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The Road to Mordor: Three things LotRO needs from Guild Wars 2 (and vice versa)

Justin Olivetti — Sat, 08 Sep 2012 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Opinion, Guild Wars 2, Free-to-Play, The Road to Mordor

Whenever a new big MMO releases, it causes a shockwave of predictable conversations and comparisons. I'm not interested in the "winning/losing" or "killing/dying" debate so much as a contemporary meeting of minds to share ideas. MMOs used to develop in a vacuum, but now they're much more interconnected (for better and worse). The upside for consumers is that proven features often spread to the competition, hopefully improving the whole playing field.

In our case, it's the impact of Guild Wars 2 on the industry and what it might have to teach Lord of the Rings Online. Yet I don't think it's quite fair (or true) to just look at it from the lens of "Everything GW2 has is better"; it's more productive to theorize how to swap the best of both games in order to improve them.

So here are three things that LotRO could use to implement from Guild Wars 2 -- and three that Guild Wars 2 could use from LotRO.

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Three things LotRO needs from Guild Wars 2 (and vice versa)

The Road to Mordor: Three things LotRO needs from Guild Wars 2 (and vice versa) originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 08 Sep 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lord of the Rings Online's Update 7 features new high-level skirmish

Jef Reahard — Tue, 08 May 2012 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Lord of the Rings Online, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, Patches, News Items, Free-to-Play

Turbine's been pumping out a bunch of screenshots for its Dungeons and Dragons Online expansion lately, so it's only natural that Lord of the Rings Online gets equal treatment. While Update 7 isn't a full-blown expansion, it is a pretty significant content drop that is focused on revamping Moria and Fornost.

Today's gallery features a look at the update's new skirmish, which pits players against a sorceress named Gwyllion at the southern end of the Misty Mountains. The Storm on Methedras instance supports one to 12 players and is designed for levels 70 to 75.

[Source: Turbine press release]

Gallery: Lord of the Rings Online Core Gallery

Lord of the Rings Online's Update 7 features new high-level skirmish originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 08 May 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Road to Mordor: Ten up, ten down

Justin Olivetti — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, Game Mechanics, Free-to-Play, The Road to Mordor

Levels in MMOs are best when accepted as a traditional aspect of the game that blends into the background. It's weird when you hold them up to scrutiny because it's very hard to mesh these arbitrary numbers with the pretend "reality" of the game world. I've always thought it was weird that I could get high enough in levels to return to old fortresses of evil and be basically invincible. Plus, how can there be bats and goats that are both level 5 and level 75? Is there an animal commando school somewhere I haven't seen?

In any case, while I enjoy the ding as much as anyone else, levels have lost their luster to me. The fact that Rise of Isengard added 10 new ones versus, say, five or none, doesn't really mean much in the long run. There isn't a lot tied to these new levels other than a small handful of mostly recycled skills and the typical increase in stats, so for me there's really no rush to climb through them. However, as with any first week or two out of release, leveling seems to be a huge area of focus for many players as they seek to hit that end cap once again and re-establish the status quo.

Still, it's important to some, and our kinship has spent a good amount of time chewing over these new levels, how to get them, and whether or not they're worth a hill of beans in this crazy, messed-up world. Today in our laser-focused Lord of the Rings Online column, I'm going to sort those beans. I may even eat one or two; beans are great for protein and fiber.

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The Road to Mordor: Ten up, ten down originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 08 Oct 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Road to Mordor: Packing for Isengard

Justin Olivetti — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, Free-to-Play, The Road to Mordor, Guides

Isengard. Isengard. ISENGARD. It's all I can think about since last week's E3 reveal, and I know I'm not the only one. For some reason, having a firm launch date for Lord of the Rings Online's third expansion feels like a starting pistol's gone off, and we're beginning the race to the expansion in earnest.

Of course, we're not in that much of a hurry at this point. We still have well over three months to go, the beta has yet to begin, and something tells me that Turbine's got a few more tricks to pull out of its top hat before all is said and done. Still, I'm officially in "Go!" mode, and I bet I'm not the only one.

While I can't make September 27th come any sooner, I can think of six ways that we can prepare for our upcoming journey into Dunland and beyond. Seven, if you include putting together the absolute perfect outfit to slay Saruman in, but that's a given.

Hit the jump and I'll walk you through everything you should be doing this summer to get ready for Rise of Isengard!

