Lord of the Rings Online goes Free-to-Play this fall!

[Cortexian]

So now you can all try out the only MMORPG that has a decent storyline and lore to fall back on!

Today is an important day for LOTRO: we’ve announced that this fall, LOTRO will begin offering a Free-to-Play option! Players will be able to download the game and adventure in Middle-earth for free. With Free-to-Play comes the addition of the LOTRO Store, where players will have immediate in-game access to a wide variety of special items, account services, and convenience items.http://www.lotro.com/news/709-announcing-the-lord-of-the-rings-onlines-move-to-free-to-play-


You can also signup for the F2P Beta here:
http://www.lotro.com/betasignup/

[NuggetWarmer]

Sweet. I've been hoping for something like this.

[ThePlague]

Signed up :)

[Inferno]

That's a clever scam. Make the game free and get existing players to get their friends playing. Then their friends get hooked and when they cut them off they are forced to start paying monthly to play.

I WILL NOT FALL FOR IT!

[Amit]

Read about this last month. Guess I won't have to worry about cutting off my sub again.

[paladin]

Whats the difference? btw, just finished a 7 hr run. My hand hurts :/

[Amit]

Read up: This shit's important. (http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/45/feature/4292)

[PlasbianX]

Read the link. The F2P version has NPCs that are locked and you have to pay to get their quests. What the fuck is that? Ive never heard of a F2P charge you for quests. Every F2P ive seen really only charged you if you wanted mounts, different armor (that usually didnt affect gameplay) or other cosmetic factors.

Bull :X

Too bad I'm sticking with Aion.

[sevlag]

>waiting for fallout MMO

[sdavis117]

I've been playing WoW for a while now, and I have learned to hate quests, and love the Random Dungeon Finder, so as long as all of the instances are available, I have no problem with some quests being locked.

[Amit]

Read the link. The F2P version has NPCs that are locked and you have to pay to get their quests. What the fuck is that? Ive never heard of a F2P charge you for quests. Every F2P ive seen really only charged you if you wanted mounts, different armor (that usually didnt affect gameplay) or other cosmetic factors.

Bull :X

Too bad I'm sticking with Aion.

You make it sound like the main quests are locked out to people. The main storyline quests along with some side quests up to now will remain free. To be honest, I've been subscribed since day one and I still haven't finished many of the main storyline quests. That is because I get side tracked with all these other quests that are somewhat useful, but mostly unnecessary. I am completely fine with this as a free player. You can still subscribe to the game for the regular subscription price and get all the bells and whistles still. It is just absolutely astounding that the main feature of this game will become free to everyone. Is that not enough to make everyone happy, especially with the quality of this game?

[Cortexian]

Here is some more information that may be useful:
http://www.lotro.com/betasignup/vipchart.html

That shows the differences between Free Players, Premium Players, and VIP Players.

Turbine has also stated that Turbine Points for LotRO will be earned in-game as well as by "Points Cards" that you can purchase in real life, these points can be used in the LotRO store to purchase all kinds of things. Apparently you should technically be able to play all of LotRO without ever spending a penny, because new quests, content, and areas will be available in the LotRO store for purchase with these Turbine Points. According to one of the official community managers you should, in theory, be able to earn enough points by playing the game to unlock the next quests/areas as you progress.

Here is a huge list of FAQ's that a community member has been archiving:
http://forums.lotro.com/showthread.php?t=335135

Official responses from the developers are included. If you can't access the above page due to permission errors let me know and I'll quite it here.



I personally purchased a Lifetime Membership a few months after the game was released for a "founders discount" of $200, so I have technically been playing the game for free for over a year anyways. Since I purchased the Lifetime Membership I get LotRO VIP for free as well as 1,500 Turbine Points right off the bat, I then get 500 Turbine Points every month from then on. Basically I'll never have to purchase anything ever again.

[paladin]

I have a lifetime membership, and form what Ive read, if you want to progress past lvl 20-25, you have to pay.

[Amit]

I have a lifetime membership, and form what Ive read, if you want to progress past lvl 20-25, you have to pay.

Well, then you haven't read it properly. Go back and read it again.

