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Hyperspace Beacon: Timeline
When I started the Holocron Files last week, it slipped my mind that I have been doing this column for a year and a half and that not everyone has been following every issue. When I wrote about the Pureblood Sith, it was really meant to be a refresher course, not a comprehensive chronicle. It's extremely difficult to capture the full history of a species in about a thousand words. That being said, I understand that not everyone has a perspective on the Star Wars timeline, especially the time leading up to Star Wars: The Old Republic. I don't think it's any secret that BioWare stories are extremely deep, and Lead Writer Daniel Erickson has a nerdgasm every time someone interviews him about Star Wars history. The established history leading up to TOR will play a major role in the story that unfolds in the game, otherwise the development team would not have had the wherewithal to create the timeline videos for the website. Following the break, I would like to set you up for future, more comprehensive articles about the Star Wars lore. Although this column is certainly not exclusively about lore, when I bring up another Holocron File, I want reader to have a decent understanding of when these events fall in Star Wars history. So rev up your time machine to 88 miles per hour! This Hyperspace Beacon is about to go back in time -- way back!
What are SWTOR's three final classes?
Looking at the official Star Wars: The Old Republic class page reveals four slots on both factions, with three total filled thus far. Of course, you'll notice that Jedi and Sith aren't shown here, but it's a forgone conclusion that they'll be filled sooner or later. While nobody but BioWare can be sure what the final classes actually, half the fun is trying to figure them out before they're announced.So with that said, it's time to take a few educated guess stabs at potential classes, and formulate our wish lists. I'm sure you've all got ones of your own as well, so feel free to share!
SWTOR's Trooper development and morale abilities
BioWare's lead combat designer Damion Schubert discusses creating the Trooper class today over at the official Star Wars: The Old Republic website. It's not too difficult to understand the heart of the Trooper: he's got a huge gun and makes everything in his path explode. The difficult part of the Trooper was making it something that could go toe-to-toe with Sith both in the actual game and in players' minds. It had to be cool, exciting and a whole lot of fun to play.Of course, as Damion points out at the end of his journal, the Trooper isn't all about massive amounts of firepower. The class packs an assortment of morale-themed party buffs too, which are able to strengthen himself and the party. While this feature was assumed on our part, this is the first we've heard of morale-based class abilities. Consider us curious to find out more in the future.In case you missed its debut over the weeked, we've embedded the dev video on The Trooper after the jump.%Gallery-35033%
Hints of the Smuggler class in new SWTOR timeline update
Who broke the Mandalorian blockade on Coruscant? Why, it was those wily Smugglers, that's who! The Sith weren't expecting the Galactic Republic to find assistance with that particular criminal aspect, but find it they did -- and you can learn all about it through the latest Star Wars: The Old Republic timeline update.Of course, if this second update doesn't just scream, "Smuggler class!" then we're not sure you were paying close enough attention. Then again, BioWare could just be trying to throw us off the trail by making the Smugglers such an obvious component to the back story. The problem is that, either way, you really cany have Star Wars without these guys somewhere in the story. Who knows, maybe they'll be called Scoundrels instead?And of course there's the possibility that Mandalorians will be featured as an Empire class, or at least the new update seems to loosely imply as much. Either way, we should expect some kind of shady character classes to be announced sometime in the near future.
Gun toting Trooper class revealed for The Old Republic
The fourth Star Wars: The Old Republic class has been revealed today, and it's the Republic Trooper. An initial pang of worry struck our minds at the name until we began perusing the official class page, then saw the image above. Oh, and let's not forget the videos depicting three glorious special attacks. Weapon butts? Sticky Grenades? High-Powered Rifle Grenades? Sold.Reading through the class description provides further clarification as to why a player would consider this career over a Jedi. These aren't just cannon fodder soldiers, but highly trained and specialized men and women not to be trifled with -- which gives us pause. Why are these people so impressive, but not named in a way that lets you know this verifiable truth?It seems as though, considering the severity of their battle prowess presented on the official website, naming this class simply "Trooper" is a bit of a misnomer. We're sure there has been plenty of internal debate over at BioWare concerning this matter, and we'd just like to take this moment to point out that the incorrect side seems to have won the argument. Still, at least the class looks quite awesome.%Gallery-35033%%Gallery-35034%
The Old Republic shows potential for more than good versus evil
BioWare has been touting their focus on story with Star Wars: The Old Republic, and many a jaded MMO fan have scoffed and or rolled their eyes each and every time. Ord Mantell's developer diary concerning the planet's creation gives a glimmer of hope that there truly is a blurry line between the forces of the Galactic Republic and Sith Empire.Instead of making Ord Mantell an Empire controlled planet with Republic rebels attempting to overthrow it, the development team went the other direction, sort of. They made the choice of keeping the planet under Republic control, but making many of the leaders less-than-honorable types. The locale has also been malnourished by its caretakers, as the Republic is seemingly only concerned with Coruscant after the war.
The Old Republic's timeline as voiced by Lance Henriksen
If there's one thing a self indulging Star Wars fan knows, it's that lore is bountiful in our favorite science fiction pastime. So it comes as little surprised that a series high quality weekly webcomics just isn't enough for Star Wars: The Old Republic. BioWare has gone the distance and begun to put forth an audio timeline leading up to the current peace between the Galatic Republic and Sith Empire.The historical record will be spoken by Master Gnost-Dural, Keeper of the Jedi Archives, who is in turn voiced by actor Lance Henriksen. BioWare fans will recognize him as the voice of Mass Effect's Admiral Hackett of the Human Systems Alliance. As for how many of these we should plan for, looking at the timeline reveals several more historical points (we counted 18) that took place before this inaugural first.We'll try to feign a little surprise when "history" from the Knights of the Old Republic RPGs crops up somewhere in here, although hopefully it'll be more than a recap of those game's storylines.
How will factions and PvP work in Star Wars: The Old Republic?
Since BioWare and LucasArts' Star Wars: The Old Republic was announced, we've learned that there will be two factions in the game -- the Galactic Republic and the Sith Empire. We've also learned that players will be able to embrace either the Dark or Light Side of the Force. But there's something surprising in all this: there's no direct correlation between the two distinctions. You could, for example, play as a Jedi working within the Empire -- "a good guy in a bad place," as BioWare put it.We're big fans of the idea -- more moral complexity is welcome (especially in the Star Wars setting, which tends to quite literally be black and white), but it raises some interesting gameplay questions, particularly with regards to PvP -- questions we're eager to raise!%Gallery-35033%
The Lore of Star Wars: The Old Republic
The hotly anticipated MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic (SWTOR) from BioWare has only just been announced, but they've already given us a clear picture of the game's setting and a bit of the lore as well. From what we can tell, you won't need to be a die-hard fan of Star Wars to appreciate the title, which is good news as there's a daunting amount of Star Wars canon out there. That said, it'll certainly help to have at least some grounding in what's going on in Star Wars: The Old Republic. To that end, Massively's put together a brief primer on the lore of SWTOR.Who is this written for? People who've seen the films but may not necessarily have played Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (KotOR) on PC or console, and especially those who haven't read the novels or various comic book lines released over the years. Read on, and we'll introduce you to the backdrop and factions of Star Wars: The Old Republic. Get Educated, Padawan >>
