Yeah, I am on i5 Win7 but there are Intel folks who claim to benefit from core unparking, albeit in titles like Planetside 2 and Battlefield 4, that's why I am asking about SWTOR. The Registry edit actually makes Win 7 behave like Win 8 in this regard. Might be worth a try and couple of benchmark runs.

Just wondering if core parking, or rather core unparking (either via Registry or app, like Bitsum ParkControl or CoderBag CPU Core Parking Utility) has any effect in SWTOR. Win 8 manages core parking a lot better than Win 7, so it is said to be less of an issue there, while Win 8.1 is (?) even better in this regard. If you unpark your cores, did you notice some difference for SWTOR. And what method do you use - registry edit, ParkControl or CoderBag app?

I have posted a thread in the Spoiler section of the Story and Lore, but I think one particular point perhaps deserves a wider discussion (well, I am definitely quite interested in learning more about it), so let me re-post this particular, spoiler-free (I hope so, I don't think that general NPCs reactions to PC race are spoilers at this point) section. We can make several near-human species by using Human race in the Appearance Creator. Now, would these near-humans (Echani, Umbarans, Kiffars, Hapans, Lorrdians etc.) be treated like Humans in the New Sith Empire? I am talking about those near-human species actually descended from baseline humans. If you make a near-human character like that, using Human race in the Appearance Creator, all Imperial NPCs react as they would to a human PC. From Imperial class lines and other story lines we know that the Empire is pretty much humano-centric, although that is beginning to change (errr...is that a spoiler?... no further details here anyway). Anyone levelled, say a Miralukan character on the Imperial side? That is a distinct "race" in the Creator, so how Imperial NPCs react? That might answer the question whether the New Sith Empire treated most near-humans (actual near-humans, those descended from baseline human stock) like humans. Of course Chiss have a place of their own here, but they are visually quite distinctive from baseline humans, even more than, say, Umbarans. It could still mean that Imperials might react differently to different near-humans - so even if Chiss and possibly Miralukans (although I would think that they are treated by Imperial NPCs just like humans, simply by virtue of being a legacy race unlock for Imperial side, so yeah, game mechanics here) get their own specific reactions, Umbarans, Hapans and others may get different more prefential treatment (if only by virtue of game mechanics - as we are rolling with Human race as far as the Appearance Creator is concerned). It would be cool if CC unlock White Eyes would give some reactions from Imperial NPCs, along the line of "Hey, you human or what?" with them being not sure whether to treat PC as a human or an alien (for Umbarans and Echani). That would be cool and it would add a level of RP realism. So far they treat white eyed PC the same as humans, so we can probably infer that the New Sith Empire treated at least some of near-human species the same as baseline humans.

Well, I do understand that (and I mention the fact that it is an addition), you just simply state the truth of the matter. Korriban is one big awkward moment for PB SI. At least they provided for a unique loading screen to try to explain how it could happen to a PB to end up like this. They did not tailor the Korriban story for PBs, though, and that is the problem for PB SI.

