Star Wars Galaxy of Heroes: Road Ahead: June 2022

Editor Galaxy of Heroes

Here is the newest road Ahead for Star Wars: Galaxy of heroes. We are kicking off this quarter’s Road Ahead with a recap of what was announced at Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim and a peak at the upcoming legendary event for The Grand Inquisitor. After that we’ll dive into the next upcoming feature for Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes, Datacrons!

STAR WARS CELEBRATION

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We had an amazing time at Star Wars Celebration 2022 and were excited to meet so many members from our community!

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Thank you to all of you who were able to stop by to play games and chat with us. Besides a number of folks from Capital Games hanging out all day, there was a chance to get your photo from the inside of X-wing and pick up a ton of swag like this Zeta pin!

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We also hosted a discussion with the Star Wars: The Old Republic™ team on how the Darth Malgus crossover came to be, and our booth also proudly featured our entire Inquisitorius crew as a photo opportunity. Our visitors were quick to notice that one of these Inquisitorius was none other than… The Grand Inquisitor!

GRAND INQUISITOR

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Are you ready to hunt down the remaining Jedi and put an end to their ancient order for good? The Grand Inquisitor will be coming to Galaxy of Heroes on June 22nd! Available for seven days starting on June 23rd, The Grand Inquisitor’s event, Dark Times, will start with training exercises for the Inquisitors. The player will first face off against the Grand Inquisitor in a five-on-one battle, and then take on a series of Jedi who escaped Order 66 in an assortment of environments specific to those Jedi. The encounter would seem one-sided at first with five Inquisitors taking on a single Jedi, but the Jedi will have thematic buffs to make them the formidable opponents we know them to be. This limited time event will require five Inquisitors at Relic 5 but will return in the future and eventually move to the Journey Guide.

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After beating the 7-tier event, The Grand Inquisitor will unlock at seven stars and bring the Inquisitor’s squad to the next level with Mode Specific abilities focused on Territory Wars. Besides being a fearsome offensive foe in his own right, he will help his Inquisitor allies by stacking up and keeping Purge on enemies while increasing Purge’s effectiveness. Using a new debuff called Torture, The Grand Inquisitor can weaken even the strongest opponents and crush their hopes of winning the battle by ensuring his target takes extra damage. While The Grand Inquisitor is primarily designed to work with an all Inquisitor squad, he can also power up Empire allies to assist him in his quest to wipe out all traces of the Jedi Order.

UPCOMING FEATURE: DATACRONS
Datacrons are a new feature for Galaxy of Heroes which means there are tons of details to share. We’ll start off with establishing the improvements we’re adding to the game with this release, and then discuss the general structure around Datacrons and why they are the culmination of how we have been approaching the game for the last few years.

Next, we’ll cover how they will be unlocked in the game and the general structure of how they will vary from set to set. Finally, we’ll talk about the initial Exhibition experience and the first couple runs where we will be experimenting and gathering feedback. Ready for the journey?

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The Goal of Datacrons:
Introduce new, interesting mechanics that revitalize your collection

Datacrons are intended to be a way to temporarily raise the power level and usefulness of a wider set of squads without disrupting the long-term investment goals (e.g., Journey Guide Units, Galactic Legends, etc) of players.

We’ve always intended for the meta of Galaxy of Heroes to be dynamic and ever changing, with new characters and factions entering the holotables, sometimes shifting the meta and then cycling out as new characters and factions replace them. Some characters and squads ultimately find places of durable, broad or narrow utility in specific modes, but our intent is that no part of your collection permanently cycles out of usefulness. To date, we have largely managed that return to utility through reworks, new Omicrons, and feats and modifiers – or through power creep and nerfs.

Datacrons give you a stronger reason to care about upgrading a character over time and have it be a valuable addition to your roster at day 1, or for months and years down the road. They increase the flexibility and design space around new mechanics and provide opportunities for more theorycrafting. This gives us a new way to regularly highlight a part of your collection and give it higher utility in game – in a clearly communicated and transparently scheduled, albeit non-permanent way.

