As long as Romulans have access to Accurate/Elusive, why would anybody roll anything but a Fed-Rom or KDF-Rom from now on though? Okay, there are the RP folks - the folks that absolutely want to play a certain race regardless of Traits - and - can't make that race with an Alien...or just don't want to be an Alien.
Other than them, though - who?
A Fed-Rom will have access to everything a Fed has.
A KDF-Rom will have access to everything a KDF has.
The Romulan will also have access to the Romulan stuff, that the Fed/KDF won't have access to - outside of whatever they throw in the Romulan lockbox they mentioned.
For folks that have alts or even a main, where that toon doesn't have Fleet Ships/Lockbox Ships, etc, etc... why wouldn't they just turn around and reroll them as Romulans?
It's kind of funny - but it's basically a Romulan takeover of both the Feds and KDF outside of those folks that are so heavily invested in a character. Even then, what are the odds they'll just role the exact same type of toon as a Romulan and just build up whatever that toon has over time (potentially avoiding any mistakes they made with their other toon(s))...?
Given the various reruns that they do, etc - there aren't many things that you can't get again...
...it's a sneaky Romulan invasion of both the Feds and KDF. Evil.
As long as Romulans have access to Accurate/Elusive, why would anybody roll anything but a Fed-Rom or KDF-Rom from now on though? Okay, there are the RP folks - the folks that absolutely want to play a certain race regardless of Traits - and - can't make that race with an Alien...or just don't want to be an Alien.
Other than them, though - who?
A Fed-Rom will have access to everything a Fed has.
A KDF-Rom will have access to everything a KDF has.
The Romulan will also have access to the Romulan stuff, that the Fed/KDF won't have access to - outside of whatever they throw in the Romulan lockbox they mentioned.
For folks that have alts or even a main, where that toon doesn't have Fleet Ships/Lockbox Ships, etc, etc... why wouldn't they just turn around and reroll them as Romulans?
It's kind of funny - but it's basically a Romulan takeover of both the Feds and KDF outside of those folks that are so heavily invested in a character. Even then, what are the odds they'll just role the exact same type of toon as a Romulan and just build up whatever that toon has over time (potentially avoiding any mistakes they made with their other toon(s))...?
Given the various reruns that they do, etc - there aren't many things that you can't get again...
...it's a sneaky Romulan invasion of both the Feds and KDF. Evil.
I could be wrong, but I'm not assuming Roms would have Full access to allied resources (and wouldn't underestimate Fed hero yearnings from PvEers). For example, I could see where low level Fed/KDF Z-store unlocks are faction locked, so no Plas Leech for Romulan toons. W/the exception of lifers/subbers the traits would be limited in terms of Captain abilities. There are benefitial traits other than evasive and accurate. I wouldn't expect to see retro phasers available to Romulans either.
There would be the exception of lock-box cross over that we have now. Faction Boffs would most likely stay unique w/the exception of Doff reward crossovers. Also, there would be the Fleet ship store where Romulans may have to pay more since they wouldn't have the pre-req ship purchased if they can at all. It may be there limited in terms of what they can access from their allied faction fleet. Another execption would be STF gear. FE/Storyline rewards would likewise be universal.
I'd assume Romulans would have their own low-mid-high level ships from Z-Store w/consoles. My guess is they'll have about the same number of unique missions as the KDF, putting them on equal footing in that regard. Fleet grinding is the only thing missing. As I mentioned before, I'm glad that's not needed, since the purpose of a fleet is mainly social and gear. There's no PvP gameplay w/bases at this point.
I do wish they'd give Romulans the ability to switch sides and backstab at a future date as well as allign w/factions which aren't developed, eg those in Delta/Gamma quadrant. Personally, I'd like an Open PvP sector where bases aren't faction limited and resources are contested.
I know many are disappointed, but w/o knowing all the details I'm pleasantly surprised they're adding as much grind free content as they seem to be.
[Zone] Dack@****: cowards can't take a fed 1 on 1 crinckley cowards Hahahaha you smell like flowers
Random Quote from Kerrat
"Sumlobus@****: your mums eat Iced Targ Poo"
C&H Fed banter
"In many ways, Romulans will have the best of two "worlds" - theirs and their ally's. Not only do they have their own exclusive stories, ships, and costumes, but they gain many benefits of their ally. This includes access to a varietyof their allies? ships, rewards, and hubs."
