what is stopping me from purchasing a lot of sets

[GoldenHornet]

I love mixing and matching outfits, I also love to constantly change my characters look.

 

But I can't do that in SWTOR, it costs too much money to constantly pop in new mods so I am left with only one choice. I pick the best outfit and stick with it. Each of my 8 characters has one main outfit. I never deviate from this unless something new an exciting comes out (rarely happens) so I never bother purchasing new outfits or trying to gather any for account wide unlocks.

 

It is sad, but the current customization system is restricting fun and keeping my money in my wallet instead of spending it on items in the cartel market.

 

Best system in place is the LoTRO system if you need a reference to a good system which allows for flexible appearance changes.

 

I'm totally with you. I'm pretty bored with the looks of some of my 55s, but I'm not paying a fortune to re-aument a whole different set of gear just to get a fresh look.

 

Appearance tabs please Bioware...

[GoldenHornet]

This game definitely has its issues, but I just can't see how this is one of them. All of my characters wear different custom sets that are pretty much exactly how I want them to look, and every time they get new gear, it just goes right into the custom look.

 

I've never been able to do anything like that in any other game before and I think its awesome.

 

When you've never seen a car, a Model T Ford is a marvel. The rest of us want a more modern car though.

 

I guess my frustration stems from the fact I came from City of Heroes. I'm used to swapping between multiple costumes at the press of a macroed button. Visiting Icon to create a whole new look was cheap and fun and easy.

 

The SWTOR system seems really restrictive after something like that.

[ImpactHound]

When you've never seen a car, a Model T Ford is a marvel. The rest of us want a more modern car though.

 

I guess my frustration stems from the fact I came from City of Heroes. I'm used to swapping between multiple costumes at the press of a macroed button. Visiting Icon to create a whole new look was cheap and fun and easy.

 

The SWTOR system seems really restrictive after something like that.

 

Did you see there's a kickstarter for a City of Heroes relaunch?! Already over the halfway mark, City of Titans!

[Eillack]

We should have had appearance tabs from the start; we even had the person who made it for SWG work on TOR (can't recall if they still work on the game post-launch).

[Excise]

I agree with with the OP entirely. I bought the Clandestine outfit for my Agent, but i will (probably) never buy another outfit for him since I can only realistically have 1 armour set per toon. Seems like it's just shooting the Cartel Market in the foot.

[TUXs]

I agree 100% OP! Customization is typically an MMO playstyle all itself...SWTOR makes that nearly impossible to do due to the high costs.

[branmakmuffin]

You simply add cosmetic slots to the character; dear old FlyFF had this in place is time time immemorial.

 

With cosmetic slots you leave your armor pieces in the regular armor slots and equip cosmetic pieces in, surprise surprise, your cosmetic slots. A cosmetic piece will simply overrule (visually) the respective armor piece. Done and done.

 

Psst...BW.... It would add diversity and promote Cartel Market sales.

It would probably hurt sales, because people would just cosmetically equip some random old green thing they like the looks of. That said, sure, I prefer this method (LotRO, for one, does it this way).

[DOHboy]

I agree 100% OP! Customization is typically an MMO playstyle all itself...SWTOR makes that nearly impossible to do due to the high costs.

 

is it really "high cost" for a single piece of armor maybe 30-40k to swap out everything. Credits in the game are FREE meaning there is no real effort in gaining them.

 

quests/dailies can give pretty substantial amounts, even when just vendoring the items. ex. ran oricon on my sent did nothing but the story arch and one of the items given for reward was well over 65k just to vendor. The weekly drop from CZ can sell for 50k on GTN sometimes more.

 

I just sold a 31 lvl quick savant for 1.25million on GTN. I've been using the same armor pieces since the GTN first started (paid 350k for my destroyers chest piece) almost a year ago. I have 6 toons, main has 4.5million and rest are sitting at 500k+ the 10k or so to pull an armoring is minor and irrelevant. Without some credit sinks inflation would be exponential (remember when 100k was alot of money).

 

It gets cliche` to say but go run quests/dailies and work the GTN.

[J-Sheridan]

It would probably hurt sales, because people would just cosmetically equip some random old green thing they like the looks of. That said, sure, I prefer this method (LotRO, for one, does it this way).

 

Point me to the green random things that is Bastila Shan's outfit, the Last Handmaiden or Revan's mask.

 

The obvious point here is that by making a cosmetic slot, Bioware would expand the cosmetic inventory so that players would have to acquire the unique stuff. The added bonus is that because they make them purely cosmetic, these items do not need to be balanced for stats or mods beyond dye.

That way players can get the best stat gear in the game for their actual armor without the issue of looking like garbage because they can change the cosmetic appearance to something they do like.

