Holy Smackaroli: a real SWTOR Collector’s Edition!

I’m really pushing the envelope by reporting this as news, but I know some people at least will find it interesting.

Bioware’s Stephen Reid has tweeted a link to a picture of a SWTOR Collector’s Edition at Fan Site Summit #2.

So here it is:

I will again admit I wish I’d ordered this version rather than the boring normal version…

UPDATE: thanks to TOR-Wars – there’s now an unboxing video:

SWTOR Fansite Summit #2 underway

The second SWTOR Fansite Summit is underway in Austin Texas, and the zany duo from TOR Wars have posted some pics of the first evening.

Yes, we’d have loved to have been there but there was the issue of 13,000 plus kilometres and an understandable non-invite for that reason. Interestingly we’d missed the furore over who was invited or not invited over the weekend – some are saying there’s a schism in the SWTOR community over it – I don’t have anything sane to say on the issue as we’ve already got a persecution syndrome due to the Oceanic area missing out on being in the official launch territories ; -)

Anyway, go look at some photos or post in the comments what you’d do/say if you were there. Keep it clean please ; -)

Hulk vs Ewok: Hulk wins

It’s everything good Star Wars humour should be: short, sweet and actually funny!

Enjoy:

Now if only someone would make Iron Man vs Jar Jar Binks….

SWTOR: Server types and PvP rulesets

Over on the official forums, David Bass has provided a nice summary of the server types that will exist at launch. The structure follows a well trodden and successful path:

PvE (Player vs Environment) – Players will have to manually flag themselves if they wish to engage in PvP outside of designated Warzones and Open World PvP areas.

PvP (Player vs Player) – Players are automatically flagged for PvP outside of the designated ‘safe’ areas (such as Origin Worlds, Capital Worlds, and the Republic/Imperial Fleets; see below for more info).

RP-PvE – Players are encouraged to roleplay and act ‘in-character’ while playing on an RP-PvE server. Players must manually flag themselves if they wish to engage in PvP outside of designated Warzones and Open World PvP areas.

RP-PvP – Players are encouraged to roleplay and act ‘in-character’ while playing on an RP-PvP server. Players are automatically flagged for PvP outside of the designated ‘safe’ areas

I think I’ll be boring and go the bog-standard PvE server, although if I’m ever going to get involved with a RP server it’ll be on this game – how about you?
Via www.swtor.com

SWTOR early game access: 5 days

Bioware have just snuck out another announcement for those who have pre-ordered SWTOR, to confirm how early the promised early access to the game would be. The maximum head-start you’ll get will be five days, depending on how early you registered your pre-order code.

I have to say I’m disappointed, purely out of self-interest. I was relying on early game access to be the buffer that ensured my boxed copy arrived from the US prior to launch. It’s very unlikely to get here in five days though (particularly if the plane pictured is used).

It’s no-one’s fault as such – Australia isn’t part of the launch territories and for those people that are in the launch areas, five days is more than reasonable.

And I won’t get into the whole launch territories issue again I promise.

One important point to reinforce: it doesn’t matter if you purchased the Collector’s Edition or the normal box, you’re in the same queue for early access. I’ve confirmed this with Stephen Reid this morning via Twitter.

Over to you: are you now planning on December 15th as your launch date?

Imperial Agent progression video: Sniper for me!

It’s progression video time – this time it’s the Imperial agent’s turn and what a video it is. It’s obvious the SWTOR machinamatographers (is that even a word?) have gotten into a real stride with their creations. Have a look for yourself then read some commentary after the fold:

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Get your Guild in Order

Bioware have updated the TOR website with a post regarding phase 3 of guild deployment.

Last month they implemented Phase 2, where guilds could designate other guilds as allies or adversaries. Now TOR moves closer to launch, they have initiated the first part of Phase 3.

Phase 3: Deployment will see any guild that meets the pre-designated criteria be transferred into the game for launch. Before this process starts they are giving all guilds the opportunity to make sure your guild meets the following requirement for transfer:

Four members of your guild must have pre-ordered the game and redeemed their Pre-Order Code.

To help clear up any confusion as to whether or not your guild is ready for deployment, they have now added an indicator on each guild page. This indicator will show you the number of people in your guild who have pre-ordered the game, and will inform you whether or not your guild meets the criteria for deployment into the game.

Star Wars: The Old Republic (SWTOR) Column: Spoilers Suck at MMORPG.com


Some interesting points from MMORPG.com on the issue of spoilers once the game launches. Given the story-driven content, I can see plenty of spolier pranks occurring….
Via www.mmorpg.com

Oceanic Guild Spotlight: The Red Zone (TRZ)

With the recent milestone of our guild listing reaching more than 50 entries, we thought it time to start spotlighting some guilds.

