tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49280972928800104302024-03-13T12:45:06.716-07:00The Minstrel MagnetA minstrel's perspective on Lord of the RingsStingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.comBlogger61125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-5727369280075052982011-10-27T04:24:00.000-07:002011-10-27T04:26:47.900-07:00Friendly vs. Liquid LOTROOh my goodness, I was on a Lord of the Rings Online podcast! Woot!<br /><br />You can download that episode from iTunes <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/liquid-lotro-25-friendly-vs./id431073158?i=102942423">here</a>.<br /><br />Liquid LOTRO is a podcast done by Icywiz and Stephen Spiritcaller of <a href="http://www.livestream.com/ravenwoodradio">Ravenwood Radio fame</a>, only they're just Steve and Christie on that podcast. :) Steve was out because he was sick, so Christie asked me to sit in and help out. We talk all about LOTRO, and we even briefly touch on a bunch of other MMOs.<br /><br />If you have a spare hour (perfect for some drive times), download <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/liquid-lotro-25-friendly-vs./id431073158?i=102942423">that</a> and check it out. :)<br /><br />Happy Dueling!Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-8936959742492077472011-08-17T03:45:00.000-07:002011-08-17T07:09:26.542-07:00Skirmishes = The Hotness (And ding level 31)Shoestrings is now Level 31, in fact he just finished up his level 30 quest involving burglarizing a sword for Palma Brownlock. Here's a pic of us chillin' in the basement of the Forsaken Inn.
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<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f2HhLGY6x1w/Tkul065wARI/AAAAAAAAF8Y/oENeKzojkkE/s1600/palma%2Band%2Bshoestrings.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f2HhLGY6x1w/Tkul065wARI/AAAAAAAAF8Y/oENeKzojkkE/s640/palma%2Band%2Bshoestrings.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641785286794936594" /></a>
<br />It was maybe 1 out of 2 quest completions I've done outside of skirmishes in ten levels. The exp is just so rich in skirmishes that they are perfect for me. I've already done all the quests outside in the big vast world of LOTRO with my other characters, and I don't have a ton of time each day to devote to LOTRO. Running skirmishes for experience and those little skirmish marks I can trade in for loot is making me an extremely happy little hobbit.
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<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZZS9buvB0sw/Tkul1J8QRlI/AAAAAAAAF8o/bJN0ihQXcKo/s1600/stand%2Bat%2Bamon%2Bsul%2Bcomplete.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZZS9buvB0sw/Tkul1J8QRlI/AAAAAAAAF8o/bJN0ihQXcKo/s640/stand%2Bat%2Bamon%2Bsul%2Bcomplete.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641785290831971922" /></a>
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DC2CeTA984M/Tkul1NdyvKI/AAAAAAAAF8g/nmAA9BBuiys/s1600/trouble%2Bin%2Btuckborough%2Bcompleted.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DC2CeTA984M/Tkul1NdyvKI/AAAAAAAAF8g/nmAA9BBuiys/s640/trouble%2Bin%2Btuckborough%2Bcompleted.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641785291777948834" /></a>
<br />I even had a chance to group up with Steve and Christie from <a href="http://liquidlotro.libsyn.com/">LiquidLOTRO</a> last night. I'm finally approaching their level range, and we were able to group up. Here we are at the end chest of the Attack at Dawn skirmish.
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<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ltrjp3B3MtM/Tkul1Qxy3QI/AAAAAAAAF8w/9TFRGE-SuHE/s1600/at%2Bthe%2Bend%2Bchest.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ltrjp3B3MtM/Tkul1Qxy3QI/AAAAAAAAF8w/9TFRGE-SuHE/s640/at%2Bthe%2Bend%2Bchest.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641785292667149570" /></a>
<br />It was a little messy and could have gone better, but I think that will come in time as we continue to group up. I died a couple of times just learning the ropes of the significantly harder group skirmishes vs. solo skirmishes. There were a few bosses that I hadn't seen yet (and one in particular with a pretty nasty AOE).
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<br />I was happy I was able to try a few of my group specific skills that burglars get to start fellowship maneuvers. I mean the "exploit opening" and "trip" skills are great for an easy stun when soloing, but those two skills were meant for starting fellowship maneuvers. That's a huge benefit of grouping with a burglar, you know?
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<br />I asked Steve and Christie if they'd like to try any funky group maneuvers out, and they've just been pounding all red when those pop up.
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<br />The three person <a href="http://lorebook.lotro.com/wiki/Mechanics:Fellowship_Maneuvers#Combinations">fellowship maneuvers </a>are all about flushes and straights (these work both forwards and backwards):
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<br />Resounding Strikes - Flush - Red - Red - Red
<br />Deception - Flush - Yellow - Yellow - Yellow
<br />Three Pronged Assault - Flush - Blue - Blue - Blue
<br />Mustering of the Troops - Flush - Green - Green - Green
<br />Wrath of the Righteous - Straight - Red - Green - Yellow
<br />Strength of the Pure - Straight - Blue - Red - Green
<br />Sinister Plan - Straight - Yellow - Blue - Red
<br />Will of the Strong - Straight - Green - Yellow - Blue
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<br />In a three-person group, these pretty much just do as advertised. Red is damage, blue is healing mana, green is healing health, and yellow is a damage over time. From what I remember in the past, the combos just give you a little extra oomph than if you didn't complete your maneuver in a combo.
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<br />I used to really appreciate the extra mana and healing group maneuvers back when I was playing a minstrel full time. It definitely took the heat off of me and made my job easier.
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<br />I can't wait to group up more and definitely run through more skirmishes! They're perfect for me and my busy lifestyle. Great to be able to jump on and complete a skirmish in 20 minutes and jump off, and since I've been through all this before, I really don't feel like I'm missing out on the world. I'll come back through the world when I finally decide to level my crafting after I'm a higher level. ;)
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<br />Happy Dueling!</a>Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-48309566537799773102011-08-07T06:03:00.000-07:002011-08-07T06:36:52.759-07:00Dragons at level 20?You know, I haven't played this game "seriously" for a long long time, but recently the universe has been pushing me in the direction of LOTRO, so I've been playing it again. You know, coming into things like free LOTRO point codes from an anon friend and the kinship invite from a couple old Wizard101 friends have really helped with my interest level. (Special shoutout to Steve and Christie from <a href="http://liquidlotro.libsyn.com/">LiquidLOTRO</a>.) Good times.<br /><br />I've been making ok progress on my Burglar. I'm now level 23 and rising. I even got a goat!<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fx7hb5dfOcs/Tj6TrSXZuOI/AAAAAAAAF5w/7Jo8m4KKTE0/s1600/ScreenShot00088.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fx7hb5dfOcs/Tj6TrSXZuOI/AAAAAAAAF5w/7Jo8m4KKTE0/s640/ScreenShot00088.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5638106155388090594" /></a><br />Nice goaty. :)<br /><br />What really shocked me though was this dragon I encountered while playing through the solo version of the <a href="http://lorebook.lotro.com/wiki/Siege_of_Gondamon">Siege of Gondamon</a> skirmish.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0_bQKj1Ek0I/Tj6RrvO6QUI/AAAAAAAAF5o/eyuq010zxpI/s1600/what%2Bthe%2Bdragon.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0_bQKj1Ek0I/Tj6RrvO6QUI/AAAAAAAAF5o/eyuq010zxpI/s640/what%2Bthe%2Bdragon.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5638103964113846594" /></a><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_Cu8ObU46Rg/Tj6RrZ_3eNI/AAAAAAAAF5g/yoWdk_vVH3Y/s1600/what%2Bthe%2Bdead%2Bdragon.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_Cu8ObU46Rg/Tj6RrZ_3eNI/AAAAAAAAF5g/yoWdk_vVH3Y/s640/what%2Bthe%2Bdead%2Bdragon.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5638103958413605074" /></a><br />WOW! That was totally an unexpected surprise. It wasn't too difficult, but I think I just found my new favorite thing about this game. <br /><br />I never had done much with Skirmishes, even when I came back to play a level or two with my minstrel. I wish I had. It might have kept me going with the game. I imagine that once you've gone through a skirmish a few hundred times, it's not as awe inspiring as the first few times, but man . . . what a total blast and completely refreshing. (Not bad exp either.)<br /><br />Control+J is my new best buddy in LOTRO.<br /><br />Happy Dueling!Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-56347625438245421852011-07-01T04:53:00.000-07:002011-07-01T05:21:31.995-07:00Shoestrings--of diaper-clad BurglarsShoestrings has now moved on from the tutorial!<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D0FSxon2Dts/Tg22UaVdOfI/AAAAAAAAFyc/WrkE8Ym53Hc/s1600/moving%2Bon%2Bfrom%2Btutorial.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D0FSxon2Dts/Tg22UaVdOfI/AAAAAAAAFyc/WrkE8Ym53Hc/s640/moving%2Bon%2Bfrom%2Btutorial.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624351971438574066" /></a><br />With much cowering I avoided confrontation with the Cargul, and with much stab-itude Calder Cob was dismissed to his dirt nap. No biggie. The tutorial is short and sweet.<br /><br />Shoestrings also earned his first deed!