New Scholars hall in Bree

[Pontin_Finnberry]

There seems to be a new Scholar's Hall with todays update right across from the Cat Lady's House, nothing is in it yet like NPCs or sturdy also it does not resemble the look of bree at all except when first walk in I'm wondering what use will there be for it?

[TharbadThief]

Yeah, it's "a bit" out of place, both the inside as well as outside of it. Looks very Gondorian. I also thought it would be a scholar's guild hall, but seems it's just a ... hall that has maps, scrolls, books etc. in it, at least for now.

[Pontin_Finnberry]

I did not see the outside missed that, not complaining it looks nice i like it but yes out of place

[greetingsdownunder]

Bree already has a lot of old ruins in it. (Stone Quarter)

Maybe this means the old Bree architecture of the brownish stone work is going to get replaced with updated Gondorian / Arnorien textures.

Bree 3.0 is coming?

[moxieblossom]

This is the new Lore Hall, designed to hold the Mythgard Institute's academic lectures with the Tolkien Professor, as well as concerts and other community events.

For more info, see here: http://mythgard.org/activities/mythg...xploring-lotr/

[Pontin_Finnberry]

This is the new Lore Hall, designed to hold the Mythgard Institute's academic lectures with the Tolkien Professor, as well as concerts and other community events.

For more info, see here: http://mythgard.org/activities/mythg...xploring-lotr/

This is very interesting, i like what i read i would join this

[arch07js1]

This is the new Lore Hall, designed to hold the Mythgard Institute's academic lectures with the Tolkien Professor, as well as concerts and other community events.

For more info, see here: http://mythgard.org/activities/mythg...xploring-lotr/

THAT...is beyond cool. So a regular feature or removing the building after the class is over?

[Cordovan]

THAT...is beyond cool. So a regular feature or removing the building after the class is over?

The class was definitely the inspiration for it, and its intended first user, but we're keeping it around for general use by event-organizers.

[VeryBeary]

The class was definitely the inspiration for it, and its intended first user, but we're keeping it around for general use by event-organizers.

I love it and would use it for Tolkien book club discussions, if I ever revive the one I was running.

[Arnenna]

I did not see the outside missed that, not complaining it looks nice i like it but yes out of place

It looks like someone threw Gondor into the middle of Bree IMO. Very out of place and not nice looking to me

[Arnenna]

This is the new Lore Hall, designed to hold the Mythgard Institute's academic lectures with the Tolkien Professor, as well as concerts and other community events.

For more info, see here: http://mythgard.org/activities/mythg...xploring-lotr/

This part of it is very cool, and I look forward to that. The hall itself is too Gondorian for my taste though, and right smack in the middle of Bree. I don't like the Gondorian look and feel much at all. It's great in Gondor of course, but I wouldn't want it as my neighbourhood and hence, not fussed on it taking over less grand locations I travel through.

[TharbadThief]

This is the new Lore Hall, designed to hold the Mythgard Institute's academic lectures with the Tolkien Professor, as well as concerts and other community events.

For more info, see here: http://mythgard.org/activities/mythg...xploring-lotr/

The class was definitely the inspiration for it, and its intended first user, but we're keeping it around for general use by event-organizers.

That does sound cool, and as soon as I noticed the lack of NPCs in the building, I thought there must be some deeper reason for the area to exist in the first place.

So, could one of the lecture topics be "The history and architecture of Tolkien's Bree compared to the Bree in LotRO"

[Nzin]

That thing looks atrocious and completely out of place in Bree. Yet another good idea implemented very poorly.

[WickedWitch99]

That just looks so wrong..... wings in Bree.....

[NeebPlayer]

The interior looks very much like a lecture room and tbh, I like it. I don't know what prompted them to make this in Gondorian style, but whatever...

The extretior of the building is hidden very well among the houses. You can't see it from anywhere in Bree. If you search for it among the rooftops you can spot some parts, but that's all.

At first, I panicked when I saw this thread but then I went in-game and all is good.

[Mar-Evayave]

I felt it looked like Gondor meets Rohan (horse banners), but I do like it. I agree that it doesn't really meet the feel of the rest of Bree, but I wholeheartedly approve of the idea. We have stages for bands and the such, but there are not really a whole lot of places that are designed for lore-admirers.

Is there a lore reason for its architecture?

[mithelenthor]

I'm sorry but if this is the lazy level of what is to come from SSG then hopes are really low.

I mean ¹⁰/₁₀ for intent and even the content, love the touch of the maps but Gondorian carbon copy in Bree !!

Unless you are blatantly trying to sell the look of those expensive premium houses which is shocking in itself then come on and put a little effort in.

I would have preferred to have seem a carbon copy of Bree craft hall or auction house or the hunters lodge rather than this nonsensical attempt.

