UNLOCK - Let Us Change Role of Current Class Companions

[Calribeiro]

Instead of new companions, I´d love to play more with some of my current ones, but with their fixed role/spec make it kinda hard. You could sell unlocks for alternative roles/power sets for our standard class companions so they could see some more use.

[Meranos]

Yes. Please do this! I wouldn't pay real life money for a ton of stuff, but I would for this.

[noobchoco]

i think a big reason this might be hard to implement is the skills the companions have uniquely.

[branmakmuffin]

Companions have different personalities and different skills. Part of the story line is the "trouble" of dealing with your character's companions' differences. If you just want a generic companion, buy Treek.

 

/not signed

[KalinSword]

This is an amazing idea! At end game if your DPS, or a Tank you're crazy if you solo with anyone other than your healer. After playing for 2 years you really want to take out your other Companions so you can play with them again, but you don't want to gimp yourself so you don't, I sucks! BW PLEAS GIVE US AN UNLOCK T MAKE OUR OTHER COMPANIONS HEALERS TOO! Pretty pleas

 

Companions have different personalities and different skills. Part of the story line is the "trouble" of dealing with your character's companions' differences. If you just want a generic companion, buy Treek.

 

/not signed

 

Ok I really take issue with this

 

1. This is just the thing the CM was made for. Giving us options that the normal game dose not.

 

2. What dose it matter to you what I do with my game? If you like it the way it is don't buy the unlock!

 

3. If you really need an RP reason here "You are there leader, and you order them to get some training in another field.

[branmakmuffin]

Ok I really take issue with this

If that makes you happy, go ahead.

 

This is just the thing the CM was made for. Giving us options that the normal game dose not.'

Changing the nature of the story line should not be one of them.

 

The biggest issue is that it would take resources. Do you know how much/many? How many people would actually pay CC for t his feature? How much would they be willing to pay? I wouldn't pay 1 CC for it. Would you pay, say 1000 CC per companion? Do you have any way of knowing whether or how much others would pay? If BWEA went to the bother of implementing it, how do they know it would be worth their while? It's one thing to make CM items which are just re-skins of existing items, it's another to change the fundamental mechanics of companions. What is the benefit anyway? If you want a tanking or healing companion earlier than the standard game lets you have one, buy Treek. Aside from a few missions, in terms of the the story it doesn't matter what companion you have with you.

[KalinSword]

If that makes you happy, go ahead.

 

 

Changing the nature of the story line should not be one of them.

 

The biggest issue is that it would take resources. Do you know how much/many? How many people would actually pay CC for t his feature? How much would they be willing to pay? I wouldn't pay 1 CC for it. Would you pay, say 1000 CC per companion? Do you have any way of knowing whether or how much others would pay? If BWEA went to the bother of implementing it, how do they know it would be worth their while? It's one thing to make CM items which are just re-skins of existing items, it's another to change the fundamental mechanics of companions. What is the benefit anyway? If you want a tanking or healing companion earlier than the standard game lets you have one, buy Treek. Aside from a few missions, in terms of the the story it doesn't matter what companion you have with you.

 

First off it doesn't change the story at all, none of your companions say they can not Tank, DPS, or Heal, so that point holds no water.

 

Two I would gladly pay 1000 CC for the unlock. Not only for just one Companion, but for just one role for one Companion i.e. Kira's Healing unlock.

 

Three do you have any of the numbers you're asking me for? I don't buy the packs, but they sell well so a lot of people must like them. Just because you don't like this does not mean other people wont buy it. All the time in Gen chat I see people saying they wish Kera could Heal so they could use her again.

 

Four A re-skin is exactly what it is mechanically. My healer now looks, and talks like Kira instead of Doc, but the healing is the same soooooo at heart its a re-skin.

 

I really don't get guys like you who feel the need to control everybody's gaming experience. If its not messing with your story in anyway, and dose not give me an advantage over you then what should you care? Worry about your own story, and stay out of everyone elses!

