The Greeks believed the titan Prometheus gave humanity the great gift of fire. Throughout history, a select group of humans (from Thales to Kepler, Galileo, Newton, Darwin, Maxwell and Einstein, among many others), have given the rest of humanity an even greater gift: science and the scientific method. No other discipline is as self-critical as science, and no other discipline is able to deliver the goods so consistently. If you don’t already love it, you’ll fall in love with it after watching this documentary. When the Voyager One Deep Space Probe (famous for carrying the golden record assembled by Carl Sagan and his team) flew by Saturn in the early 1980’s, it took the first set of detailed pictures of the ringed planet and its moons, and one moon clearly stood out: Titan. It then became obvious we had to go back. Roughly half the diameter of Earth, with its chemistry, thick…
SWTOR Galactic Starfighter New Player Guide
This guide explains the basic information needed to choose and fly a Galactic Starfighter ship. After reading, you should have a general idea of what to expect before you play, so you can learn to use the controls a little faster and easier. Even if you’ve been playing for awhile, you may still find some of the information useful. We’ll start with a quick overview of the ships so you’ll have an idea of which one you would like to try first. Galactic Starfighter Ships The Scout, Strike Fighter, Gunships and Bombers are the four classes of ships available. You’ll find three ships listed under each class except for the gunships and you’ll start the game with two ships unlocked. As you play and earn Fleet Requisitions, you can unlock the remaining ships or you can buy them with Cartel Coins. You can view the components of any unlocked ship…
Developer Blogs – RE: Kuat Drive Yards
Here is a new role playing Developer Blog from the BioWare crew. This one is journal entries were logged by Shroud SF-4 in advance of the mounting situation concerning Kuat Drive Yards, and he seems to be quite concerned which side will win the battle of Kuat. Makes me wonder if the Shroud is possibly working with the Star Cabal, as they are notoriously known for putting the republic and empire at each other. For those who may not know who the Star Cabal is, play the agent’s story 😉 The original blog post can be read here or you can read our copy paste below: Developer Blogs – RE: Kuat Drive Yards 01.17.2014 ### 21.7 // Kuat City // Observation of embedded Imperial asset K-33 continues. Recent marriage into the Kuat family further integrates K-33 into the planet’s political power structure. Appointment to Kuat Drive Yards oversight panel imminent. Analysis:…
Scheduled Maintenance – January 21st – Patch 2.5.2a
Just a heads up letting you know that BioWare will take down the servers on Tuesday for some scheduled maintenance. We will post the patch notes as soon as the become available, so be sure to check back. ServerDroid Maintenance: January 21st | 01.17.2014, 05:45 PM On January 21st, all game servers and swtor.com will be unavailable while we perform maintenance. Patch 2.5.2a will be implemented during this downtime. Details are as follows: Date: Tuesday January 21st, 2014 Duration: 2 hours Time: 3AM PST (11AM GMT) – 5AM PST (1PM GMT) Thank you for your patience as we maintain service for Star Wars™: The Old Republic™. Time Zone Start Time Scheduled End Time UTC Offset HST Tue Jan 21, 2014 01:00 AM Tue Jan 21, 2014 03:00 AM -10 hours AKST Tue Jan 21, 2014 02:00 AM Tue Jan 21, 2014 04:00 AM -9 hours PST Tue Jan 21, 2014…
BioWare Austin working on “several unannounced projects”
According to a job listing posted by BioWare Austin this week, we now know that the company is working on several new unannounced projects. This is pretty interesting news, since BioWare Austin was born to make SWTOR. Original the staff were brought together in 2006 explicitly to make that game, and since its release five years later they’ve done nothing else but run its operations, reconfigure its systems for free-to-play, and develop its expansions… Or so we thought… According the the new job listing, BioWare’s call for a Senior Software Engineer. The job listing says: BioWare Austin is home to the critically acclaimed and award winning Star Wars®: The Old Republic™ MMO. After the hugely successful addition of its Free 2 Play option and the highly praised launch of space PVP with the Galactic Starfighter expansion, the Austin team continues driving forward with SW:TOR and is also hard at work on…
TOR TV: Opening 24x Dogfighter’s Starfighter Packs
