Sunday, April 24, 2011

Cutting a Balrog's wings

A very warm welcome my friend!

There are many things in this world that should remain unseen by most, although not by all. We adventurers are often envied for our lives full of action, but it also is not easy to live like this. A few months ago Nimreidhreth, my old elven friend, sent me a mail of him trying to bind a real ancient evil, trying to stop it from escaping after being captured ages ago.
   I never saw one of those, but the letter talked about a “Balrog”. I could try describe it, but I think the words of my old friend may be more accurate:
   “Balrogs, although you may not have heard of them dear Qwerqsar, are ancient spirits that Morgoth, former master of the now rampaging Sauron, bound to him. They helped him in many evil deeds, always filling up the ranks of elite warriors in his armies. I personally saw none, since I was born after the capturing of the dark and evil higher spirit, but from what my father told me, these creatures spit out fire and corruption wherever they stepped. Bringing one of those down was difficult, and their supposed disappearance was seen as a great relief for many of the now called Free Peoples of Middle Earth.

Even Durin VI was impressed by the Balrog that would bring
his own and his kingdom’s downfall.

   I have finally seen one with my own eyes. It was a terrible image to behold. It was gigantic, it towered towards us, breaking his chains that kept him from moving, suddenly brandishing a huge flaming sword. His wings spanned meters across the hall, almost shadowing any light sources the hall it was kept in had. It’s roar froze up my heart for a moment… then I charged with my fellow warriors of foretold directly at him. But it felt like I was charging into darkness itself…”
   There is not much on the result of the battle here, since some pages are missing. They should have a system like in the Shire’s Quickpost, that’s for sure. But it seems that the efforts barely renewed the chains, since my friend had to go back to slay that creature again. I still don’t know if it is dead, but if it is not, I hope it is still chained up, and maybe you or any of your fellows might help Nimreidhreth to kill it. Still, judging by the last letter I got, it seems that it defended itself successfully again, leaving a deep shadow looming over our heads.
   I see you are already standing up, with an eager flame in your eyes. Will you risk your life to slay that ancient evil? I hope you succeed. If not, I can’t foresee the consequences to its release.

Ruins inside the Rift: impressive and beautiful.

   What will I do? Maybe I’ll not move today, there is still plenty of tea and some cookies left. I surely hope that Nimreidhreth has it under control. I hope to see you again to join by my fire some day.

 Until then, fare well.

[The topic of discussion this week may be a theme way too many times discussed and even with unfruitful results. I will not say that these are the last words that will ever be spilled over the issue, since every time someone says it, a few weeks or months later someone brings it up. But I think this is the magic of fandom and of the discussion of these topics. It permits us to communicate, no matter if we agree with each other or not. The issue here is the old question: Do Balrogs have wings?
   I already can see the booing I’ll get for bringing the theme back up, especially since the Tolkien Professor and later Haakon, at CSTM, brought it up and gave their final discussions on it. Both have admirable different points of view. The first one categorically says no, something you’ll hear in his lectures, and the other says yes, bringing up some interesting thoughts on why they should have wings. Now I’ll put in my bit of Tolkien lore, and even though I may have confessed I barely read beyond the usual triad –Hobbit, LOTR and Silmarillion- I think my bare knowledge may still give a new point of view into the discussion. My answer to this question, as strange as it may sound, is yes and no. But first I’ll give my why don’t agree with both of the aforementioned authors. I’ll just remind you that I won’t enter into a full discussion with the authors, I’ll just highlight some key points to keep the post as short as possible.

