Fimal epic story reward

[Valakircka]

hello everyone!
i m opening this thread after completing the u20 epic volume n feeling very upset about how small it was n the luck of a nice reward!
i really want to see what you people believe it will be a propert reward of completing the final battle in the next update or expansion!
i have something in my mind but i m looking forward to see your thoughts about it!
goodday to all!

[djheydt]

hello everyone!
i m opening this thread after completing the u20 epic volume n feeling very upset about how small it was n the luck of a nice reward!
i really want to see what you people believe it will be a propert reward of completing the final battle in the next update or expansion!
i have something in my mind but i m looking forward to see your thoughts about it!
goodday to all!

Well, I'm not sure what you mean by "reward." If there's a piece of Phat Lewt that sometimes drops and sometimes doesn't and you didn't get it, I can understand that you feel miffed.

I, for my part, was delighted with how closely the update followed the book.

Do keep in mind that the end of the epic takes us *exactly* to the end of Chapter 10, "The Black Gate Opens," of Book 5 in The Return of the King. Pippin has just killed a huge troll and it's fallen atop him, splat.

Blackness and stench and crushing pain came upon Pippin, and his mind fell away into a great darkness.

"So it ends as I guessed it would," his thought said, even as it fluttered away, and it laughed a little within him ere it fled, almost gay it seemed to be casting off at last all doubt and care and fear. And then even as it winged away into forgetfulness it heard voices, and they seemed to be crying in some forgotten world far above:

"The Eagles are coming! The Eagles are coming!"

For one moment more Pippin's thought hovered. "Bilbo!" it said. "But no! That came in his tale, long long ago. This is my tale, and it is ended now. Good-bye!" And his thought fled far away and his eyes saw no more.

So Pippin thinks he is dead; and that is where U20 leaves us, thinking he is dead -- and then we have a cut scene pulling back northward past the Argonath, and then returning southward, with the sound of the beating of wings.

That chapter is followed by the beginning of Book 6, three chapters covering the end of Frodo, Sam, and Gollum's journey to Orodruin, and the fall of the Ring.

Chapter 4, "The Field of Cormallen," returns to the Battle at the Black Gate, just as the Eagles arrive and the Nazgul turn and fly away -- not from the Eagles, whom they could probably take one-on-one, but because they have been summoned back to Mordor, but it's too late:

But Gandalf lifted up his arms and called once more in a clear voice.

"Stand, Men of the West! Stand and wait! This is the hour of doom."

And even as he spoke the earth rocked beneath their feet. Then rising swiftly up, far above the Towers of the Black Gate, high above the mountains, a vast searing darkness sprang into the sky, flickering with fire. The earth groaned and quaked. The Towers of the Teeth swayed, tottered, and fell down; the mighty rampart crumbled; the Black Gate was hurled in ruin, and from far away, now dim, now growing, now mounting to the clouds, there came a drumming rumble, a roar, a long echoing roll of ruinous noise.

"The realm of Sauron is ended!" said Gandalf. "The Ring-bearer has fulfilled his Quest."

That's what we are going to get in U21. I do not attempt to guess how MoL and his colleagues are going to express it, but I suspect some session plays and/or visions, followed by a great big humongous glorious cut-scene.

Followed, I hope, by scenes of Orcs cowering and gibbering and running away or dropping dead. And since the evil Men are not bound to Sauron's will, but were in it for what they could get out of it, they'll continue to fight and there will be plenty of fighting.

So between the culmination of the plot, for the Lore-mavens, and lots of fighting for the fighting-mavens, there will be plenty of reward for all. Whether there will also be Phat Lewt, I neither know nor care.

[djheydt]

So Pippin thinks he is dead; and that is where U20 leaves us, thinking he is dead -- and then we have a cut scene pulling back northward past the Argonath, and then returning southward, with the sound of the beating of wings.

Which scene, by the way, is not up on the "Movie Library" yet. Will it be, eventually? Such a lovely hint of eucatastrophe.