KranitokoGames made an interesting experiment. Basically he purchased a hypercrate of the new Starfighter Packs released in Patch 2.5.2. and filmed what goodies he found inside? When I clicked the video, I figured there was no way I would watch the whole 20 mins. I skipped him running around Tatooine, but thoroughly enjoyed watching him get giddy over the pack items. Seeing previews like we posted earlier today is nice, but it’s always nice to see exactly how many cool things (and lame things) you would get in a single hypercrate. Check it out below:
Videos with Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack goods
Both Dulfy and TheOldRepublic.Ru have been active posting videos of what we can expect to find in the upcoming Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack. The new pack includes both weapons, armor, speeders, emotes and what have we not. Check out below videos to get see what’s coming: Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack: Pets (Model GSS 5C Dustmaker & Model Blue Hutt Barge) Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack: Kalakar Strike Fighter Simulator Speeder Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack: Interstellar Regulator’s Assault Cannon Aurek Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack: Interstellar Regulator’s Blaster Aurek Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack: Interstellar Regulator’s Blaster Rifle Aurek Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack: Interstellar Regulator’s Sniper Rifle Aurek Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack: Fearless Retaliator Lightsaber Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack: Battleworn Triumvirate Armor Set (Male&Female) Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack: Badlands Explorer Armor Set (Male&Female) Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack: Frenzied Zealot Armor Set (Male&Female) Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack: Dramatic Extrovert’s Armor Set (Male&Female) Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack: Starfighter Battle Camera (Regen) Dogfighter’s Starfighter Pack: Emotes (Recline, Dejarik) & Mood Crying…
Star Wars Infographic Maps Where Colonies Were Found
There are hundreds of planets and galaxies in the Star Wars universe. This graph looks at the entire Star Wars galaxy and shows where different colonies lie in the land. Check it out and may the force be with you. Explore more infographics like this one on the web’s largest information design community – Visually.
Galactic Starfighter Spotlight: The Gunship Trailer
Servers have been up for a while now after today’s maintenance. Patch 2.5.2 has been applied, and Preferred Status Players can now log in and play Galactic Starfighter. BioWare have released a small promo video with the new patch, spotlighting The Gunship. Check it out below:
Patch Notes – 2.5.2
Patch notes are up. One thing to notice is Bounty Contract Week Returns – 1/14 through 1/21. No info on any rhakghoul event yet. 2.5.2 Patch Notes Highlights Preferred status players may now access and play Galactic Starfighter! New Ship Variants: Gunship – The Gunship role has been expanded, with 4 new ships available for Galactic Starfighter: New Comet Breaker and Dustmaker Gunships are flexible long-range fighters, able to equip heavy laser cannons and torpedoes in addition to their railgun. The existing Quarrel and Mangler Gunships are available for purchase in the Hangar using Fleet Requisition. Premium Strongarm and Demolisher Gunships can be found in Dogfighter’s packs, providing an alternate look for the Comet Breaker/Dustmaker. Bounty Contract Week will be returning on January 14th and will run through January 21st. Cartel Market A new Starfighter Pack, the Wingman’s Starfighter Pack, is now available on the Cartel Market. Cost: 160 Cartel…
More Patch 2.6 PTS video footage
If you haven’t had the time to play around the official swtor public test servers, we got you covered. Here is a bunch of videos showing the updates you can expect when game update 2.6 goes live. First off, here is an animate Crew Preview (Republic&Empire). Crew members now animate within the hangar preview window. I just wish they would match my customization. Empire Bombers Visual Upgrade Battle Record Preview Gaddock Teeg takes a look at the new Battle Record feature added to Galactic Starfighter on the Patch 2.6 PTS. Gaddock Teeg takes a look at the new Kuat Drive Yards Tactical Flashpoint and experiences the Anti-air gun and Ship Assembly scenarios.
The Old Republic Insider – January 2014
BioWare posted a new Insider Video, were the producers offer an inside look at exciting Galactic Starfighter updates, new Kuat Drive Yard Flashpoint missions, the next round of Cartel Market items and more coming to Star Wars: The Old Republic! It’s interesting to watch, and you are interested in learning more about Kuat Drive Yard Flashpoint, check out our update about it here. Notice Andrew Horwitz confirmed that Rakghoul Event is coming mid-january (go to 02:25 to see the event teaser).