<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-h4JyoxthixY/Tg22UK7vQuI/AAAAAAAAFyU/DXIv3voL9B4/s1600/first%2Bdeed.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-h4JyoxthixY/Tg22UK7vQuI/AAAAAAAAFyU/DXIv3voL9B4/s640/first%2Bdeed.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624351967304172258" /></a><br />Hooray for that. ;-) But mostly what I did was deliver the mail. You know, I never was very fond of the mail delivery quests, but it didn't seem too bad this time around. Nosey hobbits didn't catch me delivering the mail at all! Easy stuff.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GC51cLfp9AU/Tg22Ty7MtWI/AAAAAAAAFyM/euxrm_vmle4/s1600/carrying%2Bmail.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GC51cLfp9AU/Tg22Ty7MtWI/AAAAAAAAFyM/euxrm_vmle4/s640/carrying%2Bmail.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624351960859456866" /></a><br /><br />Unfortunately, I left the game up while uber wife asked me to come into the garage and lift a couple things . . . an entertainment center, a couple TVs, a couch . . . that kind of thing. This isn't unfortunate because I'm a complainer or anything like that, it was unfortunate because the diaper-clad burglar undid my perfect roll through Hobbiton by running my character around without my guidance.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VxHLhrrafqA/Tg22ThbLYJI/AAAAAAAAFyE/kf7LS2XJuh4/s1600/defeat.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VxHLhrrafqA/Tg22ThbLYJI/AAAAAAAAFyE/kf7LS2XJuh4/s640/defeat.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624351956161749138" /></a><br />LOL. Well, there's goes the title for leveling to 20 without a defeat. hahaha! I tried to take a picture of him sitting at the computer with a big grin on his face, but I was slow to the draw with the Iphone. Dang cute kid.<br /><br />That leaves Shoestrings at level 10 and climbing. Almost time to make the trek over to Bree.<br /><br />Happy Dueling!Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-31633265164435888132011-06-28T04:52:00.000-07:002011-06-28T05:16:11.603-07:00Shoestrings!Just a quick note for my LOTRO/Wizard101 Crossover buddies -- Shoestrings the hobbit burglar has been born on the Crickhollow server! ;-)<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gRRGLfhDT2E/TgnFmPJpNAI/AAAAAAAAFxg/nJ4qO8-abSE/s1600/ScreenShot00014.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gRRGLfhDT2E/TgnFmPJpNAI/AAAAAAAAFxg/nJ4qO8-abSE/s640/ScreenShot00014.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623242870441456642" /></a><br />I'm digging the Justin Beiber look. hahaha!<br /><br />. . . is it just me, or is the tutorial a lot easier than it was all those years ago? Shoestrings seemed pretty invincible out there.<br /><br />Happy dueling!Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-42879052692099124662011-06-19T04:36:00.000-07:002011-06-19T05:17:36.234-07:00Installed, did Weatherstock, and even played a bit!Yup, I actually downloaded and installed Lord of the Rings Online again! I'm in trouble now! Far far too many MMOs loaded on my machine for my own good. ;) I guess I have to blame <a href="http://liquidlotro.libsyn.com/">Liquid LOTRO</a> for this. I've been catching up on Steve and Christie's podcasts, and I couldn't help myself.<br /><br />The first thing I did, of course, was log on my old friends on Windfola: Stingite and Bachelbu. I haven't logged on since before LOTRO went free to play, so it was an experience just to find out what it was like now and what I had "earned' through all of Bach and Sting's accomplishments. The end result was around 3,200 Turbine Points. There seemed to be a number of new badges I had earned and that the exp curve had been adjusted. <br /><br />The second thing I did, of course, was send inappropriate mail to my good friends Jelalron and Burrwin. ;-) That's a tradition for me.<br /><br />The third thing I did was level up a new character to sixth, made the run to Weathertop Mountain, and attended <a href="http://lorebook.lotro.com/wiki/Weatherstock">Weatherstock</a>! yup, here I am with my new character named "Weatherstockman" at Weatherstock.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QuyJpzcmabk/Tf3nPHFTLTI/AAAAAAAAFvQ/0mLZAJRiEJY/s1600/sea%2Bof%2Bnames%2Bat%2Bweatherstock.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QuyJpzcmabk/Tf3nPHFTLTI/AAAAAAAAFvQ/0mLZAJRiEJY/s640/sea%2Bof%2Bnames%2Bat%2Bweatherstock.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619902156813577522" /></a><br />Can't tell where I am in that sea of names, no? Ok, how about now?<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W4_7dwYD7lA/Tf3nO-cuI8I/AAAAAAAAFvI/fFyR2G-0olw/s1600/names%2Boff%2Bat%2Bweatherstock.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W4_7dwYD7lA/Tf3nO-cuI8I/AAAAAAAAFvI/fFyR2G-0olw/s640/names%2Boff%2Bat%2Bweatherstock.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619902154495894466" /></a><br />Still no? Ok, let me help ya.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Xd43QjyzMbo/Tf3nOlIuBKI/AAAAAAAAFvA/yZlRqipky5c/s1600/weatherstock%2Bat%2Bweatherstock.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Xd43QjyzMbo/Tf3nOlIuBKI/AAAAAAAAFvA/yZlRqipky5c/s640/weatherstock%2Bat%2Bweatherstock.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619902147701114018" /></a><br />There we go! Weatherstockman at Weatherstock 2011! After songs would play, he would say, "Weatherstockman loves you!" and then use the /smoke emote. At one point everyone used the /smoke emote trying for LOTRO's largest /smoke out. This was followed with a response of /cough from the rest of the crowd. <br /><br />How was the event? Well, let's just say it was interesting . . . a little dry compared to something like a Wizard101 or a Freerealms party, but HEY, this is LOTRO after all . . . land of the relax and be calm. Right? Right. It was pretty amazing that people can sync their own music, make a virtual band, and perform in front of a large crowd . . . all online. crazy. And being a part of that crowd was pretty cool.<br /><br />~~~~~~~~~~<br /><br />After watching me at Weatherstock, my son was absolutely freaking out and wanting to play Lord of the Rings Online, so I let my middle child on the computer and let him do his magic. He worked his way through the tutorial zone and beyond with minimal assisted help from me and took a lot of screenshots because he wanted to post about it--just like dad. He dictated to me what I should type, and I put that on his <a href="http://frogguysnotepad.blogspot.com/2011/06/lord-of-rings-online.html">blog</a>. (He's a young, high functioning autistic kid that LOVES videogames. The kid could play me under the table any day. And incredibly cute--I'm not biased.)<br /><br />It was definitely a LOTRO type of a day for us.<br /><br />Happy Dueling!Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-6003908771446453112011-06-07T12:09:00.000-07:002011-06-07T12:58:58.477-07:00Big News! Rise of Isengard!So, it's been a year and a half since I've posted anything on this blog. WOW! Makes sense though as I've been playing around with <a href="http://www.happydueling.com">other things</a>.<br /><br />Lord of the Rings had an amazing announcement today, though, so I figure, what the heck! I've got the time. I'm home sick and all. Might as well blog the awesomeness that is the Turbine press release for their new expansion.<br /><br />Here's a cut-n-paste of the press release for you (with a little creative line spacing to make it work in Blogspot). Check it out:<br /><br />~~~~~~~~~~~<br />NEEDHAM, MA – June 7, 2011 -- Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and Turbine announced today The Lord of the Rings Online™: Rise of Isengard™, the next expansion to the award-winning free-to-play massively multiplayer online roleplaying game (MMORPG) will launch on September 27, 2011. Players across North America and Europe can pre-purchase Rise of Isengard to receive special benefits starting today at <a href="http://www.lotro.com/isengard">http://www.lotro.com/isengard</a>.<br /><br />“Our journey through Middle-earth is now taking us to one of its most iconic locations,” said Aaron Campbell, Producer of The Lord of the Rings Online, Turbine. “The new regions are going to be truly epic in scale, story, and challenge. In addition to the wealth of features and content coming in September, players who pre-purchase the expansion will be able to use their bonus items immediately as they prepare for the launch of Rise of Isengard.”<br /><br />THE LORD OF THE RINGS ONLINE: RISE OF ISENGARD FEATURES:<br /><blockquote>Explore Three New Regions! -- The time has come for you to turn eastward, toward the vale of Isengard. Where ancient forests once flourished, a corrupted waste of metal and wheels suffers under the thrall of the traitorous wizard Saruman. Here, in the shadows of the tower of Orthanc, gathers an army of Orcs and Uruk-hai, toiling to make ready for war. Forge ahead into these devastated lands and uncover new quests, skills, and traits as you strive to thwart Saruman’s ambition.</blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><em>Dunland</em> – Adventure amidst the bright forests in the foothills of the southern Misty Mountains. Beware the Dunland Clans, rugged warriors tempted by the dark promise of power.<br /><br /><em>Gap of Rohan </em>– Battle over the legendary pass between Eriador and the plane of Rohan. This key strategic point must be defended against the ambitions of Sauron.<br /><br /><em>Isengard</em> – Explore Orthanc, one of the iconic Two Towers as it rises over the once beautiful Isengard valley. The once beautiful vale now desecrated beyond imagination by the Wizard Saruman the betrayer.</blockquote></blockquote><blockquote>Advance to Level 75!</blockquote><blockquote><blockquote>Face new challenges and continue to forge your own legend in Middle-earth with all-new epic quests, skills, and deeds as you fight new enemies on your journey to level 75!</blockquote></blockquote><blockquote>Master the Legendary New 24-Player Raid!