Numbers, Spreadsheets and Calculations
Over the last few days, I’ve been working towards achieving “ally” reputation status with the Men of Dale while playing LOTRO. There were two particular armour pieces that I desired, which would enhance my statistics, that were gated behind this achievement. I’ve been also grinding for several jewellery items, which require 5,000 Motes of Enchantment. I was sufficiently close last night that I actually took the time to work out exactly how much XP was outstanding and what was the optimal way to earn it. I made a few notes on paper and determined that three repeatable quests and five tasks would be sufficient to reach the target. As of today, the calculation proved right, and I now have the two armour pieces equipped. The jewellery is proving more difficult as Motes of Enchantment are a lot harder to come by. That project remains an ongoing concern.
LOTRO: Legendary Server
Standing Stone Games announced today the launch of a new LOTRO "Legendary Server" later this autumn. This is essentially a progression server by any other name. It will be accessible to VIP monthly and lifetime subscribers allowing access initially to core content from levels 1 to 50 via The Shadow of Angmar story. It should be noted that this is not “classic” LOTRO as it existed back in 2007. The new server will offer the game as it is now with all its revised systems. Hence High Elves and Beorning classes will be available as will the skills tree system. SSG intend to update content every four months but will keep it all within the parameters of the level cap on the"Legendary Server". The developers have also made it clear that this new service does not come at the expense of regular new content for the existing game. “We have no intention of adjusting our frequent, regular, and active development of the non-Legendary game worlds, and have plans for them well into the future”.
LOTRO: Improvements and Suggestions
I returned to LOTRO in August and have been playing continuously since then, working my way through the last expansion and Update 22. The upside to this ongoing commitment has meant that I have really applied myself to the unfolding narrative and have absorbed a lot more of the story than previously. It is very enjoyable to see the way various strands of different plots all tie together. I have also taken the time to revise my Lore-master build and attempt to optimise it to reflect the prevailing game meta. Broadly speaking, I have been successful so far. But there have been a few negative aspects to returning to the game. Many of them are actually issues that have always be present and have been compounded by the games age. LOTRO lacks some of the modern convenience and functionality we take for granted in more recent MMOs. So, I thought I’d take time out to list a few helpful suggestions that Standing Stone Games can then promptly ignore.
LOTRO: The State of the Game
I am fast approaching my ten-year anniversary of playing the MMORPG The Lord of the Rings Online. So, I thought I write a few thoughts about how I find the current state of the game. I returned to LOTRO this August and finally decided to tackle all the outstanding content that I had allowed to build up. Because I initially had issues with the Mordor expansion when it first was released, I had started to level up elsewhere in the game. Thus, when I resumed playing I was two levels or so above the designated rank of most quests. The final region of Mordor, Talath Úrui, I completed last night at level 118. I have always preferred to play this way and like to ensure that I am adequately equipped for a zone. If you are underpowered combat becomes a chore. I am currently finishing off the final stages of Update 22: Legacy of the Necromancer, having worked my way through Northern Mirkwood, Lake-town, Dale on to Erebor. I always attempt content in a linear fashion, so I can stay conversant with the various storylines. By the time I finish the Erebor quests and start the new content in Update 23: Where Dragons Dwell, I shall probably be at the new level cap of 125.
LOTRO: An Unnecessary Increase in Level Cap?
I’ve logged into the Bullroarer test server and looked around several of the preview builds of Update 23 for LOTRO recently. So far what I’ve seen has broadly met with my approval. It’s pretty much more of the same, with the main selling point being the story and a new area of Middle-earth to explore. However, there’s one aspect of the soon to be released Update 23: Where Dragons Dwell that does strike me as a little odd. The level cap is being increased from 115 to 120. Last summer’s Mordor expansion raised the cap by ten to 115, so this new increase does feel a little too soon to me. However, if you look at the LOTRO Wiki, it would appear that increases tend to occur regularly every eighteen months to two years, so it can be argued that this pending change isn’t anything unusual. Yet, it somehow feels “off” to me, which I shall now endeavour to explain.
