Should I use mods if I haven't played the game before?

YES—the KOTOR Community Patch is a pure bugfix compilation focused on resolving all the game's various bugs, some of them quite significant even if not gamebreaking. It adds no restored content (KOTOR has very little to restore), so even if you would typically like to avoid any sort of content alterations in a first playthrough, this mod is still something you should use as a pure bugfix patch.

Excepting the K1CP, however, generally speaking mods on your first playthrough can ruin the intended progression or aesthetic of the basegame. Worse still, it can do this before you can even learn what the intended design is like, which can result in redesigning a game you may have liked in its basic form—a fraught prospect at best. It's also all-too-easy to spoil yourself on major plot points while searching for mods. Therefore, unless you're specifically only using mods which restore content or fix bugs, we usually recommend not using any mods on your first playthrough.

There is an exception to this in the form of the KOTOR Mod Builds, however. We're a little biased given that this site hosts them, but we also truly believe that the Spoiler-Free Mod Build, which is a subset of the base mod build specifically geared towards new players, includes tasteful improvements across the game without modifying its original atmosphere, progression, or story. It's designed to enhance the base game rather than modify it, and its use will, in our opinion, not detract from the experience of KOTOR in the slightest. Most importantly, as the name suggests, installs of that build are censored to prevent you from being spoiled during the download or install process for the mods, allowing you to install the content safely without risking your experience being compromised.

I want to avoid making some "general mistakes" in the course of my playthrough. Without major spoilers, what are some things I should know?

If you meet someone wielding a lightsaber in a grove, just know you don't have to kill them.

There are companion quests which have a certain pseudo-required planet order to them. If you'd like to complete all of them, you'll need to play your game in a certain way; see here for more info, though be aware this guide does contain more significant spoilers!

If you do something special with Bastila on the Ebon Hawk that seems important (like it won't happen again, maybe, until the end of the game), don't speak to her AT ALL after that point, to avoid an unfortunate basegame bug. This is fixed in some mods, but unless you're utilizing the KOTOR mod build (the fix is included) or another mod which you're positive resolves this issue, it's best to not speak with her again until a point which will become obvious.

In order to make a particular mechanic easier, by your fourth Star Map it's recommended to have either Drain Life (or Death Field), Destroy Droid, or Force Lightning/Storm.

My game is crashing before/shortly after the main menu, or whenever I have a cutscene!

This is most likely a bug known as the "fullscreen bug," which usually causes KOTOR to crash or minimize on or shortly after startup, and/or when two cutscenes are played back-to-back. If you're on a laptop with an integrated graphics card and you're experiencing similar issues it might not be the fullscreen bug—KOTOR doesn't play nicely with integrated graphics, and in that case your issue may not be fixable—but even for users with integrated cards, attempting some of the following options sometimes results in success.

The first option is to entirely disable movies in the KOTOR .ini file. This is obviously not a great solution, and should only be taken if the other three options fail for whatever reason.

The second option is to navigate to your KOTOR .ini in KOTOR's game folder (on Steam, it's located in Steam/steamapps/common/swkotor), open it with a text editor such as notepad, and edit the line that says "fullscreen=1" to be "fullscreen=0," and add a line under the Graphics settings called "AllowWindowedMode=1". This should open the game in windowed mode for you, and should solve your issue.

The third option is to right-click your game's executable file, select Properties, then go to the compatibility tab and check "Deactivate Visual Designs", "Deactivate desktop..." and "Deactivate scaling...." Note that this has only been tested on Windows 7 and only seems to work in certain circumstances, but is worth giving a try before the more intensive option listed below.

The fourth option is the most time-consuming, but also has the highest success rate and is the most functional option, as it allows you to play KOTOR not only in fullscreen, but also in widescreen whilst almost always fixing the issue. It will require you to first follow the instructions in this video to apply widescreen, and then to either apply high-resolution cutscenes from this mod (not guaranteed to work, although you can download and test these cutscenes more quickly than you can make the altered cutscenes in the alternate option, and these cutscenes are high-quality and can be used as the basis for manual movie rescaling in the alternate step if it doesn't work for you) or utilize the .bik movie rescaling in this video (note that the .bik upscaling step in this video can take as much as 12 hours to complete, although the process is automatic). Whether the HD cutscenes method or the .bik movie rescaling method is utilized, the hex editing steps showcased in the second half of the second video by Xuul will need to be taken in order for the new movies to play properly and fix your issue. Please note also that 1366x768 is not supported by this method, and indeed cannot mechanically function ingame, unless you use this mod along with its letterbox scaling option, which will allow 1366x768 to function normally.

With these widescreen steps completed, you might also want to take a look at this list of mods, which further improves the game's widescreen support.

I can't move after combat/my character will randomly freeze and I can't get them to move again!

This is a known bug. Some people are able to resolve it by enabling or disabling v-sync in the options menu. However, this doesn't always work (particularly in windowed mode). The issue occurs in instances where the game's refresh rate is asynchronous with your monitor's refresh rate. For example, if your monitor's native refresh rate is 59Hz, or a high refresh rate like 120Hz, 144Hz, it won't match the game's 60Hz refresh rate and can result in the bug. You can try resolving the problem one of two ways.

