Massively http://massively.joystiq.com Massively http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://massively.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Massively http://massively.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Turbine Drops New LOTRO Crafting Screens]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/03/04/turbine-drops-new-lotro-crafting-screens/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/03/04/turbine-drops-new-lotro-crafting-screens/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/03/04/turbine-drops-new-lotro-crafting-screens/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

Turbine continues to whet our Hobbit-sized appetites for the newest Lord of the Rings Online update. The company has released a handful of screenshots centered around the crafting tweaks included in Volume III: Allies of the King, Book 1: Oath of the Rangers.

While that title alone is quite a mouthful, it pales in comparison to the meaty morsels coming your way if you're in touch with your inner artisan. Updates include new and more powerful recipes for Cooks, new class items for Weaponsmiths and Woodworkers, Jewelry stat rebalancing, and new crops for Artisan, Master, and Superior Farmers.

Hit the gallery below to view the new screenshots, grab a second breakfast, and get ready to churn out those level sixty-five recipes.

Gallery: LotRO Volume 3, Book 1 gallery

MassivelyTurbine Drops New LOTRO Crafting Screens originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 04 Mar 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>craftinggallerylord-of-the-rings-onlinelotrolotro-volume-3-book-1screenshotsturbineThu, 04 Mar 2010 17:00:00 EST<![CDATA[The Road to Mordor: Massively tour of LotRO Volume III Book 1]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/26/the-road-to-mordor-massively-tour-of-lotro-volume-iii-book-1/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/26/the-road-to-mordor-massively-tour-of-lotro-volume-iii-book-1/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/26/the-road-to-mordor-massively-tour-of-lotro-volume-iii-book-1/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , ,

Every Friday, The Road to Mordor brings you the latest in Lord of the Rings Online news, guides and analysis.

Lord of the Rings Online Volume III: Allies of the King is kicking off Book 1: Oath of the Rangers on the live servers this Monday, March 1st. Massively got to sit down with a LotRO dev for a tour of the new content. But before we jump in to that, a quick note about content patches.

There have been some complaints on the official forums that this content update doesn't include a new land mass to explore. But the history of content updates for LotRO shows a pattern of only adding land mass every other update. Since the last update was a full expansion with the introduction of Mirkwood, it follows that this one would not include new lands.

That being said, there are many new areas to explore. The devs have created new instances in the "old world" for you to enjoy as part of the new Volume III epic quest line. So while this update doesn't deliver Rohan, it does have new dungeons to explore as well as a new Skirmish.

The tour (with some mild spoilers) starts after the jump!

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Massively tour of LotRO Volume III Book 1

MassivelyThe Road to Mordor: Massively tour of LotRO Volume III Book 1 originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 26 Feb 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>allies-of-the-kingaragornelrondlotrolotro-vol3-bk1lotro-volume-3-book-1oath-of-the-rangersrangers-of-the-northrift-skrimishshrew-stompingspring-festivalturbinevolume-3-book-1volume-iii-book-1Fri, 26 Feb 2010 18:00:00 EST<![CDATA[New LotRO Vol. III book 1 screens include awesome dragon]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/18/new-lotro-vol-iii-book-1-screens-include-awesome-dragon/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/18/new-lotro-vol-iii-book-1-screens-include-awesome-dragon/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/18/new-lotro-vol-iii-book-1-screens-include-awesome-dragon/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Turbine knows how to please a crowd, as evidenced by these new screens for Volume III: Allies of the King, Book 1 for Lord of the Rings Online. Who doesn't love dragons? Well, okay, probably not the party currently under siege by one in the screenshot above -- but everyone else for the most part. At least, everyone else loves them until they're attacked by one.

Anyhow, check out the rest of the screens. We especially recommend this one particular screen, where you'll find some other non-dragon enemies that look more than ready to tear apart your character in-game. Yes, we know, we've got a problem with dragons today. Don't worry, we're done now. Honest.

Gallery: LotRO Volume 3, Book 1 gallery

MassivelyNew LotRO Vol. III book 1 screens include awesome dragon originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Feb 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>dragondragonsdrakedrakeslotrolotro-vol3-bk1lotro-volume-3-book-1screenscreensscreenshotscreenshotsvolume-3-book-1Thu, 18 Feb 2010 15:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Turbine reveals new screenshots from Volume III]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/11/turbine-reveals-new-screenshots-from-volume-iii/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/11/turbine-reveals-new-screenshots-from-volume-iii/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/11/turbine-reveals-new-screenshots-from-volume-iii/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

It's been almost two weeks since the announcement of Lord of the Rings Online Volume III, Book 1: Oath of the Rangers. Fans continue to pore over and discuss the information currently released as Turbine keeps interest high with screenshots, patch notes, and dev diaries.

