Bray the Imp

He/him. Demisexual nerd who's into space stuff and video games.

[anxious-jedi]

Hot take but in SWTOR both the Republic and the Empire are super interesting and complicated and the extreme way the fandom pits one as being pure evil while the other can do absolutely no wrong (this comes from both sides) is incredibly annoying

[levelofdepth]

And liking one side more than the other isn’t some grand reflection of a person’s inner self, nor their moral values.

[dingoat]

So Art Fight did indeed grab me by the throat and now I have a lot of Stuff to get back to working on, first out the door being this second batch of bothans that I've now had the chance to finish! Like the first lot, I started with hairstyles that I wanted to play with (or in the case of the braidhawk, had suggested! <3) and then thought about planets they might have come from or live/work on.

So, introducing: Rishi, Corellia, Hoth, Alderaan, Balmorra and Mek-Sha!

[swtorpadawan]

[passionesolja]

One of the things that SWTOR really does a good job of without meaning to is showing how fucking stupid Bane's Order is.

Yeah, it works when yall wanna be a weird daddy issue abuse cult. But as soon as galactic civilizations come into play, you need to have a Reconstituted Sith Order era structure.

The RSE Sith Order is a serious institution, unlike whatever tf Sidious got going on in the Galactic Empire.

Like Darth Vader wouldve been an incredible Emperor's Wrath. It wouldve made him and Palpatine's dynamic less toxic and abusive if Vader was allowed to be in a role that worked for him.

But befause the Rule of Two has zero nuance and was created to only destroy the Jedi and not run an Empire. You have poor Anakin having to juggle Emperor's Wrath, Sith Apprentice, manage a bunch of Sith Assassins (Inquisitors), and whatever bullshit Sidious needs done.

How the fuck was he supposed to even learn how to take Sidious' place when Vader has zero time to do any learning?

And like Vader realistically cant, so Sidious starts hating his ass and Vader starts getting disillusioned and is miserable. Whole time, this is Sidious' fault.

But Sidious for as shady as he is, is a weak as fuck Sith. It's easy to be the strongest mf in a two person game. His ass dont want to share power or have to protect his spot in any way, and that ends up being his demise. Like I love him to death, but he couldn't have survived the RSE Sith Order.

Mf probably wouldve quit during the Recruit phase when a Sith Master electrocuted tf out him for whatever reason.

Literally, he wouldn't even have to replace Vader, he just needs to be a competent leader and put Vader in the role that he'd work best in.

If Sidious had just used the mfs he already had around him and established a Dark Council, the Rebels wouldnt have won. Like Maul wouldve been a fantastic Dark Councilor of the Sphere of Imperial Intelligence. He already has underworld connections and insight.

Like if some random Sith Lord from the Reconstituted Sith Empire saw Sidious discard Maul, they'd be floored bc why would you reject somebody who can get shit done and has gotten shit done? Maul would have

Literally everybody from Dooku to Ventress who Sidious decides to backstab bc the Rule of Two serves his power addiction wouldve been great to have in his Galactic Empire.

"Oh but infighting" yeah bro you have a lot of intelligent and efficient people in the same organization and theyll butt heads. Mfs forgot that the OG Sith Order was a W2 job and not a daddy issue abuse cult lol

There's a reason why the Reconstituted Sith Empire lasts for millenniums and the Galactic Empire lasts for like 25 years

[vulcartist]

I translated the Ea-Nasir complaint into vulcan and engraved it in on a cooper plate

[tournevis-real]

The tumblrest sentence I have ever seen

[hhux]

STAR WARS WRITING RESOURCES

PLEASE REBLOG AND ADD ANY OTHERS YOU MIGHT KNOW OF <3 <3

WOOKIEEPEDIA. The source of anything and everything you want to know related to Star Wars. Good for fact-checking, character history, or simply killing time. There is also, of course, the official Star Wars Databank! STAR WARS GALAXY MAP. A fantastic project that maps the Star Wars galaxy as we know it. Consider donating ( if you can! ) to help keep the site up and running! Also check out W.R. van Hage’s map and the Star Wars Atlas Online Companion. TIMELINE. While hosted on Wookieepedia, this is nevertheless deserving of its own bullet point. This page provides an approximate timeline with dates of all canon material. You can also filter items, so that it displays only TV episodes, for example, or only books, or only movies! Find the Legends timeline here. STAR WARS SLANG AND PHRASES. A collection I’ve been keeping of phases, slang, idioms, insults, and more from the Star Wars universe. This also contains a glossary of frequently used terms, such as “refresher” in place of “restroom”. Please feel free to use/share! 

STAR WARS NAME GENERATOR. This is a fun one AND a life saver. You can generate up to 100 Star Wars-sounding names ( first and last! ) with a click. 

