STAR WARS™: The Old Republic™ News

[p][/p][p]Galactic Seasons 10: “Secrets of the Syndicate” started with the launch of Game Update 7.8.1! Here is a list of updated Season Objectives from April 7 - May 5. [/p][p]Week 5 (April 7th - April 14th)[/p][p][/p][p]Week 6 (April 14th - April 21st)[/p][p][/p][p]Week 7 (April 21st - April 28th)[/p][p][/p][p]Week 8 (April 28th - May 5th)[/p][p] [/p]

[p]New items inspired by the series Star Wars: Maul - Shadow Lord™ are available in the Cartel Market with Game Update 7.8.1b.
[/p][p]Pick up the Bionic Overlord Armor, Dark Infiltrator sabers, and metallic dyes now!

Bionic Overlord Armor
[/p][p]



Dark Infiltrator Lightsaber



Dark Infiltrator Dualsaber



Dyes[/p][p]Metallic Red/Matte Red[/p][p]Matte Red/Metallic Red[/p][p][/p][p](Metallic Red/Matte Red and Matte Red/Metallic Red Dyes shown on the Bionic Overlord and Reforged Havoc Squad Armors)[/p]

[h3]Bug Fixes[/h3][p]General[/p]

• [p]\[Odessen] Player characters now respawn properly if they fall from the bridge at the Alliance Camp landing area. [/p]
• [p]Fixed various texture issues in the Master's Enigma mission. [/p]

[p]Missions[/p]

• [p]\[Road to Nowhere] During the mission step “Clear the debris in the damaged door”, the door now appears damaged is interactable, allowing players to progress through the mission.  [/p]
• [p]\[Master’s Enigma: Escape the Nightmare] Theron’s lines are now triggered when the player approaches him in the Nightmare. [/p]
• [p]\[Master’s Enigma: Defend Darth Nul’s Holocron] If a player exits this mission and returns to the mission area, Holo-droids will no longer engage the player unless they are near the mainframe.  [/p]
• [p]\[Master’s Enigma] References to the name of the assistant droid are now consistent between the datapad text description and its nameplate. [/p]
• [p]\[Galactic Threads: The Library of Nul] Messages received from Arn Peralun and Major Anri following the expedition to Elom now accurately reflect their feelings.[/p]

[p]Cinematics[/p]

• [p]\[Master’s Enigma: Get to Your Ship] The player’s ship is now visible in the cinematic. [/p]
• [p]\[Master’s Enigma] A missing dialogue wheel option in the final cinematic now appears in French and German clients.[/p]
• [p]\[Master’s Enigma: Access the Console] Theron Shan’s voice lines now trigger when the player interacts with the console.  [/p]
• [p]\[Master’s Enigma: Talk/Return to the Master Raniah Protocol] Tau Idair’s voice lines now trigger as intended during these mission steps.[/p]
• [p]\[Galactic Threads: The Library of Nul] Jekiah and Rass Ordo are no longer visible as NPCs during the cinematic.[/p]

[p]Wreckage on Dantooine Dynamic Encounters[/p]

• [p]\[Glacial Reclamation] Reworked the encounter to smooth out its difficulty. Enemies now appear in smaller groups with some appearing only when other encounters are defeated.  [/p]
• [p]\[Sporefall Transition Events] Fixed an issue that caused the events to not progress properly if a player’s companion kills the mini bosses. [/p]
• [p]\[Toxin Trouble] All “crystalized toxins” are now within the event area and interactable. [/p]
• [p]\[Petals in the Snow] Crossover events mapnotes now appear properly while a player is inside the event area. [/p]
• [p]\[Under Pressure] Only relevant temporary abilities now appear when the player controls the Mouse Droid as a Construction Droid. [/p]
• [p]\[Gelid Tendrils] The Fragile Tendrils now respawn more quickly. [/p]
• [p]\[Cryo-Core Override] Cryo Sterilizer Droids now deal less damage and have less health. [/p]
• [p]\[The Cryonest Matron] The Cryo-Nest Matron encounter now spawns fewer enemies at a slower pace.[/p]
• [p]\[Orbital Core] Corrected an issue that displayed duplicate warning messages when engaging with the Orbital Core boss.[/p]

[p]UI[/p]

• [p]\[Uprisings: Trial and Error] The mapnote for the elevator during the mission step “Reach the X-7 Cratus Social Quarters" now appears on the map. [/p]
• [p]The name of the “Deploy field mail droid” ability no longer disappears from the Mailbox or Vendor window when mousing over it. [/p]
• [p]The GTN Droid Unlock title is no longer missing in the GTN Window. [/p]

