The Zen of Soloing

[Januaria]

I am a solo-er.

 

Yes, I am vaguely aware that SWToR is an MMORPG. I am also aware of guilds, groups, friend’s lists, raiding parties, etc. I am painfully aware that the really juicy mission rewards come from group content. But here’s the thing: I just don’t like grouping. Not at all; not in the least.

 

Don’t get me wrong: I love to type till my fingers bleed in the gen chat window, or trade some social pleasantries with guildies. But group for a Heroic or an FP? Nah.

 

You see I like to play at my own pace, take a pee whenever I want, make a sammich at a whim, wipe off the keyboard because said sammich sprayed mustard/ketchup/mayo (not all at the same time, mind you) and my hands are a gooey mess, take a phone call, get myself a cold, frosty beverage, interact with Spousal Unit, or just stand up and stretch my back to prevent Butt Fatigue Syndrome.

 

Also soloing means I can log off at any time, in any place without the guilt of abandoning the person you grouped with. I cannot tell you how many times I played FAR too long into the night because I felt an obligation to stick with a guildie to complete an H4 or FP.

 

Besides when you solo you don’t have to worry about breaking someone else’s CC, or getting pissed because someone else broke your CC, or worry about Need vs Greed, or just getting generally irritated because their Greed roll was 99 and yours was a 98 and you really, really WANTED that item, but you didn’t want to be a douche because you were both the same class.

 

So, yes, I am a solo-er. My gear sucks, my rotation mediocre at best. But I am at peace with myself, I am balanced with the Force, I’ve got so much Zen I’m practically tripping over it.

 

So if you’re in the Outer Rim, traipsing on one of those humongous planets, and come across a toon named “Hera-something,” feel free to throw me a buff or two, but don’t ask me to group because I’m probably eating a turkey and swiss sammich with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, garlic, and just about anything else you can cram between two slices of bread, all topped-off by an absurd amount of mustard.

 

PS: anyone know if you can clean your keyboard by soaking it in a sink full of soapy water?

 

NOTE posted on 4/26: I changed my font color to the boring, dull, unimaginative default color. Happy now?! Jeez, this is a tough crowd...

 

Edited April 26, 2014 by Januaria
Font color

[Heal-To-Full]

I am a group player.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yes, I am a group player.

 

 

 

 

 

The Mantra, the Team Spirit of Group Play.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Group play means I have to be the best I can be, and others can see exactly how good - or bad - I am.

Edited April 21, 2014 by CommunityDroidEU
color choice

[Wylf]

And you both managed to choose a text colour that's impossible to read without hurting your eyes. Congratulations. Edited April 19, 2014 by Wylf

[Heal-To-Full]

What, you mean it's still possible to read, even if at the expense of eye injury?

 

Well, at least I tried.

Edited April 21, 2014 by CommunityDroidEU
color choice

[Lt-Snake]

@Januaria I can totally understand where you're coming from Edited April 19, 2014 by Lt-Snake

[Hoshkar]

MY EYES!!!!!

[Drudenfusz]

I am fine with people writting in not standard colours here on the forums (I do so myself pretty much since I joined the forums), but please consider to use a brighter colour, to dark colours are a little annoying to read on the background of the forum.

 

On the zen of soloing: sure, whatever floats your boat, but why do you have to open a thread for this?

[Jeweledleah]

I totally hear you about freedom of soloing. now. I enjoy my group content. but when I level yet another alt? I have to do it on my own. and I tried. so many times I tried to play with friends or SO. it just doesn't work.

 

on your keyboard question.

 

I bought this baby and haven't looked back. http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Washable-Keyboard-K310-Windows/dp/B008D1JRIO

[ZETA_SCORPII]

I am a solo-er.

 

Yes, I am vaguely aware that SWToR is an MMORPG. I am also aware of guilds, groups, friend’s lists, raiding parties, etc. I am painfully aware that the really juicy mission rewards come from group content. But here’s the thing: I just don’t like grouping. Not at all; not in the least.

 

Don’t get me wrong: I love to type till my fingers bleed in the gen chat window, or trade some social pleasantries with guildies. But group for a Heroic or an FP? Nah.

 

You see I like to play at my own pace, take a pee whenever I want, make a sammich at a whim, wipe off the keyboard because said sammich sprayed mustard/ketchup/mayo (not all at the same time, mind you) and my hands are a gooey mess, take a phone call, get myself a cold, frosty beverage, interact with Spousal Unit, or just stand up and stretch my back to prevent Butt Fatigue Syndrome.

 

Also soloing means I can log off at any time, in any place without the guilt of abandoning the person you grouped with. I cannot tell you how many times I played FAR too long into the night because I felt an obligation to stick with a guildie to complete an H4 or FP.