OTHER GENERATORS: 

Spaceship names as well as spaceship type/models

Earth-like alien planets for any alien planet you don’t have info on

Random landscapes, see above

Technobabble generator for when you need a reason for a red alert

Alien plant/herb/flower name generator. Also: mineral/metal/gemstone names, material names, medication names, and descriptions of alien substances

Scifi tool names for gadgets and gizmos

OTHER WEBSITES:

Jeff Russell’s Starship Dimensions, Dirk Loechel’s Sci-fi Spaceship Size Comparisons, and other Star Wars Deckplans

Star Wars Post 

Star Wars News Net

TheForce.net

[cloakedpress]

How to Write Better Characters: Roles, Motivation & Actually Making People Care

Let’s be real: your story can have the coolest magic system, the twistiness of the plot, or the hottest vampire/detective/alien—  

but if your characters are flat?  

Nobody’s sticking around.

So let’s break down how to give your characters real presence in your story by understanding their role, their motivation, and how to make them hit harder on the page.

1. What’s Their Role in the Story?

Every character needs a *reason to exist*. Think of them like parts in a machine. What do they *do* in your narrative?

Here are a few basic types:

- Protagonist: The one we’re rooting for. They drive the plot forward.

- Antagonist: The one in their way. Doesn’t have to be evil—just opposed.

- Foil: Someone who reflects the main character’s traits by contrast.

- Mentor: Offers wisdom, often with a tragic backstory or dramatic exit.

- Love Interest: Romantic tension? Check. But make sure they’re *more* than just eye candy.

- Wildcard: Unpredictable chaos gremlin. Every story needs one.

TIP: If you can remove a character without changing the plot? You probably should.

2. What Do They Want? (AKA Motivation)

This is the *core* of your character. Motivation makes everything feel real. Ask yourself:

- What does this character want more than anything?

- Why do they want it?

- What are they willing to do (or give up) to get it?

Bonus points if their motivation is in conflict with someone else’s. That’s where the juicy drama lives.

Ex: “She wants to save her sister. He wants to save the world. One bomb. One choice.”    Now we’re COOKING.

3. How Do You Show It?

Motivation isn’t just monologues and dramatic speeches. It’s in:

- What they *notice* first in a room.

- Who they *trust* (or don’t).

- The mistakes they keep repeating.

- The lies they tell *themselves*.

A character who’s obsessed with control might organize their bag mid-crisis.  

A character desperate to be loved might make themselves useful to everyone… even villains.

4. Let Them Be Messy

Perfect characters are boring.  

Give them contradictions. Regrets. Bad coping mechanisms. Let them be *wrong*. Let them grow.

Characters who never fail or change = characters nobody relates to.

Let your soft boys punch someone. Let your bad girls cry. Let your villains have a point.

5. Ask Yourself the Hard Stuff

- What would break this character?

- What line won’t they cross?

- Who are they when no one’s watching?

If you can answer these? You *know* your character.

6. Level Up: Relationships Matter

Characters don’t exist in a vacuum. Use dynamics to reveal depth:

- A character might be brave in a fight but terrified of disappointing their mentor.

- A flirty rogue might go speechless around the person they actually care about.

- A villain’s cruelty might soften around their childhood friend.

People are different with different people. Show it.

 TL;DR:  

Great characters = clear role + deep motivation + real emotion. 

Make them want things. Make them struggle. Make them human (even if they’re a dragon princess from space).

Want help building a specific character? Drop their name + vibe in my ask box. Let’s break them open together.

[thehighground-deactivated202303]

SWTOR Encyclopedia - Companions

So someone on reddit posted the link for the extremely hard-to-find SWTOR Encyclopedia - which I recommend checking out because the quality of these screenshots came out really bad for some reason. 

There’s a lot of super interesting stuff there, but the companion pages I found particularly striking. They contain a lot of info that is never given in-game, so I thought they were worth sharing! 

[coruscanti-real-estate]

Masterpost

Hello there! You can call me Han or Hanna (she/her).

I've been playing SWTOR on and off since around 2015. English is not my first language, any grammar and spelling mistakes are of course unintentional ^^

My main legacy is The Dawnbringer Legacy on the Satele Shan server

~ character list (for now; I will make a proper one)

My asks are always open :)

[moontheoretist]

We’re in each other’s orbits until the stars go cold.

[darthmarrfucker]

In this stronghold we are anti canonized male 6 foot chad keanu reeves Revan! in this stronghold Revan is a gnc probable she/they legend!

[veliseraptor]

i am terminally A Sucker for characters who have a towering and generally earned ego about their own ability and absolutely no self-worth about themselves as a person at all. intoxicating combo.

[fluffynexu]

Korriban is COLD

i only bring this up bc a LOT of ppl think the planet is HOT. it’s not.

hey, it’s ok. i was under the same impression too once.

but just because a planet is red and desert-looking doesn’t mean it’s hot.

korriban. is. COLD.

you CAN have cold deserts!

[reallystellacadente]

Thank you. Also, it makes wearing Sithy robes much more comfortable! 

