• Mir
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Topic: Star Wars Galaxies

Probably the most anticipated thread ever. I'll make it a list of RP-friendly features in SWG, arranged in a convenient flow-of-though order.

1. Really obvious roleplayer tags - see them allover the galaxy, and they're hard to miss
2. Roleplayer search function - shows all the RPers in your vicinity
3. Sitting on chairs and ground - not just stand-around gatherings
4. Prose parser chat output - makes full sentences out of emotes and speech, with the moods, languages and speech types included (E.g. Drrlirarl complains agrily, "Rrowrr!" in Shyriiwook.)
5. Moods - these come with different standing animations, dozens if not a hundred available
6. Speech types - these come with different kinds of chat bubbles, dozens if not a hundred available
7. Chat bubbles - these help you keep track of who's talking and emoting
8. Languages - You can learn them all if you want, or leave out the ones you don't want your character to know (they will appear scrambled then)
9. Housing - laying down roots is important, and you can place houses in the real world, anywhere that's free on the large maps
10. Large maps - for you explorer types and others, it's nice to have a coherent large area to roam and play
11. Decorating - you can put down practically any item in your house, whether it's meant as furniture or not, and place it quite freely even off the ground, which makes for awesome-looking interiors
12. Multiplayer spaceships - decoratable just like a house, with turrets for mining or fighting, pilot seat, co-pilot seat, damage that can be dangerous and repairable in the interior
13. Space - just awesome, you can take off and fly to another planet, mine asteroids, RP jobs available as escort pilots and such
14. Technological world - allows instant communication across great distances without breaking immersion
15. Interesting world - diversity ranging from criminal scum to stormtroopers, peasants to force users, living on the edge to toiling in mundanity
16. Established RP community - several of them, actually, ranging from adventure or light RPers to seriously hardcore people just RPing daily lives of their characters, scheming and plotting
17. Weather effects - seems pretty basic, but a sandstorm on Tatooine or pouring rain on Rori is no joke when you're IC
18. Day/night cycles - just imagine nightfall when you're out hunting on Dathomir
19. Beautiful graphics - some things that will make you really go "wow" and add a ton of immersion
20. Pure crafters - the possibility to just progress through crafting alone adds a lot of options for non-combat characters
21. Emote fights - since these are used in the better RP communities, you don't have to be a veteran uber pvp d00d to fend for yourself (even a businessman can pull a trigger)
22. Realistic RP - this is available in abundance, mature players that are big on immersion and canon, but still leave room for fun
23. Depth - complex crafting procedures make you feel like you're really doing something, and can be good at it too, as well as add realistic feel and diversity, since there are so many options available for everyone, in terms of gear and skill specialization
24. Free trial - 14 days of trying SWG will cost you nothing, no risk, so even if you are skeptical about the RP you could try it on the off chance that it'll be something beautiful
25. Player cities - great for laying down roots and building communities, and taking part in those that already exist
26. Vehicles - cheap single-player and multiplayer vehicles are readily available, so you can take your RP on the road
27. Pets - you can get trained pets that'll fight for you, do tricks, eat and be happy or unhappy, and keep them out as long as you like so you can roleplay petting them and whatever
28. Droids - like pets, only mechanical, and just as cool, with a great deal of actually useful features, depending on what your droid engineer builds into them
29. Mounts - you can ride creatures too, like a bantha if you're a savage or a dewback if you're a stormtrooper, or whatever, and these aren't uber high level stuff either
30. Dice - if you can't OOCly agree on something in RP, you can agree to roll for it
31. Much more - I'm sure I didn't remember everything yet, but it'll come to me, and then I'll sure to share

SWG: CL90 Smuggler, Crimson Phoenix Ace, CL90 Engineer, Europe-Chimaera
AoC: L70 Guardian
  • Mir
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

32. Appearance customization - probably the best appearence customization I've seen in a game, allows you to look unique without looking really dumb or unrealistic, adds diversity and immersion, and you can change most, if not all, of it even after creation, just talk to a friendly entertainer
33. Entertainers - they dance and play for you in cantinas, and help you look good and give some other nice enhancements
34. Clothing - tons of clothing and armor both craftable and lootable, again helping you to look cool and unique, and appropriate for any IC situation or character

Last edited by Mir (2007-08-04 19:23:32)

SWG: CL90 Smuggler, Crimson Phoenix Ace, CL90 Engineer, Europe-Chimaera
AoC: L70 Guardian
  • Darkhawk
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

So Mir, in the interest of humouring you:

1. Can you entertain guests in your homes?
2. Can you be a pilot doing whatever - trading, smuggling, fighting, exploring, no matter your class?
3. How are the options to ignore non-RP'ers?

