The Unofficial Appearance Customization Thread

[JeramieCrowe]

Tsk, we both know it'll have less flexibility.

 

Let me take LotRo as reference in which we can:

• Instantly switch an equipped gear piece with another for the look of it in one single click and still keep the stats. In TOR you have to switch he mods manually.
  
• Instantly switch between multiple complete sets with one click (Think you can unlock up to 6 ). You can't in TOR
  
• Have a wardrobe and can have multiple version of the same item with different dyes. No wardrobe in TOR
  
• Hide slots like shoulder pads, cloaks/backpacks, hands, feet. Not even shoulder pads nor back slots in TOR
  
• Don't even need to have the item sets in the inventory to equip them for the look. Inventory management is more messy in TOR and mods swapping and maintaining UI is tedious.
  

 

==> Appearance tabs wins.

 

What you're calling "flexibility" is actually "convenience". It would do this discussion a lot of good if you stopped confusing the two...

 

And my 50 smuggler has a wardrobe. 4 complete outfits all BiS slotted. That's a wardrobe, bud. Look it up.

 

Also, on my smuggler, when I switch outfits, I do NOT have to switch the mods, too. 'Magine that.

 

In TOR, I can have more than 6 outfits, and immediately switch between them if I so choose. I do with 4. No difference with 6.

 

Dyes would be nice, yes. But that has nothing to do with an a-tab.

 

Hiding shoulders would be nice, yes. But, again, that has nothing to do with a-tabs.

 

In every game I've played with a-tabs, if you wanted to switch outfits, it had to be in your inventory. Conceptually, it's possible with TOR's current system to implement a way to not use your inventory, with added sets, to switch between.

 

However, I would much prefer having to go to my ship closet to change my clothes than doing it in front of everyone out in the field.

Edited April 1, 2012 by JeramieCrowe

[Deewe]

What you're calling "flexibility" is actually "convenience". It would do this discussion a lot of good if you stopped confusing the two...

No you are wrong.

 

Appearance tabs are more flexible because all of the above. You can do more things with them than the gear mods.

 

And well I'm glad to see you agree on appearance tabs are also more convenient than the mods. Hopefully someday the mods UI will be enhanced because for now it's a pain.

Edited April 2, 2012 by Deewe

[JeramieCrowe]

No you are wrong.

 

Appearance tabs are more flexible because all of the above. you can do more things with them than the gear mods.

 

And well I'm glad to see you agree on appearance tabs are also more convenient than the mods. Hopefully someday the mods UI will be enhanced because for now it's a pain.

 

It is more convenient. If you've read ANY of my posts over the last year and a half on this thread, you know I've mentioned that. You also know that that fact is also why I DISLIKE the a-tab.

 

It's too convenient. It has no place in an MMO.

[Moromillas]

Honestly, I'd just be happy with more armor options for my armor type that I actually like. That and changing the hue, and something to hide gloves and bracers.

 

Has anyone seen some of the light armor options on female characters? It's either shoulder pads, or a space suit, and it looks pig ugly. No, I don't want shoulder pads on my female, light armor character :S it looks weird.

 

Edit: Also, on some chest pieces you get extra stuff that appears over your pants, I'd like an option to hide that also.

Edited April 2, 2012 by Moromillas

[Deewe]

It is more convenient. If you've read ANY of my posts over the last year and a half on this thread, you know I've mentioned that. You also know that that fact is also why I DISLIKE the a-tab.

There's a slight difference between our vision of both systems.

 

While you are totally against the a-tab and I'm in the opposite camp, I can see the mod system is interesting but as a topping over the a-tab, not an alternative.

 

In short implement the a-tab for the flexibility and the convenience and keep the mod system for being able to min max gear.

 

As such people will look good AND will keep looking for the "next" mod to improve their gear.

 

It's too convenient. It has no place in an MMO.

TOR is supposed to be a game...

[JeramieCrowe]

TOR is supposed to be a game...