There is a balance to be struck between the frequency and impact of how we introduce new mechanics and power to factions broadly, and this is something we will be experimenting with Datacrons in the initial exhibition period.

Importantly, Datacrons are intended to primarily be a separate and complementary economy, in parallel to the current set of progression systems without substantially interfering with a player’s existing resource management – in a way that gives more long-term value to your overall collection.

What is a Datacron?
So, what are Datacrons and how do they work?

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Datacrons on the Squad Select Screen
Datacrons are a new way to upgrade your squads with temporary special abilities and buffs in Grand Arena Championships and Territory Wars. These can bring a great squad to the next level or boost underused/older squads and characters back to relevancy. They are applied at the Squad Select screen and will be visible when viewing enemy squads in Grand Arena Championships and Territory Wars.

Datacrons will be available when players reach level 85, and should become a larger area of focus as players grow their veteran rosters and have more time in between major roster milestones.

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Datacron equipped on Defensive Squad

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A Datacron has nine unlockable levels with bonus stats and special mechanics for Alignments, Factions, and specific Characters. The bonuses are rolled randomly at the time of unlock.

  • Level 1: Bonus Stat
  • Level 2: Bonus Stat
  • Level 3: Bonus Mechanic for Dark or Light Side characters
  • Level 4: Bonus Stat
  • Level 5: Bonus Stat
  • Level 6: Bonus Mechanic for a specific Faction
  • Level 7: Bonus Stat
  • Level 8: Bonus Stat
  • Level 9: Bonus Mechanic for a specific Character

Each of these major levels informs the next rolls (for instance, you won’t have a Light Side Datacron that then rolls Empire or a Dark Side + Sith Datacron that rolls Commander Luke Skywalker for the last tier).

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Partially Upgrade Datacron
All Datacron Levels have a Relic requirement:

  • Levels 1-8 check for a squad’s minimum Relic level
    • Level 1-3: Relic 3
    • Level 4-8: Relic 5
  • Level 9 checks for the Relic level of the relevant character (Relic 7) since it will only impact that character as long as the rest of the squad meets the requirements for the previous Bonus Mechanics (levels 3 and 6)
    • This means a squad may not get all the bonus stats, but as long as everyone besides the character targeted in Level 9 is at Relic 5 and the target character is Relic 7, the targeted character will get the Level 9 Bonus mechanic

Note that the number of Bonus Mechanics, total number of Datacron levels, and Relic requirements can change from Set to Set.

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Fully Upgrade Datacron
You can browse a list of your Datacrons and pick the right one for your Squad. You can review their stats and see what will be active for the current squad you are about to use.

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How To Improve Datacrons
Each Datacron Set comes with its own Datacrons, Upgrade Materials, and Reroll Materials. These Sets share a common structure (think: common, uncommon, and rarer versions of each Material type), but each can only be used for its matching Datacrons. This is intended to ensure that Players can chase each set without worrying about “missing out” on future opportunities. It also ensures the system can reduce inflation over time, allowing us to keep upgrade costs more stable over time and a fair start to each new Set’s release.

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Data-Cache
In addition, there is a general “Data-cache” Currency that persists across all sets, and is used as the basic currency for actions in the system.

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Each Datacron set will cover several factions and characters. Factions will cycle and return in the future to provide repeated value for investing in these Factions, but there will always be a wide variety of combinations with new and old bonuses.

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Here are some examples of what bonuses in a Set look like (See the full details for Set 1 and 2 below!)

Alignment Specific Bonuses:

  • Dark
  • Light
    • Whenever Light Side Characters allies start their turn, for each enemy with fewer than 4 debuffs, that ally gains 30% Potency until the end of the turn.

Faction Specific Bonuses: Inquisitorius, Galactic Republic, Jedi, Rebels

  • Galactic Republic:
    • At the start of the encounter and at the end of their turn, Galactic Republic allies gain 1 stack of Retaliate for 3 turns, which can’t be copied, dispelled, or prevented. Retaliate: When damaged by an attack, deal 20% of the damage received per stack to the attacker; this damage can’t defeat enemies
    • Whenever Galactic Republic Characters allies inflict Stagger or Stun on an enemy, they deal bonus damage equal to 35% of that enemy’s Max Health.
    • Whenever Galactic Republic allies grant a buff to another ally, that ally gains 10% Turn Meter (limit once per turn per ally).

