Star Wars The Old Republic MMO Beginners Guide

Star Wars fans the day we have been waiting years for is finally here! Today Star Wars the Old Republic is available for everyone to live out their dreams to be a Jedi Knight saving the Republic (or a Sith Warrior trying to destroy it!)

Now I must confess. As much as I love gaming I had never played an MMO prior to SW TOR coming out. I seriously considered jumping into the genre back when Star Wars Galaxies was released, but decided against it after some initially bad reviews. So I haven't the faintest clue how to play one. I've played plenty of RPG's and could do the questing stuff on my own, but learned quickly that you really do need to party up with others. I guess that's why the second M in MMO is so important huh? Anyway, I needed to learn the basics of how these games worked so I turned to my brother. Over the years he has put a lot of time into playing MMO's. He was kind enough to write up a guide to get me started in playing. I liked it so much that I decided to add it here to help others out. As time goes one we plan on updating it with terms specific to TOR. We will also add more content to it the further along in the game we get. So check it out and as always let us know what you think at playerversuspodcast@gmail.com

May the force be with you!
-GK (@geekaay10)

Beginner's Guide to MMO's:

TERMS:
Mob - Enemy you're fighting
Zone - The area you are in. Not sure how TOR works, but in FFXI you had different areas connected to each other and you just ran to where they connected and it'd load up another board. Mobs cannot cross zones!
Zoning - Crossing over to another zone, obviously, used to get rid of Mobs that are chasing you. Also people will type this if youre chatting with them so you know there will be a break in the conversation while the new board loads
Aggro - Having a pissed off enemy locked onto you or your party. Some mobs will aggro just by running near them and they will chase you, as long as you don't engage them then any other player can come in and kill them. If any member of your party attacks a mob then it aggros onto THE WHOLE PARTY. That means if the guy who initially attacked him dies, or zones the mob will switch targets until all party members are dead or have zoned. In battle aggro is very important, and I'll talk more about it later.
Emotes - stupid little actions a character can do...i.e, /smile, /bow, /clap... it's polite sometimes to bow to someone if they helped you out or did you a favor, but basically i ignored most emotes, but they're there so if you see the word you know what they are
Drop - same thing as Loot, but you'll hear talk of the drop rate of items, etc... some drops will be very rare, and fetch high dollar
Chain - sometimes enemies are chained together, meaning you run by one enemy that aggros and then run by another and then you've got a train of enemies behind you, it's called chaining and some people will do it, mostly higher level characters looking for
drops, typically pulled off by a mage or someone with an AOE (area of attack) spell/move that can kill all chained enemies with one hit.
Auction House (AH) - Place where items, weapons, armor, etc, are bought and sold by players. Market dictates price. Each mmo tackles the AH differently so we'll have to see how it shakes out in TOR.
Pull/Pulling - In a party there will be someone designated to pull a mob, usually someone quick and with a ranged attack (think ranger or archer). More on this later.
Provoke - generally a special move that once used will focus the mobs attention on that character. Move has a cool down rate!
Buffs - Spells like Protect and Shield, spells to increase magic defense, spells increase damage, etc... These are cast by mages and target individuals or are AOE. You'll see someone saying "Gather close for buffs", which means get near that character and he will cast a spell to temporarily increase your stats.
Camp - has several meanings. One is where your party decides to sit and fight, having the puller go out and draw an enemy to your position (camp). Camping means to sit near where an enemy spawns and "camp" that mob. Meaning its your intention to fight that mob. Etiquette generally dictates only one party camps a spawn, people will get pissed if you sit down and camp there shit. Sometimes its unavoidable, so fuck them if they bitch.

CLASSES: I'm going to use Final Fantasy type characters to describe, hopefully it'll make sense and you can see parallels in TOR