 

That's right. And what "game" have you ever played where you had things practically handed to you? Not board games, table-tops, card games, FPS's, 3PS's, or sports. Why do we insist that MMOs suddenly be different?

 

And, please, don't tell me that a green drop from a trash mob is "effort"....

[Forgon]

TOR is supposed to be a game...

 

 

My one problem with this post is that. Clarify. You are being vague. Are you saying games are supposed to be convenient? Am I supposed to read into that and assume you believe anything difficult or requiring extra effort or is long winded is bad for games?

 

If so, our definition of games is different. While there should be convenience and utility, actual mechanics that are implemented anywhere are welcome, especially when it affects the economy.

 

While I am neither for or against an a-tab, I disapprove of the argument that "its just a game" justifies removing anything other then having it handed to you on a silver platter. Games should have challenge, require effort, take time.

 

If none of these things are present, then its not a game, its simply a simulation to speed through with little to no obstacles. At least the mod system requires some effort and investment in time and resources to get what you want.

 

My only nitpick.

 

Edit: Restated here.

 

That's right. And what "game" have you ever played where you had things practically handed to you? Not board games, table-tops, card games, FPS's, 3PS's, or sports. Why do we insist that MMOs suddenly be different?

 

And, please, don't tell me that a green drop from a trash mob is "effort"....

Edited April 2, 2012 by Forgon

[Dekkau]

My one problem with this post is that. Clarify. You are being vague. Are you saying games are supposed to be convenient? Am I supposed to read into that and assume you believe anything difficult or requiring extra effort or is long winded is bad for games?

 

If so, our definition of games is different. While there should be convenience and utility, actual mechanics that are implemented anywhere are welcome, especially when it affects the economy.

 

While I am neither for or against an a-tab, I disapprove of the argument that "its just a game" justifies removing anything other then having it handed to you on a silver platter. Games should have challenge, require effort, take time.

 

If none of these things are present, then its not a game, its simply a simulation to speed through with little to no obstacles. At least the mod system requires some effort and investment in time and resources to get what you want.

 

My only nitpick.

 

Edit: Restated here.

 

Yes but my challenge at the moment is to struggle with lower stats on my gear cus I refuse to wear the stuff that is being fed at my level. ie cloaks and hoods on the Jedi Knight. I have a great vest and pants set at the moment and would dearly love to keep that appearance like throughout the game if necessary. I don't even mind suffering a touch. But I am Level 28 now and the gear is Level 15 and it is starting to hurt. So please can I have an Appearance Tab. It shouldn't affect the cinematics cus as with Rift you could show the cini with the actual gear I am wearing as opposed to the appearance I choose to wear. And don't forget that it is a real struggle finding that one piece of kit you like which could mean farming for hours. The stuff in the game is generally dross anyway and you do have to hunt for something good to wear. Sad that.

[JeramieCrowe]

Yes but my challenge at the moment is to struggle with lower stats on my gear cus I refuse to wear the stuff that is being fed at my level. ie cloaks and hoods on the Jedi Knight. I have a great vest and pants set at the moment and would dearly love to keep that appearance like throughout the game if necessary. I don't even mind suffering a touch. But I am Level 28 now and the gear is Level 15 and it is starting to hurt. So please can I have an Appearance Tab. It shouldn't affect the cinematics cus as with Rift you could show the cini with the actual gear I am wearing as opposed to the appearance I choose to wear. And don't forget that it is a real struggle finding that one piece of kit you like which could mean farming for hours. The stuff in the game is generally dross anyway and you do have to hunt for something good to wear. Sad that.

 

What set do you have that has the appearance you wish to keep? I'll tell you the name of the orange gear with that appearance, if I can.

 

ALL green gear in the game has an orange variant given to crafters. It's just a matter of finding it, and my Synthweaver has over two dozen orange recipes.

[illgot]

What set do you have that has the appearance you wish to keep? I'll tell you the name of the orange gear with that appearance, if I can.

 

ALL green gear in the game has an orange variant given to crafters. It's just a matter of finding it, and my Synthweaver has over two dozen orange recipes.