Kuat Drive Yards Background story and gameplay
Lot’s of awesome new stuff is tested on the PTS right now. If you haven’t been playing around on the PTS your self yet, you are missing out. Here are a few of the new cool things you can experience. Here is a little story/cutscene background for those who havn’t experience the Kuat Drive Yards flashpoint on the PTS yet. The PTS is kinda buggy right now as you cannot get to that GS area in the fleet where the intro cutscene for the Kuat Drive Yards begins unless you do the flashpoint first via the group finder. This mess up the sequence a bit so it can be a bit confusing. Luckily Dulfy rearranged the cutscenes in order they are meant to be viewed. This little clip give you some intro on Kuat Drive Yards, the recently introduced GS exclusive companions, and a bit of connection between the ground…
Star Wars Characters, Cast, History & Trivia [Infographic]
Over the course of six movies, the role of Darth Vader was played by several people. In the original trilogy that launched in 1977, actor James Earl Jones was the voice for Vader while David Prowse played the regular scenes and Bob Anderson played Vader in fight scenes. Sebastian Shaw plays the role of the unmasked Vader and the deceased but redeemed Darth Vader in his original form, Anakin Skywalker. In the prequel series that launched in 1999, the role of Anakin Skywalker was played by Jake Lloyd and Frankie Ryan Manriquez to show the young Anakin growing up. Later in the same series, Vader is played by Hayden Christensen for episodes two and three. George Lucas created a villain so large it took seven actors to encompass Vader in all of his Dark Sided evilness. Lucas also wrote original characters for Luke and Han Solo that the audience never…
Game Update 2.6: Galactic Starfighter PTS Patch Notes – Last Updated: January 9th
The patch notes for the public test servers are up. It’s now possible to go help out beta testing game update 2.6. Here are the patch notes. Please be aware, that all content and features on the Public Test Server are not final and are subject to change. Highlights New Galactic Starfighter Ship Role: Bomber – The Bomber ship role has been added to Galactic Starfighter, with six new ships available for unlock/purchase! Bombers are tough support ships that drop mines and drones on the battlefield. Mines detonate when enemies get into proximity, inflicting damage or crippling debuffs to all nearby foes. Drones attack nearby enemies with a variety of weapons, while Repair Drones restore the hull of nearby allies. Bombers can also place Hyperspace Beacons which function as mobile respawn points for their allies. New Galactic Starfighter Game Mode: Team Deathmatch – Team Deathmatch is a new game mode which pits…
Swtor-mined: 2.5.2? PTS Patch | 1/9/2014
SWTOR-Miner has been playing around with PTS patch 2.5.2, and found alot of new interesting stuff. First off smugglers and agents seem to get some fairly hefty changes: Smugglers/Imperial Agents: Upper Hand/Tactical Advantage’s buff duration increased from 10 to 15 seconds. Shoot First/Hidden Strike had their energy cost decreased by 2, cooldown increased by 1.5 seconds, and had their damage increased by ~14%. Gunslinger/Sniper PvP 2pc/4pc Set Bonuses got swapped. XS Freighter Flyby/Orbital Strike is now a 2.5 second cast that costs 10 Energy with a 45 second cooldown. It’s coefficient also got reduced by ~62%. Also Troopers and Bounty hunters are getting some changes that haven’t’been announced yet. This is pretty much the end of the hybrid DPS: Troopers/Bounty Hunters: Pulse Generator/Prototype Flame Thrower talent now requires High Energy Cell/High Energy Gas Cylinder Here are the images found in the patch: Lot’s of new stuff for Galactic Starfighter is…
Developer Update: Bomber Class Starfighter
BioWare have posted a new developer update. This time, senior game designer on Star Wars: The Old Republic, Jason Attard tell us about the first new ship being added to the game with game update 2.6. — The Bomber! This ship makes alot of new strategies possible. Personally I expect to see: Scout rushes to a cap a point super quick, defended by a strike fighter. Once they successfully cap the point, and the strike fighter is in place to properly defend the point, the scout intentionally crashes so they can respawn as a bomber. Then they get the bomber on the point they control and spawn mines on it to further entrench that point. You can read the original post in its full here, or our copy pate below: Developer Update: Bomber Class Starfighter 01.09.2014 Greetings Starfighters! I am Jason Attard, a senior game designer on Star Wars™: The Old Republic™, and today I’m…
Bolstering and You: A letter from the Combat team
Tait Watson got the Combat team to write an in-depth explanation of the Bolster system. I’m raelly starting to like this bird. You can read the whole thing in it original here, or our copy paste below. If you ask me, bolster still a bit broken, its still way better then the recruit gear system they previously had, Personally I would like to see it in a place where people that did end game pve could use that gear for pvp and have it be perfectly viable. The fact that a set of 66 blue’s are better for pvp then full dreadguard is lame. Hey gang! I know a number of people have been waiting on a post about some more specifics on how bolster works and interacts with items and the regular stat system, so I thought I would try to bring a little light to what is one of…
Upcoming Bug Fixes
Eric and Tait have been busy today, updating the community about bug fixes we can expect in near future. I have consolidated a list of the forum posts for your viewing pleasure: Source TaitWatson Relaxed Vestments Chestwraps: Graphical Glitch (Picture) | 01.09.2014, 11:01 AM Hey everyone! I know that this issue has been a really big one for a lot of people, so I’m really happy to be able to let you all know that it has a fix coming next week in 2.5.2. The fix won’t just affect the Relaxed Vestment Chestwrap, however, and will resolve fur/skin color on many pieces of gear that have revealed skin. Tait Source EricMusco Don’t worry Bioware..I got this!! Things SWTOR WILL see in 2014!! | 01.09.2014, 10:56 AM Quote: Originally Posted by Tyrth 1.) A QOL adjustment, most likely around 2.7-2.8 allowing the ability to queue for both GSF AND WZ simultaneously… This…
New Weekly Community Live Stream!
