Since they introduced the combat droid that you can summon during solo Flashpoints I find it kinda weird that they don't implement a system to summon another companion instead of the random combat droid instead. Its a minor change but with having so many companions and only being able to use 1 during solo Flashpoints its just sucks having so many companions. Would be cool if you could summon 1 or 2 extra companions at least for solo Flashpoints. Why didn't they do this instead of the random combat droid.

Since they introduced the combat droid that you can summon during solo Flashpoints I find it kinda weird that they don't implement a system to summon another companion instead of the random combat droid instead. Its a minor change but with having so many companions and only being able to use 1 during solo Flashpoints its just sucks having so many companions. Would be cool if you could summon 1 or 2 extra companions at least for solo Flashpoints. Why didn't they do this instead of the random combat droid.

 

I'd like to see them implement three companions so you could assign everyone to a proper role. Might take a bit of companion micromanaging but that's a good skill to pick up (Eternal Championship and soloing HMFPs come to mind). That's the practical side of it. Aesthetically I'd love to be able to use three companions at the same time.

You're right, we have TONS of companions, and most people aren't using more than 1 or 2 tops. If we could use three a lot of people would spend more time maxing influence on more than one toon (more gifts, more crew skills, more influence runs in BT/Esseles (for example); overall a good credit sink) and more time customizing the companions (the ones we can, to this point), which can lead to more cartel and GTN sales.

 

Can't really think of many reasons not to do this. Perhaps people would be concerned about the UI implications. You'd have to allow for two more companion widgets. Visually wouldn't be all that different from the way a normal group looks, except you'd probably want access to all their abilities. So there'd be some quickbar bloat. Small price to pay, personally, but I'm sure that wouldn't be as easy to implement as it sounds.

 

I would restrict this playstyle to Solo only. I think if you allow people to use three companions in Veteran or Master flashpoints, the queues would dry up and that would severely crater the already sparse group options. People are already completing those modes alone with a single companion, so I wouldn't necessarily encourage it in those two modes. If there was a healthier population, I'd be all for it, though.

 

Those are the two problems I see with it, there might be more. But (again, personally) I think they'd gain a lot of good will if they opened up the use of more companions in the Solo flashpoints.

Maybe I'm not understanding you correctly, but you can summon whatever companion (only 1) in addition to the OP droid. It's totally over-powered for solo FPs, especially with your summoned companion. You wouldn't even have to do basic attacks if you had two companions summoned in harder solo FPs - you'd just have to advance your toon, maybe knit a scarf.

for solo flashpoints they are easy enough with the droid.

I would like to see something like this for the hardmode flashpoints though.

Additionally, I think it is totally ridiculous that you can use the heal-nodes for a group, but you can't use it if you are trying to solo run a veteran mode (hardmode - same thing, different name) flashpoint. My gawd, that's where you are in NEED of a heal node!

Im not saying its not easy with the droid cause it is but what im saying is instead of the droid i would like to bring another companion or 2. Most of the time ive played this game has been solo so i would like the option to be able to have 2-3 companions since we have so many at least for solo players who are in it for the story, and story wise it would make since that your companions are there and not all locked up in your ship.

High influence companions are even more OP than the droid. I can see why they won't let you bring another.

Yeah i get high influence companions are strong but lets be honest at this point im paying monthly to play a single player game. Besides flashpoints your friends don't interact at all during cut scenes in story. I have to sit there and wait till the conversation is done, which i cant even watch, until we can move on. I dont see the harm in it. Just make it exclusive to flashpoints that you do along your story, like the Illum one where you fight Malgus. From a single player perspective its dumb to have almost 6-8 companions and only having 1 at all times. I would just like the option to have 2 companions for story quests only "the purple quests" that way people cant just do a regular flashpoint with companions not to mention if people want daily rewards then they need to que for flashpoints anyways.

The real reason they won't do it, would be the impact it would have on groups running flashpoints. Why use group finder or put a group together for a flashpoint anymore if you can solo at your own pace and keep all the loot? There has to be a balance so there is still plenty of reason to queue up for group finder activities. I could definitely see a purpose though for story mode allowing you to do this. Maybe a debuff on the companion when summoned past the first. Two companions are reduced to 45% each overall, and three to 30% overall. That way story mode flashpoints would have some fun to them, and the companions wouldn't be better than bringing players along. But to code a whole new feature into the game without a bunch of people asking for it at this point doesn't seem likely.

The real reason they won't do it, would be the impact it would have on groups running flashpoints. Why use group finder or put a group together for a flashpoint anymore if you can solo at your own pace and keep all the loot?

Because this topic isn't regarding Veteran or Master mode Flashpoints, it's already for Story Mode, specifically. Where there isn't loot and you can't queue and people already don't do them in teams.

Since they introduced the combat droid that you can summon during solo Flashpoints I find it kinda weird that they don't implement a system to summon another companion instead of the random combat droid instead. Its a minor change but with having so many companions and only being able to use 1 during solo Flashpoints its just sucks having so many companions. Would be cool if you could summon 1 or 2 extra companions at least for solo Flashpoints. Why didn't they do this instead of the random combat droid.

Because at least for BT/SLS, someone doing the solo FP won't (sorry: might not) have two companions. Your first experience of solo-mode BT/SLS has a strong chance of being on your way to your capital world after finishing your starter world, and you'll have ONE companion.

 

For experienced players with high-level legacies, loads of datacrons, blah blah blah, it's not a problem. It's quite feasible to run Vet mode with just yourself at level mid-teens and a companion at rank 1. For a new player, with a level -400 legacy, no gear, and a rank 0.3 companion, who arrives at the exit-to-capital-world door at level 11, it's a different story. Not including the Jesus droid would make those people's life ... difficult.

 

Making it so you could *choose* a companion OR the droid would be a different matter, but removing the droid is not a good idea.

The real reason they won't do it, would be the impact it would have on groups running flashpoints. Why use group finder or put a group together for a flashpoint anymore if you can solo at your own pace and keep all the loot? There has to be a balance so there is still plenty of reason to queue up for group finder activities. I could definitely see a purpose though for story mode allowing you to do this. Maybe a debuff on the companion when summoned past the first. Two companions are reduced to 45% each overall, and three to 30% overall. That way story mode flashpoints would have some fun to them, and the companions wouldn't be better than bringing players along. But to code a whole new feature into the game without a bunch of people asking for it at this point doesn't seem likely.

 

I like the op's idea. I think it will have to go this route someday if players keep leaving.

Edited August 19, 2017 by Zerileth