2007年7月24日星期二

LOTRO Level 20

It seems silly, with so many characters and so many levels in other games, to be chirping about hitting level 20. But that is one of the joys of a new game. Milestones that will be trivial in a few months are meaningful the first time around.

So here is Nomu, my dwarf guardian, who is also my first character to hit level 20. He is adorned in Heavy Iron Armor of his own crafting, that spiked helm from the level 15 guardian class quest, and what is a huge shield relative to his stature.

Level 20 wasn’t a huge leap. Guardians get heavy armor at 15, so I was already metal clad. Last names used to be a level 20 reward back in the MUD days, but that is something else you get at level 15 in LOTRO.

I did get short duration buff that improves my defense in desperate situations and the ability to mount a spike on my shield, making it all the better to smack orcs with. (And the shield smack animation is one of my favorites in combat.)

I bought my skills, repaired my armor, adjusted my traits, and still had a little cash left in my pocket. Not much, but any surplus after basic needs is a good thing.

Our regular instance group got together last night and ran through a bunch of quests that got us all up to level 19 or 20. We are ready to get back on the epic quest line again Saturday night.

2007年7月23日星期一

Starting Quest

Let get started.

I will be using Kinye a Human Hunter on Meneldor. Witch means for now I will be doing the Human and Hobbit line of intro quest. I hope soon to add the Elven and Dwarf.
After making your human or hobbit. You start in jail with intro text of Jailbreak "A chance encounter with brigands upon the road leads to captivity, but rescue may not be far away…." Zone you're in is instance zone. So just you and the NPC. The quest here will go very fast. Once you done with the quest you will end up in the Newbie zone of Archet.

You start with a quest called Instance: Jail Break all you got to do talk to Amdir. So your talk to follow Amdir. Little talking happens then Amdir kills guy and there create for you to loot. Inside is your beginner weapons. Throw away the old items you had in the weapon slot as you cant sell them for anything. After looking the create and equipping the weapons talk to Amdir. Ok your first kill quest. You must defeat 4 Celandine's captors. So run to the west open the door. One door open you will see single Blackwold Ruffian. He will attack if you get close go ahead kill him let get this quest over with. After killing him to the north are two more guys. After kill them to the north you will see iron bar door. Walk in and you will see a Blackwold Ruffian Giving a female hobbit named Celandine Brandybuck hard time. Go ahead kill Ruffian. After that you have killed your 4 guys and need talk to the Celandine Brandybuck. After she get her freak on you follow her out of the area where you kill Edric. Witch updates your quest and you need talk to the new hobbit in the area named Mudo Sackville-Baggins. Well were off to find Amdir. This will bring you to the cut scene. You cant do anything during this. From here you talk to Amdir then Celandine. Hit Finsih Now. This will take you to 2nd cut scene/load screen. Your done with the Intro Intance. You pop up in beginner Archet.

How to Choosing Your Weapons

One of the most confusing and oft-debated aspects of LOTRO game mechanics is the general question of whether faster or slower weapon setups are "better". Specifically, this usually revolves around a debate about dual-wielded weapons versus 2H weapons, but can also apply to a debate about whether guardians are better-served by 1H + Shield setups versus 2H weapons. There are six main aspects to this debate:

  • Which setup gives superior auto-attack damage during a short fight: fast or slow weapons? Which is the most important weapon statistic: Speed, DPS, Average Damage, or Max Damage? Which setup is more "power efficient"? In other words, which setup gives you the most damage per point of power expended? Which setup benefits all the "extra swings" and + damage bonus of your weapon-based? What exactly is the interplay between the auto-attack ticks and cool-down timers?
  • Do special damage types trump all of the preceding factors?

Faster weapons are always superior auto-attack damage in a short fight

The fact that faster weapons always yield superior front-loaded auto-attack damage in short fights is counter-intuitive to most newcomers to the MMO genre, and is therefore contested quite often on discussion forums. Nevertheless, it is a true statement. The basic principle to grasp is simply that a "miss" with a slower but harder-hitting weapon hurts you far more than a miss with a faster but lighter-hitting weapon in a short fight where there is an effective "race" to do N points of damage first. For example, let's use an extreme and artificial comparison of two players of equal level with weapons that are equal DPS. Player A has the fast weapon and it hits for 10 damage every second. Player B has the slow weapon and it hits for 30 damage every 3 seconds. Both players have 70 hit points.

  • Player A needs to connect with 7 hits to kill player B. This could happen as quickly as 7 seconds with a 100% hit rate. Player B needs to connect with 3 hits to kill Player A. This could happen as quickly as 9 seconds with a 100% hit rate.
  • If both players experience a 25% miss rate (75% hit rate) here's how long it takes each player to kill the other.
    • Player A needs 10 attacks (2-3 will be misses); that's 10 seconds.
    • Player B needs 4 attacks (1 will be a miss); that's 12 seconds.