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Packing for Isengard

The Road to Mordor: Packing for Isengard originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 17 Jun 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lord of the Rings Online dev diaries discuss new skirmishes

Matt Daniel — Thu, 19 May 2011 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, News Items, Free-to-Play, Dev Diaries

Turbine has given us a two-for-one deal today with the addition of two new dev diaries. The diaries -- from Turbine's Bob "Maurath" Hess and Joe "jwbarry" Barry -- detail two of the new skirmishes being introduced in Lord of the Rings Online's Update 3. The first skirmish, Attack at Dawn, takes place in the North Downs and sees players dealing with multiple different mechanics simultaneously. The second, The Icy Crevasse, is the first skirmish to take place in Forochel and is described by Barry as "a quick bite-sized romp," with the skirmish taking about 10 minutes to complete.

It's truly an interesting look into not only what the skirmishes themselves entail but the design process that goes into bringing them to players on the live servers. Whether you play LotRO or you're just curious about the work and thought process that goes into these skirmishes, the diaries are certainly a must-read. If you're interested in gaining a new degree of respect for the effort that goes into the game, both dev diaries can be found on LotRO's official site.

Lord of the Rings Online dev diaries discuss new skirmishes originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 19 May 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lord of the Rings Online prepping Update 3: Lost Legends of Eriador

Jef Reahard — Tue, 17 May 2011 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Lord of the Rings Online, MMO Industry, Patches, News Items, Free-to-Play

There's a new content update just over the horizon for Lord of the Rings Online. While the new locations aren't exactly a far green country under a swift sunrise, they do look to be fairly spiffy in their own right.

First up are two new three-player instances. The Halls of Night boasts content for levels 40 to 65 and takes a cue from Frodo and company's nightmarish trek through the Barrow Downs. The Inn of the Forsaken naturally takes place in the Lone Lands' well-worn stopover and is a proper dungeon-crawl intended for players from levels 20 through 65.

New skirmishes are also on the way, including an Esteldin-based romp intended for levels 30 to 65 called Attack at Dawn. Finally, the frozen wastes of Forochel will also be sporting a new instance, and the Icy Crevasse content sees players from levels 40 to 65 tasked with thwarting the evil plans of a nefarious sorcerer. All of these new goodies make up the bulk of LotRO's Update 3: Lost Legends of Eriador and are currently scheduled to go live on May 23rd. Check out our gallery below for three new images from the Halls of Night instance, or take a peek at the dungeons themselves in Justin's hands-on from last week.

Gallery: Lord of the Rings Online Core Gallery

Lord of the Rings Online prepping Update 3: Lost Legends of Eriador originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 17 May 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Road to Mordor: A look back at Volume 2

Justin Olivetti — Fri, 06 May 2011 14:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Opinion, Free-to-Play, The Road to Mordor

Last year, I spent a column giving my reflections, thoughts, and observations on the entirety of Volume 1 of Lord of the Rings Online's epic storyline, and today I'd like to do the same for Volume 2. Since these stories are at the center of LotRO's player experience, it's important to see how they function and hold up in today's increasingly story-centric MMO environment.

I've gone through Volume 2 twice, once before the "solofication" of the recent update and once after. The second journey was, by far, much more enjoyable since I didn't have to sit there for weeks hoping to find enough players on the same part of the Fellowship portions to continue the tale. Being able to go through it at my own pace was vastly more enjoyable, especially when I could dedicate huge chunks of time to knock out several chapters in one go.

And this is a good thing, as this volume of the epic story not only gives you one of your legendary traits but greatly helps you build reputation toward a faction that will give you another one (the Iron Garrison Guards). As such, Volume 2 will continue to be an important part of any character's journey.

So let's dig into this puppy (not... a literal puppy, you understand) and see what Volume 2 has to offer. If you haven't yet gone through this part of the epic story, beware: Here be spoilers!

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: A look back at Volume 2

The Road to Mordor: A look back at Volume 2 originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 06 May 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Road to Mordor: Four more years, four more years!

Justin Olivetti — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Events (Real-World), Events (In-Game), Interviews, Free-to-Play, The Road to Mordor

While four years is not a nice round number -- or even a halfway number like five -- it's a substantial milestone for any MMORPG. Debuting in early 2007, Lord of the Rings Online introduced something we'd never seen before: a fully realized 3-D virtual Middle-earth where we could not only enjoy a deep MMO but explore the lands and meet the people we'd only read about before.

It might not be a universal truth that all LotRO players are big Tolkien fans, but I'm sure enough that it's a sizable chunk of the playerbase. There's something special about the IP that gives a weight and richness to the game, especially when a long-time reader of the books is given leave to actually go on adventures through Eriador, Moria and Mirkwood. It's a giant sight-seeing tour of lore, a thrill with every brush one has with the source material.

