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Star Wars Galaxies: Friday Feature - The Nuts and Bolts of Reverse Engineering

| 26 Jan 2007 21:45


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At a glance:

  • Reverse Engineering
  • How does Reverse Engineering work?
  • Reverse Engineering Tool
  • Creating a Power-Up
  • Creating a Skill Enhancing Attachment
  • Bigger, Better Bits!
  • Creating items with two and three bonuses
  • Additional Intel

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Reverse Engineering

Reverse Engineering is a new crafting feature coming to Star Wars Galaxies in Chapter 5. It provides traders with a new way to customize armor, clothing and weapons. These new items will be very competitive in combat making them a more appealing purchase for potential customers. Reverse Engineering is also very handy for traders who provide their player associations with the latest and greatest gear.

Reverse Engineering is really going to open up a huge variety of bonuses and item modifications, so let's look at the nuts and bolts of how it works.

How does Reverse Engineering work?

Traders can use a reverse engineering tool to deconstruct loot items. The tool breaks the items down into their basic "bits": power bits and modifier bits.

These modifier bits and power bits are combined to make skill enhancing attachments, power-ups or even better bits. Finally, skill enhancing attachments and power ups can be added to crafted armor, clothing and weapons to give them a wide variety of bonuses and modifiers.


Reverse Engineering Tool

Understanding how to use the reverse engineering tool will play a very important role in successfully creating new items.
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Here are some tips:

  • Reverse engineering tools can be created by any trader with the Novice Artisan skill.
  • This tool will deconstruct certain types of loot items into power bits and modifier bits.
  • Power bits and modifier bits can be combined to create skill enhancing attachments, power-ups and even better bits.
[/TD] [td style="color:black" width="171" valign="top"][/TD] [td style="color:black" align="center" valign="top"]                    Reverse Engineering Tool[/TD] [td style="color:black"][/TD] [td style="color:black" width="258"][/TD] [td style="color:black" colspan="2" valign="top"]<div align="left">

Creating a Power-Up

Power-ups are temporary buffs that will give you a variety of bonuses and/or attribute modifiers. Here is a step-by-step look at creating a power-up.

1. You start creating a power-up by choosing a loot item to deconstruct. Loot items are reverse engineered by the tool into power bits and modifier bits.

  • Loot items with skill modifiers can be reverse engineered to create power bits. The loot items you should look for will most often be armor, clothing or weapons.
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  • Once you deconstruct the item into a power bit, you cannot change it back.
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Example of a stat modified loot item that can be reverse engineered into a power bit.

2. Next, use the radial menu to open your reverse engineering tool. Drag-and-drop your chosen loot item into the crafting tool's inventory.

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    Tips

    • Make sure that the auto-sort option to drag-and-drop items into your inventory is disabled.

    • If the auto-sort inventory option is enabled, you won't be able to drag the item into another window (it will just auto-sort into your inventory).

    • If you have the auto-sort inventory option disabled, you can also drag-and-drop the loot item onto the tool instead of opening the window to place the item if you wish.

    3. Once you have placed the loot item into the reverse engineering tool, close the tool's inventory window. Then activate the radial menu and select the option that says, "Reverse Engineer."

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    When you do this, the power bit will be placed in your inventory.

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    4. Next, you will need a modifier bit. Creating a modifier bit is similar to creating a power bit, but you should choose a different type of loot to deconstruct.

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    • Electronic loot items such as software modules, chassis blueprints, medical devices, circuit boards and other similar items may all be converted into modifier bits.

    • You can place them in the tool's inventory or drag-and-drop them into the tool the same as if you were making a power bit.
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    5. Use the radial menu to select the "Reverse Engineer" option on the tool again and the modifier bit will be placed in your inventory.

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    6. Then place the power bit and the modifier bit into the reverse engineering tool. You can do this either by opening the window to drag and drop the item onto the tool, or if your auto-sort option is disabled, just drag and drop it directly onto the tool.

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    7. Finally, use the radial menu and select the option to create your power-up!

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    Here is an example of a power-up for armor.

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    • <div align="left">Power-ups will boost clothing, armor and weapons with a temporary bonus to your character attributes and/or skills.

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    • <div align="left">To use a power-up, all you have to do is drag-and-drop the power-up onto the item you want to boost.

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    • You can stack power ups with socketed clothing or armor that has skill enhancing attachments for a combined bonus.

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    Creating a Skill Enhancing Attachment

    Skill enhancing attachments are permanent bonuses that any player can add to armor or clothing. All you have to do is drag and drop the skill enhancing attachment onto the piece of armor or clothing.

    To create a skill enhancing attachment, you'll go through the same steps as above but instead of selecting "Create Powerup," choose the option that says, "Create Skill Enhancing Attachment."

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    Here is an example of a Skill Enhancing Attachment.

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    • <div align="left">Skill enhancing attachments can be sold to any player to enhance their socketed armor or clothing.

      </div>
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    • Traders can also place skill enhancing attachments in socketed armor and clothing crafted to customize merchandise they are selling.

      </div>

    Bigger, Better Bits!

    Take your reverse engineering to the next level by creating power-ups and skill enhancing attachments with two and three bonus modifiers!

    By combining power bits and modifier bits, you can create 2nd order and 3rd order power bits.

    To do this, add a power bit and a modifier bit into the tool.

    Select the reverse engineer option and the result will be a 2nd order power bit.

    To get a 3rd order power bit, place the 2nd order power bit and a modifier bit into the tool. Reverse engineer it and a 3rd order power bit will be placed in your inventory.

    Skill enhancing attachments and power-ups created with 2nd order power bits will have two bonuses and those created with 3rd order power bits will have three bonuses!

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    Creating items with two and three bonuses

    To create a skill enhancing attachment with two or more bonuses, you will need the following:

    • An existing skill enhancing attachment with one bonus modifier on it already (ex.: a +20 Constitution clothing attachment)

    • A 2 nd order power bit (Ex.: +15)

    [ul]
  • A modifier bit. (Ex.: Luck)

Put all three items in the tool, reverse engineer them and voila! You will have a clothing skill enhancing attachment with +20 Constitution and a second bonus of +15 Luck.

The process for making a skill enhancing attachment with three stats works the same way, except you should use a 3rd order power bit and another modifier bit.

 

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Additional Intel

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  • You can drag-and-drop a skill enhancing attachment onto any crafted item that has sockets.
  • Bonuses from skill enhancing attachments and power-ups will stack.
  • Bonuses from expertise and skill enhancing attachments / power-up bonuses will stack
  • No-trade and bio-linked items cannot be reverse engineered.

  • Crafted armor and clothing with socketed item that have skill enhancing attachments on them may be reverse engineered.

  • Experimentation & Assembly bonuses from suits, backpacks, and other clothing is calculated when you are reverse engineering.
  • Traders can specialize in reverse engineering by spending trader expertise points in reverse engineering.
  • Reverse engineering on the ground and reverse engineering for space components are separate skills.
  • All traders may reverse engineer except for shipwrights who can reverse engineer space loot. Shipwrights can make the reverse engineering tool to sell if they wish.
  • Most skill modifiers will still have a maximum of +25 (experimentation for example). The six main stats (Constitution, Stamina etc.) are currently exempt from this cap.
  • Skill enhancing attachments will not be limited to the six basic character attributes. They will include a wide variety of possible bonuses for both existing and new abilities.
  • With all the different loot items and possible bonuses that are included, there is upwards of 5000 different combinations possible!

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