I'll have plenty of screenshots inbound as I get them. Two words though: session play
A taste ...
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Hef is back from vacation. Time to blog!
Mines of Moria is here and sadly server issues are rampid. At least with the poor folks on Brandywine. Book 1 introduces you to some crazy greatness that I won't share for a few days; I don't want to spoil anything for anyone this early.
I'll have plenty of screenshots inbound as I get them. Two words though: session play
A taste ...
I'll have plenty of screenshots inbound as I get them. Two words though: session play
A taste ...
Monday, September 15, 2008
Mines of Moria's impact on Freeps in PvMP
The Mines of Moria release will have a serious impact on all freeps in the Moors. The impact is a simple one; the creeps get an instant level increase to 60! This means the Moors will be either empty or incredibly unbalanced until the freeps level their characters and get bored with the newness of MoM and find their way back into the Moors for nightly fun.
Friday, September 12, 2008
Mines of Moria release date update!
EB games has changed their ship date for Mines of Moria as well as Amazon.com and other major retailers. The new date is November 18, 2008. Turbine has yet to officially confirm this date.
How to keep your fellowship alive during the Nengon battle.
Nengon is the boss of Glinghant in the gardens of Annuminas. He's a nasty little darkwater that likes to summon friends. The challenge of this encounter is keeping the mini alive. There are many strategies on how to do this. Prior to book 14's release the gardens were the most difficult of the three Annuminas dungeons. After book 14 they nerfed it up a bit with the dev's claiming it should have been the easiest of the three. It's not a solid fellowship encounter. Here's the strat on Nengon that I use.
Ideal fellowship configuration:
Guardian
Minstrel
Champion
Champion
Lore-master
Burglar
This configuration is ideal but not the only one that can succeed. The reason for this configuration will be made clear in the strat below.
Fellowship: Make sure to pop a brilliant or better token before the fight. Battle and warding scrolls are nice. Everyone should have a tart and some mash handy.
Minis: The tale is up to you. I can make a case for any of the three tales to use in this fight so whatever seems best. Do not have war-speech on. It is best that you equip Fellowship's Heart and Ralley! for this encounter. Fellowship's Heart adds a 50% bonus to victory in this minstrels opinion.
Captains: Make sure you put out as much morale as you can to your fellow.
Champions: Don't bother bringing a shield. Be ready to AE your hearts out (I know music to your ears).
Hunters: Nengon is weakest against Fire damage.
Guards: Just hold agro and taunt when adds get in range.
Burgs: Keep debuffing the boss and popping the conjunctions. All go yellow.
Lore-masters: Keep the mini, hunter, guardian (in that order of importance) filled up with power. Also you are the eyes for the fellowship. If you see Draining darkwaters sound the alarm. Also stay close enough to the boss that you can quickly be there to hit yellow on a conjunction.
Some strats have the mini standing as far away from Nengon as possible most likly having the mini stand on the stone bridge over the water directly opposite from him. This strategy is not recommended by me. Instead, have the entire fellowship save any Lore-masters or Hunters you may have be in melee range Nengon. The reason for this is based on his summoning of darkwaters to his side. They can come from any of the three waterfalls in his room and will go directly for the mini. By standing in melee range your tank and other melee classes will be able to grab their agro away from the mini. Otherwise it's a battle to keep the agro off the mini and unless you have the proper crowd control and a good deal of luck the mini will be in for a world of hurt. The goal is to burn Nengon down as fast as you can preferably before right as he's summoning his thrid wave of darkwaters.
Nengon has a pretty good sized AE ability that will knock the fellowship back about half the length of his room. I have found that standing at a 4-5 o'clock position to Nengon (means facing him and slightly to his left your right) grants the mini a 75% chance to not get knocked back. I base the 75% off of my attempts at this strat.
If at anytime draining darkwaters spawn immediately leave the room. Once Nengon hits the gate the encounter resets. This is not optional. The moment a draining darkwater appears bolt for the gate. Well run fellowships should have their fellowship leader make the call but that person should make that call the moment someone sees a draining. Since the boss encounter can be reset there is no reason to not do this.