 

As for the stupidity of claiming - It's a credit sink !!!!

Seriously ?

 

This would require people to buy the stat armor AND cosmetic armor which can be expanded to companions as well.

Oh right, paying lots to remove mods from gear every time is so much more effective than just having players buy cosmetic gear that cost just as much in a single simple transaction.

[illgot]

It would probably hurt sales, because people would just cosmetically equip some random old green thing they like the looks of. That said, sure, I prefer this method (LotRO, for one, does it this way).

 

Have you compared the recent sets to the old greens? There are a few interesting green armors, but if you had 4-5 appearance tabs that would not be an issue.

 

Plus the old greens have none of the new textures or flashy bits and no one is begging to give up all their classic character armors for a random green item.

 

We really want multiple appearance tabs so we can equip more than one outfit and switch at the press of a button.

[branmakmuffin]

Have you compared the recent sets to the old greens? There are a few interesting green armors, but if you had 4-5 appearance tabs that would not be an issue.

 

[...]

 

We really want multiple appearance tabs so we can equip more than one outfit and switch at the press of a button.

That's pretty much what I said. And exactly how it works in LotRO.

[FlatheadMonster]

I am glad this thread was created. I agree wholeheartedly with the OP and most of the sentiment in this thread. With all of the amazing options available from the cartel market armors, it sucks that it is cost prohibitive to actually put them to use and switch them up regularly. I don't know anyone who regularly changes their appearance due to not wanting to go through the pain of spending $1m+ credits to extract augments and install new kits. And that's before you even consider the cost of moving the mods, enhancements and armoring. As the CM and collection system (which I love) grows the available appearance options for players, it would be nice to have the added flexibility. So I could bundle up when heading to hoth, cool off with lighter looking gear on tatooine, wear my house organa stuff on alderaan, etc. I really like the idea of adding an appearance slot to a base "armor set", similar to how the dye system works. That way, you don't ruin any of the credit sinks associated with level progression and gearing and auging. Whether or not this is actually technically feasible, I have no idea. If it's not and you are worried about the consequences of credit sinks during leveling maybe you restrict it to level 55s or something. But I think the main point is, no one is really putting money into the credit sink right now anyway so all of these great designs are going to waste.

[mikebevo]

People that enjoy customizing: I left this game after the original Rakgoul event because I was sick and tired of how all my characters looked. I just came back because of all the customization changes. I still find it extremely lacking and have not had to spend a single dime in Cartel Points because the few outfits I purchased with my accrued points (security key) are all I am willing to afford due to the cost in changing out mods..

I change outfits on 4 different toons monthly, I change out mods, armor and enhancements at least once a week, sometimes more depending on my luck and yet I have over 2 mil on 6 of my toons and 10 mil on a alt. I am not hurting by the current situation and no I don't buy stuff to sell with CC and no I don't craft to sell. I give anyway what I craft to friends and people in my guild. I also pass on gear in all FPs. I make my credit from killing stuff. I do a few dailies and my weeklies and I am rolling in credits. I can even buy the gear I want on the GTN with the credits I make. CCs are for unlocking stuff including collections for alts not for buying fluff (and I like fluff).

[TUXs]

is it really "high cost" for a single piece of armor maybe 30-40k to swap out everything. Credits in the game are FREE meaning there is no real effort in gaining them.

 

What game do you play? 30-40k? LOL!

 

Swapping a chest piece for your new Cartel Market one would be - removing Armoring, Enhancement, Mod, Augment (at roughly 11k ea.), plus adding an MK-9 slot which costs you around 32k PLUS the cost of the kit (75k)...what game do you play that costs you only 30k?! You can't even add an MK-9 slot for that.

Edited October 4, 2013 by TUXs

[LordArtemis]

I do not care for the mod removal costs. I think the game has many MANY credit sinks. However, I endure this for now without complaint since the unified comms, which helps quite a bit.

 

End game mods are expensive. But leveling mods are easy to acquire with little to no cost to do so...the reason why I have multiple outfits on alts.

 

Eventually I hope to see the end of mod removal costs for subscribers. Then we will see the kind of freedom in appearance I would like to see for this game.

[Dallayna]

When you've never seen a car, a Model T Ford is a marvel. The rest of us want a more modern car though.

 

I guess my frustration stems from the fact I came from City of Heroes. I'm used to swapping between multiple costumes at the press of a macroed button. Visiting Icon to create a whole new look was cheap and fun and easy.

 

The SWTOR system seems really restrictive after something like that.

 

I know what you mean. In fact, I'd actually be almost happy with just the "outfit changer" from City of Heroes. Where you had, and could get a certain number of slots that you could set up with a different outfit and that you could change back and forth among whenever you felt like it.