[Arnenna]

Which scene, by the way, is not up on the "Movie Library" yet. Will it be, eventually? Such a lovely hint of eucatastrophe.

I've not seen the final scene yet, and I've run the epic four times so far. I get ported (via normal loading screen) to speak to Aragorn for the final hand in.

Both Black Gate movie scenes are open in my movie library, but neither of them will play (I've made MoL aware of it), so there is a problem there somewhere. I'm sure they will get it fixed soon enough - it's the Epic afterall, and that's always awesome.

@ the OP.

If you're talking about the teal cloak, yes, it's a bit underwhelming, however there is a gold version which is much better once you complete the four rep grinds. I'd prefer to see the better of two similar rewards behind the Epic (to keep the Epic feel of it), but with the rainstorm of complaints about a gold cloak being a reward on the MT epic, I can't say I blame the team for not doing it that way this time. Some screamed holy murder over it, and unfortunately, the team listened to them.

[Oelle]

Which scene, by the way, is not up on the "Movie Library" yet. Will it be, eventually? Such a lovely hint of eucatastrophe.

I just watched that once, but near to its end, the game just shut down, so I didn't hear those wings, sadly...

[Valakircka]

what i ment with my post is that i d like to see a really good reward for completing The war of the ring.........

Faramir got Ithilien
Hobbits are getting the towers
Elves are traveling west
Dwarves got Moria not to mention the lonely mountain years before
Men are taking almost everything

after all these battles, the suffering, the all night raids.........
after all the deaths, the frinds we made n most of them lost in the passing of the years,
the kins we raised n we lost by not compliting raids n tiers.......
Why not getting a nice piece of land for reward?
i believe the king should reward us with land n a small town in it, to build a stronghold by completing quests n defend the area.

[OldMadeOfLions]

i believe the king should reward us with land n a small town in it, to build a stronghold by completing quests n defend the area.

Hytbold?

MoL

[Pontin_Finnberry]

i believe the king should reward us with land n a small town in it, to build a stronghold by completing quests n defend the area.

As MoL said "Hytbold" we already rebuilt that town and defended it, but if you mean from scratch i don't see it happening.

[Oelle]

Hytbold?

MoL

Yea, but please as a kinship-area which is alive as there are vault and crafting stuff and all that.
Otherwise yes, just like hytbold. Just with more grind as kinships have more ressources than single players (oops, did i say that? ) so you'd need several years to build up the whole thing as a soloplayer but may do it in some months with a kin.

No, really, it would make sense to get some kind of kinzone at the bordors of gondor once the war is over. There are still enemies around and there is much to be rebuilt. And its usual that kings reward their loyal heroes with land. And its cool to have land. And other games have it and its awesome (as long as there is a reason to be in those zones, not like hytbold, which you build up and leave). For example, I played Neverwinter Online for half a year, just because of its kinship-fortress-zone-stuff. That was really cool.

And it could be used as a goldsink, which lotro really lacks.

However, I see how hytbold will sadly be the reason why it wont happen.
Still, a kin revamp should happen and this would be a really nice part of it.

[Arnenna]

I may be just me, but I'd see a present - such as a Hytbolt style thing, as work! Not reward lol.

Hey guys, you did it, you worked your butts off for 111(?) levels, through 26 regions and countless quests and deeds - here's some more grind as your prize

"whisper - pssst . . . we'll get that anyway".

For me, that iconic moment is all about one thing - the one ring, and it's destruction. IMO, the most fitting reward IMO, would be a broken ring. No stats as such, just some absorbed magical power from the event. Kinda like a horseshoe, that actually does something.

[LagunaD2]

Hytbold?

MoL

Triggered...


What I am mainly hoping for is an eagle-flight into Mordor with Gandalf, to pick up the Hobbits.