Character Specific Bonuses: Aayla Secura, Mother Talzin

  • Aayla Secura
    • Whenever another ally recovers Protection, Aayla Secura gains Foresight for 1 turn.
    • Whenever an enemy is Stunned, Aayla Secura takes a bonus turn.
  • Mother Talzin
    • Allies revived by The Great Mother recover an additional 50% Health and are not defeated after assisting
    • At the start of each of Mother Talzin’s turns, they reset their cooldowns and lose 5% Health for each turn each ability was reduced. Mother Talzin can’t be defeated this way.
    • Whenever another ally attacks during Mother Talzin’s turn, Mother Talzin and that ally gain 25% Turn Meter.

Players will also be able to reroll a particular Bonus or stat by using a special Reroll currency specific to each set. You can pick and choose which Datacron levels you want to keep and which you want to reroll for the perfect combination for your squads. For Bonus Mechanics at levels 3, 6, and 9, you can see which bonuses you want to choose before you lock in your reroll. You can also see the maximum and minimum roll when rerolling stats to help determine how good your roll was.

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How to Get Datacrons
The Datacrons themselves are earned primarily from Conquest. Each sector in Conquest will now have a special Treasure node at the end that rewards Datacrons. Hard mode will have better Datacron rewards than Normal and the later Sectors will provide better rewards than earlier Sectors in both difficulties. You will be able to repeatedly attempt these Treasure Nodes to complete Feats while earning Datacrons and the materials needed to upgrade and reroll them. The Conquest Treasure nodes will be the main place to get Datacrons and its materials but End of Event rewards will also contain Datacrons, Upgrade materials, Reroll materials, and the general Data-cache currency.

In addition, Datacrons can also be found in Territory Wars, Weekly Shipments and Daily Login Calendars along with packs and bundles.

You can break down extra Datacrons, called Dismantling, while the Set is active to get Data-cache, Reroll and Upgrade materials for that set. Dismantling extra Datacrons will be the major source of Upgrade and Reroll materials, but you can also get some from Conquest Treasure Nodes, Conquest End of Event Rewards, and Daily Login Calendars. Territory Wars will provide some Datacrons but will be a consistent source of Mk2 and Mk3 Upgrade/Reroll materials in addition to the Conquest Treasure Nodes and End of Event rewards.

Datacron Shipments will also have Datacrons from all active sets, not just the current Set dropping from Conquest. Lastly, there will be free and paid Daily Login Calendars with these materials that will supplement the flows from all the other sources listed above.

Summary of where to get Datacrons and Materials:

Most Recent Set

  • Datacrons
    • Primary Source: Conquest
    • Secondary Source: Territory Wars
    • Secondary Source: Daily Login Calendars
    • Secondary Source: Shipments
  • Mk 1 & Mk 2 Upgrade and Reroll Materials
    • Primary Source: Dismantling Datacrons (Depending on Datacron Level)
    • Primary Source: Conquest
    • Secondary Source: Territory Wars
    • Secondary Source: Shipments
    • Secondary Source: Daily Login Calendars
  • Mk3 Upgrade and Reroll Materials
    • Primary Source: Conquest (Hard)
    • Primary Source: Territory Wars
    • Secondary Source: Dismantling Datacrons (Depending on Datacron Level)
    • Secondary Source: Shipments
  • Data-cache (General Currency)
    • Primary Source: Conquest
    • Secondary Source: Territory Wars
    • Secondary Source: Shipments

All Other Active Sets

  • Upgrade and Reroll Materials for Other Sets
    • Primary Source: Dismantling Datacrons of that Set
    • Secondary Source: Shipments

Finally, a source of materials is from the dismantling of Datacrons at the end of the Set’s cycle. The now inactive Set will automatically be scrapped and a portion of those materials will be granted back to your inbox as a head start on the next active Set. This leads into our next point, the lifecycle of Datacrons.

