Summary of Game Update 2.9

Galactic Strongholds loading screen

While many of us have been following the SWTOR update for some time and know what is coming, it never hurts to have a recap and for those who have not been following, let’s take a look at what you can expect from Game Update 2.9.

First, Game Update 2.9 will bring five major changes:

  1. Galactic Strongholds
  2. Decorations
  3. Guild Ships and Conquest
  4. New Crafting Schematics
  5. Forged Alliances: Part II

This update is focusing on changes that help people who like to role play, socialize, craft and more. It’s geared

So let’s take a look at each of these five things in more detail.

Galactic Strongholds: We know that there will be four Legacy-wide Strongholds (houses) available for personal and guild use. You have to be a subscriber to own a Stronghold at this time but anyone can visit a Stronghold. Preferred have access in a month and free to play have access in about two months.

Decorations: Decorations are what make your Stronghold unique and you can decorate yours in a variety of ways. They can be placed on hooks that can be rearranged as you choose. You can also decide where to place the item in the hook. This gives you some freedom to decorate how you want and personalize your space. However, this freedom will cost you and prices differ for the various Strongholds. Decorations from mission rewards, credits, reputation vendors, random drops, achievements and more.

 

Guild Ships and Conquest: Galactic Conquest is split into two sections with unique rewards for each: Personal Conquest and Guild Conquest. Guild Conquest rewards are given when your guild is in the top 10 for a given planet and special rewards for those who reach top place for a planet. Personal rewards are given when you earn Conquest points. There are certain requirements for Guild Conquests. Anyone is eligible for Personal Conquest but level 55 players have an advantage.

 

New Crafting Schematics: We also have new crafting schematics to look forward to, which is great for those who love crafting. These were added to support Strongholds and Guild Ships and Conquests. There will also be new Grade 7 Exotic Mats. Industrial and Synthetic Prefabs and War Supplies are able to be crafted by having only 1 character with 1 crafting skill. Invasion Forces, Universal Prefabs, and Dark Projects are more complicated.

 

Forged Alliances: Part II: Now we also have Forged Alliances Part II that takes us to the planet of Manaan and a new level 55 Tactical Flashpoint, Depths of Manaan. You can start part two by talking to the Forge Alliance astromech A7-M1 or T3-G2 on the Fleet. Learn more here: http://www.swtor.com/blog/story-swtor-2014

There are new token drops and a new vendor, as well as a small area on Manaan that you can take your ship to. There are no additional missions there at the moment but we have indication that plan to possibly add some in the future. It is a beautiful planet if you want to take in the scenery.

And finally, there are also new /chair and /sleep emotes available for free. Ranked Season 2 will end with this update. There will be no class changes in 2.9. Look for those in 2.10.

Lisa Clark

Lisa has been an avid gamer since she was old enough to hold her first controller and a game writer for more than a decade. A child of the Nintendo generation, she believes they just don’t make games like they used to but sometimes, they make them even better! While consoles will always be her first love, Lisa spends most of her gaming time on the PC these days- on MMOs and first-person shooters in particular.