Stories of development through this game

[Olgomil]

Thank you so much for this link! What an interesting tale!

/salute

TY, but was first linked by Valamar.

Sergio :-)

[OldMadeOfLions]

Anything from The Silmarillion or the Elder Days that you would have liked to have included...?

I love so much of the Silmarillion, but unless something also appears in LotR, we just can't use it. Simple as that.

Fortunately, there's plenty of awesome in LotR.

MoL

[robbie1435]

I love so much of the Silmarillion,

Was there anything in the Silmarillion that you subtly hinted at with in the game(Besides Sauron's elf-guised name)?

[OldMadeOfLions]

Do you ever get writers block and how do you overcome it...?

I absolutely do get writers' block from time to time, and I've found the best way to overcome it is to work on something else for awhile. That's why I try to have a number of projects going on at the same time, so when I get bogged down in one area I can jump onto something else and noodle away at that until I get my groove back on the first story. I think everyone has a different method of getting their mojo back -- I'm a walking thinker, so I tend to take long walks and brainstorm.

The way our process generally works is that I hash out an outline for a quest arc that contains the main story beats, and then I flesh that out with gameplay elements. That usually involves charting out the flow on a preliminary map. Once that's done, I usually create a skeleton for every quest (called a 'stub' -- it has everything the quest needs, structurally, but no text at all). Once that's all done, then it's time to write the text itself, and that's where all the flowery language comes in, sometimes more easily than others!

MoL

[BelamanthDE]

Was there anything in the Silmarillion that you subtly hinted at with in the game(Besides Sauron's elf-guised name)?

The original place name of the ring forge in Eregion may not be named, but obviously exists under a made up name.
I read somewhere that the backsory of the Grimmbeard dwarves in Ered Luin is as close as Turbine can get to Silmarillion material without getting into trouble.

[kickman77]

I absolutely do get writers' block from time to time, and I've found the best way to overcome it is to work on something else for awhile. That's why I try to have a number of projects going on at the same time, so when I get bogged down in one area I can jump onto something else and noodle away at that until I get my groove back on the first story. I think everyone has a different method of getting their mojo back -- I'm a walking thinker, so I tend to take long walks and brainstorm.

The way our process generally works is that I hash out an outline for a quest arc that contains the main story beats, and then I flesh that out with gameplay elements. That usually involves charting out the flow on a preliminary map. Once that's done, I usually create a skeleton for every quest (called a 'stub' -- it has everything the quest needs, structurally, but no text at all). Once that's all done, then it's time to write the text itself, and that's where all the flowery language comes in, sometimes more easily than others!

MoL

Amazing. I know it is a lot of work and I thank you again for the dedication you have to rhe epic story. I is one of the last things keeping me in Lotro right now

[robbie1435]

MOL, what's your favorite questline in Gondor? How about Rhovinian? And Eriador? :P

Besides the epic line of course!

[Thruili]

I love so much of the Silmarillion, but unless something also appears in LotR, we just can't use it. Simple as that.

Fortunately, there's plenty of awesome in LotR.

MoL

Everytime I read the following passege in the Silmarillion, I have to think "well, this is Angmar".

"Between Mindeb and the upper Waters of Esgalduin lay the no-land of Nan Dungortheb; and that region was filled with fear, for upon its one side the power of Melian fenced the north march of Doriath, but upon the other side the sheer precipices of Ered Gorgoroth, Mountains of Terror, fell down from high Dorthonion. Thither, as was earlier told, Ungoliant had fled from the whips of the Balrogs, and there she dwelt a while, filling the ravines with her deadly gloom, and there still, when she had passed away, her foul offspring lurked and wove their evil nets; and the thin waters that spilled from Ered Gorgoroth were defiled, and perilous to drink, for the hearts of those that tasted them were filled with shadows of madness and despair. All living things else shunned that land (...)."

The Silmarillion, J.R.R. Tolkien, Ch.14 "of Beleriand and its realms", p.138

And:

"(...) and the bat-fell of Thuringwethil. She was a messenger of Sauron, and was wont to fly in vampire's form to Angband; and her great fingered wings were barbed at each joint's end with an iron claw."

The Silmarillion, J.R.R. Tolkien, Ch.19 "of Beren and Lúthien", p.210

These descriptions really sound like Angmar, especially the regions Himbar and Imlad Balchorth as well as a Morroval. I have never found anything similar in the Lord of the Rings, its appendices or the Hobbit.

[Witch0King]

I'd like to know how you decide what major characters should look like and at the same time avoid making them look too similar with other npcs.

[OldMadeOfLions]

MOL, what's your favorite questline in Gondor?

I like the continuing adventures of Jajax quite a bit.

MoL

[robbie1435]

I like the continuing adventures of Jajax quite a bit.

MoL

Funny. One of my favorite quest texts came from the Jajax line. [POSSIBLE SPOILERS IN IMAGE BELOW]

[robbie1435]

MOL, you and Arbor should do a Q/A stream sometime next week(Other than Thursday, that wouldn't be fair to Frelorn!)

[Arathaert]

What an awesome thread!

I'm also curious about how chicken play got started. And what it was like to watch the community slowly figure out how to get the "Crosser of Roads" title.

[robbie1435]

What an awesome thread!

I'm also curious about how chicken play got started. And what it was like to watch the community slowly figure out how to get the "Crosser of Roads" title.

Speaking of Chicken Play... Who had the idea of Hobnanigans!?

[ThePinion]

What's your favorite questline in Gondor? How about Rhovinian? And Eriador? :P

Besides the epic line of course!

It's really tough to nail just one down for Gondor, but I loved the Lamedon quest chain about the two brothers. Budgeford did a great job on that!

Rhovanion: The Audaghaim questline for sure.

