Missions

Missions are one of the easiest and fastest ways to make cash in the game.  Below is a step by step guide to the Star Wars Galaxies mission system:

Step One:  Decide where to get your mission.  There are five choices

• Regular Mission Terminal.  This is the terminal you will see the most of.  Most cities have quite a few of these scattered around, and in many cases, this is the only choice you have for getting a mission.
• Empire and Rebel Mission Terminal.  The missions you get from these terminals give you a faction boost as well as money.  Since you only gain faction, and don't lose it, and since the missions given out provide the same rewards as the regular mission terminals, you should use these terminals whenever they are available rather than the regular mission terminals.
• Bounty Hunter Mission Terminal.  These missions require that you track down a fugitive using a bounty hunter droid and bring him or her to justice.  They are more difficult and generally pay a lot more.
• NPC Mission.  Many NPC's will give you a mission if you talk to them.  These missions vary in type as listed below.
• 1) Recon missions - These involve you going out to the waypoint and then returning to the NPC. Usually, the NPC is worried about gangsters or suspicious activity in the neighborhood. This is by far the easiest mission because you don't have to do anything other than stand at the waypoint for a couple of seconds. Recon missions are normally given by town NPC's.
• 2) Survey missions - These missions require you to locate a certain resource type at a certain concentration using your survey tools. Once you locate the required resources, you receive payment automatically. This sort of mission is a one-way mission, in that you don't need to return to the NPC. Survey missions are normally given by NPC's out in the field. You are required to travel at least 1024 meters from the quest giver, this can be an easy way to rack up a decent amount of credits in a short period of time. Even better if it's an Imperial or Rebel POI that also gives you faction as part of your payment.
• 3) Escort missions - These missions require you to literally go someplace to meet an NPC and then lead the NPC back to the mission-giver. This is complicated by the fact that the NPC's WALK the entire distance and they're not very good at following so they tend to aggro mobs along the way. The distances involved can often be 10k or more and the payouts are no better than the other missions types. IMO, it's often better to just abort the mission unless you're a glutton for punishment. The escort NPC will NOT board a shuttle with you. (Note: Some beta testers have reported that you can lose the escort NPC in town, then shuttle yourself back to the mission-giver and receive the reward. That is, the mission just checks that the escort is alive when you "finish" the mission. I haven't personally verified whether this is the case or not.) Escort missions are normally given in town.
• 4) Crafting missions - These missions (usually a downed pilot or agent who needs a special piece of equipment made) require you to find an NPC who gives you some ingredients. You then get a new waypoint to the delivery NPC.  At some point in between, you take the ingredients and craft whatever it is that the delivery NPC needs. (Always seems to be an output governor, for some reason.) When you reach the delivery NPC you can't just talk to her. You have to drag the crafted item from your inventory onto the delivery NPC.  At that point, you receive your payment. Crafting missions can show up in town or in the field.
• 5) Entertainer missions - These missions simply require you to travel to a designated cantina or hotel in another town and play or dance for awhile. After some (seemingly random) amount of time, you'll get your reward. Note that if you are grouped with other entertainers when you are rewarded that the reward will be split with the group. Entertainer missions are normally given in town but I've encountered them in the field occasionally.
• 6) "Junk" missions - This is a special class of missions that seems to be left over from the early stages of the game. When you find one of these NPC's, they'll normally give you a delivery of some sort that requires you to return to the mission giver. However, the waypoint you get is a standard "blue" waypoint instead of the normal "orange" mission waypoint. When you reach the recipient NPC, the blue waypoint is deleted and replaced with a different blue waypoint leading back to the mission giver. When you talk to
• 
  the mission-giver again, you get some thanks and a small, basically worthless item along the lines of a photograph or an engraved pen set. These things can usually be sold to a junk vendor for a few credits each.

Step Two:  Delivery versus Destroy.  Choose whether you want a delivery mission or a destroy mission.  Delivery missions require you to go to an NPC in the same town as the terminal and pick up an item and then to deliver it somewhere else.  The final destination can be anywhere on the planet.  In order to complete a delivery mission of any real value, you will need at least enough credits to be able to purchase a shuttle ticket.  Destroy missions ask you to go out into the wilderness and destroy something.  In general, destroy missions are more difficult to complete, since you will have to avoid getting killed on the way to and from the target.  The advantages of a destroy mission is that you gain other skills while doing it and you do not need to spend any money to complete it.  Delivery missions are pretty dull, but are very safe.  You just run back and forth and collect your money.  The choice really comes down to whether you just want to make as much money as possible in the shortest time possible, in which case you should take delivery missions.  If you instead wish to take a mission that will utilize other skills and actually engage you in some combat, then take a destroy mission.

Step Three:  Choose your mission (terminals).

• Delivery Missions:  For delivery missions, the principle factor to consider is that the further away you go, the more the mission pays.  Since it costs the same to take a shuttle one town away as to take one to the other side of the world, you will want to accept delivery missions for places as far away as possible.  The way to do it is to just keep refreshing until you get a high paying mission.  Then check the details of it and note the distance and direction you need to travel and accept it.  Then refresh the list again until you get another mission to the same area and do both together.  In fact, if you are trying to make as much money as possible, consider travelling to a planet that has a wider array of cities, like Corellia or Naboo, and doing a bunch of delivery missions there.  At the very least, check the map and take a shuttle to one of the cities on the edge so that you will be able to travel further to deliver the items.  This can get you as much as a thousand extra credits each pair of missions.
• Destruction Missions:  The reward for destruction missions seems to be a combination of the difficulty of the final objective and the distance you need to travel.  When choosing a destruction mission, make sure you check the difficulty rating.  This tells you how tough the mob will be at your objective.  At beginning skills, you should try to take missions of a low difficulty (level 10 or lower).  Higher difficulty missions are designed for groups or higher skilled players to complete.  Distance is also important, since destroy missions take place in the wilderness and you cannot shuttle to them.  Surviving the trip to and from the mission is often more difficult than completing the mission itself.  If you are thinking of heading out into the winderness to hunt, you may as well grab a couple destruction missions, as one direction is as good as another, and this gives you a destination and a chance at some extra credits.

Step Four:  Carry out the mission.  This basically can be summed up as "follow the arrow".  For a delivery mission, pick up the item and then head to the nearest shuttle station.  Check your planetary map to see where the waypoints are located, and buy a ticket to that city and catch the shuttle.  When you get there, look for the waypoints and make the delivery.  Instant credits.  If you are going to head back to where you came from, make sure you pick up a couple of missions for that city.  For a destroy mission, just follow the arrow.  Keep an eye on your radar and try to avoid any unnecessary combat on the way for a quick resolution, or take your time and kill every thing in your way as you head to the waypoint.  Remember, that they point of most destroy missions is to destroy the lair of the creatures, rather than the creatures themselves.
 

Some tips on running missions:

• If you are catching a shuttle to another city to meet a friend, or for any reason whatsoever, make it a point to get a couple of missions for that city. Why not?  You are going there anyways, so you might as well get paid to do it.
• If you are heading out into the wild, grab a couple of destruction missions.  They give you a direction to go and a chance of getting some extra credits while you are out there.
• You can change the color of the arrow and waypoint for a mission by clicking on the datapad and holding the mouse down on the mission description until the color selection appears.  This is a very useful tool to keeping the two missions separate.
• There is no penalty for taking empire and rebel missions, and you get the bonus of gaining some useful faction, so when they are available, these should be used over the regular mission terminals.