Nightfall in the Barrows

LOTRO continues to impress me at times, simply due to atmosphere. Here is a postcard from Middle Earth. The main reason for it grabbing my attention is the single tree right towards the middle of the shot that seems to stand out from the other trees showing the main trunk and the large canopy against the skyline. I’m sure it is as impressive in the picture as it was when I roaming the Barrows, but still a nice shot.

Portrait of a Lv 19 Burglar :: Character Decisions

Certainly deciding what character to play in any game is a big decision. In an MMORPG, you can argue it is even more important due to the time commitment to get up decent levels. That said, I thought I would post my character’s portrait and skill sets and talk about my experience as a burglar in LOTRO. This is NOT an uber build or anything like that. This is where I have ended up by questing alone and simply playing in pick up groups – no guild help and no alts and this is my first time up to this level so this is pretty much where you can expect to be as a floor.

Appearance wise, I am happier in the last 5 levels or so. I played a hobbit on Windfola and I liked his “look” better but in the last few levels, Derrid is looking a bit better. I haven’t messed with dyes and I certainly think it would help, but in the recent two weeks he has gone from kind of ugly to a better looking character.

Above is the current character sheet for those interested in stats. He dual-wields a sword and a dagger.

Derrid – Skill Set

Finally, above is a big composite photo of all the skills – both passive and active that I have accumulated. This is every skill available at level 19 outside of the music skills. At level 18 (IIRC), I ended up having to show the additional quickslot bar so that all skills available could be readily used. In the photo, the ones on the blue background are PASSIVE while the others are the active skills.

Typical Battle:

Ok… I just got a couple of newer skills so this may evolve a bit as there are a few more options available now than a few levels ago. The newer two are Trick: Dust in the Eyes and Addle – so I don’t focus on those but I do think they have good uses.

When I solo, it ends up being stealth up to an enemy – Aim for the critical and Surprise Attack. It is currently around 200 damage on the first blow. If there are more than one (mostly 2 enemies), I change targets and Riddle the second one before returning to the first to continue with Burglar’s Advantage and Cunning Attack. From there I sprinkle in Trick: Disable and Subtle Stab.

That works great most of the time. If things are tougher, then the next move is use Evade and Mischievous Glee. That is about all the fire power I have in the arsenal. I think the next step for me is to figure out how to integrate the newer two skills above to go to the next step.

In groups, the highlight is clearly beginning fellowship skills on elite and signature enemies using Exploit Opening. It is a great feature to begin and quickly end the tougher battles. Combat in groups becomes a bit chaotic in pick up groups, but I’ve had pretty good luck. Burglar’s have good staying power and I certainly have felt like I have been equal to other classes and if anything stronger. Riddle is super-effective but AOE attacks can certainly ruin it. So teamwork and strategy come into play.

Note: You can’t pull anyone except through an attack or being visible but stealth more than accommodates for that loss.

Overall:

My overall impression is that it is a very fun class. I love stealth and it’s a good class to solo and a fun class within fellowships. It isn’t the most desirable class – that goes to the Minstrel healers, but it is a very fun class to play and one that I would pick again. I usually enjoy characters that are a little more difficult but allow for a little more variety and require a bit more coordination and I think burglar fits that nicely.

Personally, I think I like the idea and look of the hobbit I had on Windfola a bit more than the man, but I’m glad I stuck with the burglar class for this go around. Hope that helps a few with decisions.

LOTRO :: Trouble Lands Upon the Pony

Derrid of the Dale gives his account of an evening at the Prancing Pony:

Having just returned from the Lone-Lands and the many dangers near the Forsaken Inn, I was happy to return to the familiar sights and sounds of Bree. It had been a fortnight since I had been within the walls and a good smoke, drink, and bed would be welcomed within The Prancing Pony. I made my way quickly up the old familiar streets to find myself in old comforts just past sunset. For a brief moment it was good to return. The bar was filled with life and the worries from beyond the walls of the tavern quickly began to fade.