</blockquote><blockquote><blockquote>Face the ancient evil of Draigoch, one of the most powerful creatures in Middle-earth! Prepare for the ultimate challenge where nothing less than the strength of an entire force of 24 heroes stands the chance of victory.</blockquote></blockquote>Starting today, players can take can take advantage of three special pre-purchase offers to celebrate the release of the third major expansion to LOTRO:<br /><blockquote><em>Rise of Isengard Base Edition </em>– Includes the full Rise of Isengard expansion plus:</blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><em>Steed of the Gap</em>, a new in-game mount with matching red cosmetic cloak for every character on your account<br /><br /><em>In-game title </em>– Guard of the Isen<br /><br />25% XP boost for all characters on an account up to level 65</blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><em>Rise of Isengard Heroic Edition </em>– Includes the full Rise of Isengard expansion plus:</blockquote><blockquote><blockquote>1,000 Turbine Points for use in the LOTRO Store<br /><br /><em>Steed of the Gap</em>, a new in-game mount with choice of matching cosmetic cloak and armor in your choice of red, white or green for every character on your account<br /><br /><em>In-game title </em>– Guard of the Isen<br /><br />25% XP boost for all characters on an account up to level 65</blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><em>Rise of Isengard Legendary Edition </em>– Includes the full Rise of Isengard expansion plus:</blockquote><blockquote><blockquote>1,000 Turbine Points for use in the LOTRO Store<br /><br />All three Steeds of the Gap, new in-game mounts with matching cosmetic cloak and armor in all three colors for every character on your account<br /><br /><em>In-game title</em> – Guard of the Isen<br /><br />25% XP boost for all characters on an account up to level 65<br /><br />Access to the Path of the Fellowship Quest Packs including Trollshaws, Eregion, Moria, Lothlorien and Mirkwood</blockquote></blockquote><br />Players will have access to all of the bonus items including the new mount, cosmetic cloak and armor, in-game title and XP boost immediately after purchase. The Rise of Isengard expansion itself will be available to play on September 27, 2011. These special offers will only be available for a limited time. For more information, please visit www.lotro.com.<br />~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br /><br />And here's a couple pictures direct from Turbine to help you visualize both hacking and slashing with your crew and galloping on your new super cool mount in your new super cool clothes (click to make those screensaver worthy)!<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2wSdcsd2kQw/Te5-b5_kpzI/AAAAAAAAFrI/dcgt10yaTw0/s1600/untitled2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2wSdcsd2kQw/Te5-b5_kpzI/AAAAAAAAFrI/dcgt10yaTw0/s640/untitled2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5615564803266619186" /></a><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YwTx3ABskp8/Te5-bSsI11I/AAAAAAAAFrA/wcNkmO6vtzQ/s1600/untitled.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YwTx3ABskp8/Te5-bSsI11I/AAAAAAAAFrA/wcNkmO6vtzQ/s640/untitled.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5615564792716121938" /></a><br />I've said it before, and I'll say it again, it's really hard to not take an amazing screenshot in LOTRO, but whoever took these did a great job. <br /><br />I can't believe you can level up to 75 now. Egads. I think my characters are still stuck back at 52/53 maybe? That 25% exp boost would be helpful. :)<br /><br />Uber wife thinks those horse crowns are enough incentive to get into the game . . . I dunno, they kind of look a little silly to me . . . especially on the mustache man in red. O.o<br /><br />I wish I was down at E3 so I could preview this content! Ahhh well, I'd rather be sick at home with a headache than sick at E3 and not be able to enjoy it fully.<br /><br />Happy Dueling!Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-82672594225580035322009-12-20T08:12:00.000-08:002009-12-20T08:22:33.885-08:00Nice Interview by Eurogamer.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/Sy5OwPOdYAI/AAAAAAAACoI/vi2HXLloV5s/s1600-h/skirminsh+sticky.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 353px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/Sy5OwPOdYAI/AAAAAAAACoI/vi2HXLloV5s/s400/skirminsh+sticky.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417353992401149954" /></a><br />I just got my LOTRO newsletter in e-mail a couple of days ago and FINALLY had some time to read it. It was the basic polished product that Turbine distributes. At the end though, they had a link to a really nice redux of the skirmish system written by Daniel Etherington of Eurogamer:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/the-lord-of-the-rings-online-siege-of-mirkwood-hands-on?page=1">CLICK ME!</a><br /><br />I found this paragraph particularly interesting:<br /><br /><blockquote><em>On first entering a Skirmish, you summon an ally - your Soldier. The idea is that he's a volunteer from among the Free People, and, as explained by Turbine's Brian Alosio in his Developer Diaries, "they are not as well trained as the Captain's Herald or Lore-master's companions. In battle, they will act without your orders, engaging the enemy as they see fit... they are not well-disciplined enough to be managed as much as seasoned soldiers." So don't expect squad controls. Instead, you define your Soldier's behaviour through the options in the new Skirmish panel. There are four tabs: Attribute, Skill, Training and Personal. The latter is how the Soldier has a direct influence on you: a buff, in other words. The Attribute is what Role you want your Soldier to take - effectively its class. With each Role you also get a special bonus. So the high-damage, ranged-attack Archer gives you an increased critical rating, the heavily-armoured Bannerguard support role gives an Armour Aura, and so on.</em></blockquote><br />Interesting that the soldiers are not as well-discipined as the herald or even the Lore-master's animals. Methinks I smell a way to make Captains and Loremasters still feel special, which of course they are.<br /><br />*hands special cookie to Captain and Loremaster friends*<br /><br />Merry Minstrelling y'all!Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-80270393198262902462009-12-13T09:40:00.000-08:002009-12-13T11:54:24.708-08:00Echad Eregion - We Got The Lynx!Please sing with me in tune to the gogo's:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/TiCwIPGkTy4&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/TiCwIPGkTy4&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Bachs Got the Lynx<br /><br />See the echads walking down the street <br />Fall in line just watching all their feet <br />They can't guess where they wanna quest <br />But they're looking for some pests <br /><br />They got the lynx<br />They got the lynx <br />Yeah <br />They got the lynx<br /><br />See the rangers just getting out of school <br />They can't wait to hang out and be cool <br />Hang around 'til the server goes down<br />That's when we're not online<br /><br />Bachs got the lynx<br />They got the lynx<br />They got the lynx <br />Yeah <br />Bachs got the lynx<br /><br />Bach'ys music sounds like it's from France <br />The Prancing Pony gettin' in a trance <br />Sing the Minstrel and make us all dance<br />That's when we fall in line <br /><br />We got the lynx <br />We got the lynx <br />We got the lynx<br />Yeah <br />We got the lynx<br />Listen to my LOTRO hijinx<br />We know you can dance to the lynx<br />Jumpin' - get down<br />Round and round and round<br /><br />. . .<br /><br />Oh, you probably don't know what the heck I'm talking about, do you? <br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyVGRDyWdbI/AAAAAAAACl4/ejzJ_JV9GoU/s1600-h/echad+sticky+1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 353px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyVGRDyWdbI/AAAAAAAACl4/ejzJ_JV9GoU/s400/echad+sticky+1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414811385871103410" /></a><br /><br />Well, one of the first things the NPCs in Echad Eregion want you to do is to hunt down two handfuls of lynx pelts.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyVCrtrMsUI/AAAAAAAAClo/_Du71gw4Utk/s1600-h/pelts.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 384px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyVCrtrMsUI/AAAAAAAAClo/_Du71gw4Utk/s400/pelts.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414807445745480002" /></a><br />easy.<br /><br />But seriously, I have the hardest time taking a bad screenshot in this game. Check em out:<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyVCrBMJdsI/AAAAAAAAClg/jijCNL4Vm64/s1600-h/lynx+butt.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyVCrBMJdsI/AAAAAAAAClg/jijCNL4Vm64/s640/lynx+butt.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414807433804084930" /></a><br />Even an eye full of lynx tail is hawt.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyVCqxQs3jI/AAAAAAAAClY/7P78njDHB7s/s1600-h/drum+the+cat+to+death.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyVCqxQs3jI/AAAAAAAAClY/7P78njDHB7s/s640/drum+the+cat+to+death.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414807429528215090" /></a><br />DRUM THE CAT TO DEATH I SHALL!<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyVCqp1v-II/AAAAAAAAClQ/pvb5TROD51s/s1600-h/high+five.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyVCqp1v-II/AAAAAAAAClQ/pvb5TROD51s/s640/high+five.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414807427536124034" /></a><br />HIGH FIVES!<br /><br />I'm happy to report that by the time I got knee deep into Echad, I realized that I needed to head back to Gwingris and finish up a couple things. Yup, oversight happens.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyVEnuKgb0I/AAAAAAAAClw/vRkljczFMeU/s1600-h/tudur.