LOTRO: The Maps of Middle-earth
I logged into the third preview of Update 23 on Bullroarer test server this evening and perused the various changes that Standing Stone Games have made. For a lot of the “serious” LOTRO players, the focus of this latest build are the statistical changes to all the various classes. As I am not so au fait with this aspect of the game, I shall leave the matter until it is finalised then discuss it with my kinship who are more learned in these matters. My primary motivation for using the preview server is to get an advance look at any new region and to explore the environment. Standing Stone Games continue to do a sound job of realising the Third Age of Middle-earth and I enjoy the attention to detail they provide along with their adherence to the lore. One of the aspects of LOTRO that I’ve always enjoyed are the regional maps. In this latest preview build, all maps for the new region of Ered Mithrin are now available and the temporary placeholders for Erebor and The Steel Keep have been removed.
Financing LOTRO
Back in December 2008, I bought a “compilation pack” that contained both the The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadow of Angmar base game, along with the newly released Mines of Moria expansion. I paid £20 for the lot. After the obligatory free months access, I then became a regular subscriber right up until about summer 2012. Since then I’ve subscribed and played whenever new content is released, meaning that for about six months of the year, I’m paying for the “luxury” of playing LOTRO. I’ve also purchased all the expansions over the years. Because I enjoy the game, I am not averse to buying additional LOTRO points when my monthly stipend doesn’t cover the cost of the items I want. I never availed myself of the opportunity to become a lifetime account holder, which is something I regret. It certainly would have been very good value for money, considering that LOTRO is over a decade old.
LOTRO: Tales from the Barter Wallet
One of the fun things about LOTRO is the way each player evolves their own personal way of navigating around Middle-earth. Although there is an extensive “stable” network throughout the game, I often find it quicker to use the various “Return to” skills, to get where I need to go. Turns out there’s a lot more in LOTRO than I realised. One of the most beneficial is “Return to Minas Tirith” which places you in the city before the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. The main advantage is that you arrive close to the stable-master who has an extensive list of travel destinations throughout Gondor. More so than his counterpart in the Minas Tirith after the battle. The skill “Return to Minas Tirith” is obtained from the Quartermaster (Defenders of Minas Tirith) at the Great Gate of Minas Tirith for 30 Minas Tirith Silver Pieces.
6 Months, 1 Day and 16 Hours
6 months, 1 day and 16 hours. Or put another way that’s 4504 hours. In total, 270,240 minutes. That is the total amount of time to date, that I’ve invested in my primary character in LOTRO. I have had several other alts over the years, many of which are now deleted, so for the sake of accuracy you can probably add another 20 hours or so to that total. That is a sizeable investment of time over an eight-year period. But that is the nature of the MMO genre. They are essentially time sinks. However, that is not what this post is about. I’m not here to dissect whether 4504 hours has been a good use of my time or not. As far as I’m concerned, I’ve gained a commensurate amount of entertainment in return. Plus, those 2504 hours were specifically leisure time, so if I hadn’t of played LOTRO they would have been spent watching TV or on some other pastime. Therefore, I’m not going to claim that in different circumstance I could have learned to play the Sousaphone with that time. This post is about reflecting upon LOTRO and the MMO genre.
Your First Mistake Was Having Expectations
Two stories have broken today regarding a pair of established and much-loved pop culture franchises. The first is the news that actor Henry Cavill has been cast as Geralt of Rivia, in the forthcoming Witcher TV show currently in production by Netflix. The second is regarding how newly established games developers Athlon Games are currently working on a new F2P Middle-earth based MMO. Considering there is no further details on either of these two points beyond what has already been stated, one could be tempted to say rhetorically “nothing to see here, move along”. However, this is the age of social media, so let it suffice to say that both these announcements have caused a degree of consternation in certain quarters. Namely fans of those already established iterations of The Witcher and The Lord of the Rings.
