I completely agree. While I used 'star bases' as an example, I agree as well that the grind for their features in that before mentioned MMO were too excessive. It'll be our duty as players on this forum to voice our opinion should the benefits of the Guild Ship Feature be far too high a grind of any sort of resource (time, effort, credits, resources) and make our voice heard should that become the case.

Don't worry folks. If you look at the OP's post history, he's always blasting guild ships on every sub-post he can find. He even jumped the gun constantly stating that "The Developers will never institute them! They said so so stop talking about!" Just because they said no, people have the right to still advocate for what they believe in just like any issue in today's society. And, to his surprise, the Developer's saw the feedback and changed their mind. Funny nothing can ever change his eh? Furthermore, literally 98% of the time has only negative feedback on any topic he either posts or replies to. Such posts usually end up being like this; rude with 'big words' he looks up to to appear 'articulate' with a thesaurus in hand followed by trolling said posts until the the opposition gets sick of replying, allowing him to literally get 'the last word' in by a 'war of attrition.' There's another MMO where building up a guild 'star base' offers you in-game benefits but does cost a lot of time, high-end content effort, and in-game currency. With greater effort and hard work comes greater rewards, whether they be in the form of increasing a character's effectiveness in some way or acquiring unique 'cosmetic' content. This is the model of nearly every MMO out there, designed to provide incentive for players to play more and in turn pay more to enjoy the product in the long run. I don't see this way of thinking every changing in MMO development unless they somehow get funded 100% by the blasting of in-game product adverting, which I don't think ANYONE would want. SWTOR currently offers in-game benefits that take work to achieve already, such as doing Operations to get better gear which in tern makes you more powerful and effective in combat situations. While different compared to the loot rewards of progressive raiding, yes, the concept is very much the same; you want something to make you stronger in-game, you have to work for it. As for the OP's other point, I get it; he finds the aesthetic value of Guild Ships not worth the time and effort as it caters to a certain player base (size unknown). What he fails to say is that this particular niche of players have constructively utilized the forums to voice their excitement and belief that this feature would improve their gaming experience frequently and in a constructive manner. And as a way to reward other members of the gaming community, the Developers even catered to the 'I don't need an RP social spot' by making Guild Ships beneficial by providing buffs and other stat based benefits. You may hate having to go to a Guild Ship and never stay in it, but you can still work for one and enjoy it's rewards that serve your specific needs.

Playable Species: Bothans Why are Bothans a feasible choice?: With the introduction of the Bothan Character by the name of Fleet Admiral Bey’wan Aygo, the Developers have introduced a species that is known to speak basic and has a sufficiently humanoid form that could address the animation needs of the various Class Story Cut Scenes. What could be a reason why Bothans wouldn't work?: Granted, Bothans have distinguishable semi-long snouts, that could make Romance Scenes (more specifically, 'Kissing Scenes') a little difficult and require some tweaking. However, Developers were able to overcome a similar obstacle with the Cathar.

Playable Species: Bothans Why are Bothans a feasible choice?: With the introduction of the Bothan Character by the name of Fleet Admiral Bey’wan Aygo, the Developers have introduced a species that is known to speak basic and has a sufficiently humanoid form that could address the animation needs of the various Class Story Cut Scenes. What could be a reason why Bothans wouldn't work?: Granted, Bothans have distinguishable semi-long snouts, that could make Romance Scenes (more specifically, 'Kissing Scenes') a little difficult and require some tweaking. However, Developers were able to overcome a similar obstacle with the Cathar.

I've ran into several examples of where 'species specific' dialogue is used with the wrong species. I agree with your first course of action Aankid that was to report this as a bug. I myself have ran into the same issue several times but haven't documented each example. l myself almost posted a Bug Ticket of my own as I frequently report bugs (via in-game instead of the Bug Forums). I too at least know of one example I can share... Example: On Dromund Kaas when you speak with Ladra, a Sith Pureblood Woman in the 'Order of Revan' Series who tells you to steal Revan's mask, she said to my Cather Character I believe something to the effect of, "Oh! Another Pure Blooded Sith! What a welcome surprise!" Perhaps the Developers/ Bug Testers could try these mentioned conversations with different species so as to better understand where we're coming from.

As this thread has progressed, I realized that what's needed isn't a 'nerf' of one class of vessel or having one completely removed or it's most valuable abilities taken away. What we should be doing is offering more constructive suggestions and compromises that changes and balances the Bomber Class yet makes it a very effective starship capable of handling more Player vs. Player scenarios as opposed to Player + PvE Aid vs. Player. Suggested Proposals: 1) Removing the AoE Powers and Weapons utilized currently to destroy mines, requiring 'line of sight' firing on each individual mine to destroy them. 2) Removing all AI Controlled Combat Mines (Turret Mines, Missile Drones, Rail Gun Turrets, Etc.) 3) Bolstering the power of Healing Mines and Proximity Mines. 4) Providing the Bomber with new benefits such as: Evasive Action Engine Abilities, Heavier Blasters, Increased Selection of Ship-to-Ship Missiles, Increased Number of Missile Banks (maybe even exclusive access to Heat Seeker Missiles that don't require a lock on before firing), Increased Missile Capacity, Heavier Armor, and Heavier Shields. Summary: These proposed changes would change the role of the Bomber Class from a PvE Mine Layer into a PvP Missile Boat with a few mine laying tricks still up its sleeves! Ideal Outcome: Hopefully this line of thinking helps promote some healthy, constructive replies to this post so we can reach some common ground that makes everyone happy.