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 333px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyVEnuKgb0I/AAAAAAAAClw/vRkljczFMeU/s400/tudur.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414809576180576066" /></a><br />Turdur here was causing a few troubles. AND THAT DINGED ME 51ST LEVEL WOOT! I'm on my way and still haven't used up all my rested exp yet.<br /><br />Merry Minstreling to you all!Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-42622335325429008222009-12-12T19:35:00.001-08:002009-12-12T20:07:22.568-08:00Gwingris Questing Ends!yeah.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyRoFTwsEyI/AAAAAAAACj4/rKwyEi_OgwY/s1600-h/gwingris+sticky+2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 339px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyRoFTwsEyI/AAAAAAAACj4/rKwyEi_OgwY/s400/gwingris+sticky+2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414567092419302178" /></a><br /><br />Um . . . You get here, you do your thing, you help out with some holly and seeds and worms and satchels and whatnot . . . maybe a few half orcs for kicks, and you're done. <br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyRjRBl1hdI/AAAAAAAACjg/SkX8KP_D9m4/s1600-h/quad.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyRjRBl1hdI/AAAAAAAACjg/SkX8KP_D9m4/s640/quad.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414561796142237138" /></a><br /><br />*wipes hands clean*<br /><br />You know . . . really not much to it.<br /><br />Seriously though, I can't get enough of these wood trolls.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyRhj-4n9JI/AAAAAAAACjY/h9s00f4O6SU/s1600-h/wood+troll.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyRhj-4n9JI/AAAAAAAACjY/h9s00f4O6SU/s640/wood+troll.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414559922809992338" /></a><br />OH yeah, and another thing. Those half orcs I was talking about? They drop components to start your skirmish quest here. <br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyRknujk7zI/AAAAAAAACjo/1nvVGGYm4Gc/s1600-h/skirmish+collage.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyRknujk7zI/AAAAAAAACjo/1nvVGGYm4Gc/s640/skirmish+collage.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414563285681106738" /></a><br /><em>Overjoyed I be at me first skirmishy. arrr!</em><br /><br />That first skirmish quest wasn't too tough at all. The coolest part? You get to see Bree in the winter time. :-)<br /><br />You know, you wonder what thought actually went into making the snowflakes look like this . . .<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyRl0kUNoWI/AAAAAAAACjw/bv7lMjdnSAc/s1600-h/snowflake.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 247px; height: 242px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SyRl0kUNoWI/AAAAAAAACjw/bv7lMjdnSAc/s400/snowflake.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414564605782237538" /></a><br /><br />Maybe it's just me.<br /><br />Echad Eregion here I come!Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-84400267135816553012009-12-06T17:13:00.000-08:002009-12-06T17:38:56.989-08:00Gwingris Questing Begins!<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxcnldDY7I/AAAAAAAACf8/84pHo2oo0xo/s1600-h/gwingris+sticky.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 350px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxcnldDY7I/AAAAAAAACf8/84pHo2oo0xo/s400/gwingris+sticky.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412302687331115954" /></a><br />Well, I logged in Bach and decided to actually get going on some of these eregion quests that I had picked up. Among the quests for harvesting holly and planting seeds, the main fighting quest to begin here began with a kill quest to hunt these attractive beasts:<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxXQqJYsKI/AAAAAAAACe0/UMx-kpS8LE0/s1600-h/fell+creeper.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 398px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxXQqJYsKI/AAAAAAAACe0/UMx-kpS8LE0/s400/fell+creeper.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412296795895672994" /></a><br />No, that's not just my backside, that there is a Fell Holly Creeper, which wasn't much to worry about, but the quest also asked me to hunt down a number of these signature'ish trees:<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxXRGnExBI/AAAAAAAACe8/jGMr73Xgkys/s1600-h/twisted+holly.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 280px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxXRGnExBI/AAAAAAAACe8/jGMr73Xgkys/s400/twisted+holly.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412296803536389138" /></a><br />Check out those hitpoints!<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxXRWgodlI/AAAAAAAACfE/fly4WoB0laA/s1600-h/twisted+hitpoints.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 144px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxXRWgodlI/AAAAAAAACfE/fly4WoB0laA/s400/twisted+hitpoints.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412296807804335698" /></a><br />Needless to say, I was a little intimated by those numbers and that glowing ring around their picture just coming fresh back into the game and not really remembering how to mash those buttons (I'm used to dueling cards out in <a href="https://www.wizard101.com/friend/56187-19125-50010-78271">Wizard101</a> remember?), but the button mashing came back quickly and before you know it, I had soloed the quest and remembered why minstrels are so freaking awesome. Heals. Period.<br /><br />So Lithuilas at Gwingris was a little saddened that we had to chop down the trees and defeat his nature buddies, but it had to be done by somebody . . . might as well be Bach.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxXRno45KI/AAAAAAAACfM/04va0UZaWhE/s1600-h/foul+wood+quest+text.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 353px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxXRno45KI/AAAAAAAACfM/04va0UZaWhE/s400/foul+wood+quest+text.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412296812402369698" /></a><br />And as per usual, there was more to be done. <br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxZVsYI55I/AAAAAAAACfc/pkC_ObgoF5Q/s1600-h/holly+troll+quest.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 351px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxZVsYI55I/AAAAAAAACfc/pkC_ObgoF5Q/s400/holly+troll+quest.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412299081417025426" /></a><br />Yup, Lithuilas needed me to thin out these WICKED LOOKING trolls while I was at it.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxZWZRt60I/AAAAAAAACf0/p7wXCqdsX80/s1600-h/holly+troll+warrior.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 399px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxZWZRt60I/AAAAAAAACf0/p7wXCqdsX80/s400/holly+troll+warrior.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412299093469686594" /></a><br />I couldn't stop taking screenshots of these guys. So awesome looking.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxZWEFMGsI/AAAAAAAACfs/0eeEJtOkaxk/s1600-h/holly+troll+warrior+2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 293px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxZWEFMGsI/AAAAAAAACfs/0eeEJtOkaxk/s400/holly+troll+warrior+2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412299087779994306" /></a><br />Thankfully their hitpoints were not as nearly as scary as the tree hitpoint before them . . . I just had to kill twice as many.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxZV-tgtMI/AAAAAAAACfk/lA0LyXnf2FI/s1600-h/holly+troll+hitpoints.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 348px; height: 175px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxZV-tgtMI/AAAAAAAACfk/lA0LyXnf2FI/s400/holly+troll+hitpoints.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412299086338503874" /></a><br />By the end of my play time I had killed an hour and finished up a couple good quests . . . and remembered how to mash buttons.<br /><br />I may have to call in the big guns from the kinship for this next quest . . . looks scary.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxZVCyprzI/AAAAAAAACfU/g_Lj4t_DW7k/s1600-h/follow+on+defeat+the+leader.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 346px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxxZVCyprzI/AAAAAAAACfU/g_Lj4t_DW7k/s400/follow+on+defeat+the+leader.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412299070253936434" /></a><br />I should have scrolled down to get a screenshot of the rewards from that quest . . . they looked purple quality. cool!<br /><br />Merry Minstreling to you all!Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-89437936954893537162009-12-05T15:15:00.000-08:002009-12-05T15:34:26.596-08:00The Ultimate Mirkwood Recap, Part 2<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxrtYOcdOgI/AAAAAAAACes/huuxmUTsBd4/s1600-h/mirkwood+sticky+2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 352px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxrtYOcdOgI/AAAAAAAACes/huuxmUTsBd4/s400/mirkwood+sticky+2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411898902689167874" /></a><br />Ok, I finally made it through all those links in <a href="http://minstrelmagnet.blogspot.com/2009/12/ultimate-mirkwood-recap-part-1.html">Part 1</a>, and I'm starting to feel caught up on Mirkwood information. Very cool that you can do animations from your mount now. I can't wait to try it out. The skirmish system sounds great. I like the sounds of Dol Guldur. I most likely will not be raiding, but I can definitely see myself doing the 3 man or full group instances of Dol Guldur. My life just can't hack raiding.<br /><br />I know nothing about legendary items other than my friend Jelalron said, get started on your Mines or Moria book quests ASAP to start leveling your legendary weapon. /shrug . . . ok. At this point I'd just like a solid hour of play time to be honest.