Eric Musco is starting a weekly community live stream were he will be playing through the game. In the beginning only Eric will host the live stream, but in future, both Courtney and Tait will get on there as well. If possible, they will kidnap the devs to play also. Below is the announcements: Post #1 EricMusco New Weekly Community Live Stream! | 01.09.2014, 11:07 AM Hey everyone! I alluded to it during our GSF stream at the end of the year, but I wanted to let you know that we are going to start having a weekly community live stream! Early on, you will see me playing but in time we will definitely get both Courtney and Tait on there as well. We may even expand it to other folks in the studio but that remains to be seen. The stream will be more of a “let’s play” than…
Star Wars Movies Timeline [Infographic]
During the course of six movies, the role of Darth Vader was portrayed by numerous people. In the original trilogy that released in 1977, actor James Earl Jones was the voice for Vader while David Prowse played the regular scenes and Bob Anderson performed Vader in fight scenes. Sebastian Shaw plays the role of the unmasked Vader and the deceased but redeemed Darth Vader in his pioneer form, Anakin Skywalker. In the prequel series that released in 1999, the role of Anakin Skywalker was taken on by Jake Lloyd and Frankie Ryan Manriquez to show the young Anakin maturing. Later in the same series, Vader is enacted by Hayden Christensen for episodes two and three. George Lucas set up a villain so big it took seven actors to embrace Vader in all of his Dark Sided evilness. Explore more infographics like this one on the web’s largest information design community…
SWTOR Galactic Starfighter Shield, Sensor and Armor Components Comparisons Guide
The components separate the different Starfighter ships from each other and affect how the ships perform during battles. When you know which components are available for each ship, it’ll help you determine which Starfighter will suit your style of play the best. Most components have between three to five upgrade tiers and you can use the requisitions you earn from competing in battles to purchase the upgrades. This components comparisons guide focuses on the shields, sensors and armor available for the Galactic Starfighter ships. Knowing a little about these components will help you understand the strengths and weaknesses of each ship better. Don’t forget to check out constantly growing list of guides for Star Wars: The old republic Shield Components This section discusses the ships default components, the stats and the upgrades for the shields along with some basic information concerning the hull capacity for each Starfighter ships. Shields Default Stats…
Star Wars Trilogy Arcade – Longplay (Supermodel Emulator)
Who remembers “Star Wars Trilogy”? This brilliant Sega arcade game from 1998 was a huge hit with Star Wars fans everywhere. So here’s something you’ll really love: [ARCADE] Star Wars Trilogy Arcade – Longplay The uploader explains a bit more for us. Longplay of “Star Wars Trilogy” the popular and brilliant Sega arcade game / coin-op from 1998! Played via emulation on PC. PLEASE READ – * This isn’t actually MAME I’m playing this on, but in fact the new “Supermodel” emulator (“A Sega Model 3 Arcade Emulator”) which more accurately emulates the arcade game than MAME currently does. You can get it here – http://www.supermodel3.com/ * The game still has *graphical glitches*, most apparent on the Endor stage, the final death star run and sadly the lightsabre duels. However as you can see it’s still very playable! Sound quality isn’t brilliant, and not a recording/compression issue – it is as…
The Economics of Star Wars [Infographic]
This infographic shows how much it cost to make the Star Wars films and how much the films made in the box office. It also provides information for the revenue of Star Wars merchandise sales. Explore more infographics like this one on the web’s largest information design community – Visually.