Phyreblade

Thanks for joining COTP, Deadoss! And welcome back to SWTOR!

At least via social media, that is. Our guild was noted during SWTORISTA's latest Twitter contest, asking for guild screen-pictures. I went ahead and tossed one of our Founders' Week screenies up there and we were given thumbs-up from the @SWTOR_community page in recognition. Just keep in mind, we're nearby and still playing! Don't hesitate to jump into game during the next weeks, as we prepare for the September expansion. Cheers to all you guys! Miss you!

Well, I see the button. But pretty sure my first-time ever attempt to properly News-Report was a dismal failure. Or do we count it as a failed attempt at editing? I'm not sure … Either way, I tried creating an article, only to save a spiffy image-header a dozen times over, argh! There was no space for me to actually upload any sort of article, either. Lovely mess I made, sigh. Hey, at least the image is a cool one. But can you delete the absurd things and give me some pointers on how to effectively upload the proper info lol? Sorry for being a pain.

My baby:

No, Damis. I can't see any ability or button for me to add an article. I was under the impression I needed to finish preparing the article and pass it along to Throne, actually. I wasn't certain how to complete it properly, though, since I would like to include some of our screen-pictures, gifs, and I'm trying to complete a recruitment video to toss on there too. Only let me know if there's something I can do to properly upload the lot of it to the articles section, though. Or should I continue along finishing it up and then give it over to Throne?

What Questrox said. But I am finishing up an article. Should be ready in next day or so. Hugs.

Questrox, that is so YOU. Like cool, jagged ice, really. So here's my own Interceptor: Some other cool pictures too:

Not in the natural course of the game, no. I had the chance to "see" each one during the alpha and beta testing, so I had a good idea which one I wanted/liked the best before the game launched. They unlock pretty naturally as you level and leveling is pretty quick. If you're not sure which Javelin style is which, there are myriad videos that describe them over on YouTube. Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmyybZXymzo But I'm biased. Here's my own Interceptor:

Erhm, I dunno. Graphics look amazing but I'm not sure if I'm in 4k or not.

I'm having fun whenever I get the real-life time to play the game. I've tried every javelin except the Colossus, and still thoroughly enjoy the Interceptor the most. I think that's what's really cool about the game-play, that there's a "style" to each Javelin that will fit whatever you yourself enjoy the most. I mean, most people are flocking to the Storm (which is amazing fun to play BTW) but I still prefer the in-your-face speed of the Interceptor even more. Basically, it's a to-each-his-own system and it's fun. For those who're afraid of flying .. don't be. They've so improved the flight controls since the original alpha play, that it's not even funny. I've seen people on Twitter and Facebook complain that you can't zoom or fly around FOREVER, that eventually you have to "cooldown" your Javelin. But I like it rather. Down on the ground, you get some cool crafting mats gathering options that you'd likely miss if you just kept flying by overhead. Fought my first Titan today. THAT was outstanding fun, even if I did die about a dozen times. The devs are beyond good at communicating. I think Michael Gamble is still answering questions pretty much personally on Twitter every day lol. They've patched the game a couple of times, including the public launch day, just to repair some of the more pernicious bugs. My load times are so much better since the patch, at least. And I've not had a single sound-loss since the second patch. All in all, I like it a lot. Here's some video on my Twitter, showing the Interceptor special attack in action:

Early release revealed some issues with the game, including some laggy load screens and some bugs that made the game crash sometimes. Bioware has been actively engaged on Twitter addressing the angst from the players as it was happening. They're willingness to respond quickly to comments and critique has been a refreshing difference. But they've just released the patch notes for the official launch day of Feb 22, outlining what changes they'll be making for the full release of the game so that hopefully everyone will finally be able to play without real problem or issue: Day 1 Patch Notes And on another note, I've finally decided on the paint scheme for my Interceptor. Which I think looks amazing-awesome:

I discussed the game with the community back when the game was announced. We simply need to move from off the Rader List now, hehe.

For me, there's the fact I played earlier during the "alpha we're not supposed to mention" so I can see where there's been some improvements. Some of my thoughts then, based on my own experience: (1) The demo places you into a level 10 toon. The alpha allowed us to explore the game using a brand-new character, rather, and during that play-time I enjoyed a somewhat more extensive tutorial. So this particular time I was better able to navigate the game, even without a real tutorial this time around. I'm excited to think how much better I'd be playing if I had leveled a toon all the way from 1-10 rather. (2) There have been massive improvements to the flying routine on a PC. Erudius can tell you, during the alpha I was flying into walls and caves like mad! Both of us noted the problem during that testing experience, and it seems the developers took note. Because the controls dont seem so much sensitive now. It will still take some time practice-flying to really get the hang of it. And as soon as you get it down-pat, they toss you into a watery tunnel and you have to figure out how to swim too (I think it's going to be better if you actually DIVE rather than fall into the pools, mind you) (3) The demo's also allowed me to FINALLY see more than the initial Javelin they give you. I've been told over and over the Ranger is the most versatile of the classes but even now during the demo I just didnt like it. The Ranger felt clunky to me, even though I was flying better this time around. But then I got myself into an Interceptor and I was zipping around like a little mosquito-thing, complete with flashing blades. And it was suddenly FUN as heck! It was just so FAST! Interceptors are definitely designed to get in fast, melee-attack like wildfire, then get right back out before the enemies can even blink from the shock. (4) Combat can be hectic, and it's definitely NOT designed to be completed solo. Of course, I went in there on normal-mode and not easy. But I'm grateful as heck I didnt try anything harder! There were tons of enemies, including one big boss-battle, and the number of times I was left in an inert Javelin made me want to weep (it was better when I upgraded to an Interceptor; I just darted away before I lost all my health). But the battlefields are challenging, with loads of rocks and hills and trees and then down into tunnels and through water and oh-crap-how-did-I-even-get-here moments. I think leveling from the start so that these battles aren't coming at you from a "I'm not sure what I'm really doing, here" perspective will make them even more fun. (5) I had the chance to play around with the Forge, too. Or in other words, "making my Javelin look real pretty". There are tons of options to help personalize your Javelin, everything from adding varied abilities, defensives, and even whether to toss a grenade or launch a missile, etc. All the way to what color and metal and cloth and shape each piece you're wearing … it's extensive enough to keep me busy as heck for a solid half hour of mixing-matching textures and the like. That's me so far.

Some of the gameplay footage is being released, even before the demo. And so far, according to the testers releasing their videos, the consensus is really positive. Anthem: IS IT GOOD? - Loot, Endgame, Story, Classes, Flight, & More! Anthem - WHAT JAVELIN SHOULD YOU PICK? | All Javelin Playstyles, Strengths and Weaknesses Anthem - 10 Things You ABSOLUTELY Need To Know! 123 Rapid Fire Questions About Anthem ANTHEM as a BioWare Fan, Part 1 - Playing Solo