Hobbits to Isengard - Q/A with Sapience notes on what was said

[anthonyx]

I wish they did it like WoW and other MMOs. It is a toggle that you have and can choose to use it or not. I don't like the idea of losing a set piece. This could be easily implemented. The LI already has that option. But I doubt that they will go that way. Right now it is a money maker. I used it on one of my toons but I think that it being BtC is a little too much.

[frickinmuck]

Sorry if this one is a bit patchy, there were issues with the Twitch stream.

Please note: I am paraphrasing here. Anything said here is coming through my interpretation of what was said, and is subject to being corrected, so don't take all this as the final word.

If anyone who was present has any additions or corrections, feel free to post.

Q&A Hobbits to Isengard - Laurelin

1. Question about bugs
   As soon as you see a bug, make sure you bug it right away and, most importantly, give detailed instructions to the developers on how to recreate the problem. He doesn’t currently have any information about the status of specific bugs
2. Question about lag
   Most players tend to have their settings higher than their system can handle properly. They think their system can handle more than it actually can. Also, a lot of people set up their graphics for solo play, with settings higher than can be handled for group play. If you’re in a group, or in areas where there are a lot of players, you may need to readjust your settings to suit the higher load. When your system has to render all those extra players, animations, weapons, etc. it really adds to the load. Another tip is, if you are running SLI or Crossfire, disable it. Just run on one video card. You will gain framerates in most cases.
3. Is it better to use a 64 bit client, and are there any plans to make LotRO 64 bit capable
   No plans to make LotRo 64 bit capable, but a 64 bit client will absolutely help because you have access to more memory that the OS can use, you can run a higher cache, etc. A 64 bit OS with 8GB of RAM is leaps and bounds ahead of running a 32 bit OS with 4GB of RAM, because of the memory management available. You will have more resources available for your machine to use. The worst thing you can do for performance is run a 32 bit OS with low RAM. Also, regarding the issue of ram, the game will not use much more than 4GB of RAM, but your OS will take as much RAM as it needs and leave you with what’s left over. So you need enough RAM that your OS will leave you enough for the game. 64 bit OS with 8GB of RAM should be fine for most people.
4. Does using a SSD help game performance
   Using a SSD will make load times faster, so any time you are loading textures and data (i.e. moving through zones) it will be faster.
5. How about SLI/Crossfire and multiple monitor setup support to the game
   The game is not set up to support multiple monitors or SLI and Crossfire, he doesn’t know when or if that will happen.
6. Are all the servers running on same hardware
   Contrary to what many people think, a “LotRO server” is not a machine, it’s a series of machines. For example it may be 8 different PCs, a load balancer, databases and various other hardware. But all the servers have pretty much the same hardware and are pretty much equal.
7. Is the Turbine de-fragger tool still around and can it be used on the current build
   The Turbine defragger doesn’t exist anymore and he greatly discourages using it. If you still have it you should not use it, you could destroy your install.
8. Any plans to bring back a MyLotro app similar to Wow armoury
   The previous one was player-created, and he knows of no plans to recreate or restore that functionality
9. Will the people who are on the Bounder's Bounty plaques be able to choose which character they want displayed in the future
   When they started sorting out what was going to go on the Bounder’s Bounty plaques it was discovered there was going to be a group of 1,400+ people needing to respond with which character they wanted on the plaque, and that was going to take way too long to organize, so instead they went with the accounts that had the highest count, and which of the characters on that account contributed the most.
10. Will any shard-droppers be added to the newer areas
    He will bring the suggestion to the team
11. Could we get a shard-dropper deed
    Not likely there will ever be a shard-dropper deed
12. Are there any plans to have any discussion based on the feedback to the Producer Letter threads on Housing, Inventory, etc
    The point of those threads was to get an idea of what players were looking for, see what the consensus points were. Even taking into account all those threads on English, German and French forums, at most it is the opinion of maybe 300 people, not a significantly large portion of the player base. So when they seek player feedback they do so through multiple venues, and they look at multiple sources of suggestions and input to see where the consistency lies across all sources of feedback, rather than focusing on one particular forum thread and taking that as the definitive answer to what the players want.
13. Why isn’t this an event for taking a creep somewhere, or staying alive in Hoarhollow
    Because the players created the event, based on some discussions in chat. If the conversation had been different and someone suggested a monster play event, this could have been “Take the Reaver to Hoarhollow”
14. Are there any plans to allow Dwarven ministrels to get legendary axes
    No plans as far as he knows for legendary axes for Dwarven minstrels
15. When is U13 coming
    It is scheduled for March, probably toward the latter end of the month. He doesn’t have a date yet but when he does he will let everyone know.
16. Can we get a Dwarf warden
    No current plans for that to the best of his knowledge
17. Is there any hope of us ever getting a 'gym' that allows us to alter our characters build
    Not likely that will ever happen
18. Will creeps ever be let out into the normal areas
    No plans for that. The Moors was created for creeps, and that’s where they’ll stay
19. Are there plans for any other bare-chested cosmetics
    There was a joking discussion about bare-chested elves at one point, but no, there are no current plans to add more bare-chests. Although he won’t rule it out. He doesn’t usually get a heads up on the art that goes into any update, so he can’t really say or predict whether any particular cosmetic will end up in the game.
20. Any chance of a design a cloak contest