I)                   I have a strange opinion about Haakon and this is the first time I’ll ever voice it out: I don’t agree with most of what he says. Be it lore, an opinion on some LOTRO mechanic or something else, I always have a “but” to include in his discussion. Still, I like what he does and try to read of him as much as my time permits me (by the way, I love the passages of the books he is starting to include into CSTM). Maybe I like to disagree with him, or maybe it is just my respect for all he knows that drives me to read and discuss with him, even though I never really discuss with him directly or openly. Whatever the reason may be, I was totally against his answer.
   One of his points of why Balrogs have wings was based on a line in the Silmarillion, in which Tolkien describes de battle between Morgoth and Ungoliant after they steal the treasures of Feänor and return to Middle Earth:
“Deep in forgotten places that cry was heard. Far beneath the ruined halls of Angband, in vaults to which the Valar in the haste of their assault had not descended, Balrogs lurked still, awaiting ever the return of their Lord; and now swiftly they arose, and passing over Hithlum they came to Lammoth as a tempest of fire.” (Silmarillion)
   To this scene Haakon has the following to say:
“Balrogs can move extremely fast in the open. To rescue Morgoth from Ungoliant they move at astounding speed. The Elves must have seen this occur in order to report it in the Silmarillion. This combined with the description of “winged speed” in the alternate version and passing over Hithlum, seems to indicate that the Balrogs were at least airborne some of the way.”
   First off, even though the Silmarillion is a text that accounts the memories of the elves, it is by no means necessary that every part of the book is true and/or has eyewitnesses. When Tolkien wrote this (and he wrote for years), he was thinking of creating a new mythology. By doing that, the Silmarillion was becoming something that resembles the Bible; it is absolutely not the same, but when you read it, you have the feeling to be reading a text of myths, not true accounts. It must be set clear that a myth is not a lie, nor a concealed truth; on the contrary, a myth is a narrative, which takes its truth from its interpretation and its context. In other words, this narrative is used to explain certain phenomenon or event in history, without making the description truthful.
   This happened a lot in the Middle Ages and in Ancient times. Exact description was not the main goal of many of the “writers” (since most didn’t write at all, but weave these myths into beautiful songs, poems and so on) was to give an impression and also to give a message. If we approach the Silmarillion with our science-based minds, what we will try to do is find a Truth (yes, capital). This is not how you approach such narratives, and this has brought many confusions and, above all, misconceptions about the great sagas, poems and stories of old. Tolkien himself was fascinated by the way of thought of the past, so much that The Lord of the Rings is often close to the medieval mentality, and thus perfect to explain how people in the Middle Ages thought. Secondly, even though this is an account of elves, the whole text is based on memory; some things have been lived through, others had eyewitnesses, but those died, and others just never saw the event and still had to explain the event. Ungoliant’s dead my be explained in a “maybe”, but something as close as Lammoth, right next to the territories of the elves, may have a closer explanation because they felt close to it.
   I can imagine no one saw the battle between Morgoth and Ungoliant, still began to piece all together as he saw the events that were happening (death of the Trees, wrath of Feänor and exile of the Noldor and the new growth of evil). Besides, a place with such a terrible noise had to get an explanation. The disappearance of Ungoliant and the burnt hands of Morgoth had to be the clues that were used to get the story together.
   It’s like the tale of Beren and Luthíen: no one saw it, still there is a ballad and all. This means that there were hints and pieces of the history around, even as few words from Beren and/or Túnivel themselves. But there were no eyewitnesses, so the story had to be pieced together.
   This distance is one of the beautiful things about the Silmarillion. Even though you get to know the world, you get to still imagine most of the events, to interpret them as you like. They all hide some mystery, since you don’t know how much of it is even close to the truth.
   Then there is a last reason, but that one I’ll get to in my own explanation.

II)                I deeply respect the Tolkien Professor. Corey Olsen re-awakened my interest in The Lord of the Rings. I read The Hobbit when I was about twelve, and got so immersed into the world, that I became a D&D role-player. This, in turn, moved me finally into the direction of becoming a medievalist. I was kind of astray on my thesis when I found him through LOTRO, and now I have been working again to get my title and keep on studying the Middle Ages. I follow right now his undergraduate lectures, but at a slow pace because of my limited time.
   But aside of that, I like hearing all that he and his colleagues say about LOTR, and it is interesting to know that there are scholarly studies of the books, which makes me even more interested in finishing my university in the best way possible. I first listened to his podcast/University iTunes application and there the question was made if Balrogs had wings. The answer was pretty much solid, especially the part about the use of the language in Tolkien works, but then there was one argument I immediately said no to.
   I’ll paraphrase it, for the exact sentence can be easily found in the respective Podcast (“On Wingless Balrogs and Tom Bombadil”, released 27/07/2009), but in a general line he opposed Balrogs having wings because Durin’s Bane lived in the mines and there was no use of wings inside caves and he never flew back up while he fell into the chasm with Gandalf.
   Here Professor Olsen uses a practical reasoning, and it can be answered with another argument of the same nature: Balrogs didn’t always live in caves. They were powerful warriors of Morgoth and often wandered outside and waged full open war on the elves, dwarves and men. This means, they had other kinds of ambiences they could have developed: why not have wings? Second, they fought alongside dragons, which also fly, so: why not be able to do the same?
   Lastly, I don’t think the Balrog Gandalf confronted could have flown up again for two reasons. One, he was fighting the wizard after all, and both are more or less equal in power and age, and second, going back to a more physical description, he would not have had a lot of space to maneuver, much less to start flight.

