I'm rather pleased that 'open' PvP has been reined in. While leveling a low-level alt, there were few things more asinine than a high-level or geared player intercepting my AoE spread, triggering PvP and then ganking me for sh*ts and giggles. Players who dislike PvP are typically players who are less proficient at PvP and any game feature that would compel a PvP encounter, inevitably resulting in defeat, would reduce their game enjoyment. Rather recently in KOFE; PvP group sessions were required to acquire Major Pierce and/or the Republic combat droid companions. I found myself grinding the numbers as required while having little interest or skill and thereby weakening my entire team in doing so. PvP is an acquired skill and taste and belongs in a contained preference space.

I will assume that someone has queried this before, although I cannot seem to find a forum thread on it: I would be thrilled to have the devs create an outfit slot for the Agent and Trooper classes to slot the pistol that is rendered in cinematics / dialogue scenes. The current default pistols have been around since launch and are.. aesthetically challenged. I'm not asking for agents or troopers to *use* pistols, neither do I ask for scenes with sniper rifles or autocannons. Since the dialogue scenes are already dynamically rendering the smuggler and bounty hunter pistols, it should really be a small extra step to plug in a cosmetic outfit slot for the agent and trooper.

Since effective player levels were adjusted for the planet or operation that one entered, it remains a curious thing that the loot drops are still scaled to actual level. Worded another way; a level 65 player doing Tatooine Heroics will drop to level 30 for the duration but the loot drops will still be items of level 61 or above, and herein lies the problem.... Unless I'm mistaken, it is now no longer possible to farm specific gear items of interest. The Shadowbringer lightsaber, Black Talon gear and hundreds of other gear items below level 61, which exist as regular or heroic loot drops, will never again drop for level 65 players on any planet in any circumstance. Is this so ?

Indeed, I stand corrected. In recent hours, after completing All the Pieces / Dark Design, I was able to return to the same Heroic again a second time to help another player without having the quest. It may be that a player can repeat the Heroics to help another only if you have already done them first yourself. I have no way to know why two other players could not assist in my Heroic phase instance and yet I could assist in theirs.

Not true for All the Pieces / Dark design. I was able to test this with 2 different players who agreed to help. Even when I reset and enter the phase first, both of them received "You are not eligible for this conversation" after I interact with the launch platform that triggers the skiff chase. I have since been able to solo the Heroic on my tank and healer alts but my dps alts fare less well.

After parking them on the back burner for a year, I have now worked through the Macrobinocular series which ends with the two Heroic 4's; Shroud's Last Stand and All the Pieces / Dark Design, and herein lies the problem... As best as I can tell; these Heroics can only be obtained by following the chain as a single opportunity series. They are not available to others from consoles or NPC's and cannot be shared, not even with "Allow access to personal phases", and without having the mission logged for each player there is no way to recruit a multi-man team that can activate the platform to trigger the skiff chase and eventual Maki’Voro boss fight. After several weeks of coming up empty on group recruitment for these Heroics, I'm forced to conclude that extremely few other players currently exist who have these Heroics ready to go, which makes me pretty much fscked. There may be players who will chime in here on how they solo'ed every Heroic while mixing vodka martinis with their other hand, but is there any recourse for mortals such as myself to team for these Heroics ?