I love my main event character

[KyaniteD]

I was not thrilled to start another new character when I already have a bunch of lowbies waiting to be leveled. Until I actually did it. I spent about 1 hour in character creation. About 1M and another hour on decent looks for starter planet. At level 15 and around 30 with more gear available, I spent another ~10 Million and 5-6 hours (!) on outfits for me and my companion. (I enjoy equipping my characters for their adventure while thinking about who they are.)

 

My regular main is a smuggler and although I considered tank characters for the event, I went with the class and spec I know and love best so I could waltz through all the grindy requirements.

 

(Called in Nico so her street cred wouldn't take a hit due to being seen hanging out with farmboy.)

 

For me, It was clear from the start that if I participate in the event, the one (two) event mains that would have to go to 65 would be leveled via story (because they're keepers, and keepers get a story).

 

And with all the XP boosts available, I didn't have to do anything but story. Not one single side or planet quest. And boy, I loved it. It reminded me why I fell in love with the female smuggler during open beta and never wavered (until my SW came along *cough*). I played goodie-two-shoes back then, hero and lightside and all that, dark side points haunted me forever. This time around I played a bit more of a loose cannon and it was even more fun. Lots of comical snark and smarta**ery.

 

After knowing her for 4 days, I already love this character very much and I'm enjoying it a great deal to take her through the story.

 

I have my beef with the event, its requirements and its rewards, but without it, I likely would never have met this person, would not play this character. Actually, none of the rewards compare to the fun I'm having with this char, so I'm putting my little spark of positivity out there into the darkness of cynicism and snark. May it last for a moment before it gets drowned by rainy clouds.

Edited July 3, 2016 by KyaniteD

[Nothing_Shines]

That's great you're having fun creating and leveling your new smuggler. The smuggler is a fun story. I should know. I have FIVE already. Two at 65. One at 60. Two in their 30s. I've been running the story on all of them. Mostly through KOTFE on two. Another to Ziost. And the lowbies through chapter 2. I took great care when designing and choosing their look, their gear, their weapons, their mounts and which companions they main and raise influence with. They all have millions upon millions of credits in gear and unlocks and many, many hours of play time sunk into them. I shouldn't have to make a sixth to participate in the game's 5th anniversary event.

 

No previous event in the game's history has ever excluded existing characters from participating and forced the creation of disposable characters that the devs flat out tell people to level and then throw away. Imagine having to create a new character every time you want to participate in Gree or Rakghoul or Nightlife or Life Day. Would anyone stand for that? No. Because it's stupid. But BW tells us to create character after character after character in order to play the entire game over again just for this event and people are scrambling to make excuses for such poor design.

[Tourmaline]

I love all my old main characters too.

[IanArgent]

Some people just like raining on parades.

 

I'm glad you're having fun; however you're finding it. Sounds like how I'm playing/going to be playing myself, though I'm probably going to do more than just the class story for my DvL chars.

[KyaniteD]

No previous event in the game's history has ever excluded existing characters from participating and forced the creation of disposable characters that the devs flat out tell people to level and then throw away. Imagine having to create a new character every time you want to participate in Gree or Rakghoul or Nightlife or Life Day. Would anyone stand for that? No. Because it's stupid. But BW tells us to create character after character after character in order to play the entire game over again just for this event and people are scrambling to make excuses for such poor design.

 

I fully agree with everything you write there. FULLY. WHOLEHEARTEDLY. All my lowbies went through a similarly extensive (and expensive) creation process and it feels terribly wrong and unfair to have to shelve them in favor of new characters in order to be eligible for the event.

 

I'm not trying to make any excuses here, I really just wanted to express how much I love playing this character, that owes her creation to something so terribly designed. It's not meant as a "give it a try, you'll love it", I know I won't enjoy any of the other classes quite as much, and I haven't even decided yet if I'll go the whole nine yards. This is really just my tiny little spark of joy among all the frustration and things wrong with the event.