LOTRO: Fishing
Many MMOs have “hobbies” as part of the activities they have on offer. These are usually leisurely undertakings done for their own inherent fun, rather than providing a tangible in-game benefit. In LOTRO the only hobby that is currently available (despite the game existing for over decade) is fishing. It’s a relatively simple affair that’s been further refined (dumbed down, some may argue) over time. When I started playing LOTRO in 2008, fishing had an extra component to its underlying mechanic. There were various types of bait (consumables) that provided a bonus to your fishing skill. These included Leech Bait, Nightcrawler Bait and Red Wiggler Bait. However, this mechanic was removed possibly around the time of the “free to play” conversion. As it currently stands, fishing now just requires accepting the hobby from the Hobby Master NPC (Simon Quinlank would be proud), buying a basic fishing rod and finding a body of water. You equip the rod instead of a weapon and add the fishing skill to your quick slot bar. If you click the skill it will cause a casting animation. You then wait for the fish to bite, which is signified buy your rod bending and twitching. The player then clicks the skill again to land whatever they’ve caught.
The Eyes and Guard Tavern
LOTRO like many other MMOs has a test server. Players can transfer existing characters to Bullroarer when it is available and preview all aspects of any new content that is being beta tested. If you do not wish to or do not have a level appropriate character available to transfer, you can create a new one and then visit The Eyes and Guard Tavern in Archet. This hostelry hosts a range of NPCs that can advance your alt through content, bestow deeds as well as upgrade virtues and traits. Effectively, you can gain everything that is available in the game from level 1 to the new cap of 120. It is therefore an invaluable in-game facility. If you wish to visit the latest zone, then you can jump to level cap and port directly to the region. Min-maxers and those who have a penchant for build experimentation can spend hours perusing new gear and such like. However, despite being a beneficial facility, The Eyes and Guard Tavern is a somewhat blunt tool.
LOTRO: Progressing Through Mordor
It was in May that I last subscribed to LOTRO and attempted to progress through the Mordor expansion. I was under geared and under powered and the initial zone of Udûn was proving to be an up-hill struggle. So, I decided to level elsewhere in the game and managed to get as far as 111 (the current level cap is 115). I still couldn’t improve my gear so there was no point bypassing Mordor and going straight to the Dale-lands which were released in June in Update 22. So, I decided to spend my gaming time elsewhere and left LOTRO. However, the recent Bullroarer preview of Update 23 rekindled my interest in the MMO. Surely Mordor wasn’t the immovable obstacle that I thought? So, I subscribed once again, and returned to the game on Friday evening. Luckily, there were several kinship members online and they generously helped me until I reached the “tipping point” of the Mordor expansion. Two days later and I’ve nearly hit level cap and the game although challenging, it’s no longer the grind that it was a few months ago.
LOTRO: Update 23 Preview
I managed to spend an hour or so today, exploring the latest preview of Update 23 for LOTRO, that is currently being beta tested on the Bullroarer server. Sadly, due to my schedule, I did not get to spend as much time as I would like, exploring the new zones, and by the time I reached the Withered Heath, the server closed. However, I did see sufficient for me to be able to gauge progress. Overall this is an interesting zone which offers new iterations of Dwarven culture. Standing Stone Games once again have found the right balance between using established in-game assets and integrating them with newer designs. The results are two regions that are bright, roomy and distinctly Dwarven. However, it should be noted that as ever with these beta previews, the build is subject to change.
The Lord of the Rings Online 2.0
“I’d love to see LOTRO reimagined in a new engine with a certain modernization of gameplay". So said Koshelkin, in a recent comment made over at the Massively Overpowered website. It’s a common sentiment that often expressed by the LOTRO community and I must admit, I have a similar curiosity. But the more I ponder this idea, the more I find myself thinking “be careful what you wish for”. Because LOTRO as it currently exists, embodies the MMO ethos of the time that spawned it. Long-term players love it because of its foibles. As I’ve mentioned before in previous blog posts many LOTRO players are not gamers per se and therefore have no exposure to modern MMOs along with contemporary game mechanics. Thus, if Standing Stone Games were to radically redesign their virtual Middle-earth to include action combat and a truly open world, they may find themselves alienating a great many current LOTRO players, who would be all at sea in a modern iteration of the game.