Can you see how in all cases, Player A has the statistical advantage? Statistically, Player A will more often win the "race" to do 70 points of damage first because their misses "hurt" a lot less. Missing one big attack puts you behind in the race. This has been proven time and again. And remember, this applies to *short* fights only--that's where faster weapons always have the edge. Statistically, your odds to "win the race" are better with a faster weapon. This basic principle aside, there are still two unresolved points of contention in LOTRO that could modify this basic principle

  • It is yet unproven whether or not your first "strike" of weapon damage occurs immediately upon commencing auto-attack, or must instead occurs after the first "swing delay" of the weapon. Regardless of the true answer to this question, all that gives the slower, harder-hitting weapon is a small "head start" on the "race" compared to the faster, lighter-hitting weapon. The basic principle described in this section still stands, and all this point of contention means for LOTRO, in particular, is that if you can kill something in only 1-3 "hits" then it's possible that a slower, harder-hitting weapon would win this very extreme kind of "race". Most fights that will actually yield experience, even fast ones, tend to take more than a few hits, so this point of contention is probably moot.
  • It is yet unknown how armor mitigation works in LOTRO.

    • In some MMOs, armor mitigation works by reducing a flat percentage of each hit, so a harder-hiting weapon and a lighter-hitting weapon are equally penalized by the armor mitigation.
    • In other MMOs, however, armor mitigation works by "absorbing" damage off the top of a hit. In this case slower weapons are often better because every hit of a harder-hitting weapon gets more damage through the absorbtion. In these MMOs it was possible for a fast but light-hitting weapon to do practically no damage to a heavily armored foe. It's worth noting that in previous Turbine games, specifically Asheron's Call 2, armor mitigation usually worked on an absorption principle, so big-hitting single attacks were far more useful at the high levels than small-hitting "flurry" style attacks

The most important weapon statistic depends on your class and your most-used skills

In many other MMOs, a weapon's listed DPS statistic was a good indication of overall performance and a good way to compare the relative value different weapons. Unfortunately, this is not the case in LOTRO. DPS is a statistic that is almost a red herring in this game. Instead, the stats that matter are Speed, the Average Damage of the listed damage range (which you must calculate for yourself), and both the Min and Max damage values of the listed damage range.

  • Speed determines how often the ticks of your auto-attack cycle occur and how much delay occurs between queued active skills. Note that the effective Speed for dual-wielded weapons will be an average of both weapon's listed Speeds. Average Damage is calculated by adding both numbers in the weapon's listed damage range and dividing the result by 2. Average Damage is the most important factor in determining how much damage most of your weapon-based active skills will do. Any skill that uses the keywords "main-hand" or "off-hand" in the skill's tooltip description is basing that damage component on the full listed damage range for the weapon in your main hand or off hand, and therefore the Average Damage of the weapon is the best indicator of how much damage will be done for each "swing" of main-hand or off-hand damage generated by that skill. The important point here is that a fast weapon will have a high DPS value but a very low Average Damage value, and therefore your weapon-based attack skills will not deliver nearly as much damage as a slow weapon with the same exact DPS (or even a lower DPS) but a much higher Average Damage value. Min damage is the lowest value in the weapon's listed damage range. This value is important because it determines how much damage that weapon will do when it's equipped in your off-hand slot.
  • Max damage is the highest value in the weapon's listed damage range. This value is the most important factor in determining how much damage some of the Burglar's weapon-based active skills will do. Any skill that uses the keywords "max damage" for either the main-hand "swing" or the off-hand "swing" will use that max damage value every time the "swing" hits successfully. For these skills, a weapon with lower DPS but a higher Max value will generate more damage from such skills than a weapon with high DPS or high Avg Damage but a lower Max damage.

Dual-wielding is available to Champions at level 1, Burglars at level 10, and Hunters at level 20. Dual-wielding works much differently in LOTRO than it does in most other MMOs:

  • Your effective Speed becomes the average of the Speed value of both your weapons (add both Speed values and then divide by 2). For example, if you have a 2.3 Speed weapon in your main hand and a 1.7 Speed weapon in your off-hand, your effective Speed is 2.0. It does not matter which weapon is in which slot; the effective Speed is the same with either possible combination. There are not separate auto-attack "ticks" for each weapon. Both weapons always attack on the same tick. Our two hypothetical weapons in the previous example would always attack together on a 2.0-second auto-attack tick rate. The weapon in your off-hand slot is capped to hit for the lowest value in the weapon's listed damage range, plus or minus a small percentage (usually just a point or two on either side of the lowest listed value). This means you generally want to put the weapon with the highest Min damage in your off-hand slot, but this advice should be weighed against all the other considerations covered here. The offhand weapon can still crit at a normal rate (with no penalties for being in the off-hand), but it crits for roughly double the capped off-hand damage range. For example, a 9 - 13 weapon in your off-hand usually hits for 9 points (sometimes 8 or 10 points), and it crits for around 17 points, give or take a point. The off-hand damage reduction mechanics described above affect only your auto-attack damage. All of your weapon-based skills that mention bonus damage based on your "off-hand" weapon are not affected by this damage reduction. In other words, if you have a skill that uses the "max damage" of the off-hand, and your off-hand weapon's listed Max Damage value is 10, then the bonus damage from that skill is based on a value of 10.
  • For Champions only, the Fervour threshold of your various weapon-based active skills is lower (usually by one point) when you dual-wield than when you are wielding a single 1H weapon, a 1H + Shield, or a 2H weapon. When dual-wielding, the Fervour cost will be listed as a flat cost like "3 Fervour" in the skill's tooltip description. When you are not dual-wielding, the Fervour cost will be listed as a cost like "Requires at least 4 Fervour, but Removes 3 from Fervour", which means the skill still only costs you 3 Fervour, but you need to attain a threshold of 4 Fervour to queue the skill.