The first, and easiest, option is to merely set your monitor's refresh rate to 60hz for the duration of your time ingame. For most users with desktop computers this is simple to do and can be edited directly on your monitor, or via Windows settings (though the latter seems to work less frequently than editing it directly on your monitor's settings). For laptop users editing the refresh rate will be more difficult, but the program Custom Resolution Utility has been used by dozens of users to simulate a 60hz runtime environment with great success. This also fixes the problem some laptop users experience of resolution options not appearing ingame (see here).

The second option is to cap the game's framerate to match that of a low refresh rate monitor, or to 60 for a high refresh rate monitor. How you do so will differ depending on your video card brand.

1. For nVidia users: Download nVidia Inspector from here - https://www.guru3d.com/files-details/nvidia-profile-inspector-download.html Run Inspector, click on the little tool button on the right to pop up the driver profile editor. From the profiles drop-down menu on the top left, choose Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic or Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic 2. Under the Sync and Refresh section, choose the drop-down next to Frame Rate Limiter and choose 60 FPS. Then hit the Apply button on the top right.

2. For AMD users: Open Radeon settings (comes bundled in the driver install) -> Gaming -> KOTOR -> Profile graphics -> Frame rate target control -> your monitor Hz

I don't have any resolution options ingame

This is an issue which sometimes occurs with laptop setups, caused by your system's refresh rate being much higher than what the game expects to find. It thus does not properly register your monitor and refuses to provide resolution options since it thinks you don't have any visual device attached.

This problem is annoying, but can be resolved. Some laptops can successfully change their refresh rates to be low enough for the game to recognize, either through the laptop's software, Windows software (Settings -> System -> Advanced Display Settings -> Refresh Rate on Windows 10), though this method does not always work. What has shown a 100% success rate so far is the Custom Resolution Utility program. This program can forcibly simulate a 60hz environment, which will unlock the game's resolution options and thereby allow you to change the resolution ingame, or apply widescreen patching successfully.

My character is stuck permanently fast/slow!

This is the result of an effect being stuck on your character during a module transition. Download this file and follow the instructions within to fix the problem.

All my dialogue is going super fast/skipping by itself!

This is a known issue which can happen on all game versions, but appears to be slightly exacerbated on the Steam release of the game. Simply exit the game entirely (that is, close it, don't go back to the menu) and reopen it.

I'm experiencing a corrupt savegame, what can I do?

If possible, reload an older save and keep doing so until you find a save that doesn't have the corruption. Then write down the steps taken between that healthy save and the corrupted one and carefully re-trace them in an effort to pin down what caused the corruption. After that, it would be helpful to try to determine the mod (if any) that is responsible and either ask the mod author directly or post on Deadlystream with a list of your mods, a description of the problem, and any info you've uncovered from the above steps.

Note that the Flawless Widescreen program is known to cause memory overflow and savegame corruptions, and if you're utilizing it it should be your #1 suspect for the culprit.

I can't complete Mission Vao's side-quest because I already finished the Sand People Enclave, but her brother Griff wasn't there!

This is a known bug, resolved in the KOTOR Community Patch. But if you've already had the issue happen, the only known workaround is to edit the save file.

• Make sure you've already talked to the Protocol Officer at the Czerka Office about Griff. (This can only happen after you've met Lena, which in turn can only happen after talking to Mission several times).

• Make sure that you've checked the correct location for Griff. He should be in a cell across from the Jawas in the Sand People Enclave.

• Create a new save game. You'll be editing this backup save instead of your primary save in case anything goes wrong.

• Download the KOTOR Savegame Editor and extract it. Run KPF.exe, make sure that the path to KOTOR 1 is correct, and hit "Export to INI". Now close the program.

• Open KSE_.exe (where is whatever the latest version is), expand "Knights of the Old Republic", then expand the savegame you created. (They are ordered by slot, but when you expand it you can see the savegame name).

• Expand "Globals" and then "Booleans". Scroll down and click on tat_GriffGreeta (The entries are in alphabetical order, except all uppercase come before lowercase, so you won't find this near the TAR_ entries). Change it to "Yes" on the right side and click "Apply". Change tat_GriffPort to "Yes" as well.

• Now expand "Numerics" (under "Globals") and change Mis_MissionTalk from 9 to 10. Click "Apply".

• Click "Commit Changes" and load your savegame in KOTOR. Griff will now be in the port with the Ebon Hawk. If you exit with Mission in the party, you should hear the same dialog that you would hear in the Sand People Enclave. He will then move to the Czerka Office and you can continue the side-quest by talking to him there.

My swoop bikes are hovering in midair!

Toggling your game executable's compatibility settings between Windows XP SP2/SP3 should fix the issue. Which compatibility mode works for the problem seems to vary between systems.

How do I get the game to work on my Mac?

Please see this page (copied from a thread on reddit by sentient06, with our thanks) for an excellent guide on how to install, update, and troubleshoot for the game on MacOS. It also includes install assistance for mods!

How do I get KOTOR running in widescreen?

Following the steps in this video will get KOTOR running in widescreen, but you may run into issues with the fullscreen bug (cutscenes causing crashes or minimizations to desktop, especially when playing back-to-back.