Eriador: I'm going to cheat and pick two. The entire Red Maid questline and the Angmar chain revolving around the Rite of Clúcath.

If I included the Epic, this would be a whole lot harder!

[robbie1435]

It's really tough to nail just one down for Gondor, but I loved the Lamedon quest chain about the two brothers. Budgeford did a great job on that!

Rhovanion: The Audaghaim questline for sure.

Eriador: I'm going to cheat and pick two. The entire Red Maid questline and the Angmar chain revolving around the Rite of Clúcath.

Ooh. A new dev has jumped in .


Pinion, what is the achievement that you've worked with/suggested(That made it into the game, ofc) that you are most proud of?

Nice choices by the way. I like the 2 you picked for Eriador.

[OldMadeOfLions]

I'm also curious about how chicken play got started.

Chicken-play really came out of a bigger concept, and the idea was that you'd take control of certain enemies, and complete short sessions that let you see some stories from the other side: Orcs, an Uruk-hai, a giant, a shade. But those raised some tricky questions: how do other players interact with you? Will they expect a player playing as an Orc to count for their Orc-killing quests? So the idea was scaled back a little, and it became more about playing as critters or smaller foes: a slug, a chicken, a spider hatchling.

Playtesting resulted in only the chickens really making it through, and it turns out that those are the ones that really captured people's imaginations.

MoL

[robbie1435]

Chicken-play really came out of a bigger concept, and the idea was that you'd take control of certain enemies, and complete short sessions that let you see some stories from the other side: Orcs, an Uruk-hai, a giant, a shade. But those raised some tricky questions: how do other players interact with you? Will they expect a player playing as an Orc to count for their Orc-killing quests? So the idea was scaled back a little, and it became more about playing as critters or smaller foes: a slug, a chicken, a spider hatchling.

Playtesting resulted in only the chickens really making it through, and it turns out that those are the ones that really captured people's imaginations.

MoL

I like the idea of a spider hatchling. A snake would be interesting as well. Going through the Shire, scaring all the hobbits by sneaking into their burrows :P

[robbie1435]

Now for my biggest question:

After Mordor, are there any plans to have players rebuild Archet? I hate seeing it burned down

[HunterGreen]

Was there anything in the Silmarillion that you subtly hinted at with in the game(Besides Sauron's elf-guised name)?

I am inclined to think how, in the more eastern lands we visit (such as the Brown Lands), the prominence of sorcerers with "blue" in their names/titles (e.g., Khundalar blue caste sorcerers) is a slippery reference to Tolkien's comments (not in the Silmarillion, though) concerning what came of the Blue Wizards, that they founded cults of sorcery in the East.

[bucko39]

This thread is awesome, and sorely needed--please keep it going!

Special thanks to the blue names who continue to chime in

[MourneBlade]

I am inclined to think how, in the more eastern lands we visit (such as the Brown Lands), the prominence of sorcerers with "blue" in their names/titles (e.g., Khundalar blue caste sorcerers) is a slippery reference to Tolkien's comments (not in the Silmarillion, though) concerning what came of the Blue Wizards, that they founded cults of sorcery in the East.

This has been answered before but I can't find the thread.....

Edit: Found it.
https://www.lotro.com/forums/showthr...ds+explanation

[Maxwise]

As far as I can recall, The Riders Four was a marketing questline that Berephon developed. I tested both arcs (the fully developed East Rohan section and the half developed West Rohan section) and it was intended to have a complete ending but unfortunately Berephon left the company before that happened and there wasn't enough time to finish it off. There was supposed to be a couple of instances in the latter half, including the death of Leofdag, but it wasn't to be. Luckily, you can see them at the end phase of Helm's Deep and Pinion added a little color text so there's a little bit of closure.

Any plans on finishing it, once and for all? I think a lot of people would enjoy having that storyline finished -- even if it is a few years late. Especially if it helps a few Slayers go up in numbers! hehe

Also, to the Dev or Devs who created Jajax and his whole storyline: thank you! In a province where all Corsairs are Gondor's and, through connection, our own enemy, I think it speaks volume to show players that just because they look the same, they aren't the same.

[Switchfoot]

That there was a city called Carn Dûm from which evil men came is one of the few things we know about Angmar, so it was a very easy place to make the centerpiece dungeon in Shadows of Angmar. Our goal at the time was to make it the most challenging dungeon in the game, and in 2007-speak that included making it very, very long. Carn Dûm runs could upwards of four or five hours. We would run internal playtests of it (and its sister-dungeon, Urugarth) in the afternoons, and even then it could take a lot more time than it really should have. I usually played Guardian or Champion during these runs, and they're still my two favorite classes.

Since Carn Dûm and Urugarth were the main endgame dungeons, their bosses would drop the class-specific items you'd need for your primary class quests: Putrid Slime of Helchgam, etc. ... with a 5% drop rate. Eventually it was decided that that was too low a percentage, and the whole system underwent some pretty significant changes. There's something to be said for incredibly long dungeon runs, but the industry as a whole seems to have moved away from it. Still, I'm glad that Carn Dûm came into the world that way.

MoL

I was helping a friend navigate through CD last week as he was finishing deeds. He wasn't playing lotro when we'd run CD and Uru repeatedly for all our friends to get class items so he didn't know his way around. We are both lvl 100 and I was a little sad as we were blasting through mobs. I'd love to see Uru and CD scaled.

[ThePinion]

Also, to the Dev or Devs who created Jajax and his whole storyline: thank you! In a province where all Corsairs are Gondor's and, through connection, our own enemy, I think it speaks volume to show players that just because they look the same, they aren't the same.

Budgeford was the creator of Jajax, so the credit goes to her! I also liked Jajax a lot as a character, so I'm glad she was supportive of me keeping his story going through Central Gondor.