I Don't Have a Command Crew for the Shuttle: When Guildies Split

We don't have much of a guild anymore.

Phyona and I started a guild early on in our WoW days which we eventually built into a proficient raiding group. More than that, as it often happens, we made a lot of close friends. We spent so many highly entertaining hours together, it was a foregone conclusion that we would stay in touch regardless of the gaming platform.

Shortly after becoming one of the first few guilds on our server to down Nefarian, we collectively burnt out of raiding. Just about everybody in our 10-person raid core canceled his or her subscription, saying that we would try SWTOR when it came out. Over the next 11 months or so, we stayed in touch via Skype. Brief trials of other games didn't stick, but SWTOR still loomed in the distance.

How exciting it was, then, when we had nearly the whole crew on for the Old Republic's launch. Guild chat was lively, we were running flashpoints, and it felt great.

But gradually, the number of guildies online started to dwindle. Then, Nazbur and Berugrim announced they had canceled their SWTOR subscriptions. Nazbur in particular had been such a huge part of our guild, usually functioning as our raid leader. I had spent countless hours formulating strategies with him in WoW, and I count him as one of my best friends.

Naz and 'Grim are what you might call "powergamers." They like to put in a lot of hours, get loot, and gogogo. Plus, they don't particularly care about the Star Wars license. I probably should have seen their cancellations coming, considering that in SWTOR you can't top the charts (there are none) and the focus is on the journey rather than pure results. They were always saying how they were spamming spacebar to continue their "cleave."

Since then, other guildies have started experimenting with Empire alts. We've all become spread out in level, so flashpoints aren't as rewarding an endeavor as they once were. When I play, the game feels like Knights of the Old Republic 3, but with a bunch of juvenile people trolling a general chat channel. Don't get me wrong, I am still having a blast...

But Phyona, Dunquinn, and I need to figure something out. It might be time to migrate over to another guild. Though, after four years with our current guild, it's easier said than done.

Look What Phyona Got Me!

 

It's Max Rebo!

And since I'm a huge Star Wars nerd who also loves elephants, I happen to know Max Rebo's real name:

Siiruulian Phantele. Which sounds an awful lot like Cerulean Elephant. I see what you did there, Lucas...

You Just Can't Bear to Let a Gorgeous Guy Like Me Out of Your Sight

To which Phyona, my significant other, would likely respond, "I don't know where you get your delusions laser brain."

I suppose there's a Leia (or a Chewie) for every Han and she's mine.

Without getting all mushy on you, Phy is a huge part of my life and concurrently my gaming. It took 10 levels for my Scoundrel to meet Phyona the Jedi Guardian, but they've been inseparable ever since. Well, almost...

Anybody with a gaming buddy knows about the struggles involved in playing an MMO together. Such a large percentage of content is based on level that it can be difficult to find content to do together while leveling. Inevitably, somebody has a day off or doesn't feel like playing or has to give their wookiee a bath or whatever, and vroom, one player is off like a ship that made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs. The gulf that can result from just one or two sessions of solo adventuring can tear two toons apart!

With respect to SWTOR in particular, one of the adverse side-effects of having such excellent story content and dialogue is that going back to repeat content isn't fun for either party. One person gets stuck waiting, waiting, waiting. The other can't enjoy the content to the fullest knowing their partner is itching to slice through some rakghouls. Not that I miss WoW's lack of compelling quests, but at least it made adventuring together a bit more accessible. You were in for the miserable, boring grind together, I guess.

Perhaps the easiest way to combat this is by creating alts, i.e. you have one character that you only play with your partner. But without fail, you get attached to that character, right? That's the one you have to play.

I find it curious that a game that is at its most fun a multiplayer endeavor often separates you from your friends, at least until level cap. And this isn't like WoW where the whole point was to play with your friends at cap. I absolutely love running missions with Phy and watching the dynamic between our characters unfold.

Then again, Phyona says that my unenlightened Smuggler only slows her galaxy-saving Jedi down, so what do I know?

What do you guys think? Do you have a leveling partner or are you in this for just one person? Prefer grouping with strangers? Or does a guild fill this void as it often does?

They Would Be Crazy to Follow Us, Wouldn't They? Kiting in SWTOR

Nazbur (my close friend and longtime MMO buddy), Dunquinn (Phyona's super-cool mom), and I were cruising through our first Flashpoint, the Esseles, when we hit a bit of a snag. It was that bonus droid boss. You know, the one that you have to activate by hitting those two levers at the same time? Anyways, Droid Boss executed some nasty AOE-lightning thing (?) and Nazbur, his little droid companion, and Dunquinn all perished in a matter of seconds. (More to come on these two; they're excellent players.)

I had been throwing out some spot heals and occasional damage from cover, so now I was left alone with a lightning-infused droid meanie.

In a true stroke of martial genius inspired by Monty Python and O.J. Simpson, I ran away.

And that's when I noticed an interesting side-effect of SWTOR's lack of an auto-attack.

I could still do significant damage. Reflexes had kicked in and I was kiting the boss in a looping figure-eight around the room. Through years of hunter-pvp-induced muscle memory (and that alone, I'm no pro), I was jump-turn-firing every 1.5 seconds and managing to keep up a steady stream of damage. After a prolonged chase, the boss collapsed into a pile of scrap metal.

For those who don't know or aren't sure, kiting consists of attaching fabric to a firm frame and allowing wind to "fly" said kite while it is tethered to you via a long piece of string.

In MMO terms, kiting consists of dealing damage while keeping an opponent at a safe, comfortable distance. Generally,  the kiter will periodically snare or slow an opponent while maintaining dps on the run. One of the best methods for achieving this is jump-turning. As long as you are using the mouse to move rather than your W key, you can

1. Run away.
2. Jump.
3. Use your mouse to turn 180 degrees in the air.
4. Now that you are facing your target, fire off an ability using a hotkey.
5. Turn back 180 degrees before you hit the ground.
6. Continue to run away.

This definitely takes some practice, but once you get used to it, it will become second nature. And you'll feel like a total bad-ass.

As a smuggler in particular, you are gifted with so many instant casts that can keep up decent damage even if you are melee/scrapper specced or a cover-reliant Gunslinger. Keeping a vital shot up, flinging grenades, and filling in with blaster fire will keep their HP dropping, while abilities like Dirty Kick and Tendon Blast give you the separation you need. An important part of kiting is keeping yourself from getting slowed, so be sure to use Escape if you need to.

 In WoW, classes are dependent on either auto-attacks and their auxiliary effects or hard casts. For instance, as much as ~60% of a Rogue's damage came from auto-swings and poisons and an Arcane Mage needed to stand still for 2+ seconds to cast an Arcane Blast, their main attack.

In SWTOR, a class with ranged capabilities can decimate an opponent or mob or whatever while kiting. Keep that in mind when you're out and about, Smugglegoods! May the Force be with you, I guess...