Stories of development through this game

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Originally Posted by Arbor

Rohan housing was another one. One of the world devs was tinkering with it in his spare time but it never came to fruition (apparently, it's very difficult to make housing neighborhoods)

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Well, I am going to tell one my wildest dreams... 3 neighborhoods (1 in lothlorien, 1 in rohan and 1 in gondor), but they would be blank: no houses, no trees, nothing... the only things that wouldn't be blank would be the spaces around the neighborhoods. So everything inside the space of the neighborhood would be designed by players. Those housing neighborhoods would be specially made for kinships. And you could pick types of bushes, trees, houses and place wherever you want in the neighborhood. You could place NPCs, create crafting halls, guild halls, kin houses, skirmish camps, vaults, auction houses, as well as places for bands, spars, task boards made by requests of kinship members, kinship mail. All of these would be unlocked as the kinship gained ranks. And that is my wild dream, because I know it'll never happen. But the idea is so good that I decided to share. So, completely out of curiosity, how difficult would it be to make an area of which players would design their whole landscape (with already existing 3D objects, of course)?

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Originally Posted by MourneBlade

This has been answered before but I can't find the thread.....

Edit: Found it.
https://www.lotro.com/forums/showthr...ds+explanation

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Well, it's been discussed, but it'd be cool if a blue name confirmed that it was the intent. Though I wonder if they can't confirm it here for the same reason they can't confirm it in game.

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

I love so much of the Silmarillion, but unless something also appears in LotR, we just can't use it. Simple as that.

Fortunately, there's plenty of awesome in LotR. :)

MoL

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Is there really no chance to get at least a licence for a part of it? I mean how awesome would the battle of Gondolin be, either as instance cluster or - even though i dont enjoy them as much - big battles.

I really hope, that by time (after mordor most likely) theres an attempt to get an agreement to get such epic thing happen :-)

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Originally Posted by ISS_21

Is there really no chance to get at least a licence for a part of it? I mean how awesome would the battle of Gondolin be, either as instance cluster or - even though i dont enjoy them as much - big battles.

I really hope, that by time (after mordor most likely) theres an attempt to get an agreement to get such epic thing happen :-)

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Perhaps after Christopher Tolkien goes into the Uttermost West -- or wherever it is he'll go -- his successor may have a different feeling about licensing the rest of the legendarium. But while he's in control of it, there's a snowball's chance in Orodruin.

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Originally Posted by HunterGreen

Well, it's been discussed, but it'd be cool if a blue name confirmed that it was the intent. Though I wonder if they can't confirm it here for the same reason they can't confirm it in game.

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Your right, it was a great discussion. I thought a Blue name had commented on it, I should have looked over the whole thread again.

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

I have a lot. What would you like to know? :D

MoL

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I have been playing my beorning through Moria, Lothlorien and now in Mirkwood. While some quests say Mazog is son of Azog, others say he is son of Bolg. Who is his true father? Is it revealed at the end of the epic book? Or maybe we'll never know? I am glad this isn't a relevant topic though, but it's quite confusing.

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Originally Posted by DiogoVP

I have been playing my beorning through Moria, Lothlorien and now in Mirkwood. While some quests say he is son of Azog, others say he is son of Bolg. Who is his true father? Is it revealed at the end of the epic book? Or maybe we'll never know? I am glad this isn't a relevant topic though, but it's quite confusing.

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I doubt that Azog or Blog is the father of the Beorings

Azog according to LOTR Wikia
Blog is also an Orc.

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Originally Posted by Gandolf_TheOld

I doubt that Azog or Blog is the father of the Beorings

Azog according to LOTR Wikia
Blog is also an Orc.

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I think he meant to include something Mazog in there ;)

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Originally Posted by robbie1435

I think he meant to include something Mazog in there ;)

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ROFL. Exactly! Edited my post now lol

Now that the weekend is over, are the devs gonna rejoin the discussion? :P

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Originally Posted by DiogoVP

But the idea is so good that I decided to share. So, completely out of curiosity, how difficult would it be to make an area of which players would design their whole landscape (with already existing 3D objects, of course)?

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This would essentially involve porting our own development tools to the in-game client, and then opening it up for players, and also coming up with a storage solution for saving the created landscape of every neighborhood (and all of its contents) a player might make. Very difficult, and not something I expect we'll do for LOTRO.

MoL

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Originally Posted by DiogoVP

While some quests say Mazog is son of Azog, others say he is son of Bolg. Who is his true father?

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Mazog is the son of Bolg -- my guess is that if there are quests that refer to him as the 'son of Azog,' it's intended in the symbolic sense. Mazog is properly the grandson of Azog.

MoL

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

This would essentially involve porting our own development tools to the in-game client, and then opening it up for players, and also coming up with a storage solution for saving the created landscape of every neighborhood (and all of its contents) a player might make. Very difficult, and not something I expect we'll do for LOTRO.

MoL

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How about something along what Cryptic have put into Star Trek Online and Neverwinter - not quite a fully-functioning toolset but good enough for creating our own storylines and quest arcs !!!

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Originally Posted by BangoTwinkletoes

How about something along what Cryptic have put into Star Trek Online and Neverwinter - not quite a fully-functioning toolset but good enough for creating our own storylines and quest arcs !!!

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I was just going to type the same thing, and not meaning disrespect especially since madeofLions I have praised your work over and over but on STO, the foundry user created missions are sometimes leaps and bounds above what the developers over there come up with. I know they are not as constrained by the Lore as Lotro is but any chance of seeing a contest or something done that could let users come up with a quest chain within the world (hint: akin to the new episodic content we are getting) and letting players go through a few of them?

On the other hand, one of the things I fell in lvoe with in Lotro (outside of the story) was the cosmetic system and Mounts (just took advantage of the sale and got the Rivendell and Thorins account wide steeds) and would love to see another type of contest to design a cloak or steed or something along those lines. (maybe even replace some of those old cloaks from level 1-60 that have the same basic pattern)

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

Mazog is the son of Bolg -- my guess is that if there are quests that refer to him as the 'son of Azog,' it's intended in the symbolic sense. Mazog is properly the grandson of Azog.

MoL

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Firstly, this thread is awesome, big up to the T's employees who've engaged and shared.....

I would like to know who designed Ettenmoor and how it changed from original intention through first design model to what was shipped originally. Also, the reason for slight place movements like Arador' end etc. (I get the feeling that last one was to do with the session play we had a while back)

I know I've hailed the world builders and MoL for his epic story arcs but I have to say that it's great to hear from other people who are equally as engaged in making this game amazing.
Please, please can we hear more stories from all of you...

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Originally Posted by BangoTwinkletoes

How about something along what Cryptic have put into Star Trek Online and Neverwinter - not quite a fully-functioning toolset but good enough for creating our own storylines and quest arcs !!!

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I love the idea of player-created content, and have played around with lots of in-game toolsets over the years, but I think there are several reasons that it wouldn't be a great fit inside LOTRO. One of the primary reasons is that, since this is Middle-earth, we need to get approval for the things we put in-game: storylines, art, character behaviors, etc. The pipeline for that doesn't really encompass player-created content very well. As a game with a license, we need to be careful with what we put in the game. Don't let me catch one of you trying to add Turin Turambar to Bree...