"In many ways, Romulans will have the best of two "worlds" - theirs and their ally's. Not only do they have their own exclusive stories, ships, and costumes, but they gain many benefits of their ally. This includes access to a varietyof their allies? ships, rewards, and hubs."
You believe they'll limit it?
I'd like to think so. Similarly, I'd like to think the access to romulan Boff/Doffs by KDF/Feds is a small set of what Romulans can get. Though, it's Cryptic so Idk.
[Zone] Dack@****: cowards can't take a fed 1 on 1 crinckley cowards Hahahaha you smell like flowers
Random Quote from Kerrat
"Sumlobus@****: your mums eat Iced Targ Poo"
C&H Fed banter
Hrmm, pulling/linking the posts by Stahl in the Ask Cryptic thread which may further clarify various things (can click the dot next to his username to hit up the location in the thread for better context if required):
Fleets are either FED or KDF. Romulans can create a FED or KDF Fleet, but then only allow Romulans in if they want. This was done for the reasons stated in the Ask Cryptic.
Alien-gen hybrid means that you'll be able to create custom aliens with limited filters to keep aliens on the Romulan faction more within boundaries of the somewhat Xenophobic Romulan species.
New STFs will not be released in Legacy of Romulus as they are part of a future season where we will be increasing the rank cap. That said, there will be new max level events released in Legacy of Romulus.
Thank you for all of the feedback and responses to this Ask Cryptic. Over the next month we will be sharing more details about the specifics of Legacy of Romulus, and later in April, we will be opening up access to create and play a Romulan on TRIBBLE so that you can see how everything works for yourself.
Keep in mind that the team has been hard at work on this expansion and this remains an entirely FREE expansion. We are not charging for it. It will be a free download when the expansion hits. So with that in mind, try it for yourself and see what you think without any risk. This isn't a $50 expansion that you have to buy up front in order to play. Yes there will be plenty of additional items in the store later on to enhance the experience (we are a business), but you will be able to play a Romulan from 1-50 as a free player.
We are happy that many players appreciate our decision to have the Romulans join existing FED or KDF fleets at launch. We realize that not everyone understands or agrees with why we did this, but it is the best decision for Star Trek Online. As stated in the Ask Cryptic, we will consider allowing the construction of Romulan Starbases in the future, but at launch, we want to recognize all the effort that existing Fleets have put into their Starbases and not introduce a "must start over" approach this early.
Additionally, we have a story to tell with the Romulan Republic that is central to the future updates in our game. We specifically chose to go this route as far back as the Romulan Feature Episode series where we introduced Obisek and Hakeev. Romulans are splintered and there are factions within the Romulan Empire that are specifically pursuing goals that are not necessarily beneficial to the Romulan species (investigating Borg Technology, collaborating with Iconians). One of our next blogs will go into detail about these conflicts and how they will play into the Romulan Republic storyline. That storyline will advance the plot for all factions in coming seasons.
With the Romulan Republic being a prequel to the Romulan FE series and the founding of New Romulus, our intention has been to allow players to explore the backstory of what has happened since the destruction of their homeworld. New Romulan captains do not even start in the military. These are Romulan citizens that must decide how they will survive. As the launch site says, "you are one of the survivors." "These are dark and dangerous times for your people."
The New Romulan storyline will dive deeper into the underlying darkness threatening the galaxy than any species has thus far and by the time they finish their storyline, it will be clear why New Romulus needs to exist and why we chose to have players play Romulan citizens rather than the Tal Shiar. Future Feature Episode series will continue the story from this point.
To answer some specific questions, Romulans will be asked to choose sides in the war by the time they are level 10. The exclusive Romulan storyline takes place in all of the new prequel episodes that have been made that will now end in and around the events that culminate in the Romulan Feature Episode series. Since we are moving around many of the levels of episodes with this expansion, we expect Romulan captains to be around level 40 when they finish their primary episodes (much like the Feds at launch). Note that for Romulans, most of the feature episode series have all been moved past this point. Thus the Devidians, Breen, and 2800 series all take place after the Romulan storyline. This also includes all of the Borg, Undine, STFS, Nukara, New Romulus and end game event content. So when we say that the alliance has an impact on end game, it is in reference to all of the level 40+ missions and end game content that exist for all factions. Instead of creating a 3rd set of queues, we're limiting it to the existing 2 sets and, at least for now, limiting Romulans to helping the Feds or KDF with their Starbase while the Feds and KDF help to build new Romulus. We will be adding more Fleet Holdings in the future and, as stated, Romulan Starbases have not been ruled out.