 

(I never played another smuggler than my main because her presence and story in the legacy is just too strong.)

[Alssaran]

It's not necessarily unreasonable to have fun with an event character. Quite the contrary actually as I find myself in the same spot. I've been meaning to level two female characters for a few months now, but I never got around to it. I decided that I might as well do it now. My Sith Warrior is currently approaching level 50, and I am getting really invested into her story. Making a mix of light and dark side decisions makes the story much more compelling and interesting than on a pure LS and DS character.

 

I will do the same on my Togruta, and I'll probably disregard the event for it. I think the Chiss companion has potential, but there's no real point in making overly many light-sided decisions to get it, seeing it will only be another of 42 faceless companions I might never use over Senya/Lana/Theron. The stories of my new characters are already much more compelling than two of my existing mains. And that's the issue.

 

The issue here is that it puts me into a very strict conundrum. Obviously, I want to keep the characters I just created. I might have just created them, but their story is very compelling. Their character is something I haven't done before (grey instead of light or dark). And they are already wearing equipment that cost over 15,000,000 in total. My Togruta received a Jedi Strategist set with a Black/Black Dye I got from the Cantina packs, and my Sith is wearing a Lana Beniko outfit with dyes. Even the companions are dressed in mostly CM and GTN equipment, and they have dyes to show for it.

 

The conundrum is that I already got rid of two old characters for them. I tend to invest a lot of time into new characters, and I try to get their look down to a detail. I don't like throwaway characters. If I want to continue playing the event and achieve legendary, I have three options:

 

1. Delete a DvL character - Seeing that I invested millions into getting just the look I want, and sometimes even took expensive items from my Cargo Bay that I was meaning to sell, I will not do that. They are fully integrated characters now.
   
2. Buy more character unlocks - This is my least favourite option of all. Not because I couldn't do it, but because I dislike the implication behind it. I have to spend more money on top of my subscription to continue to play the event and achieve legendary. I can't continue if I want to keep all my characters. It's effectively holding my characters hostage in order to make me spend more money on top of my subscription. In essence, I'm asked to pay for playing an event further.
   
3. Delete an existing character - This isn't going to happen. Some of my characters have old items that aren't available anymore, and they are as old as the game itself. My shadow is a pre-1.1 character, and I'm not going to delete it now. My Sith Inquisitor will be almost five years old by next january. There's no way I'm deleting any of these characters for a free slot to continue playing. Every single character I have has unique story decisions. An unique outfit and companion. I'm not sacrificing any of that to make six more throwaway characters I will never need, and I won't go through the CS hassle to restore it once I'm done.
   

 

Not only do I not believe in recycling content like this, but I believe that there's a point when paying additional money goes beyond what is sustainable. When you're effectively told to unlock more character slots to participate in an event as a veteran of four and a half years, I think we reached the point at which constructive criticism is in order.

 

So, I do get where your positivity is coming from. Sadly, I think that positive scenario, of which I know well enough, is creating another level of negativity when you examine it closer. As much as I would like to defend this event, I think there is very little to defend. It seems like a very bad idea, even though it has some positive aspects.

Edited July 3, 2016 by Alssaran

[JediQuaker]

My regular main is a smuggler .....

My story is similar to yours.

I wasn't thrilled about needing to buy another character slot to do the event, until I realized I actually did have a free slot (I had 14 of 15).

I had previously unlocked the Tagruta species, but hadn't used it yet. So I made a female Tagruta. (One reason why I hadn't used it yet was that I don't like the look of the male Tagruta.)

My main is a smuggler, but I thought I'd make a Jedi Shadow so I could use my Unstable Saberstaff, but I opted to go with a Jedi Sentinel instead so I could duel-wield the sword I got in a pack a while ago.

I also happened to get a nice armor set in a pack last week. So I have a nice looking female Sentinel (Murr'anda) who uses swords and occasionally goes DS on choices plus, Kira uses the unstable lightsaber.