    It’s something they are working on doing right now, but he has no ETA on when it will be ready, there are still some loose ends that need to be tied up
21. Is there a mentoring system planned
    Not as far as he’s aware
22. Is there a way to get a cloak back if you lose it
    Be careful when deleting something, because for the most part once it’s gone, it’s gone
23. Any plans for crafting in homesteads
    It’s been discussed, but he doesn’t know if it will happen, in what form or when. It’s a discussion that’s been happening as part of the larger housing revamp
24. What about rumours of two new open world servers for PvP
    Someone is pulling your leg, there are absolutely no plans for that
25. Can we please get more than 17 character slots
    This is a suggestion he’s made in the past, and he will pass it along again. At one point there was a technical reason for that limit but he doesn’t know if that technical issue still stands.
26. Can you get mobs who are grouped up to be linked so they just don't stand there when you attack their companion
    He’s not aware of any plans to change the way mobs aggro when they are in groups but he will pass the information along
27. Will you be filling in the map with outlying areas such as South Farthing, etc
    MadeOfLions had a great answer to that in the 20 questions the other day. They do fill outlying areas of the map from time to time, but right now we are at an important part of the story so they will probably follow the path of the fellowship more closely for awhile
28. Do you roleplay
    No, he does not
29. Is Gilrain becoming preferred server
    Good question. Next time they have a maintenance he will ask
30. What determines weather in-game, is it based on real world weather somewhere
    No, but it’s not entirely random. There is a day file in the game that gives a region its day/night cycle, etc. and generates weather at what appear to be random times. It’s not based on real world weather or anything like that.
31. Question about a kinship revamp
    Read the Q/A from the other day, there is a bit of information there. Beyond that he can’t really comment.
32. Will we ever see changing seasons during festivals
    No because the regions are locked in time based on the part of the story they appear in. That is why Winterhome was created; to have a wintery region for the winter festival
33. Does your wife play LotRO
    Yes, she does. She is a good healer and plays a captain and a minstrel well, and has several characters at cap.
34. Question about reward for the winner of this event
    There is no formal plan for a reward of any kind beyond bragging rights, which is fitting since the event started because of bragging. Realistically the only thing they will really be able to do for the one server is maybe turn on an enhanced XP weekend.
35. Will there be new festivals or changes to the existing ones in the near future
    Definitely something they are looking at – how can they improve and add to the festivals to keep them exciting. The Anniversary festival is currently being worked on
36. What is your least favourite class
    Doesn’t really have a least favourite, but there are classes he’s not good at. You don’t want him healing your raid, for example.
37. Why does his voice sound different here than in the community updates
    When he does the community updates he doesn’t talk for as long, and they give him professional recording equipment to use which is much better quality.
38. Is there a possibility of people becoming GMs from outside of Turbine HQ area
    No, the positions are in Boston in the Turbine offices. There are a couple of rare exceptions for German and French servers.
39. Do you get free Turbine points
    Yes, in fact he just got his yesterday. Once a quarter they get an allotment of TP for DDO and for LotRO. They get a handful of codes for about 1,500 each.
40. When you first started at Turbine what were you most excited about
    Meeting the team, moving to a place where he had family, working for a game that he’d been playing since closed beta
41. Have you ever done any voiceover work for LotRO
    No, he has not
42. Do you play in a band in LotRO
    No, he doesn’t
43. Advice on getting into radio
    About radio, and it actually also applies to the games industry, get ANY job you can. It might not be the job you want, but a foot in the door and getting to know people goes a long way. He knew guys who started in radio as the janitor. They ended up as major market DJs making 100k a year.
44. What did you get with your 25% off code
    XP and rep boosts
45. What are the most popular classes
    He hasn’t looked in a long time but Hunter and Champ use to be the most popular classes.
46. When will Bullroarer be open for testing
    He’s not sure what the schedule is for BR, but doesn't expect it to be any time soon. Usually it opens a week or so in advance of an update
47. Do the “lucky” named items (rabbit foot, coal etc) have any hidden benefits
    He’s answered that question many times and is surprised people don’t believe him. No, they have no special effect.
48. With the revamps of ND, Trollshaws and MM, will we see graphical updates as well as quest clusters/changes
    Probably not. At least nothing as dramatic as Bree. It's more about making them more playable and improving the flow.
49. Some pics from the run
50. Why did turbine start to add invisible walls to the game
    To prevent people from going to places they aren’t supposed to. In an open world such as LotRO has, sometimes it’s just what you have to do. You can't really make an endless landscape. Also there are ways to get stuck between buildings, in 'yards' and other places that you cannot use /stuck to get out of and a GM cannot teleport you out of. You can lose your character, permanently, if you aren't very careful and sometimes very lucky.
51. Will it be possible, someday, to take a chicken past Isengard (perhaps via a Strange Chicken Nest)
    It might be possible, but he doesn’t know what the plans are for chickens beyond Isengard. Though the devs have spent time recently kicking them about.
52. What keyboard and mouse do you use
    Right now he’s using a Mad Catz STRIKE 7 Keyboard and a RAT 9 wireless mouse. He really loves the mouse but is still adjusting to the keyboard.
53. Was Hobnanigans removed because of animal cruelty
    No it had performance issues
54. What is the right venue to appeal which name was used on the Bounder’s statue
    He doesn't think they are able to make changes now, but whatever the outcome, submitting a ticket is almost definitely not going to be the answer, but he will pass along the suggestion.

