Welcome to one of the last Friday Updates before launch! You may have been thinking it would never come, but the Sith Inquisitor character progression video has been released, with a full dose of Force Lightning. Check out what the different armor sets for the Sith Sorcerer and Assassin look like in the video below.

Starting today, a new Community Blog has been added to the official website. The blog will feature more frequent updates from the dev team, and get this – they won’t always be posted on Fridays. Currently, with the forums to be wiped soon, they will be re-posting some pertinent dev posts from the forums to the blog to make sure everyone has a chance to read them. Also expect some future entries that showcase different aspects of the community. Check it out here.

Excited about the launch of TOR? Live in a major(ly lucky) city in the US or Europe? Then make sure to attend one of the launch events for Star Wars: The Old Republic, which will have official presence from BioWare. In the US, head to Best Buy Union Square in New York City and the Best Buy South Austin in Austin, Texas on December 19. In Europe, events will be held at the Virgin Megastore in Paris, France and at Oxford Street GAME in London on December 14. If you are able to attend, know that we are extremely envious, and we expect photos.

This week brings a trio of updates to the Star Wars: The Old Republic community. Like the previous “Choose Your Side” video between the Jedi Knight and Bounty Hunter, this week’s video pits the Republic Trooper against the Sith Inquisitor.

Been wanting to get into testing for Star Wars: The Old Republic but feel like you’re never going to be chosen? Well the wait will soon be over. If you signed up for testing before November 11, you should have already received a game testing invite for a future weekend. This upcoming test will be seen as a stress test, so BioWare is inviting as many participants as they can. If you didn’t receive an invite from the official site, you can enter to win one at several gaming websites. Please read the FAQs on the upcoming testing weekend for more information.

Lastly, Star Wars: The Old Republic will once again be at Dreamhack in Sweden this year. This will give fans the chance to play the game before the game’s launch in North America and Europe. Dreamhack will be November 24 – 27. Let us know if you will be there!

Recently the blog The Sith Inquirer was able to get some answers out of Lead Writer Daniel Erickson about the storyline for the Sith Inquisitor. While the Inquisitor’s story was written by former BioWare employee Rebecca Harwick, Erickson was the one to help flesh out all the loose ends. Topics Erickson covers include inspirations for the Inquisitor’s story, companions, and even revealing the voice actors for the class: Euan Morton and Xanthe Elbrick for male and female characters, respectively. Check out an excerpt below.

Check out the entire interview at The Sith Inquirer.

Fact Sheet

• Species: Human, Zabrak, Rattataki, Twi’lek, Sith Pureblood
• Starting Planet: Korriban
• Combat Type: Ranged Damage Dealing/Debuffs
• Weaponry: Lightsabers/Double-Bladed Lightsabers
• Armor: Sith Robes
• Ship: Fury
• Famous Inquisitors: Naga Sadow, Darth Maul, Darth Traya, Darth Sidious

Summary

The Sith Inquisitor is known more for their attunement with the Dark side of the Force than for their skill with a lightsaber. However, underestimating the Inquisitor’s hand-to-hand combat abilities would undoubtedly prove to be a fatal mistake. Manipulation of the force and their surrounding is the true trademark of the Sith Inquisitor. This trait lends itself well to the politics and dark secrets required to lead the Sith Empire from behind-the-scenes. A threat both in the heat of combat and in a supporting role with the power of their sorcery, the Sith Inquisitor is a force to be reckoned with. Read more»

The TOR team have given Gamespot an in depth look at the Sith Inquisitor class, as well as a Q&A on the class with Daniel Erickson (writing director) George Zoeller (lead combat designer).

We’ve already covered much of the early game and have spent time with many of its professions, but this time around, writing director Daniel Erickson and principal lead combat designer George Zoeller have shared new details on the Sith inquisitor class with us. This powerful profession was originally based on the character of Emperor Palpatine, the decrepit and thoroughly evil Sith master from Return of the Jedi, but as the BioWare staffers explain, Sith inquisitors start in a very dark place, but they don’t necessarily have to stay there throughout their adventuring careers.

You can read the rest of the Q&A here.

This week’s update sees writer Rebecca Harwick take us through the process of writing for and coming up with ideas for the Sith Inquisitor class:

The holonet entry for the last revealed class in The Old Republic, the Sith Inquisitor, has been added to the official site, as well as some new media. Check out new screenshots, concept art, and wallpapers and read up on the lore side of the Inquisitor.

We’ve seen previews all across the web today, revealing new information from hands-on play sessions with Star Wars: The Old Republic. Let us take a look at what we have learned from each of them.

Jedi Consular: Read more»

Today many websites have posted their hands-on impressions of Star Wars: The Old Republic after getting to play the game at press events during November. Below all the previews have been compiled from the official forums: Read more»

Member GGDonner of the official forums has translated an interview with James Ohlen, the lead designer on The Old Republic, from the 8-page TOR article in the December issue of German magazine PC Games. Here is an excerpt:

PCGames: Whats the main difference between jedi-knight and jedi-consular / sith-warrior and sith-inquisitor?

James Ohlen: The jedi knight is a warrior, whose abilities are all based on lightsaber melee combat. The consular on the other hand is a supporter. He stands in the background and tries to deal damage from there or to crowd control enemies. As an example, he can lift them up into the air to smash them on the ground afterwards or just to throw them around.

PCGames: So you are bound with your class choice to one specific gameplay style? Or are there ways to play your class differently?

James Ohlen: All classes in SW:TOR can move into another direction from one point in the game. So you can chose between two different ways: One of these ways as a consular is to heal. If you want to play an old-fashioned healer class, the consular is your choice. Of course you don’t have to go that way, but as an consular you have the option to do that.

There are a few things confirmed in the interview. First, there are two different paths for each class. These will probably be similar to WoW specializations, except it sounds like once you choose one way, you can’t go back.

Companion characters will level up with your character, but you do not choose their skills. You do not directly control them, but they can be fairly easily influenced by your PC.

Lastly, Luke Skywalker was a “little jedi boy”.

PCG Interview with James Ohlen [The Old Republic Forums]