To fix this, you can either apply high-resolution cutscenes from this mod (not guaranteed to work, although you can download and test these cutscenes more quickly than you can make the altered cutscenes in the alternate option, and these cutscenes are high-quality and can be used as the basis for manual movie rescaling in the alternate step if it doesn't work for you) or utilize the .bik movie rescaling in this video (note that the .bik upscaling step in this video can take as much as 12 hours to complete, although the process is automatic). Whether the HD cutscenes method or the .bik movie rescaling method is utilized, the hex editing steps showcased in the second half of the second video by Xuul will need to be taken in order for the new movies to play properly and fix your issue. Please note also that 1366x768 is not supported by this method, and indeed cannot mechanically function ingame, unless you use this mod along with its letterbox scaling option, which will allow 1366x768 to function normally.

Once you've patched in widescreen, you may want to also look at this list of mods, which add additional fixes and improvements to the game's widescreen support.

My framerate is terrible despite of having a decent computer!

Upgrading your video card drivers is the first step. Although it's unlikely this will significantly improve your performance, it's still something you should try.

Second, disabling any third-party software interfacing with KOTOR's graphics (so something like an Nvidia program forcing antialiasing on the game, etc). This may or may not fix your issue, but again is important to do early to make sure the issue isn't easily fixable.

Next, disabling grass, frame buffer effects, and soft shadows in the game's .ini file. These are three common settings which can cause lag even on new machines thanks to poor optimization, and turning them off might fix your problem entirely.

If that fails, remove any and all mods you may be using which improve the game's graphics, as the increased rendering might be the cause of your problem.

If all that fails, you have no further options but to reduce the quality of the game by significantly reducing or disabling the game's graphics settings.

What does each individual skill/attribute get used for?

Attributes apply bonuses or penalties to combat, skills, saving throws, and Force powers. For every 2 levels an attribute is increased, that attribute's modifier increases by 1. For example, an attribute level of 8 has a modifier of -1. If that attribute is increased to 9, the modifier will still be -1, but if that attribute is increased to 10, the modifier will now be 0.

The Strength modifier affects attack and damage rolls in combat when using melee weapons and with lightsabers when the user's Strength modifier is greater than or equal to the user's Dexterity modifier. A user's Strength modifier is also used when calculating whether a target is stunned when the user uses the Critical Strike feat.

A user's Dexterity modifier affects attack rolls in combat when using ranged weapons and with lightsabers when the user's Dexterity modifiers is greater than the user's Strength modifier. The Dexterity modifier is also used to calculate a character's defense value and affects the user's reflex saving throw and Stealth skill.

The Constitution modifier affects the number of vitality points (health) a character gains when leveling up. It also affects the user's fortitude saving throw.

A user's Intelligence modifier impacts the number of points a character can spend on skills when leveling up. It also affects the user's Computer Use, Demolitions, and Repair skills. The intelligence modifier is also used when calculating whether a target is stunned when the user uses the Sniper Shot feat.

The Wisdom modifier affects how many Force points a Force-sensitive character gets per level. It affects the Awareness, Security, and Treat Injury skills, impacts the user's will saving throw, and is used when calculating whether a target is affected in certain ways by offensive Force powers that the user uses.

Like Wisdom, a user's Charisma modifier affects the number of Force points a Force-sensitive character has per level and is used when calculating whether a target is affected in certain ways by offensive Force powers that the user uses. The Charisma modifier is also applied to the user's Persuade skill.

Skills are used to perform specific actions within the game. For the most part, when using a skill to perform such an action, the skill value is added to a d20 roll (a randomly generated number between 1 and 20, inclusive), and this sum is compared against a number known as a Difficulty Check (DC). If the sum is greater than or equal to the DC, the action is successful.

Computer Use is used when attempting to hack (slice) computer terminals using computer spikes. For every 4 points a character has in Computer Use (after modifiers), the number of spikes required for an action is reduced by 1. There is no DC associated with slicing terminals.

Demolitions is used to set, disarm, and recover mines. Minor, average, and deadly mines have a DC of 15, 20, and 25, respectively, to set. Disarming a mine adds 5 to its respective DC to set. Recovering a mine adds 10 to the DC. When the character using the Demolitions skill is not engaged in combat, the d20 roll always results in 20. Mines must be detected by a character's Awareness skill before they can be disarmed or recovered. A character with no points in Demolitions cannot disarm or recover mines.

Entering Stealth mode allows a character to go unnoticed by enemies as long as the enemies' Awareness skills are less than the user's Stealth skill (after modifiers). When a character is in Stealth, they can set/disarm/recover mines, use computer terminals, repair droids, and open doors/containers. Entering combat cancels Stealth. In order to use Stealth, a character must have a device that enables Stealth equipped to them. The exception to this is Juhani, who possesses the ability to use Stealth without a device. A character with no points in Stealth cannot enter Stealth mode.

Awareness allows a character to detect mines and characters in Stealth mode. If the sum of a user's Awareness skill and a d20 roll is greater than or equal to the detection DC of a mine or another character's Stealth skill (after modifiers), the object or character is detected. Minor, average, and deadly mines have a detection DC of 20, 30, and 40, respectively. When a character is running, 5 points are subtracted from the character's Awareness skill. When not engaged in combat, the d20 roll always results in 20. Awareness is always active.

