Hi everyone!

As I mentioned earlier this year, I am going to start posting things that are more centered around the lore of SWTOR. This week I am going to post one lore fact a day about the planets you see in Act 1 (Obviously depending on the faction, you would see some of these in Act 2, but bear with me ).

We will begin with Balmorra!

Before the Imperial occupation, the Galactic Republic was weapons manufacturer Balmorran Arms’ top customer.

Excellent starting point.

More Balmorra please! The best planet by far and I hate not having an excuse to go there .

- Arcada

inb4 someone says "this should have been done since launch"

Great idea though, keep it going.

Sorry Courtney, this is going to sound like really negative feedback, but as a subscriber I feel there are more important things you should be focussing on other than producing things like this.

These sorts of things are a 'nice to have', and I would rather see you spend time on engaging your community and addressing player's concerns - generally things which will have a greater return on investment of your time.

Things I'd like to see you, Tait and Eric do:

- Less avoidance of tricky/awkward threads: all too often I see really constructive threads with a lot of adult debate in them which are completely ignored by the community team. I'd like to see you get involved in these threads more, instead of ignoring them and leaving them to fester.

- Less 'quick win' replies: I see you guys reply to posts which reinforce a message you're trying to get across, or allow you to make a point which is in line with your own views. Occasionally, I see you choosing to reply to posts which really don't add value to the discussion, and when I go to the thread and read other replies I feel you've simply picked the easiest post to reply to so you can be seen to have a presence in the thread. Please pick more challenging topics to get involved in, I for one would feel less ignored

- More consistent presence on the forums: if you're going to start something, then please see it through. The Role Play posts prior to the CZ-198 and Rakghoul event were good for raising awareness, but it felt at times there was a painful and almost embarrassing lag between posts, and in some cases posts abruptly stop without any conclusion i.e. what happened to all the employees Czerka took on?! If you guys are busy and doing work which takes you away from the community then make a quick post to say you're having a busy week and won't be around much - do more to set people's expectations rather then allowing them to become disgruntled and negative

Treat us like adults: I agree there are people in this community which need to be handled with padded gloves, but we're not all like that. There are a lot of adults here which a yearning to have grown up and open debates about the state of the game - capitalise on that and use it to your advantage.

Stop deleting unfavourable posts: Seriously... this just erodes your credibility. I posted in a thread yesterday which was deleted, and it was simply querying your recent lack of presence on the forums. I work in IT design and development, if I simply disregarded my customer's feedback and points of view then I'd either face disciplinary action from my employer or my employer would loose the contract with the client - it's no different for you, we are your clients and we deserve our views to be shared and listened to, not deleted.

I hope you find this feedback useful... I am really looking forward to hearing about what exciting stuff is coming to SWTOR this year, and I am looking forward to you guys really working with the community and helping it to grow.

Can you tell which side actually wins on Quesh?

It's up to the player's interpretation, just like who defeats Bouris Ulgo on Alderaan and Master Sav on Hoth. Why should Bioware dictate canon outcomes this early, especially having in mind that said events are not that relevant for what is going on right now?

Either way, if you take into account Makeb, it would seem that the Empire STILL mains a presence on Quesh.

Today we are traveling to Nar Shaddaa! Did you know...

After fleeing Hutta, some of the Evocii settled on Nar Shaddaa. Little did they know it would soon become “the Treasure of Hutt Space.”

It's up to the player's interpretation, just like who defeats Bouris Ulgo on Alderaan and Master Sav on Hoth. Why should Bioware dictate canon outcomes this early, especially having in mind that said events are not that relevant for what is going on right now?

 

Either way, if you take into account Makeb, it would seem that the Empire STILL mains a presence on Quesh.

Well, it's obvious that on "shared" (Alderaan, Hoth etc) planets fighting never stops. Both sides fail to completely defeat their enemies. So it doesn't really matter, who removed Ulgo or found The Imprisoned One. It's also clear who wins on Balmorra, Taris and Corellia. But on Quesh both questlines are ended with total defeat of other side. Even NPC dead/captured in one storyline are fine in another. So i'm curious, who holds the source of galaxy-best adrenals.

Thank you. this is something that is very nice.

Have a good day.

I have a question: My guild likes this type of information is it okay if I copy your posts and place it on our guild website?

Thank you. this is something that is very nice.

 

Have a good day.

 

I have a question: My guild likes this type of information is it okay if I copy your posts and place it on our guild website?

I'm sure you won't be charged with copyright infringement as long as you source the quote.

Well, it's obvious that on "shared" (Alderaan, Hoth etc) planets fighting never stops. Both sides fail to completely defeat their enemies. So it doesn't really matter, who removed Ulgo or found The Imprisoned One. It's also clear who wins on Balmorra, Taris and Corellia. But on Quesh both questlines are ended with total defeat of other side. Even NPC dead/captured in one storyline are fine in another. So i'm curious, who holds the source of galaxy-best adrenals.

Am I totally mis-remembering Quesh? I though it was straightforward that the Republic quest-line happens after the Empire quests (spoilers for both sides' planetary quests below):

Thank you. this is something that is very nice.

 

Have a good day.

 

I have a question: My guild likes this type of information is it okay if I copy your posts and place it on our guild website?

That is totally okay! I am glad you are enjoying the posts.

