Please bring back flashpoint specfic gear

[doubleOdoh]

I don't know about you guys but replayability for me of flashpoints way back in the early years of this game was made so much more interesting by the class specific gear that used to drop in each fp. My imperial agent main has had the same chest piece from the red reaper flashpoint for 5 years now because it is so perfectly suited to the class as a whole for example. it is a shame that no new agents these days have access to this particular piece or similar from other flashpoints. In my opinion not only would this improve the replayability of flashpoints which has been sorely lacking for a long time now but also add some interest back into early gearing of characters that seems largely neglected these days. I would like to know what the readers of these forums think about this as well?

[JediAkemi]

I agree.

I used to like the orange pieces that dropped from flashpoints and Heroics. Some of them looked fantastic.

[VirtualMorrigan]

I don't think any of the readers of the forum will be against that. I miss those drops as well, I wish I hadn't junked so many on my main before 4.0 dropped when I ran out of storage space....

 

But, well. Since the main focus is CM and nothing else I doubt BW can be arsed to restore the loot tables. Same with the many decos that used to drop, really...

[Clarian]

I agree.

I used to like the orange pieces that dropped from flashpoints and Heroics. Some of them looked fantastic.

Same for me. I used to tank/heal for flashpoints practically on a daily basis...but that was back when there were cool rewards for doing them.

Edited February 22, 2017 by Clarian

[GalacticKegger]

This so much. Farming for FP customs was a big reason my wife and I were altoholics. My personal favorite is the Sith Warrior's Headgear of Volatile Force (the one that looks like a copper plated Guy Fawkes mask from 'V for Vendetta') that dropped from General Ortol in Cad. I have one and was farming it for my other SWs, but 4.0 took that away. That and the Inquisitor's Focus dropped by the bonus boss in Black Talon. Edited February 22, 2017 by GalacticKegger

[Andryah]

This so much. Farming for FP customs was a big reason my wife and I were altoholics. My personal favorite is the Sith Warrior's Headgear of Volatile Force (the one that looks like a copper plated Guy Fawkes mask from 'V for Vendetta') that dropped from General Ortol in Cad. I have one and was farming it for my other SWs, but 4.0 took that away. That and the Inquisitor's Focus dropped by the bonus boss in Black Talon.

 

I know that it can be really nostalgic to stay fixed in time and place for something in a game, but games do change over time. In the case of FPs they clearly reworked them and repurposed them beginning in 4.0, so no real surprise in my view that things that were in the FP loot tables at launch have been replaced 4 years later. As players it is incumbent on us to adapt to a constantly evolving game such as an MMO.

 

Besides.... that particular headpiece is available all over the place in game, and has been for some time, and is now available in adaptive form as well. https://torcommunity.com/database/item/wylaL9S/headgear+of+volatile+force/

Edited February 22, 2017 by Andryah

[Andryah]

I agree.

I used to like the orange pieces that dropped from flashpoints and Heroics. Some of them looked fantastic.

 

Most, if not all, such items are available from other sources in game.

 

There was a large shift in the studios approach to armor after they released the CM. And NO.. it's not all about the CM being the only source for armor, because it is not.

 

The CM actually did us all a favor in that it created a different approach to armor by the studio. They began to make adaptive versions of armor rather then classic launch light/medium/heavy, many class locked, that were what we had at launch. They even went back and retrofitted many earlier armors to this new standard. They also removed the dual appearance for armors for Imp and Pug too. Both of these were welcomed changes in my view as they gave all of us a lot more flexibility in choices.

 

There is a lot of duplication, via various sources in game, for most of the old classic armor that people insist they must get from FPs. People need to just get out of their time lock and actually look around.

 

And when they released the classic armor vendor on Fleet, they upgraded to adaptive AND bind to legacy as well. and the items on these vendors, now with 5.0, are direct purchase for very low credit prices.

 

TL;DR: the evolution of armor in this game has generally been progressive and positive......... removing class, weight, and in many cases even level restrictions.

