Posted by Momus | 6 Comments

Blasters, Beggars & Credits: I Love Ilum – Observations from the Summit

Some players do it for glory. Some do it for infamy. Some like to accumulate the most points, or explore the far reaches of the worlds they inhabit. This, however, is not a column for those people. This is a column for those people who, quietly or not, enjoy making money so that their digital avatar can sleep on large piles of cash.

A lot of details have been making their way out of the Fansite Summit, but perhaps most tantalizing of the recent items is the sudden openness about Ilum, the hostile and frozen planet of open-world PVP.

Of course, it’s the duty of this columnist to attempt to find some manner of profit in it all, so a quick run-down on the features and how we might make find some opportunities.

First, the most obvious one: the highest-level nodes of resources spawn here. As with other games that had high-level zones that encouraged world player-versus-player, players will be fighting over the best grounds for farming materials. However, unlike other games, the zone does not have a reset or timer. Instead, while farming, you will constantly be under threat, and it will be far more likely that you will encounter a hostile intent on preventing you from harvesting that sweet, sweet cheddar. Full-contact gathering certainly has its place as a sport, but it also cuts into profits. In general, if you yourself are not a PVP (at least in combat) enthusiast, I would recommend going at off-peak hours, unless it turns into the only place to acquire some rare material – in which case, fight on!

We're going to need a bigger lightsaber...

Posted by Zlatto | 6 Comments

Zlatto’s Bazaar: Looking For 1M DPS… with Crew Skill X!

Zlatto’s Bazaar is the one-third Wall Street, one-third criminal empire and one-half gossip rag. You need to keep up on the Bazaar if for no other reason than to keep an eye on your competitors. Don’t be a Ho-tah and visit often.  Your comments are encouraged, especially if they make me credits…

I swear the info coming out about the game has me spinning around like a Stim-pickled SW:TOR kid.  As I sort through all the of the press articles and wait impatiently upon the Fan Site Summit to happen, I figured I would circle back to an item I read recently that really caught my eye.

From a recent article on MMORPG’s Michael Bitton (potential spoilers – beware!)

The Hammer is one of the new Flashpoints that appears to be more focused on gameplay and puzzles than the cinematic flair present in the previously revealed Black Talon and Esseles. Some bits of group dialogue precede the actual Flashpoint, but once you arrive, it plays more like a typical dungeon run. However, what really stood out about the Hammer was the way Crew Skills were used throughout the experience. Players proficient enough in certain Crew Skills could, for example, re-activate a mining drill in order to break through a wall, circumventing a good deal of the Flashpoint’s trash mobs and allowing the group to beeline for the first boss. Later on, an elevator could be sliced, though no one in the group had high enough Slicing to figure out what that would have entailed.

What I get out of that is, that in some cases, players could be leveraging their Crew Skills within the Operations or Flashpoints for value beyond just gathering resources. 

Posted by Momus | 12 Comments

Blasters, Beggars & Credits: A Deeper Shade Of Craft

Some players do it for glory. Some do it for infamy. Some like to accumulate the most points, or explore the far reaches of the worlds they inhabit. This, however, is not a column for those people. This is a column for those people who, quietly or not, enjoy making money so that their digital avatar can sleep on large piles of cash.

Some of the info from the press embargo was more or less known to us already, but perhaps a big change: reverse engineering has been confirmed to teach rare patterns! This may alter some plans, so make sure you check out the article on Massively. This of course, raises numerous questions, and offers some tantalizing glimpses at a crafting system much deeper than we had been led to believe.
While reverse engineering had always been present, this presents de facto confirmation that it is the main way outside of training to learn new recipes. Considering the variables set forth, the things that I wonder about are: what is the frequency of learning new patterns? What are the chances of creating an “exceptional” version of the item?

This might, for the most dedicated crafters, create a whole subset of activity. Obviously, crafting a green item countless times will not be tremendously difficult; but depending on how often you get an enhanced recipe, people might go over the top in creating lower-tier items. Also, IGN termed it “break down,” so I’m also going to assume that you get a small return on the original materials invested. For completion-oriented players, this might prove to be a great challenge – learning every version of each item that can be reverse engineered. While not necessarily lucrative (certainly not in the short-term, at any rate), I could see some people churning out items in hopes of learning the finer recipes.

Coruscant - future playground.

Posted by Zlatto | 18 Comments

Zlatto’s Bazaar: Habits Of A Successful Merchant Player

Zlatto’s Bazaar is the one-third Wall Street, one-third criminal empire and one-half gossip rag. You need to keep up on the Bazaar if for no other reason than to keep an eye on your competitors. Don’t be a Ho-tah and visit often.  Your comments are encouraged, especially if they make me credits…

“Wealth is power. With wealth many things are possible.”
George Clason (little know fact – he was part Toydarian)

So who doesn’t want to be that player?  The player that never worries about credits, gets to taxi wherever and whenever  he wants and has tricked out their starship with all the best armament from around the galaxy.  When you see that player, its humanoid nature to wonder why not me?  Well, lets talk about why it’s not you, and what you should be planning to change in your gaming ways to be that player in Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Identifying The Change

“Worst of all has got to be the need for some individuals to constantly want to their upgrade gear. They want the best of the best, and no one will stop them. If there’s an epic item on the AH, they want to be the first with it. That’s a pretty huge issue for leveling characters, because (especially at first) there’s a need to differentiate from the pack. This might plague certain people.” – Momus

Now, I would trust this player with my credits only if he kept them in my line of sight the whole time, and I had my blaster out and charged.  But his opinions about economics and MMOs should be required reading for any gamer wanting to make an impact on their server. Momus’s brand of merchant madness can be read over in his column Blaster, Beggars & Credits right here at Ask A Jedi.

Posted by Lethality | 7 Comments

Massively: TOR Crafting Preview

Our buddy Larry Everett, author of Hyperspace Beacon over at Massively, is every bit as big of a Star Wars and MMO geek as anyone. I always enjoy reading his thoughts, and this week especially since he recounts his recent beta experience with crafting in Star Wars: The Old Republic, a subject near and dear to my heart and one which the community is desperate to learn more about!

Larry gives a pretty thorough overview of all of the Crew Skills, and puts together a nice list of harvesting and crafting pairings:

I promised a breakdown of materials and Crew Skills, so here it is to the best of my knowledge. I could not run all the Crew Skills myself, but I did speak to other beta testers who had.

• Armormech uses materials from Scavenging, Investigation, and Underworld Trading.
• Armstech uses materials from Scavenging and Treasure Hunting.
• Artifice uses materials from Archaeology, Treasure Hunting, and Underworld Trading.
• Biochem uses materials from Bioanalysis and Underworld Trading
• Cybertech uses materials from Scavenging, Slicing, Treasure Hunting, and Underworld Trading.
• Synthweaving uses materials from Archaeology, Diplomacy, Investigation, and Underworld Trading.