Another reason it's not a great fit for LOTRO is because our systems weren't made for creating everything you would need while in-game. Making NPCs, quests, items, monsters, rewards, everything you need to get a functional quest -- that's all made in external tools. We'd be building everything (to let you build anything) from scratch. It would be an incredible amount of work.

So, I love it! But probably not for LOTRO.

MoL

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

Mazog is the son of Bolg -- my guess is that if there are quests that refer to him as the 'son of Azog,' it's intended in the symbolic sense. Mazog is properly the grandson of Azog.

MoL

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Oh, I've just a found one of the quests that refers Mazog as brother of Bolg, here: https://lotro-wiki.com/index.php/Que...Al_Left_Behind
To quote, it says "'If Mazog, son of Azog and brother of Bolg, has decided to abandon rule of Moria, it can only be because he feels Moria will no longer be fit to rule". But this is far from relevant, I guess. hehe
Thanks for the reply and answer! I'll assume he's son of Bolg! :D

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

This would essentially involve porting our own development tools to the in-game client, and then opening it up for players, and also coming up with a storage solution for saving the created landscape of every neighborhood (and all of its contents) a player might make. Very difficult, and not something I expect we'll do for LOTRO.

MoL

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I thought it'd be very difficult indeed.

Now I might be asking something that it isn't your place to answer, but do you guys have any plans for revamping the scenery of the older areas somewhere in the next 3 years? (After Rohan, the sceneries after Rohan are much superior imo, because of all those details, better quality of the textures, beautiful bushes and flowers all over). With us coming back to these older areas with episodic quests and Scouring of the Shire in like 3 years, a landscape revamp would be wonderful! :D

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

Don't let me catch one of you trying to add Turin Turambar to Bree...
MoL

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That would be awesome! We could also take Húrin and bind him to some mountain in Angmar! And Elros visits Pelagir! Valar spawn randomly all over!!!!

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Originally Posted by robbie1435

Now for my biggest question:

After Mordor, are there any plans to have players rebuild Archet? I hate seeing it burned down :(

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Psssst... This is one I've always wanted to know about. :P

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Originally Posted by robbie1435

I think he meant to include something Mazog in there ;)

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I believe you are correct, as authenticated by a MOL post after yours.

A wonder what a little missing fact can change when it is included...

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

I love the idea of player-created content, and have played around with lots of in-game toolsets over the years, but I think there are several reasons that it wouldn't be a great fit inside LOTRO. One of the primary reasons is that, since this is Middle-earth, we need to get approval for the things we put in-game: storylines, art, character behaviors, etc. The pipeline for that doesn't really encompass player-created content very well. As a game with a license, we need to be careful with what we put in the game. Don't let me catch one of you trying to add Turin Turambar to Bree...

Another reason it's not a great fit for LOTRO is because our systems weren't made for creating everything you would need while in-game. Making NPCs, quests, items, monsters, rewards, everything you need to get a functional quest -- that's all made in external tools. We'd be building everything (to let you build anything) from scratch. It would be an incredible amount of work.

So, I love it! But probably not for LOTRO.

MoL

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I understand the problems behind player created content but would you consider holding a competition to allow a player to create a small story line?
I know there are limitations and strict rules under license but with a little guidance it could work.

It wouldn't have to be anything which spoils upcoming secrets. maybe just a side quest arc. Most players know what is coming up ahead of us in a broad sense.

You could ask for people who enter to supply an initial idea of maybe no more than a couple of paragraphs and you could then take it up from there.

Just an idea

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Don't let me catch one of you trying to add Turin Turambar to Bree...

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Hey "Labadal"ofDorlomin has limped to Bree :p

Remember "a man that flies from his fear may find that he has only taken a short cut to meet it."

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Originally Posted by TearMaker

Hey "Labadal"ofDorlomin has limped to Bree :p

Remember "a man that flies from his fear may find that he has only taken a short cut to meet it."

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Indeed I have lol..... not sure that story line would pass MoL muster though hehe

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

I love the idea of player-created content, and have played around with lots of in-game toolsets over the years, but I think there are several reasons that it wouldn't be a great fit inside LOTRO. One of the primary reasons is that, since this is Middle-earth, we need to get approval for the things we put in-game: storylines, art, character behaviors, etc. The pipeline for that doesn't really encompass player-created content very well. As a game with a license, we need to be careful with what we put in the game. Don't let me catch one of you trying to add Turin Turambar to Bree...

Another reason it's not a great fit for LOTRO is because our systems weren't made for creating everything you would need while in-game. Making NPCs, quests, items, monsters, rewards, everything you need to get a functional quest -- that's all made in external tools. We'd be building everything (to let you build anything) from scratch. It would be an incredible amount of work.

So, I love it! But probably not for LOTRO.

MoL

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I understand and appreciate the lore & story continuity constraints that you and your colleagues have to work under, though personally I'd love nothing more than to create a little instanced side quest where one can beat Horn around the head with a bat shouting "You're a pathetic wimp!!" before showing his backside my boot! :D

Anyhow, has anyone here used the old Neverwinters Nights toolset for creating content? That was fun and demanding but no doubt nothing compared to Turbine's own systems :)

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Originally Posted by BangoTwinkletoes

Anyhow, has anyone here used the old Neverwinters Nights toolset for creating content? That was fun and demanding but no doubt nothing compared to Turbine's own systems :)

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LOL yeah. I vaguely remember creating some questline in NWN, which I repeated while recording some time mesurements for a school statistics assignment. My teacher then informed me about how statistically irrelevant the measurements were, due to the non-randomness of the set computer program actions, and biased towards follow on runs due to successive quickening of actions. Sorry - try again :).

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Originally Posted by BangoTwinkletoes

I understand and appreciate the lore & story continuity constraints that you and your colleagues have to work under, though personally I'd love nothing more than to create a little instanced side quest where one can beat Horn around the head with a bat shouting "You're a pathetic wimp!!" before showing his backside my boot! :D

Anyhow, has anyone here used the old Neverwinters Nights toolset for creating content? That was fun and demanding but no doubt nothing compared to Turbine's own systems :)

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I've never played NWN and don't plan on ever playing it; but I have played a game that did add a system that allowed for player created content. Yes, SWG added the Chronicle system before it shut down. That system allowed players to create quests and quest arcs for other players to play. There were strict limits to it, given that Lucas Arts had to allow it and got huffy about things that didn't fit. It was an alternative advancement system. You started as a rank freshman after doing a quest for C3P0. You 'leveled' up by making and playing these 'Chronicles'. Players could make packages and trade these. The higher your rank, the more intricate the story or mission could be. Guess what most of these were like. :P

If LoTRO could do this, I'd expect something akin to SWG's Chronicle system, not EvE.