It's heady to consider that four years ago we were but starting on this journey, feeling out the mechanics of combat, crafting and pie-running. Four years later, LotRO has emerged to be one of the most significant MMOs of the past decade, growing strong with no signs of slowing down.

Hit the jump as we reminisce about the ups, the downs, and the off-the-beaten-path hikes of our beloved game as it celebrates its fourth anniversary.

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Four more years, four more years!

The Road to Mordor: Four more years, four more years! originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 22 Apr 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Through Turbine's palantír: Developers outline LotRO's future

Justin Olivetti — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 12:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, Interviews, Previews, Free-to-Play

In J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, characters would use magical orbs known as palantírs to see and communicate with far away places. While Massively's own palantír is at the shop, we had access to the next best thing -- a one-on-two chat about Lord of the Rings Online's future with Turbine's Aaron Campbell and Adam Mersky.

A lot's been happening since LotRO's free-to-play version went online last fall -- the closest thing to a relaunch that this game is likely to ever see -- and both Campbell and Mersky have one important message for fans: We're just getting started. Even as the Turbine team gears up for LotRO's third expansion, Rise of Isengard, the devs want you to know that they're also dedicated to bringing a good amount of content between now and then.

Everything was on the table during this discussion, from this weekend's anniversary celebration to next month's update to the new expansion. Join us after the jump for a look through the palantír to see what information we can pry from the future!

Continue reading Through Turbine's palantír: Developers outline LotRO's future

Through Turbine's palantír: Developers outline LotRO's future originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 21 Apr 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Road to Mordor: Re-evaluating Moria

Justin Olivetti — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, Free-to-Play, The Road to Mordor

When I first left Lord of the Rings Online, it was early in 2008 and we were constrained to Eriador and Eriador alone. Angmar was the most dangerous spot on the map, level 50 was the cap, and getting your legendary traits was an almost inhuman feat. When I returned in 2010, I discovered I had missed out on the release of not one but two expansions and a huge amount of new content in the world. As a previous player, I felt as though everything I had known was completely different, and there was nothing as unknown or intriguing as the Mines of Moria.

Expansions have a funny way of making or breaking MMOs, you see. They can exemplify some of the best qualities of the genre: they represent the persistent growing world; they give our characters new challenges to overcome; and they can introduce new features that significantly change how the game is played. Of course, they can damage the game's reputation by creating a worse endgame than before, by screwing up the good aspects of the game, or simply by being unpopular.

So how does Mines of Moria fare two-plus years after its release? Today, I want to take a look back at what will probably be the single largest expansion that LotRO will ever see and examine how its purpose has changed from 2008 to 2011. Also, we'll probably make fun of Dwarves.

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Re-evaluating Moria

The Road to Mordor: Re-evaluating Moria originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 08 Apr 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Road to Mordor: Echo... echo... echo...

Justin Olivetti — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Patches, Free-to-Play, The Road to Mordor

Last night before I drifted off to sleep, I was idly wondering what it would be like to actually live in Middle-earth. Apart from the extremely high mortality rate due to wandering wolves, bold bandits, and orchestrating orcs, it might be a pretty excellent place to dwell, as long as one didn't mind a lack of Wi-Fi and Starbucks. I think Hobbit pies and Dwarf ale would be an acceptable substitute.

Next week our virtual world will grow a bit in girth and depth with the Echoes of the Dead update. When all is patched and done, it'll be a truly big update containing meaty piles of content to devour. I think many of us are still scrutinizing Turbine as we go through this first year after the free-to-play switch, watching to see whether all of this additional revenue will be pumped back into the game or not. Echoes of the Dead marks the second post-F2P update for Lord of the Rings Online, following last November's Journey to Winter-home, and I have to say that I'm pretty impressed with just how much is being served up this time around.

So in anticipation of the patch, let's walk through the major features of LotRO's latest update and see whether it was worth the wait!

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Echo... echo... echo...

The Road to Mordor: Echo... echo... echo... originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 18 Mar 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lord of the Rings Online: "Solofication" is the word of the day

Justin Olivetti — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 14:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Patches, Free-to-Play, Dev Diaries

Ever since Turbine modified the first volume of its epic storyline for Lord of the Rings Online, players have eagerly anticipated the same revamp of Mines of Moria's Volume II. With the upcoming Echoes of the Dead patch, this will in fact take place, and Turbine's ready with another illuminating dev diary to shed some light on the process on the "solofication" of Volume II.