 

So I can take any green, blue, or purple item in game and RE it then may get the chance of procing the orange recipe?

 

Have they confirmed what they are doing with social gear yet?

Edited April 7, 2012 by illgot

[JeramieCrowe]

So I can take any green, blue, or purple item in game and RE it then may get the chance of procing the orange recipe?

 

No, you get the appearance (orange) schems from Underworld Trading. I have 3 characters working on UT, so that's how I got all those. As of now, there's only one or two green appearances in the game that I, personally, don't have. But other crafters do.

 

Blue and purple (which are actually the same appearance) appearances will be available in 1.2, effectively making every single appearance in game achievable to adopt.

 

Have they confirmed what they are doing with social gear yet?

 

Yes, they are making medium and heavy versions of all social gear. All of which are orange. GZ confirmed that a few weeks ago.

[illgot]

No, you get the appearance (orange) schems from Underworld Trading. I have 3 characters working on UT, so that's how I got all those. As of now, there's only one or two green appearances in the game that I, personally, don't have. But other crafters do.

 

Blue and purple (which are actually the same appearance) appearances will be available in 1.2, effectively making every single appearance in game achievable to adopt.

 

 

 

Yes, they are making medium and heavy versions of all social gear. All of which are orange. GZ confirmed that a few weeks ago.

 

ok so you only find recipes through UT.

 

Why are they making Heavy and Medium versions of the gear again? Heavy and Medium already existed in Beta, why would they take them out if they are only putting them back again?

[JeramieCrowe]

ok so you only find recipes through UT.

 

Why are they making Heavy and Medium versions of the gear again? Heavy and Medium already existed in Beta, why would they take them out if they are only putting them back again?

 

Because MMOs are a huge, dynamic world, where any one thing you do affects several other systems. For one, BioWare is keeping a tighter reign on the economy than most developers do, thank goodness, so it's necessary (and much better) to "test the waters" with a few, then add more later.

[magnuskn]

So, wassup? I'm back from my hiatus.

[JeramieCrowe]

So, wassup? I'm back from my hiatus.

 

Welcome back!

[Kharnis]

Echoing JeramieCrowe here.

[magnuskn]

Thanks. I've actually been back for almost a month, but still occupied with my RL stuff until recently. Also, my posting was still disabled for a few weeks.

 

So far I've seen, the game has gotten a bit smoother, some of our concerns are being alleviated by the next patch, but there's still a lot of RNG for getting good looking customizable gear. And, to be honest, the "good looking gear" is kind of restricted to different recolors of a few selected sets, especially if you are a Jedi.

[Kharnis]

Thanks. I've actually been back for almost a month, but still occupied with my RL stuff until recently. Also, my posting was still disabled for a few weeks.

 

So far I've seen, the game has gotten a bit smoother, some of our concerns are being alleviated by the next patch, but there's still a lot of RNG for getting good looking customizable gear. And, to be honest, the "good looking gear" is kind of restricted to different recolors of a few selected sets, especially if you are a Jedi.

 

There's some truth to this, but I admit that Stephen Reid's posts in the "1.2 New Armour Models" thread in the PTR forum has me very, very hopeful.

[magnuskn]

Thanks for pointing that thread out. I only skimmed through the replies by Stephen Reid, but it looks encouraging. But also a bit infuriating, seeing how apparently the design team didn't get how much people want to look iconic to Star Wars... not some Warhammer 40k Spiky Armor design.

 

I must confess that I have to question where we want to take this thread. We fought for appearance customization and we got it. It's not perfect by far... the current system is clunky in several different places, especially in the way how new looks can be obtained.

 

The absolute necessity of staying with one chosen set, both for financial and time-investment related reasons, is also another factor which upsets me. I would have liked to have my Jedi pull out an appropiate outfit for ice worlds, while wearing other things on more temperate planets and yet other stuff on desert planets. Doing that and staying combat effective is simply unfeasible with the current system.

 

Yet we got an appearance customization system. I feel that fighting to replace it with an appearance tab is futile. But there is room for improvement.