[branmakmuffin]

First off it doesn't change the story at all, none of your companions say they can not Tank, DPS, or Heal, so that point holds no water.

Part of your character's story is making choices regarding your companions, including not having a healer if you want to run with Vette rather than Quinn.

 

Two I would gladly pay 1000 CC for the unlock. Not only for just one Companion, but for just one role for one Companion i.e. Kira's Healing unlock.

OK, let's assume you actually would. How many others would (if not 1000, at least an appreciable amount, however we define "appreciable").

 

Three do you have any of the numbers you're asking me for?

Nope. I'm not proposing anything, so I don't have to produce any numbers to support my non-suggestion.

 

I don't buy the packs, but they sell well so a lot of people must like them. Just because you don't like this does not mean other people wont buy it. All the time in Gen chat I see people saying they wish Kera could Heal so they could use her again.

And just because you claim ou would pay for it doesn't mean anyone else (or even you) would pay for it.

 

Four A re-skin is exactly what it is mechanically. My healer now looks, and talks like Kira instead of Doc, but the healing is the same soooooo at heart its a re-skin.[/quotye]

Really? Somehow I just don't think it's quite that simple (other than in the minds of expert armchair developers).

 

I really don't get guys like you who feel the need to control everybody's gaming experience. If its not messing with your story in anyway, and dose not give me an advantage over you then what should you care? Worry about your own story, and stay out of everyone elses!

No one's trying to control your gaming experience. You are already free to use whatever companion you have access to. The issue not whether I care (because I don't) whom you use as your companion and what abilities they have, it's whether or not it's worth the development resources to implement such a system. Clearly you think it is. Why? Because you claim you will pay 1000 CCs for it?

[Reno_Tarshil]

Or you could get better at the game to where you don't need to rely on your healer companion?

 

Problem solved and no CC was involved at all!

[KalinSword]

Part of your character's story is making choices regarding your companions, including not having a healer if you want to run with Vette rather than Quinn.

 

No its not! Its part of the Mechanics issue. Right now if I wanted Vette in my story I would just call her when I talked to someone, then call Quinn back when I need to kill things.

 

 

OK, let's assume you actually would. How many others would (if not 1000, at least an appreciable amount, however we define "appreciable").

 

I'm a subscriber, who as I said, does not buy the Packs. I get 600 CC a month why wouldn't I spend that on something I wanted?

 

 

Nope. I'm not proposing anything, so I don't have to produce any numbers to support my non-suggestion.

 

No one knows whats going to sell, and what isn't before its put up, not even BW.

 

 

And just because you claim ou would pay for it doesn't mean anyone else (or even you) would pay for it.

 

Why is it so hard for you to think I would pay that? As for others you are right no one knows, that's why I think they should try with one Companion, and see if it sales. If it does then they can do the others.

 

Four A re-skin is exactly what it is mechanically. My healer now looks, and talks like Kira instead of Doc, but the healing is the same soooooo at heart its a re-skin.[/quotye]

Really? Somehow I just don't think it's quite that simple (other than in the minds of expert armchair developers).

 

You are right I am not a professional developer, but I am a mod developer. I started back in the late 90s with baldur's gate. I have made mods for Morrowind, Neverwinter Nights, Neverwinter Nights 2, Oblivion, Fallout 3, Fallout New Vegas, and Skyrim. Now I don't think they would make it just a replacer, but they could very easily. All they should really have to do is keep the same powers, but change the animations for the power, and there name. Then change the actor, and power IDs in the the script use by the healing Companion they are copying, followed by renaming the script, and saving it as a new script. lastly they would need to add the script to the new companion. all this would take one guy about 3 days if that. The big part would be creating the script to activate it, and to allow the player to switch there Companion back, and forth.

