Droid Engineer Archive
Thread: Where do YOU want to see our profession
Jenden wrote:
* Where do YOU want to see the Droid Engineer profession going?
* Why do you think anyone should want to BE a Droid Engineer?
* What contribution to SWG do YOU want to see Droid Engineers making?
* What should make Droid Engineers important to SWG?
Message Edited by Jenden on 04-05-2005 12:39 PM
Message Edited by Cabo-Wabo on 04-05-2005 01:03 PM
* Where do YOU want to see the Droid Engineer profession going?
* Why do you think anyone should want to BE a Droid Engineer?
* What contribution to SWG do YOU want to see Droid Engineers making?
* What should make Droid Engineers important to SWG?
I want DE crafting cybernetics and high level combat droids. Cybernetics should be RIS armor type quest. I also want to take an important part in GCW. I have many ideas but I wont go into them here. I also want DECAY!
>* Why do you think anyone should want to BE a Droid Engineer?
Aside from being cool, someone should want to be a DE because droids are in need and it is profitable profession.
>* What contribution to SWG do YOU want to see Droid Engineers making?
(I find this question a bit redundant or similar to the others. read next answer.)
>* What should make Droid Engineers important to SWG?
Droids should be helpful in as many ways possible especially in slicing. I think the devs are granting far too many abilities to everyone that cannot be enhanced in any way with a droid. Base destructions should require a slicer droid. R2 in the movies saved everyone's butt why cant our droids in SWG do the same? Everyone (combat) requires guns, armor, food.. why not droids?
Just a little while ago I read TH say Armorsmiths wont need a crafting station to assemble the final stage of the armor. This to me is proof that devs are shoving droids aside. If that is not the case then the devs are not thinking clearly or see that each addition to the game causes repercussions to other profession interdependencies.
They need to hear our voices more loudly, we've become a bit stagnated since the droid "revamp" and I think we need to make our thoughts on this forum more evident. They are working on CU now and thats fine, Im willing to wait until that is on live, but once it hits live we all need to get back to pushing the devs for more open communication.
While in the CU for the first few days we were able to use all abilities with command line. I noticed /healwound and all buffs did not require a droid outside a medical building. I would really like to know if this is a bug or what?
Thanks Jenden for starting this thread.
Jenden wrote:
* Where do YOU want to see the Droid Engineer profession going?
In the direction that steps were taken towards with our last batch of utility modules.... I dunno if I'd want to see droids be required for everything, but to know that you'd do a lot better with a droid than without would do wonders. At this time, I don't have ideas for new types of uses for droids, but I would like to see the Droid Engineer's utility market expanded even further.
* Why do you think anyone should want to BE a Droid Engineer?
Well, I personally became a Droid Engineer because I've always liked pets in games like this, and I had visions of droid / creature armies doing my fighting for me. But after I entered the profession, and saw the things we could do utility wise, I loved all of the non-combat stuff we had the potential to do. I think people should want to be a Droid Engineer because we are more than just a generic weaponsmith or something. We make unique items that assist their owners in different ways.
* What contribution to SWG do YOU want to see Droid Engineers making?
Same as #1, to further expand on the utility market, and to provide a product to the community that's more than just a fancy weapon. Again, not neccesarily something that's required, but to where you would be noticeably better with a droid than without one. I also think that droids should be the "pet" of choice for CL10 and below pet combat.
* What should make Droid Engineers important to SWG?
Again, the different types of utility droids that we can make, with support combat droids that can assist anyone in combat, but will never neccesarily be your main weapon. But definate emphasis on expanded utility.
While I have not played my "live" DE in quite some time, this profession will always mean a lot to me. That being said, I still like to contribute my thoughts on the subject.
Jenden wrote:
* Where do YOU see the Droid Engineer profession going?
I have always seen DE as more of a service based professison. Many of our end products are so customizable that few products are ever the same. There is the associated playstyle known as the "backpack DE" that still exists because of this.
* Why should anyone BE a Droid Engineer?
My personal feeling is that DE is a niche market. One that makes the crafter fulfill specific needs of the customer. Why be a DE instead of a WS, AS or BE? - I honestly don't know what makes other people get into it, but for me back in the early days it seemed like a logical choice and I couldn't find many DE's at the time. After a while, it just grew on me and increased the "Star-Warsyness" of the game for me.
* What contribution to SWG do YOU see Droid Engineers making?
