Stephen Reid, Senior Community manager for SWTOR, held an impromptu Q&A Session via Twitter this afternoon.
Let’s see what he had to say…
Q Are purple lightsabers limited to the Sith?
A No purple lightsabers are not limited to the Sith.
Q Will we be able to test in-game guild functions during the beta weekends
A yes you will be able to test Guild functions, it is part of the reason we want guilds in testing.
Q I was wondering if the loot bags for defeated bosses are a operation only thing, or are they included for flashpoints as well?
A we’re considering the possibility of loot containers for Flashpoints, but no final decision yet
Q Is your team designing hard-mode operations with more of a challenge in mind or more towards accessibility for all?
A Operations in ‘hard mode’ will require proper co-ordination and team work from all group members!
Q How long do you need to wait until repeating an Operation? One week like other multiplayer games?
A The length of time for an Op lockout will be on a case-by-case basis, but Eternity Vault is currently 1 week.
Q How does BW look upon players killing quest npc’s to block pve players on pve servers?
A Players cannot kill other players’ mission-giving NPCs.
Q Are Operations only limited to normal mode and hard mode or will there be more than two difficulties?
A yes, we’re in the process of working on additional difficulty modes for Operations.
Q Could you provide detail regarding whatever PvP advancement system is in place?
A we have a Valor Rank system, players earn valor in PvP to rank up. Higher ranks unlock stuff.
Q Will we see a pre-launch character creation tool like Bioware did with Dragon Age:Origins?
A a pre-launch character creator is not currently planned.
Q The game is released in limited numbers.Is this generally limited or more per area?I.E Having 90% of US playing, 10% rest of world.
A Varies by area, but we can’t talk about specific numbers. Nowhere near the ratio you’re suggesting.
Q With the beta weekends in September will the European contingent be gaining access beta at the same time as those in the USA ?
A EU folk will be playing in September, however large scale ramp will happen in US first, then EU close after.
Q Hi! Any chance you’ll change the animation of the Project ability? Any form of telekinetic mumbo would be more appealing…
A Check today’s Huttball video update carefully. Like, frame by frame. 😉
Q When you design Operations, what are your main inspirations behind the content. From a functional & artistic perspective?
A our main inspirations are the original trilogy (with a KotoR flair!)
Q Will Operations of 16 people give more/better reward than the Operations with 8 people?
A There will be more rewards for 16 players than 8 -pretty much double- but ‘better’ is reserved for hard modes.
Q we have heard about difficulties on operations but will there be any difficulties on the endgame flashpoints?
A Yes, there will be a ‘hard mode’ for some early level Flashpoints which sets them to level 50.
Q Can you use the Agent’s orbital strike indoors?
A yes, the Agent’s Orbital Strike currently works indoors. We’re looking into alternative VFX too.
Q Will Ops groups scale from the 4-man comps ie. 8-man Ops=2 tanks-2 healers-4 dps, 16-man Ops = 4 tanks-4 healers-8 dps?
A Roughly, the answer is yes, but Op group comp can be somewhat flexible.
Q Outside of battlegrounds what PvP opportunities are there on PvE servers if you flag for PvP? Is it most areas?
A If you flag for PvP on a PvE server, then you can fight other flagged players in most areas. More on this soon!