One of the most confusing and oft-debated aspects of LOTRO game mechanics is the general question of whether faster or slower weapon setups are "better". Specifically, this usually revolves around a debate about dual-wielded weapons versus 2H weapons, but can also apply to a debate about whether guardians are better-served by 1H + Shield setups versus 2H weapons.

There are six main aspects to this debate:

  • Which setup gives superior auto-attack damage during a short fight: fast or slow weapons?
  • Which is the most important weapon statistic: Speed, DPS, Average Damage, or Max Damage?
  • Which setup is more "power efficient"? In other words, which setup gives you the most damage per point of power expended?
  • Which setup benefits all the "extra swings" and +damage bonus of your weapon-based?
  • What exactly is the interplay between the auto-attack ticks and cool-down timers?
  • Do special damage types trump all of the preceding factors?

Slower, harder-hitting weapons are far more power-efficient

The faster your effective Speed, the faster your auto-attack animations execute, so there is less delay between the activation of your queued active skills. Since all active skills cost the same amount of power regardless of your weapon Speed, this means you will burn power at a much faster rate when using fast 1H or dual-wield weapon setups.

In short fights against single, normal "white" foes or easier, power consumption isn't much of an issue. In longer fights, however, against single "yellow" foes or harder, or against multiple foes, or against signature/elite foes, or in a location with fast respawns, you might be better served with a slow 2H weapon because your power will last longer.

The "extra swings" and +damage bonus of slower weapons are higher with slower weapons, but occur more rapidly with faster weapons

Depending on the weapon-based active skills that you tend to use most often, you might be able to generate more overall damage output by using a slower, harder-hitting weapon. In particular, this comparison applies to dual-wield setups versus 2H weapon setups:

  • A dual-wield setup typically yields far more auto-attack DPS and shorter delays between the execution of your queued-up skills than comparable 2H weapons, so you have high auto-attack DPS and faster-occuring damage from your queued-up skills.
  • Many weapon-based skills have a +damage bonus value that increases with slower weapons. For example skill X might do +17 damage when you are equipped with a 1H weapon of Speed 2.0 or a dual-wield setup that yields an effective Speed of 2.0, but that same skill X might do +30 damage when you are equipped with a 2H weapon of Speed 3.6.
  • Many weapon-based skills effectively generate multiple "swings". For example, skill Y might deliver 3 "main hand" swings of damage, each of which also has a +damage bonus as well. The total damage output of all these multiple "swings" can be much larger with a slow 2H weapon than with a fast 1H weapon. However, there are two addtional factors to consider:

    • Many of these same skills will add in one or more "off-hand" swings when you are dual-wielding, so the gap in damage might be less than if you examine the skill tooltip with only one 1H weapon equipped.
    • A faster weapon setup might actually let you front-load more of those "extra swings" in the same amount of time as a slower 2H weapon. For example, in a dual-wield setup you might be able to generate something like 6 "extra" swings in first 15 seconds of a fight, but a 2H weapon might generate perhaps only 3 "extra" swings in that same 15 seconds. So even though each 2H "swing" is more damaging than the same "swings" in a dual-wield setup, the total of the 3 slower "swings" might be less that the total of the 6 faster "swings".

The interplay of these various factors is the main reason for stating that "you might be able to generate more overall damage output by using a slower, harder-hitting weapon". There are no hard and fast-guidelines in this regard because so much depends on the particular weapon-based skills that you use most often. Your best bet is to equip your best dual-wield setup and look at the skill tooltips, then equip your best 2H weapon and look at the skill tooltips, then do some rough calculations and tests for yourself, remembering that you'll be able to fire off your attack chains faster with the dual-wield setup.


The auto-attack tick cycle seems to be independent of, but overwritten by, skill execution

It can easily be observed that auto-attack "ticks" seem to occur in between some of your queued skill executions but not others. Also, it can be easily observed that more of these auto-attack ticks seem to occur in-between skill executions when you are using faster weapons. The pattern is difficult to discern through observation, but here is the best guess about how the interaction works, based on at least 30 minutes of testing on several classes while looking specifically for interaction patterns.

  • The auto-attack cycle seems to be independent of the queued skill executions and the global cool-down timer. What appears to be happening is that the "ticks" of the auto-attack cycle are simply over-written by skill animations when they occur. If a gap between animations falls in the same spot as a "tick" of the auto-attack cycle, then the auto-attack happens.

    • It does not matter whether the gap between skill animations is due to the global cool-down or due to the next-queued skill still being in its recovery phase.
    • It does not matter whether the skills are weapon-based or not. (Many people mistakenly believe that weapon-based skills happen "on the next auto-attack tick" but non-weapon based skills are somehow independent of auto-attacks.) If you trigger a weapon-based skill in the right spot of the auto-attack cycle, you can easily see the weapon skill damage followed immediately by a tick of auto-attack damage, and the delay between the skill damage and the auto-attack damage can vary by quite a bit depending on when the attack-skill actually begins execution relative to the auto-attack cycle.
  • Because the auto-attack ticks occur during opportune gaps in the queued skill chain, it stands to reason that faster weapons have more of a chance to "fit in the gaps" because each tick occurs more frequently. With slower weapons, therefore, you can more easily keep overwriting the auto-attack ticks, so fewer ticks of auto-attack damage are added to your overall damage output.