 

Besides when you solo you don’t have to worry about breaking someone else’s CC, or getting pissed because someone else broke your CC, or worry about Need vs Greed, or just getting generally irritated because their Greed roll was 99 and yours was a 98 and you really, really WANTED that item, but you didn’t want to be a douche because you were both the same class.

 

So, yes, I am a solo-er. My gear sucks, my rotation mediocre at best. But I am at peace with myself, I am balanced with the Force, I’ve got so much Zen I’m practically tripping over it.

 

So if you’re in the Outer Rim, traipsing on one of those humongous planets, and come across a toon named “Hera-something,” feel free to throw me a buff or two, but don’t ask me to group because I’m probably eating a turkey and swiss sammich with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, garlic, and just about anything else you can cram between two slices of bread, all topped-off by an absurd amount of mustard.

 

PS: anyone know if you can clean your keyboard by soaking it in a sink full of soapy water?

More power to you, play however you want to play . You have enough solo content in this game to last for quite a loooong time and vice versa so group if you want or just do your own thing (as long as you're having fun).

[EntilZhaValen]

Almost complete solo-player here

 

Not mostly by choice though. Almost all of the guilds I've joined have been too small or unwilling to take someone through the flashpoints, ops, etc.

 

That said, there is something quite relaxing about going at your own pace. You can skip certain dialogue that you've heard before. Spend a longer time killing enemies for an Achievement etc.

[Sendrel]

/brofist

 

Mayo on turkey though. Always mayo on turkey.

[teclado]

I bought this baby and haven't looked back. http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Washable-Keyboard-K310-Windows/dp/B008D1JRIO

I tried that keyboard as a demo unit in a store a while back. I considered buying it because it's a really cool concept, but I thought that it was one of the more awkward feeling keyboards I have ever used. So, in the battle of ergonomics vs OCD about cleanliness, ergonomics won.

 

On topic:

I generally prefer solo play as well. For some things, such as pvp, you have to play with others (that's the whole point). I just don't want to join a guild, because I don't want to feel obligated to spend my somewhat limited in game time doing things that I really don't want to do simply because guild mates want to do them. I have auto-decline guild invites on, but I don't mind if somebody asks if I want to join their guild and will respond if I see it (although I question the logic behind random guild invites - you're guaranteed over time to get people that are problematic with that process...so random invites alone are enough reason for me to turn them down).

[yeldarbnotned]

Oh, how grand it would be to have an option to play this game in offline mode.

[midianlord]

[...]

 

On the zen of soloing: sure, whatever floats your boat, but why do you have to open a thread for this?

 

Why not?

 

S/he is not the only of their kind, I assure you.

 

E:

 

It's a somewhat ironic, yet necessary paradox:

 

A good MMO will incentivise grouping, and even require it for end-game, and yet a good MMO will also always have plenty of options for us solo'ists, too.

Edited April 20, 2014 by midianlord

[Jeweledleah]

I tried that keyboard as a demo unit in a store a while back. I considered buying it because it's a really cool concept, but I thought that it was one of the more awkward feeling keyboards I have ever used. So, in the battle of ergonomics vs OCD about cleanliness, ergonomics won.

 

 

ah I love the way this keyboard feels, in part becasue I've been playing with apple keyboard for years

 

long story short, I decided that I wanted imac, so we got imac, and it didn't want to work with my original keyboard, so I got used to mac keyboard and it took a while, but once I did, using anything else felt uncomfortable, and as such - this keyboard was perfect. especially since I already spilled multiple things on it by accident, something that murdered several keyboards before

 

but yeah, my SO doesn't like it either. oh well.

[JamieKirby]

Well, i am a solo'er too, i group when its beneficial for me and the other player or players, but when it comes to story content, i am 100% solo, any other way, ruins the fun for me, because other players skip everything, i mean sure, at endgame, raiding and stuff, i skip the stuff, though i feel abit sad about it, skipping the best part of the game...conversations.

 

I mean, when i do Kuat Drive Yards tactical Flashpoint (pre-55 version), even though there is only 30 seconds of talking, they demand to skip like its 5 minutes long, its insane.

 

I would honestly suggest bioware to release solo versions of everything, with diminished gear rewards obviously, don't want the groupers to have hissy fits like they tend to do, i just think grouping should be endgame and any new story arcs should be pure solo and have flashpoints and/or an operation at the end of it all, not ALL of it.

[Lunafox]

Of two things I am certain:

 

Electric blue on black, makes me go blind.

 

And, I too am a solo player for pretty much all the reasons the OP posted. I'm fine with it. I also agree with the poster above me, that there should be solo versions of things, so that we can see the stories. People are obnoxious with their space bar clicking...and I'm not one of those. I'm here for story. (Like anyone who knows me, knows. )

Edited April 20, 2014 by Lunafox

[Muljo_Stpho]

This is the first / only MMO I've had any interest in, specifically because I'd heard that there was an actual emphasis on story instead of the usual stereotypical 50 hour rat slayer intro and requiring commitment to 8 hour raid sessions every night to progress much beyond that. I generally prefer single player games. Multiplayer (on or offline) in anything tends to be a very rare and short-lived experiment for me.