Foretold charging into the Rift: the Balrog must be defeated.

   Here is where my argument would try to bring together both points of view, since I think there can be an explanation, although it may sound a bit complicated. I hope I can get my point through, since I am pretty bad at explaining something more metaphysical.
   First off, we must remember who the Balrogs were (or are). This refers us back to the creation myth, in which we see a special kind of creature in existence, the Valar. Those are primordial spirits, each with a set of attributes given to them by Ilúvatar. Those primordial forces, through their song, create the world in which everything told in Tolkien’s Middle Earth will happen.
   They enter the world with a status separation according to power. The Valar, being the most powerful of all spiritual beings, take control of the different aspects they develop on Middle Earth, even so much that Morgoth takes the from of evil in the world. The lesser spirits help thus the higher spirits out. Who are those lesser spirits? I could think of two examples that are more than familiar to us: the five wizards and the Balrogs. Remember: they are not the only ones.
   Now comes the real point of the discussion: what is one of the main traits of these spirits, lesser and higher? They are formless, this means, they have no real physical bodies or defined features. Those are gained as they develop in the world, taking mostly humanoid forms, emulating the sons of Ilúvatar.
   Now you’ll have to bear with me when I get to the quotations. My version of the Silmarillion is in Spanish. I haven’t been able to get an English one yet (better said, I still haven’t looked for it), so I’ll have to translate the quotations back into English. This means that stylistically it won’t be the same as you can read it… neither in word choice. But the main point, which is to get a few ideas across, will be achieved nonetheless.
   In the Ainulindalë Tolkien talks about the Valar and how they look:
“…the Valar took for themselves form and color; and because they were drawn to the world by the love of the children of Ilúvatar, in whom they had put much hope, they took forms that looked alike the ones they had seen in the vision of Ilúvatar, except in majesty and splendor. Those forms came from the knowledge they had of the visible world more of the world in itself, and they don’t need them, except as we use clothes, since we could walk naked without lessening ourselves. Therefore the Valar can be, if they want it that way, without a visage, and even then the Eldar don’t notice them clearly, even though they are present.”
Bringing this one more step further, in the Valaquenta, Tolkien briefly says the next line about the lesser spirits, the Maiar:
“…on Middle Earth the Maiar rarely have appeared in visible form to the elves and men.”
In a few words: Maiar and Valar can change forms. If they take one form, it’s because they are comfortable with it, and they only dress up when they have to appear in front of the creatures of Middle Earth. Such is the case of Gandalf, who takes the form of an old man in front of hobbits, dwarves, elves and men. But he is no man, since he has magic powers beyond of any other man on Middle Earth.
   But as there are the Valar and Maiar that protect and bring order to the sung world, there are also the evil counterparts. Melkor, or Morgoth, is the main Valar, more powerful than the good ones, that decided to go the corrupt way, trying to enslave other creatures. Under him are a myriad of other spirits and Maiar, who thought that joining evil would bring themselves benefits. The Balrogs are Maiar, clearly noted in the Silmarillion.
   The quotes given talk about their capacity to change forms. Later in the book we find out that Melkor loses his ability to change the way he looks like, since he is so consumed in evil thoughts, that he chooses a fixed and terrible body. Whether the evil Maiar go trough the same situation, is not clear. But if there is one thing for sure is that they did have a choice in the beginning.
   The description of Durin’s Bane in Moria itself is very interesting in regards of the formless theory:
“Something was coming up behind them. What it was could not be seen: it was like a great shadow, in the middle of which was a dark form, of man-shape maybe, yet greater; and a power and terror seemed to be in it and to go before it.” (The Fellowship of the Ring)
It may be said that the description is insufficient because they Fellowship was running. But I could also say that the Balrog in itself presented no real form in itself, but that it was felt like darkness. Two keys to this: first off, the Balrog was of man-shape maybe and on second place the line “power and terror seemed to be in it and to go before it”.
   When I read the description I see no definite figure presenting itself, just a presence that is surrounded by fire. Even at the short resting moment at the crumbling bridge the description is not widened much aside from the light expanding as if they were vast wings (which is no definite proof that they have wings).
   Why would a meticulous writer as Tolkien, who is so fond of describing not take a second to expand on how a Balrog looks? I think the main clue is in the aforementioned quotations of the Silmarillion. The Balrogs, being spirits, are in essence formless and only take shape when needed. Thus they present themselves as dark figures to scare the orcs and goblins (and elves, dwarves, men, hobbits and the occasional Maiar), but it seems like they take no definite form. They rely on their presence more than their form.
   Another factor to include is that, being they spirits, they are not bound to the normal laws of physics to which the other creatures like elves and men are. Valar are known to have great power, such as Elbereth, who hears all, and Maiar, even if not as powerful, can surely take on some fantastic feats that go beyond the imagination of elves. The flight of the Balrogs over the river to save their master can be explained in certain way by their spiritual being, in other words, since they are shapeless and not bound to the world as other creatures, the hindrances work a but different for them. They may have passed the river over without the need to fly, or they went airborne withouth the need of wings, since they don’t need wings to fly. Or how else could we explain the great speed of Tulkas and Melkor on distances that for the elves would take days to achieve?
   Why would Gandalf not be that fast when needed then? I think one explanation is in his mission, which forces him to dress up and become a humanoid figure that all races of Middle Earth can see and sometimes even relate to: being bound to a physical form must have limited him.
   Lastly, only because they are called Balrogs in general, I don’t think every one looked alike. Every one of them could take the form they wanted in the earlier days, creating a myriad of forms. Remember that I concluded that a Balrog has more presence than a physical form, so the form is more than a formality to appear in front of the normal creatures that populate Middle Earth.
   A good last question that would remain is if Durin’s Bane itself has wings. Re-reading the scene in Moria in The Fellowship of the Ring gives me no definite clue. It may be that the chosen physical form of this particular Balrog may have wings. But as far as I understood, the only thing that we can see there is the presence of the evil Maiar and no real form.