It turns out that reworking Volume II wasn't as simple as scaling down mob health or just slapping Inspired Greatness (a huge buff) on characters. Every stage of the journey -- which contained many large group instances -- had to be reconsidered, and Turbine's Bob Hess details how the content team broke down the journey, adjusted it and then reassembled it to be a more solo-friendly experience. "Overall, I feel as though the changes made will allow a great number of players who previously could not proceed through the epic to see the rest of the story unfold," Hess said.

Volume II's solofication includes taking battle instances and transforming them into skirmishes, adjusting the levels of the different books and making quest objectives simpler. You can read the entire article over at LotRO's website, and don't miss out on five new screenshots from Echoes of the Dead below!

Gallery: Lord of the Rings Online free-to-play

Lord of the Rings Online: "Solofication" is the word of the day originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 08 Mar 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Road to Mordor: Just around the bend

Justin Olivetti — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 14:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Previews, Opinion, Free-to-Play, The Road to Mordor

It's been a few months since the November Update in Lord of the Rings Online, and the natives are restless -- as usual. Some folks are despairing the long wait until Rise of Isengard while others are itching for more challenges to their currently level-capped characters. Then there are the players who are hopelessly lost in Moria and would give their eye teeth for a flashlight.

Happily, a new update is just around the bend, code-named Echoes of the Dead. The actual name is Echoes of the Dead too, so I guess that's not such a great code. Over the past couple of weeks, we've started to get a feel for just how large this update is, and after reading through the Bullroarer test notes on Wednesday, I think we're in for a tsunami of a patch.

Of course, these patch notes come in the middle of Turbine's carefully spaced dev diaries dealing with each major change or addition, which means that we're a little in the dark as to the specifics of half of this update. That's not going to stop me -- or any of you -- from analyzing, speculating and gesturing excitedly to no one in particular.

So let's dig in to this hearty meal of mushrooms and patch notes to see just how deep LotRO's rabbit hole goes!

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Just around the bend

The Road to Mordor: Just around the bend originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 11 Feb 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Road to Mordor: Creating your roadmap

Justin Olivetti — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Free-to-Play, The Road to Mordor, Guides

I wish to preface this week's column by saying that I'm not advocating just one way to play a game. I think it's equally valid to explore at your own pace, team up as a duo, maximize TP revenue, or set whatever goals you like and pursue them. But after leveling one character to the cap and playing several others, I've begun to develop a roadmap, if you will, that helps guide my progress somewhat efficiently. It's this roadmap that I want to share with you today.

The thing is, for all I love about Lord of the Rings Online, the game is definitely littered with timesinks of epic proportions. It already takes a long, long time to get your character up to 65 and through the two expansions, and that's only going to increase as the game grows. There are a lot of distractions and unnecessary grinds (such as virtues you will never use) that can bog you down too long and perhaps dishearten you.

So when I created a Minstrel in LotRO a little while back, I decided to map out his progress from level 1 through 65 by creating a broad framework -- an outline, really -- that serves to keep me on track so I don't have to backtrack as much later on to get these goals done. I have a very "two birds with one stone" mentality, so if I'm doing one task in a zone, I'd rather be accomplishing two or three at the same time. So for example, if I'm grinding out a deed, I'd rather do it at level at which I'm getting XP than 20 levels later when I'm not (although the latter has its merits for rapid deed completion).

Hit the jump and I'll give you the rundown of how to eliminate some of the confusion and speed bumps of leveling.

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Creating your roadmap

The Road to Mordor: Creating your roadmap originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 04 Feb 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Road to Mordor: Horton hears a patch

Justin Olivetti — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 13:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Patches, Free-to-Play, The Road to Mordor

Few things get me more excited than the promise of a big steak dinner and a big, beefy patch. Both get the mouth watering, the senses tingling, and the anticipation racing. However, the former comes and goes within minutes, while the latter is here to stay. I love devouring a good set of patch notes, chewing every morsel of information as my mind tries to picture it in action.

Mental note -- I should not be writing columns when I'm hungry.

I trust you were as pleased as I was when you woke up to the Lord of the Rings Online November update patch notes this past week (Standard Disclaimer: These are for the test server and are subject to change, void in Nevada). We knew that Turbine had a few substantial projects in the works for November, but this is far beyond what I'd speculated. It's one of those "There's something for everyone -- well, almost everyone" updates that has a little of everything, a buffet of sumptuous delights. Sure, it's not going to please folks looking for new dungeons, the promised LI and housing revamps, or the continuation of the epic storyline. That said, Turbine's first post-F2P patch is considerably bigger than anticipated, and if this is any indication of the course the company is setting with releases, I'm happy to be on board.

