To whom it may concern,

 

Greetings SWTOR community! I'm a role-player from the Ebon-Hawk server. I'd like to propose my idea to the SWTOR staff and development crews. If you agree with my ideas or would like to see something similar, please post in this thread and support my idea! So, onto the idea...

 

"Home worlds"

 

- While I understand that both Dromund Kaas and Coruscant are entry level planets (10-15) they are still the center of the Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic. As such, I'd like to propose that they receive an expansion and are added upon. Right now, the game has added several additions to both planets, but for the majority they have remained entry-level planets that most people have no interest in visiting. Why not expand the main city areas of both? Add higher level vendors, and bring every amenity of the fleet down to the Capitols. Additionally you could possibly expand upon both to include a small series of quests. Unfortunately I don't have an idea for any quest ideas at this time, but I'm sure as people begin to reply to this thread we can all pitch in and build some ideas of what the community wants to see.

 

- I think this would benefit the game by bringing players together. Right now the majority of role-play and any character interaction occurs on the fleet, and for good reason. Everything you could ever need is located there. But why should the vast Empire and the mighty Republic have so much invested into their space stations, rather than their home worlds? If both planets were expanded, it might bring higher level players back down to some of the starter planets, allowing them to offer assistance, chat, and give advice to lower level players. It also gives new players a glimpse at some of the new content that's floating about. A little teaser and a bit of eye candy for that new armor that was released or those new mounts. As for us role-players.. there's only so much you can do on a rather linear space station. So being able to have a full planet to move about, would be very much welcomed.

 

Keypoints

1. Expand the Dromund Kaas and Coruscant city areas.
    
   
2. Insert additional vendors to both city areas.
    
   
3. Add level 55 content to both planets.
    
   
4. Possibly create a world event for both planets to highlight the new additions and bring attention to them.
   

 

 

"Buildings"

 

"The home should be the treasure chest of living." - Le Corbusier

 

- The idea behind 'Buildings' is to give players and guilds alike an area to call their own, a 'home', if you would. Many people have often complained that it was a promised never fulfilled by SWTOR or Bioware. I've heard many others echo throughout the community that they'd love to have a building of their own that could be styled and decorated however they want. Whether it be to show off their accomplishments, a hideout, or even a guild hall. There's been a lot of talk about 'Guild Ships' and hoping that they'll come with the new space expansion, but most of us aren't even if sure if it's been discussed. I think this could easily be accomplished by the SWTOR development team and would definitely receive a lot of high praises and accolades from the community.

 

- With 'buildings' you could easily add different phases on different planets such as Dromund Kaas, Coruscant, Voss, Makeb, Alderaan, and virtually any planet you'd like. Preferably, depending on the size of the humble abode, I'm sure most people would like up to entire ops groups to be allowed to enter. There's a lot of instances where guilds want to hold private meetings, whether they be role-play based or not, and having your own phase for an entire guild would be amazing. You could help regulate this by displaying a message at the entrance to the phase, saying that the player must purchase the building for 'x' amount and also possibly displaying some of the benefits that the building has, (E.g. up to an 8 person ops group allowed in, cargo hold access, 'x' amount of achievement displays and etc.) Which brings me to my next point, some of the benefits behind purchasing a 'building'.

 

- Perhaps you could add various items that players would be able to purchase and have automatically added to their building, similar to the way the game currently uses ship upgrades. Players could purchase GTN terminals, training dummies, vendors, furniture, literally anything you can think of to upgrade their personal space and make it more personalized. Additionally you could make this a rest area, allowing players to rest in their own 'buildings' instead of just random cantinas.

 

Keypoints

1. Create building phases that players can purchase through either credits or cartel coins. (Whichever fits your fancy)
    
   
2. Create several phases to allow entire ops groups to have entry, for guild meetings and such.
    
   
3. Add these buildings to various planets such as Dromund Kaas, Coruscant, Voss, Makeb, and anywhere which might be popular.
    
   
4. Create and add items or upgrades for these buildings to include, GTN terminals, Training Dummies, Vendors, furniture additions and such.
   

 

 

"Neutral Zones"

 

- Neutral zones are the main hubs for Cross-Faction role-play, the primary ones right now are Voss and Nar Shaddaa. Because of this, on most nights you'll find role-players of all types gathering on the Promenade for various events that people have scheduled and created. I think that the addition of more Neutral zones such as these, would strongly benefit role-players and allow them to convene even more. While satiating the numerous desires of role-players may not be the intent of SWTOR, I still believe that this idea is very valid. Some of the most enjoyable times I had on PvP servers were encountering random players of the opposite faction in neutral areas and taunting them into a duel. The problem is, we have beautiful worlds such as Makeb, which are so infested and cluttered with Mobs and enemy NPC's, that just trying to get where you're going can be a real hassle, much less fighting someone of the opposite faction.