 

I also found that, since there's some rewards and achievements for Flashpoints, there are many more people doing them and it's relatively quick to get into a GF.

 

P.S. I'm also a veteran player (Founder) and I was starting to run out of things to do.

Edited July 3, 2016 by JediQuaker

[PatT]

I, also, have found that I am truly enjoying this event, and my new character. (Both new mains, one Rep one Imp). I didn't think I would. I did delete a few that I had started but never went past 15 with, I lost my enthusiasm for them. but this has been more fun than I suspected it would be. I have fellow guild members who are also enjoying this.

 

It is nice to see the stories again and remember why we fell in love with this game at the outset. The character stories are very good. I hope Bioware considers continuing on with them in some way, though I also understand --- because if you stop and really think* about the KoTFE story, it is also interesting. Think Gray Jedi and species evolution.

 

Anyway............ back to gaming

[Mirandel]

Alssaran, you forgot one more option - to begin new legacy on a new server. Not everyone likes to start from a scratch, but it has it's own charm and at least some challenge in it Edited July 3, 2016 by Mirandel

[Andryah]

I rolled a Merc for my first event character.. and even though I already have one at 65.. I have to say.. it has been, and continues to be a fun leveling exercise within the event. And this time around... my Merc is running all LS results (my first one was largely DS focused).

 

Running a new character every week would of course be over the top tedious.... but running a new one every now and then in SWTOR is actually a lot of fun.. and a change of pace from capped level activities.

 

Some players don't like leveling alts...and some players only play one or two characters and do not want to re-roll I'm sure.. but really... it does bring you back around to one of the better persistent aspects of the game (1-50, 50-65).

Edited July 3, 2016 by Andryah

[LyraineAlei]

My "main" for the event was a lowbie re-roll of my "main" JC on that server. Got her through to level 25, and I don't plan on completing her until I finish the rest up through level 50 and maybe the one Imp to 65 and KotFE. Consular story is a bit of a slog, though really enjoy the first act of the story, it makes me feel all mystically and stuff. The rest is like Star Wars C-Span -BUT WAIT! YOU JEDI! YOU BETTER POLITICS BECAUSE WE REPUBLIC. Or something.

 

Said lowbie was only at level 8 and in collections shells, so I recreated her without too much guilt. I did cap out on my unlocks character slots on that server though with 17/17. Not buying anymore until the price is at least 50% off like when I had bought them before.

 

EDIT: It is giving me a nice chance to replay some stuff that I forgot (or didn't catch a screenshot of that wasn't corrupted/lost) like the Act One Finale of my Loyal Imperialist "For the Cause" Agent missing people saying stuff over the loudspeakers.

Edited July 3, 2016 by LyraineAlei

[Sinapus]

I actually rerolled a lvl 1 inquisitor I had queued up earlier. I hadn't done any customizations on that character yet so it wasn't too much of a burden for me. Though I *do* kind of wish they'd simply set things to detect any new character created and any lvl 1 sitting at the start point or in a stronghold for this. Either way, it's merely bumped up my schedule on getting new characters through the game. It's been fun so far. Inquisitor snark is pretty enjoyable.

 

I was going to send my operative and one of my scoundrels through the endgame quests but I might as well get part of this done. Just to see what's in those pack things they advertised. The main prizes don't really move me, so I'll just play the game like I was going to before they announced this.

 

Otherwise, if I ever find this game to be unworthy of my continued subscription, I will simply end it and that will be that.

[BowtieJones]

I'm enjoying the event, too. It just happened that I had Tues-Thurs off work, so I got my first LvD toon to 65 on Thursday morning. Having a lot of fun being evil. I have 20 something 65's spread across a bunch of servers, but for some reason, I always, and I mean always, go light-side. This time, though...the things I've done...

 

In regards to the whole "I have server capped my toon count" complaint: I believe your concerns have been heard. the notes for this weeks patch:

 

Hey everyone,

 

As Eric mentioned on the stream yesterday, we are putting together a patch to go live next week that will address a few issues that we've seen since the release of 4.6.

