Update 17 Beta #2 Release Notes & Known Issues - PRELIMINARY AND NON-FINAL - BULLROARER ONLY

[zagreb000]

You guys made a whole grindfest out of the Lord of the Rings online. Sometimes i ask myself have you ever played this game. I mean really played not in the god - GM - mode that you can have everything pretty easy?
Do you GMs and people working and having those awesome ideas to make people even more grind know how much time you have to put into only one character to max it out. And i am not talking about leveling.

As you pointed out, its not that there is grind in LOTRO, its that LOTRO is the grind. There is one reason for that, and i dont think that devs are too blame for this. Lack of funding and lack of manpower on Lotro is the main reason. Turbine, over the years has always been spread thin on many projects of which only a few have been successful after Lotro. Some of them massive failures like IC. Currently Lotro is barely drifting above maintenance mode. WB doesnt care enough to fund them and doesnt care enough to shut them down.

When you are in a place like this, where you cannot release major updates that introduce varied content that can keep a player occupied for a longer amount of time without repetition, due to lack of funds, then you have to resort to a cheaper approach. And that is content repetition on a huge scale, aka grinding. Since this has been going on for a time now you go from end-game Lotro that can be seen as "GAME+grind" to "GRIND+GRIND".

This is why i see grinding for max Li only as a means to an end. That end being PVMP where its all about fun after the short gear grind (Aud gear is an awful idea) . If i were only a PvE player i would quit before starting. When i max my LI or acquire gear by grinding BBs, i always feel "dirty" somehow. Like i didnt earn it and i wasted time for the meaningless reward of having the same stuff like everyone else.
I miss the times when we had so much gear variety that even the non raid gear was good. Now everyone has everything and the best gear is the only "go to" gear in the game. Cheapens the game so much.

PVMP, raids, tough content, well written and well thought out quests create memories. Grinding BBs does not. Time spent grinding is forgettable and just molds into one big chunk of wasted time.. its killing time at its worst.

[hurant]

I believe there are too many legacy tiers being unlocked. It makes us grind insane amounts of empowerment scrolls, progressing our characters abilities too fast, making older content much easier to complete.
I suggest making the numbers of legacy tiers possible to be unlocked much smaller.


I'm also going to repeat myself and remind that these two issues deserve an easy and urgent bugfix in my opinion:

- The warden Damage over Time effects from the following skills do not stack with more than one warden applying them:
Spear of Virtue, Piercing Strike, Precise Blow, Unerring Strike
In PvE, This excludes more than one warden participating in instances or raids, unless there are specific conditions.
In PvP, this allows for [intended or not] griefing: a player can remove other's players primary sources of damage, and replace them with much worse sources of damage.


- Champion's Duel skill is counted as a buff, therefore the slow part is impossible to be removed, works on instance bosses, stacks with other slows.
In PvE, this affects NPCs that should be immune to slows.
In PvP, this grants a champion a "make creep stand almost still" ability that cannot be removed by any means.

[Sniz]

As you pointed out, its not that there is grind in LOTRO, its that LOTRO is the grind. There is one reason for that, and i dont think that devs are too blame for this. Lack of funding and lack of manpower on Lotro is the main reason. Turbine, over the years has always been spread thin on many projects of which only a few have been successful after Lotro. Some of them massive failures like IC. Currently Lotro is barely drifting above maintenance mode. WB doesnt care enough to fund them and doesnt care enough to shut them down.

When you are in a place like this, where you cannot release major updates that introduce varied content that can keep a player occupied for a longer amount of time without repetition, due to lack of funds, then you have to resort to a cheaper approach. And that is content repetition on a huge scale, aka grinding. Since this has been going on for a time now you go from end-game Lotro that can be seen as "GAME+grind" to "GRIND+GRIND".

This is why i see grinding for max Li only as a means to an end. That end being PVMP where its all about fun after the short gear grind (Aud gear is an awful idea) . If i were only a PvE player i would quit before starting. When i max my LI or acquire gear by grinding BBs, i always feel "dirty" somehow. Like i didnt earn it and i wasted time for the meaningless reward of having the same stuff like everyone else.
I miss the times when we had so much gear variety that even the non raid gear was good. Now everyone has everything and the best gear is the only "go to" gear in the game. Cheapens the game so much.

PVMP, raids, tough content, well written and well thought out quests create memories. Grinding BBs does not. Time spent grinding is forgettable and just molds into one big chunk of wasted time.. its killing time at its worst.

