LOTRO Twitter Developer Chat – Class Changes. August 21, 2013 3PM Eastern.

[Sapience]

Come chat with members of the LOTRO Team!

When: Wednesday, August 21, 2013 at 3:00PM Eastern time.
Where: http://www.twitter.com/lotro

Members of the LOTRO team will be answering your questions about upcoming Class changes live on twitter.

To ask a question, just tweet it to us @lotro and be sure to include the hashtags #LOTRO and #DEVCHAT.
Responses to questions will only feature the hashtag #LOTRO

Please remember to keep your questions short, as we’ll be re-tweeting your questions along with the answers.

The following members of the LOTRO Team will be answering your Class questions.

• Matt "Hoarsedev" Zimmitti - Lead Systems Designer (Classes)
• Jared “Amlug”Hall-Dugas – Senior Designer (MTX)
• Trevor “Jinjaah” McEwen – Associate Systems Designer (Classes)
• Erika “Deviled_Egg” Ng – Associate Systems Designer (Classes)
• Rick "Sapience" Heaton - Community Manager

Can't make the chat but what to ask a question? Post your questions here and we'll select a few to answer as well. Please remember to keep your question brief and easy to tweet.

Pay attention to the list of devs attending and the topic of the chat. We've added the things they're working on next to their titles. Devs can't talk about things they aren't working on personally, so if you tailor your questions to their responsibilities and the topic of the chat, you have a much better chance of getting an answer.

[Peresbert]

Can't wait to here the plans you guys have for us here. Our lives, well our characters' lives, hang in the balance.

[Ryvick]

Question: Why the change to a Restrictive Tree Trait system instead of continuing to use the current Free Form Trait system we have now? It seems far more difficult to balance via a Separated tree system than an "Everyone has It" trait system.


In case you cant tell I absolutely despise tree based traiting systems.

[Stephen1981]

is it just me or do it seem that Helms deep is further off than we originally thought

[Nyrion]

How much room for customisation and diversification do you expect us to have with the new tree system versus our current trait system?(Specifically, how different will our setups be from other players doing the same role as the same class?)

[AnElephant]

Question 1: Will the change to trait trees make us relearn our class completely or will it just be somewhat less complicated than that? And also, can you briefly explain how we get the points to spend on trait trees? Will it be every level you get a point or something like that?

Question 2: By the end of these changes and in the future with a lvl 95 capped say... hunter, will a (now) yellow traited hunter and a red traited hunter be extremely visually different and individual from each other (statwise)?

[bgriggs]

Are the current virtues and traits being incorporated into the new system at all?

[GingerAj]

Are the trait tree's actually more than a straight line?
Do they have many branches?
Many choices....so more people are different....?

[DanteIL]

I'm interested in knowing more about how the new trait trees (and revamped skills) will interact with the design and function of the new Big Battle instances.

[sprise]

Stop messing with classes. Period. Turbine reminds me of generic management at a company who feels they aren't doing their job unless they are changing things.

In the words of someone long since dead and very wise, If it isn't broken, don't fix it".

[unpocoloco]

My only problem with the current traits system is that there are too few slots, especially character traits. Otherwise, it makes sense.

I like the idea that I get to choose which traits I want to slot without being limited to some fore-ordained tree because I get to set the priorities of what trait qualities I value.

All my current traits slots for my highest-level character are full. I've worked hard to get them that way and I'm going to be pissed if the new trait system undoes all that work or compromises the quality of my accomplishments.

I would like to hear the devs explain why they are fixing something that clearly appears to be unbroken and why I should like the new system.

[Yulin-Gladden]

Will the coming changes be a trait tree, a skill tree, or a combination of both? Or something else entirely?

Do you see these changes making the virtues and current class traits irreverent, or will this work in conjunction with what we have today?

How will these changes effect Mounted combat? Are those skils getting a revamp as well?

[Adminium_Banhammer]

You do so many thinks better than World of Warcraft. If you start to feel like World of Warcraft, I'm out.

I like being Thovald. I'm not going to be 'tank'.

Skill trees give nothing more than an illusion of control. You are funneled up a specific path of skills by your level. Your choices are meaningless. You might as well just unlock them automatically, rather than making the player click on them on each level.

[Reximus]

Stop messing with classes. Period. Turbine reminds me of generic management at a company who feels they aren't doing their job unless they are changing things.

In the words of someone long since dead and very wise, If it isn't broken, don't fix it".

Judging by the Class forums, you're viewpoint isn't the most popular one.

[Thorgrum]

I would like to hear the devs explain why they are fixing something that clearly appears to be unbroken and why I should like the new system.