The Persuade skill is only usable by the player character and allows the character to choose certain dialogue options throughout the game. When attempting to Persuade someone in a conversation, a ratio (R) is calculated as the Persuade skill (P) divided by the sum of the character's total level (L) and 5. In other words R = P / (L + 5). Throughout the game, Persuade opportunities are categorized as easy, medium, and hard. The aforementioned ratio determines the chance of a Persuade attempt succeeding in each category:

• If R is less than or equal to 0.25, easy attempts have a 40% chance of success. Medium and hard attempts will never succeed.
• If R is between 0.25 and 0.5, easy attempts have a 50% chance of success. Medium attempts have a 25% chance of success. Hard attempts will never succeed.
• If R is between 0.5 and 0.75, easy attempts have a 75% chance of success. Medium attempts have a 50% chance of success. Hard attempts have a 25% chance of success.
• If R is between 0.75 and 1, easy and medium attempts will always succeed. Hard attempts have a 75% chance of success.
• If R is greater than 1, all attempts will always succeed.

The Repair skill allows a character to fix disabled droids using parts. Similar to Computer Use, for every 4 Repair points a character has in Repair (after modifiers), the number of parts required to repair part of a droid's functionality is reduced by 1. There is no DC associated with repairing disabled droids. Repair also affects the amount of vitality points (health) recovered when droid characters use repair kits on themselves. The player character can use the Repair skill to repair parts of HK-47's memory, which result in additional dialogue with and statistical bonuses for HK-47.

The Security skill allows a character to open locked containers and doors. Locked containers and doors can also be bashed, at which point a character will attack the container or door and gradually or instantly deplete the object's "vitality", thereby opening it. A character with no points in Security cannot use the skill.

The Treaty Injury skill affects the amount of vitality points recovered when using a medpac. Medpacs heal vitality points using the formula: Vitality Points = Base Healing Amount + Wisdom Modifier + (Multiplier x Treat Injury Skill) where Base Healing Amount is 10, 20, and 30 for medpacs, advanced medpacs, and life support packs, respectively, and Multiplier is 1, 2, and 3 for medpacs, advanced medpacs, and life support packs, respectively.

Is ranged damage affected by any attribute? What about chance-to-hit?

Ranged damage (damage done by blaster pistols, blaster rifles, and heavy weapons) is not affected by any attribute. The chance-to-hit, however, also known as the attack roll, is affected by the user's Dexterity modifier.

What do Flurry, Critical Strike, and Power Attack do?

These special feats can essentially be considered fighting styles. They are less accurate than the default fighting style which can make them a bit unwieldy early in the game, but the enhanced damage output they provide makes them incredibly strong post-Taris. Essentially, you should just be spamming the relevant fighting style all throughout the game as it is the most efficient way to do DPS. These are up with Two-Weapon Fighting as the highest priority feats to level up ASAP.

Note that when we say a "15% drop in accuracy", it would mean 80% drops to 65%, not 68%. Also note that the ranged feat equivalents are identical in every way but two exceptions. Firstly, your INT, not STR mod influences the stun on Sniper Shot. Secondly, if you are using Master Speed alongside blasters, only Rapid Shot works due to a bug.

Power Attack

• Adds 5/8/10 damage per strike (at rank 1/2/3)

• Reduces accuracy by 15%.

Flurry

• Adds one extra attack per round at all ranks

• Accuracy reduced by 20%/10%/5%

• Evasiveness reduced by 20%/10%/5%

Critical Strike

• Increases critical rate to 2/3/4 times base rate

• If using a keen weapon, increases rate to 3/4/5 times base rate (keen without critical strike doubles base rate)

• Stuns if the enemy doesn't make a Fortitude Save of Character Level + STR Mod. Enemies Fortitude Save is typically their highest, but this is the only weapon-related stun that is fairly reliable past midgame.

• Reduces evasiveness by 25% (all ranks).

Which is better?

There is quite a bit of misinformation with people claiming one style is universally better. This is not the case. A couple of assumptions are used below (e.g. ignoring the minor debilitative effects) but generally hold true.

Dual Pistols: If you are a Jedi or Mission, use Rapid Shot. Otherwise use Power Blast.

Blaster Rifles or Heavy Weapons: Rapid Shot

Dual Swords: Flurry

Single Saber: Flurry > Power Attack > Critical Strike

Dual Sabers: Critical Strike >= Power Attack >= Flurry

Double-Sided: Power Attack >= Flurry >>> Critical Strike

One last thing is that the differences are minor - typically less than a 10% difference between the three. For this reason, it is always a good option to just continue with your starting feat (Flurry for Scout, Critical Strike for Scoundrel, Power Attack for Soldier). Just make sure you stick to dual-wielding sabers if you stick with critical strike!

What do Rapid Fire, Sniper Shot, and Power Blast do?

Rapid Shot allows you to make one additional attack per round. At Basic level you take a -4 attack penalty that round (basically a reduction in your chance-to-hit), as well as a -4 Defense penalty (an increase in your chance to be hit) for that round and three seconds after. At Improved level these penalties are reduced to -2 and at Master level they are reduced to -1.

Sniper Shot increases the critical threat range—that is, a better chance of a critical hit—in exchange for a -5 Defense penalty at all levels. At Basic level the threat range is doubled, at Improved Level it is tripled, and at Master level it is quadrupled. For example, a weapon that only generates a threat chance on a roll of 20 would do so on at least a roll of 19, 18, or 17, respectively. Additionally, all hits have the opportunity to stun, if the target fails a Fortitude save at a DC of the attacker's level plus their Intelligence modifier.

