Let's talk SWtOR!

[Domi]

Lol, you will get along famously with my husband. He just loves tanks. We were talking just yesterday... we wandered into the H4+ territory, and he got super-impressed by the BIG CANNON of burning. So, guess who wants to play a shooter tank now (in addition to the JK tank?)? I guess, he twisted my hand into making my Sith Lady of Pain into a Marauder for the paired Imps. I mean, a lightsaber dual-wielding Pure Blooded Sith... aww, my heart bleeds for my sacrifice there. I am so tempted to get going on her. I basically decided to switch the name for her to Becchino from Sevrinne. Sevrinne is way too sissy. But my trooper WILL be a tank. Eventually.

[Domi]

OMG, I figured out how to make screenshots! (School called, and I had to race home to provide my child with lunch, lol, she lost her backpack, HOW?) Anyway, top to bottom: Baoh-Dur (the best I can do!), Quinly-Dur and Tishujen-Dur

[Twani]

Okay, most cheesy unfair worst thing ever in SWTOR that almost made me want to quit the game FOREVER in a fit of total disgust and woe:

 

Jonas Balkar asked me to marry him, and my Trooper wasn't given the opportunity to say yes.

 

This game is bogus, people! Bogus! (She did flirt back, saying 'let's just stick with drinks for now', but- agh, marry him! You two will have little troopers and little SIS agents that will go on to shape the future of the Republic and you'll be totally adorable parents together (I think my Trooper is one of my few characters I could see having children in her future, though only after her part in the war is done). MARRY HIM! MARRY HIM! Jorgan: 'Can we just skip the flirting and get down to business already?' NO BECAUSE I AM MARRYING JONAS, CATHAR. I'M SORRY, IT'S NOT YOU, IT'S HIM.)

 

 

Actually, I think I might have figured Jorgan out. It's not so much that he hates flirting (though he does get jealous) so much as he just hates Jonas Balkar for no reason. Military versus SIS, I guess. He's all huffy and irritable with all the SIS agents on Nar Shadaa's bonus series, too. He's also funny. I picked up the Jedi Prisoner. When my Smuggler picked it up, she was like 'hey, I've heard of weird stuff before, sure, I'll believe in this', and my Knight was of course like 'mysteries of the force! Another spirit ghost! Nice to meet you! I will gladly help!'. My Trooper's like 'My new name is THARAN, and I do not drink the koolaid! The force is no match for a blaster! I am suspicious about this! I have killed a lot of people, and they have never spoken to me! Strange ghost, stop your prophesies and SPEAK SENSE!'. You can just tell the Jedi Master and the 'force entity' are like 'wth, disbeliever', and Aric's like +23, +23, +23, +23. Apparently he doesn't mind me going crazy on Fleet Commander's if their Jedi.

 

 

Hardest decision of my gametime: who to make an XO to my Trooper. Both Aric and Elana have suffered- Aric got the blame put on him for Tavus and already has been a lieutenant, but Elara's been overlooked because of her accent and background despite all the good she does. Both have shortpoints (Aric is awfully caustic to be in command of people, as he proved back on Ord Mantell when he was bossing you around, and Elara is a bit too in love with the regs and lacks a bit in experience). Both made pretty good cases for themselves (though Elara's was actually better- Aric's actually involved him yelling at you a bit). And in the end, I like both characters. After checking and reloading the conversation a few times, I went with Aric as he's who Garza picks if you leave the decision up to her, but I wonder if I should have gone the other way. Elara is usually on the ship, so maybe she should be the XO so she can watch over the other three crazies (well, one crazy now, but we'll get the other two) while I'm not there.

 

Speaking of other three crazies, as you may have guessed, my Trooper has made it to Boremora (last chapter fight for Trooper? Really freakin' easy, did it with an undergeared Elara no problems on my first shot. Last fight on Alderran for trooper? Hatefully difficult, two elites right in a row, and involved a lot of dying and desperately trying all three companions). I'm trying to find things I like about Balmora, and, I'll give it this: the second camp. You have that determined fighter pilot who's never held a gun but is determined to go and avenge his squad with his adoring droid who you help, that crazy sarcastic hawkeye kid who's just about sabotaging things for the fun of it ('Gee, I feel all sad about things getting blow up, BUT MY PEOPLE ARE DYING HERE'), and the Imperial assassin droid head who comments to my Trooper that they must have changed the uniforms again, and boy, are they ugly. Also, there's the bonus quest where you're seriously quested to go change the cantina music in Sobrik, I presume just to troll the Imperials. I like trolling people.