Just as I began to enjoy my first ale, I noticed a man dressed in green near the door to the tavern. He gave me a peculiar look and made a gesture that I should not be looking his direction. It was far less than subtle. Taking a quick look around the tavern, I noticed that a young lady on the far side of the tavern appeared to have been watching closely. She quickly turned away as if she had not been, though it was too late. I slowly made my way across the tavern and to the large fireplace in the back of the tavern near where she stood, far away from the man near the door.

The lady, obviously nervous or frightened by the man dressed in green, was now near my side at the hearth. A good smoke was shared and we sat near the fire as a performance by 2 dwarves and a great female storyteller took to a nearby table. I must say it was the most tale I have heard in my trips across Middle-Earth and the story was one I thought heard told in Tom Bombadil’s house within the darkness of the Old Forest although his song seemed of a different origin. That said, what the young lady quietly relayed to me during the ongoing performance was disturbing.

She had witnessed a murder within the Prancing Pony within the month. She spoke in guarded phrases but was clearly fearful of something she thought was not of this world. I’m still a bit unclear as to whether she felt the man in green was directly related or whether it was that he simply made her recall her earlier vision of the murder through his behavior.

Unfortunately things turned from bad to worse as stories and suspicions turned into real events. As the performance ended, a seemingly innocent fight began as a well-dressed man in a pointed hat began to make advances on the young lady. Myself and a good dwarf quickly stepped up to offer protection. Clearly upset by the actions of the man, the young lady ran out of the tavern in tears. As she ran out of the tavern, I noticed that the man in green was conspicuously now missing from the tavern.

It seemed as though the good dwarf had things under control and I went to check upon the young lady that I had just spent the last hour or so along side. Stepping into the night air beyond the tavern door, she was no where to be seen. I made a short look around the tavern but after having no luck, I returned to the tavern.

There, bleeding on the floor, was the good dwarf!!

It seems that after I left the incident grew into something more. From his account, the man had pulled a knife and taken a good swipe at the good dwarf, fortunately landing on a shoulder. It seems that drew enough interest and several more well traveled adventurers stepped in and the man with the pointed hat quickly fled into the darkness of the night beyond the tavern. As I arrived, the good dwarf was under question for his involvement in the fight and I think it was good I was there to support his story. The experienced travelers were able to quickly bring calm to the situation and care for the wounds on the good dwarf. Soon music began to flow again through the tavern walls.

That night, I rested well. I am still not certain what to make of the events of yesterday, but those involved will not fall from my memory quickly. Perhaps it was all coincidence but perhaps it was a coordinated attack upon the good dwarf…. I can’t be certain. What I am certain of is that I am saddened to see the trouble beyond the walls of the Prancing Pony make their way into that place. I’m hopeful it not foretelling of things to come.

OOC: Last night I logged onto the Landroval server and this is my in-character description of the hour or so experience. A great time and I think it simply transpired due to a handful or more of players interested in more than simple questing. Good fun!!

LOTRO :: Real RP Opportunities

Logging onto the Landroval server last PM, I noticed yet another nice feature of the game. It looks like the new patch now “flags” people who are roleplaying with a white name instead of the more common yellow. You were flagged previously, but you had to cursor over people and look at the pop-up to see if they had the flag activated. I often did this if I was looking for someone to help with a quest in character but this makes it very obvious and easy to spot at a distance.

To turn on your Roleplaying Flag, simply type: /rp on

At that point, your flag is toggled on and your name will show up as white instead of yellow. It doesn’t “do” anything else, but it certainly does make it easier to find players on the server who are interested in something more than the hack-n-slash aspect of the game – simply look for the white names and you are in great shape.

As an example, I walked into the Prancing Pony last night and saw around 5-7 players who were roleplaying. It was easy to walk up next to them and quickly start conversations in character about game events. I have very little MMORPG experience with my only other game being Guild Wars, but I must say that I’m continuing to be impressed with the atmosphere within Middle Earth. I have heard all the terrible things about how immature the typical MMORPG audience is an in general I do think they lend themselves towards that with a pretty simple model. But this has been different and while there are many who don’t care about the story, many do and there is a sub-set of the community that is very interested and excited about seeing the game from a character’s perspective.

