I'll be the first to admit that I made a mistake when I created my legacy name. I thought I was going to stick with my Jedi Knight... but I wound up later switching to a Sith Inquisitor.

 

To the people for whom these things matter (and granted, that isn't everyone by any means), surnames are of huge importance. We were the people who booed (loudly) when you announced the decision to link legacy names to surnames; and we're the same people who still cringe every time we have to choose between a Twi'lek and a Sith Pureblood on opposite factions either having the same surname or having none at all. I'm not going to lie and pretend that I represent everyone, or even, perhaps, a majority -- but I am hardly the only person who cares about this.

 

Back to the topic at hand, I chose the wrong surname, and wound up choosing a different character as my main. She will either now have to have no surname (unacceptable), or the wrong surname (also unacceptable), or I can abandon my guild and reroll on another server. As awful as such a prospect is, this is the direction I am now learning.

 

Because there is no method to change surnames at present (you can't petition to have it done [which begs the question -- what happens when someone chooses a profane legacy name?], you can't delete every character on the server to reset it [which I would have been willing to do] -- you literally cannot do anything but leave the server), if you make a mistake, mispelling, or simply choose something you wind up hating, that's it. There's nothing that can be done.

 

And I would be willing to pay -- PAY! REAL FRIGGIN MONEY -- to change my surname right now. I cannot. I am offering hard, real-life currency in exchange for such a process, and am being turned away. Hell, even if I was holding my hand out and asking for a one-time change for free, I don't think that would be that extreme an expectation.

 

But no; not only does Bioware not want my money; they have apparently constructued a system with the legacy that is so profoundly and rigidly 'locked in' to the core of the game that something as simple as a name can't even be changed by a GM. That's just foul design -- there's no way around it. To say I am disappointed would be a profound understatement.

Edited December 28, 2011 by AJediKnight

I think the whole single surname idea for the Legacy system should be scrapped entirely. It doesn't make sens if you play both factions, much less different races on the same faction. Make a surname option unlockable, but limiting us to a single one is just a waste.

I have The Durron Legacy. I will make Kyp proud.

I think the whole single surname idea for the Legacy system should be scrapped entirely. It doesn't make sens if you play both factions, much less different races on the same faction. Make a surname option unlockable, but limiting us to a single one is just a waste.

 

Well, yes, this would certainly be ideal.

 

Have you ever seen the system in LotRO? It's geat. In Lord of the Rings Online, surnames:

 

1) Are not unique, so you can create familes, etc.

 

2) Are not linked to the first name, so, like in TOR, a character's first name remains the unique element, so you don't have to worry about someone pilfering 'your' name if you're John or Fred or something.

 

3) Can be changed at any time by the player.

 

Can you still have a legacy name without linking it to surnames? Of course. Absolutely. And it would still be just as effective of a system without the two being linked.

 

As it stands now, every player who takes surnames seriously must either come up with some ridiculous, stupid, far-fetched explaination for why their sith pureblood Sith Warrior is related to their human Trooper, or must hide the surnames entirely on every alt.

 

And, in the situation where your alt becomes a main? Well, you're just screwed, pal! Because, hey, only one surname per server, and our game is so ***-backwards in terms of programming that we, Bioware, can't even change them!

I have The Durron Legacy. I will make Kyp proud.

 

Should every one of you characters have to have that last name, though?

People have been complaining about this impractical implementation of surnames since the day it was revealed during beta. If Bioware is paying attention to the feedback, they should already be working on a change to this feature, which will probably come out whenever they properly finish the Legacy system. It's currently just a shell of what it's supposed to be. I just put anything in for my Legacy name and then immediately disabled it in the options because it's totally useless to me the way it is now.

Surnames are the only actual 'Hardcore' part of this game, except maybe light side dark side points.

 

I agree with the OP. Charge us 10,000 Credits to change it please.

 

Anyway, I'm not level 30 or finished chapter 1 yet so this doesn't yet apply to me, but I have been thinking about which legacy name I will choose for over a week now.

 

All the good names are taken, and keep being taken so I have to be really creative. I've seen a lot of annoying legacy names from Leet speak, to Curse words, to Cheeseburger.

 

Those players should be forced by a GM to pay the 10k fee or suffer in SPACE PRISON!!!

 

Hey is there a space prison? that's not a bad idea.. speaking of good ideas please add space-ship pvp, thanks.

What happens if you delete the character that originally obtained the legacy?

People have been complaining about this impractical implementation of surnames since the day it was revealed during beta. If Bioware is paying attention to the feedback, they should already be working on a change to this feature, which will probably come out whenever they properly finish the Legacy system. It's currently just a shell of what it's supposed to be. I just put anything in for my Legacy name and then immediately disabled it in the options because it's totally useless to me the way it is now.