 

But, um, that's all I can think of that I like.

 

Got to see my first glimpse of my next squadmember, though I haven't met him face to face yet. Mister Tanno Vik. Thoughts so far? Seems like a slimeball. But seems like a very charming, clever slimeball. I could use him when Aric (who's now maxed) isn't in the mood to be DS enough for my Trooper's taste. Though I did take the LS way of dealing with Fuse and Tavrus, I shoot every Imp I meet in the back of the head. Or in the face, if they don't feel like running.

 

(My Trooper is heavily neutral- haven't hit light 1 or dark 1. Which brings the question on where the hell do I find relics that don't rely on alignment in these early levels?!)

 

 

Thana Vash outfit is awesome (Thana Vash is awesome, in a completely idiotic way)! I'm envious. I could definitely use that on my Sith ladies. Actually, it wouldn't look bad on my lady Agent, either, as much as I like the trench coat. Sigh. I need to get my Agent doing dallies and raising money so I can buy cool outfits. Though I want to buy rocket boots. She doesn't even have enough money for that, silly Agent. Mostly because I had to buy tech gifts for Scorpio. (If you like Assassin droids, you'll probably love her, too. She's very cold, though, but her voiceactress is excellent- she sounds pure badass and when she says you'll pray for her forgiveness, you feel like you darn well should pray. She's actually one of my favorite voice actressed companions, though I have no idea who does her.)

 

And don't forget T7 for cute droids. T7 + Jedi = perfect match! He's like a ball of adorable who loves you and you alone, and it was so hard to watch Kira break his heart and explain you-know-who really was dead, it was just his forceghost. It felt like telling a little kid their grandparent died.

 

 

I don't really remember anything about Corso having his ex appear in a quest, but honestly, all I really remember about Corso's companion quest is that gunfight on Tattooine being hard to get to. He just was so not my kind of boy, as I keep saying. Give me a Vector or a Quinn, or an Andry, or even from what I'm hearing, a Torian. I'll take an Aric, too, actually.

 

(Right after his Deadeyes quest, it's incredible. It's like my Trooper suddenly noticed he was male, and there's like, three flirt options right in a row.)

 

 

Is it the Chapter 2 guy who you first meet on Coruscant in Chapter 1? I've not flirted with that one once, by the way(I told him he was too old, which he was), but given how I think he works for the right side, maybe I'm mistaken and I should flirt with him, after all? Does he treat you differently if you're in mini-romance?

 

Yeah. That guy. You can strike up a sort of mini-romance with him, similar to the one with Jonas or with Watcher Two. The age difference probably is huge (especially with my Chiss Smuggler, who considering Chiss maturity, is probably mid twenties at the very most), but he makes for an interesting mini-romance (and opportunities for Corso to throw tantrums). He definitely treats you differently if you're in the mini-romance, but... well. Let's just say it all ends in tears, and Corso will get annoyed if you even dare to acknowledge that (actually, so will Risha, but from my darling Risha it came across more like 'come on, girl, get it together' rather then Corso's HOW DARE YOU CARE ABOUT THAT EVIL MAN RAWRGHHH).

 

 

I think you actually have the opportunity to shout 'I thought you loved me' at him in the final confrontation, which made my character seriously consider making her last decision in game a complete dark side one. Owch. If they had just made him a bit younger seeming, they could have had a real tragic mess on their hands- as it is, I think most female players will be like you and ignore it.