Datacron Lifecycle

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As mentioned above, Datacrons are temporary power and will eventually be dismantled into resources for other Datacron Sets. We have recently rearranged our event schedule into 28-day segments which we organize into Chapters. Each set is active for some number Chapters and a new Datacron set will launch at the start of each Chapter. Let’s take a look at the first few Sets as an example.

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NOTE: The duration of each Chapter is something we are experimenting with. More on that in a moment.

Our current plan is to have around 3 sets of Datacrons active at any given time, each in a different phase of the cycle. We will announce what’s in each Set in advance of their release and give a breakdown of the bonuses, factions and units in the Set.

What to Expect during Exhibition
The first Sets of Datacrons will be an accelerated test with each Datacron Set running for at least two 28-day Chapters. Which means that during the Exhibition each Set is only live for around 3 months total. We suspect this is too fast for these Sets to cycle, but we want to get the first few Sets into your hands and see them side-by-side, as a single set-at-a-time is not how the system was designed and may not feel as interesting.

To get you started, there is a Daily Login Calendar and a special Inbox message with a bunch of resources to try out Datacrons right away and event rewards have been scaled to the faster nature of the Exhibition.

As we tune, your constructive feedback is incredibly valuable, especially during Exhibition!

Exhibition Details
In the section below you will find the complete details of each set. (DATES SUBJECT TO CHANGE)

  • Set 1 will run from June 14th through September 4th
    • 06/14 – 07/10: Acquire & Upgrade (Conquest and Territory Wars reward this Set’s Datacrons, Upgrade and Reroll Materials)
    • 07/11 – 09/04: Battle Phase
  • Set 2 will start July 11th and run through October 2nd
    • 07/11 – 08/07: Acquire & Upgrade (Conquest and Territory Wars reward this Set’s Datacrons, Upgrade and Reroll Materials)
    • 08/08 – 10/02: Battle Phase

Set 1 Full info

  • NAME: Treatise Inquisitorius
  • Factions Specific Bonuses: Inquisitorius, Galactic Republic, Resistance
  • Characters Specific Bonuses: Fifth Brother, Second Sister, Jedi Master Kenobi, Grand Master Yoda, Aayla Secura, Rey (Galactic Legend), Finn, Resistance Trooper
  • Upgrade Material: Acumen Mk1-Mk3
  • Re-roll Material: Alteration Mk1-Mk3

Possible Rolls

  • StatsSpoiler
  • Mechanics: AlignmentSpoiler
  • Mechanics: FactionSpoiler
  • Mechanics: CharacterSpoiler
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Set 2 Full Info

  • NAME: Enduring Codex
  • FACTION SPECIFIC BONUSES: Jedi, Rebel
  • CHARACTER SPECIFIC BONUSES: Jedi Master Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker, Obi-wan Kenobi (Old Ben), Mon Mothma, Commander Luke Skywalker, Ezra Bridger
  • Upgrade Material: Binding Mk1-Mk3
  • Re-roll Material: Breakdown Mk1-Mk3

Possible Rolls

  • StatsSpoiler
  • Mechanics: AlignmentSpoiler
  • Mechanics: FactionSpoiler
  • Mechanics: CharacterSpoiler

Post-Exhibition
Shortly after launch, we will be enabling Datacrons in Squad Arena so players can understand their impact before locking in to Grand Arena Championships or Territory Wars. This unfortunately will not be ready for the initial release, but we expect there to be another release within a few weeks of the initial launch to include this change.

Wrap Up
Datacrons will help provide regular fresh metas in Grand Arena Championships and Territory Wars – and help build up to long term content and progression. We’re excited to bring you Datacrons and know it’s going to take some iteration during Exhibition to get to their final form, but we believe Datacrons will open up interesting design space and provide more on-going use to your collection. A final reminder that these details are subject to change.

This is a ton to digest so we will be answering your questions during a future Q&A session on these topics. The team would love to hear your questions and constructive concerns about Datacrons – so head over to this thread to discuss. I will be pulling out the top questions in advance and the team will answer as many as possible.