Mine is another mind that is bored and stuck at work. Interesting how a lot of people posting do so from work.....
Anyway, I am also a programmer. And I understand your point about the simplicity of programming a time release system for FS. If I were programming a game and I wanted to add something that I wanted to be rare I might code it that way. But thats only because I don't have a team of 40 developers coding it. SOE has the manpower to code something more creative than that. Just by looking at how they setup the professions and skills you can see that they put time and effort into making the game enjoyable and free formed. I doubt they would scrimp when it came to developing code for FS.
I also agree that if it was time released then eventually everyone would have a FS character. And that goes directly against what the Dev team wants.
I think that it is possible for everyone to unlock the FS slot. I also think that just because you did it once, doesn't mean you'll be able to do it again. You might have a good idea of where to start, but you won't be able to manage the same path. I think that in conjunction with the idea that once a FS character dies they are completely gone will permanently limit the number of FS characters on each server.
I would say that there is probably some sort of FS point counter. And that when you reach a certain value that you release the FS slot. I would guess that the Dev team probably came up with dozens of unique ways to receive FS points. Some might be defeating an enemy that "looks like instant death", or visiting an area that is strong with the force, or maybe talking to or doing a mission for a FS NPC. I'm guessing that since every skill in the game must be taught by either a NPC or a PC that the force will work the same way.
I also think that if an NPC FS trainer/master were to stay in one place that people would definetly stake out that area to kill off FS characters. I would guess that there are very few NPC FS characters, less than a handful. I would also guess that they move around the galaxy. Travelling from one place to another. Kinda like the dark castle in the movie Krull. Perhaps FS characters have a waypoint that always lets them know where the master is. Between the moving around of the NPC and the multiple ways to gain FS points, that would give the Dev team reason to say that it would take months before anyone unlocked the slot. Especially when everyone is still running around killing womprats for a living. Once more characters start travelling the universe and experiencing things on different planets, then people will start unlocking the slot.
For now, we are all just left wondering. Which is exactly what the Dev team wants. They want people to go out and explore the galaxy. Who knows. Maybe a couple years from now we will see a website that lists all the ways to unlock a FS slot. I'm sure that once people lose a FS character or two that they will begin to try and find the formula. For me, being FS would be worse than cocaine. If my character ever died, i'd have to have a burial ceremony.
Anyway, thats just my two credits. Take it as you will.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The force is strong with this one!
|