 

 

 

I need to try playing my Juggy. Tanks are just so difficult for me, though. Healers, I understand. I can play a healer without a twitch: I've been playing healers and mages since Ultima Online/Everquest, so squishy characters don't bother me at all. But the only game I did tanking in was Lord of the Rings Online with a Warden, and a Warden plays differently then any class in SWTOR by far (was a fun character, but you needed to memorize button combinations like you were playing some sort of console fighter game). Regular tanks, I've always had trouble with. That's why my Assassin is pure DPS. Hm... I could probably do a Trooper/BH DPS, but I don't find either class interesting enough to start a new character with, and I'm certainly not restarting at this point with either of them.

 

 

I like your characters, Domi! Very cute! I'll have to see if I can get snapshots of some of mine's faces...

 

 

As for the BG RE, I'll see if I can come up with any ideas. No promises, as sadly, I'll be preparing to leave most of tomorrow and then I'll be gone for the week, but maybe something will come to mind tonight. I like the idea... character should comment if you wear the belt or put the belt on them. Hm. Already wrote the put the belt on him sequence for my NPC, but should probably write the put the belt on self sequence... especially if romanced.

 

 

Chiss siblings:

 

Reveal in the glory of Aaliah's ugly yellow/orange robe (made almost brown by dim cantina lighting, but trust me, it's yellow/orange), and Aanan's extremely blocky looking coat (so blocky I cut off a few extra pixels as that thing's just really badly textured). Both of them need serious clothing upgrades.

 

Also, I cut Risha, Rusk, and Lokin out of the shots, but I couldn't bear to cut Kaliyo. She's just like 'Wtf, Agent, why are we standing here staring at bar? Are we getting drinks? Are we getting drunk on our way to infiltrate the resistance? Because I could totally go for that.'

[Kulyok]

Welcome back to the game, Liella! I love tanks, too - my new Juggernaut kicks some serious ass. (Though, privately, nothing beats a two-saber mara with updated purple might hilts who can use force jump at any distance).

And I saw Jaesa's dark romance on Youtube(she's not available as a light romance, right?) and I enjoyed THAT a lot. Pretty creepy and sexy - well, both.

Don't know about Elara, since I play girls and I'm not sure I have it in me for another trooper - but let us know how that goes? She sounds like an interesting character, and she probably opens up more in romance.

 

I basically decided to switch the name for her to Becchino from Sevrinne. Sevrinne is way too sissy. But my trooper WILL be a tank. Eventually.

 

Beautiful. Very Italian. And, by the way, since you're a subscriber, you can always go to that guy in Combat Training section and re-roll all the skills in your Vanguard tree whenever you wish - and you can be a DPS(like me) or a tank. (Granted, tanks and dps need different gear - tank needs endurance, absorb, defense and such, and DPS needs accuracy, power, surge and such, but this doesn't come into play at low levels).

 

 

Domi, dyes actually sell? That's cool, I didn't want to risk it, myself, so my Artfice Sith Inquisitor mainly crafts enhancements and hilts for the rest of the characters.

But - check how much purple materials are worth on GTN, it might be that selling purple mats would be even more profitable(or maybe not, but it's sometimes the case).

 

Armstech is not good at all so far, but my level is low. Hopefully eventually I would stumble upon an item I can make that is valuable.

 

Level 30++ purple barrels will sell for about ~40000 for each.

 

Loved your screenshots, people! I haven't figured it out for my chars, but love yours! Domi's look very real, especially the Twilek. And Ace and Cipher Nine are so cute! Nice Kids. (And that Zabrak is HUGE!)

My girls are rather boring(though I'm proud by my Agent's everyday look and my bald evil crazy Sith Inquisitor isn't too bad), but I'll see if I can get something.

 

 

Jonas Balkar asked me to marry him, and my Trooper wasn't given the opportunity to say yes.

 

What. WHAT? WHAT?!!! Is this a roleplaying game or what? But I want Jonas! I love Jonas! I want to have little trooper children with Jonas. Damn it!

 

And here I played Trooper on Tatooine just yesterday. I actually liked the Tatooine run(though I'm woefully underlevelled, since I'm not doing much besides class quests - started at 22, barely scraped to 25). The only thing I didn't understand was universal love for the bomber betrayer guy(the cute Zabrak boy) - all right, yes, I get it that he got cold feet and pangs of conscience and wanted to defect. It's okay, I saved his life, I brought him back to the Republic, and I understand that in times of war he is needed on the Republic side, not in prison. BUT HE BLEW UP INNOCENT PEOPLE! He prepared bombs for the Imperial squad who then blew up normal houses with normal people, families, and it's so horrible(and close to real life) I just can't face the game's constant "wink, wink, nudge, nudge, become friends with this guy!". Ugh.

