Today's update to the Star Wars: The Old Republic is another Studio Insider/Fan Friday combo package. The Studio Insider piece
features Senior Environment Artist Robby Lamb discussing how the game's
environments evolve and transform into final fixtures. He talks about
designing walls, adding props to areas and tweaking various
environmental aspects to keep the frame rate playable.

The second half of the Studio Insider piece is a class-related Q&A session with Senior Game Designer William Wallace. You can read through all of his answers after the jump.

Lastly, the Fan Friday segment features a Fan Site Spotlight on Corellian Run Radio,
as well as its usual pieces of fan art and forum avatars. BioWare will
be showing off Star Wars: The Old Republic at E3, so keep an eye on the events page for details.

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Community Q&A

Q: Will all classes have a main Companion Character or
several different ones? Also, how important will Companion Characters
be? – Frozentorch
A: Over the course of the game, your character will meet a number of
companions. There are several companion archetypes, each with their
own ability set (including, but not limited to medics, ranged damage
dealers and tanks). By maximum level, all classes will have one
companion of each archetype. Which companion becomes your ‘main
companion’ is left to your choice of playstyle and personal preference.
Furthermore, you can customize your companions with kits that add
extra abilities such as Grenade Launchers, Flame Throwers, etc.
Regardless of which companion you choose to travel with, they will shape
how your character approaches combat and will complement your
strengths or help make up for your weaknesses.
For example, a Sith Assassin specialized in striking at their targets
from behind may want a sturdy melee companion to keep opponents
occupied while she maneuvers into position, or she might prefer a medic
companion to just make sure she stays in the fight.
Q: So far, 6 of the 8 classes have a healing spec (assuming
the Sith Inquisitor can heal). Will this be the final number or will
Jedi Knight and Sith Warrior have a healing spec as well? - Kelzack
A: We have no plans to introduce healing on either the Knight or Warrior at this time.
Q: Will the healer spec for each class have enough damage output to be viable while solo? – Juex
A: Players that specialize in a healing role will still get many of
the same damage abilities for their Advanced Class a more offensively
specialized character would get - for example, an Operative Medic still
gets access to rifle and blade attacks.
All players will be viable in solo combat, though fully committed
healers will obviously not have the same level of damage output as
players who choose to pursue more damage focused builds. In a twist from
other MMOs, choosing the right companion in Star Wars: The Old Republic enables the player to retain much of their healing centered play-style while playing solo.
Q: Will Bounty Hunters be able to use their jetpacks outside
of battle to get around faster or for another way of movement other
than walking/jumping? – JornFalm
A: We have no plans currently for jetpacks as a mode of fast travel
outside of combat. You’ll have to rely on your personal transportation
for that (details to be revealed later!) which offers a much more
comfortable ride anyway.
Q: Will both skill sets in a particular Advanced Class
require the same set of stats, thereby enabling a Sawbones-spec
Scoundrel to respec to a Scrapper-spec without having to carry a second
Scrapper-specific set of gear to function at optimal capacity? –
Finalcaliber
A: If changing skill distribution also involves a role change for the
character (such as from damage focused to medic), chances are you will
need to obtain a new set of equipment to go along with the change in
gameplay experience. If no role change is involved (e.g. changing skills
within the Gunslinger Advanced Class), you are likely able to reuse
most if not all of your equipment.
Q: Mobility has always been a big part of PVP. How are you
addressing this for the Imperial Agent and Smuggler, who are ranged
classes with a cover system that keep them in a very predefined area
while making them more stationary targets?
A: For players who wish to play a cover dependent spec in PVP, there
are abilities that give them some pretty significant bonuses to
mitigate the fact that they are stationary. There are also abilities
that help keep enemies out of melee range while in cover.
Agents and Smugglers who prefer mobility can select skills that makes
them less cover dependent and more focused on other abilities like