And as a test. Make a list of things you think are SWG's negative points.

  • Mir
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

Answers for Darkie:

1. Yes you can. Each player house in an individual building on the actual planet map, visible to anyone who happens by. You can set your house to public so anyone who happens by can enter (you can still ban people of course), or private so you have to add each person or guild you wish to allow inside on the entry list. You can also hand out administrator rights to people you trust, so they can pick up and leave items and set up their vendors in the house.

2. Yes, the pilot proffessions are available to everyone in addition to whatever ground proffession you might have and completely separate from ground skills, except that you gain a small amount of ground combat experience by doing space combat.

3. The options in addition to the usual /addignore are managing the building entry/ban lists, and an option to block chat from any afk player, which dramatically reduces the amount of spatial spam you would otherwise receive in Mos Eisley, for example. I have to also point out that non-RPers aren't that much of a bother in the areas that hardcore RPers frequent, as they are few and far between and are usually just there to pick up something from a vendor and won't say a word passing through.

The list I'll get to later, maybe, as I have to get ingame now. wink

SWG: CL90 Smuggler, Crimson Phoenix Ace, CL90 Engineer, Europe-Chimaera
AoC: L70 Guardian
  • Oluf
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

wait..what?

retail galaxies or the emulation project that is currently going on to create the game as it was before the different expansions?

I have never actually played galaxies as i heard they messed that game up real bad.

semi-off topic: would be nice if you provide just a bit more information when making a new thread on the forum for those of us unable to hang out in irc 24/7 tongue

  • Mir
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

I think that's all information right there, no? It's all about the real SWG, as point 24 suggests. But here's something I didn't mention yet:

35. Seeds already in - for those who like to play with others from this community, I'm in as Drrlirarl/Trobi, Quanto as Lifu and Kryigerof is trialing as Harton, all on the Europe-Chimaera server

As for the screwing the game up real bad part, that's just people complaining because things have changed. The old system wasn't balanceable, so uber d00ds in unbalanced professions got nerfed hard when the system was revamped, and naturally cried out even harder. Personally, I think the game is better than ever, and I've been playing on and off since beta.

Last edited by Mir (2007-08-04 21:32:24)

SWG: CL90 Smuggler, Crimson Phoenix Ace, CL90 Engineer, Europe-Chimaera
AoC: L70 Guardian
  • Registered: 2006-10-02
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

I'd heard a lot about how good SWG used to be, and also a lot about how it really went downhill with the changes where the functionality of the game changed dramatically overnight. If they've settled for a stable system that isn't going to change on us, then maybe this could be worth a look.

With a 14-day trial, there really isn't anything to stop us at least looking. Maybe we should arrange for a bunch of us to taket he free trial at once and see how it goes?

  • Oluf
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

quick question, are humans the only playable race?

  • From: Ottawa, Canada
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

Dammit Mir, now I actually have to give SWG a try after reading that magnificent list of yours. It sounds like it might actually be a decent game.

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q125/coarsesand/graffisigtransparent.png

10 Reply by Mir

  • Mir
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

Oluf: The playable races are human, Zabrak, Mon Calamari, Twi'lek, Wookiee, Trandoshan, Rodian, Sullustan, Ithorian and Bothan. I've heard of other races being RP'd too, though, with extreme appearance customizations.

SWG: CL90 Smuggler, Crimson Phoenix Ace, CL90 Engineer, Europe-Chimaera
AoC: L70 Guardian
  • Esme
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

If the general community goes for it as a new home for Seed RPers, then I guess I may just have to download it myself wink

Esme

  • From: Ottawa, Canada
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

So tempted to make a Mon Calamari named von Trap.

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q125/coarsesand/graffisigtransparent.png

13 Reply by Mir

  • Mir
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

36. Realistic graphics - not cartoony like some other MMO's out there, helps to set the mood for serious RP

SWG: CL90 Smuggler, Crimson Phoenix Ace, CL90 Engineer, Europe-Chimaera
AoC: L70 Guardian
  • Oluf
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

oh i wanna be either a twi'lek or a rodian!!! big_smile

Now to check my work schedual and see when i should fit in that 14 day trial...