Tank: (Fighter)
Its the tanks job to be the one who takes the most damage from a mob. Affectionately called a meat-bag, or meat-shield. These characters will have heavy armor, wield strongest weapons, and will usually have a special move that will provoke the mob. Their job is to just beat on the mob while getting beat on themselves. The healer will target the tank and keep an eye on his health, healing him when he is low. If any other party member pulls aggro then it's the tanks job to get it back ASAP, unless its the 2nd damage dealer and the tank is in severe need of healing. The tank should be the first to die, otherwise the party is not working together correctly.
2nd Damage Dealer: (Monk, Ninja)
Similar to the tank, uses generally same types of weapons and armor, should have a provoke spell as well. Fights face to face with the mob, has a few different special moves than the tank. Shouldn't really steal aggro from the tank if he can help it, because the healer is generally focused on the tank but this isnt a strict rule, healers will also look to them for healing so gaining aggro from the mob isnt too big of a deal. If the tank is about to die then it's thier job to steal and keep aggro until tank gets healed, at which point the tank will regain aggro through provoke. Aggro is gained by the amount of damage given by a party member in relation to the damage being done by the others. Highest percentage of damage gains the mob's aggro so its not uncommon for the mob to attack the 2nd damage dealer.
Thief:
Fights enemy from the back, usually has a special move that will gain a bonus for back attacks/sneak attacks. These characters usually have an increased drop rate associate with them so they are useful if your party is trying to get drops off mobs. Generally weak, they dont steal aggro. Main use is to increase drop rates.
Healer: (White Mage)
Heals characters. Buffs characters. Mainly focuses on tanks and damage dealers, shouldn't really have to heal mages or other classes, but will if need be. Poor fighters, badly armorer, should never really fight. Casting a lot of healing spells WILL DRAW AGGRO, so the tank should be aware that if the healer is casting a lot of healing spells one after the other the mob may rush him.
Debilitator: (Red Mage)
Will start off casting debilitating spells or move against the enemy to weaken it. Defense down, magic down, slow, those type of spells. After casting they will start attacking, being mindful of keeping debilitating spells always on the mob. Usually has rudimentary healing spells as well and will act as a 2nd healer in the party.
Range Attacker: (Archer, Ranger)
Usually tasked with pulling a mob. Fights from a distance, does moderate damage. Usually has some special moves than can debilitate mobs in their own way, or can scout out and see mobs farther away than other characters.
Black Mage:
Very weak attacker, poor armor. Stands from afar and casts offensive spells. CAN EASILY DRAW AGGRO! A damage dealing mage will have spells that hit harder than any other character and will draw aggro if character isn't played right. The BLM will cast a damage dealing spell after the tank beats on the mob a few times, ensuring the tank has aggro and the BLM wont steal it. The BLM then will wait a few seconds before casting again, otherwise two damage spells that close together will draw aggro every time. May have some rudimentary debilitating or healing spells. Usually a must have for parties.


Basic Partying

Form up a party, find a camp. Designate healer, 2nd healer, etc... Sometimes you'll have like two red mage type characters who will have to share healing duty if you cant find a white mage. You camp away from spawn points so some mob wont spawn on top of you while you're in battle. Buffs are given out by mages prior to pulling enemies. So a party will find a spot away from spawn points and the puller will then run out and pull an enemy and bring it back to camp and the battle begins. The puller needs to be careful not to bring back anything too strong, or too many enemies. If a puller accidentally gets aggro from too many, or too strong of enemies he'll shout that he's zoning and the party will just wait. As long as the puller doesn't actually engage the mob then there is not aggro on the party, if he hits it then the mob will target other members if the puller zones. Tank deals damage along with any other heavy damage dealers, debilitating spells are cast to speed up the damage being done. Fight until done, then rest to regain health and magic (tanks and magic users, everyone else shouldn't have taken damage). Puller should run out and scout for next mob to pull, when party says OK he pulls and fight starts again.

Advanced Partying

Gaining a level should take about an hour or so per level. If you're not getting a level per hour then you may be fighting too easy of mobs. As you level up, the time it takes per level can and will increase. There is also something called a CHAIN ATTACK. Not sure if TOR does this but I've seen it in a few other MMOs. Basically what it is is that there is a order of when different characters will unleash their special move and if timed correctly, and in the right order, it will result in a chain attack that does significantly more damage. As you get into advanced parties these chains will speed along the fight resulting in higher exp per hour. Usually a signal will be given and it's your responsibility to know who you should be following in the order and how long to wait before unleashing your special move. Chains are started with a tank and end with a mage.

Fighter>>>Monk>>>Thief>>>Ranger>>>Mage = Chain
Monk>>>Ninja>>>Thief>>>Red Mage>>>Mage = Chain

There are different chain setups depending on who's in your party. Those are general examples of the set ups. Info about chains will be found online and it's a good idea to figure out where you fit in the order and have it written down somewhere handy. Otherwise just ask a party member and they'll tell you what to do and when.

There will be occasions where you need to get a certain drop from a mob for a quest or to advance the story line. These drops sometimes don't automatically drop and you'll have to fight with your party until EACH MEMBER GETS ONE. Don't be the dick who gets theirs and leaves. Your name will be remembered by people, you don't want that rep.