{SIGNED} Here's what I've gathered from what's been discussed with my own spin on how this could be made a functional feature... Mentoring System: High Level Player to Lower Level Player Balancing * In order to allow a higher level player to aid a lower level player without significantly reducing XP gained and decreasing the challenge / fun of game play, the higher level player's stats would be reduced to those similar for their class at that lower level * Balance Fix: If it would be found unfair for the higher level player to get XP or Loot relative to their own level while 'mentoring' a lower level, the higher level player could only benefit from the usual XP and Loot they'd receive from lower levels NPCs and not be able to have quests shared with them they themselves have already completed (NOTE: If possible, another addition to make things more balanced would be to reduce the number of abilities a higher level player could have be reduced to what their specific class would have at the lower player's level) Mentoring System: Low Level Player to Higher Level Player Balancing * In order to allow a lower level player to aid a higher level player without significantly providing the lower level player with the advantage of higher tiers of XP or Loot, the lower level player's stats would be bolstered to those similar for their class at the higher level * As this feature is meant more for higher level players to mentor lower level players, lower level players that are bolstered would benefit from improved stats only * Balance Fix: If it would be found unfair for the lower level player to get XP or Loot relative to the higher level player while being 'mentored' by a higher level player, the lower level player could only benefit from the usual XP and Loot they'd receive from NPCs of their same level, have access to only the abilities their current level permits, and only haves quests shared to them where they meet the minimum level requirement to access them Pros: * Allows players of varying levels to aid each other and enjoy various content together despite having progressed at a different rate in the game * Gives higher level guild members a better opportunity to truly help their lower level members progress * Will aid in the assembling Heroic Quests (and possibly even Flash Points) as it will allow the group to be more balanced to take on the challenge Cons: * Has the potential for several balancing issues * Unsure if the 'Mentoring System' should be applicable for use in Flash Points or Operations * Will cost BioWare time, manpower, and money to develop this in-game mechanic (NOTE: However this is a feature that is very much welcomed and is frequent y found in other competing MMOs and would be a great benefit to the SWTOR Community! )

{SIGNED} Here's my overview of what 's been discussed along with my own personal spin on to make the feature functional... Legacy/Account Friend Request Feature: * Players could send Friend Requests that would identify themselves by either their Legacy Name (if possible) or BioWare / SWTOR Log-In Name * The person receiving the request then can either Confirm or Deny the request Legacy/Account Friend List Features: * Players who have a friend's Legacy/Account in their list could see all the basic player information and character information of their friend when online along with what faction or what server they are currently on * Players would be able to cross communicate with someone via the Legacy/Account Name regardless of what faction or server their friend was playing on * Players would be able to set themselves in certain 'statuses' to inform their friend what they are up to, such as: AFK, Busy, Available, Do Not Disturb, and a Privacy Mode (shown offline to all friends), Legacy/Account Ignore List Features: * To prevent harassment by another player who's been ignored on one character and comes back to contact the same player on an alt, players could have the option to Ignore a player's entire Legacy/Account * This wouldn't require the other party to accept obviously as they shouldn't have a say in the matter like the current Ignore System {ADDITIONAL} Legacy/Account Guild Invite Ban: * If someone is removed from a guild for a specific reason, guild officers would have the ability to place a player's Legacy/Account on a ban that would prevent the undesirable player from trying to get back into the guild on an alt to cause trouble / avoid being kicked out Pros: * No longer having to send friend requests to a friend's individual alts on every character per faction to know when they are online * Provides easier way for friends to communicate with each other regardless of their character or location in-game so as to just chat or arrange to meet up somewhere in particular Cons: * Possible yet minimal exploit to sabotage PvP by planting Legacy/Account Friends in the opposing faction's match or open world PvP to 'spy' and relay information to a friend on the opposing faction * Would require BioWare to create an in-game mechanic to implement this feature plus time and money (NOTE: However, the SWTOR Community would be very grateful for this investment in improving our gaming experience! )

I'm starting to see a drastic increase in queue times for GSF. Since this all started to happen around the time when Bombers were implemented along with growing concerns being posted on the GSF Forum about Bombers as a whole, I think there's indeed a correlation here that needs to be taken into consideration.

You bet! I had not posted any comments regarding the topic. I've only read them out of interest. My only point was this; you can be a real jerk with your opinions. And it doesn't end with just Guild Ships. I've scanned quick the various postings you make, and they for the most part ALL include some sort of condescending sarcasm or derogatory comments alongside your opinion. I invite others to look at your posts as the proof is right there. You must be a very angry, sad person.

http://www.swtor.com/galactic-strongholds

This isn't the right place to post this request, but as someone who works in Customer Service as well as a Call Center, I recommend the following: A) Try to recall the date and time you called so if they investigate, they can pull the call as they monitor them for Quality Assurance. B) Call back explaining you'd like to issue a complaint specifically about ill-treatment by that supervisor and his name and the rough date and time you called. Stay calm and professional and make that the ONLY issue you'd like to address, not the subscription issue. C) If what he said to you was true, focus on asking why your request was considered harassment to lead into the conversation. Next, explain your frustration with his crude behavior and sarcasm. I wish you luck in this.

With all do respect Phyltr, while I haven't posted on any threads regarding Guild Ships, I have read several and always find you literally trolling each and every one of them with this sort of negative, immature feedback time and time again. So the Developers have said currently no, and you have, constantly, brought that to people's attention which is fine via your links from the BW Team. However, belittling people for saying how they like this "wish list" item to be added is just rude. It's time someone said that to you.

Then I commend you for doing so, but that sadly puts you in the minority of your play style for the Bomber Class. I've very rarely been in a match where a I see a Bomber even fire off its blasters or even a missile (sent from their ship, not a mine). Instead, they fly about, dropping mines, and that is truly it.

But that, in itself, is what keeps real pilots alive! Having the best ship or components won't save you if you can't pull a Han Solo-like turn to evade that enemy fighter that either leaves him off your tail or ends his life face-first into an asteroid. I miss that sort of star fighter experience, that's all...