Fight Nengon in one spot in the water where he stands. He's a pain in the ass to get to move so don't bother. The guardian should be holding his agro and when the waves of darkwaters make their way to the mini he should be taunting them off. The champs should be AE'ing as often as they can. This should have the first wave of darkwaters down by the time the third one is called by Nengon. The burg should walk into the boss encounter with all four of his conjunctions ready to go. The burg should immediately pop one and an all yellow conjunction should be unleashed. The burg needs to wait until the bleeding effects are finished and then hit him again with a conjunction. If possible save one conjunction for the end. When Nengon falls there may be a lot of darkwaters to deal with and a GGGBBB conjunctions would be very nice to have. However getting Nengon dead is key so don't be afraid to bust your last conjunction on an all yellow if needed. The Lore-master should be filling the mini, hunter and guardian with power, DPS'ing, using BF when it's up on the darkwaters near the fellowship to stun them (even if only for a second it helps) and being the eyes for the fellowship on if draining darkwaters appear. Hunters simply DPS Nengon don't hold back either let it fly.
Assuming Nengon doesn't call any draining darkwaters to him your fellowship should have the first wave of darkwaters dead from the champs AE's and the hunters dps by the time the third wave is called. Once the third wave is called Nengon should be about finished. End him then clean up the remaining darkwaters. They do not despawn after Nengon is dead.
The mini needs to keep everyone healed during this fight just like any other. However, this is a not-so-normal encounter for us because we must be in melee range of the boss and his adds. So, it gets tricky. Do not use inspire fellows the moment it refreshes. This is one of the biggest agro magnets that you have. Use it sparingly and only when you need to heal the LM, hunter and burg at the same time and fear you will not be able to one by one in enough time while keeping the plate guys happy. Use your song of soothing often and definitely when you get agroed by the darkwaters it will get them off you. If your guardian or champs take agro and begin to go down fast the combo to use is: Bolster Courage, Chord of Salvation then another Bolster Courage. If you won't be able to get a BC off in time use the CoS followed by 2-3 BC's. The CoS is a fast heal for a good amount of morale but your rockstar mini wants to pose a bit after. You can try and move the moment you finish casting but there is a delay after the effects of that heal take hold. When Nengon is at half health start thinking about using your Fellowship's Heart. At this point your fellowship may be in trouble if you don't have enough champs AE'ing the adds down around Nengon. At some point between half health and 10k pop your fellowships heart. This will all but ensure victory if you do this properly. If you can hold out until 10-15k then do it. It will be difficult to fail if you pop that skill off at 10-15k. The DPS should be enough to take him down during the next 30 seconds even if the DPS is low. If you pop it prior to 15k it may indeed be the right move but the chances of success get reduced. Do not be afraid to pop it though. You're the healer you know when you won't be able to keep people alive so use it when needed.
That's the strat. In short summary burn down Nengon, AE's all adds, run out if drainings come EVEN IF THEY COME RIGHT BEFORE HE DIES leave the room and start over (if you wipe while cleaning them up you probably won't be able to clear the room after a respawn and you lose), and make sure to pop fellowship's heart between 10-15k of Nengon's health.
Win.
Ideal fellowship configuration:
Guardian
Minstrel
Champion
Champion
Lore-master
Burglar
This configuration is ideal but not the only one that can succeed. The reason for this configuration will be made clear in the strat below.
Fellowship: Make sure to pop a brilliant or better token before the fight. Battle and warding scrolls are nice. Everyone should have a tart and some mash handy.
Minis: The tale is up to you. I can make a case for any of the three tales to use in this fight so whatever seems best. Do not have war-speech on. It is best that you equip Fellowship's Heart and Ralley! for this encounter. Fellowship's Heart adds a 50% bonus to victory in this minstrels opinion.
Captains: Make sure you put out as much morale as you can to your fellow.
Champions: Don't bother bringing a shield. Be ready to AE your hearts out (I know music to your ears).
Hunters: Nengon is weakest against Fire damage.
Guards: Just hold agro and taunt when adds get in range.
Burgs: Keep debuffing the boss and popping the conjunctions. All go yellow.
Lore-masters: Keep the mini, hunter, guardian (in that order of importance) filled up with power. Also you are the eyes for the fellowship. If you see Draining darkwaters sound the alarm. Also stay close enough to the boss that you can quickly be there to hit yellow on a conjunction.