I see droids asmore of a "instance-utility" object. Ok, you're probably asking me what does that mean? ...it means to me that Droids should be there to assist you with quests and when things get a too hairy.
- You come accross a alien (NPC) that you've never seen before and you need a protocol droid to understand what he wants.
- You're fighting for control of a bunker (quest or faction based) and you use your handy R2 unit to access the computer systems.
- You're fighting with a group, and the Doctor's surgical droid assists him/her in keeping the group alive.
There should be specific sections of content that are access prohibited unless you have a droid with you to get to that content.....even if that means trying to escort that little droid down to the bottom of something like "The Warren", "The GeonosianComplex" or"The Death Watch Bunker"
* What makes Droid Engineers important to SWG?
Droid Engineers are important in order to maintain the creations they build: Droids. What we lack now, is:
- A reason to maintain droids.
- Droids that need to be maintained.
Fishbreath wrote:I feel a degree of responsibility to the need for this thread, I had no intention of putting more on Jendens "plate"....be that as it may, I do respect the fact he has acted on this as quickly as he has, so at least I feel we have a correspondent that doesn't just twiddle his thumbs.......I will respond to this by highlighting a response I had on another thread, because it does reflect my opinion on the matter:.......there is NO point in asking for, or telling them our desires anymore because we have done that for more than a YEAR.......they already know what we want (if they ever read our forums). Until I (we) know where and how we stand within the game, and how they see us in the future, the point of coming up with a "dream list" is irrelevant. What is the point of dreaming or asking for something they have NO intention of developing?I'm not asking for a "blank check" on our future.......but I can't ask for what I want until I know how much is "in the bank".We need an HONEST appraisal of our importance to SWG and it's future, because as of right now, we seem UNIMPORTANT and have NO future..........That kind of sums it up for me......
Then don't do it for the devs, do it for me. Its probably been at least a year since I've seen a specific answer to most of these questions, and I'd like to get answers so that I know I'm going in the direction the community wants (as opposed to the directions that I think the community wants).
Jenden wrote:
Heya man, I'm sure you know how I feel, but I will post it for you anyway.
Ok, I've decided to ask this question to both you guys and the devs. Need to get a good feel from you guys so K know that I'm not heading off in the wrong direction fighting for things no one cares about, and a feel from the devs so I know whats possible. So please answer these questions as simply as possible. Keep all discussions out of this thread, just state your opinion and move on.
* Where do YOU want to see the Droid Engineer profession going?
I want to see everybody have a good reason to have 5 droids in their datapad. I want to see them use those droids as often as they use a weapon, armor, ship, food, or house. I want Droids to be NEEDED just as much as everything else is.
* Why do you think anyone should want to BE a Droid Engineer?
Because it is fun to craft droids, as well as to make money. No matter how "cool" droids are, they should have just as much profit potential as any other crafting profession.
* What contribution to SWG do YOU want to see Droid Engineers making?
I want Droids to be as integral and needed as everything as. They need to be accepted into every part of your gaming day life. Do you think about it when you pull out a speeder or walk into a house? I don't. Using a droid should be just as integral, Star Wars is about droids.
* What should make Droid Engineers important to SWG?
They make droids. Droids should be important, therefore the droid makers are important.
Message Edited by Jenden on 04-05-2005 12:39 PM
Lastly let me add this one "want" in, it didn't fit any one in particular but applies to all.......
When new things are added to the game, such as Cybernetics 
I want them to be added in such a fashion that it gives love to the professions that need it. When stuff like Cybernetics and JTL are added in the fashion they are, it appears that over a year of problems is just ignored.
Message Edited by Straker_Atrella on 04-05-2005 04:58 PM
Jenden wrote:
Ok, I've decided to ask this question to both you guys and the devs. Need to get a good feel from you guys so K know that I'm not heading off in the wrong direction fighting for things no one cares about, and a feel from the devs so I know whats possible. So please answer these questions as simply as possible. Keep all discussions out of this thread, just state your opinion and move on.
* Where do YOU want to see the Droid Engineer profession going?
* Why do you think anyone should want to BE a Droid Engineer?
* What contribution to SWG do YOU want to see Droid Engineers making?