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Originally Posted by cdq1958

I've never played NWN and don't plan on ever playing it; but I have played a game that did add a system that allowed for player created content. Yes, SWG added the Chronicle system before it shut down. That system allowed players to create quests and quest arcs for other players to play. There were strict limits to it, given that Lucas Arts had to allow it and got huffy about things that didn't fit. It was an alternative advancement system. You started as a rank freshman after doing a quest for C3P0. You 'leveled' up by making and playing these 'Chronicles'. Players could make packages and trade these. The higher your rank, the more intricate the story or mission could be. Guess what most of these were like. :P

If LoTRO could do this, I'd expect something akin to SWG's Chronicle system, not EvE.

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Don't confuse Neverwinter Nights and Neverwinter Online. The former which Bioware produced back in 2002 was an excellent AD&D Forgotten Realms game that had an excellent toolset for creating new and editing existing modules. I played some fantastic conversions of the old pen & paper AD&D modules that used to be available for download. Not that dissimilar to the toolkit / editor one gets with the Elder Scrolls games.

The Neverwinter Online game though (which is the Cryptic one) has a content creator that is more prescribed in terms of what one can do with it and these are listed in game as instanced content.

As others have mentioned above, it never fails to amaze me as to the quality of content that the community can produce.

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Originally Posted by BangoTwinkletoes

Don't confuse Neverwinter Nights and Neverwinter Online. The former which Bioware produced back in 2002 was an excellent AD&D Forgotten Realms game that had an excellent toolset for creating new and editing existing modules. I played some fantastic conversions of the old pen & paper AD&D modules that used to be available for download. Not that dissimilar to the toolkit / editor one gets with the Elder Scrolls games.

The Neverwinter Online game though (which is the Cryptic one) has a content creator that is more prescribed in terms of what one can do with it and these are listed in game as instanced content.

As others have mentioned above, it never fails to amaze me as to the quality of content that the community can produce.

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Granted, though I've found that D&D style games are not to my liking. Nevertheless, I have found player made content to be all over the map. When it is good, it can be really good. When it isn't, it can be very bad.

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Originally Posted by Jewl_of_the_lake

I hope I am not the only one that still has her knife in my vault:p

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No, you are not. I have one of her knives, along with some other items I just can't part with, in a vault tab I've named Keepsakes.

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Originally Posted by BangoTwinkletoes

...personally I'd love nothing more than to create a little instanced side quest where one can beat Horn around the head with a bat shouting "You're a pathetic wimp!!" before showing his backside my boot!

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Not everyone in Rohan is cut from the same cloth as Eomer or Theoden, and I think there's a place in the story for a thoughtful soul like Horn. Clearly his story doesn't appeal to everyone, but sometimes that's okay.

MoL

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

Not everyone in Rohan is cut from the same cloth as Eomer or Theoden, and I think there's a place in the story for a thoughtful soul like Horn. Clearly his story doesn't appeal to everyone, but sometimes that's okay.

MoL

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I haven't come across Horn yet so I don't know how his personality is, but I prefer there being all sorts of people. Not everyone can be Great Hero material. I know I'm not. I'd hate for people to hate me just because I'm not insanely mighty ;)

Reminds me of the new Hobbit movies. How a certain dwarf seemed to quite dislike Bilbo, not because he was a bad person but because he wasn't a strong warrior. You shouldn't have to save someone's life for them to respect you. People who demand that you do, those are the bad people in my eyes :p

Horn being a "thoughtful soul" sounds promising. Can't wait to "meet" him :)

what about the stone ruins in south mirkwood? Who built them as I have a hard time thinking the Silven folk would construct buildings of that size from stone. In Untold Tails it says Orpher moved from Amon Lanc before when Celeborn moved to Lo theories would it have been his folk?

When developing the game, it's been shown that Turbine has 2 or 3 times looked in PvMP maps. Where would these maps have been? :o

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

Not everyone in Rohan is cut from the same cloth as Eomer or Theoden, and I think there's a place in the story for a thoughtful soul like Horn. Clearly his story doesn't appeal to everyone, but sometimes that's okay.

MoL

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I love Horn, and Nona. It's a great storyline of how great conflicts play out in individual lives, not just on grand maps of territory.

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Originally Posted by kickman77

Cpuld this not still happen but as optional session plays? I would love a small quest chain as a orc taking Osgiliath or something like that...

as far as stuff like chicken runs.... maybe we can get a squirrel or snake as someone suggested

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I for one would love to see/participate in the war of the squirrels. Even better if we get to choose which side...grey or red.

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Wolves? Ha! We fear no wolves! They will not withstand our onslaught. They will be the next to fall!

After we destroy the helpless red squirrels, we shall conquer the wolves, and then the world! No one can stop us!

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~Grey Squirrel

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Originally Posted by Gaming_Gal

I for one would love to see/participate in the war of the squirrels. Even better if we get to choose which side...grey or red.

~Grey Squirrel

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That could be a fun mini game they could add instead of HobnoniMULTIBOXERS that seems like its always on...

Are the devs and qa done with this thread already? It was going so good:(

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Originally Posted by Jewl_of_the_lake

Are the devs and qa done with this thread already? It was going so good:(

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Well, right now it's the weekend :)

Apart from that, I'd have thought that, at the moment, they'll be heavily tied up with the 16.2 beta

I have a question that's been buzzing around for a while (I've run a few alts past her and it came up again today). Why is Dorthaneth veiled?

Makes me wonder if we've maybe met her before and someone would rather we didn't know. Not that I'm asking for spoilers, of course. Just makes me curious as I don't think we've met a veiled Elf before.

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Originally Posted by Altair6

I have a question that's been buzzing around for a while (I've run a few alts past her and it came up again today). Why is Dorthaneth veiled?

Makes me wonder if we've maybe met her before and someone would rather we didn't know. Not that I'm asking for spoilers, of course. Just makes me curious as I don't think we've met a veiled Elf before.

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I don't think it helps with respect to your question, but I think the name Dorthaneth means something like "Stays young" in Sindarin... which superficially would apply to any Elf.

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Originally Posted by Altair6

I have a question that's been buzzing around for a while (I've run a few alts past her and it came up again today). Why is Dorthaneth veiled?

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I'm not going to answer this one, but I will admit that I've been surprised by the general lack of curiosity about Dorthaneth.

MoL

Well, I'm even more curious now. :)

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Originally Posted by Jewl_of_the_lake

Are the devs and qa done with this thread already? It was going so good:(

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We've been busy plus there's some questions I'm not qualified to answer or just can't answer because of policy stuff. I've been keeping up with the thread though

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

I'm not going to answer this one, but I will admit that I've been surprised by the general lack of curiosity about Dorthaneth.

MoL

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I have a theory that she may be Nimrodel, and that she's mourning over Amroth. But its only a theory..

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Originally Posted by Arbor

We've been busy plus there's some questions I'm not qualified to answer or just can't answer because of policy stuff. I've been keeping up with the thread though

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I know I can not wait to see the next part of the epuc...

Question:

Are there ny plans to add the horseshoe back as a reclaim item or to a vendor for rep ect. for those of us who long ago deleted the tiem and now are kicking ourselves in the backside

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Originally Posted by Haue

I have a theory that she may be Nimrodel, and that she's mourning over Amroth. But its only a theory..