<br /><br />Ok, so on to Part 2 of this Ultimate Mirkwood Recap. What do I have for you? More links (or more homework for Bach):<br /><br /><a href="http://www.lotro.com/lotro-media/siege-of-mirkwood-images">Siege of Mirkwood Image Gallery</a>--If a picture is worth a thousand words than our Siege of Mirkwood Screen Shot gallery is worth millions!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/turbine">Turbine YouTube Channel and Siege of Mirkwood Trailers</a>--Don't forget our incredible new trailers! You can find them all on the Turbine YouTube channel <br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKQSzw015xs&feature=related">Siege of Mirkwood Trailer #1 Galadriel's lament </a><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsRWLtt2KuM">Siege of Mirkwood Trailer #2 Lieutenant of Dol Guldur </a><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmhyDANOF-E">Siege of Mirkwood Launch Day Trailer</a><br /><br /><em>What the Press is saying about Siege of Mirkwood</em><br />Obviously we think Siege of Mirkwood is pretty wonderful, but don't just take our word for it! See what the press has to say!<br /><br />Massively.com<br /><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/10/26/lotro-siege-of-mirkwood-developer-tour/">Developer Tour</a> <br /><a href="http://www.massively.com/category/lord-of-the-rings-online/">Full Coverage</a><br /><br />MMORPG.com<br /><a href="http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/45/feature/3693/page/1">Siege of Mirkwood Interview with Jeffrey Steefel and Aaron Campbell</a><br /><a href="http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/45/feature/3737/Siege-of-Mirkwood-Preview.html">Siege of Mirkwood preview</a><br /><a href="http://www.mmorpg.com/newsroom.cfm/game/45">Full Coverage (screens and assorted news items)</a><br /><br />Ten Ton Hammer<br /><a href="http://tentonhammer.com/node/76393">The Heart of Mirkwood - A Siege of Mirkwood Q&A with Jeffrey Steefel</a><br /><a href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76888">Preview </a><br /><a href="http://tentonhammer.com/lotro">Full Coverage</a><br /><br />Warcry.com<br /><a href="http://www.warcry.com/articles/view/previews/6737-LotRO-Siege-of-Mirkwood-Recon">Siege of Mirkwood Recon (Preview)</a><br /><a href="http://www.warcry.com/news/tag/siege+of+mirkwood">All Siege of Mirkwood coverage</a><br /><a href="http://lotro.warcry.com/news/view/96062-LOtRO-Dev-Chat-Transcript-11-11-2009">Warcry US Dev Chat Transcript</a><br /><br />Whew, ok, I think that gives me enough homework here for now. I asked the LOTRO Community Manager if he has a Mines of Moria Ultimate Recap like this one since I'm really really behind here. I'll let you know!<br /><br />Merry Minstreling!Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-91065469312738022022009-12-04T15:43:00.000-08:002009-12-05T01:01:20.772-08:00The Ultimate Mirkwood Recap (Part 1)<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxohLGp3ziI/AAAAAAAACeU/FPCZyZztwNY/s1600-h/mirkwood+sticky2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 366px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxohLGp3ziI/AAAAAAAACeU/FPCZyZztwNY/s400/mirkwood+sticky2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411674376887586338" /></a><br />Hey! I just got a nice E-mail from Rick Heaton, the LOTRO community manager, and he had a TON of links to information surrounding the release of Mirkwood to share. These links went to all the LOTRO community sites. He's calling it the Ultimate Mirkwood Recap (copyright 2009 Rick Heaton . . . ok, that catch phrase isn't copyrighted, but I like it; it's catchy!).<br /><br />First up is a long list of links for a developer diary look at the new Skirmishes system:<br /><blockquote>Part 1: <a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/484-developer-diary-som-skirmishes-overview">Overview</a><br />Part 2: <a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/499-developer-diary-som-skirmishes-story-instances">Story Instances</a><br />Part 3: <a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/505-developer-diary-som-skirmishes-randomization-and-scaling">Randomization and Scaling</a><br />Part 4: <a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/508-developer-diary-som-skirmishes-skirmish-soldiers">Skirmish Soldiers</a><br />Part 5: <a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/514-developer-diary-som-skirmishes-rewards">Rewards </a><br />Part 6: <a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/522-developer-diary-som-skirmishes-accessibility">Accessibility</a><br />Part 7: <a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/543-developer-diary-som-skirmishes-the-end">The End</a></blockquote><br />Ok, I now officially have a lot to read. <br /><br />Then Rick lays the true dirt down about all the OTHER features in the new expansion:<br /><blockquote><a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/548-developer-diary-som-crafting">Crafting in Siege of Mirkwood</a><br /><a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/547-developer-diary-welcome-back-to-the-lone-lands">Welcome Back to The Lone-lands</a><br /><a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/528-developer-diary-introducing-dol-guldur">Introducing Dol Guldur</a><br /><a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/511-developer-diary-mirkwood-regions">Mirkwood Region</a><br /><a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/495-developer-diary-legendary-item-system-updates">Legendary Item System Update</a><br /><a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/541-developer-diary-legacy-pool-distribution-by-class">Legacy Pool Updates</a><br /><a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/539-developer-diary-som-skill-upgrades">Siege of Mirkwood Skill Upgrades</a><br /><a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/532-developer-diary-combat-changes">Combat System Changes</a><br /><a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/536-developer-diary-character-panel-update">Character Panel and Stat Updates</a><br /><a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/487-developer-diary-mounts-20">Mounts 2.0</a><br /><a href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/devdiaries/486-developer-diary-shared-storage">Shared Storage</a></blockquote><br />Cripes! Did I tell you I have a lot of reading to do now?<br /><br />Ok, I'm going to stop there for now . . . After I finish digesting some of that, I shall revisit the remainder of this e-mail.<br /><br />Merry Minstrel-ing! (think I may be close to my own catch phrase there!)Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-45337755860405949632009-12-03T04:24:00.001-08:002009-12-03T04:38:25.577-08:00He's Bach!So, I bit the bullet and shelled out the money for a few months of playtime and the last two expansions. My character was there and still as shiny as I left him:<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxeuOiI2ZkI/AAAAAAAACW0/HI0hmMAN5I8/s1600-h/hesbach.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 299px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxeuOiI2ZkI/AAAAAAAACW0/HI0hmMAN5I8/s400/hesbach.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410985042014266946" /></a><br />Who says dwarves are the only ones who can have beards?<br /><br />So, my character's name is "Bachelbu," right? But everyone calls me "Bach." It's just too fitting for a minstrel. Anyway, it's a running joke that when I log on the people in my guild (er kinship) all yell "He's Bach!" Last night was no exception. It was good to be "Bach" once again and see some old familiar faces.<br /><br />A good majority of the night was spent just trying to remember what all the buttons do and trying to find my old house so I could pay upkeep on it and bring it back out of forclosure. MAN, pricey little venture letting your house go into forclosure. It was like half a gold piece to remove all the dust and pay upkeep for a month and a half.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxewI9-hmYI/AAAAAAAACXE/X3rtvX_87kA/s1600-h/house.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 273px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxewI9-hmYI/AAAAAAAACXE/X3rtvX_87kA/s400/house.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410987145431193986" /></a><br />By the end of the night though I was galloping alongside my old friend, Tony. Or, Calab. Or Calrain. Or Jelalron. Actually, he's Jelalron in this game. We've played way too many games together to keep the names straight.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxevQ_Ek3bI/AAAAAAAACW8/WGr7e85y7to/s1600-h/riding+with+jelalron.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 295px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxevQ_Ek3bI/AAAAAAAACW8/WGr7e85y7to/s400/riding+with+jelalron.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410986183652335026" /></a><br /><br />It was good to get some face time again! He got me all set up in eregion and showed me where it was that I needed to start questing. Life is good!<br /><br />So I'm going to be happy to report all my dings and experiences from this place. It's a beautiful landscape (as illustrated by that picture above), of course, LOTRO is a beautiful looking game. Never a bad screenshot to be taken!<br /><br />Happy Minstreling! (hmmm, need to work on that catch phrase)Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-4795131397816850652009-12-02T04:51:00.000-08:002009-12-02T05:25:11.882-08:00The LOTRO Conundrum--Should I Come Back?So last night I patched LOTRO and sat there very quietly contemplating what I was doing. Do I really want to play LOTRO again or am I just happy doing what I'm doing?<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxZlUlaMywI/AAAAAAAACWo/R36_0osn4oQ/s1600-h/expired+subscription.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 307px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SxZlUlaMywI/AAAAAAAACWo/R36_0osn4oQ/s400/expired+subscription.