 

Hence, I think we need to refocus the thread to broaden the current system to accomodate more choice. Maybe a limited appearance tab, with only a handful of choices.

 

It'd be nice to see a developer ( not a mod ) post in this thread just once.

[JeramieCrowe]

Thanks for pointing that thread out. I only skimmed through the replies by Stephen Reid, but it looks encouraging. But also a bit infuriating, seeing how apparently the design team didn't get how much people want to look iconic to Star Wars... not some Warhammer 40k Spiky Armor design.

 

I hate to say this, but there is nothing in TOR that is NOT Star Wars. Just because people are stuck on the movies doesn't mean that anything outside the movies is not Star Wars. Darth Krayt, anyone? Like it or not, it's Star Wars canon.

 

If you don't like the comic book looks of spiky armor with blades, I don't blame you. I don't like it one bit, either. But please stop saying it's not Star Wars when it clearly is.

 

Also, there are many who DO like this look. We already got our movie looks. Let them have their comic book looks.

 

I must confess that I have to question where we want to take this thread. We fought for appearance customization and we got it. It's not perfect by far... the current system is clunky in several different places, especially in the way how new looks can be obtained.

 

The absolute necessity of staying with one chosen set, both for financial and time-investment related reasons, is also another factor which upsets me. I would have liked to have my Jedi pull out an appropiate outfit for ice worlds, while wearing other things on more temperate planets and yet other stuff on desert planets. Doing that and staying combat effective is simply unfeasible with the current system.

 

Not with 1.2, especially, it's not. On my Smuggler, I have 4 different outifts, one with a fur coat-looking outfit for Hoth. All with purple endgame mods. And it didn't cost me much at all.

 

Yet we got an appearance customization system. I feel that fighting to replace it with an appearance tab is futile. But there is room for improvement.

 

This I agree with wholeheartedly.

 

Hence, I think we need to refocus the thread to broaden the current system to accomodate more choice. Maybe a limited appearance tab, with only a handful of choices.

 

It'd be nice to see a developer ( not a mod ) post in this thread just once.

 

The only stick-in-the-mud I can agree with the 1.2 system is the cost of removing mods. But the devs have already said that's not final and will be adjusted according to economic impact.

Edited April 10, 2012 by JeramieCrowe

[Deewe]

Yet we got an appearance customization system. I feel that fighting to replace it with an appearance tab is futile. But there is room for improvement.

First thing first: improving the UI to manage mods, still they already said it's a low priority entry as considered a cosmetic fix only.

 

So until new info we're going to keep using the old way to manage mods between our characters a sheet of paper or an xls file.

[illgot]

Appearance Tab = click a tab or check a box, and you are done.

 

Want to change your look with the orange mod system, get ready to unplug up to 36 mods out of 9 items and have another possible 9 item in your backpack to now put those mods into... at the cost of over 800k per change.

 

Developers do not constantly fix one thing, they make a change to something, then put that on the low end of priorities and work on other features.

 

This is why I hate the orange mod system being our appearance tab. It is an extremely complex system which in the end will never be as functional or flexible as an appearance tab.

 

Well, ok it maybe as functional or flexible as an appearance tab in a few years after TOR goes free to play.

Edited April 10, 2012 by illgot

[JeramieCrowe]

Appearance Tab = click a tab or check a box, and you are done.

 

/puke

 

No thanks!

[illgot]

/puke

 

No thanks!

 

right, because it is soo much fun to unplug 36 mods and keeping multiple outfits in your backpack.

 

Even if it costs me 800k to click a single button to change my outfits, I would rather do that then play with mods and multiple sets of gear.

Edited April 10, 2012 by illgot

[JeramieCrowe]

right, because it is soo much fun to unplug 36 mods and keeping multiple outfits in your backpack.

 

Actually, yes, it is. I'm loving it. Besides the fact that I don't keep outfits in my backpack. After all, who changes clothes in front of the Force and everyone?

 

I change my clothes in my ship.