Where do the GM's hang out ?

[Falathrin123]

I'm not too sure if this question has been asked before, but I would like to know if anyone has any idea on where the GM's toons hang out ?

You hardly ever see them, and I know they have toons because one time one was running circles around me with super speed in Eregion. I remember him laughing at me and then disappearing in a flash.

Do you think they have an area in game where players can not reach ? or do you think they're invisible?

Just a question I've always wondered about.

[BerensBane]

Only the shadow knows for sure .... The devs don't advertise this. You may have one or two in your kin and not even know it

[Sapience]

GMs and other Turbine staff hang out...everywhere. We have normal accounts we play on and interact with players on a regular basis. You may have had one or more of us in your group and never known.

When logged in for official business, we remain.....hidden.

[Falathrin123]

lol i don't think so, they always have + in front of their names.

[Hezak]

In Mordor, of course.

[aleczander]

lol i don't think so, they always have + in front of their names.

true, but unless they announce their presence in GLFF or something, you have no way of knowing they're there.

We need some more Amarthiel sightings!

[Falathrin123]

GMs and other Turbine staff hang out...everywhere. We have normal accounts we play on and interact with players on a regular basis. You may have had one or more of us in your group and never know.

When logged in for official business, we remain.....hidden.

o.O That is very interesting. I had no idea, so they're everywhere! or so to speak.

lol, I'm guessing hidden means Invisible

Thanks for the insight.

[TsarithArcher]

Not sure about the GMs but the Devs do play LOTRO, but they are incognito and look just like any other player when they do so. No one knows their secret identities in-game, although some of them have openly declared what Servers they play on.

Considering that Players were locked out of Squirrel Valley, that enigmatic place above Ost Guruth with a solitary Hobbit playing his flute to a circle of attentive squirrels, perhaps this is the secret Meeting Place of GMs. Although all of them were strangely silent to the Players, perhaps they acted to GMs and Devs the same way that those NPCs in the Eyes & Guard Tavern on Bullroarer do.

Every once in a while I wonder if the GMs toy with Players. I one time ran into a "Super" Terminator Brigand in Evendim. I drew Aggro on a Grey Mob near Canadiach that I shouldn't have and I couldn't shake them, no matter how far I ran, and although they looked like a normal Grey Mob, the Guard NPCs in Ost Forod couldn't hit it (kept showing Miss, Miss, Evade) nor could I damage it (showing Miss, Miss, Evade for me too) even though it wasn't showing Anti-Exploit Mode. Eventually, right before I was about to run through the Gate to Forochel at Tyrn Fornech the Grey Mob took me down for the count, even though I was 10+ levels above it (which means it shouldn't have been able to hit me). The only explanation I had, to this day, was that a GM was having some fun at my expense. Although at the time it bothered the heck out of me, in retrospect it was one of my more memorable moments in-game.

I know in other MMOs, the GMs, when bored, will play with the Players. However, I suspect that the GMs in LOTRO are more often over-taxed and busy to do such, at least very often.

[Falathrin123]

Not sure about the GMs but the Devs do play LOTRO, but they are incognito and look just like any other player when they do so. No one knows their secret identities in-game, although some of them have openly declared what Servers they play on.

Considering that Players were locked out of Squirrel Valley, that enigmatic place above Ost Guruth with a solitary Hobbit playing his flute to a circle of attentive squirrels, perhaps this is the secret Meeting Place of GMs. Although all of them were strangely silent to the Players, perhaps they acted to GMs and Devs the same way that those NPCs in the Eyes & Guard Tavern on Bullroarer do.

Every once in a while I wonder if the GMs toy with Players. I one time ran into a "Super" Terminator Brigand in Evendim. I drew Aggro on a Grey Mob near Canadiach that I shouldn't have and I couldn't shake them, no matter how far I ran, and although they looked like a normal Grey Mob, the Guard NPCs in Ost Forod couldn't hit it (kept showing Miss, Miss, Evade) nor could I damage it (showing Miss, Miss, Evade for me too) even though it wasn't showing Anti-Exploit Mode. Eventually, right before I was about to run through the Gate to Forochel at Tyrn Fornech the Grey Mob took me down for the count, even though I was 10+ levels above it (which means it shouldn't have been able to hit me). The only explanation I had, to this day, was that a GM was having some fun at my expense. Although at the time it bothered the heck out of me, in retrospect it was one of my more memorable moments in-game.