Edited February 22, 2017 by Andryah

[VirtualMorrigan]

I know that it can be really nostalgic to stay fixed in time and place for something in a game, but games do change over time. In the case of FPs they clearly reworked them and repurposed them beginning in 4.0, so no real surprise in my view that things that were in the FP loot tables at launch have been replaced 4 years later. As players it is incumbent on us to adapt to a constantly evolving game such as an MMO.

 

Besides.... that particular headpiece is available all over the place in game, and has been for some time, and is now available in adaptive form as well. https://torcommunity.com/database/item/wylaL9S/headgear+of+volatile+force/

 

Yes, of course you would say that. Now enlighten us how it is just streamlining and evolution and whatnot that FPs and mobs in heroics no longer drop decorations, and how this has nothing at all to do with the CM being the intended place to go to for decorations and adaptive gear, and we just all have to get used to how things change because that is a law of nature and absolutely inevitable...

[Sargrith]

Not just flash points but the old ops had named weapons that were really neat. I am lucky to have many but a light saber named Indomitable, an assault cannon named Firestorm these are really neat to have and a shame they don't still exist.

[GalacticKegger]

I know that it can be really nostalgic to stay fixed in time and place for something in a game, but games do change over time. In the case of FPs they clearly reworked them and repurposed them beginning in 4.0, so no real surprise in my view that things that were in the FP loot tables at launch have been replaced 4 years later. As players it is incumbent on us to adapt to a constantly evolving game such as an MMO.

 

Besides.... that particular headpiece is available all over the place in game, and has been for some time, and is now available in adaptive form as well. https://torcommunity.com/database/item/wylaL9S/headgear+of+volatile+force/

It's when I stopped drinking the koolaid that I noticed things like they removed Easter eggs from our Easter egg hunts. Now they simply hand everyone a crate for doing things that may or may not have anything to do with hunting for Easter eggs that may or may not have an Easter egg in it; and if by some miracle it does have a usable Easter egg in it there is an even slimmer chance that it may have the Easter egg we are looking for.

 

Personally, as a player it is no more incumbent on us to adapt to changes in a game than it is for consumers to adapt to changes in a product unless that product effects their livelihood. As a long-time successful business owner myself it is the job of the business to intelligently adapt to their customer base, not vainly try to brainwash them into believing that blue is the new red. The ones who don't adapt to their customers go out of business. I have a feeling we will find out in the coming months just how badly Bioware wants or doesn't want to keep SWTOR in business.

 

Thank you for the nice link to the Headgear of Volatile Force information btw. Unfortunately the only items with a similar appearance require a Reverse Engineer Category: Synthweaving -> Light schematic to make (which is weird as it was a heavy). And since the drop itself is no longer in the game leaving us with nothing to reverse engineer ...

Edited February 22, 2017 by GalacticKegger

[Screaming_Ziva]

Two of my characters still use gear that is now unavailable:

 

Mercenary:

Medic Soldier's Colicoid Chestplate

 

Marauder:

Xenotech Weaponmaster

 

I really don't see the reason they can't either put these back in to FPs and Ops or, just create a vendor for them and let people buy the gear outright.

[Edyn]

I would love this, as I really love doing Flashpoints and I love getting loot from mobs and bosses like the good old days... the days before BW decided RNG crates were better than RNG mob drops for whatever reason. Definitely a QoL downgrade. Unfortunately, I don't think they'll ever bring this back. I've got a feeling that the current dev team intentionally waters down original dev (vanilla) content in an attempt to make their own content (Uprisings, GC Crates, etc.,) seem more appealing to players. Gotta get those numbers showing their content is being utilized in order to justify those paychecks, you know.

 

I just realized that thinking about this just now made me a little bit bitter lol... In 18 years of playing, this is the only game I've played where I've felt like the devs actually make an effort to remove and reorganize content rather than add to it. If this happened in other games without me realizing it, at least the devs were clever enough to conceal it.