 

Liked the story, though. Can't believe I ignored my Trooper for so long. I'll go to Alderaan next, definitely. A bit uneasy about the last fight, since you said it's gonna be difficult and I'm, like, LEVEL 25, but whatever. I can always go and do Kuat a couple of times, I guess. Or space. I like space. Or I can go and do the Last Goodbye sarlacc heroic every day. My favorite heroic ever. Well, that, and the Falling Stars - you can solo it easily.

 

And then Balmorra! For the trooper! It's supposed to be military, and I'm a military class! (yay for the droid head!) So, Tanno Vic is charming, hmm? Any chance to do a couple of flirts?

 

(My Trooper is heavily neutral- haven't hit light 1 or dark 1. Which brings the question on where the hell do I find relics that don't rely on alignment in these early levels?!)

 

If you're at least a Newcomer for the Rakgoul event, go to Nar Shaddaa, next to GSI guys, upper level of the Promenade - excellent level 25/35/45 relics for everyone with endurance/presence bonus. I have plenty of spares(bought them in fear that Nar Shaddaa folks will disappear), too bad they're Bound to Legacy.

 

Also, there's the bonus quest where you're seriously quested to go change the cantina music in Sobrik, I presume just to troll the Imperials.

 

Myahaha! Yeah, I was seriously creeped out by that bit. Revan music in a cantina? WTH? WHY? Whyyyy?

 

I don't remember most quests, though. Maybe because they were boring, or because I only played Republic Balmorra with one character, my Jedi Knight. That's the beauty of playing four characters, I guess - after saving the Deadeyes at Balmorra or delivering five sniper rifles at Tatooine three times in a row, you kind of start remembering. Then again, I've completely forgotten Imperial Balmorra, since my characters have moved on long ago. I do remember the emotional pair of droids for the heroic, though. Lovely people.

 

 

 

Thana Vash outfit is awesome (Thana Vash is awesome, in a completely idiotic way)! I'm envious. I could definitely use that on my Sith ladies. Actually, it wouldn't look bad on my lady Agent, either, as much as I like the trench coat. Sigh. I need to get my Agent doing dallies and raising money so I can buy cool outfits. Though I want to buy rocket boots. She doesn't even have enough money for that, silly Agent. Mostly because I had to buy tech gifts for Scorpio. (If you like Assassin droids, you'll probably love her, too. She's very cold, though, but her voiceactress is excellent- she sounds pure badass and when she says you'll pray for her forgiveness, you feel like you darn well should pray. She's actually one of my favorite voice actressed companions, though I have no idea who does her.)

 

I like Thana a lot - Imperial Taris is much more bearable because of her!

 

Looking forward to Scorpio, though I will probably have at least to finish Voss with my Sith warrior, first(I don't want all four chars to be on the same planet, it's boring, so I'm giving them two planets to choose from).

And, yeah, darkness suits me perfectly. I play my Agent as a broken soul, who's been partly healed by Vector, but Watcher X did leave a mark, and of course, Darth Jadus has broken her completely and assembled her anew, so... there's that.

 

And I think you can put a WTB for rocket boots - people sell it for about 400K on GTN on my server, but given my short experience with trade announcement, you can save some money that way.

 

 

I don't really remember anything about Corso having his ex appear in a quest, but honestly, all I really remember about Corso's companion quest is that gunfight on Tattooine being hard to get to.

 

Yeah, it was pretty horrible. I first went to Jundland, then to the Dune Sea, then to Jundland again... gah! I couldn't get past the Imperial outpost, so I eventually used the secret tunnel beneath the Dune Sea, and when I tried to advise about it to others in the chat(bad idea), I've been told that there's no secret tunnel. I said: "Oh, yeah, of course, silly me! There is no tunnel! It's secret, after all".