[Mar-Evayave]

Maybe around 5-6 or so I have too many mains to have time for more alts XD

lol I can believe that! Regardless, my hat is off to you!

In reply to the newly posted Q/A, I really feel sorry for the Bounder's Bounty winners, as most apparently don't have the name they wanted on the statue...

[Lohi]

Seems that the items were added to the game already, but either didn't work when tested, or Turbine changed their minds and pulled them from release.

Yes, they were pulled from release due to a very loud and annoyed player base (I think this was during beta so the population as a whole didn't see them). Basically they floated the idea, then quickly unfloated it. These shouldn't have been visible outside of beta and shouldn't be in the store, so not sure how you see them today.

[Lohi]

I wish they did it like WoW and other MMOs.

It is in WoW because of a particular feature of WoW that we don't have here. That is because their PVP arena system has a tiered ranking system based on level ranges. Thus you can fight in the arena with only levels 20-29 players, and so on. This is a big deal there, and players take it seriously. For those players, levels 19, 29, 39, etc are their end-game. Disabling XP means you can spend more time finding the best gear and aren't as reliant on WoW's random loot rolls. It is only a trivial side effect there that this may be used for role playing as well.

So by the criteria of WoW, this is an important feature that earns them money as it keeps players in the game and subscribing. For the LotRO viewpoint though, they make more money by players leveling up than otherwise and they don't see an XP toggle as a money maker.

[Crell_1]

Yes, they were pulled from release due to a very loud and annoyed player base (I think this was during beta so the population as a whole didn't see them). Basically they floated the idea, then quickly unfloated it. These shouldn't have been visible outside of beta and shouldn't be in the store, so not sure how you see them today.

They were on bullroarer for during a period of public testing access. Thus the public as a whole had the opportunity to see them and comment.

[Sapience]

Sorry if this one is a bit patchy, there were issues with the Twitch stream.

Please note: I am paraphrasing here. Anything said here is coming through my interpretation of what he said, and is subject to being corrected by him so don't take all this as gospel.

If anyone who was present has any additions or corrections, feel free to post.