Edited February 22, 2017 by Edyn

[Andryah]

Two of my characters still use gear that is now unavailable:

 

Mercenary:

Medic Soldier's Colicoid Chestplate

 

Marauder:

Xenotech Weaponmaster

 

I really don't see the reason they can't either put these back in to FPs and Ops or, just create a vendor for them and let people buy the gear outright.

 

Is it that you simply must have equipment with that name on it?

 

Or are you actually looking for the appearance?

 

The appearance, like so many pieces released at launch, is actually replicated in a good number of other drop items in game, and can be dyed to your preference. And appearance tabs means you are no longer dependent on making trade-offs between appearance and stats/upgradeability.

 

I get that people are fixated on where they used to get something... but it seems to me that if it is the appearance that is sought after, and with a few moments of googling, you have a shopping list of items that will replace these that are in game (not CM). So I don't see a return of old itemizations to FPs and Heroics when there are prevalent equivalents in game.

 

Old modable pieces released in FPs and Heroics at launch served a needed purpose ---> good appearance features AND modable so you could maintain the appearance as you leveled. But this constraint has been obsolete for a long time now. Same was true for Champions and random drops.. back in the day.... particularly for any character class that required light armor and wanted to wear pants instead of a dress.

 

Now.. wanting classic old FPs.. is a totally different discussion and topic. I don't see that happening, as they deliberately repurposed them in 4.0.

Edited February 22, 2017 by Andryah

[Andryah]

Yes, of course you would say that. Now enlighten us how it is just streamlining and evolution and whatnot that FPs and mobs in heroics no longer drop decorations, and how this has nothing at all to do with the CM being the intended place to go to for decorations and adaptive gear, and we just all have to get used to how things change because that is a law of nature and absolutely inevitable...

 

I was under the impression that this discussion topic was "Please Bring Back Flashpoint Specific Gear"... NOT "waaaaaahhh... where's my decorations!".

 

You got a burr over this.. start a topic on it and stop hijacking the thread.

 

By the way... old Flashpoint and heroic gear was NOT "adaptive". It was modable, but not adaptive. Adaptive means it adapts it's armor value scaling to the class of the character, and can be equipped by all classes. Learn the difference.

Edited February 22, 2017 by Andryah

[eriksarcasm]

I don't think any of the readers of the forum will be against that.

 

Some people, not naming names here, see a sentence like this and take it as a personal challenge.

 

On topic, I still have a pair of Blasters and a few armor pieces from Mando Raiders and Hammer Station. Don't know why I kept them at the time because they were bound, but I never imagined the devs would get rid of them.

[VirtualMorrigan]

I was under the impression that this discussion topic was "Please Bring Back Flashpoint Specific Gear"... NOT "waaaaaahhh... where's my decorations!".

 

You got a burr over this.. start a topic on it and stop hijacking the thread.

 

By the way... old Flashpoint and heroic gear was NOT "adaptive". It was modable, but not adaptive. Adaptive means it adapts it's armor value scaling to the class of the character, and can be equipped by all classes. Learn the difference.

 

Nice evade. Doesn't take away from the fact that you haven't answered the question. It doesn't matter really whether it was orange gear or decos that used to drop in FPs. The point was BW taking things out of the game without a replacement, and you pretending that that is absolutely to be expected, normal and the way things always are, and everyone who questions it is an immature whiny kid. But hey, keep on filling your condescension quota for the day, I know you are on a schedule there.

[Damask_Rose]

Nice evade. Doesn't take away from the fact that you haven't answered the question. It doesn't matter really whether it was orange gear or decos that used to drop in FPs. The point was BW taking things out of the game without a replacement, and you pretending that that is absolutely to be expected, normal and the way things always are, and everyone who questions it is an immature whiny kid. But hey, keep on filling your condescension quota for the day, I know you are on a schedule there.

 

They did replace the old flashpoint gear. When you run solo flashpoints you will get 2 pieces of static prototype gear. If you run hard mode you get the chance for modable artifact gear. The difference is that the sets depend on your level so you can't go back and farm for the set you like and once you are 70 you get cxp packs instead of gear.