Power Blast increases the base damage of your attacks, in exchange for a -3 attack penalty. At Basic level the bonus is +5, at Improved Level it is +8, and at Master Level it is +10.

For the most part, all ranged attacks are direct copies of their melee counterparts. The main difference is that only Rapid Shot works with Force Speed powers (i.e., Power Blast/Sniper Shot do not gain additional attacks). So when a ranged build with the PC or a Jedi party member, make sure to select Rapid Shot as otherwise you’ll lose out on a fair amount of damage output.

Non-Jedi party members (except Mission) will prefer Power Blast for Dual Pistols and Rapid Shot for Heavy Weapons/Blaster Rifles. Mission is the exception since she gains access to Sneak Attack which benefits the most from Rapid Shot (3 hits of vanilla damage + Sneak Attack > 2 Power Blast hits + Sneak Attack).

Is it a better idea to try to stack critical damage or to focus on raw damage output?

Raw Damage output is almost invariably better unless you have extensive knowledge of the game's items and have a path to getting very specific lightsaber crystals you would need. Blasters are an exception, as their damage output honestly never reaches any great heights, but universally it's better to shoot for raw damage boosts and fall a bit short (possibly) rather than screw up a critical hit item build.

What kind of build is best for getting the most out of the story?

While what build you choose doesn't affect much in the story (besides lightsaber color), leveling the Persuade skill and acquiring the Force Persuade/Dominate power will make many more dialogue options and even new quest paths available to the player.

Are there any unnecessary skills in KOTOR?

In one sense, all of them. Only repair and persuade ever have tangible influences on the game, and even they are minor. Remember that you retain skills that were class skills in your base class when you switch to your Jedi class. Also remember you can store skill points to spend at later level ups, unlike attributes or feats.

We would argue that the lowest priority skills are Computer Use (there is always an alternative), Stealth (takes way too much micromanagement for little benefit) and Security (you can just brute force through anything).

Medium Priority are Treat Injury (decent filler skill), Awareness and Demolitions. Awareness and Demolitions go hand-in-hand for spotting and disarming mines which can rack up quite a bit of money. These skills are good to give to a party member (e.g. Mission) so as not to waste skill allocation on your player character.

First high priority is Repair. To fully repair HK-47, you need 17 Repair. Factoring in boosts, this means you typically need 13 total repair points (with 8 INT) or 10 repair points (with 14 INT). If you don't care about fixing HK fully, you can forego Repair. Scout and Consular are the only classes to get Repair as a class skill (which is effectively required to repair HK).

Persuade is also high priority as it allows you to manipulate conversations in ways you otherwise couldn't. Nothing too major is affected by this, but it sometimes allows you to get optimal outcomes (whether that be more LS/DS points or saves you some credits). Save skill points until you class switch into any Jedi Class at which point Persuade is a class skill (only Scoundrel has it of the base classes).

I'm trying to create a powerful melee character; how should I build one?

Class

4/16 Scout/Guardian or 5/15 Soldier/Guardian are best.

Functionally no difference unless you want to repair HK fully in which case you pick Scout.

Skills

None required. Repair and Persuade are generally the best skills.

Feats

• First priority are the Two-Weapon Fighting line of powers, unless you desire to use a single lightsaber.

• Second priority is your attack mode of choice, either Flurry or Power Attack. Generally it is best to just stick with what your default was (Flurry for Scout, Power Attack for Soldier).

• After this, the notable feats are Implants, Jedi Defence and Lightsaber Specialisation.

• Toughness should be taken if all the above are unavailable and Conditioning if you can't pick Toughness either. You likely have to invest an early level into Conditioning.

Powers

• By far the two most important powers are Force Speed and Energy Resistance. Everything else is pure choice, although Heal is quite handy and the Force Valor line of powers are worth getting on at least one character.

Attributes

14 STR (put level ups here and also try to optimise via equipment)

8 DEX

14 CON

8 INT

14 WIS

14 CHA

This is my preferred allocation. You will have 6 points left over, which you should use to bring INT up to 14 (for better skills) or to bring STR to 16 and DEX to 10 (for better combat). For Lightsaber Accuracy, the highest of your STR and DEX is picked so you want to optimise one. Strength also affects your DAMAGE output (DEX doesn't) and an extra 10 damage per hit can add up. DEX boosts your defence instead, but low defence is not an issue if other parts of your build are good.

Never put INT at any value that isn't 8 or 14 as it ends up being horribly inefficient for most classes.

Weapon

Double-bladed OR Dual Lightsabers are essentially equally as good for damage output. Single Saber is notably worse, but you can still cruise through the game with it. Lightsabers easily outdo any other weapon in terms of usefulness.

I'm trying to create a powerful Force-wielder; how should I build one?