 

We are currently planning a maintenance on Tuesday, July 5th from 7AM PDT (1500 BST) - 9AM PDT (1700 BST), and here are the tentative notes for the patch:

 

• Players can no longer become unable to progress in Chapter 15 due to making certain conversation choices.
  
• The Bogstalker Handler’s License can now be used by players who have a Ginx Companion.
  
• Increased the maximum available number of Character Slots per server. Free-To-Play, Preferred, and Subscriber Players have had their available slots increased to 22/26/50.
  
• The Grand Chance Cubes will no longer drop invalid items.
  
• Color Crystals obtained from the Force-Bound Dark vs. Light boxes are now unlocked in Collections as intended.
  
• It is now possible to unlock the 6th Cargo Bay Tab with the Account Unlock option.
  
• The Victorious Pioneer’s 5-Piece Set Bonus now properly applies its Experience boost.
  
• Players are no longer killed randomly in Alliance Proving Grounds.
  
• Jawa Junk stacks now always drop at the max quantity possible:
  
  • Scrap: Scavenged Scrap (Green) – 15 per stack
    
  • Scrap: Assorted Droid Parts (Blue) – 10 per stack
    
  • Scrap: Jawa Junk (Purple) – 3 per stack
    

 

Thanks,

 

Tait

 

Take note of "Increased the maximum available number of Character Slots per server. Free-To-Play, Preferred, and Subscriber Players have had their available slots increased to 22/26/50."

 

That says nothing about buying slots. So, maybe y'all super-server-loyal, alt-maniacs will be able to play, too. Or maybe you will have to buy some. Who knows?

 

Love and Respect,

 

Bowtiejones

[Andryah]

Take note of "Increased the maximum available number of Character Slots per server. Free-To-Play, Preferred, and Subscriber Players have had their available slots increased to 22/26/50."

 

That says nothing about buying slots. So, maybe y'all super-server-loyal, alt-maniacs will be able to play, too. Or maybe you will have to buy some. Who knows?

 

Love and Respect,

 

Bowtiejones

 

Yeah... I learned back when they started releasing new races that it is prudent to keep ones interests in mind when using up character slots.

 

So.. since Cathar race released.. I always keep at least 2 free slots on any server, and I also keep 3-4 character slot tokens in inventory on some character on some server. I've had 4 free slots when the event started, and 4 character slot tokens in inventory (all purchased patiently from the GTNs for less then 2M credits each.... over time bargain shopping the GTN).

 

Poor preparation and planning works against the impulsive person. Which is why I also keep way more credits then I will ever spend... just in case I want something that sells for super high prices some day.

 

That said, I favor the studio including two free character slots on a players account along with the increase of 10 slots maximum.. since new characters ARE required to do the event.

Edited July 3, 2016 by Andryah

[Sinapus]

Yeah... I learned back when they started releasing new races that it is prudent to keep ones interests in mind when using up character slots.

 

So.. since Cathar race released.. I always keep at least 2 free slots on any server, and I also keep 3-4 character slot tokens in inventory on some character on some server. I've had 4 free slots when the event started, and 4 character slot tokens in inventory (all purchased patiently from the GTNs for less then 2M credits each.... over time bargain shopping the GTN).

 

Poor preparation and planning works against the impulsive person. Which is why I also keep way more credits then I will ever spend... just in case I want something that sells for super high prices some day.

 

I tend to keep a reserve of cartel coins by letting my monthly stipend build up and by occasionally buying some extra here and there.

[Rolodome]

Cool that you're enjoying yourself.

 

As for myself, I have no intention of investing anything. I had 13/14 carefully filled out character slots when the event was announced. Having enough slots to participate isn't an issue for me; I can reuse the one slot. And if enough is "fixed," maybe I'll go far enough to get the companion.