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This is a wonderful theory! I've been very curious about Dorthaneth (I googled her the first time I met her to try and figure out who she was, although sadly nothing came up), but in the end in my own head canon she was another river-spirit like the Five Sisters of Lebennin (I though possibly the Blackroot).

However, the idea that she is Nimrodel makes a great deal of sense, and would explain both the veil and the secrecy :D Until there's proof to the contrary, I'm definitely going to think that Dorthaneth and Nimrodel are one and the same!

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Originally Posted by Haue

I have a theory that she may be Nimrodel, and that she's mourning over Amroth. But its only a theory..

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I've thought the same. There are several small hints or references that seem to support that theory, imho. So, until revealed otherwise, I'll also continue to believe that's who she is. :)

-Goldrush

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

I'm not going to answer this one, but I will admit that I've been surprised by the general lack of curiosity about Dorthaneth.

MoL

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I made an assumption when first seeing her, but when I shared it with others, they didn't see any merit to my theory. Later, as other parts of Gondor opened, I thought my theory strengthened by something another NPC said.
I'll not state my theory fully here, but will inquire, would that be a mourning veil?



edit: Nevermind, I see that others had arrived at the same conclusion and posted it, so no need for me to worry about being spoily in this thread :) Mange tak, Haue!

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Originally Posted by Haue

I have a theory that she may be Nimrodel, and that she's mourning over Amroth. But its only a theory..

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Regarding my "something another NPC said" later in Gondor, one of the river-maidens lends support to the theory, with a tale not entirely unlike part of Thingol's.

I'm like, who is this Dorthaneth person, and it turns out I haven't gotten up to her yet on my live character. I look forward to hearing her story.

Yeah, I haven't gotten to Dorthaneth yet, either. Now I'm intrigued!

Looking at the name... does it maybe mean something like "sister that stays?" Or maybe... "young dweller?"

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Originally Posted by Arbor

I'm like, who is this Dorthaneth person, and it turns out I haven't gotten up to her yet on my live character. I look forward to hearing her story.

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Some people were suggesting some decoration items to be added to the game for you earlier on this thread, how about new housing Ambient Music? Do you know if we could get new ambient music for our houses from Rohan(West and East) and Gondor(West and East)? That would be great :)

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Originally Posted by Nuelenion

Yeah, I haven't gotten to Dorthaneth yet, either. Now I'm intrigued!

Looking at the name... does it maybe mean something like "sister that stays?" Or maybe... "young dweller?"

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That's kinda what I thought it might translate to, but I think of it as "she who lingers".

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Originally Posted by kickman77

Are there any plans to add the horseshoe back as a reclaim item or to a vendor for rep etc.?

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Every now and then it comes up, but I don't want to elevate its importance by saying that if you don't choose it you can get it again. Why Erebrandir's horseshoe and not something else? That's my instinct, anyway.

MoL

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

Every now and then it comes up, but I don't want to elevate its importance by saying that if you don't choose it you can get it again. Why Erebrandir's horseshoe and not something else? That's my instinct, anyway.

MoL

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You can hardly elevate the importance of the most important item in the game (even if the devs won't admit it). :D

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

I'm not going to answer this one, but I will admit that I've been surprised by the general lack of curiosity about Dorthaneth.

MoL

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I know way too many reasons why a woman can be veiled In Real Life. So that doesn't strike my curiosity anyhow. 1 very easy reason for both male & female to cover the face is to protect from extreme weather too hot or too cold (but i dont think that is the reason). Other reason is the culture. I am more curious about how she looks without the veil, but then i know way too many reason why asking a veiled person to remove the veil, is considered a insult. Because that, i know better to don't even mention the theme to a veiled person, unless i want that a angry male relative beat me good, for disrespecting the veiled 1.

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

I'm not going to answer this one, but I will admit that I've been surprised by the general lack of curiosity about Dorthaneth.

MoL

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I just figured she was burned by acid or something

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Originally Posted by Moochi

That's kinda what I thought it might translate to, but I think of it as "she who lingers".

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Here's my idea, and it involves quotes from Tolkien Gateway:

"When a storm broke loose and swept the ship out of port, Amroth leaped overboard, hoping to swim back to shore. But he was quickly taken by Belegaer's strong currents and drowned.

Nimrodel, in the meantime, had settled for a while at the river Gilrain, which reminded her of her home. She sat by the starlit stream and fell in a long deep sleep. After she woke, she journeyed further, but found no ship in Edhellond, and Amroth was long gone. Whatever she did after was lost to time."

Perhaps she is the ghost/lingering soul of Nimrodel? After all, she was to meet Amroth at Edhellond...

"Amroth found her, and promised her peace. Together they would travel to Edhellond, the port city in Belfalas, and thence set sail to the Undying Lands. They were accompanied by a small staff of Silvan Elves, including Mithrellas. All went well until they reached the White Mountains. The group became separated, and Amroth reached Edhellond well before the others. He decided to wait for his love aboard their ship."

...The very port city next to the Avorrim Cave.

To further delve into this, she was accompanied by a small group of Silvan elves.

"They were accompanied by a small staff of Silvan Elves,"

Are these the other elves in the Cave of the Avorrim?

Time will tell :)

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Originally Posted by DiogoVP

Some people were suggesting some decoration items to be added to the game for you earlier on this thread, how about new housing Ambient Music? Do you know if we could get new ambient music for our houses from Rohan(West and East) and Gondor(West and East)? That would be great :)

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I should inquire how difficult it would be to turn some of the tracks into deco music. I'll try to do that tomorrow

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Arbor

I should inquire how difficult it would be to turn some of the tracks into deco music. I'll try to do that tomorrow

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That would be wonderful! Thank you so much! :)


If it turns out to be something that can be done, may I suggest these two tracks? :o
They mean a lot to me! :D

* Far Ahead the Road Has Gone:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgGWiRZK79s
(I think this was the old loading screen soundtrack :D)

* War Pipes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZX6XNhjwyQ

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Originally Posted by Altair6

I have a question that's been buzzing around for a while (I've run a few alts past her and it came up again today). Why is Dorthaneth veiled?

Makes me wonder if we've maybe met her before and someone would rather we didn't know. Not that I'm asking for spoilers, of course. Just makes me curious as I don't think we've met a veiled Elf before.

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I was intensely curious about the veil when I first encountered her. I recall my wife and I stopping in the middle of our questing session and having a bit of a discussion about it and what it might mean.

After the quest line was completed I speculated she is probably a relative, an ancestor if you will, perhaps a great, great, (great+) grandmother of Lothiriel since I recall the quest text mentioning a rumor of Elvish blood in the line of Imrahil. This could be why she hides her face since she may look almost like Lothiriel's twin sister, Elves being all ageless and stuff.