Maybe the epic quest reward could be one of the Rings of Power, as appropriate for each race:

Race of Men get one of the nine rings.
Fat, stinky Dorfs get one of the seven rings.
Elfs get one of the three rings.
Hobbits, of course, get to keep the one ring...which was in their possession for almost the entirety of the Third Age anyway...

[siipperi]

Give few housing items in style of Vol 1.

Edit. Or was it Vol 3? Who remembers..

[Urwendil]

Give few housing items in style of Vol 1.

Edit. Or was it Vol 3? Who remembers..

Both.

[BotLike]

hello everyone!
i m opening this thread after completing the u20 epic volume n feeling very upset about how small it was n the luck of a nice reward!
i really want to see what you people believe it will be a propert reward of completing the final battle in the next update or expansion!
i have something in my mind but i m looking forward to see your thoughts about it!
goodday to all!

Well , personally , i am more than happy with the class trait point and the filthy cloak cosmetic.
That said , next book is " O-M-G can't wait " so we really need to get something cool and unique!!!
I can drop a tone of ideas but i trust MoL will get it right regardless ;d

[greetingsdownunder]

As far as I can recall, almost never in LOTRO's history did the epic book give a Best in Slot item for their current end-game levels.

Hytbold?

MoL

I still have a bone to pick about that place.

1. You make us Thane of Hytbold, but we don't get a "Return to Hytbold" skill auto-bestowed? lame.
2. Spend all that time becoming Thane, and no Rohirrim NPC ever addresses us as Thane after earning the title. Not even Eomer addresses us that way.
3. We get farmland and crafting for all that work, but no vault, or auction hall? ugh.
4. Should have been a personal homestead there :P But I know housing tech wasn't compatible at the time for that.

[Valakircka]

Hytbold?

MoL

thanks for responding!

Hytbold is a village in Rohan one of the many we helped on our way to Gondor
we got a title but we cant call it home n there are no quests to defend it n if there was, at lvl 105 none will be interested to do it
i mean something end game, something more interactive,
maybe like the neighborhoods with quests given by npc to fefend an attack from black numenoreans for example
maybe a casttle with an open area allowing creep players to enter n siege
smiths, farms, cattle, all over the place.

[Estelrandir]

thanks for responding!

Hytbold is a village in Rohan one of the many we helped on our way to Gondor
we got a title but we cant call it home

That title says the player rules the Hytbold. What do you want more? Hytbold is truly ours. While there isn´t everything (like crafting guilds, bank, action hall), there are many things.

And in its time it was the endgame. Even if SSG brings something similar, with the update after it it won´t be endgame anymore.

Hm, it would be interesting to have such place which can be always up to date. Similar to rewards in the instances of the week, which are always updated.

[kickman77]

Here is my question... the final cutscene are we a fell beat or an eagle? Could be either IMO and it left me wondering.

But MoL great job as always on the epic (especially the easter eggs if you sit around with same and frodo)

[Oelle]

That title says the player rules the Hytbold. What do you want more? Hytbold is truly ours. While there isn´t everything (like crafting guilds, bank, action hall), there are many things.

And in its time it was the endgame. Even if SSG brings something similar, with the update after it it won´t be endgame anymore.

Hm, it would be interesting to have such place which can be always up to date. Similar to rewards in the instances of the week, which are always updated.

It could just be an instanced zone with scaling like for epic battles with scaled rewards just like for epic battles.
And this combined with being a kinship-wide zone and a village with everything one needs like a kinship-vault that fits that name (so more than just 200 storage slots that are kin-tradeable, maybe need big effort to unlock them though) and a free teleport for all kinnies might make it a relevant zone to be. forever. Just look at what Neverwinter Online did for their guild-castle-system (although i hated nearly everything else in that game, this made me play it for half a year). Players of all levels can contribute and you get stuff for endgame. lotro already knows how to scale items, so why not just use it?
Yea, Hytbold is truly ours, but without a free teleport and a vault and without anything to do there at other levels than 85... its boring.