 

 

My Trooper's like 'My new name is THARAN, and I do not drink the koolaid! The force is no match for a blaster! I am suspicious about this! I have killed a lot of people, and they have never spoken to me! Strange ghost, stop your prophesies and SPEAK SENSE!'. You can just tell the Jedi Master and the 'force entity' are like 'wth, disbeliever', and Aric's like +23, +23, +23, +23. Apparently he doesn't mind me going crazy on Fleet Commander's if their Jedi.

 

HAHAHA! Loved the +23,+23,+23 bit. Too bad Jedi Prisoner is a complete grind - I'd like to play it and hear Kilran's voice again. He also mentioned Darth Angral in the conversation with my Jedi Knight - I wonder if he mentions Skavak with my Smuggler? (snicker)

 

And, yeah, I agree about SIS-Military rivalry. I'm definitely going to choose Aric for my XO, no question about that - I just hit 1000 kills with him, and I think I'm going to stick with that guy, much as I adore Forex and respect Elara. Love interest > anyone else. But damn it, I wanna marry Jonas!

 

 

 

 

My small Juggernaut is almost all her way to the ship and the end of Dromund Kaas, and I LOVE the dark side! You can kill the guy who meets you in the spaceport, kill the guys at the cargo port, kill Lord Gratham's family... basically, kill everyone, and Baras only approves. Also, without Vette(she and Treek are doing dark diplomacy stuff - molecular programmer cells aren't cheap) I can talk to Baras however I want, and I like the rapport we're building. I really feel like an enforcer for a strong dark master.

"I feel your anger, master"

"A blind, deaf lobotomy patient could feel my anger!"

Anyway, I'm really fond of Baras. Now that I don't have to choose only affection-gaining replies, I'm fond of the old guy. Granted, he'll betray me and all(idiot), but so far so good, right?

 

It's kind of nice to go without a companion for a while. Lonely, yeah, but also strangely liberating - truly solo, you're on your own. I don't think it'll last, though, since I'm going to be skipping quests(no way will I go to the Revanites AGAIN), so I'm going to be underlevelled in no time.

 

 

He definitely treats you differently if you're in the mini-romance, but... well. Let's just say it all ends in tears, and Corso will get annoyed if you even dare to acknowledge that (actually, so will Risha, but from my darling Risha it came across more like 'come on, girl, get it together' rather then Corso's HOW DARE YOU CARE ABOUT THAT EVIL MAN RAWRGHHH).

 

Dammit. I don't wanna kill that cunning old man! Then again, I'm not prepared to romance him either, probably - I would romance his real self, but not the mask, and the mask slips too late, right? Hmm. Well, if a flirt comes up and I'll feel like it, maybe I should choose it just for the fun of the game(= my Smuggler suddenly started seeing the guy for what he is after his "become a queen of the underworld!" overtures, and decided to play along).

 

 

It's dreadfully cold here in Moscow - I wish I had one of these breathing masks Darth Malgus uses! Definitely good to have some extra warm air and a place to hide the nose! Mine's about to fall off.

[LiellaMod]

No, with Jaesa you can actually pretty much *choose* whether you want to turn her light or dark. If you're a Sith working for the "light" side you can show her the benefits of doing so within the ranks of "dark" and how her former master, a jedi, actually has a great deal of unrestrained rage within him. Whereas you, because you're honest with your emotions, are very...light-side (Jaesas IC ability is to "read" people). Gotta be careful though since your initial interactions with her will decide what she approves and disapproves of.

 

I usually go for the dark option .

 

//Sebastian

[Kulyok]

Yeah, my main has completed Light Jaesa's story and is very happy with her(we've decided to raise and train each other's kids and whatnot). I just meant that while Dark Jaesa can be romanced by a male Warrior, a Light Jaesa is unromanceable, so a Light Warrior is stuck with Vette.

 

I'm going for the dark option with my second character. We'll see how that goes. Too bad I don't play guys - Jaesa is awesome.

