Thehusband and I just started Makeb.  We’re recapturing our SWTOR “honeymoon period” by running all the quests together and seeing the new content together for the first time.  The rationale for this is that we’ll get to 55 no matter what, but it’s not like we’re getting any new story anytime soon, so we might as well really slow down and enjoy it instead of trying to race to the finish.

Something that has been on my mind with the introduction of SGR with the Makeb NPCS was how flirt options were going to work with non-companion non-class-storyline NPC’s in general.

When you BSOCK a random dude in the smuggler storyline, for example, it’s in the smuggler storyline and you’re the only one that gets to do the talking.  Any friends you bring along are in observation mode only.  They can’t win a roll and try to woo your would-be sweetie away from you.

However, we’re dealing here, on both sides, with a love interest who is part of the planet story, not class story.  How is that going to work?

***MILD SPOILERS BELOW RE: MAKEB SAME GENDER ROMANCE REPUBLIC SIDE***

You have been warned.

Thehusband and I zoned in and within a few quests immediately spotted the femme fatale, whom I strongly suspect is voiced by Tara Strong (Risha and Holiday).  After a few daring rescues, we eventually got a flirt option!  We looked at each other across the room, sort of giggled, and both hit the flirt option.  He won the roll and went all suave.  My husband, the hussy.  She gave him a lukewarm reception.

Later on, there was another flirt option.  This time, I won the roll and was able to make googly eyes (never fear, I had HK along so Doc wouldn’t be jealous.)  He’ turned to me and said “Dude, you cockblocked me!” (I find that really funny.)  NPC-lady gave me an equally lukewarm reception.  OK, she shut me down hard.  I won the next two and same result.

I don’t blame that chick for shutting me down cold. I don’t like the way my toon is flirting.   The lines for the flirt-er are the same for both male and female player-toons, and they just don’t sound right from my toon.  They sound like cheesy, overly-confident, pretty obnoxious, practically-aggressive pick-up lines.  In other words, it sounds like a man.  It feels like the scene was written for a stereotypical heterosexual male-takes-initiative encounter.

I am the first to admit that I don’t know shit about same gender flirting IRL, and know barely anything about opposite gender flirting, really.  For all I know, this is how it goes – but it just doesn’t ring true to me that to come on to a woman, you have to do it in exactly the way a man would (and an obnoxious man, at that).  In other romancey situations, my female toons have been assertive, sure, but never quite like this.  After 3 responses of “buzz off” I feel like only an idiot would continue to pursue.  (Or maybe a man… lol.)

I’m not sure I’m going to keep flirting – but I don’t want my non-flirt answers to also cockblock, so I’ll likely it time out and let thehusband win by default (he’s permanently in the friend-zone with Elara, he needs some luv).  When it gets to the BSOCK portion of the evening, what would happen if both had been flirting?  What if your leveling buddy doesn’t want to flirt, and you do, and he keeps winning the rolls and the NPC isn’t interested in either of you?

Stay tuned to find out as my husband and I, in a strange turn of events, compete for the affections of the same female NPC.