[fancyfade]

[image description: Wookiepedia information on Korriban, a red ficitonal desert planet in the Star Wars universe. Regions: Outer rim territories, Stygian Caldera. Sector: Esstran sector (Sith Worlds). System: Horuset system. Suns: Horuset (1). Orbital position: 2. Moons: 7. Grid Coordinates: R-5. Rotation period: 28 standard hours. Orbital period: 780 local days. Class: Terrestrial. Diameter: 16,890 km. Atmopshere: Type 1 (breathable). Climate: cold and dry. End image]

I … never knew this

I feel like so lied to by myself

[coruscanti-real-estate]

We arrive on Coruscant and Qyzen is not happy. I get it, I probably wouldn't like it there either. I mean, I would love to take a trip there, but I wouldn't want to live in a place that has no real nature at all. I bet Coruscant has some huge botanical gardens and parks in the fancier districts, where the wealthy citizens can go to look at the plants and feel one with nature. It's probably a status symbol to have a big "garden" or greenhouse in your apartment if you're rich and the high society of Coruscant pays gardeners a small fortune to decorate their houses with lots of exotic plants and lavish flower arrangements.

Also, Qyzen's comment about seeing Yuon first is really sweet.

Speaking of Yuon, she seems to be getting worse, so now we have to hurry and find the Noetikons all over Coruscant.

That's very funny. Imagine seeking wisdom from an ancient artifact but it's so annoying that you have to turn it off.

Something's wrong here (That last image made me laugh)

After finding the last Noetikon (and speaking to Bastila Shan!) we go to learn the ancient shielding ritual. Since the Temple hasn't been sacked yet, while Narressia is here, I decided that the shrine for the Noetikons is either hidden in some secret place away from the Jedi Temple or that Narressia briefly has to travel offworld to a different temple to learn the ritual. I think I prefer the first option. I mean, the Jedi Temple is probably kind of empty at the moment because of the ongoing war (the Jedi are buisy) but since we are attacked by a Sith after learning the ritual, it can't take place in the temple because that wouldn't make sense for my timeline.

We have learned the ritual and are ready to help Yuon.

I didn't know that the Consular and Knight have the same ship, but now that I do, I definitely think that Narressia gave her ship to Nary in the Knight's story. Any changes in how the ship looks are just renovations, I mean, it's been twenty years.

[catohphm]

Concluding Rylan's Class Story in SWTOR!

Long time coming, I have finally wrapped up all of the class story for Rylan, my smuggler and main toon in SWTOR! I feel like it could've been executed better in some places but I loved the premise and the ending. Rylan feels like that Republic has finally vindicated him and gave him the proper honors for his service that should've been done many years ago. He was surprised that the Supreme Chancellor and other leading figures presented him the highest civilian honor in the Republic, even though Master Sumalee assured him he would be recognized for his victory against the Voidwolf.

This moment meant something bigger for Rylan. The days of an estranged war veteran, forced to make ends meet braving the underworld was now past and he was now recognized as a professional privateer and invaluable operative by the Republic. If it weren't for Master Sumalee, he thought, it wouldn't have been possible. She not only cleared his name but vouched for him to remain on as a Republic privateer, ending up his sponsor.

Working for the Jedi? It was mesmerizing for Rylan and his crew, no could make that up, but he felt indebted to Master Sumalee for what she did for him. And to have the chance to fight alongside the Jedi? It was a high honor, for he always had a reverence for them since was a boy. Sure there were things in the Order he disagreed with, but the Jedi Rylan got to meet and cooperate with he felt steadfastly did their part in serving the will of the Force and their role as guardians of peace and justice.

With his service record restored, false charges cleared and life reestablished, the future would see Rylan on the front lines of the war, but he had his new allies and friends on his side. Both in high and low places! His crew, Master Sumalee as well as Alilia and her group of scoundrels were those he could turn to with uncertain times approaching.

This took me a while! Rylan was a hard toon to develop. He is a hero but being one is hard. Good deeds often do not go unpunished, and Rylan had to fight through political corruption, bureaucracy and the treachery of the underworld to rebuild his life. His pragmatism guided by his morals, military training and experiences as a smuggler were key to that. The three-year long ordeal that started with a swindler making break with his ship and price on his head for weapons he didn't steal was finally over, and Rylan in the end got wealth but more so new friends, his honor back he deserved, and the true freedom he longed back for many years.

The class story ends with Rylan being commended for defeating the Voidwolf and securing the pirate fleet's cooperation with the Republic forces, then him and his crew discussing what will happen next before they leave Corellia for further adventures. I love how it nicely wraps up the story and ends with a small ensemble of characters getting back to their lives after celebrating their accomplishments.

[magicvicky2]

I’ve played the @smallfires-if prologue not so long ago and I’ve enjoyed a lot… So here’s my Knight Corporal Dovely and her BFF Simon UvU

[glitchy-npc]

Felix is a cinnamon roll sure, but hes also a badass. One of his own men pulls a gun on him and he doesnt so much as flinch, disarms him in one fluid motion and then makes light of it, giving his transgressor only a few chores instead of a discharge or court martial. 

If this private had say, Aric Jorgan as a commander, it would have gone a lot worse for him but Felix knows his men and empathizes with them.