[p]Items[/p]

• [p]The Shadow Sentry Boots no longer clip with a player character’s legs. [/p]

[p]Achievements[/p]

• [p]\[Wreckage on Dantooine: Expansive Research] The name of the spores in the description box now match the name of the spores found in the biome.  [/p]
• [p]\[Wreckage on Dantooine] It is now easier to click on the Botanical Scanner and interact with it.[/p]

[p]Date Night[/p]

• [p]Torian Cadera and Kira Carsen now spawn at level 80 when summoned for their Date Night missions. [/p]

[p]Hi folks! [/p][p]We started off the year with the brand-new Shadow Sentry armor set and a developer livestream detailing what was coming in Game Update 7.8.1. All of us are happy to see how well Master’s Enigma has been received. We are on our way to the finale of Legacy of the Sith, coming this Spring! Before I get into new details, let’s go over what’s been happening so far this year.[/p][p]Game Update 7.8.1[/p][p]Narrative content[/p][p]The “Master’s Enigma” storyline was released on March 10th with 7.8.1. Players finally confronted Darth Jadus and set out to explore a research vessel that belonged to Darth Nul. I won’t spoil any more in case you haven’t played it yet! [/p][p]Alongside Master’s Enigma, we also release two new Date Night Missions, featuring Torian Cadera and Kira Carsen. Bounty Hunters can join Torian making a traditional Mandalorian dish, and Jedi Knights can meet Kira on Tython to reconstruct important monuments to the planet’s history.[/p][p]One thing to note is that English voices are available for the above content, however, players using a French or German client will be able to play this storyline with English voices and subtitles in their native language. As soon as we have an update on when French and German lines can be added, we'll share when players can expect these! Appreciate your patience in this matter. [/p][p]Galactic Season 10 “Secrets of the Syndicate”[/p][p]Our current Galactic Season has launched with both returning player-favorite rewards and new rewards that can be earned! Many players have requested the opportunity to obtain past rewards, so while GS10 is active, companions Altuur zok Adon and PH4-LNX and all other rewards from seasons 1 and 3 can be obtained. For players who have completed these seasons, new rewards can be earned including the companion compatible Blue Shift and Event Horizon mounts! [/p][p][/p][p][/p][p](Blue Shift and Event Horizon Mounts)[/p][p][/p][p]Seasonal Event and Cartel Market[/p][p]The Dantooine Spring Abundance Festival is now underway, so have fun baking pies, planting and harvesting, dancing with friends, and more! And a new Mobile Abundance Basket Minipet reward has been added to the season vendor. [/p][p][/p][p](Mobile Abundance Basket Minipet)
[/p][p]Speaking of Dantooine, a new Invasive Flora Decoration Bundle has been added to the Cartel Market. Included in this bundle are dozens upon dozens of vine decorations that are perfect for adding a more natural look to your Stronghold. [/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Game Update 7.9[/p][p]Game Update 7.9 “Legacy Reborn” is the Legacy of the Sith finale! Darth Jadus, Darth Malgus, and Shae Vizla clash in an epic battle that will decide the future of the galaxy. Who will you side with, and who will emerge victorious? [/p][p]This update will arrive later this Spring and we will share more details on what you can expect in the next developer livestream. [/p][p][/p][p]15 Year Anniversary Update Check-In[/p][p]We know you want to hear more about our plans for 8.0 and we are equally looking forward to sharing what the team is working on! In the last Livestream we covered some of our high-level goals, and we’ve enjoyed watching the speculation about features we might be working on. We also covered how we’ll communicate about 8.0 throughout the year, and the next major check-in will come with the 7.9 Livestream, where we’ll share the first feature details you can expect from this update.[/p][p][/p][p]What else is happening? 
DirectX 12 Update [/p][p]Hopefully, you will have read the article that details how things are going with SWTOR migrating to DirectX 12. If you have not yet, I encourage you to do so as it offers insight into the journey thus far. Read more here![/p][p]Making technical upgrades such as moving to DirectX 12 and updating to 64-bit are huge milestones for the game, as it both preserves its health and gives us opportunities to build even more compelling content for players. I’m very pleased to see this game continue to evolve, and we’ll share more on the progress of DirectX 12 as we meet major milestones.[/p][p][/p][p]Twitch Drop[/p][p]Don’t forget, you have until April 7th to earn the T2-26 Scout Walker Twitch Drop! Watch 5 hours of live SWTOR content on Twitch to obtain this mount. Be sure to connect your SWTOR and Twitch account through the account page on our website in order to be eligible to earn progress toward this Drop.[/p][p][/p][p]May the 4th [/p][p]We have quite a few things that will be running for May the 4th celebrations! Players can expect a Double XP Event, item sales, and a login and Subscriber reward. More details will be posted in late April, so stay tuned! [/p][p]This is only the start to 2026 and there is a lot more to come. As we wrap up the Legacy of the Sith storyline, we begin the journey to our 15 Year Anniversary Update. There's a lot we plan to tell you about 8.0 starting with the 7.9 Livestream. See you soon!! [/p][p][/p][p]-Keith [/p][p]
[/p]