Wings or no wings, this enemy is fearsome.

In conclusion, I think we sometimes go too far into factual and objective thinking. Even though I have not read most of the expanded notes on Middle Earth Christopher Tolkien published, I am pretty sure that when his father was thinking of a Balrog, he was thinking of it as a formless presence more than a physical figure. The idea behind it was terror. It’s like Sauron, who is really just a shadow (and took other forms in the past). The eye figure seems more like a form he took in the desire to search far and wide for his ring and also to have all his unruly troops under his control.
   Maiar change form, and thus Balrogs can do so to. They have wings, although no literal ones, and they don’t have them since they don’t need them to be what they are. If we read Tolkien’s most fearsome beast that way, we may be able to understand the Balrog more as a visage of darkness than a creature, and even though it has whips and swords, the Balrog remains more Maiar than a beast, man, dwarf, hobbit, elf or whatever other creatures normally roam Middle Earth at the end of the third age. And, after all, isn’t the Balrog more of a rite of passage for Gandalf than anything else?
  
On other news, Nimreidhreth is now 65, so raiding and instances have become a more normal activity for me. I have a surprise for next weeks post, but later on I will go back to LOTRO itself again. Have fun, see you next week.
   And again, sorry for the long post.
   All Hail!]

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Addicted to experience


A very warm welcome my friend!

Time has passed since I knew Nimreidhreth Taleth first. He always had been a proud elf; proud of his heritage, proud of his skills, proud of his race. Now he is close to achieve his maximum power, and he is feeling the need to reach that last step. He has been eagerly fighting inside Mirkwood against goblins, wargs and orcs to hone his skills.

Proud warrior Nimreidhreth.

   I am happy about him, and it seems that his letters are being written with more and more excitement, even though he may try to write them as serious and, well, elvish as possible. But his efforts and experiences are noted. For months he travelled through plains, forests and mountains, he explored the depths and the heights of Eriador and beyond. He fought many an enemy.
   Now he sits in the dark woods, brooding on his destiny, preparing himself for that last step. He should rest, I say, but sometimes when someone is about to achieve a goal he forgets about everything else. We’ll see if his endeavor becomes fruitful, but I do surely wish him best of luck. May, as he says, the Valar protect him on that last part of his travels. In the mean time, I’ll sit at the campfire for a while, smoking pipeweed with you and enjoying a good tea. I even got a new and excellent brand of leaf!
   Oh! You are going already. Well then, have a safe trip, I hope I’ll have more to tell next time, but…

   Until then, fare well.