It had been my hope that another quest in the zone or the next would give us the answer either way, but like other narratives in the game of late, we're left hanging. I still hold out the slimmest hope that if/when we meet Imrahil at/near Minas Tirith (I haven't encountered him yet anyway), the answer will be revealed, but I'm not holding my breath. After experiencing and becoming interested in other arcs that have been abandoned, I've had to stop allowing myself to get too invested in any of the stories. This makes me sad.

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

I'm not going to answer this one, but I will admit that I've been surprised by the general lack of curiosity about Dorthaneth.

MoL

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Eek, I never noticed she was veiled. I have to play on Very Low graphics. My LOTRO looks a bit like FF7.

Please don't let this thread die :P

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Originally Posted by robbie1435

Perhaps she is the ghost/lingering soul of Nimrodel? After all, she was to meet Amroth at Edhellond...

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I hadn't entertained the notion that she might be a ghost. An interesting idea; thanks for sharing.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Thoroval

After experiencing and becoming interested in other arcs that have been abandoned, I've had to stop allowing myself to get too invested in any of the stories. This makes me sad.

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Nothing is ever abandoned in an MMO, so even stories that seem to have been left hanging might be picked up again and turned into something. I'm assuming this is specifically a comment on 'The Riders Four,' but even that could be continued if someone had an interest.

MoL

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

Nothing is ever abandoned in an MMO, so even stories that seem to have been left hanging might be picked up again and turned into something. I'm assuming this is specifically a comment on 'The Riders Four,' but even that could be continued if someone had an interest.

MoL

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Could that "someone" be you? :P

I imagined the Rider's Four ending up being summoned to Theoden's encampment of the Rohirrim and riding into Pelennor Fields with him. We meet up with them in Minas Tirith again, some bad things happen, etc, and then whatever comes next :P

(I'm very good at thinking out detailed storylines, as you can see. lol)

The problem I see is that too many of these things were "pet projects" that as I understand it were done on the developers own time and then we, the players, ended up loving some of these gems. I don't know how things work at the office, but perhaps once a month a "pet project" can get a sanctioning nod of approval from a high elf and become a paid thing. If that's too many a year, maybe once a quarter. I wouldn't even say it should be left to the players or even have us told this is happening, really. Just my opinion, but these things I've found out later were developer initiatives tend to be favorite parts of the game for me.

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

I have a lot. What would you like to know? :D

MoL

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Tell us about....










Ghostbear. :)

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Originally Posted by Palenen

Tell us about....










Ghostbear. :)

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Yes indeed! Please do!


For those who don't know about Ghostbear, it was a bug at the beginning of the game. Random bear roars even when no bears were in sight. Loud. I was showing off my cool armor to my wife one night, and as she leaned in to get a good view of my screen, Ghostbear let out a mighty roar and scared the dickens out of her. I had to pull up a forum post later to prove that I had not done something on purpose.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Nosdracir

Yes indeed! Please do!


For those who don't know about Ghostbear, it was a bug at the beginning of the game. Random bear roars even when no bears were in sight. Loud. I was showing off my cool armor to my wife one night, and as she leaned in to get a good view of my screen, Ghostbear let out a mighty roar and scared the dickens out of her. I had to pull up a forum post later to prove that I had not done something on purpose.

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My experience with Ghostbear was during pre-release. I was heading up the road towards Thasri's Lodge from Duillond. Kheledûl was just showing to my right.
Suddenly from nowhere came a ROAR! At the very same time, the flock of birds animation triggered from the evergreens ahead.

Not only had I nearly jumped out of my skin, but I was thinking "WOW!" at the immersion factor. Later I'd see the flocking birds or hear Ghostbear's roar in the oddest places. But that impression of that first encounter has always stayed with me.

Are there any Easter Eggs or "Hidden Nuggets" to find in the last three new areas?(Similar to the 3 bears and Goldilocks in West Rohan)

If so, I haven't found any :(. These should make a return.

I have a much more technical question, call it programmer's curiosity: When holding down the run forward button (W or up arrow) and the jump button (spacebar) at the same time, it is possible to press the turn right button (D or right arrow) and run right; However, the turn left button (A or left arrow) does not make the character turn left. Conversely, holding down the run forward button and turn left button allows the character to run to the left, but the spacebar now does not make the character jump when those two keys are held down. Finally, holding down the spacebar and the turn left buttons makes the character jump once and spin left, but the move forward button does not work when these two are held down, although the backwards button does. I was just wondering why the coding makes this anomaly occur?

I understand that this is an absolutely useless question for most people, I'm just fascinated by the coding of game engines, having been involved in the creation of one once upon a time, and this would be a development story that is pretty useful and interesting for me, at least from a programmer's standpoint!

PS. A question that's useful for many who like to immerse themselves in the game: Why can't all of the chairs be sittable? The early ones for houses were, all the static chairs in Bree are, and I recently discovered even the really decorative benches and seats in Caras Galadhon allow you to sit down on them. It would be really cool to have this functionality restored for all chairs!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Stasik

I have a much more technical question, call it programmer's curiosity: When holding down the run forward button (W or up arrow) and the jump button (spacebar) at the same time, it is possible to press the turn right button (D or right arrow) and run right; However, the turn left button (A or left arrow) does not make the character turn left. Conversely, holding down the run forward button and turn left button allows the character to run to the left, but the spacebar now does not make the character jump when those two keys are held down. Finally, holding down the spacebar and the turn left buttons makes the character jump once and spin left, but the move forward button does not work when these two are held down, although the backwards button does. I was just wondering why the coding makes this anomaly occur?

I understand that this is an absolutely useless question for most people, I'm just fascinated by the coding of game engines, having been involved in the creation of one once upon a time, and this would be a development story that is pretty useful and interesting for me, at least from a programmer's standpoint!

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What you're describing is a hardware limitation of the keyboard itself (or possibly its software driver). Cheaper keyboards can sense fewer keypresses at a time. High-end gaming keyboards tout "anti-ghosting technology" (explained here) that allows the simultaneous sensing of more keys.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by robbie1435

Are there any Easter Eggs or "Hidden Nuggets" to find in the last three new areas?(Similar to the 3 bears and Goldilocks in West Rohan)

If so, I haven't found any :(. These should make a return.

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There is one in Central Gondor, which makes me believe there may be others in the other parts of Gondor. About Rohan, I have found some easter eggs there that I didn't find mention on the forums... so I think there is more than we believe there is. :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Stasik

PS. A question that's useful for many who like to immerse themselves in the game: Why can't all of the chairs be sittable? The early ones for houses were, all the static chairs in Bree are, and I recently discovered even the really decorative benches and seats in Caras Galadhon allow you to sit down on them. It would be really cool to have this functionality restored for all chairs!

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In an orc-camp between Bree-lands and Lonelands there are some tent chairs you can sit on, and in several Instances I have noticed that you can sit in the chairs :D

Is there any way to hear U16 soundtrack? Since Helm's Deep there hasn't been any soundtrack on Soundcloud(soundtrack by Turbine for Helm's Deep is there) or Spotify(Chance Thomas' soundtrack for Riders of Rohan is there).

Quote:

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Originally Posted by robbie1435

Are there any Easter Eggs or "Hidden Nuggets" to find in the last three new areas?