The bottom line with regard to weapon choice is that faster weapons will ultimately add more auto-attack damage to your total damage output.

Special damage types might trump all of the preceding factors

This section is here mostly as a placeholder for further testing and refinement of this article. It's reported that weapons with special damage types such as "fire" or "light", etc. are so effective (versus certain mobs that have low resistance to that damage type) that they trump most or all of the factors described so far.

Based on Turbine's implementation of elemental damage types in previous games such as Asheron's Call and Asheron's Call 2, this could indeed be a very important consideration in weapon choice that could outweigh the preceding factors.

Some general rules of thumb for choosing a fast or slow weapon setup

The preceding sections explain why it can be sometimes complex to answer the question "which is better for me: 1H + Shield, 2H, or dual-wielding?" In general, however, there are some rules of thumb that are safe to apply to most situations. Be aware, though, that in edge cases there could be exceptions to these general guidelines:

  • Guardians who are tanking for a group must rely on many active skills to generate as much threat as possible, particularly their shield-based skills. For this reason, a very fast 1H weapon + shield is often the preferred tanking setup not only for the shield mitigation (and the fact that you need a shield to use your shield-based attacks), but because the faster animation times of the 1H auto-attack ticks means less delay between your queued active skills. The faster you can fire off your active skills, the more front-loaded threat you can ultimately generate. Of course, the downside to this is that you'll also burn power at a faster rate, so you might have to pace yourself or rely on Blue fellowship maneuvers or on a Lore-master or Champion to replenish your power
  • If you are fighting easy single foes ("white" or easier) that are not close together, you might kill faster with a dual-wield setup (if you're a class that can dual-wield), because you'll sneak in more auto-attack damage and because you'll be able to spam your skill executions faster. The main consideration here is whether you have time to regenerate your power fast enough between fights, because you'll burn energy faster this way.
  • If you are fighting multiple mobs in a fast-respawning area, or harder single foes ("yellow" or harder), or signatures/elites of any sort, you might be better-served by a slow 2H weapon even if you can dual-wield. This is primarily because your power will last much longer and you are getting more damage per point of power spent.
  • Burglars will generally do best with a dual-wield setup that focuses on weapons with a high Max value in their main-hand slot and a high Min value in their off-hand slot.
  • Champions and Hunters that are dual-wielding will generally do best with a setup that focuses on weapons with a high Average Damage value in their main-hand slot, with the off-hand slot weapon choice being made according to the following two factors:

    • For fights that you expect to be short, putting the fastest weapon possible in your off-hand slot will make your effective Speed as fast as possible.
    • For fights that you expect to be long, putting a slower weapon with a high Min damage value in your off-hand slot will decrease your power burn rate and yield slightly higher auto-attack damage and "off-hand" damage "swings" from some skills.


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Why called niche games?

There was a time when a game was a game. What happened? When Everquest first achieved it’s success and launched the gaming industry into the “next generation” people were skeptical. I remember reading that many people thought it would be a fluke that any game could ever reach 250-500k subscribers let alone do it again. As time went on we know that several MMORPG’s such as City of Heroes obtained the 100-250k mark and a few like Star Wars Galaxies reached an astonishing 350k in their prime. Then came World of Warcraft where we saw record breaking all time high subscription numbers. If you count the Asian market there are millions upon millions playing WoW and Lineage2.

So what makes a game a niche? Do we classify games as niche because they are not WoW clones? Or do we do so because they are EQ clones? Are we saying the game is too hard or too easy? Subscription numbers have also been used as an excuse to classify games as niche or to justify their failure and even sometimes their success. Why can’t a game just be a game anymore? There was a time when many game studios would look at 250,000 subscribers and dream of such success. Now you have some that still do, but the majority are saying “how can we get the WoW numbers?”. That’s not what MMORPG’s are about folks.

In my opinion, as someone who has made it an obsession to learn all I can about this genre, there will not be another game that reaches “WoW” numbers for a very long time. It could be that no game ever again reaches those numbers simply because it was indeed a true fluke. My advice to any developers out there working with an idea or starting up for the first time is simple. Developers, please keep giving us the games you love to make because as long as you do there will be plenty of us out there to play them. Do not get discouraged.

LOTRO Adventuer Log July

Well it’s been a while since I updated you all on my LOTRO progress. For a while there I had slipped in and out of active characters and was evening considering a permanent break from the game. Then I decided to give the game one final try and I went hardcore head first into the Monster Play aspect of the game for a solid 2-3 weeks. I gained nearly rank 4 and found myself actually good at something in LOTRO for once. I earned a name for myself and I found that the strategies in Monster Play were similar to those used in Dark Age of Camelot. But then the harsh reality of being against unbalanced players and having to deal with the randomly created monsters that would pop in and trash talk (obviously made by Free People characters) just got too much to handle.