Let's break down this LotRO update after the jump, and see just who this patch is for and what it has to offer, shall we?

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Horton hears a patch

The Road to Mordor: Horton hears a patch originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 29 Oct 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LotRO dev diary dishes on scaled instance rewards

Justin Olivetti — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Patches, Previews, Free-to-Play

Do you have a lot of questions about the upcoming scaled instances in Lord of the Rings Online? Good, because Turbine has a whole truckload of answers for you! In the second of a hefty five developer diaries devoted to the subject, LotRO's Joe "jwbarry" Barry tempts players with sweet, sweet candy. Metaphorical candy, that is, taking the form of instance rewards.

The greatest problem that they had with rewards, Barry shares, is that itemizing a dungeon across a huge level range became a massive headache, requiring them to make "a prohibitive" amount of items. Instead, the LotRO dev team is taking a cue from its successful skirmish system, and reprogramming the scaled-instance mobs to drop tokens instead of loot. Players can then use these tokens to purchase armor sets, cosmetic items and even legendaries.

Barry spends the rest of the article discussing the stat-tracking feature (again, similar to stat-tracking functions with skirmishes) and how the team went back through the dungeons to raise the quality of the entire experience where needed. You can read the full dev diary over at Lord of the Rings Online's site.

LotRO dev diary dishes on scaled instance rewards originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Newest LotRO dev diary explains instance scaling

Rubi Bayer — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Game Mechanics, Free-to-Play

The skirmish system in Lord of the Rings Online brought a lot to the table, but one of the most popular new features was scaling.

It was a big hit, and the developers are now adding it to the rest of the game in the form of instance scaling. If you're curious about how it will work, Content Designer Joe "jwbarry" Barry has written out a developer diary explaining the system.

One concern was making these instances available to the widest possible number of players, while still maintaining quality, challenging content. Joining instances like you would join a skirmish was another detail to be worked out, as was the overall method of scaling.

The full developer diary provides some great insight on how instance scaling will work, as well as the thought process behind the design -- it's a must-read for anyone interested in trying instance scaling.

Newest LotRO dev diary explains instance scaling originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 21 Jul 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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E3 2010: Lord of the Rings Online Vol 3 Book 2 preview of Enedwaith [Updated]

Dan O'Halloran — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 19:30:00 EST

Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Interviews, Previews, Interviews (Massively's)

Massively sat down today with the Turbine team at E3 in Los Angeles to take a look at the new Lord of the Rings Online free-to-play content that went into closed beta earlier today. Along with the new cash shop, we got a look at the new playable area Enedwaith that will go live with the Volume 2, Book 3 launch this Fall. The blurred version of the new land map is for those of you who don't like spoilers. Full map and all the details about the next patch after the jump!

Continue reading E3 2010: Lord of the Rings Online Vol 3 Book 2 preview of Enedwaith [Updated]

E3 2010: Lord of the Rings Online Vol 3 Book 2 preview of Enedwaith [Updated] originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 16 Jun 2010 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Road to Mordor: The highs and lows of Middle-earth

Justin Olivetti — Fri, 07 May 2010 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, The Road to Mordor

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

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. It was also the most trite way to open an article, especially if you were to be submitting it to your English teacher. Still, I've never encountered a week in LotRO that's given me such a bipolar experience, and I'm going to need your help to work it out. You with me? Good, then grab a cup of red tea and let us spin such a yarn that cats all over the world will be attracted to it.

The week began with a switch back to my Captain -- I like to juggle characters, but my cappy (Captain Crunch, thank you very much) is the flagship character of my account, the one in which I've poured the most time and interest. Crunch had just hit level 45, which meant she was eligible to start Volume II, Book I. This is generally recommended at level 45, because the book nets you your first legendary item (and your second, by the end of it). I figured, might as well get cracking on that infamous LI grind I hear so much about, so away I went!

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: The highs and lows of Middle-earth

The Road to Mordor: The highs and lows of Middle-earth originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 07 May 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Road to Mordor: How skirmishes have changed LotRO

Justin Olivetti — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, The Road to Mordor

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

In the last couple years, MMO developers have been addressing the problem of stagnant mid- and end-game play by giving gamers various forms of repeatable content. Warhammer Online proposed PvP scenarios, World of Warcraft launched their Dungeon Finder, City of Heroes added in Mission Architect, and with the advent of the Siege of Mirkwood expansion, LotRO invented skirmishes.