 

- I propose that both a neutral area and an open PvP area be added to Makeb or more planets. This would not only give these planets popularity amongst all servers, but also allow PvP'ers to create massive PvP based battles on the twisting terrain of Makeb. Right now I think most people that are lured into PvP on Makeb, are usually ganked while fighting a mob, seeing as how they're literally everywhere. You could even add PvP quests to these areas, or possibly world events to help create a rise in their popularity.

 

Keypoints

1. Create additional Neutral and PvP areas across various planets.
    
   
2. Possibly add PvP quests or a world event to create popularity in these areas.
    
   

 

 

I sincerely hope that you've enjoyed reading this and that you found some, if not all of these ideas to be interesting. If anyone has any questions or needs any clarification on some of my thoughts, by all means post below! I hope to hear from all of you soon!

 

Thanks for reading,

-Aker

I like the idea for home worlds.. I would love to do more with our capital planets..

 

Player housing?? The only way I will agree to player housing is if it instanced.. If it isn't instanced, then I can't support it.. I must also say, that I am content with our ships being our house.. I would actually prefer my house to be my ship..

 

As for Neutral zones?? I am not sure I totally understand your idea.. Are you wanting areas in which both Republic players and Imperial players can coexist?? I don't have much of a problem with this if it is done correctly.. For that we would need a 3rd faction or a common enemy.. It will have to be backed by story.. Not just because we think it would be fun.. I don't care what they do as far as PVP quests... As long as they don't mix PVE with PVP.. I am on a PVE server for a reason.. I don't want PVP forced on me..

Thanks for replying!

 

As far as the buildings, yes I think it'd be vital for them to be instances as well. Otherwise it'd just be a huge mess. But I think that the instances need to be able to support up to a full 16 or greater ops group. That way guilds can have meetings and various activities there.

 

In regards to the neutral zones, sorry for the clarification. My meaning was that some areas would be completely neutral such as Voss of Nar Shaddaa. Perhaps a third party faction would be required along with an intense back story. But why not just another neutral planet such as how Manaan was in KOTOR? And I certainly understand the PvP issue, a lot of people don't like it. But perhaps having the PvP quest only obtainable from a PvP terminal might be acceptable?

Thanks for replying!

 

As far as the buildings, yes I think it'd be vital for them to be instances as well. Otherwise it'd just be a huge mess. But I think that the instances need to be able to support up to a full 16 or greater ops group. That way guilds can have meetings and various activities there.

 

In regards to the neutral zones, sorry for the clarification. My meaning was that some areas would be completely neutral such as Voss of Nar Shaddaa. Perhaps a third party faction would be required along with an intense back story. But why not just another neutral planet such as how Manaan was in KOTOR? And I certainly understand the PvP issue, a lot of people don't like it. But perhaps having the PvP quest only obtainable from a PvP terminal might be acceptable?

 

Well.. I would be ok with all that.. As long as there is some story or back story.. I don't want it to be the way that WOW did it.. Here is this floating city called Dalaran and oh by the way it is a sanctuary.. As for a PVP terminal.. That would be fine.. So I can agree with all this..

Cheers man! Any ideas of your own that might contribute to the three main points?

If there are new quests involved for the Home World expansion, I agree with you. I could provide a quest idea such as this:

Update Quests: You are coming back to re-visit some of the quests you originally did.

Corusant would have you checking to see if anymore repairs are needed on Gree equipment. Making sure the Black Sun and Jusitcars are under control. And maybe cleaning up the ruins of the Jedi temple more. Rebuilding ideas?

Kaas would have us checking in to make sure no other Sith like Grathan are going rogue. We could check to see if the Revanites are still going well (light) or taken care off (dark). And maybe check for more spirits in the Temple.

 

As for housing, that is not as interesting since we have our ships. I'm not against it, but I dont want devs wasting time on it either, taking away from new PVE things. However, I would love a Legacy Home. Wouldn't it be cool to see all of your characters from your legacy standing in the same room. They give us a Family Tree after all...

 

As your neutral areas idea, you would have to come up with a good reason for it being neutral. The Voss and Nar Shaddaa actually have reasons.

