Hyperspace Beacon: Four fantastic SWTOR YouTubers you should follow

With Star Wars: The Old Republic approaching its fifth anniversary, the players creating fresh content have shifted. Even the column you’re reading right now has changed. Although I’m still here, the location of the column has changed several times. The bottom line is that as a game ages, things change, and many people who might be coming back to the game after a long absences will likely not know where to find the information that they need to properly get back into the game.

For guides and other instructional material, I usually recommend the written word because you can more easily fall back on it and images can be added for clarity. However, I also know that people learn differently. For some having a wall of text is more harmful than helpful. So today I would like to focus on YouTube. There are some great YouTube channels that produce playthroughs and other entertainment-focused amusements, but today, I’d like to focus on informative YouTube channels, such as ones that produce guides. Here are my top four favorite SWTOR YouTubers — and a look at what they do.

SWTOR Central

This list is really in no particular order, but I thought that I would start with my most recent find. He goes by the handle SWTOR Central and is from the UK. I found him kind of by accident the other day, and his video about the 50 tips and tricks for SWTOR really caught my attention. In fact, it was that video that inspired me to do this list to help you find some more of the video guides around the SWTOR community.

SWTOR Central is on this list because his 50 Tips ‘n Tricks are actually useful, and he even pointed out one that I had forgotten about and was trying to remember. If you’re new to SWTOR, then you should really watch; I didn’t find one real flaw in his tips, and it is good advice that the average SWTOR player should employ everyday.

As for the tip I had forgotten about: It was adjusting the camera distance in the ini file. Some fights in raids are just insane to track everything, and compare to how far you can pull back the camera in games like WoW or RIFT, SWTOR’s distance is pitiful. And for some fights like the Master and Blaster in the Ravagers operation, it becomes less painful when you can pull the camera way out.

Dulfy

On the subject of operations, let’s go to the site that I probably use the most. And based on the number of comments in each post, I’m far from the only one to use Dulfy on a regular basis. Everyone who plays MMOs turns to Dulfy at one point or another, and I’m not really sure that I have to mention her site. However, it’s not her site that I am most interested in at this point; I’d like to point you to her YouTube channel.

One of the biggest shortcomings the SWTOR preview system is that it will not show you any of the emotes or regen items in action. Did you know that Dulfy has video of every single emote, Smuggler Shuffle to shovel, in a video on YouTube? So if you want to see what an emote looks like before you buy it off the GTN, then simply type in YouTube or Google “Dulfy” and the name of the emote. You’ll be sure to get it.

As cool as the emote search is, the main reason that anyone should go to Dulfy is for her guides. Before most people had completed any of the operation fights, Dulfy had a guide up and ready for go. Her camera sits at the healer’s perspective, and she flashes tips and strategies on the screen as the fight progresses. And even though many of the operation videos are older, they still apply. I’d suggest that you use them.

SWTORista

I mentioned last week that SWTORista inspired last week’s Hyperspace Beacon. Well, I’m going to mention her series of videos again. It’s called The Academy, and each video is produced with the people behind one of my favorite SWTOR podcasts: Ootinicast. I don’t know if I can praise these walkthroughs of SWTOR basics enough. It’s not just that she guides us on how to use certain parts of the game mechanics; these videos are highly produced and well planned.

I’d like to highlight a video on a subject that you will likely never see from me: crafting. Episode 8 of The Academy guides us through how each of the six crafting skills works and why each is important to the game overall. Then she takes that to the next level by guiding us step-by-step through the system. Beyond the process, however, she gives advice on which crew skills would be the best based on what we like to do in the game. It’s advice that I believe all new players should heed.

Vulkk

I cannot go through a list of SWTOR YouTubers without mentioning Vulkk. Vulkk is from Bulgaria, and he runs what is likely the very best YouTube channel focused on Star Wars: The Old Republic, a game where the largest population is centered in North America. I believe that speaks wonders about the reach of the game as well as the acceptance of the Star Wars: The Old Republic community as a whole.

There are many videos that I could pick out as must-watch videos by Vulkk, but some of that might be biased because he mains my favorite Advanced Class the Sentinel/Marauder. However, I will highlight his playlist of each of the Eternal Champion fights. He guides you step by step on how to defeat each boss. Pay special attention to the Nocturno and Drake Raven fight.

All right, it’s your turn. I know there are other SWTOR Youtubers out there. Which ones did I miss? Which video is your favorite from the ones that I mentioned? Let me know in the comments below.