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LotRO welcomes lapsed players back to Middle Earth

Lesley Smith — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Events, in-game, News items

It's been a very long time since I logged into Lord of the Rings Online and I suspect there are a lot of people out there in a similar situation. Well in an effort to get players to return to Middle Earth, they've instituted Welcome Back Week. Running from 9th-15th July, it offers a taste of the newest game content (Book 8: Scourge of Khazad-dûm), try some dungeons and a 12-man raid. Even better, there's 25% bonus XP from killing mobs and this even stacks with rest XP.

Of course, there is a catch. To qualify you need to have upgraded from a trial account and 'be in good standing'. However there is plenty to do, from running instances which will see you light up the Mirror Halls or figuring out the puzzle of the Water Works. If you're more into lore-centric content, you can have a go at battling the Scourge and help the Elves battle a deadly plague. You could even nip into Moria, if you don't mind the dark.

For more information, check out the official Lord of the Rings Online Welcome Back Week page.

LotRO welcomes lapsed players back to Middle Earth originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 13 Jul 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LotRO Book 8 launches today in the US; Thursday 25th slated as tentative European release

William Dobson — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 10:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Patches

The time has finally come for players of the US/Oceanic version of Lord of the Rings Online to experience Volume 2 Book 8: Scourge of Khazad-Dûm, as the large patch makes it to the live servers today. The information-packed official update notes are long and dense; here is a small sample of the changes and additions:

The Epic Book 8 quest line, involving the thwarting of Gorothúl, sorcerer of Dol Guldur
The Summer Festival, including two new events, located at The Shire and the area outside Thorin's Hall
A huge crafting revamp
Numerous class tweaks
A barter system for First Age Legendary Items
Changes to Lothlorien Gift Boxes
A boat NPC for Lake Everswim... er, Evendim!

Of course, to get the full scoop on these changes and more you'll want to sift through the actual notes, or for a more visual take, you can check the dev tour we were given late last month that looks at some of these things.

The other good news is that we now know that Thursday the 25th is the tentative release date for Book 8 on the European servers. It was first spotted on the LotRO-Europe Twitter, and later backed up by Community Officer Faya on the forums. We're expecting official confirmation of the European launch date within the next 24 hours.

Gallery: LotRO Volume 2: Book 8 Dev Tour

Gallery: LotRO Volume 2: Book 8

LotRO Book 8 launches today in the US; Thursday 25th slated as tentative European release originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 23 Jun 2009 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LotRO Book 8 releases June 23, pre-patching offered

James Egan — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Patches, News items

Massively has been following the latest content update for Lord of the Rings Online, which is Volume II Book 8: Scourge of Khazad-Dûm. We've now learned via MMeOw that Scourge of Khazad-Dûm will release on June 23 (US/Oceanic)! As a bonus, players can already download the patch; the update weighs in at a fairly hefty 600mb and links can be found in the official announcement on the LotRO forums. The patch notes are epic in length, and it might just be quicker to re-read one of Tolkien's works, but they seem to cover everything that's changing in Lord of the Rings Online.

If the 23rd and the release of Scourge of Khazad-Dûm can't come soon enough for you, have a look through the dev tour that Turbine gave us, showing a bit of the content you'll soon be playing in Volume II Book 8.

Gallery: LotRO Volume 2: Book 8 Dev Tour

Gallery: LotRO Volume 2: Book 8

LotRO Book 8 releases June 23, pre-patching offered originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 20 Jun 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New Lord of the Rings Online screens show Book 8's fiery crafting halls

James Egan — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Lord of the Rings Online, Patches

Massively has been keeping an eye on what Turbine will deliver with Lord of the Rings Online Volume II Book 8: Scourge of Khazad-Dûm; in fact, we were given a dev tour of the Book 8 content and showed you some of the quest revamps and new instances. Beyond that we've taken a look at the Scourge of Khazad-Dûm teaser trailer and highlighted some of the crafting enhancements that are coming with Volume II Book 8. Now Turbine's given us a look at some more Book 8 content, with six new screenshots released today that show off the fiery crafting halls.

Click on through our LotRO Volume 2: Book 8 gallery for a peek at what you can expect in the June release of Scourge of Khazad-Dûm.

Gallery: LotRO Volume 2: Book 8

Gallery: LotRO Volume 2: Book 8 Dev Tour

New Lord of the Rings Online screens show Book 8's fiery crafting halls originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 03 Jun 2009 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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