Q/A Hobbits to Isengard - Laurelin

1. Question about bugs
   As soon as you see a bug, make sure you bug it right away and, most importantly, give detailed instructions to the developers on how to recreate the problem. He doesn’t currently have any information about the status of specific bugs
2. Question about lag
   Most players tend to have their settings higher than their system can handle properly. They think their system can handle more than it actually can. Also, a lot of people set up their graphics for solo play, with settings higher than can be handled for group play. If you’re in a group, or in areas where there are a lot of players, you may need to readjust your settings to suit the higher load. When your system has to render all those extra players, animations, weapons, etc. it really adds to the load. Another tip is, if you are running SLI or Crossfire, disable it. Just run on one video card. You will gain framerates in most cases.
3. Is it better to use a 64 bit client, and are there any plans to make LotRO 64 bit capable
   No plans to make LotRo 64 bit capable, but a 64 bit client will absolutely help because you have access to more memory that the OS can use, you can run a higher cache, etc. A 64 bit OS with 8GB of RAM is leaps and bounds ahead of running a 32 bit OS with 4GB of RAM, because of the memory management available. You will have more resources available for your machine to use. The worst thing you can do for performance is run a 32 bit OS with low RAM. Also, regarding the issue of ram, the game will not use much more than 4GB of RAM, but your OS will take as much RAM as it needs and leave you with what’s left over. So you need enough RAM that your OS will leave you enough for the game. 64 bit OS with 8GB of RAM should be fine for most people.
4. Does using a SSD help game performance
   Using a SSD will make load times faster, so any time you are loading textures and data (i.e. moving through zones) it will be faster.
5. How about SLI/Crossfire and multiple monitor setup support to the game
   The game is not set up to support multiple monitors or SLI and Crossfire, he doesn’t know when or if that will happen.
6. Are all the servers running on same hardware
   Contrary to what many people think, a “LotRO server” is not a machine, it’s a series of machines. For example it may be 8 different PCs, a load balancer, databases and various other hardware. But all the servers have pretty much the same hardware and are pretty much equal.
7. Is the Turbine de-fragger tool still around and can it be used on the current build
   The Turbine defragger doesn’t exist anymore and he greatly discourages using it. If you still have it you should not use it, you could destroy your install.
8. Any plans to bring back a MyLotro app similar to Wow armoury
   The previous one was player-created, and he knows of no plans to recreate or restore that functionality
9. Will the people who are on the Bounder's Bounty plaques be able to choose which character they want displayed in the future
   When they started sorting out what was going to go on the Bounder’s Bounty plaques it was discovered there was going to be a group of 1,400+ people needing to respond with which character they wanted on the plaque, and that was going to take way too long to organize, so instead they went with the accounts that had the highest count, and which of the characters on that account contributed the most.
10. Will any shard-droppers be added to the newer areas
    He will bring the suggestion to the team
11. Could we get a shard-dropper deed
    Not likely there will ever be a shard-dropper deed
12. Are there any plans to have any discussion based on the feedback to the Producer Letter threads on Housing, Inventory, etc
    The point of those threads was to get an idea of what players were looking for, see what the consensus points were. Even taking into account all those threads on English, German and French forums, at most it is the opinion of maybe 300 people, not a significantly large portion of the player base. So when they seek player feedback they do so through multiple venues, and they look at multiple sources of suggestions and input to see where the consistency lies across all sources of feedback, rather than focusing on one particular forum thread and taking that as the definitive answer to what the players want.
13. Why isn’t this an event for taking a creep somewhere, or staying alive in Hoarhollow
    Because the players created the event, based on some discussions in chat. If the conversation had been different and someone suggested a monster play event, this could have been “Take the Reaver to Hoarhollow”
14. Are there any plans to allow Dwarven ministrels to get legendary axes
    No plans as far as he knows for legendary axes for Dwarven minstrels
15. When is U13 coming
    It is scheduled for March, probably toward the latter end of the month. He doesn’t have a date yet but when he does he will let everyone know.
16. Can we get a Dwarf warden
    No current plans for that to the best of his knowledge
17. Is there any hope of us ever getting a 'gym' that allows us to alter our characters build
    Not likely that will ever happen
18. Will creeps ever be let out into the normal areas
    No plans for that. The Moors was created for creeps, and that’s where they’ll stay
19. Are there plans for any other bare-chested cosmetics
    There was a joking discussion about bare-chested elves at one point, but no, there are no current plans to add more bare-chests. Although he won’t rule it out. He doesn’t usually get a heads up on the art that goes into any update, so he can’t really say or predict whether any particular cosmetic will end up in the game.
20. Any chance of a design a cloak contest
    It’s something they are working on doing right now, but he has no ETA on when it will be ready, there are still some loose ends that need to be tied up
21. Is there a mentoring system planned
    Not as far as he’s aware
22. Is there a way to get a cloak back if you lose it
    Be careful when deleting something, because for the most part once it’s gone, it’s gone
23. Any plans for crafting in homesteads
    It’s been discussed, but he doesn’t know if it will happen, in what form or when. It’s a discussion that’s been happening as part of the larger housing revamp
24. What about rumours of two new open world servers for PvP
    Someone is pulling your leg, there are absolutely no plans for that
25. Can we please get more than 17 character slots
    This is a suggestion he’s made in the past, and he will pass it along again. At one point there was a technical reason for that limit but he doesn’t know if that technical issue still stands.
26. Can you get mobs who are grouped up to be linked so they just don't stand there when you attack their companion
    He’s not aware of any plans to change the way mobs aggro when they are in groups but he will pass the information along
27. Will you be filling in the map with outlying areas such as South Farthing, etc
    MadeOfLions had a great answer to that in the 20 questions the other day. They do fill outlying areas of the map from time to time, but right now we are at an important part of the story so they will probably follow the path of the fellowship more closely for awhile
28. Do you roleplay
    No, he does not
29. Is Gilrain becoming preferred server
    Good question. Next time they have a maintenance he will ask
30. What determines weather in-game, is it based on real world weather somewhere
    No, but it’s not entirely random. There is a day file in the game that gives a region its day/night cycle, etc. and generates weather at what appear to be random times. It’s not based on real world weather or anything like that.
31. Question about a kinship revamp
    Read the Q/A from the other day, there is a bit of information there. Beyond that he can’t really comment.
32. Will we ever see changing seasons during festivals
    No because the regions are locked in time based on the part of the story they appear in. That is why Winterhome was created; to have a wintery region for the winter festival
33. Does your wife play LotRO
    Yes, she does. She is a good healer and plays a captain and a minstrel well, and has several characters at cap.
34. Question about reward for the winner of this event
    There is no formal plan for a reward of any kind beyond bragging rights, which is fitting since the event started because of bragging. Realistically the only thing they will really be able to do for the one server is maybe turn on an enhanced XP weekend.
35. Will there be new festivals or changes to the existing ones in the near future
    Definitely something they are looking at – how can they improve and add to the festivals to keep them exciting. The Anniversary festival is currently being worked on
36. What is your least favourite class
    Doesn’t really have a least favourite, but there are classes he’s not good at. You don’t want him healing your raid, for example.
37. Why does his voice sound different here than in the community updates
    When he does the community updates he doesn’t talk for as long, and they give him professional recording equipment to use which is much better quality.
38. Is there a possibility of people becoming GMs from outside of Turbine HQ area
    No, the positions are in Boston in the Turbine offices. There are a couple of rare exceptions for German and French servers.
39. Do you get free Turbine points
    Yes, in fact he just got his yesterday. Once a quarter they get an allotment of TP for DDO and for LotRO. They get a handful of codes for about 1,500 each.
40. When you first started at Turbine what were you most excited about
    Meeting the team, moving to a place where he had family, working for a game that he’d been playing since closed beta
41. Have you ever done any voiceover work for LotRO
    No, he has not
42. Do you play in a band in LotRO
    No, he doesn’t
43. Advice on getting into radio
    About radio, and it actually also applies to the games industry, get ANY job you can. It might not be the job you want, but a foot in the door and getting to know people goes a long way. He knew guys who started in radio as the janitor. They ended up as major market DJs making 100k a year.
44. What did you get with your 25% off code
    XP and rep boosts
45. What are the most popular classes
    He hasn’t looked in a long time but Hunter and Champ use to be the most popular classes.
46. When will Bullroarer be open for testing
    He’s not sure what the schedule is for BR, but doesn't expect it to be any time soon. Usually it opens a week or so in advance of an update
47. Do the “lucky” named items (rabbit foot, coal etc) have any hidden benefits
    He’s answered that question many times and is surprised people don’t believe him. No, they have no special effect.
48. With the revamps of ND, Trollshaws and MM, will we see graphical updates as well as quest clusters/changes
    Probably not. At least nothing as dramatic as Bree. It's more about making them more playable and improving the flow.
49. Some pics from the run
50. Why did turbine start to add invisible walls to the game
    To prevent people from going to places they aren’t supposed to. In an open world such as LotRO has, sometimes it’s just what you have to do. You can't really make an endless landscape. Also there are ways to get stuck between buildings, in 'yards' and other places that you cannot use /stuck to get out of and a GM cannot teleport you out of. You can lose your character, permanently, if you aren't very careful and sometimes very lucky.
51. Will it be possible, someday, to take a chicken past Isengard (perhaps via a Strange Chicken Nest)
    It might be possible, but he doesn’t know what the plans are for chickens beyond Isengard. Though the devs have spent time recently kicking them about.
52. What keyboard and mouse do you use
    Right now he’s using a Mad Catz STRIKE 7 Keyboard and a RAT 9 wireless mouse. He really loves the mouse but is still adjusting to the keyboard.
53. Was Hobnanigans removed because of animal cruelty
    No it had performance issues
54. What is the right venue to appeal which name was used on the Bounder’s statue
    He doesn't think they are able to make changes now, but whatever the outcome, submitting a ticket is almost definitely not going to be the answer, but he will pass along the suggestion.