Luckily for me while Monster Playing I made two great friends. Goretruum and Arke were the only two I really became good friends with in Monster Play, so naturally we always grouped with each other for quests and such. Over time they began to share the same dissatisfaction with Monster Play and we all decided it was time to roll up characters and take them to 50 so that we could experience pvp from the other side. I made the announcement in this blog entry here that I had made a Captain and named him Graev (hehe I stole your name Graev!). Since then I haven’t really been updating you all on much of anything in LOTRO and to be honest I can’t think of why.

Graev the captain, Bartlebe(Goretruum) the Minstrel, and Beoarke(Arke) the Hunter are now on the home stretch. My character Graev has obtained level 45 as of last night and the others are right there with me at around 44-45. We have worked together over the past 25 days to quest, grind, dungeon crawl, and work together to reach our goal of PVMP in the Ettenmoors as Freeps. I am really excited that this will be my first LOTRO character to 50 and doubly excited about getting back into the pvp scene full time. The trip to 45 so far has been fairly easy but at time difficult. I’ll give a full accounting of each area we quested in and share my thoughts about the trip from 1-50 with you all when the time comes.

North Downs Quest Map

If you’ve played LOTRO and reached that wonderful stage in the game where it’s time to head to the North Downs I pity you. Only joking of course… sorta.

The North Downs are incredibly large and spread out. The region contains quite possibly every creature/mob type in the game. I know, some of you might not think much of that given the fact that by now you’ve likely seen 80% of them anyway. Boars, Wargs, Spiders, oh yes they’re all here. Orcs, Goblins, Drakes, Hillmen, Trolls, Wights, the list goes on and on! If you’re like me you get lost and easily frustrated when you can’t find where to go next for quests. Since I’ve completed this zone I feel it’s now my duty to pass on what I have learned to the rest of you and perhaps ease the burden of this … oh so fun… place.

So here you have it! My North Downs Quest Location Map! You will find every quest location hub encased in a red square with a little snippet of text explaining briefly what the location has to offer or the importance of that specific spot. I can tell you right now that I think I included everything but I am not perfect. If I missed something please by all means leave me a comment or contact me and let me know! I hope this helps some of you out there.

Lotro Leveling Guide Lv1 - 50

As always with great ideas and guides - another perfectly done job by Elowyn. We can't say anything else but THANK YOU. We think this will be extremely helpful for all of us.

Where Do I Go? Leveling from 1 - 50

We've all wondered where do we go next. So here's a helpful guide on where to go along with the locations of each of these areas.

Level 1 - 13 Starting Region:
  • Elves: Cellondim/Duillond/Gondoman
  • Dwarves: Thorin's Gate/Nogland/Gondoman
  • Hobbits: Michel Delving/Hobbiton/Overhill/Brokenborings
  • Humans: Archet/Combe/Staddle

Level 13 - 15:

My recommendation is to travel to one of the 10 - 13 level cities and complete quests there. They will be Blue and Green, easy to complete, and will get you levels rather quick.

Elves/Dwarves: Swift travel to Bree and complete quests in Staddle/Combe

Humans/Hobbits
: Swift travel to Cellondim and complete quests in Duillond/Gondoman

Level 15 - 17:

At this point I would head to Breeland. Find quests within Bree and at Adso's Camp (29S, 56.8W), Buckland (33.3S, 62.4W), and Falco's Folly (26S, 53.9W). You should also be able to work through Book 1 very easily.

Click here for a Book One Walkthrough.

Adso's Camp will have you running around the Southern Bree-fields. Buckland will send you into the Old Forest. This can be tough, but there are some great maps and resources available here and here. Falco's Folly will begin sending you into the North Bree-fields for a few quests.

Level 17 - 20:

Now you have two options to choose from. You can solo quests from the Forsaken Inn located in the Lonelands. Or you can begin the series of quests in the Barrow-downs located in Breeland. The first few quests in the Barrow-downs are solo's, but they quickly turn into quests that you will need to complete with fellowships. All of these quests will eventually end with a series of instanced quests in the games first major instance, The Greater Barrows. This instance is designed for level 21 - 25 in my opinion.

You should also be able to complete Book 1 during these levels.

Level 21 - 25:

Now to begin Book 2. Click here for a Book 2 Walkthrough. You should also begin trying to get into a Greater Barrows run. There are 5 quests here to complete. Each of these will net you some good gear as well as great experience.

You can also make your way to Ost Guruth in the Lonelands to continue through your Lonelands quests. Ost Guruth is located at 31.3S, 29.6W. If you work through some of the Fellowship quests during these levels you should easily hit 25 without having to travel to Trestlebridge. But if you are running a bit low you can begin a few quests at Trestlebridge in the Northdowns (head north out of Bree following the road).

Level 25 - 30:

At this point the Northdowns will be your primary home for awhile. You can complete quests in Trestlebridge, Amon Raith (12.6S, 52.8W), Meluinin (13.7S, 44.9W), Othrikar (6.9S, 44.9W) and Esteldin (9.7S, 42.1W). The Northdowns is full of quests and you shouldn't have a tough time completing most of them.

You should also complete Book 2 during your last few levels back in the Lonelands. When you complete this book a series of quests in the region of Agamaur will open up (29.7S, 27.3W). These quests lead to the instance of Garth Argawen, the second major instance for the game. There are a total of 9 quests to complete inside of this instance. I would begin these quests around level 32. It's tough inside of there, but there is great loot and experience to be made their.