Class: Jedi Consular

Skills: You should main Awareness, Treat Injury and probably Persuade

Feats: Lightsaber Profiency, and basically everything that helps with Force powers (get some for combat too)

Force powers: Well this depends in your allignment, but some basic force powers you should get are master heal, destroy droid (it's op af), stasis field (light side) or insanity (dark side), force whirlwind/force wave, if you wanna get lighting get either lighting or force storm (shock is pretty crappy), i guess you could also get some speed too, and battle meditation. I don't focus on aggressive force powers that much so this might not be 100% accurate

Attributes: The attributes that define your prowess with the Force are Wisdom and Charisma

Should I level up on Taris, or should I save all my levels until I become a Force-user?

Only taking the mandatory level up during the tutorial on the Endar Spire and then waiting until becoming a Jedi on Dantooine is the preferred power gaming route. Note however that this can make certain quests on Taris difficult, particularly side-quests like the battle arena. Not recommended for first-time or inexperienced players, or for those more interested in role playing than min-maxing.

Is there an optimal order in which I should visit planets?

Here is a list of considerations for planet order:

1. In general, "completing" a planet refers to getting the Star Map, not simply visiting it.

2. There are "trigger" areas on each of the four planets. The first trigger area you visit will trigger Boss 1 and the first trigger area you visit after grabbing your 3rd Star Map (including Dantooine's) will trigger Boss 2. They can be the same area. This only really matters because Boss 1 drops his best loot on Tattooine and Korriban.

3. You may want to get your additional party members ASAP. One is found on Tattooine, and another on Kashyyyk. You don't have to complete either planet to unlock these allies.

4. For both thematic and gameplay reasons (party member availability, difficulty), Korriban is generally considered best to do last. However, you may want to at least briefly visit there first if you want to buy a high-tier blaster (Cassus Fett's Heavy Pistol) and have the money on hand.

5. Yavin Station (PC only) restocks after getting your 3rd and 5th Star Maps, so be sure to pay it visits at these stages.

6. If you want to complete Bastila's romance quest, make sure you do Tatooine first or second.

7. Not strictly related to planet order, but DO NOT start Juhani's personal quest until you have completed all other quests involving a messenger due to a massive bug (this can be ignored by downloading this bugfix compilation, which resolves the issue)

8. If you want to do the Genoharadan Assassination Quests, make sure you complete them before getting your fourth star map. Additionally, do these ASAP if you are LS or you won't have much chance to undo the DS points you get.

Here is our recommended order after Dantooine:

1. Yavin IV first visit

2. Tatooine to completion. Make sure to do Bastila's quest and advance Mission's until you need a Tach Gland (which are only found in one area on Kashyyyk). Make sure to start Mission's search for her brother BEFORE heading to the Sand People Compound.

3. Complete Kashyyyk up until Jolee joins (LS) OR to completion (DS)

4. Go to Manaan and start/complete the Genoharadan Assassination quests which take you to Dantooine, Tatooine and Kashyyyk as well.

5. Complete Kashyyyk if you didn't already

6. Yavin IV second visit

7. Advance Manaan until you are about to go underwater. Do not proceed unless you have progressed the Bastila romance plot to the kiss and have done all you wanted on Dantooine.

8. Finish Manaan and then the Leviathan

9. Complete Korriban

10. Yavin IV third visit

This order safely nets you everything for either alignment, fits in thematically and has a smooth difficulty curve (outside possibly a few fights on Tatooine).

What are some good ways to make money?

The first consideration that must be made when making money is who you sell to. Suvam Tan, the vendor on Yavin IV (available on PC, Switch, and Xbox digital download editions only) will pay 2.6 times as much for anything you sell. So make sure you ONLY sell to him. Additionally, make sure you have won 10 rounds of Pazaak against Suvam (save and reload if you lose, he is a competent player) to get a discount at his store for buying stuff (doesn't affect selling). The second consideration is that playing Dark Side will make you a lot more credits over the course of the game.

As for actually making money, simply selling off all your surplus materials (weapons, mines etc.) to Suvam will net you a huge amount of credits which should cover all the major equipment purchases in the game as long as you are thrifty. However, if you like holding on to your equipment, you will likely need money. There are four other great ways to make money in KOTOR 1, excluding the ever-present option of gambling on Pazaak:

Method 1

Start by depositing all your Security Spikes, Computer Spikes, Grenades and Medpacks in one of the containers on the Ebon Hawk. Then go talk to your allies (T3-M4, Mission, Zaalbar, Jolee) about making you some extras of the relevant item type. Once they stop, deposit all they have given you and go talk to them again. There is a cap on how much they can give you, which resets after each star map. You can make a ton of money this way, but not an infinite amount.

Method 2

This is only viable if you intend to poison the large Firaxa on Manaan, but if you're willing to tank the DS points and the ban from Manaan, you can make a killing off of kolto. The galaxy will experience a dire shortage as soon as the Firaxa is poisoned, tripling the selling price of any kolto-related goods. For normal vendors this still won't cover the initial costs of items, but if you sell to Suvam Tam, it makes up for it and more. Buying medpacks—and especially advanced medpacks—from normal vendors, killing the Firaxa, and then selling those medpacks to Suvam works out to a 95% net profit on the sale of the goods.

Method 3

Third is the first infinite credit farming technique, but it does not function on a game with the KOTOR Community Patch installed.

