LotRO two-year anniversary: Book 8 details announced
by Shawn Schuster 
Apr 24th 2009 at 9:00AM
Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Interviews, MMO industry, Patches, Massively Interviews
Perhaps the most exciting part of this call came when a teaser was given for the upcoming Book 8 content. We were also treated to some more info on the 2nd Anniversary Welcome Back in-game promotion for former players, new discounted subscription pricing for new players and much more! Follow along after the cut below for a summary of this exciting new information from Turbine.
Anniversary Bonuses
To help promote LotRO for new players, Turbine is offering a special anniversary pricing plan for all subscriptions of 3 months or more. From April 24th through June 30th, players can choose any multi-month plan (90 days or longer) and lock in a monthly price of $9.99 for as long as they maintain that plan. Plus, the game itself is $9.99 on the company's e-store through this promotional period.
During the anniversary celebration, monsters throughout Middle-earth will drop special rare items that can be exchanged for a gift box that will reward them with a variety of in-game items to aid in their adventures in Middle-earth. Plus, anyone with an active subscription on June 30th will receive a special in-game gift called the Writ of Passage which provides 20% discounts at stable masters throughout Middle-earth.
Upcoming content for Volume 2, Book 8
So now we get into the good stuff. According to Jeffrey Steefel, the new Book 8 content patch will bring players many new small party-based instances and more player enhancements similar to what was done with Book 7.
Later on in the year, players will get the opportunity to explore deeper into the southern Mirkwood area, focusing mainly on the city of Dol Guldur, previously known to the Elves as Amon Lanc. You may remember Dol Guldur as Sauron's stronghold where he retreated after the One Ring was lost. It became a key fortress that allowed Sauron to regain his strength and rebuild his armies.
We specifically asked just how far north we would reach into Mirkwood -- if we would get to see as far as The Old Forest Road -- but were told that the new content won't reach quite that far this year. That said, southern Mirkwood is not the only new area content coming this year. We're also told that the Dwarves and Elves were asked to come back to Moria because of an "unrest" that is happening within the mines. A return to Khazad-dûm!
A major game mechanic being introduced later this year will be known as Skirmishes. This name may change, Steefel points out, but it's their working title throughout production. They're described as dynamic instances that are aware of the party's size, and they respond accordingly, in relation to how big or small the party is. They are also repeatable, and will have multiple objectives that will give you enough incentive to do them multiple times with different sized groups. "It's the natural evolution from the focus on small party dynamic instanced experiences, and it takes it to a whole new level," Steefel says. Plus, we were teased with a bit of exciting information regarding customizable soldiers that you can train and bring into these skirmishes. Unfortunately, that's all we got on that.
On top of all of this, we're also told that the level cap will increase by year's end, and a new Summer Festival will be coming with Book 8. All of this brand new info should be enough to keep you fired up until Book 8's launch, slotted for June of this year. Keep your eyes on Massively for the latest info on Book 8 and beyond!
[Edit: A few points were clarified by Turbine and the original post was edited to show the clarification. Apologies for the misunderstanding. Mirkwood is coming later this year, not with Book 8 in June]
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Do you like what you've read here? Want to get your hands on a shiny new copy of the Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria Collector's Edition? Check out our LotRO 2nd Anniversary contest where you can win your very own CE box throughout this entire weekend! |
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Deryk said on 9:59AM 4-24-2009
Great article. Thanks for sharing! Something to look forward to.
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tanek said on 10:18AM 4-24-2009
I can't wait to see how Skirmishes and customizable soldiers are implemented.
I think everyone has wondered at one point or another what it would be like if they could take the (subjectively) best features of multiple games and create the "perfect" game for themselves. Party-scalable instances and customizing NPC fighters will bring LotRO a couple steps closer to that for me. :)
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gildhur said on 8:15PM 4-24-2009
Wow, nice job on the stealth edit to the article. First it said we'd get Mirkwood in Book 8, then it was revised to say "later in the year." /sigh
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Pontifax Stainis said on 10:48AM 4-24-2009
great news. Having a way to define the opponents based on your party number might be really interesting for when you can not get all people onboard for a quest. maybe Turbine should extend it to more than the skirmishes. anyway, that's good news.
also for the customizable soldiers, I guess... they might be a welcome hand. LotRO keeps getting better, and kind of answering the prayers of players. Tha'ts really why I keep at it... an also my two sons. He've been playing since the beta.
Grats LotRO, Grats Turbine
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Harry said on 12:09PM 4-24-2009
When I first read 'skirmish' I thought 'Arena Battles'. But it turns out they're something different.
Still, I would love a PvP tournament where teams of Freeps would battle. There is a questline in Angmar that kind of provides a lore context, where you have to battle a couple of fighters to prove your worth.
Anyway... looks like Lotro will have a great year with this next book, the one after, and the upcoming expansion.
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Green Armadillo said on 12:30PM 4-24-2009
Hm, so, as a former subscriber who does not currently own the expansion, I can obtain the expansion and a 3-month subscription for a total of $40? That's actually a pretty good deal, if it runs through June 30th, I might take them up to it.
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mechanicalturk said on 12:35PM 4-24-2009
This stuff looks great, especially the skirmishes. I have been wanting to try this game for a while. Unfortunately, I think the combat mechanics will drive me crazy. I play DDO and love the combat system. If LotRO would adopt DDO's combat system, I would make the switch immediately.
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Ironraptor said on 2:07PM 4-24-2009
Damn DDO still has not even got Mod 9 and LotRO is getting Book 8.
Think I might give LotRO wounder if the $200 lifetime sub is still available?
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Mauii said on 9:12AM 4-26-2009
The $200 lifetime sub is available if a founder "enlists" you I believe... plus I've been told they'll help you out if you email them real nice like ;)
Jack said on 4:56PM 4-24-2009
Hmmm Anniversary Bonuses sounds good... 9,95 for the game sounds great but I do not have any friends playing it anyone out there that want help me get started...??
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Jay said on 6:49PM 4-24-2009
I and also one of my kinnies turned in our platinum tokens (The rare drops mentioned) and obtained a Beryl Shard. A pretty damn good reward, certainly better than the then billion tart recipes we all got for the last event.
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varikyle said on 8:43AM 4-27-2009
I am really looking forward to this new content, especially the 'skirmishes'.
Unfortunately, i have my reservations. Given the half-assed way in which Moria and then Lothlorien were released, full of bugs and what not.
Tho i guess it's not just the new content.
The eldar server was glitching out massively yesterday. I was in a raid in Helegrod and we all froze and then were booted. In the roll back some of us lost quest etc. In other areas the same was happening to kinnies.
Ticket was sent to GMs. Reply was that it must be our ISPs as the server was working fine! 7 different countries and many, many different ISPs being used...but it must be them cos it certainly couldn't be the LOTRO server!!
So, in essence, i love LotRO and everything about it, but i feel that they really should sort out what's wrong ingame first, and then concentrate on releasing new content.
That way they'll have a much happier player base who may have more incentive to stick around.
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Nightbird Glineux said on 6:20PM 5-01-2009
Great article.
I was planning on walking away from the game after finishing Moria. But Dol Guldur and southern Mirkwood sound good!
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