Hello from Tobinius

[Tobinius]

Greetings everyone.

My actual name is Tobin, and I am 48 and live in Toronto, Canada where I have lived for most of my life (I was born in a place called Wolfville in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia). For a brief overview of my life, after high school I spent 5 years in the 7th Toronto Artillery militia (or reserves - which is just part-time military). My hope had been to use this experience to get into the fire dept., but an injury to my shoulder closed that option. Later I worked as a security officer/supervisor/director. After this I worked as a freelance typesetter (computer typesetter) and did some design work. During this time I also worked part-time for a while working security at the headquarters for our country's public television/radio network (CBC). I also did a bit of close protection work during this period. I then went back to York University (the first time I quit after 2 years into an arts degree - history/psychology) and completed my undergraduate degree in biology. I then worked as a mobile alarm response security officer (responding to both the best and worst areas of our city), before I went back to York University again to work on a graduate degree in behavioural ecology (I used birds as my study species, and was looking at how their movements were affected in a fragmented environment - our study site was in the NW area of Pennsylvania). Towards the end of this I had some health issues that put completing my graduate degree on hold (basically I just need to write my thesis and do my presentation to my graduate committee in order to finish).

While I did see the original Star Wars trilogy when it first came out, I wouldn't say I was a huge fan, although I really liked how George Lucas took the ideas and info from Joseph Campbell's Hero with a Thousand Faces and created a compelling story and universe. I guess I was more of a Trekkie. Nonetheless, in the last month or so I have really enjoyed the storyline that SWTOR created on the official web site, and I am really looking forward to immersing myself in this universe.

I'm not really sure what else to say that hasn't already been said here or in the other threads, so please feel free to ask me anything else you think it would be helpful to know.

Cheers

[Foriamlord]

Hi Tobin, Welcome to our little section of Pax Republica.

I see you have decided to play a Jedi Shadow. Do you prefer to play DPS or Tank?

[Legendkiller456]

Greetings Tobin, pleased to meet you
I look forward to talking to you in Ventrilo.
May I ask what is your favorite Star Wars planet and why?

[Tobinius]

Foriamlord wrote:

Hi Tobin, Welcome to our little section of Pax Republica. I see you have decided to play a Jedi Shadow. Do you prefer to play DPS or Tank?

Thank you.

Although it was the ability to off-tank that initially drew me to the class (well, one of the main things), I actually plan on filling a DPS role. I hope that once we can take dual roles, I will get to off-tank too.

How about yourself?

[Tobinius]

Legendkiller456 wrote:

Greetings Tobin, pleased to meet you I look forward to talking to you in Ventrilo. May I ask what is your favorite Star Wars planet and why?

Hey Legend, thanks, I look forward to talking to you too.

As I noted, my knowledge of the Star Wars universe is probably very limited compared to the majority of the guild members. But, from what I have read/watched I would say that I am most looking forward to visiting Tatooine. Part of the reason is certainly because it would be cool to explore the planet based on the movies and the info about the planet from the official SWTOR website. But I also am really drawn to deserts - I think they are really interesting environments. Deserts of one type or another have shaped cultures that have had incredible influence on humans over the course of human history. From a biological point of view, adaptions that various species go through so that they can survive the harsh environment are quite fascinating too.

Cheers

[Sticx45]

Tobinius wrote:

Foriamlord wrote: Hi Tobin, Welcome to our little section of Pax Republica. I see you have decided to play a Jedi Shadow. Do you prefer to play DPS or Tank? Thank you. Although it was the ability to off-tank that initially drew me to the class (well, one of the main things), I actually plan on filling a DPS role. I hope that once we can take dual roles, I will get to off-tank too. How about yourself?

We are first and foremost a pvp guild not a raid guild. As of yet there is only plans to have 2 days a week with scheduled raiding. So you really need to play what you want to play. Because class balance doesn't matter as much in pvp as opposed to raiding. With that in mind.

There is no such thing as an "off tank" in the swtor universe. Your either a tank or your not. Every tank advance class can tank just as well as any other tank. Unless you go half into one tree, half into another tree, and left overs into the 3rd tree... which is just silly given the system they have worked out.