While not identical in form or function, each of these systems is similar in a few ways: they are instantly accessible, they promote easy grouping, they encourage ad nauseum replay, and they offer an alternative way to gain XP and levels. Not to mention that while each of these features has seen criticism, they are greatly embraced by the playerbase and enjoyed by millions daily.

One could argue -- and I guess I am that one -- that skirmishes were LotRO's hole card for Mirkwood, the big "hook" that grabbed players' attention and imaginations. While not a complete game-changer, skirmishes have undeniably altered the face of the game and impacted many players' experiences, for better or worse. So let's face this change head-on and see how skirmishes have fared since last December's debut.

Pick up a lute and play me a merry song, for we'll need all the courage to hit the jump and come out on top!

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: How skirmishes have changed LotRO

The Road to Mordor: How skirmishes have changed LotRO originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 12 Mar 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LotRO releases new skirmish dev diary for Volume III: Book 1

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Events (In-Game), Expansions, Previews

You'd be hard-pressed to find news on Lord of the Rings Online these days that doesn't talk about skirmishes. Probably the single biggest feature added in Siege of Mirkwood, these scaling dungeon fights are both an excellent way of expanding the game's content availability and a now-integral component of the ongoing epicc story in the game. The first skirmish of the upcoming Oath of the Rangers (Volume III, Book 1) is detailed in a new developer diary on the official site, where Joe Barry of the content design staff walks players through what they can expect.

The Rift of Nûrz Ghâshu is the setting of the new Skirmish, with players guiding the ranger Corunir to the Coliseum at the heart of the molten expanse. Fellowship Manoeuvers are slated to play a major part in the escort, as well as being instrumental in navigating the most deadly encounters with bosses. But that's hardly all coming in the near future -- new raid versions are being added to four Skirmishes, a duo mode is being added, and rewards for taking on the Skirmish as a larger group are being scaled up. Lord of the Rings Online players will want to check out the full diary on the official site, and get ready for even more time in the game's dial-a-dungeon feature.

LotRO releases new skirmish dev diary for Volume III: Book 1 originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Feb 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

Dan O'Halloran — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Patches, The Road to Mordor

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

The 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.

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LotRO announces Volume III, Book 1: Oath of the Rangers

Rubi Bayer — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 18:45:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, News Items

Lord of the Rings Online fans have been speculating for a while, wondering what the name of Volume III, Book 1 was going to be. Turbine's Sapience has been giving increasingly specific hints in a hangman-style game in the forums. Now the game's over, he's had his fun, and we have a title.

Volume 3:Allies of the King, Book 1: Oath of the Rangers is on the way, bringing with it plenty of new additions to the game.

Players will be returning to Dol Guldur for four skirmishes in the brand new twelve person mode, and a fifth skirmish in the Depths of Nûrz Ghâshu. Crafting will receive a some attention as well: players will be able to craft items up to level 65, and there will be crafting updates for Jewellers, Cooks, Woodworkers, Farmers, and Weaponsmiths.

Of course, these are just a few of the highlights for the newly-titled Volume. All the current details are on the official site, so take a look, and we'll keep an eye out for more information!

LotRO announces Volume III, Book 1: Oath of the Rangers originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 28 Jan 2010 18:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LotRO: Siege of Mirkwood patch 1 now live

Rubi Bayer — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 16:00:00 EST

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

Last week we brought you the preliminary patch notes for the first planned patch for Lord of the Rings Online: Siege of Mirkwood and noted that they were only preliminary, subject to changes and additions.

Well, the patch notes are all settled and the patch went live today, bringing some surprises for players who may have preferred to remain unspoiled. For starters, players will find that all Legacy points on their Legendary items have been refunded with this patch, so they'll get an extra shot at redistribution without waiting for a reforge.

As we mentioned before, Skirmishes got quite a bit of attention too, including the revival of the Barrow-downs Skirmish. In addition, non Siege of Mirkwood players will find that they are no longer limited to three Skirmishes.

Of course, these are only a few of the high points. The full patch notes are available on the official site, or you can log into Lord of the Rings Online and explore them for yourself!