Am I totally mis-remembering Quesh? I though it was straightforward that the Republic quest-line happens after the Empire quests (spoilers for both sides' planetary quests below):

 

On the Empire side you kill (or capture? can't remember if that was a light-side option) Portho and Jeelta, the heads of two of the "Three Families" supporting the Republic, but Broga escapes. Broga gets tracked down, and the Jedi who rescued him is killed, but the Hutt still survives. The Empire believes that they will be able to take control of the planet without much difficulty. Moff Dracen is still alive and in control at the end of the Empire questline, and the Empire has taken control of the Hutts' palace.

 

Then, the Republic quest-line happens. The Republic is on the defensive, with the Cartel and Empire attacking their holdings, and you only ever interact with Broga (since the other two Hutts are already dead/captured), who is acting as leader of the Three Families at this point. You capture (or kill - I do remember that being a Light Side/Dark Side choice) Moff Dracen at the Empire-controlled Hutt Palace, and defeat a Sith leader (the one who is hilariously sarcastic). At that point the Republic believes they have basically reclaimed Quesh, or at least fought their way back to equal footing with the Empire.

That's the problem.

Either way, as of the Makeb incident, the Empire still has a presence on Quesh it would seem, though it's hard to say how significant it is.

EDIT:

That's the problem.

 

 

Imperial players can actually choose to kill or spare Broga, after the Jedi Master is eliminated. It's up to us if he dies or not.

 

If such were not the case, the Republic side could still happen AFTERWARDS and it would be like Corellia, where the Republic eventually won.

 

Either way, as of the Makeb incident, the Empire still has a presence on Quesh it would seem, though it's hard to say how significant it is.

 

EDIT:

 

Jeelta always dies regardless. Portho can be spared or killed however.

Ah, fair enough - I'd forgotten you had that "kill" option. I wonder if this is one point where the storyline does make an assumption about a player choice for purposes of the other side's storyline; the rest of it fits so directly that I find it hard to believe it's not intended to have the Rep side follow after the Imp.

I just played through Quesh on my first Rep character this past weekend, and, honestly, I did get the feeling that a lot of that particular planet was... tacked on. Or at least not quite given the same level of attention and polish as some of the other worlds (the super-sarcastic Sith did go a long way towards redeeming it though). I wouldn't be surprised to find out that it was something of an oversight - where the "kill" option you mentioned was added after the other storyline was already finished, and they just left the individual in alive.

And to pull this more On-Topic for the Thread: Thanks for these updates Courtney! Love to see little bits of lore being done by the community team (the Rak'ghoul lead-up was excellent as well)!

Ah, fair enough - I'd forgotten you had that "kill" option. I wonder if this is one point where the storyline does make an assumption about a player choice for purposes of the other side's storyline; the rest of it fits so directly that I find it hard to believe it's not intended to have the Rep side follow after the Imp.

 

I just played through Quesh on my first Rep character this past weekend, and, honestly, I did get the feeling that a lot of that particular planet was... tacked on. Or at least not quite given the same level of attention and polish as some of the other worlds (the super-sarcastic Sith did go a long way towards redeeming it though). I wouldn't be surprised to find out that it was something of an oversight - where the "kill" option you mentioned was added after the other storyline was already finished, and they just left the individual in alive.

That's my opinion as well.

The whole planet just feels weird and unfinished, starting from the fact companions only make one comment, when they first leave the shuttle that brings them to the planet, to the fact there are no affection gains whatsoever, outside your class storyline.

There's this paradoxical quest, concerning the Sith Warior where...

Again, weird and unfinished. I actually read the mission details on the quest log to make sure I was getting that right.

That is totally okay! I am glad you are enjoying the posts.

Thank you!

A bit more Quesh offtop )

Today we are traveling to Nar Shaddaa! Did you know...

 

After fleeing Hutta, some of the Evocii settled on Nar Shaddaa. Little did they know it would soon become “the Treasure of Hutt Space.”

I know we live in the age of the /140char Twitterverse, but I feel like if you're going to do these Lore Week entries they are one type of fluff that would be way better if there was some more meat on their bones

Just a suggestion, though. Short or long - keep them up, I love seeing nice little additions like this to the community.

I Short or long - keep them up, I love seeing nice little additions like this to the community.

I agree. Regardless of what people think should or should not be done right now for the game and my views on that, I'm quite enjoying these little updates.

I am back in the office after going to the Community Cantina Tour in Phoenix. Let the lore fact of the day continue!

Today we are going to my favorite planet, Alderaan. Did you know...

House Thul was originally exiled from Alderaan when they were caught switching a newborn Organa heir with one of their own.

I am back in the office after going to the Community Cantina Tour in Phoenix. Let the lore fact of the day continue!

 

Today we are going to my favorite planet, Alderaan. Did you know...

 

House Thul was originally exiled from Alderaan when they were caught switching a newborn Organa heir with one of their own.

Will we get canon lines of the storyline guides, what happened. where was X class during this.

I am back in the office after going to the Community Cantina Tour in Phoenix. Let the lore fact of the day continue!

 

Today we are going to my favorite planet, Alderaan. Did you know...

 

House Thul was originally exiled from Alderaan when they were caught switching a newborn Organa heir with one of their own.

Interesting, so we finally get a canon reason why they were exiled.