Usually with drops when you're fighting there's two ways to divide up the loot. First will be you can "cast dice" or something similar which when you chose that it will randomly assign you a number and the highest number takes that piece of loot. The second, and usually the most preferred, is random chance. If you do nothing while in the party the loot after a few minutes will randomly go to a party member as long as their inventory isn't full. Someone who's inventory is full and randomly gets the loot will drop the loot, so if your inventory is full then click "Pass" on the loot and it'll go to someone else. It will piss people off if you don't.

Commands

Usually started with "/"

/shout - shouts out to everyone in your zone
/s or /say - says out loud to everyone in your general vicinity
/t or /tell (followed by someone's name) - private talk to a certain person
/p or /party - private talk visible to party members only

-theunabroner

Episode 12 Video Game Award Nominees

Hello everyone!
Glad you made it! In this weeks episode we go over our categories for our Video Game Awards show. I whip out some porn on the PS3 and GK talks about playing with his sword; Skyward Sword. This is a short and sweet episode but size doesn't matter... right? Right? So have a listen and as always hit us up and let us know what you think. playerverususpodcast@gmail.com


Episode12 Video Game Awards Nominees

-Papa (@phpvp)

Episode 11 Video Game Movies The Good The Bad and The Ugly

Hey everyone!
In this weeks episode we talk about the video game movies we love and the ones we love to hate. From Super Mario Bros to Prince of Persia. We also discuss the games that should be movies, the ones that shouldn't and the ones they're making. We talk gaming news and what we're playing. Plus...Papa is back!!! So sit back, relax, put on Street Fighter The Movie and click the link below. It's gonna be awesome. Uwe Boll awesome!

Episode 11

-Maverick (@MaverickTenSays)

Episode 10 Just the Two of Us!

Now this is the story all about how my life got flipped, turned upside down...welcome back everybody to the PlayerVsPodcast! This week's episode is a special episode for us for a number of reasons. First off we are a man down. That's right all you Papa Report lovers out there. The man himself, PH, couldn't be with us this week. He is busy celebrating the birth of his new baby girl Keira Grace! Congratulations Papa and congrats to the rest of the Hotel family! The other reason this a special episode for us is because it's episode 10! That's huge for us and we have you guys to thank for that! We ended up keeping this episode short and sweet for you guys this week. Maverick and I hit on some random topics. You guys will just have to listen to find out what they are. We also open and close the show with some tracks from hardcore gamer Treezy504. Check them out and go through his youtube page to download his new album for free!! So check it all out and let us know what you think: playerversuspodcast@gmail.com And don't worry, your Papa will be back next week!

Episode 10 Just the Two of Us

-GK (@geekaay10)

Episode 9 Skyrim Vs MW3

Welcome everybody to the epic showdown this week. In one corner, representing rpg lovers the world over is the heavy hitting Skyrim. And in the other corner, a fps that only gets better with age, the juggernaut that is MW3! In the topic of the day GK gives his Skyrim impressions while Papa Hotel tells us why he is loving the lastest monster from Activision. Papa Hotel gives you the lastest in gaming news and Maverick has another PlayerVsPodcast Pick for you. So download the latest episode and give it a listen. It goes great with either Skyrim or MW3. Trust us!

Episode 9 Skyrim Vs MW3

-GK (@geekaay10)

Episode 8 Call of Duty: Modern Podcast

Hey everyone! In episode 8 we answer the Call of Duty and jump into the world of Multiplayer Madness. We go over our favorite past Call of Duty topics and give some background into how the Call of Duty franchise changed gaming for us in both good and bad ways. GK tells you why he is going to take a pass on MW3. While Papa tells you why he can't wait for it. Papa and Maverick also cover Uncharted 3 without spoiling anything. As always the Papa Report will keep you informed and entertained. And of course The Mail Bag is emptied with some great questions from you guys. So make your loadout, choose your perks and click the link below. Thanks for listening!!

Call of Duty: Modern Podcast

-Papa (@phpvp)

Episode 7 Uncharted: Drake's Podcast

Welcome treasure hunters, relic finders, and all around Chloe lovers. In episode 7 we get down with the Uncharted series. We talk about our favorite moments from the first two installments in the Naughty Dog games and give our thoughts and hopes on Uncharted 3: Drakes Deception. Papa has the news from the gaming and gadget world. We also talk about some of our most watched tv series and our all time favorite shows in the listener mail section. Oh and Papa adds a new phrase to the urban dictionary. So join us in getting Naughty and click the link below.

Uncharted: Drake's Podcast

-Maverick (@MaverickTenSays)

It's the Great Horror Podcast, Charlie Brown!

