Development Cycle Archive

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To the argument that imps should be TEF’s or turned overt during a scan. No self respecting rebel is going to follow a shakedown or crackdown squad, to catch an unsuspecting imp caught with contraband. If the US army found a soldier or commander with drugs, the last thing they are going to do is hand him over to the enemy. Dock his pay later, make him peel potatoes for a week... not potentially send him to the firing squad!

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While no rebel would likely follow a shake/crackdown squad around to catch an Imp being TEF'd, the point that you and many others are missing is that it takes at least an hour to go back to covert from overt--and that assumes that a recruiter is nearby to make the request right away. So for at least an hour, the Imp would be subjected to PvP.

The reason many are calling for Imps to be turned overt (not TEFd, TH said "Overt"), is threefold: 1) it makes sense that if an Imp is saluted his cover is broken; 2) if covert rebels are going to be turned Overt, it's only fair that covert imps have some sort of penalty when found to be in possession of illegal substances; and 3) to make a point about the impact of forcing any covert into overt status.

Few covert playing Imps would to be forced overt. And that's the exact reason why most covert playing rebels are against being turned overt. A TEF, while still bad, would be much easier to swallow than being *forced* into PvP for an hour at minimum.

Hey, Why Not? It would really make the game more interesting, no? I've been an Imperial too- so I'm not trying to be biased or "pro-rebel"... but I've seen a lot of threads from imps wanting 'more excitement', and perma-overt for imperials would more or less do it...

I dunno... fodder for thought anyway...

Rooak.

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You are NOT SUPPOSED TO BE ON EQUAL FOOTING WITH THE EMPIRE! Get over yourselves.

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I've said it before, and I'll say it again:

This is a game.

SWG isn't about recreating a real war of good against evil; and it's not about reenacting the SW timeline, as the Devs have said that SWG will likely deviated from continuity as time goes on, based upon what happens in game. A certain level of game balance must be maintained, as no one faction or profession should be inherently more powerful than another.

If this goes through, whereby covert rebels will be forced into overt status and pvp for at least an hour, then there must be some mechanism whereby covert imps are similarly forced into overt status and pvp for an hour.

And, really, simply whining about how the empire is supposed to be "stronger" doesn't prove your point that covert rebels should be forced into pvp. This is a game where people are meant to have fun. I could easily argue that coverts should be able to sneak-attack overts; I mean, isn't that the point of being covert? Being able to sneak up on your target and getting a surprise shot in? But, no; this is a game--and covert status is supposed to be limited pvp, and only then when the player actively does something to bring pvp on.

No covert should be forced into pvp for an hour. But if this new "feature" is added for rebels, something similar must be added for imps.

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TalixArchilon wrote:

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So would you likewise agree that covert imps who are saluted should be turned overt, too? 'Cause you shouldn't have it both ways. If covert rebels are going to be turned overt, the so should covert rebels that are saluted.

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Lets ponder for a moment: what is the reasoning behind some members of the rebel faction wanting covert imperials turned overt when they fail a faction scan? If some rebel can give me a logical answer to why this makes any shred of sense, please inform and enlighten me, but remember a logical answer not an in-game balance answer, think about real life situations, not the game.

An imperial stormtrooper is not going to blow the cover of one of their undercover operatives, it makes no sense whatsoever. Hey u've just spent 8 years of ur life trying to slip into the rebellion but here let me just take that away from u because u have one bottle of a battle enhancing drug in ur possesion

but if the saluting coverts thing is the case, then we have a different situation, i do not feel that they should salute coverts at all, however no one knows as its not in test center, lets just wait till the patch comes out before we continue to pound the stuffing out of this pillow

and to my wonderful critics, this is a forum, i'm not writing a dissertation for you, grow up, and yes i am lazy, so what, crucify me...

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The fact of the matter is everyone knows that Rebels will be shot on sight, and nothing will happen to neutrals except that they get fined. If you as a covert Imperial are saluted, you are then made known to be Imperial. It makes perfect sense that you be flagged overt just for that. Your cover is blown. Also, the fact that someone is saluted when they fail a check was done by the devs. Take your grievance to the right side before you spout anything as us Rebels had nothing to do with that.

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3. Can I choose a faction, and still not participate in PVP? - Yes, However, you put yourself at risk of involuntary PVP. Faction scanners can grant you a TEF.

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Um, but it's quite easy to avoid a base--keep your overhead map on when journeying, and you get more than enough warning and can check out the base before you get too close. By being attentive and careful when traveling, you can basically eliminate this risk.

Also, even if you're careless and allow yourself to get a TEF this way, it's not the same as a shakedown team spawning inside a cantina and giving you a TEF smack-dab in the middle of an Imperial controlled city.

You just can't justify this by the existence of the faction scanner, who's main purpose is to help protect bases from infiltration by coverts in raids. They're for two quite different purposes, and have very different implications for gameplay.

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lemme reiterate u joined to fight a war

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No, I joined a side in a game that I pay to play. I did so to play ic on the side that I prefer, and I have just as much right to have fun and *not* be forced into pvp as players of the other faction. Sometimes people take ic a bit too far. This is a game, *not* a war.

And if the Devs now want everyone that's joined a faction to attest to being a pvp'er, they'll lose a lot of people.

Take a step back, turn off the computer, and get a little fresh air and sunlight.

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Sorry, a true Rebel is always at war with the Empire, not just when it's convenient for them.

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Do you then agree that covert Imps that are saluted should be forced Overt, too? If not, why not?

Honestly, if the Devs insist on covert Rebels being turned Overt, then so should covert Imps. Plain an simple.

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TalixArchilon wrote:

Lets ponder for a moment: what is the reasoning behind some members of the rebel faction wanting covert imperials turned overt when they fail a faction scan? If some rebel can give me a logical answer to why this makes any shred of sense, please inform and enlighten me, but remember a logical answer not an in-game balance answer, think about real life situations, not the game.

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If you can provide a logical answer as to how Imperial scan teams can magically determinea player is a Rebel, then please do so. And if your answer is "Well, duh, they scan them" then also explain how a Rebellion can continue if all Imperials have to do is scan a person to find out if they sympathize with the Rebellion or not. Would they not simply scan at starports and execute every outed Rebel? THIS is why the turned-Overt penalty makes zero sense. But it's an easy, cop-out "solution" so the Devs went with it. Not particularly shocking.

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you have ANY clue what would happen if all the rebels suddenly resigned? I 100% guarantee you would see a SUDDEN and CATASTROPHIC reversal of the patch.

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I've actually been thinking very seriously about this, and am axious to hear back from TH. I'm hoping beyond hope that TH just mis-spoke when he said coverts would be made overt, and that instead what he meant was that they'd get a TEF. I'm also hoping that no single player will be subjected to a crack/shakedown more than once every 3+ hours of playtime. That we haven't had a single red-name response to this thread since it started, though, leaves me worried.

If coverts are indeed made overt, or if it's a TEF with a c/s-down occurrence of more than once every 3 hours for any single player, then I'll likely suggest that we rebel players organize a strike from SWG for 3 days or so to make our point heard. We'll have to wait and see how this is implemented, though, as the red-names are being tight-lipped.