If you’d like your guild spotlighted, just use our contact form to let us know. The only requirement is that you’re an active oceanic guild. Please be patient if you don’t hear back from us immediately – we will only be spotlighting a guild every week or so.

Anyway, first cab off the rank is The Red Zone. Enjoy!

Name of guild

The Red Zone (TRZ)

Guild website

http://www.theredzoneguild.com.au

History of your guild’s name

The Red Zone was formed during the period that followed the announcement (or lack thereof) that TOR would not be released in all areas of the globe come launch. Those that took to the forums to express their disappointment and ask questions found themselves herded into a single thread. There became a split in the community at this time, with those regions included at launch being termed the Green Zone, and those regions outside of the launch territories being termed the Red Zone. So when it came to naming a guild whose initial members stemmed from that thread and the community at that time, The Red Zone kinda fit.

What sort of guild so you intend on being?

We have a wealth of experience from our members. Some are raid leaders from other MMOs, some were into hard mode content, some are avid PVPers, and we have a few who have never played an MMO before. Given the broad range of skills, we are sure we can offer something for all players. Well, maybe not RP. RP’ers are weird 😉

The terms Casual and Hardcore get bandied around quite a bit, with often little room for a middle ground. Sure, we want to progress through endgame raiding, but we won’t be raiding every single night. We’ll certainly try to play smart and maximise what time we have. Most our players are 25+, so we don’t expect our members to be able to play 8+ hours a day.

Why did you choose to be Republic / Sith?

Given the history of The Red Zone, choosing to play Sith Empire seemed a bit of a no-brainer. It’s fair to say that a number of us in Red Zone regions were a little angry to find that TOR wasn’t going to be released in our countries at launch (and at that stage we still weren’t sure whether we could play the games we were importing!) So with the exclusion and the rage and the coming together, Sith seemed a much better fit. Not to mention the whole red thing.

You have one minute to convince someone they should be in your guild – what would you say to them?

If you’re an Oceanic player (or you don’t mind time zone differences) and want to join a laid back guild with all the perks of being organised and dedicated, then you’ve found your new home. All we ask is that you respect other members/players of the TRZ/SWTOR community and, most importantly, enjoy yourself!

What are your predictions for the first 6 months of the guild’s existence post-launch?

It’s really hard to predict where we will be in 6 months. Given the game launches during the holiday period, we anticipate many members will start levelling very quickly. We’ll start gauging player strength and preferred roles, and start running Flashpoints with as many full guild groups as we can manage. We’ll organise times for PvP sessions, including World and Instanced PvP events. We want to do plenty of ‘fun’ guild things like this.

We anticipate losing some members along the way – as with any new MMO, some people won’t subscribe past the free 30 days, and some people might find that The Red Zone is not the best fit for them after all.

Exclusive Sith Inquisitor Interview with Daniel Erickson

Via Scoop.it – TOROZ: Star Wars The Old Republic, Oceanic Style

Not too long ago, I wrote David Bass a request to answer some questions I had about the Sith Inquisitor. I had hoped to have the interview be done by our original class writer. But I must say, Dani…
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Flash Point 18: Fap to the STAP, Solo to the Holo

Apologies for the three week break, but we’re back with a fun discussion on Warzones, Solo with the Holo and Fapping to the STAP. All shall be explained if you listen.

Points of discussion:
– Warzones: Huttball, Voidstar and Alderaan
– Collectors Edition unboxing
– Fan Friday and fan fiction as the poor cousin (click here to check out the SWTOR Paint Adventures mentioned)
– Oceanic guild listings and daisy chains (PvE chain, PvP chain)
– Brief discussion on other games out there (you have to check out the PS3 vs PC Battlefield 3 comparison)
– Shout outs for our forums, Facebook page, Oceanic Guild listing, and Twitter account.

Listen via iTunes or right here:

Enter the Warzones: Voidstar, Huttball and Alderaan

Another weekend, another piece of juicy SWTOR information released by Bioware. This week it’s all about PvP combat. Warzones are the areas designated for PvP in Star Wars: The Old Republic and Bioware had previously given out plenty of information on one of the Warzones, Huttball. They’ve now released information on a further two Warzones: Voidstar (a derelict Imperial Battle Cruiser) and Alderaan (that planet you might have heard about before).

There are video clips showcasing Voidstar, Alderaan and the previously announced Huttball here. Or check the Alderaan one out right now:
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