[p]Hello to all of our SWTOR players! This is the Technical Team behind the initiative to bring SWTOR to DirectX 12. We’ve seen your questions and requests for updates on the progress we are making and now that we are nearing the end of the first quarter of the year, we thought this would be a good time for a quick check-in![/p][p]Whether you’re a brand new player or one that’s been with us since the very beginning, it’s likely you’ve heard us talk about Modernization. This has taken many forms in recent years, from visual focused efforts like the refreshing Environments and Characters, to more technical ones like the 64-bit Client. Modernization continues to be a priority for the team as we look to the future of SWTOR, and at the nexus of both technical and visual upgrades is DirectX.
[/p][p]The Beginning of the Journey[/p][p]When we committed to upgrading our version of DirectX, the first task was to create a baseline that would allow us to experiment with different approaches to modernizing the game. In short, we made a version of the game where the rendering was reduced to a basic set of features. For example, at this stage objects were drawn with no textures. This allowed us to remove aspects of our engine that were specific to DirectX 9 and ensure that we could move to DirectX 12 without introducing fundamental performance problems.[/p][p][/p][p](Examples of Korriban in the earliest stages of migrating to DirectX 12)
[/p][p]Next Steps[/p][p]Next, we began to recreate the minimal rendering features in DirectX 12. SWTOR was originally created in HeroEngine, but as the game has been upgraded and modified heavily over the years, little of the original code remains. It’s basically now the SWTOR Engine and is specific to our game. Therefore, we couldn’t simply get an upgraded version of the engine–we had to rebuild it![/p][p]Through collaboration with partner teams at Electronic Arts, we were able to integrate rendering components from Frostbite with the SWTOR engine. (We are using some components, but we are not converting the game to the Frostbite engine. Our game content depends on the SWTOR engine and isn’t compatible with Frostbite.) With the basics working, we set out to convert or replace all the major rendering features that weren't part of the minimal set. Some features, such as shaders (short programs that assign colors to pixels), had to be redone from scratch because the differences were stark while other features could be kept with a few modifications.[/p][p]
(Earliest stages of rendering)[/p][p][/p][p](Earliest stages of rendering)[/p][p][/p][p](Example of the additional textures and working shaders)
[/p][p](Additional textures and shaders)
[/p][p]Where are we now?[/p][p]This work has come a very long way! We have all the major features working, except for the User Interface (UI). We can all agree that the UI is a must have for any future testing, and we’ve found that converting this component has been our greatest challenge to date. Similar to the rendering engine upgrade, there was not a direct upgrade path for the UI, and we worked with teams at EA who had carried out similar work before to complete the conversion ourselves.[/p][p]Currently, we are working to get the UI in a functional state so that we can move on to public testing. Along with a few other loose ends to tie up, once we are in a position to communicate further about a Technical Alpha test, we’ll make an official announcement. For now, here are examples of the latest progress we’ve made:

[/p][p]Future Steps[/p][p]When we are in a good position to release the Technical Alpha version of the game on DirectX 12, players should expect the first iteration of testing will not have all the advanced rendering features available. For example, features like shadows and bloom (glare effects around bright lights) may not be implemented yet.[/p][p]There are a huge number of different processors and graphics cards in the marketplace, and we won’t be able to test all of them internally. So, our first focus will be asking for players to tell us about compatibility issues, glitches, etc... This testing is still in the future, but we are well on our way![/p][p][/p][p]What we expect from DirectX 12[/p][p]The goal of moving to DirectX 12 is to ensure that the technology used to maintain the game is supported, as well as provide us with opportunities to further modernize the game. As technology continues to evolve, so must the foundations that SWTOR is built upon. This goal and mindset is similar to when we migrated to 64-bit. However, moving to DirectX 12 also opens the door to all kinds of graphical improvements we’d like to make in the future that wouldn’t be possible with DirectX 9.[/p][p]We will share more details about other benefits players can expect from DirectX 12 in a future article. At this time, we wanted to share the progress that has been made so far and give you a glimpse into what’s to come. We appreciate your support, and we look forward to sharing more progress with you soon!
[/p][p]-The SWTOR Technical Team[/p]