You can begin Book 3 in the Northdowns during this time as well.

Click here for a Book 3 Walkthrough.

Level 31 - 35:

Now you have the chance to travel to Esteldim located North of the Shire and West of Northdowns. You can begin quests in Oatbarton (23.4S, 67.4W). These quests will lead you up to Tinnundur (12.2S, 67.4W). You will also still be able to work through quests in Esteldim (which sends you primarily to Dol Dinen in Fellowship quests). You can also begin running Garth Argwen back in the Lonelands if you like.

During this time I would finish Book 3 as well. Don't forget to begin saving you money as well because at 35 you will be able to get your very own mount.

At 34 you can also begin to make your way into the Trollshaws. Head to Ost Guruth in Lonelands and follow the road East across The Last Bridge. You can stop by a camp at 34S, 20.2W for a few easy quests or make your way to Thorenhad at 31.7S, 15W for a few quests. Eventually continue along the road and make your way to Rivendell (the most beautiful city in the game)! This trek to Rivendell can be tough, but it is possible. You can grind a bit on the easier mobs near the Last Bridge if you are just looking for experience.

Level 35 - 40:

This was actually one of the toughest grinds for me, but with the release of Evendim it has become amazingly easier! You can finish up your quests at Tinnundur in Evendim and make your way north to Ost Forod for a few more quests. Complete your quests in Esteldim (some lead you into the Ram Duath in south Angmar. The Trollshaws will have some quests in Thorenhad and Rivendell for you as well. You can also begin on Book 4.

At around 38 you can also begin to get a group for the next major instance, Fornost, located north of Amon Raith in Northdowns. This is a tough instance, but yet again the loot and experience make it worthwhile. I believe that there are 7 quests inside this instance.

If you need to grind some experience you can always spend some time just outside of Rivendell grinding on the easier mobs for decent, albeit not great, experience.

Level 40 - 50:

At this point you've only got two real options. Angmar and the Misty Mountains. Angmar has quests in Lehma-Koti (3S, 39.1W) and Auguhair (3N, 39.5W). Misty Mountain quests are mostly found in Rivendell or Gloin's Camp (24.9S, 3.8W). You can also travel to the Ettenmores to take part in PvMP as part of the Free Peoples. There are a number of instances that are available as well. You can also work through Book 4 - 9 during this time as well!

There are always extra places and other options that become available to you as you make your way through Eriador. Good luck on your adventures as you rise to the top to reclaim Middle Earth for the Free Peoples.

Lotro Quest Guide Book2

Book 2: Epic Quests

Before we get into this set of quests, I must point out that they are much easier and not nearly as epic as Book 1. You can easily fly through all of these in about 2-3 hours. The last instance is the only time consuming part, taking about 1.5 hours.

[26] Foreword: Aiding The Order

Gandalf awaits you inside the Prancing Pony. He suggests that you seek out Radagast the Brown in Ost Guruth. Ost Guruth is a city located deep in the heart of the Lonelands. First you must travel to the Ost Guruth. Follow the South Road leaving Bree heading East until you reach the Forsaken Inn. From the Forsaken Inn continue East until you reach Ost Guruth. Radagast the Brown is at North end of this town inside a building on the second floor.

Reward: None

[26] Chapter 1: The Red Swamp

Radagast asks you to bring him the moss of the Bog Prowler nests in the swamps to the east. Leave Ost Guruth and head East into the Haragmar. In the swamps you will find moss that you must collect. Bring back the moss to Haragmar.


Reward: None

[27] Chapter 2: The Bloated Dead

After bringing the moss to Radagast the Brown he smell's something foul. That would be those wights all around the swamp lands. So Radagast sends you back down the swamps to kill off the wights. After you've defeated what you need, return to Radagast.

Reward: None

[28] Chapter 3: Breeders of the Dead

There are just to many wights down there and Radagast wants to know who they serve. He sends you back to the swamps, but this time he wants you to head up towards their encampment. Head into the swamps and then go to the North-East corner. You will begin to find some Elite wights. These wights will drop Sigils for you. Collect some sigils and return them to Radagast. This quest will require a fellowship for. I completed it with 4 level 30 players.

Reward: Red Stone and one of the following: Boots of the Ruin-hold (Medium Boots) and a Greataxe of the Brown Wizard

[28] Chapter 4: The Stone-speaker

Radagast asks you to speak with Aric the scholar. He is located at a small encampment in the Southern Harloeg.


Reward: None

[28] Chapter 5: A Dead Man's Challenge

Aric the Stone-speaker thinks that you may be able to learn something from a Shade called Emelin. Emelin is located right there in the camp that you are currently in. Speak with him and you will face a few shades. Defeat them and speak with Emelin again. You will need a fellowship for this. I completed it with 4 level 30 players.

Reward: None

[28] Chapter 6: In the Gaunt-lord's Grasp

Emelin will help you, but you must help him first. You must travel West from your current location into the wight infested lands. You must reach the back of the encampment and locate Brudhraw the wight-lord. Defeat this Elite mob and you will be ready to return to Emelin. He is not overly tough, but you will need some help. I completed this with 4 level 30 players.