These are accurate. Well done again!

[TharbadThief]

These are accurate. Well done again!

Give that guy a title or something He has done good work on sharing accurate information to all of us who do not have the time to listen through all 2+ hour twitch feeds.

[Angadan]

Give that guy a title or something He has done good work on sharing accurate information to all of us who do not have the time to listen through all 2+ hour twitch feeds.

That's a neat idea, Frickinmuck deserves a title. How about Recorder?

[Crell_1]

That's a neat idea, Frickinmuck deserves a title. How about Recorder?

I'd second it as a Forum title.

[Orodbril]

Or Messenger/Summoner/Herald

[frickinmuck]

That's a neat idea, Frickinmuck deserves a title. How about Recorder?

LOL You guys are awesome. Maybe "Know-It-All" would be most accurate!

[Brandon_Blackbird]

LOL You guys are awesome. Maybe "Know-It-All" would be most accurate!

How about "De Scribe-It-All"? hehe

[LethalLethality]

Scribe of Streams

:P

A play on the Lady/Lord of Stream title in game, since she's transcribing the live-streams.

[Angadan]

Scribe of Streams

:P

A play on the Lady/Lord of Stream title in game, since she's transcribing the live-streams.

Yeah, a very nice one

[Brandon_Blackbird]

Scribe of Streams

:P

A play on the Lady/Lord of Stream title in game, since she's transcribing the live-streams.

Oooooh!! I like this one!

[Unique]

That's a neat idea, Frickinmuck deserves a title. How about Recorder?

