LotRO Weekly Forum Discussion June 20 Hobbit Talk

By Darkgolem

This weeks Hobbit Talk is a bit agitated.  There seems to be a lot of criticism, complaint and overall negative comments found in the forums this week, though that is not all there is to be found.  There are some questions about Mines of Moria (no suprise there) and a lot of talk about why LotRO should be some other way.  Overall, the natives are restless in the forums this week.  There is a funny group of questions from one poster about the quirks and oddities that come with MMOG's in general, such as the strange way we gather resources.

1. Mines of Moria = 3 new zones?
"I've been seeing the notion get tossed around a lot lately that the Moria expansion will add 3 zones to the game: Eregion, Moria, and Lorien. But was it definitively stated that the mines are going to be contained in a single zone? Or even Eregion and Lorien for that matter. I know it's a subtle distinction but I was under the impression that Moria was going to be huuuuge and might..."

2. Devs - Please Change - Game Design that Impacts Us Every Day, Every Player
The following are what I consider to be daily gates/hurdles that interrupt good and enjoyable gameplay, every day, every player, needlessly, like gnats. Not life and death, but in my business, when something impacts all customers every day, it gets attention. No rush, Devs, I certainly have bigger fish to fry with the game, that I've posted elsewhere at great length, but on this ticky tack stuff, it merits consideration based upon broad and frequent impact. This is my feedback, hope you're still hearing us:

1. General-gate, the "Cant Do This / Cant Do That" syndrome

"Can't mount a horse while in combat, can't change some equipment while on a horse, can't eat while in combat, can't exit or go through a door...

Why not?

If an orc or a gerbil is pounding on a fellowship player 10 feet from me, what's to stop me from eating, or mounting my horse? It's just a nuisance. If some mob is pecking at a mate, I'd just as soon ignore it and continue to be on my way, let's just mount up while the gopher is gnawing his ankles, and ride off and.."

3. Another thread on grouping. Also: Why WoW's model works.
"Many people on these forums and in-game have complained about grouping being too hard for their schedule. They don't want group quests, they want solo content.

Many of those people have also seen me argue that there is no point in playing an MMO if you're not going to group. I still hold this opinion; if you're just playing the game to socialize and not group, well, there's much better ways to socialize than playing vidya games.

That being said, I realized today why WoW is so popular and why it's so much easier to find groups. Some of you may already realize this but there are many that don't.

WoW's grouping is centered around instances. At level 70 there are ~15 5-man instances you can run. They are all repeatable, they all have pretty good-sized loot tables, they have regular and daily.."

4.  LOTR Enthusiasts Hurt LOTRO
"Please understand that LOTRO is an MMORPG.

I understand for a lot of Tolkien fans, this could be your very first online game. So I need you to understand that this in not a solo player ADVENTURE game.

So please stop being put-out or upset that some material is challenging and not all of it can be conquered by telling the devs it's just too hard. Your character will die. The death penalty in LOTRO is so minimal, it hardly matters. Stop whining that houses cost too much to maintain, or that a horse reward level restriction is too high. Notice how it is a horse reward? This is a game where achievement matters. The thought ..."

5. How come? An essay on Quirks and Quarks!
"Not a complaint thread but just some quirks that make me wonder. Some are valid, some just out of curiosity!


Why do I harvest wood from fallen branches only? Is there an Elven edict against chopping down the whole tree?

Where are the Dwarves hiding all the actual mines? These so called nodes are for amateurs! I want to strip mine the Misty mountains!

Someone, somwhere, is growing Athelas and making a bundle at it. How can I get in on this racket? Should the EDA (Eriadorian Drug Authority) be informed? Legalize it now!

How exactly does adding 'organics" to a recipe such as an eyeball make it better? Would it not begin to fester and stink after awhile? I am reminded of the witches from Macbeth everytime I use such an item..."

6. Auction House biggest buys.
"I'm curious whats the biggest sales of a single item anyones seen or heard of.

Im not talking about posts, Im talking about legitimate sales.

My two biggest are:

about 4 months after we went live, when crafting cirt comps were still rare spawns, I sold a crit Heavy shied for 71g.

The next biggest is a Wig-Feld for 50g.

Anyone else.."

Make sure to check out this weeks articles from the Lord of the Rings Online Community at Ten Ton Hammer, including:

1. First Look: Orcish Defiler
2. Lord of the Rings Online Custom Build: The Fighting Minstrel
3. Lord of the Rings Online Resource Gathering Guide: Evendim

Comment about this week's Hobbit Talk in our forums here!

‹ LotRO Book 10 Walk-through up Book 1 Volume 2 Walkthrough ›