Honestly, I really like this new system. I can't always pay to play the game and it'll be great to just relax a bit using the free play options sometimes. Of course, I'll never be dropped below the Premium status since I've been a paid subscriber. A lot of the features that are cut off when being downgraded from VIP to Premium are almost unnecessary. It'll allow me to focus on getting certain things done. Finding time to play this game is a huge issue for me, but now that it's summer I'll probably pick up my sub again for when the big update hits in the fall.


EDIT: FUCK! I just logged into my Turbine account and it no longer acknowledges me as a founder. I no longer have the option to become a lifetime member. I was planning to buy that in September! Fucking hell. Whatever, I'll put that money towards the new Xbox and continue with the sub I've always had...except I'm now being charged the full $29.97 instead of the $28.83 when I was a founder. LOL, as if it's a huge difference, but it adds up, you know.

[Cortexian]

EDIT: FUCK! I just logged into my Turbine account and it no longer acknowledges me as a founder. I no longer have the option to become a lifetime member. I was planning to buy that in September! Fucking hell. Whatever, I'll put that money towards the new Xbox and continue with the sub I've always had...except I'm now being charged the full $29.97 instead of the $28.83 when I was a founder. LOL, as if it's a huge difference, but it adds up, you know.
I believe it's been that way for quite awhile, if you miss a payment and you had founder status you lose it. You might be able to contact Turbine Account Support and get it back, but I doubt you'll have much luck due to all the F2P changes coming into effect.

[TeeKup]

>waiting for fallout MMO

This. This post.

[Cortexian]

If we're going there, waiting for Mass Effect MMO (http://kotaku.com/5552446/mass-effect-devs-looking-for-a-multiplayer-programmer).

That's not what this thread is about however, this thread is about the amazing world of Middle-Earth and Tolkiens great works!

[Amit]

I believe it's been that way for quite awhile, if you miss a payment and you had founder status you lose it. You might be able to contact Turbine Account Support and get it back, but I doubt you'll have much luck due to all the F2P changes coming into effect.

I've cancelled my sub at least twice before and it's never happened. Like goddamn,I've only been gone since April. I'll try TAS and see what they say.

Also, I don't know why but since yesterday I've been watching each of the extended editions of the films to see how long I could go without getting up (with the exception of putting in the many discs). I got to the battle of Helm's Deep and then I had to use the bathroom XD

[sevlag]

If we're going there, waiting for Mass Effect MMO (http://kotaku.com/5552446/mass-effect-devs-looking-for-a-multiplayer-programmer).

That's not what this thread is about however, this thread is about the amazing world of Middle-Earth and Tolkiens great works!
actually you can sign up for when and if the beta comes out for the MMO

and a LoTR MMO seems :I really seems like a cash in of the franchise

[Cortexian]

How so? LotR makes perfect sense for an MMO, after all there was a lot more happening in the story than the movies portrayed. You get to go and participate in all the preparations for the Fellowship and such in LotRO, as well as all the sensible things that would be happening at the same time. LotRO gears it's players to "following in the footsteps of the Fellowship", you do interact with them on certain occasions but most of the time you're behind them cleaning up or in front of them making preparations for their coming. There are also the obligatory quests which just allow you to help out the people of Middle-Earth while on your travels.

It's not like the entire LotR story took place in the movies or books, as a matter of fact the books make mention of several things that seem to be happening in the "background", as a player in LotRO you get to participate in a lot of these things.

[Amit]

How so? LotR makes perfect sense for an MMO, after all there was a lot more happening in the story than the movies portrayed. You get to go and participate in all the preparations for the Fellowship and such in LotRO, as well as all the sensible things that would be happening at the same time. LotRO gears it's players to "following in the footsteps of the Fellowship", you do interact with them on certain occasions but most of the time you're behind them cleaning up or in front of them making preparations for their coming. There are also the obligatory quests which just allow you to help out the people of Middle-Earth while on your travels.

It's not like the entire LotR story took place in the movies or books, as a matter of fact the books make mention of several things that seem to be happening in the "background", as a player in LotRO you get to participate in a lot of these things.

Fucking this a million times. Why are people so ignorant?