As an MMO we can always evolve this in the future, but this is how it will be at launch on May 21. Again, you'll have a chance to see all of this in action when we put the update up for testing prior to May.
The Romulan Republic storyline is a prequel to the events of the Romulan FE series and the establishment of New Romulus.
So at the time that the player chooses a faction, it makes sense and does not "extend the war" any more than it already has. Both factions embassies do not get established on New Romulus until after the Romulan exclusive storyline concludes and now you'll get to see how and why that happened.
At the end of Cutting the Cord we see Sela taken by the Iconians and both factions now realize there is more going on.
During the New Romulan Reputation is when we realize there is an Iconian gateway on New Romulus and that there is a lot more history here than we may have realized.
So by the time the Romulan Republic player gets to max level and experiences all of this, they will be caught up to the current state of the war and puts all factions at the same point for the upcoming episodes and seasons where we can now have everyone on equal footing to say "why are we fighting each other?" and reveal some of the bigger threats in the galaxy. These aren't events that take place AFTER everything we've already seen, these are episodes and stories that take place BEFORE and during the lead up to the events where we learn about the bigger threats. The Romulans backstory and the discovery of the gate on New Romulus will now provide much more story to what needs to happen next.
Continued - because some of the posts are lengthy (again, to see the specific questions he is replying to with these - please click the dot next to his username):
First, Star Trek Online is a video game and a product, as much as we'd like to be a TV series. So sometimes we have to make decisions that are good for the game and what we feel is best for the business. So if we want to continue to have new factions in the game, this is how the game is designed to do it. We can evolve that over time, but that is our decision.
Second, Romulans remain neutral to each other. The only time you kill other Romulan players is in PVP and we have yet to introduce our goals and plans for PvP, but are placing a stake in the ground that this is 2 faction pvp game, with most pvp happening in the game now being Fed vs Fed which is in and of itself bizarro but it exists because it is fun and the queues are faster. Again we are game.
When Romulans choose an ally, it means that during specific episodes in the exlusive Romulan storyline, there may be the enemy of your ally in the mission and you might have to fight them to achieve your Romulan goals. For example, if you are a Romulan allied with Klingon, you may have to shoot a few Feds to get what you want. For the most part, we do this for variety and to play up the fact that in the past Romulans have fought both.
This choice must be made else you'll be stuck in the story with no access to the rest of the game. You could rerun the first 10 levels over and over again to get xp, but you'll miss the rest of the Romulan story if you do that.
Again, this isn't about you helping the other faction as much as it is the other faction helping you. New Romulans are just getting started and their homeworld with a fancy Iconian gateway on it is in between Fed and KDF space. Both allies wouldn't mind getting their hands on it and that has a part to play in the Romulan Republic prequal storyline. The Feds and KDF are both convinced that if the New Romulans want to survive, they need their faction's support and not to trust the other faction.
Because it is a faction. Choosing an ally is for your benefit, so that you gain access to their ships and their gear in addition to your exclusive faction based items.
Unlike your reference of Pandaran in WOW, Romulans have their own exclusive new ship class and combat mechanic, their own exclusive storyline and episodes, their own exclusive costumes, ther own exclusive ship costumes, and a leveling experience that is very similar to what the Feds had a launch prior to all the Feature Episode Series and not limited to just the 1-10 "starting area" like Pandaran are. Romulans have far more exlusive content than that, and the fact that we then give you all of the stuff from your chosen ally gives you twice as much which is the "best of two worlds" idea.
The only non-exclusive content that the Romulans play are the Feature Episode series (which are designed to be playable by any faction) and end game content which is also designed to be played by any faction. If you don't want to go play your allies missions after you've finished your exclusive storyline, then don't go play them. You can play without them. If you want the exclusive gear from Starbases, STFS, Reps, etc, then you'll have to play the missions that grant them just like everyone else. You aren't any different than the existing factions in that regard.