I know in other MMOs, the GMs, when bored, will play with the Players. However, I suspect that the GMs in LOTRO are more often over-taxed and busy to do such, at least very often.

LOL, very cool.
So it killed you with ease ? or 1 morale at a time ?

[Yula_the_Mighty]

lol, I'm guessing hidden means Invisible

Turbine game masters in all their games have the ability to be next to you. Invisible watching. There is no possibility of you knowing that the game master is there. Unless they want you to know it. The mobs will not aggro, attack or damage them.

Turbine game masters can one shot anything in game including players. It is very possible for a Game master to spawn the Rift Balrog. Have someone tag it. Blow the Rog away with a single shot so you can get the loot. Odds this is restricted to the senior game masters like my favorite +Geneva+

[CoranisDoJ]

GMs and other Turbine staff hang out...everywhere. We have normal accounts we play on and interact with players on a regular basis. You may have had one or more of us in your group and never know.

When logged in for official business, we remain.....hidden.

I bet they're probably responsible for some of the legendary bad pick up group stories we have heard . I can see an out of control dev 'accidentally' pulling a bunch of mobs and wiping an instance group out of revenge.

[TsarithArcher]

LOL, very cool.
So it killed you with ease ? or 1 morale at a time ?

If I recall, it was doing @ 230 Morale Common Damage per ranged strike...far more than it should have been doing. It wasn't enough to stop me from running away, half-way across Evendim, but eventually it was more than my ICMR could handle (after my Pots were on cool-down).

I have been approached by a +GM character a couple of times as well. Usually they would ask me what I'm doing back when I used to do 8 hour Mat Gathering runs, or doing something erratic. After explaining myself they would go on their way, apparently satisfied that I wasn't a Script Bot or up to no good. I just figured I must have been /reported for being a Champ with no Kinship Affiliation doing something repetitive or odd (which back in SoA most people took those characteristics to signify a Gold Farmer which would get you /reported for the most innocuous of activities).

[Falathrin123]

Turbine game masters in all their games have the ability to be next to you. Invisible watching. There is no possibility of you knowing that the game master is there. Unless they want you to know it. The mobs will not aggro, attack or damage them.

Turbine game masters can one shot anything in game including players. It is very possible for a Game master to spawn the Rift Balrog. Have someone tag it. Blow the Rog away with a single shot so you can get the loot. Odds this is restricted to the senior game masters like my favorite +Geneva+

Hah, suck up

I've had a few senior GM's reply to me, does it mean they are old ? or just higher ranked, because they always seemed nicer and less robotic lol

[Falathrin123]

If I recall, it was doing @ 230 Morale Common Damage per ranged strike...far more than it should have been doing. It wasn't enough to stop me from running away, half-way across Evendim, but eventually it was more than my ICMR could handle (after my Pots were on cool-down).

I have been approached by a +GM character a couple of times as well. Usually they would ask me what I'm doing back when I used to do 8 hour Mat Gathering runs, or doing something erratic. After explaining myself they would go on their way, apparently satisfied that I wasn't a Script Bot or up to no good. I just figured I must have been /reported for being a Champ with no Kinship Affiliation doing something repetitive or odd (which back in SoA most people took those characteristics to signify a Gold Farmer which would get you /reported for the most innocuous of activities).

Rofl, poor you. I would have called people to help me kill it. I wonder if that would have worked.
Anyways, I go on 3 hour long mat gathering sprees, apparently that's not enough to spark suspicion

[Lasagabaster]

In Mordor, of course.

I lol'ed - and I know that means I'll go through hard times this week

There's one video on youtube (sorry but I don't have a link) showing a GM place.

[TsarithArcher]

Rofl, poor you. I would have called people to help me kill it. I wonder if that would have worked.

To be honest, it wasn't that long of an encounter. I didn't take long to run on foot from Candaich to Ost Forod, trying to stand my ground with the help of the NPC Guards for a few attacks, and then running for Tyrn Fornech when I realized it was a futile effort. The whole thing took place over maybe 3 minutes, so there really wasn't enough time to call for help. I was more focused on trying to get away.

