New Expansion to The Lord of the Rings Online™ Launching Fall 2012

Lister1

New update announced altough I am probably one of the few still playing around here.

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment unveiled today The Lord of the Rings Online™: Riders of Rohan™, the latest expansion to the award-winning free-to-play massively multiplayer online roleplaying game (MMORPG) developed by Turbine. Riders of Rohan expands the online world of Middle-earth where players join forces to ride into the Plains of Rohan. Riders of Rohan launches in the Fall of 2012 with an increased level cap, the vast plains of Rohan including iconic locations such as Amon Hen and Fangorn Forest, the new Mounted Combat system and much more!

“2011 was another banner year for The Lord of the Rings Online with consistent growth for the game, a successful unification of our European and North American services and the success of Rise of Isengard, our best selling expansion to date.” said Kate Paiz, Executive Producer of The Lord of the Rings Online. “This is going to be another outstanding year as we celebrate our fifth anniversary and introduce a wealth of new content throughout the year, ending with our arrival in Rohan. One of our largest expansions ever, Rohan is expected to be twice the size of the recent Rise of Isengard expansion and includes the most new game systems and technology we've introduced since 2008's Mines of Moria.”

NEW FEATURES:

Experience the Riders of Rohan – Join with the Rohirrim and ride across the sprawling Plains of Rohan; witness the breaking of the Fellowship at Amon Hen; forge alliances with the Ents of Fangorn; and aid Éomer, adopted son of Théoden, as he seeks to protect his homeland from the growing Shadow.

Introducing Mounted Combat – Ride into Combat atop your loyal War-steed as you defend the people of Rohan from the forces of Isengard and Mordor. Customize your War-steed’s armor and level its skills over time to aid you in mounted defense of King Theoden’s lands. Mount your steed and gather your fellows to fight against Warbands, contingents of roving warg riders that have been scouted all over the Plains of Rohan! It falls to you to head off and defeat this new threat before they over take the land.

Advance to level 85 – Continue your legend in the next chapter of The Lord of the Rings Online. Experience new adventures in the epic story, and gain new skills and deeds as you face new challenges on your journey to 85!

The Lord of the Rings Online is the ultimate adventure. This award-winning massively multiplayer online role-playing game delivers an interactive experience brimming with life and filled with the familiar people, places and monsters from the most famous fantasy of all time. From the picturesque surroundings of the Shire to Moria, the most fearsome underground realm ever imagined, players can experience the world of Middle-earth for free! For more information, visit www.lotro.com.

Venom

Considering how poor the Rise of Isengard was the LOTRO Devs better make sure to up there game for this one. I sure as hell won't be pre-ordering this one.

diamondsny

/snore sorry, this themepark series has never caught my interest.

Sparkyd2002

Nope, Im still playing this.Great game to be fair. |The changes brought about around time it went FTP model and unification of europe and US accounts + additions since ROI make this game nigh on unbeatable IMO

JesterWX58

Still playing as well. Just upgraded my old XPS desktop to a laptop model so I'll be able to play a few games that didn't run too well such as DCU and Champions Online but I'll always have time for LOTRO.

Akarinn

Biggest pile of kak an mmo has ever seen...

humanji

Just read that the next update is going to have seven new areas to explore:

Upon going live, players will have the following seven new areas to traverse:

Thinglad: Thinglad is defined by its tall, grey trees with twisted, roots that drink deeply from the Great River. The forest is misty and shadowed while the skies are pale and as cheerless as the land itself. Once part of the Golden Wood, Thinglad has become a no man’s land between Lothlórien and Rohan in the last 200 years.

In the area, players will Assist the sentinels of Lothlórien in patrolling their southern border and mediate relations between the Galadhrim and the Rohirrim of Stangard who have recently been clashing during patrols. At the same time, heroes are needed to scatted Orcs and Wargs that have moved into the area before they become a larger threat to the region.

Parth Celebrant: The ruins of an ancient Gondorian keep, where brave soldiers once kept watch, stand at the southern edge of Parth Celebrant, overlooking the green plains. The site of the fiercest fighting during the Battle of the Fields of Celebrant, Parth Celebrant is also the site of a terrible betrayal. Gondorian soldiers allowed their fortress to fall to the enemy in exchange for safety and Eastern riches, condemning their countrymen to death.

Players will confront troubles both living and undead upon the fields of Parth Celebrant where a great treason once befell Gondor. Bring redemption to the traitorous shades so they may rest or destroy them if they are beyond aid.

Eorlsmead: Established on the highest rise in the rolling plains of Eorlsmead, the Rohirrim village of Stangard keeps its watch over the region. Though many men who serve at Stangard have been sent as punishment for recent, petty crimes, the village remains fiercely loyal to Rohan and Théoden, their king.

Though the soldiers of Stangard are strong and fiercely loyal to their king, the village has fallen on hard times and hope is in short supply. Lift spirits by helping with shortages of food and supplies and thinning the numbers of hostile beasts in the area. Root out the source of mistrust and discontent amongst the council.

Wailing Hills: The Wailing Hills are defined by the steep, rocky outcroppings, called tors, which stretch out from the Misty Mountains like long fingers. Statues of Cirion of Gondor and Eorl the Young rise from the earth as ancient symbols of friendship but Orcs, growing bolder, have begun to defile them. Hundreds of years ago, the forefathers of Rohan destroyed a great Easterling army in the deep valleys of the Wailing Hills to save the forces of Cirion, Steward of Gondor. The name of the land itself comes from the Rohirric word wael meaning “slaughter.

