Blood of the Empire #8 is online!

Star Wars: The Old Republic: Blood of the Empire concludes Arc Two of The Broken World [HERE] this week. The eight issue of the ongoing free webcomic is continuing the crazy mystery that left everyone hanging at the end of issue seven.  Will Kel find his answers in time? What is Kressh’s ultimate plan?  Check out the synopsis for issue eight below:

Teneb Kel is confronted with a strange and frightening vision of the past, the future, and of his greatest enemy. As he lies broken in the Lenico wasteland, he must seek the truth about Exal Kressh and the Emperor’s goals within his mystical dream–or be utterly destroyed when he returns to reality.

As if issue seven wasn’t confusing enough!  The eighth issue continues to perplex the mind.  Kel continues his “vision quest” or at least we are left thinking he’s having a vision.  While in his vision he learns some terrible truths.  Truths that make you stop and wonder what is going on with the Sith Empire in this timeframe!   Most notably the Emperor himself!  Everything seems to hinge on this Sith Emperor, and what Kressh found on Lenico that changed everything for her.  Will learning the same truths change everything for Kel as well?  So many questions!  Who is Darth Thanaton?  And how does he fit into Kels vision?  And what’s going on with the vision in the first place?  How much of it is real?  Where is Kressh REALLY at?  Who is the Jedi with Kel’s Bith slave?  So darn many questions and so very few answers given!  But don’t worry- ‘Arc Three’ kicks off soon, and you know we’ll be here to give you the details!  So stay tuned as more details are sure to come!

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Haden Blackman Resigns From LucasArts

Only months after LucasArts saw its President, Darrell Rodriguez, depart the company,  its Executive Producer has now also left. IGN reports that Haden Blackman, executive producer and writer for The Force Unleashed series, has resigned from his LucasArts position. IGN got confirmation from LucasArts on the news and a representative assured that the development of The Force Unleashed II will not be affected.

Blackman issued a statement that included the following:

"I've had a fantastic time working with the team at Lucasfilm and am really grateful for their ongoing support."

"While the decision to leave LucasArts did not happen overnight or come easily, I really feel that now is the best time for me to move on and explore new creative challenges and I look forward to the next phase of my career."

This news is just coming out so we'll be sure to update as we learn more on the resignation as well as the fates of other projects to which Haden was attached.

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Nar Shaddaa: Crowning Jewel of the Underworld

This Friday’s update brings us a new playable planet:  Nar Shaddaa. To me, a surprising one, as I thought there would be no more planets left, then Corellia. Nar Shaddaa also featured in KotOR 2, so it will be an interesting planet to (re-)visit, though I must admit that I'm not entirely sure what it offers that other planets don't already offer. With Coruscant already in the game we have a city planet and with Hutta we already have a crime capitol. But here it is:

Circling the planet Hutta is its largest moon – Nar Shaddaa, the ultimate corrupt city. Dominated by underworld concerns and owned by the Hutts, this sprawling mass of skyscrapers is considered one of the most dangerous and exciting places in the galaxy, where anything can be had for the right price.

Access the HoloNet to learn more about Nar Shaddaa. Check out this video to see the endless city that covers the moon's landscape. Also, don’t forget to visit the media section for never-before-seen screenshots, concept art, and wallpapers showing this capital of illegal commerce.

Besides being the apex destitute, this is neutral ground for the current war; the Republic and Empire are equally hated. The only war that matters on Nar Shaddaa is the one between the two mob-like corporate giants. On this moon of Hutta, the Hutt Cartel finds its greatest -- and possibly its only -- rival in all the galaxy: the Exchange. Where will you fit in this futuristic turf war? Maybe your place is on the side that pays the most credits. But whichever side you choose, neither can be trusted, so trust only in yourself.

It's not just business as usual on Nar Shaddaa. When planning your Star Wars vacation, be sure to stop by the literal world of entertainment.

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Chewbacca riding giant squirrel, fighting Nazis

Created by DeviantArt user Gamefan84, who says all that needs to be said: "Craziest request ever: Chewie riding a giant cute squirrel chasing down Nazis. He needs long flowing fur and a giant roar."

You might stop by his DeviantArt page and tell him how great this is.