Some strats have the mini standing as far away from Nengon as possible most likly having the mini stand on the stone bridge over the water directly opposite from him. This strategy is not recommended by me. Instead, have the entire fellowship save any Lore-masters or Hunters you may have be in melee range Nengon. The reason for this is based on his summoning of darkwaters to his side. They can come from any of the three waterfalls in his room and will go directly for the mini. By standing in melee range your tank and other melee classes will be able to grab their agro away from the mini. Otherwise it's a battle to keep the agro off the mini and unless you have the proper crowd control and a good deal of luck the mini will be in for a world of hurt. The goal is to burn Nengon down as fast as you can preferably before right as he's summoning his thrid wave of darkwaters.
Nengon has a pretty good sized AE ability that will knock the fellowship back about half the length of his room. I have found that standing at a 4-5 o'clock position to Nengon (means facing him and slightly to his left your right) grants the mini a 75% chance to not get knocked back. I base the 75% off of my attempts at this strat.
If at anytime draining darkwaters spawn immediately leave the room. Once Nengon hits the gate the encounter resets. This is not optional. The moment a draining darkwater appears bolt for the gate. Well run fellowships should have their fellowship leader make the call but that person should make that call the moment someone sees a draining. Since the boss encounter can be reset there is no reason to not do this.
Fight Nengon in one spot in the water where he stands. He's a pain in the ass to get to move so don't bother. The guardian should be holding his agro and when the waves of darkwaters make their way to the mini he should be taunting them off. The champs should be AE'ing as often as they can. This should have the first wave of darkwaters down by the time the third one is called by Nengon. The burg should walk into the boss encounter with all four of his conjunctions ready to go. The burg should immediately pop one and an all yellow conjunction should be unleashed. The burg needs to wait until the bleeding effects are finished and then hit him again with a conjunction. If possible save one conjunction for the end. When Nengon falls there may be a lot of darkwaters to deal with and a GGGBBB conjunctions would be very nice to have. However getting Nengon dead is key so don't be afraid to bust your last conjunction on an all yellow if needed. The Lore-master should be filling the mini, hunter and guardian with power, DPS'ing, using BF when it's up on the darkwaters near the fellowship to stun them (even if only for a second it helps) and being the eyes for the fellowship on if draining darkwaters appear. Hunters simply DPS Nengon don't hold back either let it fly.
Assuming Nengon doesn't call any draining darkwaters to him your fellowship should have the first wave of darkwaters dead from the champs AE's and the hunters dps by the time the third wave is called. Once the third wave is called Nengon should be about finished. End him then clean up the remaining darkwaters. They do not despawn after Nengon is dead.
The mini needs to keep everyone healed during this fight just like any other. However, this is a not-so-normal encounter for us because we must be in melee range of the boss and his adds. So, it gets tricky. Do not use inspire fellows the moment it refreshes. This is one of the biggest agro magnets that you have. Use it sparingly and only when you need to heal the LM, hunter and burg at the same time and fear you will not be able to one by one in enough time while keeping the plate guys happy. Use your song of soothing often and definitely when you get agroed by the darkwaters it will get them off you. If your guardian or champs take agro and begin to go down fast the combo to use is: Bolster Courage, Chord of Salvation then another Bolster Courage. If you won't be able to get a BC off in time use the CoS followed by 2-3 BC's. The CoS is a fast heal for a good amount of morale but your rockstar mini wants to pose a bit after. You can try and move the moment you finish casting but there is a delay after the effects of that heal take hold. When Nengon is at half health start thinking about using your Fellowship's Heart. At this point your fellowship may be in trouble if you don't have enough champs AE'ing the adds down around Nengon. At some point between half health and 10k pop your fellowships heart. This will all but ensure victory if you do this properly. If you can hold out until 10-15k then do it. It will be difficult to fail if you pop that skill off at 10-15k. The DPS should be enough to take him down during the next 30 seconds even if the DPS is low. If you pop it prior to 15k it may indeed be the right move but the chances of success get reduced. Do not be afraid to pop it though. You're the healer you know when you won't be able to keep people alive so use it when needed.