The latest round of screenshots was released today, giving us five gorgeous new images to add to our gallery. This time they focus on skirmishes, which are set to get an extensive makeover with the upcoming patch. Look for changes to everything from Skirmish Mark drop rates to icon appearances, as well as the addition of the mysterious duo mode.

All in good time, however. Volume III is on the way, and until then we'll keep occupied with the current notes and screenshots. Take a look at the gallery below for the latest batch.

Gallery: LotRO Volume 3, Book 1 gallery

MassivelyTurbine reveals new screenshots from Volume III originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Feb 2010 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>lord-of-the-rings-onlinelotrolotro-volume-3-book-1oath-of-the-rangersscreenshotsturbineThu, 11 Feb 2010 21:00:00 EST<![CDATA[The Road to Mordor: Vol III, Book 1 test realm notes analyzed]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/05/the-road-to-mordor-vol-iii-book-1-test-realm-notes-analyzed/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/05/the-road-to-mordor-vol-iii-book-1-test-realm-notes-analyzed/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/05/the-road-to-mordor-vol-iii-book-1-test-realm-notes-analyzed/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Every Friday, the Road to Mordor brings you the latest in Lord of the Rings Online news, guides and analysis.

Turbine's Lord of the Ring's Online has just announced the Volume III, Book 1: Oath of the Rangers free content expansion and the patch is already up on their test server, Bullroarer. And with a test patch, comes patch notes. I have to give the normal disclaimers about test notes changing before going live, but given that, let's dig in.

Two highlights are listed in the notes right off the bat with little explanation other than a promise of a dev diary to come at a future date. Those two new changes are:
  • Duo mode now available in Skirmishes
  • Extensive changes to the original Shadows of Angmar Volume I epic quest line
Players have been gimping the Small Fellowship (3-man) system by significantly dropping the level of the mobs when creating their Skirmish. That costs them Skirmish marks. Hopefully the new system will fix that.

The changes to the original epic quest line are probably to make it more solo friendly. It's very hard to complete it now that most players have leveled past it. If you are new to the game, you are probably begging higher level guild members to help you or skipping it altogether. Skipping it, though, is cheating yourself out of some of the best lore-based content in the game. I hope Turbine is changing it to make it more accessible for newer players who don't have access to groups at their level.

New level 64 player skills, Skirmish changes and new crafting after the jump!

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Vol III, Book 1 test realm notes analyzed

MassivelyThe Road to Mordor: Vol III, Book 1 test realm notes analyzed originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 05 Feb 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>featuredfourth-markslotrolotro-3.1lotro-skirmish-markslotro-trail-foodlotro-volume-3-book-1oath-of-the-rangersskirmishestest-serverturbineFri, 05 Feb 2010 16:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Turbine offers up a dev diary and screens for Oath of the Rangers]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/04/turbine-offers-up-a-dev-diary-and-screens-for-oath-of-the-ranger/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/04/turbine-offers-up-a-dev-diary-and-screens-for-oath-of-the-ranger/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/02/04/turbine-offers-up-a-dev-diary-and-screens-for-oath-of-the-ranger/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

We got the first details on the upcoming Lord of the Rings Online book, titled Oath of the Rangers, earlier this week. Now, to add to the excitement, Turbine has followed up on the initial information by releasing a handful of screens and an excellent developer's diary.

Flowing mightily from the keyboard of Jeff 'MadeOfLions' Libby, the diary gives Lord of the Rings Online fans much to discuss. Aside from the talk of storylines and a new skirmish, there's a really great behind-the-scenes portion about how precisely the LotRO team sets up something called "drama sequences." Essentially, these scripted sequences tailor NPC dialogue to you based on your own personal quest history -- bringing you info the story. There's also some information on ways the team is seeking to make travel a bit easier for the casual players, or more rewarding for those who take the long path.

If Middle-earth is the place you call home, then you'll definitely want to check out the new screens we've gathered up for you as well as the enlightening developer diary over on the LotRO site.

Gallery: LotRO Volume 3, Book 1 gallery

MassivelyTurbine offers up a dev diary and screens for Oath of the Rangers originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 04 Feb 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>behind-the-scenesdeveloper-diarygalleryjeff-libbylord-of-the-rings-onlinelotrolotro-volume-3-book-1oath-of-the-rangersscreenshotscreenshotsturbinevolume-3-book-1Thu, 04 Feb 2010 19:00:00 EST