 

Again I think they would put more work into it then what I just said, but it really can be that simple. Then again it maybe even more simple then all of that as they had kits for the Companions in Beta, so they may just have to do something as simple as activate what they already have. My point however stands that to the player, its just this Companion can Heal, so it at Heart the same as a re-skin.

 

 

No one's trying to control your gaming experience. You are already free to use whatever companion you have access to. The issue not whether I care (because I don't) whom you use as your companion and what abilities they have, it's whether or not it's worth the development resources to implement such a system. Clearly you think it is. Why? Because you claim you will pay 1000 CCs for it?

 

Really? If your issue isnt story, but that you don't think its worth their time, then why spend two posts, and part of this one taking about story? Just say that you dont think its worth their time, and move on. People say that they don't think this, or that is worth BW time, all the time. If that's what you had said in your first post I wouldn't have even quoted you. All this was about the fact that you came off as one of those story guys who thinks that everything must be based around the way they see the story, and no one should be aloud to move outside of that. If I change something about my story it does not affect them, and they need to just worry about their story.

 

If your issue really is just that you dont think its worth their time, then thats cool, just like, the OP, and I wanting it should be cool with you. The only reason I've been debating this, is I'm sick of the whole it will mess up Companion story argument, as it just doesn't hold water.

 

If you can't tell this subject has come up before. LoL.

Edited December 8, 2013 by KalinSword

[KalinSword]

Or you could get better at the game to where you don't need to rely on your healer companion?

 

Problem solved and no CC was involved at all!

 

Ummmm let me think. Oh yeah so I don't have to stop between fights to heal up.

[Reno_Tarshil]

Ummmm let me think. Oh yeah so I don't have to stop between fights to heal up.

 

Hey if you want to continue to be terrible at the game go ahead.

[Gwena]

I like this idea too, OP. I suppose that there should be some restrictions on what roles each Companion can fill, according to their personality/story. It could be an item like this:

 

Companion Tank Kit

Allows your Companion to enter a defensive stance and protect you by diverting the enemy's attention.

Requires:

 

Of course, some Companions would be rather absurd in certain roles (Khem the healer? Guss the tank? ) but for many others it is not so obvious. C'mon, we already get Quinn as a healer, and an adorable little astromech droid as a tank. So who is to say that it "wouldn't work with the character" to have, say, Risha as a healer or Andronikos as a tank? Just my two credits.

 

And yes, I would use this feature myself. I'd love to have a full-on DPS spec for Pierce (not "switch stance and turn off all his tank skills") so I could use him more efficiently with my tank.

[Mowermanx]

Ummmm let me think. Oh yeah so I don't have to stop between fights to heal up.

 

But any time saved is lost on fights that take twice as long.

Seriously, spend some credits and "properly" gear up kira, you wont turn back, you'll love how fast enemy packs die.

Apart from HK, Kira and Ashara are the 2 best dps companions in the game.

[Raistalion]

I would support something like this with CC as necessary..

 

I have a vague recollection that the idea of customizing your chosen companions class was even something worked on in the original development of the game.

 

I don't think it would impact on the various story-lines, few companions every say "I'm of this class" or words to that effect and so long as their were some restrictions on what options companions had access to (Companions mostly being their own unique "class" and some such as Doc really wouldn't make much sense to suddenly not be a medic type) but I could see at the very least the option to have them change say part of their focus as a good way to avoid some potential issues, aka, Kira respecs half her taunt skills with aoe healing.

 

I'd also like to make Ashara more tanky, Vette less taunty and I can think of some other choices I might like to make as well. Really I think this sort of options would be less about wanting to rewrite a companion and just giving a player more control over exactly how they want to experience the game and give them a way to make the best play experience for their particular gaming-skill-set

 

- Raith

[branmakmuffin]

No its not!

Yes it is!

 

Your turn.

 

Really? If your issue isnt story, but that you don't think its worth their time, then why spend two posts, and part of this one taking about story?