[Clarian]

this is the only game I've played where I've felt like the devs actually make an effort to remove and reorganize content rather than add to it.

I feel the same way. Personally I don't even have a problem with them not adding things, since the original content was plenty for me to play for years and years. What really gets me is the removing things, and also the stomping on quality content (DvL popups, level sync making climactic class story boss fights ridiculously easy, etc.)

[Andryah]

Nice evade. Doesn't take away from the fact that you haven't answered the question. It doesn't matter really whether it was orange gear or decos that used to drop in FPs. The point was BW taking things out of the game without a replacement, and you pretending that that is absolutely to be expected, normal and the way things always are, and everyone who questions it is an immature whiny kid. But hey, keep on filling your condescension quota for the day, I know you are on a schedule there.

 

Nice ad hominem.

 

In the context of this topic, the gear from FPs at launch, IS available (with very few exceptions) via other sources in the game. It may in some cases carry a different name, but fact is they have proliferated these same appearances in green, blue, purple, and modable throughout the game, and did so well before they changed FP itemizations. So for you to insist they removed such gear and it cannot be obtained is specious.

 

Yes yes.. I get it.. you are bummed that they de-itemized decorations in the loot tables. Go start a thread to discuss that and quit hijacking this one with your "special agenda". They also added many new decorations in newer content as well since they changed the loot tables for FPs and Heroics in 4.0.

[JepFareborn]

I'm sure this was a typical EA Boardroom decision mandate ("the FtP'ers were getting too much good stuff for nothing!"). IMO, they (the devs) should NEVER have removed the orange shell rewards from Flashpoints and planetary Heroics in the first place! Let the gamer or subscriber choose or decide whether to keep them or trash them or not! Certain 'STAPLES' should have never been removed! Edited August 9, 2017 by JepFareborn

[HuaRya]

Same for me. I used to tank/heal for flashpoints practically on a daily basis...but that was back when there were cool rewards for doing them.

 

Totally Agree. Tionese, Columi, and Black Hole was all I focused on. Great looking armor too. Not like that sad eternal commander garbage. Love the armor that looks like ancient star wars.

[omaan]

I don't know about you guys but replayability for me of flashpoints way back in the early years of this game was made so much more interesting by the class specific gear that used to drop in each fp. My imperial agent main has had the same chest piece from the red reaper flashpoint for 5 years now because it is so perfectly suited to the class as a whole for example. it is a shame that no new agents these days have access to this particular piece or similar from other flashpoints. In my opinion not only would this improve the replayability of flashpoints which has been sorely lacking for a long time now but also add some interest back into early gearing of characters that seems largely neglected these days. I would like to know what the readers of these forums think about this as well?

 

This issue was discussed before and bw ignored player's wish. Why? Because Eaware is greedy and due to making cm sales better they just have removed other sources of gear so players would have to buy packs if they want some outfits... if the game has something like cm.be sure that there won't be many other sources of getting toys, outfits, cool mounts etc.

[BJWyler]

I too would like to see the return of the Flashpoint specific armor. It was one of the reasons I enjoyed re-running those flashpoints, even after I overleveled them. It was a goal of mine to complete an armor set for each of my characters. The implementation of the costume designer made it a perfect reason to go back so I could make cosmetic use of that armor set from the flashpoints. Doesn't make sense to me to remove them as drops when they are perfectly suited for a cosmetic goal for a character with costume designer.

[mmmbuddah]

Agreed. I have no idea why they decided to make it junk blue and green gear now. I mean, who ACTUALLY uses gear that you cant modify yourself? !

[Damask_Rose]

Agreed. I have no idea why they decided to make it junk blue and green gear now. I mean, who ACTUALLY uses gear that you cant modify yourself? !

 

In this day and age of legacy gear and the costume designer, static greens and blues are just as desirable as customizable shells. Aesthetics are all that matter!