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We often put things of this sort in the game, and recent updates aren't an exception. The old Invisiclues hint-books for Infocom text adventures had sections in the back with lists of fun things to try, and some of the Easter Eggs I like to put into LOTRO are of that variety. There's a joke involving Horn at Gleowine's childhood home that I think is pretty good, and it's possible to save the day as a Beorning by making use of a bear-hug at one point. :)

MoL

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

The old Invisiclues hint-books for Infocom text adventures had sections in the back with lists of fun things to try, and some of the Easter Eggs I like to put into LOTRO are of that variety.

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So...can we get an InvisiClues-style "for your amusement" list for LOTRO...? Pretty pretty pretty pretty please?

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

Every now and then it comes up, but I don't want to elevate its importance by saying that if you don't choose it you can get it again. Why Erebrandir's horseshoe and not something else? That's my instinct, anyway.

MoL

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I think the biggest problem for me for Erebrandir's Horseshoe is as follows:
1) It continues to be useful as the game progresses. It doesn't become less useful as the character progresses, like, for example, armor and weapons.
2) There is currently no way to reclaim this item or its functionality, unlike all of the other items the character can choose alongside the Horseshoe (which I believe are relics/runes).
3) There are scenarios where the player can lose the Horseshoe through no fault of his/her own.

One example is my own, where my account was compromised shortly after the Allies of the King update to Siege of Mirkwood. Everything I owned, including the Horseshoe, was sold for in-game currency and, presumably, given to another character to launder. When I submitted a ticket to have everything recovered, the items I got from the epic storyline were not reclaimable. While the GM's very kindly bestowed an enormous number of Skirmish Marks and in-game currency for me to re-purchase everything, the one-time items that I had saved from the epic storyline were irretrievable. I also recall a rather nice cloak, and a pair of shoes, that granted +Stealth bonuses that are now no longer retrievable. At the time, there was no option for character roll-backs, so I had no other recourse.

My solution would be, rather than a simple /reclaim option, to allow us to replay certain parts of the epic via the Reflecting Pool.

Sorry for the necro, but I REALLY want my Horseshoe back!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Orodbril

Is there any way to hear U16 soundtrack? Since Helm's Deep there hasn't been any soundtrack on Soundcloud(soundtrack by Turbine for Helm's Deep is there) or Spotify(Chance Thomas' soundtrack for Riders of Rohan is there).

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osgiliath soundtrack was released in two 2-3 minute segments to youtube on the forums...pm me and ill dig up a link :)

Erebrandir's what? Oookayy...? :p

This is one of the coolest threads I've EVAR seen on the forums... Please, keep it going! :D

Amazing thread, love going through all that was said and the level of interaction between Turbine and player base. This is a keeper.

I have two questions that have been on my mind for some time now of it is possible to get answer on:

1. During the session play At the Stone of Erech we visit a fortress at Morthond in the then young Kingdom of Gondor called Garth Lotheg. Since that time we have journeyed through that area, saw the Stone of Erech once again, now in real time, but where are the ruins of Garth Lotheg now? If I remember the session play, from the Stone of Erech on ultra–high settings you could see the silhouette of Garth Lotheg in the background where you would move latter in the instance.

2. The second question deal with yet another fortress, but this time one in Dunland. Just north of Rook's Hut, between the areas of Trum Dreng and Pren Gwydh there is a gated fortress of impressive size. There was a thread about this long time ago, back in 2011, with the idea that an instance cluster like In Their Absence is hidden behind it but apparently that was not the reason. There were even people who managed to get in their to see how large of a space it actually is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLEkqP1pp8U. What is the deal with this unnamed fortress?

Would be interesting to hear what is the idea behind these two fortresses.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Hallatur

Amazing thread, love going through all that was said and the level of interaction between Turbine and player base. This is a keeper.

I have two questions that have been on my mind for some time now of it is possible to get answer on:

1. During the session play At the Stone of Erech we visit a fortress at Morthond in the then young Kingdom of Gondor called Garth Lotheg. Since that time we have journeyed through that area, saw the Stone of Erech once again, now in real time, but where are the ruins of Garth Lotheg now? If I remember the session play, from the Stone of Erech on ultra–high settings you could see the silhouette of Garth Lotheg in the background where you would move latter in the instance.

2. The second question deal with yet another fortress, but this time one in Dunland. Just north of Rook's Hut, between the areas of Trum Dreng and Pren Gwydh there is a gated fortress of impressive size. There was a thread about this long time ago, back in 2011, with the idea that an instance cluster like In Their Absence is hidden behind it but apparently that was not the reason. There were even people who managed to get in their to see how large of a space it actually is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLEkqP1pp8U. What is the deal with this unnamed fortress?

Would be interesting to hear what is the idea behind these two fortresses.

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Hmm, I thought Ost Dunhoth was the former Garth Lotheg. I think that all of the ITA instances have models present in the normal landscape.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by cdq1958

Hmm, I thought Ost Dunhoth was the former Garth Lotheg. I think that all of the ITA instances have models present in the normal landscape.

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OD has a different design than Garth Lotheg (Comparing the screenshot to actual in game atm)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Hallatur

1. During the session play At the Stone of Erech we visit a fortress at Morthond in the then young Kingdom of Gondor called Garth Lotheg. Since that time we have journeyed through that area, saw the Stone of Erech once again, now in real time, but where are the ruins of Garth Lotheg now? If I remember the session play, from the Stone of Erech on ultra–high settings you could see the silhouette of Garth Lotheg in the background where you would move latter in the instance.

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Here is my guess. There is a big area called "Anfalas" which can be seen to the West of West Gondor on the big map. My guess is that Garth Lotheg is somewhere in that area.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Hallatur

Would be interesting to hear what is the idea behind these two fortresses.

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These are some real blasts from the past! I actually don't remember if the Dunland fortress was ever intended to be anything significant, but chances are it was a World-builder's sketchpad: a place to try out techniques and building styles before doing it 'For Real' in accessible landscape.

The Stone of Erech sessionplay served as our first foray into the lands that would become Gondor (and it turns out that we hadn't left enough space for Rohan, and had to move Erech from its original spot). We intended to revisit Garth Lotheg in 'present time' at some point, but asking around it sounds as if we forgot to do that. So if we never do revisit it, the forces of Sauron razed it to the ground, and little trace of it remains. ;)

It being visible from Erech would have been a limitation of needing to build them at the same time. In reality I think Garth Lotheg would have been much further east.

MoL

Quote:

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Originally Posted by robbie1435

OD has a different design than Garth Lotheg (Comparing the screenshot to actual in game atm)

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Okay, but to my eyes, they were similar enough.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

These are some real blasts from the past! I actually don't remember if the Dunland fortress was ever intended to be anything significant, but chances are it was a World-builder's sketchpad: a place to try out techniques and building styles before doing it 'For Real' in accessible landscape.