That's the strat. In short summary burn down Nengon, AE's all adds, run out if drainings come EVEN IF THEY COME RIGHT BEFORE HE DIES leave the room and start over (if you wipe while cleaning them up you probably won't be able to clear the room after a respawn and you lose), and make sure to pop fellowship's heart between 10-15k of Nengon's health.
Win.
Friday, September 5, 2008
False release date hits LOTRO forums.
1UP.com listed the Mines of Moria expansion release date as 10.15.2008 which caused a bit of drama on the forums. The release date is unverified and not carrying much cred as EB games, BestBuy and other retailers list the expansion with different dates. November 3rd/4th still stands and the front runner in this hobbit's opinion.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
PAX 2008: LOTRO update.
Update is used liberally here as there's not much in the way of blog-worthy news coming out of camp Turbine this PAX. They did demo Mines of Moria and the response from the gamers seems to be positive. The overwhelming response to the old "what did you think of the game?" question seems to be that Moria is huge. Really huge. Turbine showed off the usual bits and pieces of the new expansion such as the level cap being raised to 60, new legendary weapons that you can modify over time, the two new classes Warden and Rune-keeper as well as the rest of the expansion that we're already familiar with.
One thing did come out that I wasn't aware of or at least this is the first time I took notice of it. There will be the ability to join crafting guilds.
Speculation? There will be a new tier for crafters to work on. Along with this the Hef is hearing this and that about specialization in your profession. This along with the legendary items and LOTRO's affinity for reputation grinding leads one to believe we'll be seeing these crafting guilds play out like any other rep in the game. You start out nub then have to work your way to being kindred with them in order to get access to the uberness of that crafting guild.
Turbine is also accepting beta apps for Mines of Moria: clicky.
I'll continue to relay what news comes from PAX 2008 but it seems nothing groundbreaking is being dropped. We'll hear tons more once beta kicks off.
One thing did come out that I wasn't aware of or at least this is the first time I took notice of it. There will be the ability to join crafting guilds.
Speculation? There will be a new tier for crafters to work on. Along with this the Hef is hearing this and that about specialization in your profession. This along with the legendary items and LOTRO's affinity for reputation grinding leads one to believe we'll be seeing these crafting guilds play out like any other rep in the game. You start out nub then have to work your way to being kindred with them in order to get access to the uberness of that crafting guild.
Turbine is also accepting beta apps for Mines of Moria: clicky.
I'll continue to relay what news comes from PAX 2008 but it seems nothing groundbreaking is being dropped. We'll hear tons more once beta kicks off.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
IGN preview of Mines of Moria
IGN's latest sneak peak at Moria. This one is much more detailed than we have seen in the past. Check back in this weekend for updates from PAX!
New pocket items hit the AH. Gold farmers rejoice.
The laughable auction house prices have returned. I predicted that with the release of Book 14 we'd see a significant jump in the availability of Etched Beryl on the AH and a slow and steady decrease in the cost of these items. We have indeed seen this happen. I ranted about this in the past because I thought Turbine was trying to eliminate the big money sink item from the AH. With the ring-lore quest producing level 45 items (i.e. slime, rune...), the increased number of engraved beryl recipes and the addition of Grand Master crafting recipes I predicted the market for consumables to rise and the bank accounts of most players to grow. I was mistaken.
It turns out Turbine indeed wants a series of money sink items to be available on the AH and not available to random gold farmer.
Take the Gold Sewing Needle for example.
This is quite the excellent piece of pocket itemage. But is it worth lining the pockets of some nub with 10 - 30 gold? I think not. Why the price? On my server you will find the prices for the new teal items jacked up that high. I'm going to begin to compile a list of them and see which ones work best for us minis. This one is one of my current favorites. It shreds the Vial of water and any of the scales simply because of its balance. Well, so far. I need to put on the lab coat and begin evaluating.
It turns out Turbine indeed wants a series of money sink items to be available on the AH and not available to random gold farmer.
Take the Gold Sewing Needle for example.
Bind on Equip |
Bauble
Cooldown: 25m
+15 Will
+45 Maximum Power
+15 Fate
+15 Vitality
+5% Out of Combat Run Speed
+2 Patience
Durability 100 / 100 |
Minimum Level: 50
This is quite the excellent piece of pocket itemage. But is it worth lining the pockets of some nub with 10 - 30 gold? I think not. Why the price? On my server you will find the prices for the new teal items jacked up that high. I'm going to begin to compile a list of them and see which ones work best for us minis. This one is one of my current favorites. It shreds the Vial of water and any of the scales simply because of its balance. Well, so far. I need to put on the lab coat and begin evaluating.