[There have been many articles I have read in past times about a “new” kind of addiction that have been bringing some question on the world of computer gaming, above all of MMOs in general. The article I most remember came out a few years ago in a german magazine called Spiegel, in which it stated that there was even a consideration of including a program for game addiction into the social health bill.
   But the first question I’d like to ask, concerning this topic is: what is an addiction? It has become pretty much less and less clear to me to understand that concept, and I don’t mean by scientific/physiological standards. Studying social science makes you critical on those terms.
   Let’s get one thing clear on that: we all pursue to feel good. Getting a bit of endorphins loose, or any other of those accelerating and good-feeling hormones, is an essential part of our joy. Humanity has always tried to get that little extra to feel better about its surroundings, and it’s normal to us to look for a little thrill. I don’t mean by that extreme sports or something like that, but many find pleasure in reading a good book, in leveling a character in his favorite RPG or simply by having a walk in a park or forest. There are numerous ways to feel good after all.
   But usually, when it goes to addiction to something, people tend to put video games over other activities. This means, if you spend all day reading, no one is against it, but if you play LOTRO all day long, then you are addicted. How do they decide that? Isn’t there some bias against certain types of activities? I really can’t say.
   I myself accept I am addicted to various things. I love my tobacco and my pipe, as well as cigarettes. Still, at the moment I am writing this I am well over three days of not having touched a single leaf of tobacco. I don’t feel the need to drink it. But I know I am addicted. Same with Coke. I love it. But I am well known to hold off a whole month without drinking a drop. It pains me a bit more, but still it is possible for me (be it noted that I usually drink at least one liter of Coke daily… so yeah, I’m killing myself. Still I am very healthy, for some reason…).
   A few weeks ago I discovered that I became addicted to LOTRO. But a few years back I played a lot of games; this raises the question of how can I tell I am addicted to that game in particular? Well, I think a safe reference is to use the following points:

a)      You play a long time on it (usually about six hours or more would do it, although, if you think three hours is too much, then this may be your personal addiction limit).
b)      You tend to disregard outside events. You stay home to raid instead of going to that party or high school reunion to see old buddies.
c)      You get in a bad mood whenever the game is down. You are better to be ignored during server downtime.
d)     You only think about that activity. You are planning on what to do next time you connect every second of the day. Or any other thing you would do in-game. But you can’t get yourself to plan for the next day’s fishing trip or picnic because you are thinking just about the game.
e)      No place for personal relations. You shove your mother/brother/girlfriend/wife aside, you can’t stand up to get the trash quickly out or come to dinner. If you are in a raid I understand it, but if you are in a normal place and you can’t park your character for five minutes in some corner to help out, or just go AFK for 30 minutes to eat, then you might have some trouble.

   Only one factor may not be enough to say that you may be addicted, but as soon as you experiment two or more, I think it is pretty clear that the game has taken hold of you.
   In my case I came to my conclusion using only point a). I would even say I have a minor gaming addiction, since it hindered me a bit on my work. I had to control it any way or another. It is true that the first rule to get rid of an addiction is by recognizing you have one. But the second one, the most important one is taking steps. A few tips from me would be maybe:

a)      Put in official hours. I usually try to play only form 19 o’clock to 23o’clock. It is still a four hour playtime, but it is much less than a few weeks before, where I got up to eight hours of playing. I put an exception on weekends and only if I am in a raid, which tend to take longer. In this case, the team spirit comes before, but as soon as I am out I disconnect and do bartering and repairing the next day.
b)      Get in contact with your friends! I usually don’t have much trouble with this one, since I sometimes NEED a drink (obviously jokingly) and I rarely do drink a glass alone. I have still a clan life to follow, my family has festivities from time to time I like to go to, or even once every few months I accept to tolerate a University party (I can’t stand drunks too much though) just to talk to friends outside the normal academic ambience. Also, you might want to get in touch with your significant other. I usually see my own girlfriend every second day AT LEAST, since she is a priority over my game.
c)      Get other activities. Reading can be fun, I do it. But there are also other things to do, and no, playing another MMO doesn’t count. Of course there is work, but it doesn’t count as another activity. You could start collecting something. A walk in the next park wouldn’t be wrong either. Tending a garden does help, or, as I do from time to time, cooking can get your mind off the game. Or just start a blog!