Many years have passed since the height of Rohan’s strength along the Great River and Orcs and spiders have returned to the Wailing Hills. Drive out the Orcs and prevent them from allying themselves with the White Hand.

Limlight Gorge: Caught between the rugged Misty Mountains and the northern reaches of Fangorn Forest, Limlight Gorge is a dangerous and untamed wilderness. Here, the Limlight River gushes forth over falls and rapids as it flows eastward to join the Anduin. The appearance of the unnatural storms from the North and the encroachment of Fangorn from the South gives the area an uneasy feeling as unseen forces seem to fight for dominance over the canyon.

Descend into the Limlight Gorge, where an unnatural storm has cast the land into deep shadow. Hunt fearsome trolls from the Misty Mountains who wander freely, no longer fearing the sun, and investigate the mysterious grove spreading at the base of the cliff beneath Fangorn Forest.

Brown Lands: Ravaged thousands of years ago during a terrible war, the Brown Lands are nearly inhospitable and are filled with withered scrub and stones as far as the eye can see. It is believed that the Brown Lands were devastated by the power of Sauron himself nearly 3,000 years ago during the War of the Last Alliance. Before that, many beautiful gardens were tended here though little evidence of them now remains.

Players will contend with an invading host within the desolate Brown Lands. Here the Rohirrim struggle to keep an old foe at bay while fortifying against their enemies’ mysterious new allies.

The Rushgore: A treacherous marshland, the Rushgore serves as the buffer between the fields of Parth Celebrant and the bleak Brown Lands. The eastern end of the Rushgore is one of the few places at which the Anduin can be crossed without the aid of boats. Little is now known of the Rushgore and was known has been lost to time.

Within the murky marshland of the Rushgore, ruthless brigands, once only a nuisance, have become a threat to the region. Pursue these brigands to reclaim priceless relics of Rohan and Gondor and extend aid to woodsmen who have found themselves overwhelmed while travelling north and now cannot leave.

The update is a precursor to the Riders of Rohan expansion which is set to go live in the fall and you can view the batch of screenshots Turbine sent over below.

Update 6 is scheduled to go live in the spring, and players will also be privy to an update to the Instance Finder, as well as the option to call upon their Skirmish solider anywhere in the game – except for instances.

This spring will mark the fifth Anniversary of LOTRO and Turbine’s planning to hold a large celebration it says players “won’t want to miss.”

There's a load of screencaps in there too.

froggus

Still playing here too... albeit a slow leveller, hitting 71 this weekend on my LM

Lister1

froggus wrote: »

Still playing here too... albeit a slow leveller, hitting 71 this weekend on my LM

Slacker...I'm closing in on my fifth level 75!

Dcully

Good to see you still playing Lister, i think it was me that got you into MMO`s a few years back :P

I watched a livestream of a guy i subscribe to playing LOTRO lastnight, i didnt see it all but he focused a lot on the skirmish mode,i have to admit it looks great for the solo player to hop in and out of the game at their leisure.
Tempted to reinstall but then again Diablo3 and GW2 are incoming, also theres the small matter of my minecraft addiction :rolleyes:

Lister1

Dcully wrote: »

Good to see you still playing Lister, i think it was me that got you into MMO`s a few years back :P

True.... and still going strong. Think I am too old for the FPSers but seem to be able to keep up with the pace with mmos.

Skirmish system is quite good but to be honest it suits the more casually players who can experience the raid situations without the need to know tactics going into the fight. Basically its a tank and spank situation with little chance of wiping.

kickarykee

I do play a lot of LotRO, but since I'm finishing every last quest I just hit 75 with my main (Hobbit Minstrel) a few weeks ago, haha.
I got two crafting twinks but they are both only around level 15...

Looking really forward to playing Rohan, though...
I wonder how the horse battles will work, sounds cool for sure
And I hope Edoras will be amazing!
And Helm's Deep!

Next they'll probably launch Gondor then - that's gonna be insane!
Imagine riding through Minas Tirith!
Woah

Lister1

kickarykee wrote: »

I do play a lot of LotRO, but since I'm finishing every last quest I just hit 75 with my main (Hobbit Minstrel) a few weeks ago, haha.
I got two crafting twinks but they are both only around level 15...

Looking really forward to playing Rohan, though...
I wonder how the horse battles will work, sounds cool for sure
And I hope Edoras will be amazing!
And Helm's Deep!

Next they'll probably launch Gondor then - that's gonna be insane!
Imagine riding through Minas Tirith!
Woah

Dont get your hopes to high about mounted combat. It aint going to be something that will be usable in pvp afaik and as a pve only mechanic I cant really see it adding anything to be jumping for joy over.

Anyone know if mounted combat has ever made an appearance in any other games?

Nody

Lister1 wrote: »

Dont get your hopes to high about mounted combat. It aint going to be something that will be usable in pvp afaik and as a pve only mechanic I cant really see it adding anything to be jumping for joy over.

Anyone know if mounted combat has ever made an appearance in any other games?

Age of Conan comes to mind; I know of a few single player games which has had it as well such as Assassin's Creed etc.

Irish_wolf

Lister1 wrote: »

Dont get your hopes to high about mounted combat. It aint going to be something that will be usable in pvp afaik and as a pve only mechanic I cant really see it adding anything to be jumping for joy over.

Anyone know if mounted combat has ever made an appearance in any other games?

Look up mount and blade. They pretty much nailed mounted combat. If LOTRO take their influences from that game there wont be a problem.

NiallFH

Lister1 wrote: »

Anyone know if mounted combat has ever made an appearance in any other games?

WoW has those horrible jousting quests and a boss fight with it. If LOTR does it in any way similar you will hate it no doubt