Lots of good ideas

How about "Town Crier"

[frickinmuck]

How about "Town Crier"

Hehe, that one has a great dual meaning that is all too fitting.

[Cheery]

Thanks for going to all this trouble, Frickenmuck. Information is so much more valuable than opinion. Of course, that's only my opinion.
Your new title should definitely reflect that it is an accolade proposed by your grateful audience.
How about 'Top Reporter'?

[frickinmuck]

Information is so much more valuable than opinion.

100% of why I do this. I was so angry when a bunch of disinformation started spreading after the first couple Hobbits to Isengard events, stuff that made it to gaming sites and blogs outside these forums, that I decided that I would personally take it upon myself to ensure accurate reports came out of these events. The last thing this community needs is more negative, manipulative, opportunistic hysteria.

[Nodwick]

Thanks for the transcript of the Q&A.

[*]Will the people who are on the Bounder's Bounty plaques be able to choose which character they want displayed in the future
When they started sorting out what was going to go on the Bounder’s Bounty plaques it was discovered there was going to be a group of 1,400+ people needing to respond with which character they wanted on the plaque, and that was going to take way too long to organize, so instead they went with the accounts that had the highest count, and which of the characters on that account contributed the most.

This sounds hollow in my ears +Sapience, it is only a big job because the way it was to work was changed after the event was over.
There are many people on the servers who are willing to help you do the job, if it really is to much for the team.
If we read the thread that is about it, it is also shown that it is not the characters whom has contributed the most that is on the list either, there are problems with chars who have gotten a rename and then there are chars on it that doesnt exist.

[Rugongrod]

From Brandywine Last night.

At the gates:

[Bel-Astarte]

I had a blast, even with the whole dying thing. Twice... (me, not the designated Hobbit to be delivered to Saruman's gates.)

[frickinmuck]

Notes from Brandywine coming shortly. I couldn't access the forums all day yesterday, hence the delay.

[frickinmuck]

Please note: I am paraphrasing here. Anything said here is coming through my interpretation of what was said, and is subject to being corrected, so don't take all this as the final word.

If anyone who was present has any additions or corrections, feel free to post.