Because many customers have spent money to purchase exclusive ships and have spent countless hours of effort to build up starbases and fleet holdings. We are trying to be as open as possible with the Romulans to respect the investments that have been made in the game. That is why you are seeing people post "thank you for considering that" threads when it comes to Starbases. We haven't ruled out allowing Romulan Starbases in the future, but for now, we're limiting it to existing Fed or KDF faction holdings.
Playing as New Romulan means that you'll be playing a prequel storyline where we establish the Romulan Republic and all of the events that lead up to New Romulus and the Romulan Feature Episode Series. You'll have exclusive content all the way from start up through that point and if then choose to say "done". You will have had an experience just as valid as the Fed had at the launch of the game. If you want to then continue on with end game, then you'll have access to all of the Feature Episode series, Events, and Dailies that everyone else has - there's not much exclusive to anyone in that content.
But play it for yourself when it comes out, or play it on TRIBBLE. It is free. Make your own choice if you want to play a Romulan after you dig into it and see all that is there.
Last one - as of this posting (they might want to consider putting his replies to the questions asked in a Dev Blog/News Blog/etc - since many people are missing these particular posts while reading through that thread - maybe I should go back and add the questions he's replying to - maybe I will - need a smoke and some caffeine first if I'm going to do that - so don't forget you can click the dot next to his name in the interim):
The Federation and KDF both have access to nearly all the same end game events, stfs, and dailies (with only a few exceptions).
The only difference between the Fed and the KDF is that they have different queues and team rules for those missions, and the KDF already have problems filling out their queues.
Adding a third splinter to that end game content would only make things worse for everyone. That is not healthy for the MMO.
Since everyone has access to the same end game content, then it makes more sense from our business perspective to allow ROMs to join FED or KDF queues as if they are all cross faction. All of this AFTER they've completed their own exclusive progression.
The only big impact this has is on the future of PVP and for now, the plan is to remain 2v2 because we haven't been able to get that working very well as it is. Trying to add a 3rd faction to pvp would be premature for where the game is at right now.
The new Klingon leveling progression will be available on TRIBBLE around the first week of May. We're in the process of readjusting all of the Klingon levels, moving episodes around, adding in the ships, and then adding in the new KLG episodes including the Nimbus adventure zone. Once we've finalized the final progression, we'll post it for you to play and see.
For goodness sakes, please remember that this forums has guidelines. Please tone down the rhetoric or this thread will get locked. Going out of bounds is going to lead to infractions.
Keep in mind that there are a lot of assumptions being made in this thread that are way out of whack for how it is actually implemented. Many posts are stating opinions about something that no one in the public has played yet.
Give the hard working team some credit for everything they've been working on by reserving your opinions until you actually play it. It will be free to play and free to download the expansion. If you want to judge something you haven't played just based on a description, then sorry, you're missing some of the best content we've ever made.
If you don't like it, don't play a Romulan. It isn't required that you play a Romulan. Yes we've been talking about how we would implement other factions in the game for a while, and as I said then, plans can change. Even since that Reddit chat, we actually did the work to make Romulans their own faction.
Many people are hearing "choose an ally" and thinking that you become FED or KDF and that is not true. You remain a Romulan. You don't lose your identity. You don't lose your faction's goal. Your ally is there to help you - to give you tech - to give you ships and help you stand up against the Tal Shiar. Even in game right now, New Romulans are looking to both Klingons and the Federation to help, and this is just an extension of that. So it is not about you dropping what your goals are and reporting into Admiral Quinn now. You report to the Romulan Republic.
This also allows for cross faction teaming. Something that encourages group gameplay and can be fun. Want to go play some Romulan missions, but don't want to be a Romulan? Go team up with one and help them with their missions. Want to help fight the silent enemy? Queue up together and go fight together. We've made a commitment that when we make fun new events, they are for everyone to play. Yes the "Star Trek Rules" bend sometimes when we have Feds and KDF grouping up to fight the Borg, but it can also be a lot of fun and leads to a more lively MMO.
Anyone who wants a 3rd queue faction hasn't played a Klingon. As I said before, that isn't good for the game. We allow cross faction teaming because it allows more people to play together.
Play Legacy of Romulus and either enjoy it or not. The proof will be whether or not the game continues to grow and if people enjoy it as much as we think they will. Fortunately, our continued future success is not based on what people think of something they haven't even played yet.