All in all, I continue to be impressed and while this was a subtle change with the patch; I think it is an important one that will serve the roleplaying community nicely. Excellent work Turbine!

Kids Gone Wild :: Online Games Aimed at Kids

If your house is anything like mine, online games for kids have simply taken off in the last year or so. It seems like a rampant spreading disease quickly consuming new users on a daily basis. Granted, I’ve set up two old computers in the game room for the kids and I encourage them to use them, but there is a new business model aimed at young kids – “free” online games that then offer subscriptions or require an initial purchase.

I decided to post what I know after seeing a post after seeing a blog review the top MMOs and seeing some of the numbers and thinking that this information might help out a few parents. From my perspective I think it is very interesting to see these evolving so quickly and it seems like the bigger MMORPGs like LOTRO should be evolving towards this audience and certainly paying attention to this competitor.

First things first, I have 5-8 yr old children. In the last year or so Webkinz seemed to take over our house. Webkinz is a pretty unique model in that you purchase little “pet” animals in toy stores or even airport shops and with the animal comes a unique code – so Benie Baby + a unique web code. Entering that code into the website allows the child an account with an avatar (the “character” they are online) matching their doll. So your child goes out and gets a Webkinz white dog and gets a code to start an account. In Webkinz world, they will be a little white dog. It is a unique hook type model and it is a really a pretty nice concept.

Within the world, the game is geared towards little kids. From what I have seen, all chat is selected from pre-generated lists. A quick comment on this: Obviously when you are online you have to watch what you say and what information you give out, but the second part of the equation is what will the other people online with you do and is it appropriate. To fix this, Webkinz and Club Penguin (which I’ll cover next) allow users to select text from a drop down list of options. So you can say “hi” or “bye” or “dance” etc. Think of it as not much more than a box of smilies that you can have your character say.

That is really the foundation. Within Webkinz, you have a room and can decorate it (I’m pretty sure) and you can visit other people’s rooms or get / send messages. It is honestly a bit weird when “Penguin546″ invites you “to their room”, but all it does it allow you to see their room and they can do anything more than float a smiley face on their little character so whatever fears you might have about going into a strangers room are really handled in a kid safe fashion in my opinion (IMO) even if the initial concept seems a bit odd for anyone older than 10.

The next game is Club Penguin. It is a step up in complexity and freedom. It “feels” much more like a dumbed down town in a classic MMORPG than a kids game. As you enter, you are in town with a number of penguins, say 50 or so standing and moving and occasionally speaking. If you are a parent, I’d encourage you to read the introduction and sign-up sheets pretty closely. There are multiple levels of freedom that you can grant for your child based on age which basically go back to limiting the chat options as I covered earlier.

Once in the game, it is a bit more like a social oriented MMORPG. There are mini-games to earn points and with those you can decorate your room or change your avatar appearance. It is, again, pretty well done. It lacks the high end graphics and it lacks the combat with “classic” MMORPGs but it is a pretty impressive operation. Characters can move from server to server and my kids are often calling friends to coordinate where they will meet up in the world. Really pretty funny. My kids are on the most structured account (for the youngest kids with the same limits on chat to pre-generated only) and I haven’t seen anything close to a PG movie.

The newest site that my son has found is a bit different and really seems like a single player experience: Adventure Quest. This is new in the last 2 weeks or so, so I have less experience. I’ve watched this one and basically it is like a single player game from about 15 years ago except online and free. Think the old battle interface from Might and Magic with less options and you have it. If not think, lightening bolt vs. sword attack vs. arrow attack. It is very simple and there is no chat interface so there is essentially no risk from a parent standpoint. There is “violence” but really not much more than a cartoon and certainly no where close to a PG movie IMO. The site claims to have some multi-player goals (without any chat) but my son hasn’t found that portion of the game as of yet. Basically it ends up being two kids in the game room playing side by side without much interaction in the actual game – more of just doing there own thing and glancing back and forth at what each other are doing. That said, they like it and they are on free accounts.