Gee, I think I can put forth both reasons to not do it, the in-universe story-related one and the mechanics-related development resources one. Again, if you want a companion who can do it all, just buy Treek (not top-notch DPS, of course, but everything can DPS a bit). Put her in tank mode and she tanks, heals and DPSes.

Edited December 9, 2013 by branmakmuffin

[JimG]

This really isn't a new suggestion. Actually, at one point in beta, the companions had kits to assign the roles to them. I don't remember the exact reasoning of why they changed it, it's been a few years now, but BW obviously decided that wasn't the way to go. So doubtful they would spend the time and resources on something like this now.

 

You are right I am not a professional developer, but I am a mod developer. I started back in the late 90s with baldur's gate. I have made mods for Morrowind, Neverwinter Nights, Neverwinter Nights 2, Oblivion, Fallout 3, Fallout New Vegas, and Skyrim. Now I don't think they would make it just a replacer, but they could very easily. All they should really have to do is keep the same powers, but change the animations for the power, and there name. Then change the actor, and power IDs in the the script use by the healing Companion they are copying, followed by renaming the script, and saving it as a new script. lastly they would need to add the script to the new companion. all this would take one guy about 3 days if that. The big part would be creating the script to activate it, and to allow the player to switch there Companion back, and forth.

From a programming standpoint, there's actually a lot more involved. Currently, companions wear one class of armor. If they are going to tank, they need to be able to wear heavy armor too. If they are a tank and you switch them to a healer, then they need to be able to wear medium armor. Our characters can't even wear multiple classes of armor so the game isn't currently even set up for something like that. Next, you have to make sure all the companions can properly equip without display issues all the other pieces of armor in the game that they currently can't equip......same for weapons. As for animations, companions like Bowdaar and Khem Val are much bigger than the others....companions like Treek are much smaller. So there would probably be some work there creating correctly displayed animations for all the disproportionately sized companions. Basically, there's a lot more programming work that would go into this than you're suggesting.

[KalinSword]

Yes it is!

 

Your turn.

 

You seem to have cut the part off where I explain my argument. Here let me put it back for you.

 

No its not! Its part of the Mechanics issue. Right now if I wanted Vette in my story I would just call her when I talked to someone, then call Quinn back when I need to kill things.

 

Right now the only "STORY" the game cares about, and logs is who you have with you when you go to a cut scene, and you can summon your Companions anywhere, sooo who I have out when I'm killing things has nothing to do with my story.

 

Why don't you take the time to explain why you think it does, and more importantly why you feel that everyone should have to follow the story as you see it. If they're not messing up your story you should not care how they play.

 

Gee, I think I can put forth both reasons to not do it, the in-universe story-related one and the mechanics-related development resources one. Again, if you want a companion who can do it all, just buy Treek (not top-notch DPS, of course, but everything can DPS a bit). Put her in tank mode and she tanks, heals and DPSes.

 

The point is not to have a Companion that can do it all, at least its not for me. The reason I want it is to be able to have the Companion out I want, without feeling like I'm gimping myself i.e. on my Jedi Knight I'd like to have Kira out, but shes not as good for my class as a healer, so if I don't have Doc out I feel like I'm gimping myself. If Kira could heal Id never have to worry about it.

[KalinSword]

This really isn't a new suggestion. Actually, at one point in beta, the companions had kits to assign the roles to them. I don't remember the exact reasoning of why they changed it, it's been a few years now, but BW obviously decided that wasn't the way to go. So doubtful they would spend the time and resources on something like this now.

 

 

From a programming standpoint, there's actually a lot more involved. Currently, companions wear one class of armor. If they are going to tank, they need to be able to wear heavy armor too. If they are a tank and you switch them to a healer, then they need to be able to wear medium armor. Our characters can't even wear multiple classes of armor so the game isn't currently even set up for something like that. Next, you have to make sure all the companions can properly equip without display issues all the other pieces of armor in the game that they currently can't equip......same for weapons. As for animations, companions like Bowdaar and Khem Val are much bigger than the others....companions like Treek are much smaller. So there would probably be some work there creating correctly displayed animations for all the disproportionately sized companions. Basically, there's a lot more programming work that would go into this than you're suggesting.

