Publish 9 Notes for 29 June 04

>> Publish 9 

Jedi Revamp Part 1
Publish 9 brings us The Secrets of the Force. In The Secrets of the Force, existing Jedi may now re-allocate their skill points based on the type of Jedi they would like to create. When you log on, you will see a window pop up that will prompt you to convert your Jedi to the new Jedi skill system.

In the new Jedi skill system, you may remain PvE (with the exception of the occasional Bounty Hunters wanting to prove themselves) or may choose to go on to the new PvP Force Ranking System (FRS). Jedi must choose their path to Force mastery by following the path of light or turn to the dark side. The FRS is a PvP mechanic that allows a Jedi to advance beyond the rank of Knight. It consists of two skills trees, one for Light and one for Dark. Each skill represents a Force Rank. Experience to attain these Force Rank skills is gained and lost through PvP actions. Light Jedi will vote on advancement and Dark Jedi will fight for advancement. To advance, the Light Jedi and Dark Jedi have gathered into groups and have set up their own secret Enclaves, hidden away from the Empire, allowing only a set number of players to advance into the various Force ranks. Only a set number of players may attain a given rank within each Enclave. Therefore, in order for one to advance, another must be demoted. Jedi who enter the FRS are automatically set as always overt for their aligned faction (Rebel for Light and Imperial for Dark). As long as they stay within the FRS, they can not go covert or resign/change factions.

Please visit our Jedi Conversion Guide for further details: [Jedi Conversion Guide]

Hero of Tatooine
Due to high player demand, we have revamped and reintroduced the famed 'Hero of Tatooine' quest. The quest utilizes brand new static and dynamic content. Find the hero and see if you have what it takes to acquire the Marks of Altruism, Intellect, Courage, and Honor. For players who previously completed the quest, you will retain your badges and may complete the quests from where you left off or from the beginning. To start the quest, the player must first seek out and speak with the Hermit of Tatooine.

Loot Kits
Loot kits are a new mini-game for collectors. Players can collect a new type of loot from NPC's and combine them to make better items. Players can start by visiting Junk Dealers that are located in Combat Guild Halls and request a "loot kit". These loot kits are containers that will be used to collect miscellaneous items dropped from NPC's and can be turned into a new reward for players to keep or sell back to the Junk Dealer.

Update Notes List Items
Art
 * Fixed some occasional issues with per-pixel lighting where the light would appear to be coming from the wrong direction
 * Fixed Mandalorian helmet so that it is wearable by Rodians
 * Fixed a problem with Squill death animations causing them to flip over after death
 * Fixed a problem with Grand Healer's robe causing hole in Mon Calamari neck
 * Fixed a problem causing too much transparency on Wookiee skirt fur
 * Removed a leak in the particle emitters that has caused some clients problems, whereby particles would build up and lower frame rate while the particle system was alive. (e.g. flamethrower effect)
 * Wookiee Armor now correctly displays the base fur in uncovered areas
 * Fixed a potential graphical glitch with Corellian corvette walls related to some new video drivers
 * Sun no longer produces glare inside structures
 * Fixed water animations on Radeon 8500-class cards

Badges
 * Character badges are now located on the "personal" tab of the character sheet in the middle box instead of the examine window
 * The Character Sheet now displays a list of badges earned by the player and also badges not yet won

Bazaar / Vendor
 * Made improvements to the commodities server response time
 * Fixed problem that could cause invalid bids take money from your account
 * Fixed a problem where you receive an email saying you've been outbid even if you bid on an auction in which you are already the highest bidder
 * Improved auto retrieval code for vendors
 * Players will now be notified when placing an auction bid that is invalid because there is a another bid with a higher value
 * Fixed a problem with MyBids not updating correctly
 * Fixed an issue where vendor registration would not correctly re-register until the server restarted
 * The detail description should now appear on all new items being put on the Commodities Market.

Client Stability Enhancements
 * Fixed two memory leaks including one that would occur each time a rider dismounts from a mount or vehicle without storing it

Combat
 * Improved combat visuals and head tracking in combat. Head tracking for melee combat is now disabled. This addresses problems with head tracking in many of the complex melee combat animations. Notice that the neck no longer snaps around in an unnatural way when executing the move.
 * Adjusted several combat special moves to no longer bypass Toughness defenses
 * Healing commands are now visible in the combat queue.
 * Added /showpvp [target] to get the rating of other players. This is in preparation for leader boards.