Of course, there are other explanations. It could have been a buggy encounter that just wasn't showing the ??? for Anti-Exploit Mode. I've certainly had mobs (not Grey ones) stick to you like glue if they get back within Aggro range of you before they time-out and stop chasing you (i.e., if you pause to look back to see if they are still chasing you and they catch up). If you keep pausing or your route takes you back near them, you can get a mob to chase you indefinitely until a Transition point. It's entirely possible it wasn't a GM at all, although it's fun to think that perhaps it may have been.

[Aethniniel]

GMs and other Turbine staff hang out...everywhere. We have normal accounts we play on and interact with players on a regular basis. You may have had one or more of us in your group and never known.

When logged in for official business, we remain.....hidden.

WTB +Sapience in Meneldor Moors. I promise epic heals!

It really would be fun to see more GMs in game. I have only once seen one actually logged in as a character in Ost Galadh. (The Bullroarer 'Let's Kill the Servers in the Moors' event doesn't count, but that was so fun even if it was moving one frame at a time. lol)

[Radardog]

Is it a Turbine employee perk to get free personal accounts to their games?

Or do you guys have to pay like everyone else?

[Jilla]

When logged in for official business, we remain.....hidden.

Turbine game masters in all their games have the ability to be next to you. Invisible watching. There is no possibility of you knowing that the game master is there. Unless they want you to know it. The mobs will not aggro, attack or damage them.

OMG GMs are OP, nerf GMs!

(hey, I made a sentence and only used one real word... I must be getting leeter).

I know on Vilya we had a GM that used to hang out in the 21st Hall as a level 1 and talk to us in UNITE (Vilya's LFF), hehe. She was watching us (meaning my kin raiding group) in DN too at a time when no one on our server had yet beaten the Blind One. Or at least based on her responses, she could knew we were in DN and knew where in DN we were... or she was a good guesser .

But other than that (and excluding Amarthiel), if I've run across a GM or other Turbine employee, I didn't know it. Then again, I play the game later in the evening, not during regular working hours when one might expect to see more Turbine staff in game.

[Falathrin123]

OMG GMs are OP, nerf GMs!

(hey, I made a sentence and only used one real word... I must be getting leeter).

I know on Vilya we had a GM that used to hang out in the 21st Hall as a level 1 and talk to us in UNITE (Vilya's LFF), hehe. She was watching us (meaning my kin raiding group) in DN too at a time when no one on our server had yet beaten the Blind One. Or at least based on her responses, she could knew we were in DN and knew where in DN we were... or she was a good guesser .

But other than that (and excluding Amarthiel), if I've run across a GM or other Turbine employee, I didn't know it. Then again, I play the game later in the evening, not during regular working hours when one might expect to see more Turbine staff in game.

Hah that's cool Jilla, I wonder if the GM gave you a helping hand in DN

[asimon]

GM's in LOTRO are pretty much omnipotent beings like Q in ST:TNG.

I had once a GM look into my account and find out something with my quests arc.
Very quick to help - VERY quick to vanish after. Cool.

[0rdinary0wl]

When I had to come up with a new name for one of my toons, the GM I was talking to actually appeared in front of me in TH. I thought it was actually pretty nice of her. We exchanged some emotes for me to give my thanks. It was pretty cool.

[sir-rinthian]

(which means it shouldn't have been able to hit me)

A 65 can be hit by a level 7 spider in Archet if you aggro it without killing it instantly. Level difference doesn't affect mobs the way it does us.


But back on topic, I know on Meneldor we have +dust who pops into the GLFF channel every now and then. He's even been seen in the moors before

(By the way, how much renown/infamy do you get if you kill a +name character? )

[LewsTherinTelamon]

I've seen +Dust a few times I think. First time was in a GF battle instance we managed to bug and couldn't get out. Still remember them telling us to stand close, so we stood on top of each other and got the response I didn't mean that close.

[TsarithArcher]

(By the way, how much renown/infamy do you get if you kill a +name character? )

Why? Planning on pulling your Rainz impression sometime in the not-too-distant future?

Remember, remember, as ye must
That fateful day of the 8th of August
When Rainz turned Lord British to dust
Much to Richard Garriott's disgust
So Rainz was perma-banned,
As was his desserts most just.