Nope to LOTRO Update 11 and Where have you been Diablo 3

So Update 11 hit LOTRO this past week when Turbine also attempted to update its aging launcher, all of which promptly broke on impact.   When people were able to get in, a quest in the new region ended up getting broken and that halted your progression.   All that put together plus convulted go around fixes to the launcher just gave me zero incentive to even attempt to get in game this week. For a glimpse of this just search #lotro this week.

What I did to fill the void?  Diablo 3 came roaring back at me.  I picked up

this title a not too long after it came out last year and played all the way through Acts 1-4 on my Barbarian on normal difficulty and then forgot about it.  Diablo 3 has a lot of good things going for it.  It’s your classic dungeon crawl.  The story telling is there but it doesn’t force you to stop playing or bog you down.  If I want more story then I can go talk to the NPCs…I’m not forced into it.  I’m enjoying the class skills, visually its great, gameplay is entirely satisfying.  What I didn’t quite “get” back at launch was how much the game changes when you progress in difficulty.  Monsters not only have more health but they use more effective skills and I’m seeing this as I progress through on nightmare mode (the next step up after normal).  Not simply satisfied with running my Barbarian through nightmare, I tried to do Hardcore on a witch doctor but stopped after three deaths.

Hardcore is where you lose your character after a death…something alien to 99% of todays mmo’s.  Now, hardcore does reward you with better loot for the risk and that’s great.  Anyway, the first time I died was when I lost my connection and upon logging back in the game found out I was dead, the second time I got greedy and rushed a fight, got overwhelmed and yeah….the third time, I was with a group and got separated, Bam! dead.  Those characters were only around level 9-11 so not much was lost but ohhhh, did I learn my lesson!  You know, I can’t remember the last time a game has forced me to deal with a character death that way.  I don’t mind it at all, its refreshing and gets me to enjoy nice and slow character progression with some risk.

GW2 got some time in there as well.  Am I getting the daily done everyday, no and that’s ok.  But, when I do log in, it’s usually the first thing I do.  I was able to hang around long enough to help my guild out on a Bounty Mission and here’s the proof!   

LOTRO PVMP tribute to my Orc

Not to mince words but LOTRO’s pvmp is at a low point right now and doesn’t seem to be on Turbine’s dashboard as something to address.  So, no better way to fill that pvp itch than taking some screen shots and modding them up with cool apps.  This baby here was done by the folks at http://www.vinylize.me/

So, here my Orc his nightly stroll looking for dastardly freeps up to no good, maggoty meat, making me angry, etc, etc, etc.

 

 

Comfortably numb in Rohan

LOTRO continues to be my main MMO these days while my game time has been slightly less the past few weeks.  I’ve spent some time in GW2 working on my Guardian, who seems to have petered out at 45, and my newly rolled Necromancer who is lvl 10.  I tried to get back in SWTOR but after hitting 52 I haven’t found myself logging back in.  I also sorta hit a wall with WOW, my warrior there is 60.  Sigh, way too many games that’s for sure.  Then Neverwinter launched and that captivated me for about 20 levels.  I think I’m turning into one of those level capped collectors…just collecting level capped characters in whatever mmo they are playing.  Certainly, the typical endgame scene of repeating raids until you get the gear you want is about as appealing as drinking reclaimed baptismal water from a leper colony

So, in LOTRO I’m somehow managing to level up my Wardens on Riddermark and Brandywine…. simultaneously.  At first it was just an attempt to learn the class again.  Warden is not an alt friendly class if there ever was one.  I don’t know, but right now, I’m just comfortable in Rohan and I’m not looking for anything more than that.    LOTRO did have some big news with the announcement of patch 11… a new area to explore is always welcome.  There’s more pvp woes as there’s a change to the way killing blows are earned that will take place with patch 11.  Apparently this was a bug since 2007.  I’m not too phased about the change itself but to take this long to fix a simple bug is mind numbing.  Again, Turbine’s communication takes a swing and miss with the community.  I will say that the upcoming Lala’s market place is one area that Turbine did right.  It’s an ingame store that’s not in your face and for Turbine, that’s progress.

Neverwinter is here!