Those are the big ones that my kids are into. They are fun and have pulled my kids off of the Xbox and online so they are entertaining and IMO they are safe and appropriate if you provide just a little bit of oversight. All in all, I’d recommend looking into Webkinz for girls and littler children. If they like that initial step, then I think these other two are very good places to look for variety.

A quick note on LOTRO and how these stack up. First off, LOTRO is NOT geared for little pre-teen children. I don’t think anyone would say that is. That said, basic gameplay for AAA MMORPG titles is amazingly straightforward and streamlined – so easy a child could do it. So I’ve let my 8 yr old make a character and then I went in and disabled all the chat interfaces and it works nicely and it is pretty kid-friendly IF you know how to turn off chat options and IF you are around and are MMORPG savvy.

For comparison, I think LOTRO is much more violent appearing because the graphics are better. They are still cartoonish say next to the Pirates of Caribbean game on X-Box 360, but they are more realistic than the online games and therefore one step up the maturity ladder. But after that LOTRO is decent kid experience. In reality the gameplay is a little bit more complicated (even at super low levels and that complexity increases greatly as you level up). But that isn’t the biggest detraction. The biggest detraction is 1) the initial costs and requirement of the actual game and 2) the simple fact that computer comfortable parents are few and far between and 3) there are not any parental controls on MMORPG accounts. All of these really make the multi-friend social component of the game fall waaay short of the prior 3 true kid-oriented pieces of software discussed previously.

From my perspective, LOTRO and other mainstream MMORPGs should be aggressively looking at parental controls and sub-accounts if they hope to maintain their current hold on computer games. Great controls would really address two of the three issues above and only leave the initial purchase of software for a far more robust product.

Anyway, if your kids are looking for online entertainment there is plenty of free, really pretty quality stuff available if you look around. If you have two computers where kids can play next to each other – these are huge hits. One computer and it still goes head to head for my children’s time on gaming systems and it wins easily with the girl who has never been interested in gaming systems.

If you have questions, post and I can try to get answers or if you see something incorrect, post so that other people can see good information.

Huge Patch :: Shores of Evendim!

A huge patch titled Shores of Evendim was unleashed yesterday into Middle Earth. It is the first free expansion for LOTRO. With more changes than I could even read through, it looks like a great update to an already outstanding game. Here is a link to the official patch notes which will take you a while to sort through.

Official Patch Notes

I can’t say much more than what the official notes hold, but it certainly looks like a very good game took another large step forward. It will be interesting over the next few days to see if they accidentally took steps backwards. If not then they are really doing a standout job with this game.

Note: The patch is big. It took me a good 1 hour to install on a pretty high end machine with a good cable modem. Good news is that in contrast to the NWN2 updates that seemed to always break something and always not work; these remain smooth as silk.

And a quick note from my post yesterday where I pointed out I made a “Fastest growing” list; it must be real because for the first time since opening this site I’ve gotten spam Thankfully, it is automatically filtered so another plus for WordPress.

When Darkness Falls Upon the Marshes:: Introducing Derrid of the Dale

OOC:

In an unusual twist, I have a Saturday post… A few days back, I posted that I was wavering between the Landroval and Windfola servers. In all actuality, that struggle continues. I had pretty much moved exclusively to Landroval (the unofficial “roleplay” server) when I got word that Hamish (head of the Highland Confederacy) had joined on Windfola thus throwing me back into a seesaw battle. That said, I haven’t properly introduced my Landroval character and so here is an in character tale of his adventure into the Midgewater Marshes. No real spoilers at all in this, more of a quick tale with screenshots. Enjoy.

IC:

Trouble seems to be covering the land of Middle-Earth and much of it flows from the darker places. After seeing Archet burn first hand and watching the effects that had on the people; there was little to do but take to arms and try to make things right. With the smaller towns of Staddle and Combe sitting near the great Midgewater Marshes, I had been asked on several occasions to travel into that swamp and help the people of those nearby towns.

I still recall standing on the hill and looking down into that vast wasteland. It was closer to nightfall than I would have liked but the journey to the swamps edge had simply taken longer than I had planned and… in hindsight… perhaps ego ran ahead of the mind pushing me forward rather than seeking shelter in a nearby town for the night.