 

This system though, even with tons of outfits unlocked and even with tons of credits to do it with, I don't even bother because it's just too much of a hassle. After all, as others have pointed out, you have to go through the hassle and expense of augmenting the new outfit, then changing out each and every single mod, enhancement, armoring and augment for every, single, piece and when you aren't using the outfit, it just sits in your inventory or wastes hold space.

 

Frankly, by the time I'm done considering it, I figure that it's almost easier to roll and level a completely different toon when I want a different look instead.

[Andryah]

I change outfits on 4 different toons monthly, I change out mods, armor and enhancements at least once a week, sometimes more depending on my luck and yet I have over 2 mil on 6 of my toons and 10 mil on a alt. I am not hurting by the current situation and no I don't buy stuff to sell with CC and no I don't craft to sell. I give anyway what I craft to friends and people in my guild. I also pass on gear in all FPs. I make my credit from killing stuff. I do a few dailies and my weeklies and I am rolling in credits. I can even buy the gear I want on the GTN with the credits I make. CCs are for unlocking stuff including collections for alts not for buying fluff (and I like fluff).

 

Yeah... pretty much agree.

 

Credits are for most players.. the most trivial of in game resources these days.

 

Sure.. we always have people who claim to be poor in game and need/want charity features.. but the reality is that If you play this game even half way decently you always have more credits (for level) then you need.. even with the costs to acquire desired new gear from the GTN and swap mods as you change outfits.

 

Besides.. with much of the new moddable gear from the CM.. most players are picking and choosing a piece here and their to adjust their appearance... NOT swaping an entire set (which just makes you look like a BTDT clone on Fleet).

 

People always want more for less in game these days it seems... yet the game gives even average players the access to just about everything a player could want through simply pay+wealth accumulation.

Edited October 4, 2013 by Andryah

[Cernow]

I love to customise my characters in MMOs and experiment with appearances. But I don't very often in SWTOR . Why? Because I don't want to incur the high costs to strip all the mods out, fit new augment slots and acquire new dyes. All this just because I want to run around in a different outfit? No thanks.

 

So, I get an appearance I like for each character and I sit on it .... long term. I only change if something really really catches my eye. Which with the way the armour designs are going downhill with each patch is very rare.

 

So the current situation doesn't benefit the player. Does it benefit Bioware?

 

Let's assume that Bioware don't care about player enjoyment and just want to make as much money as possible. Well, the current situation inhibits this too. They would sell a lot more cosmetic items if the cost to change appearance was negligable.

 

So it makes no sense other than being a credit sink. But there's other ways to leech credits out of the economy and give the players something back in the process (Treek being a good example).

[well]

I do not care for the mod removal costs. I think the game has many MANY credit sinks. However, I endure this for now without complaint since the unified comms, which helps quite a bit.

 

End game mods are expensive. But leveling mods are easy to acquire with little to no cost to do so...the reason why I have multiple outfits on alts.

 

Eventually I hope to see the end of mod removal costs for subscribers. Then we will see the kind of freedom in appearance I would like to see for this game.

 

It always seemed funny that they would charge you to take something from your own gear.As far as your lower level chrs you can farm comms.

[LordArtemis]

Now, I would argue this....because I did it.

 

I was running Makeb (up to the Archon fight, where I stopped) with inferior gear, no augments, Makeb vendor mods using planetary comms. Since I can easily grind comms (I have a set I run on Balmorra and Tatooine that gives me around 70 to 80 comms each run) and can craft the rest that I need (I raised all the relevant crafting profs on alts to 450 or close, REd them to blue quality at least) that provided me with a cheap way to outfit multiple sets.

 

Makeb was not a cake walk using no augs and Makeb vendor mods....but it was not a wash either. Now that I have broken down and started running dailies to get better mods and generate income, I can see the problem.

 

But I can craft both MK-9 augment kits and the level 9 augs that go with them using my alts. I actually have a method that provides me almost zero cost per MK-9 kit....this is what I do in a nutshell.

 

My bio character stands in the volcanic mesa area on Makeb. I run a circuit, killing all of the silver and gold mobs and farm the nodes. I make enough mats on a single run to cover making a high level implant (level 53) that will provide one MK-9 part. I do this 9 more times.

 

Then I run my top level farmer in a droid area on Makeb, or in a place like CZ to farm metal mats. One run nets enough for one kit.

 

At the same time I run a few level 9 mat missions to fill any gaps and get the crafting mats that usually come from vendors...the costs are offset by the grinding of mats earlier.

 

Then voila...enough mats to make one kit and one top level augment...not the best augment in existence, but still very close to the best. And it cost me next to nothing but time.