Reward: Shimmering Ring or Brudhraw's Fall (shield)

[29] Chapter 7: History of the Red Maid

Emelin is willing to help your fellowship when it is time. He sends you back to Radagast.

Reward: None

[29] Chapter 8: The Red-pass

Radagast wants you to hunt down Elsa and Eriac inside of Agamaur. When you have a full fellowship speak with Radagast to travel to the instace. This instance was not overly tough in my opinion. Your path is pretty straight forward. You protect Radagast as he makes his way through the Agamaur. You will encounter some Elite-Trees along your trek. Eventually you will make it to a mini-boss wight. He is Elite, but not to tough. Radagast will now leave you. You must proceed north along the path. Throughout much of this instance we found our power to be low, but we never went critical. Use your fellowship skills wisely regaining power and morale when needed. Even the final wight boss was not to tough here. We had 6 level 30 players and made it through very easily.

Reward: Select One: The Scavenger's Lot (Light shoulders), Scale Boots of the Eglain (heavy boots), Ring of the Eglain, Bracelet of the Eglain, Celeglang (1-handed sword).

[29] Chapter 9: Agamaur Secured

Radagast asks you to visit Hana in Ost Guruth and give her Elsa's pack. She is the Grocer located near Radagast's old office. She will then tell you to speak with Frideric. He is in the middle of town. Speak with him to receive your final reward.

Lotro Quest Guide Book1

Book 1: Epic Quests
[10] Foreword: An Unwanted Guest

Upon reaching Barliman inside of the Prancing Pony (North-East corner of Bree), he informs you that he is unhappy with his recent guest. This guest is Strider. Strider is located inside of the Prancing Pony down a series of hallways off of the main room. Speak with Strider to complete this quest.

Reward: 42c

[12] Chapter 1: Unravelling The Thread

Strider asks you to gather allies, and then return to him. You will be transported to an instanced version of Ost Baranor where he will lead you against Amdir and the Blackwolds. Ost Baranor is where you complete the Fixing Falco's Folly series of quests.

When you enter the instance Strider will break off from you and you will follow Torthann. You will fight many Blackwolds as Torthann leads you to your final encounter. When you reach the circle style alter, before the gate, you will fight your first semi-difficult mob. Then Torthann will stop and allow you to rest. He will open the gate and you will continue up the stairs to fight 2 mobs. Your first mob will be a signature mob, and then Amdir will come to life and fight you as well. Be sure to have enough power for both fights.

Upon completion of this instance you will need to return to Strider in the Prancing Pony.

I completed this quest around level 17 with 1 other person. You may want 3-4 level 15's to easily defeat Amdir. Upon completion return to

Reward: 1s 5c and one of the following: Hengaim (Light gloves), Menedgaim (Medium gloves), Cloak of Cardolan

[12] Chapter 2: To A Constable's Aid



Strider asks you to go to Combe and speak with Constable Underhill. Combe is located to the East of Bree. Head out of Bree through the Northeast gate and then head North along the road to Combe. Constable Underhill is located in the middle of town standing on the doorsteps of the Town Hall area. Upon speaking with the Constable you will have completed Chapter 2.

Reward: Nothing

[12] Chapter 3: Blackwolds Broken

Speak with Constable Underhill again to be transported to an instanced version of the Blackwolds' old hideout. You will fight some Neekerbreaker mobs while protecting the Constable as he travels into the hideout. Eventually you will reach the end of the maze and see dwarfs beating a Blackwold member. The dwarfs will attack you while one flees. The Constable will leave you to fight while he tracks the lead Dwarf. These are not difficult mobs. Speak with the Blackwold member, and then continue down the path to the Constable. You have completed Chapter 3 and will be transported out when you speak with him again.

Speak with the Constable when back in Combe to receive your reward. This can be completed by 1-2 level 17's (I had 2 total), or 3 - 4 level 15's without a problem.

Reward: 1s 5c and one of the following: Constable's Jacket (Medium Armor) and Constable's Hammer (One-handed hammer)

[12] Chapter 4: Dark Designs

After the dwarf's attack you are instructed to speak with the Constable again. Speak with him and he will send you back to Bree to talk with Strider. Nothing tough, just go back.

Reward: Nothing

[12] Chapter 5: The Other Riders

Strider is proud of you and wants you to find out any information you can about the four missing Nazgul. He sends you to Lenglinn's campsite. You will want to travel west out of Bree from the main gate. Follow the road past Adso's Camp. Continue along the main road heading towards Buckland. But before you get there take a look at your map. Do you see where it says "to shire" on the western edge of the map? Good, now locate the mountains to the east and a little south of there. Right there you will see that the road you are traveling on dips south. When you reach the spot where the map dips south, head north into the mountains. Through some trees and up the hill you will find a small camp with Lenglinn the Ranger waiting for you.


There is a red dot just north of the road near those mountains we located. It is Lenglinn's location. Speak with Lenglinn to complete this chapter.




Reward: Nothing

[13] Chapter 6: In The Black Riders' Wake

Lenglinn informs you that the Crebain, LOTRO's birds, are the Enemy's spies. He asks you to go out and slay a number of them. Head South-West from the camp and there is a slew of birds sitting there waiting for you (Craban). Slay them and return to Lenglinn. This is kind of a joke it's so easy.