Moria Release date leaked?
Is it true? November 3rd, 2008?! My sources tell me Turbine will be releasing our long awaited expansion in early November. At first I thought this was a mistake on Turbine's part but with so many expansions hitting this fall 2008 perhaps it is the best time to drop this one into the pool of gamers. Warhammer will be going strong but perhaps the new car smell will be wearing thin on some folks. The WoW'ers will be full-on raiding so I think they'd be a lost cause but maybe some gamers disenchanted by WoW's expansion might end up turning to LOTRO for their fix when Moria hits.
Either way Mines of Moria release date is November 3rd (maybe November 4th).
I guess if you're using this as your source for a date I'm your source so you get to put me in cool quotes and italicize sources =]
If you're looking for more hardcore evidence of the November 3rd release date check out the online retailers as the November 3rd release date is popping up on places like EB Games.
For your viewing pleasure ...
Either way Mines of Moria release date is November 3rd (maybe November 4th).
I guess if you're using this as your source for a date I'm your source so you get to put me in cool quotes and italicize sources =]
If you're looking for more hardcore evidence of the November 3rd release date check out the online retailers as the November 3rd release date is popping up on places like EB Games.
For your viewing pleasure ...
Friday, August 8, 2008
QFTL from President of Turbine Jim Crowley
"We are excited to self publish The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria and to partner with Warner Bros. to distribute the title at retail this fall," said Jim Crowley, president and CEO of Turbine, Inc. "Mines of Moria introduces breakthrough content and features including our Legendary Item system that will revolutionize the way players advance and customize their unique heroes."
Give me a friggin' date for the release!!!
With WarhammerOnline being released in early Fall 2008 (September) and WoW releasing Wrath of the Lich-king in mid to late Fall 2008 Turbine is keeping their release date in the dark for now. The Hef does not like this. I want to know when to schedule my vacation time!!
I've heard rumor that the release date is in early November for Mines of Moria. If that is correct I'll be upset at having to wait that long between a pretty weak free content release (book 14) that was accompanied with a host of bugs and server downtime and LOTRO's first expansion.
They better make it worth the wait.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
To Fate or not to Fate?
In-combat power regen is nice but I'll take morale over power when considering how to build-out my mini. If you're a mini who's soloing 90% of the time or running with a crew that never has a burg or LM then I can see the drawback to my strategy. However, I run with my kin and whether we're hitting Annuminas, the Rift, Helegrod, CD or just doin' whatever I usually have a burg or a Lore-master around to keep the batteries charged. We have a standing unwritten rule ... did that make sense? We have a standing unwritten order on need-to-feed power to starting with the Minstrel followed by the Guardian then it becomes the LM's discretion who they feed power to after that. So, being at the top of the power food chain and usually running with a LM and/or a Burglar I'm set on power.
This means a morale build is preferable for me and I like to argue is preferable for all minis in just about any scenario. The only benefit a high fate build will offer is in very long fights or long periods with no rest in between fights. So give me the raw numbers power and morale over fate. What's this all mean? This means I'm about to bust out a minstrel only webapp that allows you to plan out your character build. But until I get that completed I'll toss out what I currently consider to be the best build-out gear wise for a mini. This may ultimately change once I get the app done.
Total Morale = Total Morale + (Vit * 3)
Total Power = Total Power + (Will * 3)
Helm - Exquisite Radiant: Total Morale = 180 Total Power = 90
Shoulders - Wandering Bard's: Total Morale = 45 Total Power = 114
Chest - Faradwon's Robe: Total Morale = 45 Total Power = 67
Gloves - Arodinna's Gloves: Total Morale = 45 Total Power = 67
Leggings - Wandering Bard's: Total Morale = 24 Total Power = 180
Boots: Wandering Bard's: Total Morale = 90 Total Power = 114
Set bonuses: Total Morale = 45 Total Power = 67
Total Morale + Power combined points = 1173
Using this as a basis to determine which combination of gear (jewelry not included) we see that sporting a full set of Rift, Hele, PvMP, crafted or Annuminas gear isn't actually something to oo and aahh about. Finding the right combination however is. Let's just look at the sets shall we?