Go see Dak in the Valley of the Sith (Korriban) with Juhani in your party which sends him to the cantina. Then head to the Cantina and kill him for 150 Credits, Dark Jedi Knight Robe and an Eralam Crystal. BUT if you rezone in and out of the cantina, he respawns! I forget exactly how much an Eralam crystal sells for, but this is by far the fastest way to make money in KOTOR. Note that you get DS points for doing this each time, so this may not be an option if you are LS. However, you could in theory combine this with the Kashyyyk infinite LS points glitch.

The Kashyyyk infinite LS points glitch can be abused during the A Wookie Lost sidequest on Kashyyyk. After talking to Worrronzor to intiate the trial, you can reach a point in the conversation where you can ask "Is there an alternative to letting Jaarak die". You can then loop the conversation to get back to asking that question again. Every time you do this, you get LS points. Note that this glitch is no longer an option after you complete this quest or side with Chuundar in the Lower Shadowlands.

Method 4

The best non-glitched, always available way to infinitely farm credits is Desert Wraid farming. Kill the four Desert Wraids on Tatooine, collect their Plates and sell all four to Suvam for 256 credits a run. Saving and reloading is enough to respawn the wraids. This is much slower than all other methods, but might be your only available choice.

How do Workbenches work?

In the original KOTOR, workbenches allow the player to apply pre-made modifications to certain customizable weapons, adding special effects to them and generally increasing their damage. For armor, ranged weapons, and melee weapons, there is a maximum amount of potential upgrades (2 for armor, 3 for melee weapons, and 4 for ranged weapons) and, whilst including an upgrade in one armor/weapon might provide a different effect than placing that upgrade in another armor/weapon, all the upgrades for each individual upgrade slots are "shared," meaning that all the upgrades for an individual upgrade slot are identical and wholly interchangeable.

The system is slightly different for lightsabers, as they are more customizable. For lightsabers, the player can choose to modify its color crystal and two focusing crystals which provide different effects to the lightsaber. Unlike with other upgradable weapons, the crystal upgrades to lightsabers are not identical and do not merely provide different benefits based upon what lightsaber they are being inserted into; each crystal type has a unique effect it carries with it across any lightsaber it will be placed in. This system is similar to how the workbench system works in KOTOR 2 for all upgrades.

I've heard most companions in this game have unique quests; which do?

The companions in KOTOR 1 who have associated, non-mandatory quest are as follows: Bastila, Canderous, Mission, Carth, Jolee, and Juhani.

Most of these quests are unlocked after a certain specific trigger is met, usually the number of star maps you've found. Usually, their quest begins by leaving the Ebon Hawk with them in tow on certain planets (and, again, after having unlocked the requisite number of star maps for their quests), at which time the companion will meet a person that they know. That person will reveal something important to them and, in so doing, unlock their quests. There is an exception to this, however, in Zaalbar and Jolee's quests; Zaalbar's quest is mandatory and occurs on Kashyyyk, and Jolee's quest can begin on Manaan by talking to a certain NPC whether or not you've met Jolee's old friend whilst exiting the 'Hawk.

Only certain companions can meet their companion quest-giving NPCs on any given planet, with the exception of Dantooine, where every companion can meet their related NPC. For this reason, it is advisable for the player to return to Dantooine after finding each star map and exiting the Ebon Hawk individually with all companions, to maximize the chances of getting their quest quickly. This can be (and indeed should be) done with Mission and Bastila before even leaving Dantooine, so as to acquire both of their related quests, as both Mission and Bastila's quests occur on Tatooine, which is the first planet in the most logical KOTOR planet order.

Only one quest (Mission's) absolutely requires you to acquire it before you complete the planet on which it occurs (Tatooine) due to a bug, though this does not apply if using the KOTOR Community Patch. There are two others (Carth's and Jolee's) in which certain actions can cause you to fail the quest if you complete the planets on which they occur in a particular way. For this reason, there is a sort of "optimal planet order" for companion quests, to minimize the risks of failing them. This order is Tatooine->Kashyyyk->Manaan->Korriban. For Jolee, Sunry should be tried, whatever the outcome, before you take the submersible down to the Hrakert Rift to avoid any problems; for Carth, he should be brought with you on Korriban and his situation with Dustil resolved before entering the Tomb of Naga Sadow.

As a final note, there is a bug with Juhani's companion quest in which, once her companion quest is unlocked, no other quests will proc. This bug can be fixed by installing the bugfix compilation here. The mod builds have this fix included.

Is there a romance subplot? If so, how do I pursue it?

If you are female, you can pursue a romance with Carth or with Juhani, although Juhani's romance is very buggy. If you are male, you can pursue a romance with Bastila.

For Carth or Bastila, you don't have to really do anything special. Just talking to them and picking friendly responses will start you on the right track, although for Bastila there is a point where you can sort of press the issue and afterwards, unless you have a mod that fixes the glitch (the KOTOR Community Patch does so), you should not talk to her or a glitch will ensue that kills the romance plot.

For Juhani the issue is much more complicated, as, as mentioned, her romance is extremely buggy. The best suggestion is to view the information here to help ensure you are completing the steps required to proc the romance.

I'm most of the way through the game, but I still have a blank slot in my party for a companion I've never encountered.

There are two optional companions in KOTOR: Juhani and HK-47.

Juhani can be slain in the Dantooine grove rather than redeeming her from the dark side, and her slot is not filled with another companion if she is killed.

