ETA on Advanced Class change?

when I play my jugg - I open with leap then smash (unless I'm trying not to break cc) when I'm playing my marauder - I open with leap then smash (unless I'm trying not to break cc) I then hit a few buttons that make me swing my lightsaber(or savers) at things I'm attacking. I also watch out for cast abilities and use interrupts/stuns ( and this particular strategy apply to all characters i deal damage with, including the ones I play as tanks) similar attacks get similar placement, shared abilities - definitely get same button placement. oh there are differences here and there, but they don't play as differently as you'd think.

on the other hand - the difference between healing on my sorc, versus dpsing as lightning, versus dpsing as madness... oooh boy. and difference between operative healing and operative dps is even bigger.

interesting thing is, and obviously this may not work the same way for everyone.. but I actually have easier time learning new playstyle (like when switching from spec I leveled with to one of the trees I haven't done much with) at at least lvl 45, preferably at max. why? because at that point, abilities actually come together, finally, because you get all the talents that are supposed to harmonize with each other, abilities finally start making perfect sense and you can actually develop some sort of rotation and plan of action.

ymmv, naturally, but IMO? learning each and every spec, let alone AC starting with lvl 1 (or 10) is highly overrated. they don't even start to emerge into somewhat more distinct playstyles, until mid 20ties.

Like I said, Knights/Warriors AC are probably the least differentiated, as they both are up close swinging their sabers.
But other classes are much more different (Operative vs Sniper, Shadow vs Sage, Commando vs Vanguard, they all play very different)

Now that is an unreasonable response from you. You took the quote out of context. A good reason is because people want to. It is enough of a reason. It should be implemented in a way that does not break the game- as I said. Why are you not responding to the part where I say "It should only happen if it can be implemented in a way that does not break the game"?

What "breaking the game" means, as a discussion, is topical and productive. People just saying yes or no, period, is not productive.

To bring it back to base, here are the current proposals discussed in this thread.


Option 1

Level 10 to 15 - Allow AC Change - max 2 changes allowed - reduction to level 10 with change - 24 hour cooldown - once you reach level 16 AC is permanent - everything except XP and quests are unaffected - armor/earpieces/weapons for character and companions are removed and must be reequipped.

Option 2

Level 10 to 55 - Allow AC Change - max 1 change allowed - reduction to level 10 with change - no cooldown - no level gate for permanent AC choice - everything except XP and quests are unaffected - armor/earpieces/weapons for character and companions are removed and must be reequipped.

Option 3

Level 10 to 55 - Allow AC Change - max 2 changes allowed - no reduction in level - one month cooldown - no level gate for permanent AC choice - everything is unaffected - armor/earpieces/weapons for character and companions are removed and must be reequipped.

Option 4

Level 10 to 30 - Allow AC Change - max 1 change allowed - no reduction in level - no cooldown - no level gate for permanent AC choice - everything is unaffected - armor/earpieces/weapons for character and companions are removed and must be reequipped.

Option 5

Level 10 to 46 - Allow AC Change - no maximum changes, can change at will up to 46 - no reduction in level - no cooldown - once you reach level 47 AC is permanent - everything is unaffected - armor/earpieces/weapons for character and companions are removed and must be reequipped.

Option 6

Level 10 to 55 - Allow AC Change - no maximum changes, can change at will - no reduction in level - no cooldown - no level gate for permanent AC choice - everything is unaffected - armor/earpieces/weapons for character and companions are removed and must be reequipped.

Option 7

No AC change allowed.



And this is the pro and con list as it stands right now. It is certainly open for more additions or corrections.


PROS

1. breathing life into characters that may have been abandoned and thus extending someone's stay in game, their enjoyment in game.
2. allowing people who only have fun playing through a story once - experiment with their character without having to suffer through the story they already know and aren't having fun replaying.
3. allowing people to keep using unique, no longer acquirable items, that include pets, speeders, crystals, armor shells, as well as legacy perk unlocks on a character they have grown attached to, while enjoying the game play style that works better for them, within the same archetype, rather than having to reroll from scratch and lose all the investment they made into a character.
4. making extra money for bioware by making ac switch purchasable with cartel coins.


CONS

1) I would expect that many folks are not going to react well to this change if implemented.
2) They flirted with the idea before launch, even talked about it publicly, but in the end decided not to allow it. At the time folks were pretty dead set against it. I don't think it's likely the current environment has changed much since then.
3) Some classes could end up underrepresented due to bad design. Right now some folks stick with an AC they choose because they would have to reroll and do not wish to do so I would guess.
4) If restrictions are not in place this could end up being abused or exploited.
5) This will likely further demean AC choice.
6) Could cause FOTM issues.
7) If late game AC change is allowed it could end up causing folks that have an AC but do not know how to properly play it running Raids and Operations, making an existing problem worse.


There may be more, if others want to add pros and cons I can compile lists for both and add it to the post block for the proposals. Only serious, logical, non-insulting pros and cons please.

If I have missed anyone else's proposal or wish please let me know so I can correct or add it.

dude, that guy is a straight troll, i would just ignore him tbh. he is damaging his side with his stupidity

I hope they never allow an AC change.
An Advanced Class is not like a spec, which changes the way the class is played a bit.
It's a whole new class.

your mileage may vary, but to me at least switching between roles is a much more challenging concept, because you are completely changing your mental approach. dps is dps, whether you dps up close or from far away - your objective is to kill weak to strong mobs, do your best not to pull aggro off tank and do your best to deal as much damage as possible. but mentality between dps and healing and tanking is a lot more different, abilities and mechanics aside. and yet... we are already allowed to do that - switch between roles. just not all 3 roles on the same character. so... why not?

The mental approach of roles is not something radical as changing class. When you play at least one healer/tank, you are pretty much up on the "how to heal/tank" stuff.
I for example, leveled my Sage as purely TK, so I did not know a squat about how to heal with that class. My second was a healer Commando, and with her, I gained some basic insight into how to heal (I never healed in any MMO before this one). Getting into healing Sage (when group finder needs it) was then really fast, I just had to read tooltips of my new abilities and I was all set.

But, while you might be a two (or three) flavors of DPS on each class, DPS Operative or Shadow will still play completely differently than DPS Sniper or Sage.
Just because you might be an awesome DPS Sage does not mean you would be instantly awesome Shadow DPS, as they have very few abilities in common, or use completely different abilities from their basic set (for example, Project, which I use only while running on bosses on Sage, is very much used in many Shadow rotations). Even when you go with the "shared" skills tree (which, in reality, is different for each class), they still play differently.

So, while I am greatly against AC switching, as in my mind, Advanced class IS your class, I could go with something like "oh hey, you played consular to level 55, so your next consular gets double XP (like on Double XP weekends)" legacy trait. So you still have to play that class, but it can be done quicker

by that reasoning, I could also say that if I played one melee dps - I played them all, or if I played one ranged - I played them all.

every role and advanced class have unique nuances to them that have to be learned. healing on a sage/sorc is not like healing on a commando/merc is not like healing on a scoundrel/operative. I have all three btw, so I'm not just saying it.

mentality switch though from dps to healing to tanking? from when you've been playing as one role and then switch to another because thats' what you got as flashpoint queue, or whatever other reason? I'm not saying is hard, I'm saying its not THAT different than switching between melee and ranged and possibly slightly bigger.

I will continue to maintain that assertion of AC being a separate class is nothing more than personal opinion and perception and no more valid than calling it 2 specializations of a single class.

And if they ever do allow it, no one will make you do it, thus making your opposition nothing more than "I don't want anyone else to be able to do it because I would never do it." That's a rather egocentric attitude to take.