* What should make Droid Engineers important to SWG?Message Edited by Jenden on 04-05-2005 12:39 PM
#1 Droid functions need to be the same as in SW. C3PO was a translator and provided some tech. assitance and made R2D2 more user-friendly. Doesn't exist in SWG. You cannot even use more than one droid at a time, reducing the function of some droids even more. R2D2 was an astrogation droid that performed emergency repairs, maintenance, great slicing skills for hacking into computers, and a lousy waiter for Jabba. Again, we don't have this in SWG.
#2 MDE should be there to create the needed AI tools that every profession should want to enhance their job/skills. A smuggler with a slicing droid, an astromech that can develop it's own skills a little that has a chance of saving your ship in the heat of combat, a true defense droid that can assist merchant/crafters that are just trying to operate a harvestor without getting ganked by snakes, ect. An MDE should be capable of rebuilding, or overhauling somebody's droid and even swapping out modules, win win for MDE and customer gets to keep their old favorite droid that's helped them since day 1.
#3 Droids that make everyones time in game easier, one way or another
#4 Droids should need maintenace, NOT DECAY. Only MDE can "Re-deed and rebuild" a droid. Swap modules, fix damage, restore it to like new. And we MUST have new modules. Enhanced combat modules for non-combat professions. SLICING MODULES for smuggler revamp. SMARTER astromechs that have a chance of performing miracles on starships. Droids that can learn a little and get slight enhancements to their own skills, unless they get a memory wipe (standard part of droid rebuilds). PLEASE, REBUILDS not permadeath for droids. R2 and 3PO would of been history LONG ago if there was permadeath for droids. RESOURCE SURVEYING MODULES that can assist either you with surveying and sampling, or ones that can scout a planet for you and send WP for up to X number of hotspots on a single planet, and are DISPOSABLE. MDEs would be selling surveyors like mad with that one alone. So MDEs will LOVE any new disposable droids that might come along.
Okay, good luck pushing for a bone to be tossed to the MDEs out there.
Jenden wrote:
* Where do YOU want to see the Droid Engineer profession going?
* Why do you think anyone should want to BE a Droid Engineer?
* What contribution to SWG do YOU want to see Droid Engineers making?
* What should make Droid Engineers important to SWG?
Hmm. Kind of open-ended questions, so I'll provide open-ended answers:
1) I would like to see the DE class STAY a crafting profession, but be able to provide product to the largely combat-oriented population. This meaning, more products that are a great benefit to combat professions.
2) Like any class, people should want to be a DE because it provides a valuable service to the population as a whole, and that it gives the individual a gratifying experience because people need your services.
3) I am pleased with the direction the DE class was taken to cater to the non-combat professions, but there is next to nothing for the combat classes. Because the population is largely combat-oriented, we are not important.
I just realized all my answers have the same theme, so I'll wrap it up: Probots are nice and all, but not taken seriously. DE's should be able to viably contribute to the combat classes. And I'm not talking about just combat droids. I saw cybernetics as the answer to my prayers, but that's gone. SOMETHING like that is needed. Us DE's will always be the red-headed stepchildren of SWG until we can provide services to the combat community.
2. Droids are Star Wars. They're tough to implement in the game, I know, because we haven't yet made artificially intelligent machines irl, so no idea how to code that intelligence into a game. But my DE supports the Guild a lot. I think, since there IS a DE in guild, most of my guildmates own and use droids a lot more than most.
3. I'd like to see droids that support Smugglers. Droids that slice terminals, bases, containers. Droids that get into places (no locked doors in game, except those that require a special item like in the Warren). And, of course, REAL combat droids.
4. Droids are part of Star Wars but, unfortunately, they're the part that it is VERY tough to simulate. R2D2 and C3PO made independent decisions in support of (or sometimes not...lol) their owners. This is impossible to simulate in a game today. So just keep finding more utility modules for them and definitely work on how to do real combat droids.
* Where do YOU want to see the Droid Engineer profession going?
i personally want to see more droids, beside all the doctor doirds, more combat droids, more depth into the proffesion, ie. a doctor would buff more but less time of something along those lines
* Why do you think anyone should want to BE a Droid Engineer?
people should want to be DE's for the fun, if your in a proffesion for the money you will get sick of it, plan and simple
* What contribution to SWG do YOU want to see Droid Engineers making?
I want them to help out fighting, especially after CU, more combat droids, more space droids, ect.
* What should make Droid Engineers important to SWG?
they should bring that element that only BE's and CH's can make. Things other than people doing something, we do it with man-made they do it with nature, we need to help the crafters, healers, and combat