Aloysius Kallig could have been a Pureblood, that is not the problem of the story. Given the subsequent fall of his bloodline (and the fact that the SI is oblivious about her/his connection with Aloysius Kallig), it is most probable that his enslaved descendants ended up on the human side of the "Pureblood-Human" spectrum (the so called Sith Purebloods are essentially humans with strong Red Sith traits inherited from their ancestry - given the way genetics work, it is possible that a Pureblood could be born to human parents that do not display any outward "red marks", as around 97% or so of the Imperial population have Red Sith ancestry). Actually, given this fact, it could make sense for SI to be a Sith Pureblood, as s/he could be born to enslaved human parents (one of whom is descended from Aloysius Kallig). Problem is that the class story does not handle SI being PB very well. Granted, there *is* a special loading screen for PB SI - when you create your PB SI, log in, immediatelly log out and re-log in again, you will see some special explanation of how a PB ended up being enslaved and shipped to Korriban. Human and alien SI has this particular screen more generalized (and same for both humans and aliens). This would be good and it could go hand in hand with the above mentioned fact that a PB could be born to enslaved human parents (and since the family probably forgot its own origins s/he would oblivious of being connected to ancient Sith Lord Kallig). But when Lord Zash storms into the Overseer Harkun's office demanding to see where is "...umm...the Red One" (this obviously being a sarcastic remark) when there are actually two "Red Ones" competing for the position of her apprentice and one of those (PC) is standing right there... this is where the storytelling falls on its face. From the Korriban story it is obvious that PB SI was an addition and they did not have the time nor resources to tailor the story for her/him. Fortunately, you can still be a best pal with Lord Abaron and boast about being of the pure Sith blood. But that is not a part of the class story. From DK onwards, it really does not matter, though, as you being a former slave is the hot stuff, rather than you being a former PB slave. And being a PB, you can mouth off Darth Malgus couple of times SI works best (that is, without any story hiccups) for humans and perhaps Zabraks. PBs have their awkward moments on Korriban and then it is a non-issue. Twi'leks have their awkward moment meeting the ghost of Lord Kallig, but that is a matter of engine mechanics. Certain helmets remove lekkus, so... Anyway, it would be cool to have custom model of Lord Kallig for Twi'lek SI. For alien SI, Talos Drellik mentions that Lord Kallig was an exceptional lord for his times for being an alien. Now, it is just a matter of creative imagination to come up with how a Zabrak or a Twi'lek could ended up in the Old Sith Empire, but surely it is nothing impossible (and it would make Aloysius Kallig all the more awesome bad*ss, given the way how the Old Sith Empire functioned). It is also not impossible for a Rattataki to end up there, although it kind of stretches it, as the Rattataki were discovered by Darth Vich of the current Sith Empire sometimes after the Great Galactic War (definitely at least centuries, more likely couple of millenia, after the period of Kallig and Tulak Hord). This does not preclude an individual Rattataki ending up in the Old Sith Empire, though. That's for the default choices. As for the non-default ones, well, it could always have happened that one odd Mirialan, Cathar or whatever, exceptional individual ended up in the Old Sith Empire. His descendants probably fled after his fall, and recently ended up again in the Empire, although this time in slavery (due to the recent war)...or whatever. Everyone can come up with her or his explanations that could be enough lore-friendly. My specific question would be, as we can make several near-human species by using Human race in the Appearance Creator, would these near-humans (Echani, Umbarans, Kiffars, Hapans, Lorrdians etc.) be treated like Humans in the Sith Empire? Because that is how NPCs would react to human PC. The thing is, if SI is of alien race, NPCs often react to this more than to his former slave status, while if SI is a human or PB, they treat him without any racial prejudice, only reacting sometimes to his slave past. So, for alien SI her/his being an alien is the big thing, while for human/PB SI being a former slave is the big thing. I don't know, anyone levelled Miralukan SI? I guess that s/he is treated the same as a human SI and not as an alien SI. This would answer (although it would rather be a matter of game mechanics, given how the legacy race unlocks work) the question whether the New Sith Empire treated most near-humans (actual near-humans, those descended from baseline human stock) like humans. Of course Chiss have a place of their own here, but they are visually quite distinctive from baseline humans, even more than, say, Umbarans. It would be cool if CC unlock White Eyes would give some reactions from Imperial NPCs, along the line of "Hey, you human or what?" with them being not sure whether to treat PC as a human or an alien. That would be cool and it would add a level of RP realism. So far they treat white eyed PC the same as humans, so we can probably infer that the New Sith Empire treated at least some of near-human species the same as baseline humans. This of course would not make Aloysius Kallig being an Echani or Umbaran back in the Old Sith Empire any less awesome bad*ss.