Hello again everybody! We are back and better than ever this week. In this week's episode we get you ready for Halloween with some talk about our favorite "make you crap your pants moments" in video games. Our Batman Expert GK gives his Batman Arkham City impressions. Papa has some news stories that will take you from the Battlefield beta stats to Mariah Carey's twins...no really her twins. We introduce our new segment PvP Picks and we get some great topics to discuss from listener mail. So grab your machete and your hockey mask and see if we can hack it. Click the Episode 6 link below and enjoy!

Episode 6

-Papa (@phpvp)

BATMAN!

In Episode 5 we all jump into the Batmobile and zip over to Arkham City to see what's going on. We talk about our favorite Batman movies, our favorite BatTech and discuss all things Batman to get you ready for this weeks release of Arkham City. Papa brings you the news in the video game world and a little something extra. Listen as Maverick and GK get into it over which movie is better. Sit back and enjoy! As always thanks for listening!


Episode 5 BATMAN!


-Papa (@phpvp)

Episode 4 Mobile Gaming

Hey everyone! This is Papa. In episode 4 we get into some mobile gaming, RAGE impressions, as always listener mail and we have a few Uncharted 3 beta codes to throw your way. Also we are looking for listener submissions for the blog! If you have something to say and want to be a part of the team here we want to hear it and even post it! Send your submissions to playerversuspodcast@gmail.com. Thanks for the continued support. Sit back, relax and get ready for an ear-gasm because here we come. Yeah you read that correctly. Have fun and enjoy.

Episode 4 Mobile Gaming

-Papa (@phpvp)

Episode 3 Battlefield 3 Beta!

Hi again everybody! Today is another Sunday which means we have another episode of the PvP for you! In this week's episode we talk about the big game that everyone is talking about.  Yep you guessed it (or just read the title of the blog) Battlefield 3. Over the last few days Maverick, Papa Hotel and I have been putting some time into the Battlefield 3 Beta.  We didn't just put some time in on it on 1 console though.  No we here at PlayerVsPodcast like to be thorough with our games.  That's why we tested it on all 3 systems: PS3, Xbox 360, and the PC.  And we ran it on all three at the same time!! How's that for thorough? Curious what are thoughts are on it? Then you need to download the podcast and listen!

Along with the Battlefield 3 Beta impressions we also answered some listener questions.  You guys have been sending us some great ones, so please keep it up! We gave away the sweet Gears of War 3 poster that we talked about last week.  If you want to know who won then you're gonna have to listen!  As always though we have another cool give away for our listeners.  This time we need your help with something.  Best suggestion wins!

So please check it out.  Comment on it.  Send us questions.  We are getting great feedback from you guys so keep it up and thanks for listening!

Episode 3 Battlefield 3 Beta and Listener Mail


-GK (@geekaay10)

Episode 2

Hey guys. We have a big show for you guys today. The future of First Person Shooters, gaming news, listener questions and a giveaway! Do First Person Shooters deserve to dominate the market or are they the best this gen has to offer? We discuss that and we discuss how Papa and Mav juggle a family life and hardcore gaming. Check it out, see what you think and leave us your feedback. We appreciate the support and can't wait to see what you think.

Episode 2


-GK (@geekaay10)

Episode 1

No not THAT Episode 1.  This is the first official episode of the PlayerVsPodcast.  In the episode we discuss everything from the Star Wars blu ray release to motion controlled gaming.  We answer a few questions sent in by you guys. We even have something pretty cool to give away. So listen for your chance to win it.  When you're finished please let us know what you thought.  Liked the show? Hated the show? Think you can own Papa Hotel in COD? Let us know at playerversuspodcast@gmail.com

Episode 1


-GK (@geekaay10)

Welcome to the PlayerVsPodcast BLOG

Hey everyyone! We're so excited that you came by to check us out. I'm Maverick and I'm just one of the 3 gentlemen involved in the PlayerVsPodcast. PVP is our weekly video game podcast that you can listen to directly from this web page or download on iTunes. Episode 1 will go live on September 18th and we have so much to talk about. PapaHotel is our multiplayer maniac and our news reporter. He has a lot of stuff to get into with you guys. GK, our RPG guru, is ready to lay waste to motion controls in this weeks Topic of the Day. Plus we have a few gaming items here to give away to you guys. AND so much more! If you'd like to ask us a question or tell us your recent gaming accomplishment, that we will read on air, you can email us at playerversuspodcast@gmail.com
and check out my YouTube gaming page at http://www.youtube.com/user/01MaverickTen10
Thanks for all the support and remember to check back to this site for contests, weekly blogs and podcast updates. And don't forget to listen to Episode 1 on September 18th....now go play something!


-Maverick (@MaverickTenSays)