 

But growing attached? Nope. Not in the cards for me. Technically, I could buy some more slots, but I refuse to send the message that it's ok to make me pay extra to have room to grow attached.

[Theeko]

Wow, don't open packs till the update then cause max jawa junk really screwed over the previous packs big time

[NaturalLog]

It's not necessarily unreasonable to have fun with an event character. Quite the contrary actually as I find myself in the same spot. I've been meaning to level two female characters for a few months now, but I never got around to it. I decided that I might as well do it now. My Sith Warrior is currently approaching level 50, and I am getting really invested into her story. Making a mix of light and dark side decisions makes the story much more compelling and interesting than on a pure LS and DS character.

 

I will do the same on my Togruta, and I'll probably disregard the event for it. I think the Chiss companion has potential, but there's no real point in making overly many light-sided decisions to get it, seeing it will only be another of 42 faceless companions I might never use over Senya/Lana/Theron. The stories of my new characters are already much more compelling than two of my existing mains. And that's the issue.

 

The issue here is that it puts me into a very strict conundrum. Obviously, I want to keep the characters I just created. I might have just created them, but their story is very compelling. Their character is something I haven't done before (grey instead of light or dark). And they are already wearing equipment that cost over 15,000,000 in total. My Togruta received a Jedi Strategist set with a Black/Black Dye I got from the Cantina packs, and my Sith is wearing a Lana Beniko outfit with dyes. Even the companions are dressed in mostly CM and GTN equipment, and they have dyes to show for it.

 

The conundrum is that I already got rid of two old characters for them. I tend to invest a lot of time into new characters, and I try to get their look down to a detail. I don't like throwaway characters. If I want to continue playing the event and achieve legendary, I have three options:

 

1. Delete a DvL character - Seeing that I invested millions into getting just the look I want, and sometimes even took expensive items from my Cargo Bay that I was meaning to sell, I will not do that. They are fully integrated characters now.
   
2. Buy more character unlocks - This is my least favourite option of all. Not because I couldn't do it, but because I dislike the implication behind it. I have to spend more money on top of my subscription to continue to play the event and achieve legendary. I can't continue if I want to keep all my characters. It's effectively holding my characters hostage in order to make me spend more money on top of my subscription. In essence, I'm asked to pay for playing an event further.
   
3. Delete an existing character - This isn't going to happen. Some of my characters have old items that aren't available anymore, and they are as old as the game itself. My shadow is a pre-1.1 character, and I'm not going to delete it now. My Sith Inquisitor will be almost five years old by next january. There's no way I'm deleting any of these characters for a free slot to continue playing. Every single character I have has unique story decisions. An unique outfit and companion. I'm not sacrificing any of that to make six more throwaway characters I will never need, and I won't go through the CS hassle to restore it once I'm done.
   

 

Not only do I not believe in recycling content like this, but I believe that there's a point when paying additional money goes beyond what is sustainable. When you're effectively told to unlock more character slots to participate in an event as a veteran of four and a half years, I think we reached the point at which constructive criticism is in order.

 

So, I do get where your positivity is coming from. Sadly, I think that positive scenario, of which I know well enough, is creating another level of negativity when you examine it closer. As much as I would like to defend this event, I think there is very little to defend. It seems like a very bad idea, even though it has some positive aspects.

 

You put everything I feel about this situation into words in an amazingly clear way. +10000000

 

OP! I'm really glad you started something new and totally enjoyed it! I know in some MMOs I get into a rut of playing a certain class/fighting style, and events have a way of pulling me out of that shell. So if nothing else I'm glad this event is encouraging people to try new things.

[Newyankalt]

In my 5 years of playing I only ever played the Consular class past level 30 once and that was back in 2012 or 2013.

 

After making a Consular for this event, I am enjoying the class and story a lot more then I remember. I think rolling it as a female helps since the male voice is terrible... Seriously Nolan North was miscast, he should have been the Smuggler voice, Nathan Drake style