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410623406646020866" /></a><br /><br />You know . . . it really all boils down to getting some rare face time with my good friend, Calrain. But, on the other hand, how much face time will I really get since I MUST make some agreements up front about playing this game again if I do play. <br /><br />1- I'm not a raider. I just can't put my 3 kids through the loss of their father for 2-3 hours twice *or more* a week. That's just not going to happen. <br /><br />2-I'm a limited grouper. Once again, I have to be able to afk when things go down off screen in real life. That means grouping with people that fully understand who I am and how I play (I AM extended AFK man!) . . . and that they take my situation with gigantic chunks of kosher salt. Calrain is one of those people. But will guild peer pressure be hard on me?<br /><br />3-I'm mostly an unknown soloer in a big big world. In some ways that's actually attractive to me. I don't mind some quiet play taking on stuff that I have no business taking on. My favorite memories of LOTRO are when I soloed Beryl Shard droppers in the Bree Faction dungeons. Will I be able to find the same with Mithril Flake droppers and beyond in the new expansions?<br /><br />Let me tell you . . . I'm am perfectly content just playing Wizard101. It's totally different from LOTRO and yet has those MMO Fantasy characteristics just like LOTRO. But Wizard101 is FUN and BRIGHT and HAPPY (and I'm arguably "famous" in that game). LOTRO is more beautiful and eerie and mellow (and I'm literally a nobody in that game, which has its benefits ;)). Yeah, both have their moments of boredom and both have their moments of intense excitement, but they are about as opposite as you can get.<br /><br />You know what really gets me here is the cost. The Mirkwood and Mines of Moria expansion are going to set me back $30 and a 3-month subscription will cost me another $30 . . . that's a year's worth of play on Wizard101. Yes, yes . . . I know there are other options like the $200 lifetime subscription, but I'd still have to shell out $30 for the expansions at this point.<br /><br />My wife said to me last night as I was sitting there pondering this state, "Well, if you want it, then Merry Christmas." Hmmm. What to do.Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-1604541784757986692009-12-01T17:56:00.000-08:002009-12-01T18:11:19.945-08:00um . . . hi!So, I'm wondering if anyone out there still has this blog tagged in their RSS feed? Hello? Is there anybody in there?<br /><br /><center><div><object width="480" height="332"><param name="movie" value="http://www.dailymotion.com/swf/x2vkm&related=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.dailymotion.com/swf/x2vkm&related=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="480" height="332" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always"></embed></object><br /></div></center><br /><br />So, listen. I'm excited for all of you LOTRO players after hearing that Mirkwood was going live today. I hope it's everything that you want it to be.<br /><br />I've been thinking about coming back to LOTRO to play on and off. Heck, I'm behind two expansions, there'd be plenty to write about. Then again, I'm really busy maintaining my new love: <a href="http://thefriendlynecromancer.blogspot.com">The Friendly Necromancer</a>! My time blogging for Wizard101 has really taught me a thing or two that I wish I would have known back when I was actually keeping this blog.<br /><br />So, hello again, if you're out there. Please let me know what you've been up to and if you're still playing Lord of the Rings Online. You may see me in here once again from time to time trying to catch up to you all.<br /><br />As I say over on my wizard101 blog . . .<br /><br />Happy Dueling!Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-11429217818287796462008-06-14T13:02:00.000-07:002008-06-14T13:44:14.533-07:00Catching up with BachWow. Turn around and a couple months fly by. Sorry about that. Hopefully everyone that reads this blog has marked the RSS for subscription and comes back to read.<br /><br />So here's what's been going on with my gaming life . . .<br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.smashbros.com/en_us/index.html">Super Smash Brothers for the Wii </a>-- Really disappointed no one does random internet games on Super Smash. /shrug.</li><li><a href="http://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/0deMlkndE8Z68qjAO0a1x9patla5CuFy">Boom Blox for the Wii </a>-- My son is absolutely addicted to this game.</li><li><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkCNJRfSZBU">World of Warcraft </a>-- I, yes, defected and played WoW again for a month. In that month time frame I worked a Rogue up from 1-50 and decided that, no, I don't want to play that game.</li><li><a href="http://www.guildwars.com/">Guild Wars </a>-- Every Sunday night our little band of brothers gets together and works through a mission or a quest or two in Guild Wars.</li><li><a href="http://www.diabloii.net/">Diablo II LOD </a>-- Old schoolin' it with BPaul. Rock on. Rolling me up a necro, bonedaddy.</li><li><a href="http://www.lotro.com/">LOTRO </a>-- Yes! YES! I came back to LOTRO! Let me tell you that the break was just what I needed to refocus myself. I'm back in the swing of things and loving the new (to me) <a href="http://lorebook.lotro.com/index.php/Region:Forochel">Forochel</a> area.</li></ul>Forochel was exactly what the game needed for the upper level soloing game. When I took my break from LOTRO my champion was stalled at level 49. I just didn't have any more solo quests I felt up to doing. Forochel, my friends, Forochel. You just catch a horse ride from esteldin over to tinnudir and then run up north until you get to that freezing cold water.<br /><br /><div align="left"><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SFQskxDq_OI/AAAAAAAAAOE/HZMrXJCu5cI/s1600-h/dings50.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5211839678930156770" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/SFQskxDq_OI/AAAAAAAAAOE/HZMrXJCu5cI/s400/dings50.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div align="left"><em><span style="color:#33cc00;"></span></em> </div><div align="center"><em><span style="color:#33cc00;">Stingite dings 50 in Forochel!</span></em><br /></div><div align="left"> </div><div align="left">Side note . . . that water is cold up there. I mean, in some parts if you get in the water, you're dead in about 10 seconds. You've been warned. </div><div align="left"><br /></div><p align="left">Have fun with what you're doing!</p>Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-71395890345402101252008-04-01T04:38:00.001-07:002008-04-01T04:43:02.839-07:00I Found This Hilarious<a href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/R_IfBrvrn7I/AAAAAAAAANs/458ikdFaC64/s1600-h/amonHen.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5184240234839908274" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/R_IfBrvrn7I/AAAAAAAAANs/458ikdFaC64/s320/amonHen.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />The April 1st message is <a href="http://www.lotro.com/amonhen">here.</a><br /><br />My favorite part is "Crush your foes into 6, 12, or 20 pieces." <div></div>Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-62543791624947854972008-03-15T04:34:00.000-07:002008-03-15T10:33:08.191-07:00Here it comes . . . the mines of moriaWell, Turbine <a href="http://www.lotro.com/article/514">announced </a>the new expansion and watch out, here come the Rune-Keepers. Jeepers-Creepers! Just sounds like a great new class name, doesn't it?<br /><br /><div align="center"><em><span style="color:#3366ff;">"Marvin is so funny in kin chat that he shouldn't be called a Rune-Keeper; he should instead be called a Hilarity-Keeper! LOL"</span></em></div><div align="center"><em><span style="color:#3366ff;"></span></em></div><br /><div align="center"><em><span style="color:#3366ff;">"Nah, Marvin sucks, he should be called a Rune-Failer. xD"</span></em></div><div align="center"><em><span style="color:#3366ff;"></span></em></div><span style="color:#3366ff;"><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Hyphenated class names ftw. It's built in kinship chat comedy!<br /><br />The other new class they announced was The Warden. What a completely unfun name. I can't even think of a good rhyme to go with Warden other than Boredom, and that's not even a good rhyme . . . that's not even half-rhyme . . . just some lame quasi-</span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assonance">assonance</a>. <span style="color:#000000;">I hope</span><span style="color:#000000;"> the class plays better than the name. sheesh.</span><span style="color:#000000;"><br /><br />If you're looking for details, you're going to have to wait a bit. Turbine has set up </span><a href="http://www.unlocktheminesofmoria.com/">the mines of moria website</a> <span style="color:#000000;">and it looks like at the end of March, beginning of April they'll be having you play little mini-games to unlock secrets and information about the new classes and all the other new goodies . . . unless of course they just announce it was a big April fool's joke on us all.</span><span style="color:#000000;"><br /><br />Level cap is going up to 60 as well kids. Have fun with that.<br /><br />I'm wondering if they'll increase the number of characters you can have in your account by 2 (ala Guild Wars) because currently you only get 5 slots. There's a gal in my kinship who has all 5 slots filled with level 50 characters, and I don't think she's the only one.<br /><br />Along with this expansion will come six new books worth of quests under a new "volume," so that should be a lot of fun. Rock on. I wonder if you're going to see Gandalf say "you shall not pass" in one of them. /scratches head. Would be cool.<br /><br />And now . . . pirate picture!<br /></span><br /><br /><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/R9u8JkHI6-I/AAAAAAAAANc/OPEFA9fIAm8/s1600-h/flex+arrrr.