[LiellaMod]

Yeah, my main has completed Light Jaesa's story and is very happy with her(we've decided to raise and train each other's kids and whatnot). I just meant that while Dark Jaesa can be romanced by a male Warrior, a Light Jaesa is unromanceable, so a Light Warrior is stuck with Vette.

 

I'm going for the dark option with my second character. We'll see how that goes. Too bad I don't play guys - Jaesa is awesome.

 

Ooh, you're of course quite right! The light Jaesa is indeed more of a padawan than she is a romance option. *chuckles*

 

I myself suffer from a...reluctance to play evil options in most games as well. I still can't make myself to be mean to Viconia in Baldur's Gate 2 for crying out loud! Fortunately in SWtor, not the same case!

 

As for genders, i don't really play female characters as my mains. Which, considering it, is a pity. There are so many excellent mods written for female characters. I still have nightmares about the Anomen romance when i played a female character at age 14 however (no offense to anyone who actually likes the Anomen romance ). Imagine me sitting as a teenager, and then finally realizing "Holy crap, this dude is TRYING TO GET INTO MY PANTS!". Maybe i should consider trying it, if only to see some of the excellent content people have written *grin*

 

 

//Sebastian

[Domi]

I am at home, so I can paragraph! YAY!!!!

 

Twani, I am blown away. Your Legacy is a very cool piece of story-telling actually, the way you handle multiple characters like this. It is one of the harder tasks. It is a toss-up between Ace and C9 for my fav. Chiss actually don't look too badly with the hair-in-the face styles. I take it that Chiss come in later in the game with backstory and race lore? If es, very much looking forward to it!

 

Kulyok, I just press PrtScreen and the shot gets saved in the MyDocuments/SWTOR folder. Just like in NWN2. I am ambitious about taking one of the entire party of 4 during a cutscene, since it is the only time you can actually see the FRONT of your character. Interestingly enough, Tishujen looks area creation of my daughter. I wanted have had someone more exotic looking. But yeah, she fits Riggs' girl next door as much as a Twi'lek can.

 

Liella, most female players have nightmares about Anomen's Romance, so don't feel bad. Playing cross-gender and enjoying it comes with practice, I find. I never played a male until I started testing, and writing romances for a male, and since then I had a few male characters I actually liked. The hapless Shar-Teel's consort and Lan, the Neeshka's Priest of Poetic Justice were v. cool. And, as much as I am looking forward to potentially purchasing Bao's armor for a female character in an digital fantasy-land equivalent of the wearing his shirt kindda thing, I am also looking forward with playing the next best thing to Bao, my Knight, and sticking as true to his character as I can imagine, lol. If they allowed for custom soundsets, I would replay the whole manly trio from the KOTOR2, as my Jedi/Sith contingent, because they are compelling or just underloved like Mical.

 

And, YES! I finally put Tishujen on Nar Shaddaa, and WOW, the VIEW!!! I totally lacked the animations to have Riggs sling his arm over Tishujen's shoulder, and Tishujen slip hers around his waste and ask for a passing driod to snap a pic, LOL! It had that "Oh, honey, a pic!" touristy vibe all over it.

[Kulyok]

Yeah, Nar Shaddaa is that great! (Check it out during the bounty hunter week, you'll like the atmosphere, and hunting probes in Nar Shaddaa sky during a Kingpin Bounty is a blast!). Unfortunately, the inside might be a bit less spectacular - mostly, it's Coruscant all over again(or, rather, Coruscant is Nar Shaddaa all over again). But 'tis fun. I liked the heroics, though I can't remember the quests for either of my Republic characters(shame on me, gotta re-read the wiki).

 

And the gaming weekend is on! I totally want to continue with my trooper to the end of Chapter 1, and maybe go to Voss. Or advance in chapter 2 with my Consular for a little Eeeeevil! experience. We'll see.

(a pity I can't play more than two planets in a row with one character, because I run out of green resting points, so I have to switch)

[LiellaMod]

Well, i'm glad to hear that my girlfriend is not the only woman i know to loathe the Anomen romance! I have no trouble playing cross-gender characters when i play a game where characterization does not matter, but when it comes to an actual game that...well...requires some roleplaying, it's still more of a challenge than i would like. Something i have to work on - especially considering i really have no trouble actually writing from a female PoV or characters (though it is of course still trickier than writing male for me). The last female character i played was in Dragon Age only to see how the game differed for female chars. Quite interesting at times.