The scenery in-game may look hauntingly beautiful –in this case Forochel- but
Always remember there is no place like the real outside.

   But then there is this other problem: I am a fan of LOTR. Granted I barely read more than the three basic books (this means: The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings –it is originally one book parted in three- and The Silmarillion), but I collect stuff regarding Tolkien and I also happen to read Tolkien Studies from time to time, or even listen to the Tolkien professor. Being a medievalist sometimes pulls me directly into Tolkien when trying to get an example across. Am I addicted? My father much of the times only thinks about his physics. It is his profession, but can you consider it an addiction? Some would say no, but maybe because his activity tends towards a productivity standard. What I mean by that is that it is considered work, and in our modern society work is barely bad. Then again, we go into the Workaholic area, which functions as a dependence too.
   So now some might think that I playing four hours a day might be already an addiction. All I can say is: I don’t know. But I have a lot of other things to do, and I gladly trade a game night for an interesting party or festivity. Maybe humans are naturally addicted to something at all times, but juggling three addictions is more productive than just stagnating into one. So, by my definition, an addiction is just when things get out of hand. But that part is up to you to decide.
   I think that maybe addictions are not bad in themselves. As long as you have certain control on them. It’s like this basic idea of water: if you have almost none, you die of thirst, if you have too much, you drown. The same should apply to you daily activities, but this limit is very personal and it is up to you to decide. If you suddenly play one day for eight hours to reach finally level 65, then I would not say you are addicted. You just took a day off. If that day off repeats itself and with no real good reason, then you probably are addicted. I repeat myself. This is up to you to decide, but it is necessary to think about.

Resting after a battle in the Rift. Raids may take hours of playtime, but
they are extremely fun to go through.

   See you next week then.
      All Hail!]

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Killing the masses

A very warm welcome my friend!

Sit down to get some tea. Seems like you have been busy slaying many a goblin. You are, after all, splattered by this foul blood. Thinning the lines of the enemy is, after all, a central activity for us. Lufere just sent me a little mail on it. Seems like the man took a trip to the lands of Ered Luin, near the Blue Mountain, where he has been taking a hunt for wolves and dreadful giant spiders. This pleases the Valar much in the quest to restore peace in Middle Earth and giving this age an end and starting a new one. Just look at what he says:
   “Many miles I have travelled. I finally got to see the halls of the dwarves. It was incredible. The main receiving hall had a huge statue of one of their lords, looking towards a small light entrance that seems to work as a window, above the gate. Behind the statue a busy life ensues, that reminds me of my homelands in Gondor. It’s like a city, just with smaller and sturdier people. When I got to see the forges I was just impressed by the size of their melting ovens and fires.

Killing wolfs by moonlight.

   But I wasn’t there for sightseeing, so I immediately took off to hunt down a goblin camp more to the south, trying to find some clue for their ever-growing presence…”
   By the way, Nimreidhreth seems to have walked off somewhere far beyond Moria, into the dark woods, I haven’t heard much about him. But I can see, form this tattered letter, that it came from a war ridden zone. Look at this dark orcish arrowhead!
   Well, I guess you still have some goblins to get, so I won’t hinder you anymore. We should share another tea!

 Until then, fare well.

Mirk Eaves… one step before the Wood.