Reward: 50c

[13] Chapter 7: Horn-call of Buckland


The horn has sounded in Buckland and something foul is afoot. You are to investigate the Baggins' home inside of Buckland in an area called Crickhollow. Leave the camp and head Southwest to the Buckland Gate. Enter the gate and then head southeast. Pass through the first set of houses until you get into a bit of a clearing. You will see a Hobbit home surrounded by hedges all the way around. This is the Baggins home. Enter and speak with Fredegar Bolger who is waiting in the gates. When you speak with him those pesky Crebain birds attack again. Kill as many as you can, two will fly off though into the Old Forest. Fredegar Bolger will send you back to Lengelin with the news.

Lenglinn will ask you to return to Strider in Bree to give him the news. Make the trek back to Bree.

Reward: Daerechor (Wrist)

[15] Chapter 8: Master of the Wood

Strider now wants you to head into the Old Forest following the birds. He asks you to locate the legendary Tom Bombadil and speak with him at his home in the Forest. The Old Forest is ridiculous if you have never been there before. It is tough and confusing all at the same time. Here is the easiest way to complete this quest.

Head out of Bree to Buckland. On the eastern edge of Buckland is an entrance into the Old Forest. Enter the Old Forest from there (not the Adso's Camp entrance). Follow the road you are on when you enter the forest. It will curve and eventually reach a clearing with a hill. Follow the path (it becomes a little tougher to see), basically it swings around the hill to the south. You will then pick it back up pretty easily. Follow that path as it winds southeast. It will lead you directly to Tom's house. Speak with Tom to complete the chapter.


Reward: Nothing

[15] Chapter 9: Lilies For The River Daughter

At first Tom is not too interested in helping you locate the evil birds. Eventually he gives in but wants you to do something for him first. Tom asks you to gather some lilies from the river down by Old Man Willow. Head south from Tom's location into the river. Follow the river West and you will run right into a giant tree called "Old Man Willow". You need to gather the lilies from around the tree. When I was there the tree sucked all of my power, but not my morale. After you have what you need return to Tom by heading east in the river and then up the hill near his house.

Reward: 1s 80c

[16] Chapter 10: Into The Barrow-Downs

You will need a decent fellowship to complete this quest. I beat it with about 6 of us level 17 - 20. It's great if you can get a fellowship to complete both Chapter 10 and 11 together.

Tom now tells you that the birds flew through the forest and into the Barrow-Downs. You've got two options to enter the Barrow Downs. Option one is to leave the Old Forest the way you came (by following the path back into Buckland). You would then travel along the Old East Road (main road heading back to Bree). When you go past Adso's camp there is path on the south side of the road that you can follow up into the mountains. When you cross into the mountains you will enter the North Barrow-downs. When you are in the North-Barrow Downs head to the first O in the name "Barrow-Downs". Then head directly west until you reach the Crebain scouts and Andraste.


Option two is easier, but if you don't already have a fellowship it's somewhat pointless. When you finish talking with Tom go up near his house. On the North side of the house is a path heading north. Follow that path (it's called the Old Barrows Road). It will hook and weave but eventually lead you into the North Barrow Downs (much faster than option one). Follow the path up the hill and then turn south and follow the rim of the hill south. It will lead you directly to Andraste and the Crebain scouts.



When your fellowship is ready speak with Andraste. He will then attack along with his birds. This is an elite mob and he is not overly friendly. He is level 16 with 1715 morale. Defeat him and return and speak with Tom in the Old Forest (use the option 2 method to get to him quickly.
Reward: 2s 15c and one of the following: Tallang (One-handed sword) or Taronn (Two-handed club)

[18] Chapter 11: Othrongroth

You will need a full fellowship to complete this quest. I had a full fellowship of 6 people level’s 17-20.

Speak with Tom Bombadil at his house. He will transport you to the instance of Osthrongroth (the Greater-Barrows). Basically you will work your way through a portion of this massive instance (we'll save that till later). You are on a search for the Witch-king. Work your way through the instance killing every Dead that you encounter. Eventually you will reach a throne room with the Wight-lord sitting on the throne. He will invite you to approach if you wish to speak. He will then attack you. He is a level 18 elite I believe. You will take him down so far then he will summon some walking dead to attack you. Defeat them because the Wight-lord will just walk away for a bit. When you have taken them out the Wight-lord will attack again. He will do this 2 - 3 times I believe. Eventually he will become invincible and your attacks will be rendered useless. Good luck figuring out what to do now!

If you successfully complete the Wight-lord you will need to speak with Tom Bombadil to complete this chapter and receive your rewards.

Reward: 3s 20c and one of the following: Toranc (light shoulders), Froth-Fotar (medium feet), Golfadanir (heavy legs), Gollos (earring), Defender of Cardolan (two-handed axe)

[18] Chapter 12: The Black Rider's Designs

Return to the Prancing Pony in Bree to talk with Strider. Head into the Prancing Pony and down to Strider's room. You will be told that he has left and you will need to return to Barliman Butterbur in the main lobby. Barliman will let you know that Gandalf should be of some help. Head back towards Strider's room but go up the stairs this time and meet Gandalf. You will now have completed Book 1 of the Epic quests and be given the Foreword for Book 2.