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5177939069090982882" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/R9u8JkHI6-I/AAAAAAAAANc/OPEFA9fIAm8/s400/flex+arrrr.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><p align="center"><span style="color:#33cc00;"><em>Nalgron, Burwinn, and Bachelbu modeling the new pirate-barbie look!</em></span><br /></p><br /></span><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"></span>Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-42851940843227765492008-02-22T12:38:00.000-08:002008-02-22T12:47:22.461-08:00Crannog's Challenges and Book 12<div align="left">So, they recently updated the game again and made some stellar changes in Angmar. I liked this zone to begin with, but now it's 10X more awesome. The quest lines are more logical, the outposts are better, and the level progression across the map just simply makes better sense.<br /><br />So, I ran both my champ and my minstrel through a series of quests back in good ol' aughaire. The chieftan there (mr. Crannog to you) has a very nice surprise for you <a href="http://lotro.allakhazam.com/db/quest.html?lotrquest=1480">at the end of his quest line</a>. I'll let the video below do the rest of the talking. </div><div align="left"><br /><br /></div><p align="center"><object height="350" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/d1eZgA-quEk"><br /> <embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/d1eZgA-quEk" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="350"></embed> </object></p><div align="left"><br /><br /></div><div align="left">also introduced with book 12 was THE NEW ULTRA-BARBIE CLOTHING OPTION. So in all their wisdom, the developers added two little clothing slots in your gear, so you can have three outfits to choose for your barbie all while retaining the stats of your "real" gear set. Thank you developers. Now bach can slay the dragon in his party dress. Bless you.<br /><br /></div><a href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/R780hRO0FyI/AAAAAAAAAM4/bDCeCMevFko/s1600-h/party+dress.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5169908643410482978" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/R780hRO0FyI/AAAAAAAAAM4/bDCeCMevFko/s400/party+dress.jpg" border="0" /> <p align="center"></a> <span style="color:#33cc00;"><em>Stunning, just stunning</em></span></p>Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-82553893655488485152008-02-09T19:01:00.000-08:002008-02-09T19:12:48.707-08:00Sorry no updates in a whileHello Minstrel Fridge Magnet readers! I just wanted to apologize for the lack of updates. Truth is I've been cavorting with my champion, who dinged 46 today! Give me a few weeks and I should have two max level characters at my disposal, which is awesome. There's going to be a ton more flexibility with that.<br /><br />So, random reader . . . if you have any requests for information from a seasoned (well kinda) minstrel, please leave it here, and I'll do my best to respond to you in a future post.<br /><br />Of other character news, Bach became a grandmaster jeweler and my champ is only a few hundred points away from becoming a grandmaster scholar. What does that mean? That means I can craft the best jewelry items in the game and make all kinds of health and power potions for all my raider friends.<br /><br />Good times.<br /><br />And now . . . random screenshot time.<br /><br /><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/R65q7RzuUtI/AAAAAAAAAMg/3u1fUs9jFbQ/s1600-h/wolf+picture.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/R65q7RzuUtI/AAAAAAAAAMg/3u1fUs9jFbQ/s400/wolf+picture.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5165183389265711826" /></a><br /><br />I thought this was a great shot of my champ fighting a wolf in the misty mountains. (click to enlarge)Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-63488077094611209472008-01-11T23:28:00.000-08:002008-01-11T23:35:32.107-08:00Gollum Encounter in LOTROSo, I realize that I'm behind the times because this content came out a month or so ago, but it's all new to me. There's a little quest you can undertake in South Trollshaws that pairs you with a hunter named Wistan. You see, this "creature" has been KS'ing the hunters out there, and it's miffing them. To boot, you have this . . . thing . . . sneaking into the local's houses and sniffing at their cribs, so they're a little freaked obviously.<br /><br />I did this solo instance twice and made screenshots and captured it a bit with Fraps. Gollum has always been my favorite creepy character ever since seeing The Hobbit cartoon.<br /><br />So, without any more delay . . . I present to you (in all it's ancient stoorish hobbity goodness) my latest Youtube, the Gollum Encounter in LOTRO . . . it's hella good.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"> <param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/BFbHtJUE0MQ"> </param> <embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/BFbHtJUE0MQ" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="350"> </embed> </object>Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-24346797151884035352008-01-02T20:07:00.000-08:002008-01-02T20:34:32.598-08:00Ettenmores for Exp at 40th levelI had hinted on this in an earlier blog entry . . . when you hit 40th you can travel to the Ettenmoors, right? right! It's actually cheeper now that it was as well . . . for the cost of 1 silver, you can buy a trip there.<br /><br />I recently did this with my little Champion alt who dinged 40. Easy exp my friends. There are <em>at least</em> 4 quests you can do that will net you easy exp and 3 others that could possibly do the same as well.<br /><br />What you’ll want to do is take the <a href="http://lotro.allakhazam.com/db/quest.html?lotrquest=1192">hike like no other </a>quest, the <a href="http://lotro.allakhazam.com/db/quest.html?lotrquest=949">quest to visit Ost</a>, the <a href="http://lotro.allakhazam.com/db/quest.html?lotrquest=945">quest to visit hoarhollow</a>, and the <a href="http://lotro.allakhazam.com/db/quest.html?lotrquest=936">cleansing the hoarwell </a>quest. Before you log in, you may want to visit the AH and pick up 10 hoarhollow ales, 5 historical books of rhudaur, and 10 historical notes of Rhudaur. Why? These may be hard to find, but if you do manage to find them, when you get to Ost, you'll have 3 more quests you can do turn ins for and get exp.<br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/R3xf0D3FA3I/AAAAAAAAALo/-baOvVvhTfA/s1600-h/cool+map.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5151097421799162738" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/R3xf0D3FA3I/AAAAAAAAALo/-baOvVvhTfA/s400/cool+map.jpg" border="0" /></a><em><span style="color:#006600;"> click me to make me bigger!</span></em><br /><br /><div align="left">So, that map shows pretty much the path I took while completing these quests. I'll detail them below</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">1- You start out here in Coldfells at the Freep main base. Follow the arrows through the back path up to Ost Ringdyr.<br /></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">2- Here in Ost Ringdyr you can do the turn ins that I mentioned above and complete your first quest. You'll also flag a location for your Hike like no other quest.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"><br />3- From Ost you'll want to make your way up to Isendeep Mines to be flagged as visiting that for the Hike like no other quest. As a side note, if you're a miner and this area is controlled by the free people . . . yum . . . mining goodness inside.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"><br />4- After making your way back to Ost, head on out and a touch north so you can get flagged for visiting Tirith Rhaw (TR). Just touch the North side and you'll be flagged as far as I can remember.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"><br />5- TR is just a quick stop off as you make your way up to the top of the waterfall. Now this is kind of risky. On top of this hill that overlooks the waterfall, you have a good chance that it will be controlled by the Creeps. If you just go barreling through here you'll get smoked and hate me for my advice. What you need to do is approach the hill from the north and make a swoop along the edge. As you do this, you will attract the attention of a giant mosquito looking mob (pass that first one on the hill to the right) and you'll have a series of archers start plucking you with arrows . . . just keep running and fall down the hill to the top of the waterfall. You'll get a message that you should click on the barrel in your inventory. Do this. Now personally I like to then fall down the waterfall. as you fall down the waterfall, press your back arrow so that you hang on the ledge. Wait for the snare from fall damage to go away. Then drop down the rest of the way and swim along the bank and follow the arrow to 6.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"><br />6- Manuever your way to the grim lumber camp so you can be flagged for the hike quest.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"><br />7- Head on over to Hoarhollow and talk to the mayor to finish a quest.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"><br />8- Next, take the long way around and over to Lugazag and get flagged.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"><br />9- Take a hop, skip, and a jump over to the bridge to be flagged for visiting Tol Ascarnen. Now all you have to do is make your way back to Coldfells and you're done. Easy exp and a few tokens to boot.</div><div align="left"> </div><div align="left">Your milage may <em>reeaaaaally</em> vary . . . this is just how I would do it. :-) Best of luck avoiding the creeps.</div></div>Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-90819023432861925052007-11-04T21:56:00.000-08:002007-11-04T22:16:18.385-08:00Book 11 and the Minstrel . . . hooo boy.It’s been a while since I’ve written anything, eh kids? Well Uncle Bach has been busy with stuff . . . like a kid still in diapers that has diarrhea . . . ok, I know . . . TMI. But that’s what this blog is allllll about . . . information! Yes! Information! . . . um . . . you thought it was going to be all about diarrhea didn’t you?