Hello, and welcome to The Lord of the Rings Online™ (LOTRO)! There are just a few more steps to take before you begin to experience the epic journey that is LOTRO.
LOTRO requires a minimum of 7GB of free disk space, but it is recommended that you have more. You'll need additional space for the free, downloadable new content which is regularly released. Some of these updates can be quite large, so be sure to have ample room available!
Insert the LOTRO disc or download the client and follow the on-screen instructions. You will also need to visit myaccount.turbine.com where, upon entering your LOTRO product key, you will be prompted to create a Turbine account. If you already have a Turbine account through one of our other games you can login to that account and activate your LOTRO product key.
At your My Account page, you can view your subscriptions, update your account profile, and even enter the Turbine Rewards program! There is also a link to http://www.turbine.com/support, where many of your support-related questions can be answered by the Customer Support team. For any non-support related questions, be sure to visit the LOTRO forums, where the community will be able to aid you, or the Lorebook; a LOTRO wiki.
Now that you are set up with your Turbine account and have entered your product key, it's time to patch your game client, which will be done the first time you open LOTRO. Patching is the process that your game undergoes when it applies the content updates that have been released. This can take a while to complete depending on the speed of your internet connection.
Upon patch completion, you are ready to get into the game! Choose your server, race, class, and enter the world of Middle-earth. Initially, you can only create a Free Peoples character; those choices are Man, Hobbit, Elf, or Dwarf. However, once your character reaches level 10, monster play will become available.
Monster play is LOTRO’s version of PvP. It allows players to take on the role of evil creatures such as Orcs and Wargs, and compete against players that are using their Free People character. PvMP, as it is known, allows PvP while maintaining an atmosphere which stays true to The Lord of the Rings.
With that, begin the tutorial, and embark upon your journey. See you in game!