 

You're right, and you're wrong. LoL.

 

For most Companions it would be as easy as I said. You would just have to find there alter in that other role i.e. Jaesa Tanking could just use the script for Xalek. As far as Armor all that's needed there is to give them the right boost, or negative to their Armor Class when they take the stance, just like light Armor Tanks. Granted it would need to be adjusted for Medium wearers, but the ideas the same, so no need to give them new armor. Its really the same with weapons, Kira's powers would just be adjusted to deal with her new role.

 

You are however right that some would be harder then that. A Force healer would take a bit more time, as there are none right now, so it would take the most adjusting. However as you, and I both said they did have something like this in Beta, so it may be a whole lot easier then all that.

 

As to them taking it out before launch, this would not be the first time the add something back from beta that didn't make to the finished game.

[branmakmuffin]

The point is not to have a Companion that can do it all, at least its not for me. The reason I want it is to be able to have the Companion out I want, without feeling like I'm gimping myself i.e. on my Jedi Knight I'd like to have Kira out, but shes not as good for my class as a healer, so if I don't have Doc out I feel like I'm gimping myself. If Kira could heal Id never have to worry about it.

You can have the companion you want out now. So what's the problem? Kira is not a healer, that's not who she is. You might has well just have "generic droid healer companion," "generic droid tank companion" and "generic droid DPS companion." You don't want a companion with a personality, you want a role that won't "gimp" you.

[AshlaBoga]

i think a big reason this might be hard to implement is the skills the companions have uniquely.

 

They actually had this back in Beta.

 

Let me repeat this: back in Beta companions had kits that defined what role they were. Change the kit, and you changed their role.

[KalinSword]

You can have the companion you want out now. So what's the problem? Kira is not a healer, that's not who she is. You might has well just have "generic droid healer companion," "generic droid tank companion" and "generic droid DPS companion." You don't want a companion with a personality, you want a role that won't "gimp" you.

 

No we have been over this if I wanted a generic healer I would just use Doc, or Treek. As I have said I want to run around with Kira, and have her be a healer.

 

However honestly why I want it truly doesn't matter, me having it, or not doesn't affect you. So my question still stands why do you feel so strongly about other peoples story? Why do you even care if my Kira can heal? Its my game, you will never see it, it doesn't affect you in anyway shape, or form, so why do you feel the need to stand so strongly against other people getting something they want for whatever their reason for wanting it is, if it doesn't affect you. Why do you feel the need to control other people's games?

[HeatRacer]

However honestly why I want it truly doesn't matter, me having it, or not doesn't affect you. So my question still stands why do you feel so strongly about other peoples story? Why do you even care if my Kira can heal? Its my game, you will never see it, it doesn't affect you in anyway shape, or form, so why do you feel the need to stand so strongly against other people getting something they want for whatever their reason for wanting it is, if it doesn't affect you. Why do you feel the need to control other people's games?

 

Not taking sides here, but your suggestion does indirectly affect his/mine/everyone's game: if they divert manpower and development time for this big a change to the system, it's less resources that might be used to add new content/fix bugs.

[KalinSword]

Not taking sides here, but your suggestion does indirectly affect his/mine/everyone's game: if they divert manpower and development time for this big a change to the system, it's less resources that might be used to add new content/fix bugs.

 

BW has already said that they have a dedicated team who work on nothing, but CM items, and upgrades, and the rest of the team is dedicated to the main game. So if this is to be a CM unlock it will not take anything from the main game.

[Ijlicha]

Please implement this.

 

I would purchase CC, at say 1200 per role unlock, for at least 8 of my characters so that I could run the companion I like rather than the role I need.

 

This would be a very popular item and does not in any way affect those who do not want to use it.