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May the schwartz be with you: Comic-Con 2010: Slave Leias

It wouldn’t be San Diego Comic-Con without Slave Leias. Of course, this year at the annual Slave Leia photo op, the usual mayhem occurred. Who needs red carpet celebrities when you can see all the Slave Leias at the convention all in one spot?

The lovely ladies were out in full Force this year, complete with a supermodel addition of America’s Next Top Model winner and reality TV star Adrianne Curry.

(photo by Bonnie Burton) 

(photo by Bonnie Burton) 

(photo by Bonnie Burton) 

Photo by Nicole Love.

Photo by Nicole Love.

Photo by Nicole Love.

Photo by Nicole Love.

Photo by Nicole Love.

Photo by Nicole Love.

Photo by Nicole Love.

Photo by Nicole Love.

Photo by Nicole Love.

Photo by Nicole Love.

Photo by Nicole Love.

Photo by Nicole Love.

Photo by Bonnie Burton

Photo by Bonnie Burton

Photo by Bonnie Burton

Photo by Bonnie Burton

Photo by Bonnie Burton

Photo by Bonnie Burton

Photo by Bonnie Burton

Photo by Bonnie Burton

Photo by Bonnie Burton

Photo by Bonnie Burton

Photo by Bonnie Burton

Photo by Bonnie Burton

Via Starwars.com

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Making SWTOR Not Suck – Ending the MMORPG Launch Curse

Every announcement made for Star Wars: The Old Republic sends the loyal fanbase into a new swarm of debate, concern, and excitement that causes popular opinion to fluctuate faster than the stock market. It isn't the little things though that will win it or lose it for BioWare's latest Star Wars game, and we have learned a few important lessons from recent MMOG flops.

We will make a dozen characters before settling down with a favorite one or two so if there isn’t variety in early content, compulsive altoholics will be clawing off their faces after playing through the same twenty levels every single time they start a new character. Save us the gore and plastic reconstruction bills and just give us something new to do while we are trying to make up our fickle minds.

What features will BioWare have to nail in order to win player support? Ten Ton Hammer have a few good ideas of where they should start.

Read them here

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Interview with Alexander Freed - Questing and choices

Massively brings an interesting interview with Managing Editor on Star Wars: The old republic, Alexander Freed. The interview is mainly about what the different types of quests will be available in SWTOR, what compelling choices players have to make, and what it takes to write for a project of this magnitude.

Here us a snip:

We've got four different kinds of quests. We've got our class quests, which is what we've really focused on when we've talked to the press about story. It's traditional BioWare storytelling in an MMO space. The other three types of quests that we've got are all group quests.

We've got world quests which are essentially like the side quests that you'd see in Dragon Age or Mass Effect. They can be played in a group. That is where you see our multiplayer dialogue system in action.

Then we've got our flashpoints, which are our big, discrete, self-contained, fully-intended-for-group content -- not really intended to be soloable -- showcases of combat and storytelling in a group setting.

Then we've also got our world arcs, which are essentially long, connected sets of world quests telling one complete story with recurring characters. [These arcs are] really kind of showcasing multiplayer dialogue within the open world, so you can be doing them at the same time as you are doing the class quests. They are not in a separate space like the flashpoints are

Read the full interview at massively

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Family Guy ROTJ Spoof Gets A Title

The Hollywood Reporter Live Feed reports on the following Star Wars-related information coming out of the San Diego Comic-Con Family Guy Panel


- December's spoof of Return of the Jedi has been given the title "It's a Trap!"


- Due to the expense, this looks to be the last Star Wars parody from Family Guy


- The creators of Family Guy are not looking to do any more full-out movie parodies, except for possibly Indiana Jones.




Visit HollywoodReporter.com for more non-Star Wars related details on the upcoming Family Guy season. "It's a Trap!" will debut on DVD and Blu-Ray on December 21, 2010.


First Look At Family Guy ROTJ Spoof
TV Guide provides our first look at the promo artwork for Family Guy's next venture into the GFFA, a spoof of Return of the Jedi. 

See below for some cliff notes of additional details from the TV Guide article:

• Guest voices will include: Adam West, Carrie Fisher, Rush Limbaugh, Patrick Stewart, and Michael Dorn. (Limbaugh will portray the Sarlaac Pit monster) 
• Seth MacFarlane, Alex Borstein and Seth Green will be attending the SDCC panel

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