The Stone of Erech sessionplay served as our first foray into the lands that would become Gondor (and it turns out that we hadn't left enough space for Rohan, and had to move Erech from its original spot). We intended to revisit Garth Lotheg in 'present time' at some point, but asking around it sounds as if we forgot to do that. So if we never do revisit it, the forces of Sauron razed it to the ground, and little trace of it remains. ;)

It being visible from Erech would have been a limitation of needing to build them at the same time. In reality I think Garth Lotheg would have been much further east.

MoL

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Wow thanks for another cool answer. I always point to that session play when people complain about the swan wings in GOndor I am like Hello.. they were there years ago in that instance.

Your answer also explains why the stone of ereoch looks so different (landscape wise) but I want to add my name to one of those who wants to revisit that area in :modern" times to see what its like.

MoL; Can we have a swan session play? :P

One thing I've been curious about over the years. Whenever you're following some NPC for a quest, and you kill a few mobs, and it's time to move to the next location... instead of proceeding in the correct direction, the NPC will often double back for a few meters, before turning around. Lore-wise you could say he's just finding his bearings. But there has to be some technical reason for it.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Thurallor

One thing I've been curious about over the years. Whenever you're following some NPC for a quest, and you kill a few mobs, and it's time to move to the next location... instead of proceeding in the correct direction, the NPC will often double back for a few meters, before turning around. Lore-wise you could say he's just finding his bearings. But there has to be some technical reason for it.

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That's a very good question. Especially for one like Laila in the barrow downs - I failed that one on level a few times - fairly sure I went back eventually.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Thurallor

One thing I've been curious about over the years. Whenever you're following some NPC for a quest, and you kill a few mobs, and it's time to move to the next location... instead of proceeding in the correct direction, the NPC will often double back for a few meters, before turning around. Lore-wise you could say he's just finding his bearings. But there has to be some technical reason for it.

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I think he's taking a moment to get his morale/power back up.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Thurallor

One thing I've been curious about over the years. Whenever you're following some NPC for a quest, and you kill a few mobs, and it's time to move to the next location... instead of proceeding in the correct direction, the NPC will often double back for a few meters, before turning around. Lore-wise you could say he's just finding his bearings. But there has to be some technical reason for it.

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To me it seems like the NPCs are moving back to the point they were 'aggroed', i.e. they notice the enemy. Maybe it's because they could get stuck while the combat is going on if they move around the area and thus couldn't continue straightforward to the next coordinate in line. Perhaps there are other reasons too why they are programmed to do that.

Some NPCs don't attack enemies at all but instead stop, bury their face in their hands and start to cry in a very annoying fashion (like Lalia). In those cases they also do not move back but proceed after the severe psychological shock they just had to endure.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Thurallor

One thing I've been curious about over the years. Whenever you're following some NPC for a quest, and you kill a few mobs, and it's time to move to the next location... instead of proceeding in the correct direction, the NPC will often double back for a few meters, before turning around. Lore-wise you could say he's just finding his bearings. But there has to be some technical reason for it.

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I think it has something to do with the way that these NPCs work. Each one has a "track" that it moves on. It moves on that track throughout the whole instance, only breaking it when it enters combat. Because it leads the track that it is supposed to follow, when the engagement is over, it moves to it's Last Known Position on the track that it is supposed to move on. This is why some NPCs will walk over rocks during instances rather than walking around them. They have to stay on that track to complete the instance/quest, so when they break the track, it would only make since that they return to the last know location of the track.

~Glorg

Quote:

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Originally Posted by cdq1958

Hmm, I thought Ost Dunhoth was the former Garth Lotheg. I think that all of the ITA instances have models present in the normal landscape.

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No, Ost Dunhoth and Garth Lotheg are in different area; Ost Dunhoth is in Lich Bluffs in south Enedwaith while Garth Lotheg is in Gondor in the area of Morthond (but according now to MoL it should actually be more to the east so maybe in the Belfalas are since that peninsula has not been added into the game yet :) Additionally, Garth Lotheg has a very different architecture than Ost Dunhoth, as you may remember from the session play or form the images Garth Lotheg has monumental faces and large statue at the entrance bridge.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by robbie1435

Here is my guess. There is a big area called "Anfalas" which can be seen to the West of West Gondor on the big map. My guess is that Garth Lotheg is somewhere in that area.

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That was a possibility since that area is not in the game, but as MoL has stated apparently its more to the east from Stone of Erech which leaves only the peninsula of Belfalas between West and Central Gondor currently in–game.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

These are some real blasts from the past! I actually don't remember if the Dunland fortress was ever intended to be anything significant, but chances are it was a World-builder's sketchpad: a place to try out techniques and building styles before doing it 'For Real' in accessible landscape.

The Stone of Erech sessionplay served as our first foray into the lands that would become Gondor (and it turns out that we hadn't left enough space for Rohan, and had to move Erech from its original spot). We intended to revisit Garth Lotheg in 'present time' at some point, but asking around it sounds as if we forgot to do that. So if we never do revisit it, the forces of Sauron razed it to the ground, and little trace of it remains. ;)

It being visible from Erech would have been a limitation of needing to build them at the same time. In reality I think Garth Lotheg would have been much further east.

MoL

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Thank you MoL for the response, you rock!

Not a blast from such a distant past after all. :)

There were a lot of theories about the fortress in Dunland which was interesting. It would be amazing if Turbine could just open the gates to that fortress and populate it with some scholar nodes and maybe add a treasure cash location when you get to add those (with RTs) to this area. :) Pretty please.

Instead of believing that the forces of Sauron razed it to the ground and no trace was left (since if like you say little trace of it remained we would be abel to find it in current West or Central Gondor). But now you have a fantastic opportunity to revisit Garth Lotheg with an interesting storyline when Turbine decides to add the Belfalas peninsula into the game. Those broken bridges in West and Central Gondor deserve to lead somewhere after all. :D

Thank you so much for providing this insight, the part about having to move the Stone of Erech was particularly interesting.

This thread is amazing!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by TharbadThief

To me it seems like the NPCs are moving back to the point they were 'aggroed', i.e. they notice the enemy.

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by robbie1435

Each one has a "track" that it moves on. It moves on that track throughout the whole instance, only breaking it when it enters combat. Because it leads the track that it is supposed to follow, when the engagement is over, it moves to it's Last Known Position on the track that it is supposed to move on.

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Yep, that's basically what's happening with these guys. Sometimes it can look a little silly, but since we often have scripts that need to run when an NPC arrives at a certain location on that 'track,' it's very important that they not skip any portion of it.

MoL

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

Yep, that's basically what's happening with these guys. Sometimes it can look a little silly, but since we often have scripts that need to run when an NPC arrives at a certain location on that 'track,' it's very important that they not skip any portion of it.

MoL

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They need a better sense of direction, and the ability to smartly skip long chunks of the track where things don't happen >=(

Perhaps make a check on leaving combat to see if which is closer to:
* Last position on track
* Farther down the track prior to next event on track
* Next event on the track

If (for some reason) they couldn't figure it out, it would default to last position on the track, as it does now. The problem is that many of us (myself included) get frustrated when we see the NPC get out of combat, run halfway across eriador back ot their last position, then crawl all the way to my current position without hitting a single event along the track.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MadeOfLions

These are some real blasts from the past! I actually don't remember if the Dunland fortress was ever intended to be anything significant, but chances are it was a World-builder's sketchpad: a place to try out techniques and building styles before doing it 'For Real' in accessible landscape.