One of the best posts ever, thanks for taking the time to write it.

[Spilo]

I'm torn about the updated Scrolls/Crystal being added to the merit reward. I'm very grateful that Turbine is actually listening to players and easing the grind. However, I'm not so pleased that we will essentially forced to grind BBs.

[Pavlosh]

The Empowerment Scroll 'grind' doesn't look like much of one to me. In fact I think it will be good fun.*

• Barter at the skirm camp with Marks and Medallions for running all instances and Big Battles
• Barter via Stars of Merit from Big Battles (including the new content)
• Barter via landscape content with West Gondor Coin, East Gondor Coin and Silver/Gold DA Tokens
• Buy from the AH for between 65 and 75 gold

As long as you are 'playing the game' the empowerment scrolls will come.

The original U16 Osgiliath drops were a real Grind, running tough content 120 times per toon for a full set.


* Please create a Raid version of one of these new BBs.

[United-Gamers]

Hello,

I'm French player and my English isn't very well, so I write in French. I expected that you aanswer me in my language.


Je suis excessivement déçu par ce que je viens de voir sur le Bullroarer. On va pouvoir désormais acheter des Cristaux d'eveil d'Anfalas pour quasiment rien du tout... C'est du grand n'importe quoi!!!! Ca l'était déjà depuis la possibilité d'acheter au camp d'escarmouche des symboles 1er age lvl 100. Vous aviez remis un peu ce principe au gout du jour avec le stuff 85 des Raids de la route d'erebor mais vite abandonné

A la base c'était censé être des objets rares et qu'il fallait mériter de gagner en faisant des instances plutot revelées en t2. Ce qui était le cas à l'époque du lvl 75 avec le raid la Tour d'Orthanc. A cette époque, quand un mec exhibait une arme 1 er age tu savais ce qu'il avait fait et tu disais bravo. parce qu'il avait tombé des ailes en T2. Et qu'il fallait connaitre sa classe. Aujourd'hui n'importe quel kikoolol et autre newbie qui ne fait meme pas l'effort de savoir jouer son perso correctement pourra exhiber un stuff de malade alors qu'il sera incapable de tenir sur un dome des etoiles T2 défi ou un ost dunoth. Desormais en farmant quelques Grandes batailles sans grand interet comme Pelargir, plus connu sous le célèbre nom de Pelarnoob sur nombre de serveurs on aura ces raretés. A vaincre sans péril on triomphe sans gloire...

VOilà comment vous avez dégouté des joueurs de qualité qui sont partis sur d'autres univers de jeu. Et vous allez accentué le phénomène en maintenant ceci.


Ce qui faisait l'interet de ce jeu, c'était justement que chaque classe etait complementaire : les interrupt des champions et cambi, le decorrupt, les anti stun du mds, des vraiss stratégies de groupe sur des instances et Raids comme le Temple perdu, Sari Surma, Carn Dum, Ost Dunoth, Fornost, Orthanc. Avec ces grandes Batailles, vous avez tué l'ame de ce jeu en le rendant trop facile : on reflechit à rien et beuuuuh tapperrr..... On a un cerveau un peu plus evolué que celui d'un troll. Et ce qiu faisait plaisir lorsqu'on reussisait une instance, c'était justement d'avoir reflechi à une stratégie de groupe et la difficulté rencontrée pour la réussir.


Rendez nous Lotro !!!!!! Cessez la facilité qui dessert tout le monde. Je ne dis pas qu'il n'en faut pas, ne tombons pas dans l exces inverse mais là trop c'est trop!! Trop de facilités !!!

Cordialement
Adaril, chasseur du serveur Sirannon
confrérie des Héritiers d'Elendil

[Pavlosh]

Hello,

Je suis excessivement déçu par ce que je viens de voir sur le Bullroarer. On va pouvoir désormais acheter des Cristaux d'eveil d'Anfalas pour quasiment rien du tout... C'est du grand n'importe quoi!!!! Ca l'était déjà depuis la possibilité d'acheter au camp d'escarmouche des symboles 1er age lvl 100. Vous aviez remis un peu ce principe au gout du jour avec le stuff 85 des Raids de la route d'erebor mais vite abandonné

Ce qui était rare est maintenant non. L'exigence de 10 Starlit cristaux par LI pour un nouveau joueur signifie qu'ils ne peuvent plus être rares. Imbuement signifie Premier Âge LIs doit être plus facile à obtenir. Les changements de jeu.

