EDIT: See this reply for an answer which seems accurate.

In summary, the game launch (December 2011) was set at ATC 10 (i.e. 2011 was ATC 10)

That would make 2013 equal to ATC 12, and 2014 equal to ATC 13.

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Original post:

• This question and idea relates to RP, a lack of clear information, and the progression of time in-game

Is there any consensus on when 'now' is in-game, in terms of ATC (After the Treaty of Coruscant)? I am aware that different portions of the game may occur all over the place (in terms of time); however that is not what I am on about. I've looked up timeline in wookiepedia and in these forums with no clear answers.

We know (Bioware says) the game is intended be set relatively soon after the Treaty of Coruscant was signed:

And the year of the treaty is the date ATC 0. The rest of this post rests on how the word 'recent' in that quote is defined.

From an RP perspective, if a character was active on day one of the launch, then next almost two galactic years have passed (assuming the common MMO convention of day for day; plus vague handwaving; and the lucky convenience of a most common measure of a galactic year having a similar number of days to our own). So the time now for that character is "Recent plus (just less than two 2 years."

For my characters, who range in age from 30 years to much older, I'd really like to know which events in the timeline they may have been alive for. Breaking of the Mandalorian Blockade (BTC 7)? Almost certainly. The Battle of Bothawui (BTC 18)? Probably. The Onslaught of the Sith Empire (beginning the Great War) (BTC 28)? Possibly.

But all this rests on how 'recent' is defined. If the signing of the Treaty of Coruscant in ATC 0 is a recent event, I'd like to assume that the 'now' at game-launch was shortly after that treaty. Say almost a year had passed when the text quoted above was written.

That's enough time for the peace to still be 'recent', and the gritty consequences to set in.

If we (say) pick one year as 'recent', then:

• Treaty of Coruscant was signed, ending The Great War: ATC 0
  
• SWTOR was launched (December 2011 ): A year has passed. For the convenience of players, let's say January 2012 (when the game was a few weeks old) marked the beginning of ATC 2.
  
• This is July 2013. We are over half-way through ATC 3.
  
• SWTOR is two years old in December 2013 - so January 2014 will be ATC 4
  
• (and so on)
  

This is convenient and easy to remember, if it works for people, because:

2010: ATC 0

2011: ATC 1

2012: ATC 2

2013: ATC 3

2014: will be ATC4

...and so on (the last number in our year matches the ATC year)

It also gives BioWare a chance to really kick into special goodies for each of our new year's as well. Each game anniversary comes at our holiday times and also marks a new galactic year... a very nice synergy.

i.e. at the end of this year, we could see stuff like "In one week the Republic will celebrate the beginning of the fourth year since the Great War ended..." and from the Dark Council "It has been four years since the false peace, and our plans to to undermine the Republic gatrher momentum..." (Cue Cartel goodies and events!)

I'd like people's thoughts on this? I'm acutely aware I may have missed something. Although a Star Wars fan, I am not a holocron researcher about these things.

Feedback? Thoughts? (edit: Please include links in your reply if possible)

I believe there is a 10 year difference between the treaty of Coruscant and the start of the game.

Understood, but is there a reference or canon post from bioware or a dev for that claim? I've tried and tried to find one. It'd work just as well, but ten years seems longer than recent (to a human).

http://swtor.wikia.com/wiki/Treaty_of_Coruscant. There is the link.

Perfect, thank you very much. Udating the OP to reflect I consider this closed.

Just for reference...

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Battle_of_Corellia_(Second_Great_Galactic_War)#cite_note-Time-7

EDIT: See this reply for an answer which seems accurate.

 

In summary, the game launch (December 2011) was set at ATC 10 (i.e. 2011 was ATC 10)

That would make 2013 equal to ATC 12, and 2014 equal to ATC 13.

No, the game doesn't age, the stories still start at the same points in time and end at the same point in time, Time does not pass in this MMO.

No, the game doesn't age, the stories still start at the same points in time and end at the same point in time, Time does not pass in this MMO.

I completely understand what you are saying, and respect that. However, this post is primarily RP related. It is relevant to players who actively RP on the RP servers. This is because they tend to form guilds, and so some consensus needs to be reached to allow co-operative RP over time. We make our own stories (while respecting the canon), and they have depth and extent over time.

An RP Imperial human Sith Inquisitor isn't going to assume they were a slave on Korriban and became Zash's Apprentice and the like. For example, they could be 500 years old... or a Jedi turncoat... etc.

No, the game doesn't age, the stories still start at the same points in time and end at the same point in time, Time does not pass in this MMO.

There is a time passed though, in each individual storyline. We go from being bound by the treaty, to escalating conflicts in the 2nd act to a full scale war in the 3rd act, continuing through Makeb where the Empire and Republic are definitely at war. So there's time passed there, and roleplayers would like to know where we stand in the timeline as of now so that we can agree in RP what year it is.

At the end of the 3rd chapter, there could be anywhere from 1-3 years since our story began. The story start, when the Empire and Republic were at relative peace was the agreed upon year in RP in the early days of the game.