So far all of the info on raiding points to the 2 tank raid setup. None of the fights thus yet require more than 2 tanks. So if you are interested in raiding, than you may find this limiting if you do want to tank. Because that is only 4 tank slots a week. And odds are they will be filled by the same two people on each raid. Meaning only two raiding tanks.

This is all conjecture and guesswork at this point, based on years and years of raiding. No one at all is saying you can not raid outside the guild though. I know as a tank, if i want to get my raid on and there are no spots in the guild raid for me. I'll just start finding people that also want to raid, but have no slot or group to do so with, and put a weekly something together.

As i said at the start, first and foremost this is a pvp guild.

[Tobinius]

Sticx45 wrote:

We are first and foremost a pvp guild not a raid guild. As of yet there is only plans to have 2 days a week with scheduled raiding. So you really need to play what you want to play. Because class balance doesn't matter as much in pvp as opposed to raiding. With that in mind.

I agree that being on a PvP server makes us mainly a PvP guild, but unless SWTOR is completely different from WOW (which it could very well be, but I haven't seen that yet - although I certainly like the different approach to questing and alignment that they have taken), raiding will most likely be a weekly thing. So it will most likely be an important aspect of the endgame (until an expansion comes out).

I would also argue that balance is important - the guild structure has been purposely set-up so that there hopefully are an even number of people playing each advanced class (if not every tree within that advanced class). I think the guild would do quite poorly in PvP events if we were overly abundant in Healers, for example.

Sticx45 wrote:

There is no such thing as an "off tank" in the swtor universe. Your either a tank or your not. Every tank advance class can tank just as well as any other tank. Unless you go half into one tree, half into another tree, and left overs into the 3rd tree... which is just silly given the system they have worked out.

I'm sorry, but I have to disagree again regarding there being no such thing as off-tanking in SWTOR. In one the official videos of a raid being done in an alien prison, the person talking about the action as it was progressing, specifically said that the Seth Assassin was acting as an off-tank. Of course, it could just be a difference in what I picture as an off-tank and what you do.

Sticx45 wrote:

So far all of the info on raiding points to the 2 tank raid setup. None of the fights thus yet require more than 2 tanks. So if you are interested in raiding, than you may find this limiting if you do want to tank. Because that is only 4 tank slots a week. And odds are they will be filled by the same two people on each raid. Meaning only two raiding tanks.

Ok, I really am not trying to be difficult here, but to say that only 4 people in the guild will regularly fill the guild tank slots, when we will have 12 (?) Guardians (not to mention others), who I assume all intend to be tanks, seems rather elitist. Of course the reality will be that some people will excel at certain positions and will no doubt became the main go to for that position. Nonetheless, I really hope that the guild is a little more flexible than that. I guess time will tell, but I have to admit that I am hoping for (and will actively work towards) a flexible guild, not the elitist guild that has their "A" team that members wait years to get slotted into. I also think that changing things up keeps the raiding from becoming just another form of grinding.

Sticx45 wrote:

This is all conjecture and guesswork at this point, based on years and years of raiding. No one at all is saying you can not raid outside the guild though. I know as a tank, if i want to get my raid on and there are no spots in the guild raid for me. I'll just start finding people that also want to raid, but have no slot or group to do so with, and put a weekly something together. As i said at the start, first and foremost this is a pvp guild.

Yes, if there are no spots available for that weeks raids, then setting something else up is certainly an option. I am just hoping that we have enough members that we won't be forced to regularly look outside of the guild to do them.

Cheers

[Sticx45]

Wasn't trying to be argumentative, I'll leave it at that.

[Tobinius]

Sticx45 wrote:

Wasn't trying to be argumentative, I'll leave it at that.

I didn't think you were trying to be anything - I think we just have a difference of opinion. I'm sorry if I came off as being confrontational, I was simply trying to be honest in my response. Different opinions are good because they help us question our own opinions/facts/beliefs.

Cheers

[Pax Eternus]

Hi Tobinius!

Who is your avatar?

[Tobinius]

Pax Eternus wrote:

Hi Tobinius! Who is your avatar?

Hi Eternus,

That would be the wonderfully fabulous Leland Palmer (played by Ray Wise) from the TV series Twin Peaks. I am a huge David Lynch fan.

Cheers