It was not long before the sun set. But by then my boots were wet and I was well into the thick of the marshes. Again, ego pushing forward into the darkness.

Shortly thereafter the marsh seemed to come alive. Bugs and critters and things I have never seen before seemed to come up from the ground. Constantly under attack in the darkness that was quickly covering the vast swamp, I must have wandered off course where I stumbled upon ancient ruins. It was there I wondered if I had seen the sun for the last time. The ego that led me to that point was noticeably absent.

Goblins! And not one of them, but waves it seemed appeared to flow to and from the ruins. I quickly took close to the ground and hid as groups of them passed but I could not stay forever. Gathering my strength I began to make progress for a small mound. There, not more than 10 feet away, one carrying a large canister appeared from over the mound. There was no retreating. I went to strike out at the goblin, but it was too late. The beast threw the canister to the ground causing a massive explosion. Within the fire, I struggled to kill the beast and then fell to the ground wondering if I would survive.

At that point, I had lost most hope. I had little option but to try and make it to safety… somehow… somewhere outside of the marshes. I knew I would not survive the night. For the next several hours, I remained silent and moved ever so cautiously so not to stir even a ripple.

Confused, tired, disoriented, I struggled in search of high ground… for a place to rest and gather my thoughts. There in the distance was safety – a large hill. Slowly I crept along the marsh before climbing to the top. There I realized that I my hope should have been fear. I had stumbled into a hideout of sorts. It seemed to be the lair for the goblins from which the smaller camps had been sprung.

For nearly an hour I watched as goblins carried on within the camp. Patrols came close on one occasion but soon I found myself alone with an opportunity for escape without conflict. Scanning the horizon, I saw the mountains of Midgewater Pass. I was far to the south of the pass and now needed to head there for higher ground and hopefully safety. Under cover of the moon, I made my way north and up.

There within the pass, I knew I was safe. With fair less accomplished than I had planned, I rested in peace knowing that morning would soon arrive.

Landroval Server :: An Update On My Move

Just looking at what brings people here to this random blog, it seems like many are coming for opinions on choosing a server for Lord of the Rings Online. That said, I thought I would put the ongoing story on hold and give a quick update of my experience on the Landroval server.

Here is the original link: Landroval vs. Windfola

First off, I am a roleplayer. I like to generally be “in character” while I am in the game. It is more fun for me to figure out a quest by asking other players in character about the quest rather than posting on the advice channel. Is it slower? Absolutely! But, it is more fun for me and so that is the perspective from where this review comes from.

If you are looking for roleplay oriented server – Landroval is it!

I can’t say it any more clearly than that. I’ve been on the server for several weeks and it is EASY to find an answer while staying in character. I’m not in a guild but simply roaming and traveling the lands and it has been a very good step forward from Windfola.

If you are not interested in roleplaying, I’d honestly point you to a less crowded server. Windfola was a very mature and respectful server and for those not wishing to be in character, I don’t think there is any downside. Honestly. But for roleplayers, it is simply much easier and much less work on the Landroval server. Without a guild, you can walk into a tavern and quickly pull together a small group of players for 5 min break from the running of quests. Everyone is NOT in character, but a significant number are and the difference is clearly felt.

I’d also check out a Landroval RP oriented site I found this week:

The Green Dragon

I think it shows that the RP community, especially on this server, continues to grow and grow in Middle Earth. Cheers!

~Derrid, Man Burglar current roaming the Bree-Lands~

Frozen in Time

*While Dermid remains near death in the Ivy Bush Inn, he suffers from ill-fated dreams where he is often frozen and unable to move.*

OOC: Really busy weekend in real-life but here is a screenshot from a game of freeze tag that was held recently by the Watch guild on the Windfola server. It is a good escape and I’d recommend it to anyone to try out at least 1 time if you have a nice group together of say 6 or more players. The games of tag are located in two sets of ruins located to the SE of the Festival Grounds, north and west of Bree. Be a bit careful as it is possible to fall off a cliff farther south and end up in Archet and be about 10 min away from where you were.