[Amit]

An interesting thing to note:

I cancelled my subscription in April and apparently lost my "founder" discount. Well I recently reactivated my account when I received an e-mail that I was selected for the beta (took them long enough) and noticed that I regained my discount pricing. I guess that after my existing game time is over I can reactivate my subscription with the special pricing.

[ThePlague]

Bump:

Just got this game, and so far it's pretty cool. I downloaded the high-res (which took 6 hours...), and it's got decent graphics. I'm not really far into it, but it's got a nice story (I picked Elf Champion).

Also, it's now Free To Play :)

[Amit]

Bump:

Just got this game, and so far it's pretty cool. I downloaded the high-res (which took 6 hours...), and it's got decent graphics. I'm not really far into it, but it's got a nice story (I picked Elf Champion).

Also, it's now Free To Play :)

You're gonna get hooked. Watch out.

[ThePlague]

I kind of am, but i'm stuck and its pissing me off. Where the hell do I get wax from? I need to make treated rowan, so then I can make bowstaffs to give to this guy in order to complete a quest.

[paladin]

You buy it from suppliers.

[Amit]

Suppliers should be around the main crafting areas as well as some semi-remote locations like Tinnudir in Evendim.

[MastaCheefa]

How long is the free to play period? Or does no one know yet?

[iizahsum]

Forever.

[ThePlague]

Anyone want to guide me through where to go? Everywhere I go, no one seems to have wax...

[MastaCheefa]

Forever.

Wow, thats really cool! I think I'll give it a try.

[Amit]

Anyone want to guide me through where to go? Everywhere I go, no one seems to have wax...


look at this thread: http://lotro.mmodb.com/items/wax-1576.php

look under "sold by mobs:"

It seems wax is not a widely transported commodity. Since you're low level (assuming), you're going to want to find an NPC from Ered Luin.

Still, if you're in the Shire, go to Woodhall to find Rollo Boffin. (http://lotro.mmodb.com/bestiary/rollo-boffin-2209.php) Raenfer (http://lotro.mmodb.com/bestiary/raenfer-1135.php) in Rivendell also sells wax. Just click through a couple of NPCs and just find what zone they're in and if they are accessible at your level. There's no way you can get to Moria by yourself under level 47-48 (I've tried multiple times) so rule out those NPCs.

Btw, have you tried checking the Auction Hall for wax?

Also, a notice for anybody else who starts playing, come to the Nimrodel server. That's where I have been since closed beta.

[ThePlague]

Alright guys, just reached level 10. lol

I've been using the Brandywine server, seems to be working out fine.

[Cortexian]

Wax is sold from Suppliers, they are located in the following starter areas:
Celondim
Thorin's Hall
Dulliond
Combe
Bree
Staddle
etc...

Look for the crafting areas and there should be an NPC around there. Generally I just ignore the crafting quests that require you to make an item to complete it, the quest rewards aren't worth the effort of making the item so all you get is XP.


Also, I wish server transfers were free because you all need to come to Landroval. Lanroval and Brandywine have the largest server populations so it's easier to meet people to do quests and instances, Landroval certainly has the most helpful and generally awesome community however. I have two level 65 characters on Landroval (Kevdor - Guardian, and Eorir - Hunter), as well as a bunch of characters between level 20-40. I've been playing since the game originally launched (and before in Open Beta), so if you have questions I can probably help out.

If you've started a character on another server and would like to come to Landroval I'll bribe you each with 100 silver and power leveling until level 10 (power leveling would require giving me your game log-in info, but I've already done it a bit for Amit so he can vouch that I won't do anything bad).

[Amit]

Yeah, Freelancer has been trustworthy thus far with handling the account. He leveled one of my dudes up to lvl 16 or something like that on Landroval for free, but I still went back to my Hunter on Nimrodel. I'll see if I can get some sort of a server transfer due to my loyalty to Turbine as a customer. However, I have stopped paying for a subscription now that it is no longer a requirement since University has begun and I have no life outside of school. Still, I'm not sure if even Freelancer, one of the external LOTRO beta testers from the start, could sway them into making such a change.