 

It'd be really nice if they could commicate that to us. Hell, they don't even have to be precise: just 'yeah, we're not really happy with the surnames as they stand now, either. Something else is in the works -- we promise.' That's all it would take! But, as has happened so many other times in this game's development cycle we, the players, are kept in the dark. It was like this in beta when people told them that the character creator was rather weak, or that there was ability delay, or skill bloat -- suggestions; good, honest suggestions, were ignored wholesale.

 

I understand this is 'their game' -- certainly, WoW has been designing under that umbrella concept for years (where the players come last and are told nothing) and it has worked out for them. But, unlike in TOR, when there is mass outcry in WoW about the stupidity of decisions, an 'official' generally steps forward to at least acknowledge that they are aware of the concerns.

 

That never happens here.

What happens if you delete the character that originally obtained the legacy?

 

I asked Stephen Reid this: it does nothing. And, not only that, but I asked what would happen if you deleted every character on the server. Know what happens then? Nothing! You can't even petition for a surname change -- the GMs are unable to do that!

 

I mean, really, it's mind-boggling. Name changes are just a part of life in MMOs. People get dissatisfied; they make mistakes; they have a change of heart -- how could you possibly launch a system whre NOT EVEN THE GMS CAN CHANGE SURNAMES, BIOWARE??

the GMs are unable to do that!

 

At this point the GMs are just following orders and are just like customer support ST spouters, I wouldn't take their word as in stone, just wait a bit, I do believe they will allow an option to pay credits for a change, perhaps they can add a shady alien who offers you to pay for a new identity with black market ID papers.

At this point the GMs are just following orders and are just like customer support ST spouters, I wouldn't take their word as in stone, just wait a bit, I do believe they will allow an option to pay credits for a change, perhaps they can add a shady alien who offers you to pay for a new identity with black market ID papers.

 

Yes, but the problem is, how many months away is that? I agree with you -- I don't think the situation is permanent (although I wouldn't want to bet my life on it, either: know how long they ignored us about the character creator in beta? You don't want to know! ); we are in the earliest of early days following launch -- some changes (although maybe not *this* change) are bound to come.

 

But, again, how long does that mean that people who chose something they don't like have to wait? How low a priority is this?

 

Wouldn't a good stopgap measure be to allow for a one-time GM change? And, hell, barring that, wouldn't a good fail-safe for the system be to have the system 'forget' a name if you deleted every character on a particular server? I'm fine with going to extremes; I'm fine with deletion; I'm fine with paying real-life money. What I am not fine with is 'tough' or 'that's life,' which is essentially Bioware's response at this juncture.

 

It's early in the game for all of us; I can delete a couple of characters to make it right. But I am far more leery of betting on Bioware changing this in the long term. If I knew such change was coming in 5 or 6 months? Sure, I'd hold out. But to not know at all? To wonder if a change will never come the entire time I'm playing a character? At that point, I think I'd rather abandon my guild and my server. Change does not come easily here; frequently, change does not seem to come at all.

Edited December 26, 2011 by AJediKnight

Seems to me that the best solution, while keeping to the perceived developer intent for the legacy system, is to give people an option whenever they get a character to the end of Act 1 to delete their current legacy and start a brand new one under a new name. If you opted to start a new legacy then all legacy xp under the old name would be lost and that name would be freed up for anyone else to claim.

 

Most likely though they will eventually allow people to pay real money to change their legacy name instead as that will make them more money and there is nothing wrong with making money from completely optional things like that.

Seems to me that the best solution, while keeping to the perceived developer intent for the legacy system, is to give people an option whenever they get a character to the end of Act 1 to delete their current legacy and start a brand new one under a new name. If you opted to start a new legacy then all legacy xp under the old name would be lost and that name would be freed up for anyone else to claim.

 

Great suggestion. I bet it would take very little work to develop that. It's probably something that could be added quite easily in a minor patch. I mean, the Legacy System was added very late into development -- there are probably very few things that a change to it would 'bug out.'

 

Most likely though they will eventually allow people to pay real money to change their legacy name instead as that will make them more money and there is nothing wrong with making money from completely optional things like that.

 

I agree.

 

Question is: when? And do they even know there is a problem? There was never a reply to the 100s of pages of complaints about the legacy system when it was announced as the only path to surnames; all comments were ignored. When you shout into the darkness and nobody replies, how do you even know you were heard?

 

Bioware might just think everything is peachy right now. Maybe not, but how the heck could we know? All channels of communication are silent.

Edited December 26, 2011 by AJediKnight

I didnt actualy know this. I planned on having my main with one secind name and my alts with different ones. I come form LotRO and agree this should be changed. I stress for ages when I make my first char because they have to look right and have the right name, that includes second names. So my main will be fine but my alts wont be able to have their proper name, not game breaking for me but irritating for sure!

Make your sith characters on a different server. or go into options and hide your legacy surname. The point, really, is to have an 'account' per server which gives you unlocks based on how much you've played the game in totality. It has little to do with surnames.

 

That said, it would be nice to have the option for your legacy and surname to be separate in some way. Where legacy unlocks surnames, but you can pick per character or something once they reach the 2nd chapter.