Q&A Hobbits to Isengard - Brandywine

1. Question about balance
   Balance is constantly being addressed. Some balancing is done with every update. It may not necessarily be called out, but it is there. You can always expect more balancing to be done.
2. Sapience looks over at Aaron’s desk and mentions that Aaron is currently reading the forums. So yes, developers do read the forums.
3. Will multiple mail attachments (coming with U13) add to postage cost
   It seems likely, but he will ask the engineer working on it and get back to us
4. Question about adding new features/functionality to the forums, particularly to make it easier to follow dev posts
   Likely not going to happen. They’re trying to keep the forums as simple as possible to reduce load times and reduce the need for development time.
5. Mention of using the dev tracker to follow dev posts
   Sapience agrees, that is useful since dev posts always show up in the dev tracker
6. When will player council applications open up
   The plan is to open them on March 14. The Player’s Council has been great about making suggestions, so the application will be changing a bit based largely on their feedback
7. Are the council members going to you with ideas and questions, or are you going to them
   It actually works both ways. He wrote up the document for the new announcement and they’ve given feedback on it, and he’s been editing based on their feedback. The announcement we see will be probably about 75% based on their input.
8. Are there any new instances or raids coming
   As they’ve said before, nothing for 2014. Nothing about that has changed, and until you hear differently from them you can assume that it hasn’t changed.
9. Any teases you can give us about the inventory option additions
   It’s an inventory revamp not an itemization revamp, it will be focused on your bags. He’s seen the revisions and says they’re really cool. When U13 gets closer to being put up on Bullroarer he will ask the engineer to sit down and walk everyone through the revamp on livestream so they can see it for themselves.
10. Will the new inventory help with cooking
    It will not change how and what will be stored, it will just enable you to rearrange your bags. For example, you can make them all into one big bag if you want. So it will not really affect the way items themselves are handled. It’s the functionality of the inventory, not the items in it.
11. Discussion of aggro range – it increases as a character goes to levels higher and higher above their own, so that it becomes more and more difficult to stay alive. That isn’t true for chickens, though, because they are meant to go to dangerous places.
12. Are there any itemization changes coming
    They are always adjusting that, but there’s no major revamp in the cards as far as he’s aware
13. Are Misty Mountains and Trollshaws still being revamped for U13
    Yes, they are.
14. Question about bringing back Lifetime accounts
    No plans to do so, sorry.
15. What changes are coming to the Ettenmoors for U13
    Jinjaah just made a post in the forums about that.
16. If someone were to sell a lifetime account, how much would it be worth
    Absolutely nothing, because they would do everything in their power to permanently ban the account. So any money spent on the account would be wasted. That’s true for any account that someone tries to sell. They permanently ban accounts that people buy/sell.
17. How many women are on the LotRO team
    He doesn’t have a number, but it’s more than a half dozen.
18. Why does it seem that some people do something minor and get banned, and others do something heinous and don’t get banned
    A lot of this is based on your perception of what happened rather than what actually happened. Players don’t have all the facts on these situations, so it’s easy to misinterpret. Infractions are cumulative, so someone who did something that seemed minor might have already had 9 previous infractions, and this last one finally pushed them over to the ban. The person doing something more serious, that might have been their first infraction, or they might have actually received consequences you don’t know about. For example, they might have had a short ban of a day or a few days, and just didn’t say anything about it, or they might have had a long conversation with a GM and gotten an unpleasant note on their account, and the next time they do anything something may happen. You just don’t have all the facts, and your perception doesn’t necessarily line up what’s really happening behind the scenes. Everything is handled on a case-by-case basis. What were they doing, when did they do it, what did it impact – that is all up to the GMs.
19. What kind of headset are you using
    It’s a TRITTON headset. At home he’s on a Cyborg FREQ 7, at work it’s the TRITTON. He thinks the TRITTON has slightly better sound quality.
20. Will any quests be removed during the zone revamp
    That is often the case with revamps like this. Quests may be rearranged, altered or removed. He can’t say whether any specific quest will be removed for the upcoming revamps, but it’s likely to happen with at least some.
21. Discussion about lag – turning off post-processing effects alone will clear up a lot of issues. Often what people think of as lag is actually just a performance issue with your PC and not having the settings tuned to what your machine can handle.
22. Are there any LotRO T-shirts available
    They do sometimes have T-shirts available for sale, especially for conventions. Occasionally he gives them away as prizes for various events or contests. So they do exist, they’re just not widely available.
23. Question about playing LotRO on a laptop
    He would never play LotRO on a laptop if there is any way he could at all avoid it, unless he’d just spent a fortune on a screaming hot gaming laptop. He does occasionally play on his laptop at home if he’s crafting or something, with absolutely everything turned way down to their bare minimums. People in the chat disagree with him on that and post various examples of how LotRO plays just fine on laptops. He says his is just really old and not very powerful.
24. Question about bugged Champions
    He can’t answer specific questions on stuff like that, he just doesn’t know. But if you absolutely want to make sure that something is seen and addressed by the devs, something that is a bug, then /bug it. Anything that is bug reported ends up on their internal tracker. Forum posts and the like just don’t fall into that process and are less likely to be seen and addressed.
25. Question about the dev round table livestream
    He did talk to Aaron and some others about that. There are some challenges in terms of getting everyone in a place where they can all sit, have microphones and be on camera. Those types of challenges are relatively easy to overcome, but the logistics of getting it all done is a different matter. He’s going to try to get that together closer to U13. He’s going to get the engineer who did the inventory revamp on to do a livestream, he’s going to try to get Aaron on, and try to get more dev interaction in general. Obviously they’re all really busy right now. Anything like that will definitely be 2 or 3 o’clock eastern time just due to their office hours.
26. Will catapults be in the Moors for U13
    Sapience asked Jinjaah, who was in the office, and he said no, they will not be in for U13.
27. What about using Google Hangouts for the dev event
    Google Hangouts don’t change the basic problem on their side, of getting everyone connected, and they have a lot of limitations that a livestream wouldn’t have. If they have to solve the problem technically anyway, he wants to make sure that they do it in a way that can reach the most people.
28. Will you be adding war goats in the future
    He would be very very surprised if they added war goats in the future. Very entertained, but also very very surprised.