15 Reply by Mir

  • Mir
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

You can be both, Oluf. You get two character slots. wink

As a suggestion for everyone trying, you might want to make one combat character and one trader. That way you get to sample the whole game, and the two characters support each other nicely if you play your cards right.

SWG: CL90 Smuggler, Crimson Phoenix Ace, CL90 Engineer, Europe-Chimaera
AoC: L70 Guardian

16 Reply by Mir

  • Mir
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

Tantavalist wrote:

With a 14-day trial, there really isn't anything to stop us at least looking. Maybe we should arrange for a bunch of us to taket he free trial at once and see how it goes?

It seems people are grabbing it at their earliest convenience. Kryigerofe is a few days into his trial, Oluf is just starting and me and Quanto have full subscriptions. Sandling tried to trial too but hit some technical difficulties.

SWG: CL90 Smuggler, Crimson Phoenix Ace, CL90 Engineer, Europe-Chimaera
AoC: L70 Guardian
  • Oluf
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

Just finished up the starter space station and ran a bit in mos E...

controls are a bit funcky but just gotta get used to it. I found out how to activate the tag that says you are a roleplayer but i have yet to figure out how to make emotes directly via the chat... for some reason my normal '/' key doesnt seem to work in-game.... any tips?

How long before missions start to open up a bit? As it is right now things seems to be taking me trough a very specific path (ie, han solo tells me to talk with person X, i do mission for person X, han solo tells me to do mission for person Y.. guess what? I do a mission for person Y wink etc....)

18 Reply by Mir

  • Mir
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

Nooo....don't get used to it. Go to options -> controls and keymap tabs and make it perfect. You can make macros, aliases,and custom keybinds, tweak a lot of control options and, of course, map the keyboard controls just as you like.

About the missions, I don't know. I never leveled a post-NGE noob combat char, but I think you should do space about now, until you're tier 3 pilot and about 20 ground CL.

SWG: CL90 Smuggler, Crimson Phoenix Ace, CL90 Engineer, Europe-Chimaera
AoC: L70 Guardian
  • Oluf
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

hit lvl 10 with my char, who btw is a Bothan smuggler.

A loooot of mindless missions so far. Go here, kill that, go there kill this....

When do i get to kick some rebel/imperial butt? If i have to wait to lvl 20 with that then the game isnt for me....

I think I might try and make an entertainer, to see an other side of the game before I judge it to much!

edit: Oh yeah looks like there is a ton of options for how to bind your keys, pretty sweet

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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

Just go to Outmian Yakta, Tatooine, and have some RP instead of grinding the mindless missions, Oluf.

  • Oluf
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

uh... i had some rp in outmian yakta! I dunno if it qualifies as rp but we were both tagged as roleplayers and you could claim that it was IC stuff we talked about smile

I travled all the way to that city in the hope to find a lot of rp'ers hanging out there rp'ing away like crazy.... not the case!
The population of that place seems...well..low! The guild that seems to run the city are casual rp'ers who accept both rp'ers and none rp'ers. I even managed to get a mail from one of their members with details on their guild...just in case i was interested smile

Dark and sekra asked about some of the negative things in the game (as Mir havent provided any hehe) and without having played a whole lot yet some of the things that do bug me are:
1) mindless grind missions - but then again..isnt that almost a standard mmo feature by now?
2) Long travel distances. I guess this can be both good and bad depending on what you want from a game. I quite like huge game worlds, but travel has to be semi fast (or the travel itself has to be interesting). In SWG there is simply a LOT of land and it is not interesting to take your swoop bike or land speeder accrose all of Tatooien
3) Lag. In a game that is...a lot of years old.. I really didnt expect to find lag. I dont know if its server releated or if its my computer but i tried adjusting the settings and it doesnt seem to have any real effect. I honestly didnt expect that a game this old still had lag problems..
4) Controls. Yes, they can be adjusted but by default they should be intuitive and I dont really think they are. For example to un-target something/someone you have to press esc! The way you switch between how the mouse reacts to your actions by pressing alt is also confusing. In one mode the mouse is locked, which for me is the easiest way to control my char while running around doing mindless missions for person X. However often you need the mouse cursor to interact with things and you have to press alt again to disable mouse lock. It may sound like a minior issue but I find swithcing between these 2 modes very often and therefore it bugs me..
5) The citys are big but doesnt really 'feel' like living citys...which is quite a shame. I think the game could have gained from having limited player housing to pre-made citys so the population wouldnt have been spread out so much.
6) Why is Han Solo saving ME from the empire? who says I want to be saved? How did I end up in that space station anyway? ....
7) The smuggler missions seem pretty dull. Pick up some goods...travel a long way, drop it off and make sure you dont get shot on the way. Repeat.