Hi folks, I am posting this in the spoiler section for obvious reasons. With the 3.0 I am going to re-roll my Sorc and I have several ideas in mind (either using Human race for near-Human races or my Legacy unlocks, so no usual choices like Twi'lek, Rattataki or Zabrak SI) and I would like to keep them lore-friendly. While I am a Star Wars nerd, I am not an über-nerd, so I would like to consult more knowledgeable folks. Keeping in mind that SI is related (most probably related, see a score of discussions on this point around the forums here) to the ancient Sith Lord Aloysius Kallig, a contemporary of Tulak Hord (which does not say much, but they were of pre-KOTOR I era, apparently of the Old Sith Empire era), which of the following choices would make no sense vs. which of those would make sense: 1) Echani SI - near-human species, might be treated more or less like Humans in the Empire (??? - is that so?), I am asking because the race choice would be Human and the NPCs reactions would treat SI as a human - Appearance Creator choices - very pale skin (i.e. Skin Color 1-3), white/silver eyes (i.e. Eye Color 9, the CC unlock white eyes), white hair (i.e. Hair Color 15 or 21 /CC unlock/ - what would be more appropriate for an Echani - "dull" white or "bright" white hair?) - could Aloysius be an Echani lord or could he had an Echani consort back then? 2) Umbaran SI - near-human species, closely allied with the Sith throughout the history - might be treated more favourably than Echani perhaps? (again the race choice would be Human and the NPCs reactions would treat SI as a human) - Appearance Creator choices - very pale skin (i.e. Skin Color 1-3), white/silver eyes (i.e. Eye Color 9, the CC unlock white eyes), white hair (i.e. Hair Color 15 or 21 /CC unlock/ - what would be more appropriate - "dull" white or "bright" white hair?), in addition to this perhaps (and this is a question as well) a more blue-ish Complexion might be desirable for an Umbaran (???) (say 28 or 34), white hair (i.e. Hair Color 15 or 21 /CC unlock/ - what would be more appropriate - "dull" white or "bright" white hair? - for an Umbaran prolly 15), no hair for females (apparently, although it might be a question of fashion here) - again, could Aloysius be an Umbaran lord or could he had an Umbaran consort back then? 3) Mirialan SI - obviously an alien within the Empire and treated like one - Legacy unlock - could Aloysius be a Mirialan lord (highly unlikely, but then Talos Drellik says, if SI is not a Human, that Aloysius was an exceptional alien Lord) or could he had a Mirialan consort back then (could Sith Pureblood have an offspring with a Mirialan anyway?)? 4) Cathar SI - now, this is really stretching it, but well, the question is - could it be pulled lore-wise? - obviously an alien within the Empire and treated like one - Legacy unlock - could Aloysius be a Cathar lord (highly unlikely, but then Talos Drellik says, if SI is not a Human, that Aloysius was an exceptional alien Lord) or could he had a Cathar consort back then (the same question on having an offspring with a Cathar) What is your take on this? Thanks.

That would be great. That would mean 600W can easily power the SLI (if NVidia catches the train, and Maxwell sure looks promising, so like in as you say 5 years I think both GPU brands will be similarly efficient) or CrossFireX! Yay!

Yeah, I should definitely be fine. Just for those with similar PSUs of similar Wattage, that is 12V multi-trail PSUs 500-700W, be sure to check maximum A per one trail as well as total W for 12V rails. In my case it is 18A per rail with max. combined power being 540W (which means that those four rails can not run on full 18A). Anyway, the reviews for GTX 770 are in accord with each other about power consumption of this card (I took into account both NVidia base model reviews as well as reviews for my particular card). Under normal gaming situation the power consumption of the card is 196W (196W being a peak situation with average around 180W). Only under total stress (like Furmark) it goes up to around 230W (246W are mentioned in the review of the NVidia base model card). So doing the math - the card is run on 2 rails (if you have multi-rail PSUs be sure to connect the GPU like GTX 770 on one rail per power connector, otherwise problems might arise in gaming intensive situations) and consumes 246W max., that means 20.5A total on both rails. Now as for the rest, it depends on how power hungry your CPU is as well as on how many blings you have going on in your rig. Ivy Bridge i5 3570 TDP is 77W, which combined with GPU max. load would mean CPU+GPU power consumption is around 320W, that would give 27A total for all three 12V rails (does not say much, the GPU rails would be around 10A each, the CPU rail would be around 7A). This is under the load the GPU would never probably come to, if you would stick to playing games and not running Furmark on it. So, I guess a good 550W PSU could probably run GTX 770, depending on the bling and HDDs, DWDs etc. going on. Always pay attention to max. Amperage and Wattage of 12V rails if on multi-rails and connect the card to two separate rails.