Le principal problème est le manque d'un raid, obtenir une bonne raid butin de contenu de l'instance, et si nous aurons un futur pôle de l'instance.

Si cela n'a aucun sens blâmer google translate.

[United-Gamers]

La traduction de google translate est bonne.


Ce qui était rare aurait du le rester. S'il ne le peut, alors il doit etre remplacé par quelque chose de nouveau et de rare. Ce qui etait rare est devenu commun. Et les nouveautés dans le jeu ne sont pas rares mais communes, exceptés les essences de Moral bleue et or.


Pour redonner de l'interet au jeu, La société Turbine se doit de refaire des poles d'instance de la qualité de la série "En leur absence" ou "Une épine dans le pied".


Aujourd'hui les gens ne font plus rien d'autres que farmer la facilité, la simplicité et la rapidité : Glinghant, Sambrog et certaines Grandes Batailles.


Amicalement
Adaril


google translate :

Translation google translate is good.


Which was rare should have stayed on . If he can not , then it must be replaced by something new and rare. What was unusual became common . And the latest game are not rare but common , except the essences of blue and gold Moral.


To restore the interest to the game, Turbine society must redo instance poles of the quality of the series " In their absence " or " a thorn in the side " .


Today people do nothing other than farmer ease, simplicity and speed : Glinghant , Sambrog and some great battles .


Regards
Adaril

[Myrmel]

My Rune Keeper which I use all 3 lines with has 6 Imbued LI's for that one toon alone... I will need 12 Crystals (16 if they increase the passives) and 252 Scrolls... With current prices listed (75/150) I will need 20,700 Stars of merit... That is roughly 200 rounds of Big Battles...

Except, you don’t _need_ any of that for any content in the game whatsoever. You _want_ all that because it gives you satisfaction to have your toon maxed out to the last bit. Which is fair enough, I’m just pointing out that ‘grind’ is relative to your personal sense of achievement – which you have some control over. Lowering expectations concerning the degree to which your six LIs can reasonably maxed out would be entirely sensible considering the degree to which maxed out LIs are not needed in the game (especially not for the BBs that are the content you will be running). The whole thing is rather ironic, I think.

[Aymerik]

Except, you don’t _need_ any of that for any content in the game whatsoever. You _want_ all that because it gives you satisfaction to have your toon maxed out to the last bit. Which is fair enough, I’m just pointing out that ‘grind’ is relative to your personal sense of achievement – which you have some control over. Lowering expectations concerning the degree to which your six LIs can reasonably maxed out would be entirely sensible considering the degree to which maxed out LIs are not needed in the game (especially not for the BBs that are the content you will be running). The whole thing is rather ironic, I think.

Bad point. You don't need to play Lotro either

Mmorpg have never been about rationality.

I personally had to lower my expectations by having only one set of LIs on my RK, which is not satisfactory to me, since i'd like to have a healing set to be effective at this task... And certainly not to run BBs. For players running t2 content - and not just osgiliath - as well as pvpers, you can't say it is not needed :P

[United-Gamers]

Tiens j ai trouvé un nouveau nom pour une de vos nouvelles Grandes Batailles :

La défense de Minas Tirith s'appellera la défonce de Minas Noob


Au fait je vous explique comment on rush une cité en ruines t2 défi 15 minutes en main entre le depart et l'ouverture des coffres ?

[Protos_Angelus]

It's good to see that the prices for Scroll and Star Lit are not sky high, gj of reducing the grinding and making people enjoy LOTRO, not just "grind until you have the <<best>> -.- gear"

[kickman77]

It's good to see that the prices for Scroll and Star Lit are not sky high, gj of reducing the grinding and making people enjoy LOTRO, not just "grind until you have the <<best>> -.- gear"

But than the question becomes what exactly do you need the "best" for... is there a extremely challanging instance or raid I missed somewhere?

Pvp Will become unbalanced and surely those who PvP want a fight not to overpower the other side right?

So why do you need to grind it out?

[Enthrone]

75/150 Merits for Crystal/Empowerment Scrolls is too low and there would be no grind at all.
I prefer 150 for Empowerments and 750 for Star-lit Crystals.

Why on earth would you like to grind even more? Grinding is imho the most fun-killing aspect of this beautiful game. The game should be called The Lord of the Grind. What I personaly really hate, are dailies (and Turbine LOOOOVES them :-)).