You really don't expect them to answerthat do you? I agree with your overall assessment and I can only speak from my personal view and those I interact with, this better be a home run. The dev's are tinkering with mechanisms that affect characters in a deep way, some of those characters have been played by people for 7+ years. It can't be a mess,and it can't be a complete rework and departure (given the time investment people have made into their chars) from what already exists.

This has the potential to be a great addition, or a colossal mistake. I'm skeptical personally, given the investment of time and resources into mounted combat which for the most part hasn't added a lot to the game, I mean I'm not seeing people proclaiming in glff "cant wait to do some more mounted combat!". The problem here is turbine is choosing to affect everyone with a mandatory rewrite of classes. I dislike when people impose things upon me,even if it's a hobby and I am consuming the product of my own free will. What's most disappointing is these chats aren't really an opportunity to affect change, its informative only. The changes are coming, it doesn't matter if you,me and 1000 other people don't want it. Sadly, these are the types of events in MMO's that can impact the community a great deal, either way. Im hopeful its a positive change.

[Ceissy]

I wonder why every effort to 'improve' the game just amounts to changing the game as a whole? I have played other games that have trait trees and I didn't think much of them. I play LOTRO for a reason, and the reason is that I like it better as compared to other games. If I liked trait trees I'd have stayed playing one of the numerous games that use that system instead of playing this game and paying a subscription for years now. I happen to like the traits as outlined in this game and it played a large part in my preference for this game. If you want to make meaningful improvements then fix the things that don't work 'as intended'. If I seem negative over this 'sight unseen' I beg to differ, there's tons of games that use trait trees. I don't mind changes per se, I just dislike changes that change what separates LOTRO from other games. So please explain how this change to trait trees doesn't do that.

OR maybe I'm just getting really, really sick of being forced to remake my characters (all 6 level 85's) every 6 months when you all get a wild hair to completely change them and completely change the game the way WB seems to like to do. Not that I expect anyone to care....

[Leixy]

Using war-steeds as a template, how will trait points be earned and spent on trait trees?

[timmyloo22546]

How will the current 2/3/4 trait-set bonuses be incorporated into the new tree as well as the 5th trait set bonus (legendary)?

How will it work to re-trait?

[YageerSilverscale]

Question 1: Will the new character design add or revamp some class role ? (es. main tanking for champs, cc for hunter, main heal for lm, ecc)
Question 2: Will (as I hope) different roles for a class be mutually exclusive and extremely different? (es. a LM heal OR dps OR debuff, a champ tank OR dps, ecc)
Question 3: Will be possibile to retrait a character on the way or will it need a special npc/facility?
Question 4: Will monster players be affected by the new trait system aswell?

[anthonyx]

Since there is no change in lotro that doesn't benefit the store how will the lotro store enhance the tree? Will we be able to buy profile slots? Buy points? Unlock skills?

[AaylaKheledlire]

The fishing quests in Wildermore was great! I loved that mechanic when you catched the fishes! Have some new skills with that feature?
Can we earn points after lvl95 for more passive traits? (just like in Rift)

[TinDragon]

• Can we expect new class and/or legendary traits, either with the upcoming class revamp or with the release of the new level cap?
• Is the class revamp planned to be released simultaneously with the release of Helm's Deep, or separately?
• How many new skills will we get with the release of Helm's Deep: 3 like with RoR, 5 as with RoI, or some other amount?
• With the class revamp the trait lines are becoming more specialized. What does this mean for hybrid classes like the captain?

[Mr.Hidden]

Question 1: Will revamped traits/skills be more like a current war-steed style? (like different trait trees, some traits unlocking special skills, etc.)
Question 2: Will be there some fixed character builds (which cannot be so easily changed) or dynamic builds (once again - like war-steed trait presets)?

[hobbit1968]

I sure hope you guys finally come out with the information on when HELMS DEEP is coming out. Hopefully its coming out soon.

[twittfounder]

Is there an corresponding Dev diary or additional information about what is happening to the classes forthcoming before the twitter chat?

I'm not sure WHAT to ask for this type of forum given that outside of "with new skills and completely updated class specializations" for Helms Deep -- which has been implied to mean trait trees. But what does that MEAN? What happens to our skills? Legendary skills? Capstone skills? Legacies on LI's etc. How do the classes play? I have no idea what types of questions would be appropriate to ask...let alone one in a twitter format!

But: in light of that:

The two questions I am most interested are simply:
How does the new system work?
Do the classes still *play* like they have for six years...meaning, will a minstrel still be recognized and feel like a minstrel? (is that the same for all classes?)