29. What about Skype for the dev round table
    Skype is one of the approaches they are discussing, but that still means making sure all the devs have headsets (which not all do at their desks), and Skype accounts that are not their own personal accounts. Like he said, logistics are the issue, and not a lack of desire or interest.
30. Request to raise stack sizes
    He’s asked in the past to raise stack sizes. Sometimes the devs have a reason for limits, but he will pass along the request.
31. Will there be a crafting wallet
    He knows that it’s been discussed, but doesn’t know if or when it will ever come to pass.
32. What about the official global chat channels
    Official global chat channels is one of the things he keeps pushing whenever he sees an engineer, which probably explains why they now run from him. ? It is being talked about, it’s one of those things they just need to find the time to do. It’s just a question of where does it fit in development.
33. Question about more details on U13
    They will probably start giving more information in a week or two.
34. Have you tried the new prototype of Hobnanigans
    Yes, he has, and it’s a lot of fun. When it’s ready to release he thinks players are going to enjoy it a lot. It’s a lot of fun, and it works. Those who were around for the previous version will remember it had a lot of issues. This one works really well.
35. Question about whether we will have any future ability to redesign our character’s physical appearance
    Not likely to see any options beyond what’s currently available at barbers anytime soon
36. Question about transfer support requests
    He doesn’t have any direct involvement in that, and doesn’t know what their backlog is. He’s sure they will eventually get to people’s requests and to just be patient.
37. Question about level 95 FA symbols
    No current answer on that, sorry. He will look into that next week and post it in this thread when he has an answer so keep checking back.
38. Question about scaling instances
    As per Joe Barry’s answer given in the recent Q&A, there is no content currently set to be scaled
39. Question about checking the status of a ticket
    When you submit a ticket you should get an email response. Reply to the message, don’t change the subject line, and check on it.
40. When you play is it just for fun or do you do find groups too
    Jokes about the implication that grouping isn’t fun. It all depends on what he wants to do at the time. Sometimes it’s group, sometimes it’s crafting, sometimes it’s solo. Sometimes he just picks a server at random, logs into chat and just watches to get an idea of what people are talking about.
41. Question about what’s coming in U13
    If you want a good idea of the changes that are coming for U13, you should check out Aaron’s producer’s letter. Beyond that they will start talking about it in more detail probably within the next week or two as it gets closer to Bullroarer.
42. Will current Big Battles be changed so that we can play them at any size we want
    Nothing he’s heard suggests that’s coming any time soon
43. If you die and it’s clear that the server won’t succeed can we just call it a run
    There is a two try rule, so if he dies or gets stuck during a second attempt, the run is ended
44. Question about Spring and Anniversary festivals
    They’re not on the calendar right now. They are still finalizing the plans on when they will occur, but as soon as it’s finalized, he will add it to the calendar and make a post about it.
45. Will the new anniversary prize be a character portrait
    He doesn’t know. He knows that’s one of the things that was discussed, but has no idea what the final choice was.
46. Question about a megaserver merge
    Sounds like someone has been pulling your leg. There are absolutely no plans whatsoever to merge servers.
47. Who do you think will get the Oscar for best picture
    He thinks 12 Years a Slave absolutely deserves it, but he thinks that it and Dallas Buyers Club will split the vote and make room for Gravity to slip in and take the win.
48. Why are you answering questions about the Oscars and server mergers and not about lag and the future of the game
    He’s been answering those questions all along (if you read through this entire forum thread, you will see that is true). Server lag – when you get a lot of people in a group this large there is going to be issues. In terms of helping you with specific lag problems you may be having, there’s a great post in the forums on it. In terms of the future of the game, read Aaron’s producer’s letter. He talks a lot about what’s coming for U13 and comments on how he will be updating us on what’s coming for 2014 and 2015.
49. Did you guys get a pre-screening of the new Hobbit movie
    He thinks they saw it maybe a day early
50. If you could add one thing to housing that exists in some form in the game already, what would it be
    If he could put Durin’s Bane in his kinship’s front yard, he would do that. And he’s not saying that will happen – it probably never will.
51. What other kinds of games do you play when you’re not playing LotRO
    Mostly flight sims, racing games and some RPGs.
52. Would you ever consider allowing crafting inside housing or kinship houses
    It’s been discussed several times recently, but there’s no plan yet to add it, and it may or may not ever make it into housing.
53. Will you be adding easter eggs in any of the new content
    That is up to the devs and whether they have time to add something into what they are working on.
54. Who or what decides the weather on each server
    It’s a script. Certain places can have certain types of weather, and it happens more or less randomly
55. Will AMD Mantle support be added to LotRO
    Not terribly likely
56. What is your opinion of Brandywine lag
    Considering that this run was one of the less laggy of the runs so far, he thinks it’s pretty good, actually
57. Whose personal project was the LUA implementation
    Two of the Turbine engineers came up with the idea, pitched it and were given the go-ahead to pursue it as a side project
58. Are those engineers still around
    Yes, they are. One of them is currently working on the inventory revamp
59. Will the game be adapted to iPad or iPhone
    The game is monstrous, so that’s not likely unless there are some radical changes to those devices
60. Question about viewing previous runs
    Yes, you can view previous runs on the Twitch stream.
61. Will you use consumables if we send them to you
    No, he will not use any buff of any kind himself. Not for morale and power, not for run speed, not for anything. Players are welcome to put any buffs on his character that they are able to, but he will not use any himself
62. Do you think the bare-chested cosmetic should be available for all races
    The conversation has actually happened before (among the devs), but for his part, he’s neutral on the issue.
63. Player’s Council question
    The current plan is to open applications on March 14th. As for the council members who some devs and others have asked to be on the council, they can still apply, but Turbine will probably reach out to them directly.
64. Will the council size be expanded to accommodate those people who are staying on or being added
    The council size is 30 – 50, and the size of the council will not be expanded. One of the changes that are being made to the council this time is that they will not be listing character names, only forum names. But if you apply for the council and then try to hide your identity you’ve kind of missed the point.
65. Why did myLotRO go bye-bye
    It was a system that was really challenging to support. It couldn’t be fixed, it would have had to be rebuilt from the ground up and would have cost a lot to do because it would have involved changes to the game as well. It simply wasn’t in the cards.