We can see here that the Wandering Bard's set is superior from a total power and morale perspective. If you want the highest regen the upgraded Seven Star will suit your needs the best. However, if you want to be the sickest mini you can be you need to mix and match.
This means a morale build is preferable for me and I like to argue is preferable for all minis in just about any scenario. The only benefit a high fate build will offer is in very long fights or long periods with no rest in between fights. So give me the raw numbers power and morale over fate. What's this all mean? This means I'm about to bust out a minstrel only webapp that allows you to plan out your character build. But until I get that completed I'll toss out what I currently consider to be the best build-out gear wise for a mini. This may ultimately change once I get the app done.
Total Morale = Total Morale + (Vit * 3)
Total Power = Total Power + (Will * 3)
Helm - Exquisite Radiant: Total Morale = 180 Total Power = 90
Shoulders - Wandering Bard's: Total Morale = 45 Total Power = 114
Chest - Faradwon's Robe: Total Morale = 45 Total Power = 67
Gloves - Arodinna's Gloves: Total Morale = 45 Total Power = 67
Leggings - Wandering Bard's: Total Morale = 24 Total Power = 180
Boots: Wandering Bard's: Total Morale = 90 Total Power = 114
Set bonuses: Total Morale = 45 Total Power = 67
Total Morale + Power combined points = 1173
Using this as a basis to determine which combination of gear (jewelry not included) we see that sporting a full set of Rift, Hele, PvMP, crafted or Annuminas gear isn't actually something to oo and aahh about. Finding the right combination however is. Let's just look at the sets shall we?
| Comparison | |||||||||||
| Vit | Mor | Pow | Will | Fate | Total Morale | Total Power | Mor+ Pow Total | ||||
| Amban's Cloth | 45 | 0 | 66 | 45 | 30 | 135 | 201 | 336 | |||
| Exquisite Radiant | 60 | 180 | 315 | 90 | 45 | 360 | 585 | 945 | |||
| Wandering Bard's | 121 | 90 | 292 | 106 | 98 | 453 | 610 | 1063 | |||
| Silver-voice | 90 | 135 | 225 | 75 | 105 | 405 | 450 | 855 | |||
| Anganskald | 90 | 135 | 225 | 75 | 105 | 405 | 450 | 855 | |||
| Limbur | 45 | 225 | 270 | 105 | 60 | 360 | 585 | 945 | |||
| Seven Stars (Book 14) | 129 | 81 | 201 | 117 | 118 | 468 | 552 | 1020 | |||
| Ajokoira | 90 | 0 | 45 | 75 | 75 | 270 | 270 | 540 |
We can see here that the Wandering Bard's set is superior from a total power and morale perspective. If you want the highest regen the upgraded Seven Star will suit your needs the best. However, if you want to be the sickest mini you can be you need to mix and match.
| Ultimate Set | |||||||||||
| Vit | Mor | Pow | Will | Fate | Total Morale | Total Power | Mor+ Pow Total | ||||
| Faradwon's Robe (Amban's Cloth) | 15 | 22 | 15 | 15 | 45 | 67 | 112 | ||||
| Wandering Bard's Leggings | 8 | 90 | 30 | 15 | 24 | 180 | 204 | ||||
| Wandering bard's Boots | 30 | 90 | 8 | 15 | 90 | 114 | 204 | ||||
| Arodinna's Gloves (Amban's Cloth) | 15 | 22 | 15 | 15 | 45 | 67 | 112 | ||||
| Wandering Bard's Shoulders | 15 | 90 | 8 | 30 | 45 | 114 | 159 | ||||
| Exquisite Radiant Hat | 30 | 90 | 30 | 180 | 90 | 270 | |||||
| Set bonuses | 15 | 22 | 15 | 15 | 45 | 67 | 112 | ||||
| Totals | 128 | 90 | 336 | 121 | 105 | 474 | 699 | 1173 |
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Arise Metal Hefner!
What is Metal Hefner? The Hef is just a mini in Lord of the Rings Online and this is his blog. Here we discuss strategies, traits, virtues, general minstrel gameplay and the adventures of the Metal one.
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