I didnt actualy know this. I planned on having my main with one secind name and my alts with different ones. I come form LotRO and agree this should be changed. I stress for ages when I make my first char because they have to look right and have the right name, that includes second names. So my main will be fine but my alts wont be able to have their proper name, not game breaking for me but irritating for sure!

 

And if your main is no longer your main... how would you feel then?

 

Again, I think this drives some people nuts, and doesn't affect other people at all. I'm a bigtime roleplayer, and have had most of my characters (first and last names for them all) for years now. I started off playing one, and assigned her the appropriate last name. Then, 10 levels later, I changed my mind. Well, too bad on that one, I guess!

Make your sith characters on a different server. or go into options and hide your legacy surname. The point, really, is to have an 'account' per server which gives you unlocks based on how much you've played the game in totality. It has little to do with surnames.

 

It has everything to do with surnames. It is the only method to having a surname in TOR. Surnames are huge in Star Wars. Who is Luke without Skywalker? Han without Solo? Wedge without Antilles? And, what's worse, in TOR, they'd all probably be Luke Antilles, Han Antilles, and Wedge Antilles. But, what's worse, is they'd constantly be bumping into enemies like Boba Antilles and Emperor Antilles.

 

Why would anyone care if the legacy name and the surname were two different things? This wouldn't ruin the game for anyone. Hell, you can already hide the legacy name -- if it really mattered all that much, you wouldn't even be able to do that.

 

That said, it would be nice to have the option for your legacy and surname to be separate in some way. Where legacy unlocks surnames, but you can pick per character or something once they reach the 2nd chapter.

 

Exactly.

Edited December 26, 2011 by AJediKnight

I say get rid of surnames completely. They cause too many issues like this and others. Also, if you can't have the same surname as someone else on the server, it kinda forces you to either lvl as fast as possible to get the name you want, in turn skipping the whole point of this game....story. Or forget the name you'd like cause it will most likely be taken when you hit 50 cause you were busy enjoying this game for what it was meant to be....story.

 

Surnames should have either been avail at char creation, or not at all. Making a last name a reward is just plain w..t..f.

I'm going to keep this thread bumped. Since Bioware removed the search feature, this is the only way to keep a topic afloat now.

I say get rid of surnames completely. They cause too many issues like this and others. Also, if you can't have the same surname as someone else on the server, it kinda forces you to either lvl as fast as possible to get the name you want, in turn skipping the whole point of this game....story. Or forget the name you'd like cause it will most likely be taken when you hit 50 cause you were busy enjoying this game for what it was meant to be....story.

 

Surnames should have either been avail at char creation, or not at all. Making a last name a reward is just plain w..t..f.

 

Or you could just create them 5 seconds into the game like in LotRO, and have them non-unique.

 

It's not like people in that game freak out if someone has the same surname as their character -- they either ignore it, or they RP it; it's always nifty to bump into a relation you didn't know existed.

I made the mistake of picking a name for my SI and then I got a mail in-game telling me it's for ALL my characters. A little late once i'd chosen it.

 

My name of Darkshire is fine for the dark side and fits them well but it's not so good when I roll toons on the republic side. I hope we see an option to change it sometime.

Or you could just create them 5 seconds into the game like in LotRO, and have them non-unique.

 

It's not like people in that game freak out if someone has the same surname as their character -- they either ignore it, or they RP it; it's always nifty to bump into a relation you didn't know existed.

 

 

Never had that situation cause I didn't play LoTRO very long. But that would be kinda fun to bump into an unknown relative and exchange some words or goods. lol

I made the mistake of picking a name for my SI and then I got a mail in-game telling me it's for ALL my characters. A little late once i'd chosen it.

 

My name of Darkshire is fine for the dark side and fits them well but it's not so good when I roll toons on the republic side. I hope we see an option to change it sometime.

 

Funnily enough, my last name also references a town in a Blizzard game -- I had thought that, since choosing such a name is a minor violation of the TOS, that getting it changed would be a breeze -- after all, wouldn't Bioware want to avoid obvious references to a competing product constantly running around on their servers?

 

But no, the CS team can't change any surnames.

 

That's pro. That's quite pro.

Edited December 26, 2011 by AJediKnight

Never had that situation cause I didn't play LoTRO very long. But that would be kinda fun to bump into an unknown relative and exchange some words or goods. lol

 

Oh, it always was. Of course, most people copy surnames consciously, because they want to create a family or a clan or something and want to share the same name. But when it happened by accident on a roleplaying server? Always a hoot -- particularly as a hobbit, whom as Tolkien tells it, always assume that someone with the same last name must be a distant, if previously unknown, relative. It happened to Frodo with Underhill when he visited Bree.

 

But, yeah, it's fun to play things like that out. Because the first names were unique, you were never going to run into a clone of yourself. But the same last name? That's just a good time waiting to happen.