[Arnenna]

Here is my question... the final cutscene are we a fell beat or an eagle? Could be either IMO and it left me wondering.

But MoL great job as always on the epic (especially the easter eggs if you sit around with same and frodo)

I still haven't seen it. Seems there was a problem with my game not downloading the files (Mol has been exceptionally helpful in trying to get to the bottom of it for me). I have a couple of options. See if I can copy the files over from hubby's machine, or a reinstall of the game (not the preferable option).

You have me all curious now though, I take it by your post that we only hear wings, and not see eagles

[djheydt]

Triggered...


What I am mainly hoping for is an eagle-flight into Mordor with Gandalf, to pick up the Hobbits.

Yes, we might get that as a cut scene, and that would be delightful. NOT a session play, since the Eagles transported Gandalf to Orodruin, and brought him, Frodo, and Sam back. One passenger per Eagle. We weren't there.

Maybe the epic quest reward could be one of the Rings of Power, as appropriate for each race:

Race of Men get one of the nine rings.
Fat, stinky Dorfs get one of the seven rings.
Elfs get one of the three rings.
Hobbits, of course, get to keep the one ring...which was in their possession for almost the entirety of the Third Age anyway...

Oh, don't be silly. The Nine and the Seven were destroyed with the One on which they were dependent. The Three faded, and were taken back to Valinor. The One is toast. Have you read the books?

[djheydt]

I still haven't seen it. Seems there was a problem with my game not downloading the files (Mol has been exceptionally helpful in trying to get to the bottom of it for me). I have a couple of options. See if I can copy the files over from hubby's machine, or a reinstall of the game (not the preferable option).

You have me all curious now though, I take it by your post that we only hear wings, and not see eagles

That's right. We get what's called an omniscient viewpoint, or camera's-eye view. And the wingbeats can't be those of the fell-beasts, because they were all hovering over the battle. There was a silent pull-back from the battlefield all the way up Anduin past the Argonath, and then flying back toward the battle with the sound of wings. The Eagles are definitely coming.

And I continue to hope that MoL or somebody, in their copious free time, will be able to add that sequence to the movie library, because it's beautiful.

[greetingsdownunder]

That's right. We get what's called an omniscient viewpoint, or camera's-eye view. And the wingbeats can't be those of the fell-beasts, because they were all hovering over the battle. There was a silent pull-back from the battlefield all the way up Anduin past the Argonath, and then flying back toward the battle with the sound of wings. The Eagles are definitely coming.

And I continue to hope that MoL or somebody, in their copious free time, will be able to add that sequence to the movie library, because it's beautiful.

True, we already know the Eagles are in the Great River, sent by Gwaihir to find a creature that came out of Moria. And that screen cap starts in the Wold / East Wall. So it's plausible that Meneldor and Landroval are still in the area.

So my guess, it is the Eagles on their way to meet with us and Gandalf at the start of Mordor Expansion to bring us inside.

[Oelle]

True, we already know the Eagles are in the Great River, sent by Gwaihir to find a creature that came out of Moria. And that screen cap starts in the Wold / East Wall. So it's plausible that Meneldor and Landroval are still in the area.

So my guess, it is the Eagles on their way to meet with us and Gandalf at the start of Mordor Expansion to bring us inside.

Why would the eagles need to bring us inside? We could just walk, couldn't we?
Afair, Aragorn sends some troops inside to destroy some castles... just to be sure. I guess thats us.

[greetingsdownunder]

Why would the eagles need to bring us inside? We could just walk, couldn't we?
Afair, Aragorn sends some troops inside to destroy some castles... just to be sure. I guess thats us.

by bring, I should have used "usher" Meaning, clear the way. We know the men of Gondor and Gandalf cry allowed that the "Eagles are Coming" just as Pippen is being overcome in darkness after felling a troll at the battle. And we know that three of the great Eagles carry Gandalf into Mordor.

And you're right that we must be the lucky few that go in to destroy the leftover castles.