I’m in the process of putting together an introduction to my Landroval character with some nice screens but it will likely be Monday or Tuesday before it is up. Have a safe weekend!

Landroval vs. Windfola :: LOTRO Server Decisions

For the last couple of weeks, I’ve struggled with this decision; going back to April 20th, if I run through the blog. Over the last week to week and half, I’ve mainly been on Landroval and so I think I have a decent feel for each and here is my assessment, for whatever that is worth. (Mondays – sometimes productive and other times – not so much ).

Let’s begin with Windfola. I’m not really certain why I picked the server other than it looked like a nice server in the official forum website and most, if not all people, seemed pleased with their decisions. So it seemed like a good place to look around. I found “The Watch” Kinship on the server and it is a great group of respectful and appropriate players with a great active website. So after looking around a bit, I started on Windfola with a Hobbit Burglar.

Once on the server, I was pleased with the general attitudes and behavior of the players – really a very nice server. The Shire was great! It had a slower feel and people were kind and nice. The Watch is very active and there are always plenty of players online. Honestly, I’m behind the vast majority of them in level and so I rarely traveled with any of the Kinship. Roleplay-wise, there was honestly very little. Not none and not anti-RP, but certainly not something that you would stumble upon that often in your travels. That said, I think within the Shire I was happy.

Slowly Dermid outgrew the Shire and needed to see the world and that took him into Bree. Bree is a huge town where masses of players congregate and honestly where I began to be a little frustrated. The town is large and with the masses of players, there was little to no RP. Occasionally you might catch someone playing an instrument and occasionally someone would help if you asked an in-character question about a quest rather than posting on the advice channel, but often, those in-character questions were ignored as the masses ran by. I ended up turning off the kinship channel for The Watch because it was OOC and I really don’t enjoy seeing a rolling OOC line of text. I’m in game to escape. I go to the forums for help or assistance, but that isn’t what I log onto the game to do. I just enjoy keeping that separate and being new to MMORPGs, I’m still adjusting to “what to expect”.

Next was Landroval. It is the “unofficial RP” server. I’m not sure why I avoided it in the first place. It seemed a little high on forum board drama in the pre-release days and so I stayed away. My first character was a elf. I wanted to see the introduction from an elves perspective and thought why not. The experience was pretty good but I was never happy about trying to roleplay an elf with such limited knowledge of Tolkien on “RP” server. So I momentarily went back to Windfola and hoped with the help of the LOTRO RP Haven that I would have a great time.

My first RP event really went well and there was excellent support from the Kinship. That and the fact that I really like my little hobbit burglar the best has created much confusion over the decision. But the longer I’m on Landroval, the more I’m convinced that it is a “better” fit – at least for me.

Pleasantly, I’ve found some roleplaying in just about every session on Landroval. I’m playing a man and so we begin closer to Bree in the busy Bree-land region and even there, I’ve been very pleased with the ability to speak and stay largely in character and quest and join fellowships. I’m not saying everyone is roleplaying or that it is a more respectful place than Windfola, but the odds of finding someone roleplaying are at least 3 times higher and that makes my game time more productive and enjoyable with less searching required.

I’ve built a QUIET tab where I can only see tells, emotes, says, and fellowship messages and that is generally where I sit. I’ve had good luck in finding pick-up groups without the support of a kinship and I’m planning on taking any kinship joining decision very slowly. It may be that I use LOTRO Haven for my “kinship” more than any particular guild. Time will tell.

As far as Dermid goes on the Windfola server, I’m not real sure. I have a “freeze tag” event scheduled for the kinship on Tuesday and I think it will be great. It fits in with the guild and I expect a big turnout. It may be that I play on both servers. A more guild tilted approach for Windfola and a more RP tilted approach on Landroval. I’ve enjoyed both to be honest and maybe splitting time might be reasonable until I accumulate more time and see that it stays more RP-oriented once I reach Bree on Landroval.

Today, despite all the things on Windfola that make me happy – the kinship, the active board they have, the hobbit burglar (my favorite character); I lean towards Landroval as the place where I will be happiest the longest. I guess, at heart, I enjoy pretending to be in Middle-Earth so getting there should be the goal.