LotRO: Siege of Mirkwood patch 1 now live originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 19 Jan 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Preliminary notes for first Siege of Mirkwood patch released

Rubi Bayer — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 16:00:00 EST

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

Just a month and a half after the launch of Lord of the Rings Online: Siege of Mirkwood, the first patch is almost ready. Preliminary patch notes were posted on the official forums by online community specialist Sapience, with a word of warning: "These should be considered a work in progress and incomplete. Final release notes will be posted when the patch is approved for release to the live servers."

As expected, the patch so far focuses primarily on skirmishes and legendary items, with a few tweaks being made as needed to raids, instances, and quests. It looks like some significant and very welcome changes are coming, such as a correction to the tier 6 costs of certain legacies. General fixes here and there were also made, such as: "Hunter's Travel to Mirk-eaves skill now tells fellowship members you are travelling to Mirk-eaves. No more freaking out the other members of your fellowship." (Well, that was fun while it lasted, anyway.)

The full patch notes as they stand right now can be viewed on the official forums.

Preliminary notes for first Siege of Mirkwood patch released originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 14 Jan 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Breakdown of skirmish rewards for Lord of the Rings Online

Rubi Bayer — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, News Items

The Lord of the Rings Online expansion Siege of Mirkwood has been out for almost a month now, and players are beginning to get a good feel for how things work in the new areas. However, some of the most enjoyable areas can also be the most complicated, and there's a lot to figure out.

Merric from A Casual Stroll to Mordor is helping with this, and has started a great guide to the skirmish rewards system. The first two parts are all about cosmetic clothing and items, and we have to say it's a very thorough job. The first guide includes a quick explanation of skirmish marks and how they drop, and follow up with a chart including each type of mark, a screenshot of the tooltip, and where it can be found. Scroll down a bit more and you'll find a similar chart featuring each type of cosmetic clothing available and the requirements to acquire it. Part two, released this morning, carries the same format and covers items such as cloaks and backpacks.

The guides are a must-read for any Siege of Mirkwood fan, and our thanks to Merric for the time and effort put into them. We look forward to more!

Breakdown of skirmish rewards for Lord of the Rings Online originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 29 Dec 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New skirmish screenshots from Lord of the Rings Online

Rubi Bayer — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Screenshots, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, PvE

Lord of the Rings Online: Siege of Mirkwood went live December first, just one week ago. One of the most highly-anticipated features in Siege of Mirkwood was the new skirmish system. Skirmishes are scalable, randomized instances that you and your party can enter after setting a few parameters such as the desired level. They're designed to be relatively brief and fit easily into gameplay time, as well as keeping things interesting with the random elements. As with any ambitious new project, the skirmish system has the normal allotment of bugs here and there, but Turbine seems to be on top of them, and overall player response has been very positive.

Today, Turbine released a new series of screenshots from the skirmish system in Siege of Mirkwood. The screenshots offer a sneak peek at several different foes you may encounter, as well as some familiar backgrounds. Enjoy them in the gallery after the jump, and if you haven't already, you can learn more about the skirmish system here.

Continue reading New skirmish screenshots from Lord of the Rings Online

New skirmish screenshots from Lord of the Rings Online originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Getting started with the LotRO Skirmish system

Dan O'Halloran — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, Game Mechanics, Guides, Tips and tricks

With Lord of the Ring Online's Siege of Mirkwood expansion launch on Tuesday came the new Skirmish system. And with it also came a lot of questions. Though Turbine posted a number of Dev Diaries going over the various aspects of the new private instance system and its reward system, the same questions kept popping up in the game. We'll try to answer as many as we can here.

How do I get started with the Skirmish system? What level do I need to be?

If you are level 30 or above, you will receive mail with an attachment. Putting the attachment in your bags will start a quest that will send you to the nearest Skirmish Camps. The camps are in many places around Middle-earth. A complete list has been compiled on the new Skirmish forums by a generous player. You don't need to buy the expansion to use the Skirmish system, but your access will be limited until you do.

Continue reading Getting started with the LotRO Skirmish system

Getting started with the LotRO Skirmish system originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 04 Dec 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New developer chat transcript for Lord of the Rings Online

Eliot Lefebvre — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, Game Mechanics, Interviews

There's only a little time left until Lord of the Rings Online launches its next expansion, Siege of Mirkwood, but the players still have questions and the developers are thankfully quite happy to answer them. Not so long ago, WarCry had their first developer chat transcript up for fans of the game to digest. A fair bit of new information has come out since then, and so a new chat transcript is available with more information for the playerbase to mull over for the next week. Unfortunately, it's rather negative, since there are an awful lot of questions whose answers just so happen to be "no."