I highly doubt somebody on the Landroval server has my Hunter's unique name, but what else would pose a problem from transferring my character to Landroval?

[Cortexian]

Well for one, no one is allowed to transfer to Brandywine, Landroval, or the three new servers they added right now. Turbine locked character transfers to those servers because Brandy and Landy are already the most populated so they didn't want more existing players flooding there. The new servers are locked to give them a "fresh start" for Free-2-Play, meaning Turbine is only allowing new characters to be made on all of these servers but you cannot transfer existing ones.

Also, character transfers need to be done by hand (lots of database copy/pasting) by a Turbine employee. They won't hand them out for free unless they eventually come up with a reliable character copy automated system.

[Amit]

I just don't understand how Landroval got so big in population. Was there some crazy thing going on years ago that drew people to it? Or was it just knowing that it had to most people already so people joined up there.

[ThePlague]

Freelancer get on Xfire more so I can send you my infoz for my character. I can't beat this damn quest and I gave up on it.

[Cortexian]

I just don't understand how Landroval got so big in population. Was there some crazy thing going on years ago that drew people to it? Or was it just knowing that it had to most people already so people joined up there.
Landroval is big because it's the unofficial RP server, so there are a lot of people that RP and also have alts that don't necessarily RP.


Freelancer get on Xfire more so I can send you my infoz for my character. I can't beat this damn quest and I gave up on it.
Private Message would probably be easier for me, or make an account at http://lancersedge.servegame.org and shoot me a PM there.

[paladin]

Vylia has pvmp. Lolz pack ftw

[Cortexian]

Pouncing Pwnys are the best Tribe sorry!

I haven't PvMP'ed in over a year so I don't know much about that aspect of the game. Won't go back to PvMP until they get a new zones or something, the 'moors are only so fun imo.

[paladin]

yeah, i agree, but the lolz pack consists of 24 wargs that kick ass

[Amit]

I never understood Role Playing. You're in the game. As a character. You do things that you think that character would do. You're already role-playing without making it weird.

[Cortexian]

RPing is just taking your character to the next level of immersion, you really need a decent understanding of The Lord of the Rings books and appendices before you can RP effectively. One would talk in their native tongue and such whilst they role play and such. A lot of the role players on Landroval also have decent back-stories to their characters, and try to play their character according to how they think that specific character would act in every situation.

[paladin]

meh, i silently laughed at those in my kin that got too into their characters. Theres a line, and some people cross it.

[Amit]

Well, at least for the 3 and a half years that I've played, I've not once met a single jerk on my adventures. I'm not sure if that's because people are just generally nicer on the Nimrodel server.

[ThePlague]

Anyone try running this on a netbook yet? I was thinking of installing one of the resolutions on it, but not sure if it'll be worth waiting three hours to download.

[Amit]

I've installed it on my Acer netbook. LOTRO + Integrated GPU = Trash. It just does not work well even on low settings. However, your netbook is a new model. You could try it and see how it goes. You'll want the extra RAM.

[ThePlague]

Actually, i'm downloading the standard resolution.

[paladin]

the game has amazing graphics for an mmo, why would you play it not hi res. screw mobility

[Amit]

the game has amazing graphics for an mmo, why would you play it not hi res. screw mobility

His FPS would be like 3 on that netbook with high-res textures.

[ThePlague]

I have the hi res on my desktop at max settings, and it is nice. But I just want to see how it'd work on my netbook, in case I get trapped for a few hours at college :p

e: Turns out it runs like crap, even at lowest settings :( It was worth a shot though.

[Cortexian]

Yea LotRO is a pretty beefy MMORPG to be trying to run on a netbook, my laptop can run it but my laptop is a gaming laptop which is pretty far from the netbook side of the spectrum.

[Amit]

Yeah, I was gonna say. Generally you should try running the game at all on a laptop unless it's an Alienware (I think Alienware netbooks will do fine) or other type of gaming laptop.

[Cortexian]

Yea the M11x will run LotRO at Medium settings I believe, I think I saw a thread about someone doing just that on the official forums.

@Plague, sorry I haven't been able to do much for ya for the past couple days. Reformatted my desktop and still getting settled in again.