Those are actually some excellent quest ideas man. Being able to go back and see how things had progressed or changed based on the decisions you made, perhaps even such as the Slave revolt on Dromund Kaas, would be amazing. It'd give players a real feeling like the decisions their characters are making are actually making a difference.

 

In regards to the buildings idea. Even just one purchasable building that could be an instance large enough for ops groups would be great. Ships are awesome, but there's no real way to bring your guild together in one area privately. What about just having one large meeting type building, positioned on the Capitol planets that guild leaders could purchase?

Our home is our personal starships, we don't need SWG type homes

Those are actually some excellent quest ideas man. Being able to go back and see how things had progressed or changed based on the decisions you made, perhaps even such as the Slave revolt on Dromund Kaas, would be amazing. It'd give players a real feeling like the decisions their characters are making are actually making a difference.

 

Indeed. This is all assuming the game remembers our choices we originally made ha.

I love all of these ideas, I'd love to purchase a stronghold for my Sith Warrior/Inquisitor's Power Base on Droumund Kaas, or a simple apartment on Coruscant for my Trooper/ Jedi Knight/Consular. I like the idea of touching up on storyline's from when we were first on the planet too.

Our home is our personal starships, we don't need SWG type homes

 

But that's just it: they're not personal. You can't really add anything different to make it your own, aside from buying a vendor or a dummy with cartel coins/credits, which any player can do at any time. There is nothing in-game that I can do to make my starship my starship. If they'd created a way to do this, then I'd agree with you, but since they haven't guild-housing is a great idea.

This is a great post. I'm not a RP'er, but I do tend to enjoy these type of "RP" amenities and features. And I'd love housing! I prefer individual housing, but the idea of larger shared instances for guilds to own has so much potential.

 

And as for our ships, I admit that pre-launch I had hopes that they would be our characters' "housing". But you can't customize them and they feel very superficial. You can't change the color of anything. You can't add any personal touches. You can't rearrange or change the furniture. You can't even sit on most of the furniture, let alone lay down on the bed. I don't know if it is true, but I remember reading somewhere (not too long ago) that making our ship interiors customizable would be a real pain because of all the cutscenes we have on our ships.

I like this thread, I hope it goes somewhere. These are great ideas.

 

/endorse

/endorse

 

Personally, I find many of these points to be very phenomenal, but honestly, why stop there with the homeworlds?

 

The main problem I see with the overall state of the game is the actual system these points would revamp: the Fleet as a sanctuary base and the planets just being various areas you can run missions on and occasionally fight battles on. The system itself may be supportive of PvE and even PvP to some degree, but as many people have discovered, it is the exact opposite of what the RP community thrives from, where the success comes from more "safe areas" where people can gather.

 

I believe this type of change would be fantastic, as having more sanctuary areas like the Fleet on planets would encourage more people to spend their time at these areas (from circles on Fleet to circles on DK lol). This would also give RPers more places to create stories, events, etc. simply because the only thing need for a boost to the RP community are simply places like the Fleet except on the actual planets, as RP can happen in places where people don't have to fight multiple mobs to get to.

 

Not to mention the replay value the game will gain from including reasons to revisit planets besides from helping friends, leveling new toons, or running dailies.

Endorsement bump?

 

Endorsement bump.

I agree with this It'd be nice to head back to DK or Coru to run some 55 content, heck even Tyhon, Korriban, Ord Mantell and Hutta. Brings back great memories visiting the starter planets from time to time

I really don't get this. Ok, maybe I sort of do. You folks loved SWG and you want to play SWG but SWGEmu is a desolate place. That's fine and you're allowed to mourn the loss of your game, but SWTOR is not and sandbox game.

 

Effectively you are going to a burger joint and asking them to serve you enchiladas because the restaurant that used to be there served great enchiladas. This isn't that. SWTOR isn't SWG. Its not going to happen. I suspect its not just an ideological difference but also a limitation of the engine. Given that we already max out the hero engine with PVP as it stands now, why do you think a sandbox would be possible?

 

Even if it were, I wouldn't want to play that game. Someone comes here every once-in-awhile and says "I want sandbox stuff!" and then the same people come out of the woodwork to say "I agree!" over and over again. But instead of trying to make this game into something it isn't, wouldn't you be happier to go to some place that did give you what you wanted? Go find a sandbox game. Get your friends to play SWGEmu. Get a Star Wars themed Minecraft server. I really don't care.

 

You would be happier if you went and found a new place that had good enchiladas rather than continuing to complain that this burger place won't make them for you.