 

Reached Balmorra with my Sith. I must say, if i played female, i would probably have my character fall head-over-heels for Quinn. The man is well-written with an absolutely superb voice-acting and...just thoroughly awesome. Really one of my favorite male NPC's in the entire game - even as a male Sith. I especially enjoy Jaesa's conversation where Quinn offers her to join him, only to be laughed at. chuckles

 

--Sebastian

[Kulyok]

Quinn is my favorite romance ever. I saw Jaesa-Quinn conversation on Youtube, too. Quinn is pure awesome - I am partly replaying the game to get his romance again(I didn't know about ESC key and different options when I played for the first time). Oh, all the ways it could go... The starting cutscene alone is pure gold. And That Voice. And he feels alive - my character and I both feel for him. And looking forward to choking him half to death with my next char, naturally. All in the name of love. My main is all about forgiveness, but not little Dinny, oh, no.

 

I'm quite all right with Anomen but I do detest Alistair as a partner in Dragon Age - I think a guy who tries to establish himself as good guy and really does behave like a total jerk in romance isn't worth my time, certainly. (Anders, on the other hand... I love DA more than DA2, but DA2 totally wins when I think of romances).

[Domi]

Aw. I am just about to drop my baby off at school, pick some groceries, and then it's the SIth run for me for a bit. I am hoping to make it through a major chunk of Korriban's quests today. Looking forward to meeting Quinn. He's Okay with a very vile and self-entitled SIth, I hope!

[Kulyok]

Oh yes. Oh, yes indeed.

 

// runs SWTOR loader and disappears

[Domi]

Something i have to work on - especially considering i really have no trouble actually writing from a female PoV or characters (though it is of course still trickier than writing male for me).

 

That's a bit different experience. When you write cross-gender you write an ideal mate of an opposite gender. In fact, my feeling is that characters written by the same gender writers will appeal/feel more natural to the same gender player. Going from that way, I would guess that Riggs, Vette, Maco and Qyzen had a male writer, and Kalyio - female writer. Your guesses?

[LiellaMod]

Something i have to work on - especially considering i really have no trouble actually writing from a female PoV or characters (though it is of course still trickier than writing male for me).

 

That's a bit different experience. When you write cross-gender you write an ideal mate of an opposite gender. In fact, my feeling is that characters written by the same gender writers will appeal/feel more natural to the same gender player. Going from that way, I would guess that Riggs, Vette, Maco and Qyzen had a male writer, and Kalyio - female writer. Your guesses?

 

Now we're entering interesting territory here.

 

What you're saying is absolutely true - generally speaking, characters of a gender written by writers of the same gender have a lot of more natural feeling behind them. I would suspect that *most* characters in video games are actually written by men however, simply because most video game writers are men (for the same reason most video game artists are men). As far as i know, only Blizzard and Bioware as game companies actually employ full-time professional writers on their staff.

 

When it comes to avoiding the trap of writing opposite genders as ideal mates (unless that's something a person as a writer is looking for), i find it simply best to use a unigender approach. Simply put, i try to keep the character's gender completely out of the mix - unless that character's gender defines his or her interaction with others. Instead i focus on the character's circumstances - where is she from, how'd she grow up, what formative experiences caused her to be where she is today. I find that writing this way, one generally avoids the trap somewhat and one is able to write characters that are somewhat more three-dimensional and believable. I find that in SWTOR, all of the characters are generally very well-written (Bioware has amazing writing standards and have had for as long as i've been playing their games), but one of my favorites and, in my opinion, best example of this is Elara Dorne. Vette is another great case in point.

 

There are a lot of games out there, and i've played many RPG's over the years. Most of the experiences have really made me appreciate what companies like Bioware do in hiring such superb writers for their IP's. It is, sadly, the exception rather than the rule.

 

Back to Balmorra! Let's see if i can finish up this planet and finally get to Nar Shaddaa - Twi'lek dancers and gambling! ^^