If I want to play Huttball, don't make me sit through a random number of games in BGs I hate. It makes me not want to play at all. When Voidstar pops there is a collective groan on voicechat. Let us pick what we want to play. Again, longer queue times are an acceptable tradeoff.

 

4. Alderaan needs to be rethought. I was open minded about an Arathi Basin copy with 3 nodes instead of 5, but it seriously lacks depth. In nearly every game I've played whichever side caps the middle first is going to win. Some games are more fluid but they are few. Perhaps simply shorten the timers on turning nodes, or allow multiple people capping to turn it faster.

 

5. Group size and composition needs work. I realize the number limit on players is largely a function of the map, but TOR seriously needs to find a way to incorporate more players. Bigger maps, more players, more objectives. And for the love of Pete, start allowing multiple group queues. The fact that in an MMO I can't play BGs with a large group of friends is downright stupid. Also, implement some sort of raid group system so that it doesn't disband the group after every match. That's a dumb annoyance that is easily fixed.

 

6. Rebalance rewards. Healers are vital but get almost nothing for their efforts. DPSers who get mad kills but ignore objectives get way more medals. Make MVP and perhaps a runner up count for more. To aid that, show who did what! I've played Voidstar where I disarmed a bomb, denying the enemy the win, while on the offensive planting all three of our bombs and getting the winning download. When the scoresheet popped, none of that showed up and my stats looked entirely mediocre. Little dmg, no heals, few kills. And my medal count was half that of most people on my team. Guess how many votes I got for MVP? Zero. And its not about me losing medals here; its about motivating people to actually play for the objectives. I could get more commendations by simply running around stabbing people, so why bother trying to disarm a bomb?

 

 

Again, this isn't a flame. This is intended to be constructive criticism. I really like TOR, but its PvP is seriously lacking. If TOR is going to compete long term its got to address these issues. Right now, being below 50, I have zero motivation to PvP. I'd like to try again at 50, but if these issues persist I and others I know are going to lose interest fast.