I did pick this title up on preorder and started leveling a Great Sword Fighter.  I do wish they could have been a bit more creative with the name, Great Sword Fighter doesn’t do it.   Be that as it may, it’s an AOE melee machine and that’s what I want to play.  I made it to lvl 16 and it’s been great fun.  There’s a lot to the game and I don’t fully understand yet.  I’ve done 1 foundry mission and a handful of this orc wave skirmish.  Up on the plate is my first dungeon and finding a guild that is a good fit.  Crafting does seem a bit like SWTOR in that you assign minions to do the crafting and you are free to do whatever you want.  I hate being nailed in place to do crafting.  Anyway, I’ll be including more of this in my schedule, possibly at the expense of SWTOR and WOW.

Does changing game servers give your game a rebirth?

I started out in LOTRO on Brandywine server a couple of months after the Mines of Moria (MoM) release.  Why Brandy?…simply because it was the first name on the list of servers to choose and it was a name I recognized from the lore.  I knew no one there and was a complete noob.  I enjoyed my time on Brandy and leveled 3 toons to the endgame cap during Seige of Mirkwood (SoM).  I joined a kinship because I really liked their name and then I discovered they were so full of themselves and quite racist.  I found another group and fit like a glove and enjoyed those guys.  However, when free2play launched I decided to roll on Riddermark, mostly because it was the unofficial PvP server and hey, it was a chance to start fresh with everyone else…I missed out on the Shadows of Angmar (SoA) start.

So that brings me to this week.  I logged on Brandywine instead of Riddermark and started leveling my Warden thru Dunland, a place I’ve leveled thru on 4 other characters!  Surprisingly, it kinda felt like a different game.  Granted I was very rusty on my warden and leveling him is really just an excuse to relearn 2+yrs of lost skills and new keybinds.  I quickly discovered my Brandywine kinship was dead.  Maybe 1-2 people had leveled past 65 so Rise of Isengard (ROI) seemed to be the death of it.  Only 2 people on my friends list had also leveled past 65 and only 1 of those had played since January.  A depressing sight and one that almost got me to log off.  Then I saw a familiar name and got invited to his kinship.  Suddenly I’m with a good group of adults and looking forward to what comes next.

Is Riddermark dead to me.  No, in fact, I had 2 really good PVP sessions on my Reaver last week.  I just have more options now: log on Brandy to work on my warden, log on Ridder for fun with Reaver or level Warden.

 

 

I really want to love you Turbine!

I’m probably one of the easiest customers to please.  I play casually, have plenty of disposable income to spend and I admit I spend too much on TP cosmetics/frivolous stuff that my wife doesn’t know about .  I’m not motivated by endgame raiding, no need to design raids to keep me occupied because I make it a point NOT to repeat content…ok, I will repeat dailies as long as you continue to give me a choice of what daily to do.

LOTRO PVMP’s players taking it below the chin

What’s driving me away from your game and closing my pocket book is the complete mess that is PVMP right now.  Issue #1 is the stupid skill balance that exist right now between Freep and Creep classes.  You don’t need to get it perfect but bring them closer together. Issue #2 as a returning casual player (or new player) I’m pigeon holed into playing one way….and that is roll with the biggest zerg I can find and screw the other side.  This is shortsighted and escalates until one side logs off and pvp ends.  It might fit a player that is online >1 hr day but my play sessions rarely last longer than that so I feel a bit disenfranchised. Fix it. Issue #3 Build a grindy game and players will find shortcuts around it, be it legal or exploits.  Sapience, LOTRO Community Manager, announced that pvmp leaderboards are being discontinued.  This is welcome news for rank farmers exploiting the system and a slap in the face to legit players.  Fix it!

Casually venturing into Defiance

I just picked up this title though I have no idea how or when I’ll fit into my schedule.  I don’t like first person shooters but this is 3rd person so I think I can handle that.  Also, it’s made by Trion who I have a lot of respect for the work they have done with Rift.  Now Rift isn’t perfect BUT Trion has always been responsive and I value that.  As of today I’ve only had about 5-6 hours in the game but it does feel like something I can enjoy in little bite size pieces.  I do need to figure out the UI and decide on a playstyle/character. I’m not quite sure what everything means in the game but it’s not slowing me done at this point and I have plenty of time to figure out  that stuff later.  So for now, good work Trion and where can i buy more hours in the day!