LOTRO: Update 22.2
When I first started playing LOTRO in late 2008, I actually read the manual that came with my box copy, before I decided which class I was going to play. I chose the Lore-master as it sounded and interesting mixture of both ranged attacks and the use of pets. Being new to the MMO genre at the time, I didn’t realise that it was actually quite a complex class to play. Although I have dabbled with alts over the years I have stuck with this single character and until 2017, kept them relatively up to date with regard to content and respective skills. Mordor greatly dampened what enthusiasm for LOTRO and as a result I have fallen behind the curve. My gear is poor as I haven’t really progressed far into the lastest expansion. Combat has become a tedious grind, leaving me with a paradoxical situation. Poor gear makes progression slower, but bypassing Mordor leaves my character gimped. Bearing this in mind, I’ve been eagerly awaiting the Lore-master class changes that have come with Update 22.2 in the hope they will improve my situation. Sadly, I don’t think that today’s changes are the solution I’m looking for.
LOTRO and Daybreak Game Company
Over the past eleven years The Lord of the Rings Online has faced many business-related issues that has prompted its player base to speculate over the games future. These include the MMOs transition from a subscription to a free to play service, Turbine’s acquisition by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and then there were the issues with the license expiration in 2017. However, all these problems were resolved in one way or another and the game endures. That is not to say that Turbine or Standing Stone Games (SSG) are business geniuses. Absolutely not. They’ve made plenty of mistakes over the years and continue to regularly shoot themselves in the foot with their community relations. LOTRO survives because of its core playerbase who have made this virtual Middle-earth their home and they support the game come hell or high water. A lot of this core group are fully aware of SSGs shortcomings, but they are wedded to this game and hence they sustain it. It’s a curious yet fascinating symbiotic relationship.
LOTRO: More Community Nostalgia
A few days ago, I wrote about some aspects of the wider LOTRO community that were no longer with us. These included the podcast A Casual Stroll to Mordor, the rivalry between the official and unofficial LOTRO forums and that curious experiment, the player council. I was quite surprised by the response to this post, which was very positive, and was also interested by some of the comments that followed on social media. Hence, I decided to follow it up with some further examples, based upon reader feedback and further reflection upon the matter. LOTRO has been around for eleven years which is a considerable period of time. To put this into some sort of perspective, it has been part of my leisure time for one fifth of my life. During that time a lot of things have come and gone.
LOTRO: Community Nostalgia
Next Thursday LOTRO officially starts its 11th anniversary celebrations. It’s an opportunity for “fun and larks” with a wealth of special in-game events to play or grind through, depending on your perspective. Standing Stones Games will no doubt espouse the MMOs achievements and if we’re lucky they may even elaborate further upon the games long term road map. However, anniversaries are also a time for reflection and I would like to take some time to explore several wider aspects of LOTRO and its community that are no longer with us. A lot has happened in eleven years and things are naturally not the same. Change is inevitable and not always bad, but some of the things that have gone from the LOTRO-verse are sorely missed. Others may be not so, but I would still argue that their presence at the time were born of an engaged and motivate playerbase.
LOTRO: Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Fire
Considering that the Mordor expansion for LOTRO was released on August 2nd last year, I’ve made precious little progress. I don’t like the zone for reasons I’ve mentioned in a previous blog post, yet I now find myself in a position where I need to clear through its content, so I can move on to the new regions that have become available with Update 22 – Legacy of the Necromancer. So, I decided to see if I could just get away with just completing the central Epic Story and ignoring the secondary quest lines. However, I have once again ground to a halt due to what I consider to be excessive grind. Having entered the fortress of Durthang, I found that rather than offer any sort of meaningful tactical challenge, I was instead just confronted with a series of rooms which are all densely packed with mobs. Furthermore, as the Mordor is effectively a gear check due to the additional ten levels that Standing Stone Games have added to the MMO, all mobs in Mordor have been arbitrarily adjusted. As a result, they are demonstrably harder to kill than those in the Dagorlad Waste or North Ithilien.