Crafting
 * Weapon/Droid Crafting tools have been fixed and will not work with every single draft schematic in the game. Items crafted using the Generic Crafting Tool that are not handled by any other specific crafting tool such as a can still be crafted and experimented on with a Weapon/Droid Crafting tool.
 * Made the "misc" crafting type display correctly when selecting a schematic
 * Lightsabers can no longer be crafted with a Weapon/Droid Crafting tool and now require the Lightsaber Crafting tool
 * Lightsabers can now be experimented on when using a Lightsaber tool next to a Weapon/Droid Crafting Station

GCW
 * Fixed several fire rate problems with manual turrets.

Grouping
 * Fixed problem with the group UI not correctly displaying the group member name under certain situations

GUI / Keyboard
 * Removed 5 loading checkboxes from initial loading screen
 * FPS display now correctly goes up to 30 fps (not 29)
 * Fixed problem with the GUI not updating XP totals when XP is gained or lost
 * Added options in the chat options menu to filter out chat from /afk players
 * Jedi will no longer have to reset their special Force UI's every time they zone or log
 * Toolbar now adds default commands for brand new characters.
 * Command Queue now displays some non-combat commands as appropriate.
 * Attribute Mod window can now shrink vertically to only one row.
 * Items that are reduced to 0 hitpoints, show up as red in your inventory (unless it is equipped in which case it still shows up as an equipped item)
 * Fixed several typos in Command Browser Window.
 * Fixed a typo in the master BE skills window tooltip description
 * Datapad no longer continually offers you help
 * Removed Crash bug involving giving the /alarmremove command an invalid index
 * Macro Editing Window - Removed crash bug, improved UI consistency

Holocron / Knowledge Base
 * Added Holocron entries for the Force Rankings under "Professions"
 * Fixed several typos in the several sections of the Holocron.

Inventory
 * Equipping/un-equipping/transferring items now goes through the Command Queue. Equipping armor and weapons also has a delay associated with it. This is to prevent combat system exploits that were occurring.
 * Traps, Grenades and Heavy Weapons in nested containers will now function correctly

NPC's
 * Fixed typos in NPC conversations: Bestine Political Quests, Corellia Heralds, Corellia Static Quests, Corellian Corvette, Dantooine Static Quests, Dathomir Static Quests, Imperial Theme Park, Jabba's Theme Park, Junk Dealers, Loading Screens, Rebel Theme Park Quests, Talus Static Quests, Tatooine Heralds, Tatooine Static Quests, Yavin IV Static Quests
 * AI improvements: on steep hillsides and cliffs, creature aggressiveness and accuracy has been improved

Other
 * Fixed problem where free trial users could not deposit money into their bank account if they were near the 50k limit

Pets
 * Removed vitality loss from PvP deaths
 * Added "Incapacitation Recovery" option for pets. This will allow the pet's master to revive an incapacitated pet to 1 HAM point.

Profession: Bounty Hunter
 * Fixed crash to desktop when taking a bounty hunter mission and traveling
 * Temporarily reduced BH - Jedi Bounty Mission rewards (Credits & XP)

Profession: Combat Medic
 * Fixed an issue with Combat Medics swimming and combat actions

Profession: Doctor / Medic
 * If the player attempts to heal an illegal target with /healDamage, the command will default to the player even if the target is not a combat target.

Profession Entertainer & Dancer
 * Entertainers/Dancers: Modifying /watch and /listen so that you can perform these actions while sitting on the ground

Profession: Image Designer
 * Fully decorated all the Image Designer salons
 * Added music inside the Image Design salons
 * Master ID timer changes (a master outside the Image Design salon gets 1/2 time, a master inside the Image Design salon has no time required)

Profession: Jedi As part of the Jedi revamp, Jedi will find that they will have to deconstruct their lightsabers via a new radial menu option. Jedi will be able to use their crystals and pearls as they will be reclaimed using the new system. Please make sure you have enough free inventory space before attempting to deconstruct any lightsaber. New lightsabers are a weapon that is also a slotted container based on a player's level. The only items a Jedi may place in the lightsaber is 1 Color Crystal and 1-4 (based on lightsaber type) 'tuned' Force Crystals or 'tuned' Krayt Pearls. The stats of the basic lightsaber will remain at its crafted values, however stats will go up and down based on the values of the crystals placed within. The lightsaber's blade color will be determined by the 'Color Crystal'. Lightsaber's without a color crystal cannot be used. Based on its generation, lightsaber's will gain slight stat bonuses along with more container slots to put crystals in. There are 4 styles available to each lightsaber skill line now.