 

There are methods...but they are not easy ones.

[Excise]

Now, I would argue this....because I did it.

My bio character stands in the volcanic mesa area on Makeb. I run a circuit, killing all of the silver and gold mobs and farm the nodes. I make enough mats on a single run to cover making a high level implant (level 53) that will provide one MK-9 part. I do this 9 more times.

 

Then I run my top level farmer in a droid area on Makeb, or in a place like CZ to farm metal mats. One run nets enough for one kit.

 

At the same time I run a few level 9 mat missions to fill any gaps and get the crafting mats that usually come from vendors...the costs are offset by the grinding of mats earlier.

 

Then voila...enough mats to make one kit and one top level augment...not the best augment in existence, but still very close to the best. And it cost me next to nothing but time.

 

There are methods...but they are not easy ones.

 

This is of course subjective and not everyone will agree, but that process sounds super boring :-)

[illgot]

Yeah... pretty much agree.

 

Credits are for most players.. the most trivial of in game resources these days.

 

Sure.. we always have people who claim to be poor in game and need/want charity features.. but the reality is that If you play this game even half way decently you always have more credits (for level) then you need.. even with the costs to acquire desired new gear from the GTN and swap mods as you change outfits.

 

Besides.. with much of the new moddable gear from the CM.. most players are picking and choosing a piece here and their to adjust their appearance... NOT swaping an entire set (which just makes you look like a BTDT clone on Fleet).

 

People always want more for less in game these days it seems... yet the game gives even average players the access to just about everything a player could want through simply pay+wealth accumulation.

 

"These days"? How many MMOs have you played? When MMOs first came out one of the priorities to all games were character appearance. It wasn't until recently that games started heavy restrictions on how players look because it didn't follow the "developers vision" on how the game should look. Guess what, players do not want to follow another persons "vision". They want to connect with their characters and develop their own look.

 

Games like Everquest and World of Warcraft set the online gaming world back a decade when they introduced the masses to MMOs with the idea that appearance restriction and class restriction were the norm.

 

The gaming community is just now starting to get back to having the basic features that MMOs in the mid 90s had.

 

"These days"?

[LordArtemis]

This is of course subjective and not everyone will agree, but that process sounds super boring :-)

 

I would imagine it would be for some folks, I think that's a fair statement.

[DOHboy]

What game do you play? 30-40k? LOL!

 

Swapping a chest piece for your new Cartel Market one would be - removing Armoring, Enhancement, Mod, Augment (at roughly 11k ea.), plus adding an MK-9 slot which costs you around 32k PLUS the cost of the kit (75k)...what game do you play that costs you only 30k?! You can't even add an MK-9 slot for that.

 

I dont' swap armor every 5 minutes. I found a look l liked and kept it. If you want to swap armor sets like underwear yes it can get expensive. But credits are fairly easy to come by. I've never had a shortage of credits since early game.

 

But what you described wasnt really what the OP was complaining about. OP was talking that it was cheaper to just use the armor form the vendor and not swap in/out the mods. Agree, the initial investment is significant (roughly 120k per piece) but once its augmented, the incremental cost of swapping out armornings, enhancements,and mods is roughly 60k.

 

IF not spending 100k per armor piece, I'd be sitting at 50million rather than only 5million. Hence why i say it is an absolutely necessary credit sink.

[illgot]

I dont' swap armor every 5 minutes. I found a look l liked and kept it. If you want to swap armor sets like underwear yes it can get expensive. But credits are fairly easy to come by. I've never had a shortage of credits since early game.

 

But what you described wasnt really what the OP was complaining about. OP was talking that it was cheaper to just use the armor form the vendor and not swap in/out the mods. Agree, the initial investment is significant (roughly 120k per piece) but once its augmented, the incremental cost of swapping out armornings, enhancements,and mods is roughly 60k.

 

IF not spending 100k per armor piece, I'd be sitting at 50million rather than only 5million. Hence why i say it is an absolutely necessary credit sink.

 

What I am talking about is the fact that I do not buy sets in the Cartel Market because it is just too expensive in game for me to constantly switch out my mod to change my characters appearance.

 

I have a few sets I purchased with cartel coins I had accrued via the security key over the last year, after that I had enough parts to create an outfit for each of my mains. Past that, I will probably not spend any more on adaptive armor. It is too much of a hassle for a player like me, who enjoys spending at least 25 dollars a week on a game, to bother with it.

 

I will not spend money and buy a set, then spend more money unlocking it account wide, then spend even more on cartel packs just so I can wait 3 days and sell them in game to switch my outfit. Not worth my time or money when I am satisfied with one look.

Edited October 4, 2013 by illgot