stealth, poison, and close range combat.
Q: Can the Sentinel play the role of secondary tank (since the Guardian can DPS)? – Harcan
A: The Sentinel is capable of off-tanking in smaller encounters, but
currently has no skills that would allow him to substitute for a
tanking focused Guardian.
Q: Is the Jedi Consular only effective when ranged? Or can he use his Lightsaber and deal significant damage in a melee? – Dwim
A: The Jedi Consular can be effective in either ranged or melee
depending on the skill choices you make. The base class grants the
player both ranged abilities and Lightsaber attacks, and allows the
player to sample both gameplay styles before making their Advanced Class
choice.
The player then chooses to become either a Jedi Sage - skilled
primarily in long range combat with devastating Force powers, or a Jedi
Shadow primarily focused on close range Lightsaber combat augmented by
Force abilities. The skill choices within those Advanced Classes will
determine the balance between melee and Force based combat and the role
the Consular will fill on the battlefield.
Q: Can stealth classes turn their stealth on during a fight? – SankPKer
A: Scoundrels, Operatives, Shadows and Assassins currently cannot enter stealth while in combat.
Q: Does the type of armor a class uses change depending on the Advanced Class? – ShiftyBe
A: For some classes, yes. For example, Jedi Guardians wear heavy
armor, but Jedi Sentinels use medium armor. For other classes, like the
Agent, your armor type stays the same regardless of Advanced Class or
specialization.
Q: Is it possible, as a Jedi Guardian skilled in tanking, to
wear at least a cape above his armor or does it have to be armor all
the way? – JemmrikKevrae
A: We have a large number of armor appearances for all classes,
including robes and capes, so it will be possible to achieve many
different looks even for heavily armored classes. Some might even look
not that heavily armored at all.
Q: Regarding the Jedi Consular, can both Advanced Classes wield a double Lightsaber? - Wreezz
A: The Jedi Shadow is trained in double-bladed Lightsaber combat, while the Sage is single wielding.
Q: Will there be different important skills within a skill
tree to choose between, or will there be an "ideal" way for each skill
tree? – Livorde
A: Our design philosophy on skill trees is to offer several different
paths through each skill tree for gameplay variety. We also try to
make sure that the early skills in a tree have broad appeal. This way,
you can make intelligent choices about which other trees you’d like to
spend your leftover points to create several viable hybrid options.
Some skills will likely be integral to any character build - for
example, core damage increases, stat increases, and other broad appeal
skills. Where you branch from that depends on how you intend to play the
class---you might be offered PvP utility skills, power-ups or
functionality changes to specific abilities, or other more situational
skills.
As a practical example, a Sniper going up the Marksmanship tree will
probably want a boost to his stat that increases ranged damage, but
might have to decide if he wants to spend points to increase his
capability to slow enemy targets or reduce the threat he generates while
using his high damage abilities. The threat reducing skill would be a
smart choice for players who primarily consume PvE content in groups
while slowing a target would certainly have great utility in PvP combat.
Or he could just get both skills and sacrifice some early skills from
other skill trees.
Q: Can you play the Inquisitor as a melee class as effectively as the Sith Warrior? – Sanathor
A: The Inquisitor can branch into two Advanced Classes. He can either
become a Sith Sorcerer, striking with lightning and devastating dark
side Force powers at their targets from afar or train to become a Sith
Assassin, a deadly melee class that specializes in double-bladed
Lightsaber combat.
The Sith Assassin can, if skilled appropriately, be just as effective
in a melee combat as a Sith Warrior, but both have their own set of
gameplay mechanics and abilities that set them apart:
The Sith Assassin may use the Force to approach unseen, wield a
double-bladed Lightsaber, chain Force attacks and strong melee finishing
moves for burst damage and gain access to powerful positional attacks
that require the player to plan their movement carefully.
A Sith Warrior, on the other hand, is more direct in the way he
approaches combat. He may learn to dual wield (as a Marauder Advanced
Class), use Force Charge to quickly bridge large distances on the
battlefield, and/or specialize in devastating single target and area
attacks with his Lightsaber.