Please tell me Mordor isn't going to be a carbon copy of Angmar. An Angmar 2.0? Mind you if you can catch the level of epic magic that Angmar gave it wouldn't be at all bad.

Please try harder, Mythgard deserves better....

[Altair6]

Well, Prof Olsen, for whom it was primarily built, seemed to think it was charming when he visited it on his Twitch stream earlier.

[Erennor]

It is disappointing.

In a sense, it is somewhat disturbing to see the game-world been treated again and again in this and other ways. First, the mannequins, later Lalia's market, then yet another out of character visual addition, the new park in Michel Delving with all the plaques dedicated for the servers. And now this.

Do not mistake me. The good will behind it, to create such a place especially for the lore lessons/discussions initiated by Corey Olsen, the Tolkien scholar, is understood, acknowledged, and well taken. Yet, as another player said above, the delivery is rather poor, and yet another addition that looks out of place and seems to take no, or little consideration for the setting around it. Without going into much detail and lengthy feedback, for this time, sadly Bree-town is probably the most painful example the game has when it comes to visual interpretation from the books (and in this aspect the movies were much more faithful to the source than LotRO). All the banners and guards and weapons give a very formalized and ordered impression whereas in the books it does not seem so. And now we have this interior which has banners from Rohan, Gondor, and in general the architecture seems and feels disconnected from Bree.

It is too much. And this exaggeration, of overdoing things visually, has sadly reared its face in game and has spoiled a few other places too (swans, head statues, and wings in Dol Amroth, and elsewhere).

When a simple, yet satisfactory looking just like other interiors in Bree-land, would have served well and at the same time connect seamlessly with the imagery of the place, one may reasonably point out that the artist/designer in charge should not feel the need/urge to take the other, opposite direction. It is not only needless, but negatively impacts the visual presentation. The artists responsible for the visualization of Rohan have done a spectacular work (though sadly some were let go) with the lands and interiors perfectly designed for the area. The same is desperately needed for this new interior. Consider redesigning to match the imagery of Bree.

(and there was already a house of lore in Bree which could have been used. The 'scholar's archives', as the screenshots above show)

To the artist/s responsible: just like the original art team achieved many years ago for the launch of the game with all the Shadows of Angmar regions, and later with Moria, you can do more with less, and yet impress. I say this in good will. If we want LotRO to keep the high visual standard it has always had, due to the marvelous artistry and visualization shown across the world, take a look at what the former artists have done, and how they have delivered, and bear that in mind for new works. Sometimes less is more.






(And just to avoid any confusion, and if my words have not already shown this before, I am one of the biggest admirers of LotRO's artistry and visualizations in-game. The art team of LotRO has done a remarkable work, the latest example being North Ithilien. But, there are exceptions, and this new addition seems to be the most recent one).

[TearMaker]

Well, Prof Olsen, for whom it was primarily built, seemed to think it was charming when he visited it on his Twitch stream earlier.

In all honesty, what do you think he could say? Thank you for going to the effort for me but its an abhorrence?



Someone stated it isn't very obvious - I disagree, you can spot it easily. But walk inside - and enough said, completely out of character for the Bree I read about (I could be wrong and frequently am)

.............................. ...........EDIT............... .......

It could seem that I am possibly on the wrong side of jumping in with both feet....

On reading a little further into Breeland and Bree history it would seem that during the Dark Years, the Bree-landers managed to survive through the violent history of Middle-earth until they were absorbed into Arnor.
Arnor was founded at the end of the Second Age by Elendil. Elendil was the father of Isildur and Arnarion who founded Gondor at the same time he was Arnor.

So, at a stretch and I mean a fairly long stretch, I guess there could be an argument for it. But it does look extremely out of place. You would need to add more Gondorian architecture and not as ostentatious to make it look less out of place.

[peachykins]

It is disappointing.

In a sense, it is somewhat disturbing to see the game-world been treated again and again in this and other ways. First, the mannequins, later Lalia's market, then yet another out of character visual addition, the new park in Michel Delving with all the plaques dedicated for the servers. And now this.

Do not mistake me. The good will behind it, to create such a place especially for the lore lessons/discussions initiated by Corey Olsen, the Tolkien scholar, is understood, acknowledged, and well taken. Yet, as another player said above, the delivery is rather poor, and yet another addition that looks out of place and seems to take no, or little consideration for the setting around it. Without going into much detail and lengthy feedback, for this time, sadly Bree-town is probably the most painful example the game has when it comes to visual interpretation from the books (and in this aspect the movies were much more faithful to the source than LotRO). All the banners and guards and weapons give a very formalized and ordered impression whereas in the books it does not seem so. And now we have this interior which has banners from Rohan, Gondor, and in general the architecture seems and feels disconnected from Bree.