 

Edit: As I've also mentioned before in another thread guild housing is also a terrible idea. Yeah, it sounds neat, but let me put my fortune teller hat on. This is what will happen: In the first weeks, maybe even month, it'll be neat, people will be there milling around. After that people will realize its boring and go do dailies and the only people left will be a few people idling waiting for queues to pop or using the GTN (if such a thing was there). Be honest with yourselves, its a novelty that wouldn't be used to any significant degree in the long run and would end up a desolate place that was a waste of developer time.

 

I can't understand the desire to have your toons physically near each other to "hang out". You have guild chat. Its an isolated place you can chat with your guildies. You play an MMO. You're not physically near anyone you communicate with, why are you so hung up on that outmoded concept for in-game interaction? "I want a place where my guildies can meet!" Right...that's what guild chat is. There aren't even chat bubbles. Having your characters near each other doesn't mean anything, you don't get any benefit.

Edited January 17, 2014 by Phyltr

I would prefer guild halls over guild ships for potential expansion. If anyone remembers City of Heroes and the Super Base system they had for that, it was awesome in the true sense of the word. Everyone in the guild contributed by simply doing content, whether it be solo missions or group content. In turn, when your guild accumulated enough of the currency, you could expand your base, add amenities, and guild transport systems. This was a very fun and dynamic part of that game, and gave a sense of prestige to a guild. The idea of a guild ship seems too... restrictive in terms of growth and expansion. It would remain too cookie cutter, not feeling like it is alive, and therefor it would lose its aesthetics and appeal quickly. I know that there is nor ever was a perfect MMO, but a genuinely smart business model would incorporate the successful arenas of the existing AND the closed MMOs. Lets face it, there is no such thing as an original idea anymore, only improved ideas, and even the WORST MMOs ever made had some good ideas.

Supporting this very much. It would make the gameplay ten times better, especially end-game as I feel it's pretty dead-forward after reaching 55.

Agreed! Also want Korriban extended, so much lore on that planet

I think these ideas are fantastic, especially the home worlds idea!

 

 

You've got my sign for this one!

i would love new areas on starter planets for us to explore at higher lvls would have to made it so lowbies dont or cant wander in thougth or they may start whineing on chat.

 

As for player housing i would prefer to be able to customize our ship and for guild to have capital ships that can be somewhat customized the ship could stay at fleet and would be instanced and be grand for RP.

 

as for Neutral zones im ok with it so long as you avoid Romulans but srsly neutral planets could work but the story would have to be done right.

I really don't get this. Ok, maybe I sort of do. You folks loved SWG and you want to play SWG but SWGEmu is a desolate place. That's fine and you're allowed to mourn the loss of your game, but SWTOR is not and sandbox game.

 

Effectively you are going to a burger joint and asking them to serve you enchiladas because the restaurant that used to be there served great enchiladas. This isn't that. SWTOR isn't SWG. Its not going to happen. I suspect its not just an ideological difference but also a limitation of the engine. Given that we already max out the hero engine with PVP as it stands now, why do you think a sandbox would be possible?

 

Even if it were, I wouldn't want to play that game. Someone comes here every once-in-awhile and says "I want sandbox stuff!" and then the same people come out of the woodwork to say "I agree!" over and over again. But instead of trying to make this game into something it isn't, wouldn't you be happier to go to some place that did give you what you wanted? Go find a sandbox game. Get your friends to play SWGEmu. Get a Star Wars themed Minecraft server. I really don't care.

 

You would be happier if you went and found a new place that had good enchiladas rather than continuing to complain that this burger place won't make them for you.

 

Edit: As I've also mentioned before in another thread guild housing is also a terrible idea. Yeah, it sounds neat, but let me put my fortune teller hat on. This is what will happen: In the first weeks, maybe even month, it'll be neat, people will be there milling around. After that people will realize its boring and go do dailies and the only people left will be a few people idling waiting for queues to pop or using the GTN (if such a thing was there). Be honest with yourselves, its a novelty that wouldn't be used to any significant degree in the long run and would end up a desolate place that was a waste of developer time.

 

I can't understand the desire to have your toons physically near each other to "hang out". You have guild chat. Its an isolated place you can chat with your guildies. You play an MMO. You're not physically near anyone you communicate with, why are you so hung up on that outmoded concept for in-game interaction? "I want a place where my guildies can meet!" Right...that's what guild chat is. There aren't even chat bubbles. Having your characters near each other doesn't mean anything, you don't get any benefit.

 

you clearly dont play on a RP server or u dont RP.

and a lot of mmos are now looking into hybrid models for games as they have come to realize that one type over the other doesn't work.