In no particular order: there are no current plans for expanding the housing system, there are no plans to convert Lorien tokens to Mirkwood, no player-created content systems in the works, no way to send mail with more than one attachment. On the other hand, there's more discussion of the Skirmish mechanics and their comparison with Dungeons and Dragons Online's difficulty-tunable instances, talk about how levels and items will be affected, and the expansive amount of content promised within Mirkwood itself. The full transcript is going to be a bit of a read, but it should tide over anticipation for the fast-approaching launch date.

New developer chat transcript for Lord of the Rings Online originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Developer diary covers Siege of Mirkwood's new skirmish instances

Seraphina Brennan — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Game Mechanics, News Items, PvE

The newest expansion to Lord of the Rings Online, the Siege of Mirkwood, will be introducing a new type of storyline instance for players to play in -- skirmishes. Skirmishes bring a new style of gameplay to LotRO, giving players the ability to participate in small military conflicts between the Free Peoples and the forces of Sauron while also being able to participate in small bits of content and still be rewarded.

The first two parts, the overview and the instanced nature of skirmishes, go over what the new Skirmish system provides players, and how skirmishes put a twist on the old concept of instancing. Did you ever want to defend the Prancing Pony in Bree? How about fight along side Elrond's sons? Skirmishes will be opening up those options to players while still offering repeatable adventures for any group size.

But we shouldn't talk our faces off here! Go on over and read Brian "Zombie Columbus" Aloisio's developer diary on the whole matter. He can describe it better than we can!

Developer diary covers Siege of Mirkwood's new skirmish instances originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PAX 2009: Turbine tells us all about Siege of Mirkwood part 2

Kyle Horner — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 09:30:00 EST

Filed under: Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, Events (Massively's Coverage)

Continue reading PAX 2009: Turbine tells us all about Siege of Mirkwood part 2

PAX 2009: Turbine tells us all about Siege of Mirkwood part 2 originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 08 Sep 2009 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Turbine announces LotRO's next expansion: "Siege of Mirkwood"

William Dobson — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 10:36:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, Launches

The next expansion for Turbine's Lord of the Rings Online has just been revealed (along with the logo above): players will be able to download Siege of Mirkwood this fall and finish the epic storyline of Volume II that began with the Mines of Moria. Specifically, this will include Volume II Book 9 and an Epilogue. The level cap will be raised to 65, and along with the predictable traits, skills and virtues that come from extra levels, there will also be some new class quests. For the raiders, a new 12-man challenge involving the Nazgûl Lord awaits, and additional 3 and 6-man instances will cater to those hungry for small group content. Some enhancements to the Legendary items system and an upgrade to the game's responsiveness will be making it in too.

A brand new feature to be introduced to Lord of the Rings Online in Siege of Mirkwood is the Skirmishes system:

Skirmishes offer endless action in repeatable, randomized instances where players can create and lead customizable soldiers into battle, training them to greater skill as they earn victories against the forces of shadow. Answer the call of war wherever violence erupts with the new "World Join" function that lets players and their fellowships band together to fight in various locations throughout Middle-earth.

You can be sure that more information about the expansion is coming up -- as a matter of fact, we'll have an interview to share in the next day or so. Stay tuned!

Turbine announces LotRO's next expansion: "Siege of Mirkwood" originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 04 Sep 2009 10:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pirates of the Burning Sea dumps skirmishes overboard

Shawn Schuster — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Pirates of the Burning Sea, Events (Real-World), Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, PvP

If you were waiting for skirmishes to be added to Pirates of the Burning Sea, you may be out of luck, at least for awhile. In a recent announcement at SOE's Fan Faire this week, Flying Lab game designer Drew Clowerly stated that it's simply a matter of losing the developer who was working on that aspect of the game. "We had one guy working on them, but he got a great offer and left. It was an opportunity to work on a brand new start-up, and nobody could turn that down," Clowerly said. In light of the recent troubles in MMO developerville, Clowerly was quick to point out that this doesn't mean PotBS is in any kind of trouble. Skirmishes are still planned, and it's something that art director Bruce Sharp says they'd like to bring aboard sooner than later.

If you're unaware, skirmishes were planned to allow players to create their own instanced PvP ship battles, with full control over everything from the victory conditions to the number of participants. "Skirmishes are an opportunity to just go in and have fun without risking your ship, as you'll be able to select the consequences for any battle failure, and that could be something like just gambling on doubloons," Sharp says.

Pirates of the Burning Sea dumps skirmishes overboard originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 17 Aug 2008 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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