Hmm...I guess thats it for now. Just wanna say that all the stuff Mir listed is true and that the game actually isnt *bad* as such wink  It does seem to have some nice features to support the roleplayers.... and hey...its star wars!

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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

2) True. It'd be better if you could just set your vehicle on a destination and start roleplaying with your passengers (yes, you can have those or at least Mir said so). But instead you have to keep pushing the forward button and avoiding hostile creatures (which are usually trivial to avoid, so there isn't even any challenge in travelling).

3) Yes, I've got that too... it doesn't bother me so much while roleplaying in OY, but places like Mos Eisley are hell.

5) True, the player cities do feel very empty. The NPC cities at least have some commoners to walk around them. Nevertheless, I've usually found people in Outmian Yacta to roleplay with, so it's not a big problem to me - and it's better to have few roleplayers than a lot of OOCers, considering we, unlike in SoR, share the same local chat channel. Thus I don't think it's a good idea at all to limit people into the NPC cities. I'd have hoped, though, that you could add NPCs to your player cities just to make them more lively...

6) I tend to ignore such tutorials in most games anyway.

23 Reply by Mir

  • Mir
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

2. Default key to auto-run is num lock. If you're in a vehicle, just hit that and you're free to do whatever. Read and write mail, send tells, RP with your passenger. Also not that if you untick "player runs by default" in the control options, then hit numlock, you can talk and emote while walking, which is a very good trick for RP. Also, on all the worlds you want to be on the distance of any point from the nearest shuttleport (instant travel point!) isn't very long at all.

4. Also note that you don't have to leave mouselook mode to interact with things, you can click them with your crosshair.

3. As for the lag, Quanto said defragmenting helps since the lag is essentially from loading all the things that suddenly appear in your load bubble. Another handy trick is to look down, when you don't get any video lag at all. The servers work perfectly for me, so if you're experiencing network lag it's not their fault.

7. Smuggler missions evolve across 5 tiers, and you will later-on face the risk of getting a player bounty hunter on you when doing them. Also, there are space ones, and you can sell contraband you loot for smuggler faction, too.

Rebel and imperial missions are faction missions, you have to talk to a rebel or imperial recruiter to get started. Also, CL20 is about a day's worth of grind.

SWG: CL90 Smuggler, Crimson Phoenix Ace, CL90 Engineer, Europe-Chimaera
AoC: L70 Guardian

24 Reply by Mir

  • Mir
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

On smugglers:

Smugglers are a rare profession for good reason. Playing one successfully takes tremendous skill, as you have to pretty much kite all melee things (watch where you're running!), debuff  and stack armor against ranged things. Your primary weapons will be pistols, which means you are restricted to a maximum range of 35 meters (carbines are 50m, rifles 60!). Smuggler missions don't give xp, but instead raise your smuggler rank, which is beneficial if you pick the rank-dependant expertise boxes (Underworld Boss, Long Odds).

SWG: CL90 Smuggler, Crimson Phoenix Ace, CL90 Engineer, Europe-Chimaera
AoC: L70 Guardian
  • Oluf
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Re: Star Wars Galaxies

ok this is STUPID!

I am really pissed right now at this trial...

I finally manage to get in contact with some rp'ers and actually enjoying just sitting around in a bar. Then..out of no where BANG! 'you have exceede the chat limit for a trial account, please wait 2 mins' huh?!? I think, good thing my rp was over and i was heading outside for a walk...

After a while I enter a shop and meet an other Rp'er and BANG..now I have to wait 4..yes *4* mins before I am able to chat! This is bullsh*t! They should have let us know that the trial account was only meant for grinders with no intention of chatting to anyone while in-game...

Suuure..this is to prevent the spam bots going crazy but this is NOT the right way to prevent that. They should hire some GMs to simply ban the spam bots, or make some kind of report system where a player can report a bot/gold seller and a gm can then check it out.

Why would i want to continue the trial if i cant RP without having to wait up to 4-5 mins before being able to reply to anyone?

Yes.. I am pissed tongue