<br /><br /><br />So what’s new? Holy smokes! The new minstrel skills . . . that’s what’s new. You see Book 11 was released. This patch introduced a bunch of great things, the first being player housing. Now the metaphor of playing Barbies is complete as I now have a Barbie house in the hills.<br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/Ry6wqTSPQeI/AAAAAAAAAKg/EfVfJmS8iRI/s1600-h/house.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129231266399338978" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/Ry6wqTSPQeI/AAAAAAAAAKg/EfVfJmS8iRI/s400/house.jpg" border="0" /></a> <span style="color:#006600;"><em>I need to talk to my real estate agent about these mysterious blue squares on the ground.<br /></em></span><br /><br /><p align="left">I went with the elf style of house. I chose a house with a super cool deck in the back where you could fish off of (not really since that isn’t in the game yet) and water tube down. Inside my house I have all manner of fancy stuff and even painted the walls purple.<br /><br />They also introduced a new instance called the Rift. This is a 12-man raid and is a complete prayer answer to smaller guilds. I haven’t gone yet, but this hasn’t excluded me from being asked to go . . . over and over . . . don’t worry I’m always polite when I say no. </p><p align="left"><br /></p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129233181954753058" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/Ry6yZzSPQiI/AAAAAAAAALA/yiOD9_wz6oY/s400/rift1.jpg" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/Ry6yFzSPQgI/AAAAAAAAAKw/IKtdVlyS7wA/s1600-h/rift2.jpg"></a><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129233375228281410" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/Ry6ylDSPQkI/AAAAAAAAALQ/t9tdYgn0-x0/s400/rift3.jpg" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129233263559131698" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/Ry6yejSPQjI/AAAAAAAAALI/Cc5Efi7X58c/s400/rift2.jpg" border="0" /> </div><div align="center"><em><span style="color:#009900;">It's not you, it's the repair costs . . . I have a barbie house to keep up now don't you know!</span></em><br /><p align="left"></p><p align="left"></p><p align="left">But enough of this Tom Foolery . . . gimme the skills man . . GIMME THE SKILLS.<br /><br />The new skills are, in a word, awesome. I posted a couple of months ago how I wished we had the ability to toggle our skills. Guess what. At the cost of -50% healing, I now can toggle on the “War-speech” stance and have a decent Damage over Time spell (Chant of the Oathbreaker), 2 AoEs (Call to the Elder King and Call of the Second Age), and a faster refresh on my damage shout/stun. This is fantastic for farming. I mean, who doesn’t want to crit on a mob for +700 . . . Unfortunately, the creeps still have time to run away when I’m solo.<br /></p><br /><p align="left"></p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129233886329389650" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/Ry6zCzSPQlI/AAAAAAAAALY/7gJJXyBH_N4/s400/dps.jpg" border="0" /><span style="color:#009900;"><em>The skills . . . to pay the bills . . . repair bills that is.</em></span><br /><p align="left"><br />When I’m playing it, I like to get the DoT burning (Oathbreaker is so neat to watch since it’s a couple glowing swords that hack away at your opponent), begin the rotation with ballad of resonance (to amp light damage), hit call of the elder king (to make ‘em more susceptible to light damage and do some damage), Round it off with Call of the Second Age (this sucker hits for a lot – they have to be right up against you though), and if it’s up tap Cry of the Chorus (to open up anthems), and lay down anthem of the valar AOE. By this time your call of the elder king will have repoped. It’s farmtastic AoE fun.<br /><br />Long story short for you minstrels: um, don’t use these when you’re the main healer in a group. Sure, you can stance dance if you have a captain helping you cover heals or something, but come on, -50% healing just isn’t something you want to inflict on your group Now, if you have 2 minstrels in a group or (heaven forbid) 3 minstrels, then FIRE IT UP, BABY! Just make sure one of you has enough common sense to declare yourself “main healer.” Hint: bring a bag of tactical crit gear along. Another hint: Remember you’re wearing medium armor and, therefore, are a glass cannon. Don’t go stealing agro just because you can. Yeah yeah . . . maybe the first couple of times would be good just to say that you’re all that, but we know what really makes you all that: self control. </p><p align="left">/wink & have fun!</p></div>Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4928097292880010430.post-45839829935488419062007-10-03T15:41:00.000-07:002007-10-03T16:20:00.404-07:00Gold Farmer Crackdown and /anon onPretty much everybody has figured out in LOTRO that if they type in "/anon on", then the spam from Gold Selling websites goes to practically nothing. This is the grassroots effort to silence the annoying tells that look like these:<br /><br /><a href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/RwQd9nJx2JI/AAAAAAAAAJw/F0PCxH0Fzoo/s1600-h/Habjgh.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5117248020918950034" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/RwQd9nJx2JI/AAAAAAAAAJw/F0PCxH0Fzoo/s400/Habjgh.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/RwQd9nJx2KI/AAAAAAAAAJ4/tzA3YktmjFk/s1600-h/hahahaa.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5117248020918950050" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/RwQd9nJx2KI/AAAAAAAAAJ4/tzA3YktmjFk/s400/hahahaa.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/RwQd93Jx2LI/AAAAAAAAAKA/hZg1V1Z1Vcw/s1600-h/hahhahahahah.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5117248025213917362" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/RwQd93Jx2LI/AAAAAAAAAKA/hZg1V1Z1Vcw/s400/hahhahahahah.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/RwQd93Jx2MI/AAAAAAAAAKI/Qwrt5U-KwmQ/s1600-h/wokaonisa.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5117248025213917378" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/RwQd93Jx2MI/AAAAAAAAAKI/Qwrt5U-KwmQ/s400/wokaonisa.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/RwQd93Jx2NI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/HZAs7Q9szts/s1600-h/zailai.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5117248025213917394" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/RwQd93Jx2NI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/HZAs7Q9szts/s400/zailai.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div><div>It doesn't stop there . . . they also like to send you annoying in-game mail, just like back in good ol' WoW.<br /><br />I've been collecting these screenshots just to kind of illustrate how nuts it is when you're playing and don't have /anon on hiding you from their sight. The problem with this is that when you turn /anon on . . . you're invisible to your friends list and to the zone you're in. So if you have friends outside your kinship, /shrug . . . who knows if they're online or not. Not me! /shrug<br /><br />I've turned my /anon off, and here's why: I'm cracking down on these fellas thanks to the "spam" reporting feature. Here's what you do, the moment you receive one of these, find a safe spot, hit escape, select "help," open a ticket, click spam as the type of report you're submitting, and type "spam message from www. wherever the link goes.com" and the person's name that sent you the tell. So far I've reported at least 7 names in the past couple of days, and I will continue to report this nonsense . . . but I have to tell you this feels very much akin to "There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root" as <a href="http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Henry_David_Thoreau">Thoreau</a> put it. I feel like a branch hacker.<br /><br />So what's the root of the problem? Oh man, it goes deeper than I dare shoot in this blog. MMOs have to make games challenging and they have to make earning money somewhat difficult. When things are difficult, they take time. Some people see these games as a type of "work," and therefore buy gold because their time is worth more money to them.<br /><br />How deep do you really want to go with that?<br /><br />This whole discussion could also be looked at from a <a href="http://www.epcc.edu/faculty/joeo/ladder.htm">ladder of abstraction </a>view because the root of the problem is a long root . . . where do you cut and why?<br /><br />I mean . . .<br /><br />you could blame a particular programmer for not being energetic enough to develop a "cure" for these advertisements that don't involve the player base.<br /><br />you could blame that programmer's boss for not directing that programmer.<br /><br />you could blame Turbine for introducing the refer a friend program, which means gold spammer advertisers get 5 free accounts to spam me with.<br /><br />you could blame MMOs in general for how their business models are.<br /><br />you could blame the 3rd level of Maslow's hierarchy.<br /><br />on and on and on ad nauseum. But, for now, what we <em>have</em> in the LOTRO world is a spam reporting feature. I guess I'll take it and use it. </div><div></div><div>Although, one warning, when you report spam . . . you get spam . . . thanks Turbine, what in the world are you thinking with this deluge of e-mails to my inbox?</div><div> </div><div> </div><div></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5117253462642514146" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_QradY5UUNUE/RwQi6XJx2OI/AAAAAAAAAKY/tktrSbu6l8s/s400/turbine+spam.jpg" border="0" /></div></div>Stingitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00225836686170204875noreply@blogger.com0