HK-47 is available to be purchased from the droid shop on Tatooine, and although he is required for peacefully resolving the conflict with the Sand People, he is not required to complete the game.

Which companions are the best to bring along to compliment a Jedi Guardian? Sentinel? Consular?

Jedi Guardians are naturally good fighters and excel in combat when paired with a Jedi Consular, as the Consular's boost to force points allows better healing.

Similarly, Consulars work best when given a support role and other characters do the fighting. They tend to be best when paired with soldiers and/or Guardians.

Sentinels excel in skill checks and are well rounded in combat and support. The best option may be to provide them with a Consular and a Soldier/Guardian/Scout to round out any combat and skill check situations.

How do I clean my game of all previously installed mods?

Delete your Override Folder. Also, go into your Modules folder and erase all of the .mod files. Other mod data might remain, but it will not impact your install, unless the main dialog.tlk file in the main game directory was edited. If it was you will need to delete it and reverify your game files (Steam) or reinstall your game entirely.

How can I tell if two mods are compatible with one another?

If the two mods do not use TSLPatcher - i.e. they consist of simply putting loose files in the Override folder - and comprise files with the same filenames, they will obviously not be compatible. Of particular concern are major files such as files of the .2da filetype, for example appearance.2da, which have influence over a large number of the game's elements. Overwriting pre-existing 2DAs and other major files can lead to a broken game.

If two mods use TSLPatcher, then, if set up properly, they should generally be compatible with each other, even when modifying the same files. For example two mods can both make additions to appearance.2da without affecting each other or other mods/the base game.

Note that there are limitations to how far this can go. Certain mods can never be compatible, regardless of how they are installed. For example, two mods that both change the head model used by a specific companion will not work together. Typically, mods will specifically call out compatibility issues such as this in their readme/documentation, so make sure to read it before installing.

As a general rule to maximize compatibility, install any loose file/Override mods first, then install TSLPatcher mods afterwards.

I'm trying to create a build of compatible mods to use; what do I need to do to make sure they'll all work together?

Ideally, have prior experience with installing mods, especially large mods that comprise a lot of changes. An understanding of how TSLPatcher and mod interoperability works in KOTOR is highly beneficial in assessing mod candidates. Read all documentation for candidate mods, paying particular attention to any known compatibility issues and bugs. Ask in the KOTOR Discord for more information, check Deadly Stream, mod comments on the Nexus, or the KOTOR reddit etc., for any sign of issues with a given mod, especially large/complex ones. Don't be afraid to ask if a collection of mods will work together before playing.

Sticking to mods that are known by the community to be stable/free of bugs is advisable. Try to avoid mods that alter the same/similar things where possible. Especially limit the number of large mods that make sweeping changes to multiple areas of the game. If in doubt, leave it out.

Simple texture mods are typically more robust in terms of technical issues. Generally speaking, overwriting existing textures in the Override folder will not cause problems for vanilla models. However, be sure to read all relevant documentation supplied by mod authors to determine if a given texture mod will be compatible with other mods you may be using, like armour, clothing, or head replacements, particularly those incorporating custom or edited models. For those playing on laptops or using integrated GPUs, beware of using excessive amounts of high resolution texture mods, as you will likely encounter issues with your device's texture streaming budget.

If possible, it would be better to incrementally construct a large mod build over several playthroughs, rather than just lump a hundred mods together and pray everything works. Make regular saves, and be prepared to lose large chunks of progress, perhaps even having to start again, due to progress-blocking bugs/incompatibilities.

Broadly, what sort of mods should I be using?

It depends entirely upon what sort of experience you want to get out of your game. There are mods which add new, non-canon content, mods which restore content which was deleted from the base game and fix bugs, graphical improvement mods, and many more. Depending upon what sort of content you want to see, your game might look significantly different.

The best way to determine what sort of content you would like to have is to simply look through the mods which are available. There are three main places to look for this content:

• GameFront was the original host of the KOTOR mods which were uploaded to FileFront, one of the oldest and longest-lived KOTOR mod databases. Not long ago it shut down before being reopened, and while this restored version has many of the mods once hosted, some have been lost. Because of the difficulty of navigating this database as well as the age of the mods and loss of several files, I only advise its use if you're looking for a specific mod which you know exists, but cannot find.

• Deadly Stream. Deadly Stream was the successor to FileFront and now hosts most of the major KOTOR mods, with a few exceptions. Searching this archive will give you a very good idea of what sorts of mods are out there, and an excellent general overview of them.

• Nexus Mods. A newcomer in terms of KOTOR modding, the Nexus nevertheless does have some content which Deadlystream does not, and therefore may be of interest to you if you're looking to mod your games to the upper limit. However, beware that some of these mods are reuploads of modders' content taken without their permission, which means some are very outdated and not properly supported. Typically if both Deadlystream and the Nexus have a mod, the Deadlystream version will be the more updated copy.

Alternatively, if you'd like to use something pre-made which has guaranteed compatibility, you can look at the mod builds hosted here.

Keep in mind, unless using the mod builds without any personal edits/mod additions, that you do need to be concerned about mod compatibility. Not all mods work well together, or indeed work together at all, especially if they're modifying similar content. See here on ensuring mod compatibility.

If you have concerns over whether or not your personal build will work, post in the #mod_development channel of the KOTOR Discord for compatibility advice.