The Stone of Erech sessionplay served as our first foray into the lands that would become Gondor (and it turns out that we hadn't left enough space for Rohan, and had to move Erech from its original spot). We intended to revisit Garth Lotheg in 'present time' at some point, but asking around it sounds as if we forgot to do that. So if we never do revisit it, the forces of Sauron razed it to the ground, and little trace of it remains.

It being visible from Erech would have been a limitation of needing to build them at the same time. In reality I think Garth Lotheg would have been much further east.

MoL

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I'm glad the question about Garth Lotheg has finally been answered - I remember seeing it from Erech in the session play, and hoping that we'd get to visit it in the future - hopefully we'll manage to get there if Anfalas ever opens up!

As for the Dunland fortress, back before an invisible wall was added in, I was able to make my way inside the fortress, and for a kin event, I took all the kin inside, so we could explore within. Our old kin leader was headed off on army service, so we named the fortress in his honour (Ost Trubadurixx - admittedly not a very lore accurate name!), and would occasionally revisit it - my favourite part of it is the giant stone face that had fallen to the ground within. We initially thought that it was going to play host to an instance cluster too, but it serves just as well as a memoir for times gone by within the kin :)

Talking about old fortresses, there are several that are visible just off the map that I wanted to ask about, one of which has become particularly apparent since the draw distance was increased. The first is the old fortress on the Lune, which has always been a tantalising location, just out of reach of most players, which guards the entrance to the Far Downs - was there ever an intention to make this into anything more, or does it simply represent the hope that we may, one day, end up seeing the lands between Ered Luin and the Shire connected? :D

The next question relates to the lands beyond Andrath in the south - some fortresses can clearly be seen down there, in Minhiriath, and I wonder if the lands down there are a place that we'll ever end up exploring (alongside the Southfarthing to the west)? And could this potentially connect up with the North-South road in the Windfells?

Another area I've always been interested in is Northern Ered Luin - was there ever a plan to go beyond the gate near Skorgrim's old tomb? I was rather upset when the tomb got moved into the Berghold, though I understand why this was done, in order to finesse the new player experience.

Also in Ered Luin, in the Vale of Thrain, is a location which is billed as the entrance to Sarnur - its a gate, at the top of a long path up a hill, just south of the Goblin Camp where the actual entrance to Sarnur lies. For this path to be put in, there must have been an intention to have something on the other side of this gate - or was it, like the gate to Northern Ered Luin, just to add flavour? Talking about Sarnur, there appears to a shining golden gate on top of the goblin ruins which allow access to it, which can be seen on ultra-high graphics from the point where the Vale of Thrain meets the Low Lands - what's that about? :)

Finally, now that the draw distance has been expanded, I noticed something new to the south of the wolf area near Celondim (which I think is called Nen Hilith). On the cliffs to the south-west, on a mountain, there seemed to be dwarvish buildings - I thought originally, given the distance, my eyes were deceiving me - but checking the TerrainMap plugin (like the old lorebook map), there are very clearly some dwarvish buildings there - I'm impressed, if these are just for flavour, that they were added in just on the edge of the line of sight, and so most people are likely never to see them!

Feel free to talk about as many or as few of these as you like - I'm just inherently nosy and curious :D

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Originally Posted by TharbadThief

To me it seems like the NPCs are moving back to the point they were 'aggroed', i.e. they notice the enemy. Maybe it's because they could get stuck while the combat is going on if they move around the area and thus couldn't continue straightforward to the next coordinate in line. Perhaps there are other reasons too why they are programmed to do that.

Some NPCs don't attack enemies at all but instead stop, bury their face in their hands and start to cry in a very annoying fashion (like Lalia). In those cases they also do not move back but proceed after the severe psychological shock they just had to endure.

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That's what I was thinking when I tried to pay attention to the NPCs more.

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Originally Posted by Hallatur

No, Ost Dunhoth and Garth Lotheg are in different area; Ost Dunhoth is in Lich Bluffs in south Enedwaith while Garth Lotheg is in Gondor in the area of Morthond (but according now to MoL it should actually be more to the east so maybe in the Belfalas are since that peninsula has not been added into the game yet :) Additionally, Garth Lotheg has a very different architecture than Ost Dunhoth, as you may remember from the session play or form the images Garth Lotheg has monumental faces and large statue at the entrance bridge.



That was a possibility since that area is not in the game, but as MoL has stated apparently its more to the east from Stone of Erech which leaves only the peninsula of Belfalas between West and Central Gondor currently in–game.



Thank you MoL for the response, you rock!

Not a blast from such a distant past after all. :)

There were a lot of theories about the fortress in Dunland which was interesting. It would be amazing if Turbine could just open the gates to that fortress and populate it with some scholar nodes and maybe add a treasure cash location when you get to add those (with RTs) to this area. :) Pretty please.

Instead of believing that the forces of Sauron razed it to the ground and no trace was left (since if like you say little trace of it remained we would be abel to find it in current West or Central Gondor). But now you have a fantastic opportunity to revisit Garth Lotheg with an interesting storyline when Turbine decides to add the Belfalas peninsula into the game. Those broken bridges in West and Central Gondor deserve to lead somewhere after all. :D

Thank you so much for providing this insight, the part about having to move the Stone of Erech was particularly interesting.

This thread is amazing!

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I see that I was mistaken and I don't recall any large sculpted faces in either instance. Oh well, like I said about my old eyes :P. I also guess that I let my 2nd Age imagination get a bit wild, too; for there would have been lots of Numenorean fortresses in that part of Eriador and Elendil and his sons would have known of them, some maybe better than others.

Given MoL's response, yep, somewhere along the southern coasts makes more sense now.

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Originally Posted by Haue

I have a theory that she may be Nimrodel, and that she's mourning over Amroth. But its only a theory..

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I'm not sure who she is really, but when i noticed veil, And her relation to princess (name spelling escapes me) I assumed she was in a perma mourning.. Elves doing weird things and all.
People do it in real life, I just assumed a age-less elf was taking it abit to far. XD lol.



I was always curious over Ruins Across Ered Luin, (to east (south of shire) You can see them across river by spider den, and looks like a place to head on over and just look around, darn invisible walls.
Seems out of place in map books.

And Hobbies.. I posted collections hobby long ago. Got some good feed back. Butterflies with saron eye, replica swords with neat bits of lore info. Something for people to find stuff, get lore info on area.
Part of idea kinda turned into treasure hunt event. Really wish we'd get one more Hobby.

Also to Dev's who added the 2 Cats in Gondor.

THANK YOU!

Waited 7 years to get my cat. (Cat by Party Tree in Shire) use to sit by it all time, and chill.
Took 7 years to get her! and her little friend. =3

Now I just need that Green Dragon Painting in shire, or The Map of Lonely mountain. =3