My PSU can nominally supply 18A on each of the 12V rails, so that would give 36A total to the card. I think now that indeed it should be safe.

...edited (the thread did not appear at first, ok now)

Hi, so I am getting a 27" LCD and while at it, I decided to upgrade my GPU as well. I am getting GTX 770 and I would like to ask more technically competent folk here as to whether my 1,5 year old FSP Aurum 80 PLUS 600W PSU - Gold will be up to task. The PSU Calculator tells me I should be fine with 550W PSU given my set up (i5 3570, SSD, couple of fans), while the official requirements are 600W PSU, which is exactly what I have. What I would want to know is how resistant to degradation GOLD PSUs are, i.e. how long after installation are they able to supply sufficient power. I would like to get at least 2 more years out of my PC before complely upgrading (i.e. 4 years total). Cheers

Hi, I am sure there may be many excellent recommendations from folks. For my part, seeing you like switching roles, Juggernaut migh be good for you. You can go DPS and still be a decent off tank if you change Forms and use your taunts. It gives you a lot of flexibility. Similarly, you can go Sorcerer and go DPS and still you can throw around an odd healing spell here and there. Of course, I am talking about levelling sub-50/55. But if you get Field Respec and carry two sets of gear (DPS/Tank, or DPS/Heal), you can be pretty versatile regardless of level. I am sure BH and IA may advise you similarly. Cheers, Uodalricus

Bump for Edit

Hi, I am not sure whether this is the appropriate place for this thread (I am a returning player ), but here it goes. I tried asking in game, but I would not like to continue spamming the general chat anyway. I have been comparing ingame AA vs forced FXAA and I would like some more experienced members to either confirm or deny the validity of the impressions I get so far (yeah, like an hour of testing only so far). It seems to me that forced FXAA (through NVidia Panel) is quality wise between ingame 2xAA and 4xAA, but that it is easier on the fps than the ingame AA. I am not quite sure what kind of AA is the ingame AA setting. With the forced FXAA there is a slight blurring of the UI, but it is to be expected and it is in no way making the UI unusable. Do you have any experience with running SWTOR with forced FXAA as compared to ingame AA? Edit - it definitely seems to be easier on the fps and while quality wise it is not as good as ingame 4xAA (not to compare it to more advanced forced AA options lots of folks are running with), it is way better than ingame 2xAA. If you donť mind the blurring the FXAA brings, go for it. Combined with other tips lots of folks here came up with to improve performance (Maximum Pre-rendered Frames - 2 and setting PhysX to GPU instead of auto made a difference for me, but depending on the system, other tips may work best for you) it can make a difference and allow folks to enjoy a smooth gameplay. Cheers, Uodalricus

Yes, you are right, of course. That would be And of course there is this FP. So I guess the matter is settled and as the SW story goes, the way it implies certain facts, the most canon races are Pureblood and Human. Pureblood is probably the most story compatible option, while the Human is the second best, almost as good as Pureblood. If a Pureblood like Exal Kressh (i.e. a Pureblood who looks like her, almost Human) had offspring with a Human Sith Lord and that offspring would have his/her own offspring also with a Human Sith Lord, the heir to their bloodline could very well be Human SW who could then