We look forward to showing you everything we've been working on very soon. This is why we're working the extra time to get things setup and ready on TRIBBLE. We're almost there.
It's rough looking at that list of ships...it's obviously a farm Dil or break out the wallet sort of thing going on there. Then again, we always knew that would be the case. The extent to which they would park us in green snoozers might not have been...but that's life, eh?
Even if they slap in some Uni BOFFs - for somebody that was considering a Sci - being parked in something that will likely make a Bortasqu' look nimble... well, that's where it's likely going to be a case of farming Dil, breaking out the wallet, or wondering what they make available as Fleet Ships, eh?
Comments
Other than them, though - who?
A Fed-Rom will have access to everything a Fed has.
A KDF-Rom will have access to everything a KDF has.
The Romulan will also have access to the Romulan stuff, that the Fed/KDF won't have access to - outside of whatever they throw in the Romulan lockbox they mentioned.
For folks that have alts or even a main, where that toon doesn't have Fleet Ships/Lockbox Ships, etc, etc... why wouldn't they just turn around and reroll them as Romulans?
It's kind of funny - but it's basically a Romulan takeover of both the Feds and KDF outside of those folks that are so heavily invested in a character. Even then, what are the odds they'll just role the exact same type of toon as a Romulan and just build up whatever that toon has over time (potentially avoiding any mistakes they made with their other toon(s))...?
Given the various reruns that they do, etc - there aren't many things that you can't get again...
...it's a sneaky Romulan invasion of both the Feds and KDF. Evil.
I could be wrong, but I'm not assuming Roms would have Full access to allied resources (and wouldn't underestimate Fed hero yearnings from PvEers). For example, I could see where low level Fed/KDF Z-store unlocks are faction locked, so no Plas Leech for Romulan toons. W/the exception of lifers/subbers the traits would be limited in terms of Captain abilities. There are benefitial traits other than evasive and accurate. I wouldn't expect to see retro phasers available to Romulans either.
There would be the exception of lock-box cross over that we have now. Faction Boffs would most likely stay unique w/the exception of Doff reward crossovers. Also, there would be the Fleet ship store where Romulans may have to pay more since they wouldn't have the pre-req ship purchased if they can at all. It may be there limited in terms of what they can access from their allied faction fleet. Another execption would be STF gear. FE/Storyline rewards would likewise be universal.
I'd assume Romulans would have their own low-mid-high level ships from Z-Store w/consoles. My guess is they'll have about the same number of unique missions as the KDF, putting them on equal footing in that regard. Fleet grinding is the only thing missing. As I mentioned before, I'm glad that's not needed, since the purpose of a fleet is mainly social and gear. There's no PvP gameplay w/bases at this point.
I do wish they'd give Romulans the ability to switch sides and backstab at a future date as well as allign w/factions which aren't developed, eg those in Delta/Gamma quadrant. Personally, I'd like an Open PvP sector where bases aren't faction limited and resources are contested.
I know many are disappointed, but w/o knowing all the details I'm pleasantly surprised they're adding as much grind free content as they seem to be.
Random Quote from Kerrat
"Sumlobus@****: your mums eat Iced Targ Poo"
C&H Fed banter
"In many ways, Romulans will have the best of two "worlds" - theirs and their ally's. Not only do they have their own exclusive stories, ships, and costumes, but they gain many benefits of their ally. This includes access to a variety of their allies? ships, rewards, and hubs."
You believe they'll limit it?
I'd like to think so. Similarly, I'd like to think the access to romulan Boff/Doffs by KDF/Feds is a small set of what Romulans can get. Though, it's Cryptic so Idk.
Random Quote from Kerrat
"Sumlobus@****: your mums eat Iced Targ Poo"
C&H Fed banter
Romulan faction! Putt-putt-putt-putt!
More than wheeeee, eh?
It's rough looking at that list of ships...it's obviously a farm Dil or break out the wallet sort of thing going on there. Then again, we always knew that would be the case. The extent to which they would park us in green snoozers might not have been...but that's life, eh?
Even if they slap in some Uni BOFFs - for somebody that was considering a Sci - being parked in something that will likely make a Bortasqu' look nimble... well, that's where it's likely going to be a case of farming Dil, breaking out the wallet, or wondering what they make available as Fleet Ships, eh?