A Jedi will now be required to 'Tune' the crystal or pearl he/she wishes to use. A Jedi will use the Force to tune the crystal to their body. Once tuned, the crystals and pearls will only fit within lightsabers crafted by that Jedi. Jedi may only use lightsabers that they have crafted. Lightsabers, tuned crystals, and pearls will all be tradable to others. There will be a description on the crystal and pearl after it has been tuned to the player who tuned and the stats will be visible at the time. Lightsabers may not be sliced. All crystals and pearls must be tuned. A lightsaber must have 1 color crystal in it to power on. All crystals must be in the lightsaber prior to equipping it as once equipped the lightsaber inventory cannot be altered. A player must unequip a lightsaber if they wish to change the setup of their crystals. Lightsabers will no longer decay; now, crystals and pearls decay based on damage. Once the condition of a crystal or pearl reaches 1 or lower it must be replaced. The crystal/pearl's text will change to red when it is no longer usable. These changes will affect players who have already unlocked their Force Sensitive (FS) slots. Players who have not unlocked their FS slot may continue to master professions for credit, but no new players will become Jedi until Publish 10, The Jedi Trials. Players may still unlock their slot, but it will not be active until Publish 10.


 * Reworked Force Healing line. Heals now cost a proportionate amount of force cost based on the amount they heal. Heals are no longer for a random amount, but have a fixed maximum for each ability. Different abilities have different force cost efficiencies.
 * Fixed a bug where 2 dueling dark Jedi get an imperial TEF
 * Fixed a memory leak that would occur every time a new lightsaber was turned on or thrown
 * Jedi don't regenerate force power while incapacitated
 * Fixed a bug where all thrown lightsabers emitted a red swoosh visual. Swooshes for thrown lightsabers now match the color of the blade
 * Added Entertainer healing skill mods to Force Sensitive Healing skills

Profession: Merchant
 * Fixed a problem with the Merchant entry fee window incorrectly applying entry fee

Profession: Smuggler
 * You will no longer be able to slice an item by using a tool in a crate. You will have to remove it from the crate first.

Profession: Tailor
 * Fixed missing color option on Bandoliers (Now both color options are available)

Technical Support
 * Fixed problem where the optional hardware information reports would sometimes be sent with an incorrect station id
 * Added warning for known bad older card/driver combination
 * Setup - Win 98 no longer incorrectly reports CPU is too slow
 * Setup screen - automatic settings for low-memory conditions

Theme Parks / Missions / Quests
 * Reintroduced the 'Hero of Tatooine' quest, utilizing brand new static and dynamic content

Tutorial / New Player Experience
 * Made bubble chat greeting from helper droid appear only to owner

Vehicles / Mounts
 * Enter/Exit vehicle changed to toggle
 * Vehicle hit points should now be saved properly when making repairs
 * Fixed vehicle orientation when traveling over water
 * Smoothed ground effect more when driving off of a cliff
 * Players can now use the radial menu, in addition to the previously working slash commands to enter and exit a vehicle while in combat.
 * Removed the option to mount an Incapacitated or Dead Mount

World
 * Improved terrain LOS and terrain generation
 * Increased occurrence of Stintaril Prowler spawns
 * Loot Kits: Players can now visit Junk Dealers Junk Dealers that are located in Combat Guild Halls to request a "loot kit". These loot kits are containers that will be used to collect miscellaneous items dropped from NPC's and can be turned into a new reward. Loot kits are free for the asking and one per customer. Players can speak to different junk dealers in order to get new loot kits, by asking the Junk Dealer, "What sort of items do you have that you are looking to get rid of?". Once players decide which loot kit they would like, they may begin collecting the parts. To complete a kit, players will need to gather 10 different items that go with the kit. To see what items the kit requires and which ones have already been gathered, "examine" the kit. This list also will tell the player what items they still need to loot by use of a "yes" or "no" next to each item in that list. Only items that the kit actually requires can be placed inside the kit. When a player gets an item that fits with a kit they own they can instantly drag and drop it into the kit and the kit then will count that item as recovered. Kits will not be tradable between players although all the looted parts will be. Kits can only be placed in your main inventory slot or in the bank. The loot kits examine window gives a basic description of what the kit will make, as will the names of the kits. These items can be kept by the player or sold back to the junk dealer for a 1000 credit reward.