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.

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.

The Party Tree: A Good Thing Gone Bad?

A role-playing storyline taken from an event run on the Windfola server for Lord of the Rings Online. For context on the event, please see the following two links:

The Party Announcement

Dermid, Spider-Sting Journal Entry: The Night Before

What follows below is an account of the event through the Eyes of Dermid of the Harfoots now living near Scary; Second cousin of Dermid, Spider-Sting. Throughout the account, he is openly shaken but has attempted, the best he can, to recall the events of the evening.

First things first, be reminded that I’m Dermid of the Harfoots and not Dermid, Spider-Sting. I’m a cousin of the hobbit and a good friend. I’m a farmer from near Scary and Spider-Sting is my 2nd cousin on my fathers side. You see, Spider-Sting recently decided to throw a party and invited several folks to meet at the party tree and it having been several good years since I traveled anywhere near that side of the Shire, I made the long trip.

The day seemed to began pleasantly enough. I showed up quite early and spent a good half-day cleaning tables and baking pies in the nearby ovens. I knew I’d have to help and didn’t expect Spider-Sting to arrive until near the start of the party so this wasn’t unexpected.

A good handful of visitors arrived during the early moments of the gathering. I really think that Spider-Sting would have been most pleased. People from the “Lone-Lands” to other short people, dwarves I believe they are called from the cold mountains, all within the Shire. It was a pleasant sight and one I wished I could of enjoyed. Some danced, a few enjoyed a good smoke, and I think most, if not all, partook in the pies.

As the time rolled past, it became increasingly obvious to this hobbit that something bad was afoot. Spider-Sting is not one to be early, but not one to be late; especially at his own event. I remember nervously waiting with the others, trying to keep up a decent mood. From standing upon tables for a better view, to trying to see if pipeweed might ease the nerves, little to nothing seemed to settle the knot quickly forming within my belly.

It was nearly a quarter past before I broke down. I’m quite saddened, now in looking back, that I didn’t give into my gut a bit earlier. It pains me to no end that I could have altered fate. *A tear comes into his eyes. After pausing for a moment to gather himself, he paints a rather timid smile on his face and continues to recount his memories of the event.*

The time had come for action so I took to the stage and made, for me at least, a bold step. I announced my fear that Spider-Sting was in trouble. It was the reason for my nervousness, for which I apologized, and I supplied his final journal entry as proof of my concern. I know that hobbits can be a little paranoid at times and even I myself only rarely leave Scary but something within me knew that all was not well.

Questions ensued and I attempted to remember all that I could from the conversations I had had with Spider-Sting. I remembered talk of bandits or thieves or something… as well as a waterfall and or a camp. Details slipped as I’ve never cared much for adventure and Spider-Sting can often ramble. After sharing my memories, several within the group apparently thought he went South into a camp of brigands in search of greater treasure. Sadly this made all too much sense. He is a pleaser and was clearly nervous about the event and wanted “grand prizes” for whatever simple contests might evolve during the festivities.

Thankfully I had brought the fireworks for the party. A member of the crowd had a wonderful idea to use them as flares; I hate to admit that I have forgotten who it was by name but much of the last is somewhat of a blur. I handed each of the leaders of the 3 groups a firework to use when they or if they found Dermid, Spider-Sting. You see, they’d rise high above the Shire and be a clear signal for all, much faster than the mail system in the Shire which always seems to be in a state of chaos.

There and then, I think I must have fainted at the base of the tree. I remember little else until I awoke within the The Ivy Bush Inn some several hours later with my cousin lying next to me.

Within the inn, I was told it was as I had feared. Dermid, Spider-Sting had gone into a camp of thieves alone in search of prizes for those who might attend. He carried a small pouch labeled “Prizes” that carried several hand-crafted pieces of jewelery that, at least to this hobbit, seemed quite enough and then some. But he’s always one to go a step beyond and so I guess it is not surprising.

*Moves over to Spider-Sting, still barely clinging to life, and places a hand on his chest.* I can only imagine what you have seen and what you might have been through. *Dermid of the Harfoots lies down next to his cousin and slips into a more peaceful rest now that this tale is told.*

Dermid, Spider-Sting and the Party Tree Event

*Nervously jots down a new entry into his journal*

I think the plans are coming together quite nicely. Quite nicely indeed. My 2nd cousin on my fathers side, also named Dermid if you can believe that, from near Scary will be making the trip over, so I have high hopes. High hopes indeed. I certainly hope he remembers the fireworks.

I do still worry that I don’t have enough gifts to impress those that might attend. Oh how I would like to be one looked up to rather than down upon. I wish I had a little more that I could offer up…bah, there is that word again – always sneaking into my mind. But, perhaps, it isn’t too late and maybe I under estimate myself sometimes.

Sleep calls though and my eyes weigh heavily, but maybe tomorrow I can put this nervousness in the hands to good use.

*Dermid grabs a quick bite to eat, closes the journal and lays down, attempting to get some rest as visions of wild adventure begin to stir within his mind*