 

This has been a huge exception. I have done a fair amount of group play in this. I haven't really gotten into ops (queued for a 50 SM one with my Operative healer at 54 once, I think we almost got to the end of it but then group fell apart, haven't tried again with any characters since then) but I've queued for plenty of flashpoints and I've joined people for heroics several times. I've also got some characters dedicated to grouping with real life friends, but...

 

so many times I tried to play with friends or SO. it just doesn't work.

 

Pretty much that. Our Imperial group was stuck on Alderaan for a couple months because one person needed to put together a better machine to be able to handle the game on that planet. (Actually, we got through most of it but we haven't been able to find the time in the last several weeks and still haven't actually finished it yet.) Our Republic group has been trying to get through Taris for several months, and this group was started before we had a fourth player and it was waiting for a couple months before that while we got our fourth caught up. Our other Republic group has been sitting around with Coruscant unfinished for ages and was created before the group that our fourth had to catch up to. I also had a few characters that were partnering with just one of these friends. One duo actually did reach 55 (created after the one big group reached Alderaan, and then they rocketed past that group). Three other duos linger around level 20 or level 30, and that's about where they've been for the last several weeks. Meanwhile, my solo characters look something like this: 4 at 55, 1 at 45, 1 at 37, a few in the low 30s, a bunch between 20 and 30, and a few more below that.

[DarthDymond]

Of two things I am certain:

 

Electric blue on black, makes me go blind.

 

And, I too am a solo player for pretty much all the reasons the OP posted. I'm fine with it. I also agree with the poster above me, that there should be solo versions of things, so that we can see the stories. People are obnoxious with their space bar clicking...and I'm not one of those. I'm here for story. (Like anyone who knows me, knows. )

I'm always kind of wondering if people aren't getting into their heads the idea of "if I play with others they're all gonna want me to spacebar through everything" way more than it actually happens.

 

I play on a PVP server (Pot5) but I would say a good four out of five times whenever I'm in a FP or Ops at least one person will let the conversations play, and I can't remember a single time in months that someone else has actually complained about it, even when we're running FPs that have been out for a while now.

 

At most, someone will type "sb?" and the person who wants to watch will say "first time here" or something like that and everyone is okay with it. And if you just say upfront at the beginning of the run "hey, first time here, mind if I let the conversations play out?", I can't remember ever being in a group that said "no" (not saying that never happens, but I feel pretty safe in saying that it happens less often than people being okay with letting them play).

 

Only exception might be HM Black Talon or Esseles, since the conversations are really disproportionate to the length of the run for those FPs - watching conversations can literally double how long those runs take.

Edited April 20, 2014 by DarthDymond

[Sorei]

I'm always kind of wondering if people aren't getting into their heads the idea of "if I play with others they're all gonna want me to spacebar through everything" way more than it actually happens.

 

 

Almost every single time I pug for KDY, someone will say: skip

Usually before anybody said hello (if someone does anyway...) or before the conversation has even started. Sometimes I don't spacebar just to spite them, then.

In my opinion it's rude, it's annoying and it's no use anyway. If someone wants to spacebar he will do so, if someone doesn't, he won't.

It's not like the conversation would last forever...I don't pug for Black Talon, however, exactly because someone may not want to skip the cutscenes and I don't have the patience to spend double the time in that flash point.

While I am not particularily keen on watching the KDY cutscene again, people demanding others skip is worse in my opinion.

[Reno_Tarshil]

When fly solo, you get so much freedom to do what you want.

 

No things to attend too.

 

When you want to take a break, you have the freedom too.

[horrorfaneightys]

This is me. Except for the spousal unit part. I'm always getting sidetracked by stuff.

[SgtJeremy]

I consider myself a solo player if only because I am deathly afraid of royally f****** things up in Flashpoints and Heroics and such. I play the lower tier stuff because generally there isn't a science behind them. Run and shoot, heal rinse and repeat.

 

I don't have a set rotation but I do know how skills work, which ones I need to spam the most all that good stuff. But generally if it doesn't eat my energy, ammo, force what have you, I'll use it just to get variation in my animations.

 

I am trying to get into the higher up stuff just to enjoy more aspects of the game. I don't pay $15 a month to get the minimum amount of entertainment value out of the game. I started PvPing regularly because I figured can't hide out alone forever may as well give it a shot. Moral of this last part, don't limit yourself to being purely solo or you may miss out on stuff you may fall in love with, like me and my new found love of PvP.

[Sindorin]

I only group for elder game content. When I level, it is entirely solo.

[Selenial]

I'm curious, I've always used Purple... Is mine as hard to read as that?

 

I used to use Light Blue, might change back...