It is too much. And this exaggeration, of overdoing things visually, has sadly reared its face in game and has spoiled a few other places too (swans, head statues, and wings in Dol Amroth, and elsewhere).

When a simple, yet satisfactory looking just like other interiors in Bree-land, would have served well and at the same time connect seamlessly with the imagery of the place, one may reasonably point out that the artist/designer in charge should not feel the need/urge to take the other, opposite direction. It is not only needless, but negatively impacts the visual presentation. The artists responsible for the visualization of Rohan have done a spectacular work (though sadly some were let go) with the lands and interiors perfectly designed for the area. The same is desperately needed for this new interior. Consider redesigning to match the imagery of Bree.

(and there was already a house of lore in Bree which could have been used. The 'scholar's archives', as the screenshots above show)

To the artist/s responsible: just like the original art team achieved many years ago for the launch of the game with all the Shadows of Angmar regions, and later with Moria, you can do more with less, and yet impress. I say this in good will. If we want LotRO to keep the high visual standard it has always had, due to the marvelous artistry and visualization shown across the world, take a look at what the former artists have done, and how they have delivered, and bear that in mind for new works. Sometimes less is more.






(And just to avoid any confusion, and if my words have not already shown this before, I am one of the biggest admirers of LotRO's artistry and visualizations in-game. The art team of LotRO has done a remarkable work, the latest example being North Ithilien. But, there are exceptions, and this new addition seems to be the most recent one).

There's nothing wrong with Laila's Market. It's better then the mannequins. I just wish they would update the market with different stuff.

Speaking of over doing it, imo they also went overboard with the added frill garbage. It's so bad that I cannot have any frills anymore because I cannot stand looking at the extra they added.

[Nogen]

The class was definitely the inspiration for it, and its intended first user, but we're keeping it around for general use by event-organizers.

First and foremost of all kudos to you and your team!
This is one magnificent looking Hall of Lore/Scholars! Who would think LOTRO is a ten year old game? The fires (please add the brazier to DA barter as thin furniture), the maps(!!!), mountains of scrolls, the way the furniture is arranged and even refreshments...?
I mean WHOA!



Regarding the exterior I wish to say 2 things.
No. 1:

The extretior of the building is hidden very well among the houses. You can't see it from anywhere in Bree. If you search for it among the rooftops you can spot some parts, but that's all.

100% this!


No. 2:
Let's take a sizable step back here and try to look at the bigger picture!
I. This is an excellent opportunity for SSG to showcase some of what LOTRO has in store and to attract more people to the game.
II. Logistics! You want to deliver the newcomers to an area safely and fast while not missing out on opportunities to 'show off'. I don't think anyone could argue that Bree is the obvious choice for this. It is a safe, low-level (yet not starter) area with plenty of life and colour and not only that but safe to get to from any of the starter zones.
III. The architecture. There is no structure in Bree that could possibly house such a grandiouse hall:
a., you could design a structure from scratch that has both the capacity and the looks - however this takes time and SSG is barely 3 weeks old... give them a break, will you?!
b., you could create an 'instanced' hall accessiable through one of the (rather tiny) terraced houses' doors from the Scholar's Walk that would make everyone feel like Alice in Wonderland or
c., you could use an existing structure from a forward area of the game that has the capacity and give it your best to hide it - also adding a 'transition' hall not to even show the front of the building.

Do I think this is the best possible implementation? Of course not.
Am I willing to accept this as a necessary compromise given the above? I sure am!

P.S.: My observation is that Cordovan and the Dev. Team have been doing a rather good job the past couple of months / year. They not only listen to and interact with players but are actively asking the community for feedback that they later on use to improve everybody's experience. Why couldn't this be the next opportunity? Try to be constructive with the comments and you might even see it changed! Some of you seem very unforgiving and lowly in their commenting for no apparent reason.

[Marancil]

The Gondorian style is not to be had in Bree. Bree architecture was influenced by the Northern Kingdom, Arnor, and the closest we have to that are all the ruins around Bree-land and Shire, even Annuminas to some extent.
So, as many already told you guys, high marks for effort, but style is seriously lacking. Read above for concrete tips on execution, in particular Erennors post.

[greetingsdownunder]

It is true that the Gondor building is difficult to spot from STREET LEVEL in Bree.

Here is the building from a rooftop in NW Bree, you can see the Prancing Pony on the left in this image, and the Gondorian rooftop on the right.



Also, the Gondor building is a clear feature from in front of the Cat lady's home. The label is simply "Door" for the new Scholar's Hall

[Frebor]

Nice idea, but indeed the design is completely wrong. Either move it to MT or somewhere in Evendim, either replace it with "Breeland-ruins". Actually I kinda like the brownish Anorian ruins in Breeland and other parts of Eriador, what was wrong with keeping those?