[Grinding. At some point all of us have to get to it. Be it for the reputation with a faction, be it for some traits and abilities, be it even for the Turbine Points you need to get finally that last questpack! I myself will be busy with grinding this week again. I am not precisely looking forward to it, but now that my main has reached level 60, I have to find a way to get the last TPs to get Mirkwood. But then again, grinding wouldn’t be soooo bad if it wasn’t for a detail I almost dread from time to time: the availability of the mobs for the slayer deeds.
   It happened to me a lot when I was grinding for Moria: every time I was in a zone with two or more types of mobs, of which I needed only one kind, the one I needed to get down was not there. This has three reasons: a) many are grinding the same mob (sometimes they are quest objectives too); b) a higher leveled character (like mine) just invaded the zone; c) the random spawn generator.
   Problem a) and b) are pretty close together. The mobs are, after all, hunted down for an almost too obvious reason. If you get a quest that says “kill 10 wolves” and a deed that asks you to kill 100 wolves, the people will tend to merge on the zones and hunt the poor animals. Then there is always this big leveled guy who just runs through the area and one-hit kills all and runs on. So chances are that you will be a bit screwed and will have to wait for them to respawn.
   A good solution to this is to try to ally. If you are all at the same level as the mob, having four guys accelerates the gain. Just make in the fellowship two teams of two to gang up on two wolves. The long time killing the mob will more than halve, since you may be fresher to immediately fight the next mob as soon as you and your friend kill one – in the mean time the other team already killed another mob and is moving on to the next. At least it helps until the monster is totally wiped out and you are forced to wait for it to respawn again.
   As for the high leveled player, well, ally with him too if possible. But also, if you are the high leveled character, you should consider that there are many low leveled ones that need the quest/deed. Maybe you should just send a quick question on who need the specific mob. I really think it is better to help out, so the quality of the game rises not by the content, but by the (already good) community.
   As for problem c), I feel that there are some people who are not familiar on how, in some areas, the respawn rules are. Just about two days ago I read a post on the forum on which the rules were hinted at, and I think the poster knew how it works, but for many it is just something they haven’t thought about, even while grinding.
   It turns out that in some places two or mobs share space, if you kill one of those won’t assure that the respawn will be the same. This means, that there is usually a chance the same reappears or that another of the area may appear on the same spot. But if that happens, this means the orcs you are looking for will still be present, isn’t it? Yes and no.
   Let’s say we have an area with 100 mobs, one half (50) is orcs, the other goblins. Your deed is to kill 200 orcs. “Sweet”, you might think, “four runs and I am through”. Wrong! Now, lets suppose the respawn chance of both mobs is 50%. You kill the first bunch of orcs and then they re-appear (note that your deed is now on 50/200). But since it is a 50% chance for orcs and a 50% chance for goblins, by normal statistics (it’s a mind experiment, since the numbers may change a bit) you have now a respawn of 25 orcs and 25 goblins; sum these to the already existing 50 goblins and you have 75 goblins and 25 orcs. You go in again and get the orcs (suppose the goblins don’t attack you at all, you are now high above their level) and get the bar up to 75/200. The mobs reappear and (supposing the randomizer is good to you) you have now 13 orcs and 87 goblins. The area that seemed so full of orcs suddenly seems to have almost none, just those pesky and useless goblins.
   As you see, attacking one type of monster usually means that the one you are looking for is slowly decaying and the useless one is becoming abundant. It is thus a rule that you might start to run out of your mobs. So much for only doing it in four quick runs, my friend. Of course, there seems to be a system implemented that, as soon as a mob is too long on the field, it gets re-rolled, but that includes a long waiting time.
   I usually try to kill two of the needed and then one of the useless. This would ensure a faster regeneration of the mob I need, although it often gets ruined when another, not knowing this rule, just sweeps off the monster I needed to deed. So it is good to know the rule to make the slayer deed at least a bit faster, since most of us get bored of it pretty soon.
   But definitely, the main tip should still be to make in group. It makes the deeding go faster and more fun, since the companion can always be there to make a joke. Just don’t forget to get the other kind of mob too, even if you don’t need it, since it might help to keep things rolling in the zone you are.
   Well, I hope this helped this time. For more help on many other stuff related to LOTRO, I just found by recommendation a site called mmorsel, dedicated to the game. It has good beginners and not-so-beginners guides, as well as some interesting tools, of which I have yet to test some. It will definitely become part of me link section.   ;)
   See you then all next week, and as always…
   All Hail!]

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Breeds of Middle Earth

A very warm welcome my friend!

Sit down, even though today it may seem like just chatter. I was talking to these fine gentlemen about horses and breeds. I myself have not much idea about these themes, since I barely own two horses. But the whole discussion started by a letter of my dear friend Nimreidhreth, the elf that now prowls in Moria and, as far as I understand from his words, in beautiful forests beyond:
“Dear elf-friend!
   Battles have been fought in the deeps of Moria, and I must say they ended with a certain degree of success. Now I have continued my travels to the far end of the dreadful mines and caves and have finally stepped out to breathe the fresh air of woods and valleys. As soon as I went out the gates I knew: I am close to elven land! Lothlórien lies beyond; I feel the wind welcoming me, the whispers of the voice in the distance, the glow of our magic.
   Also, I got finally to call my old friend again, War, a trusty steed the Council of the North had entrusted to me. There is nothing finer than this horse, clad in red. He missed me and we first went out for a good ride, to enjoy the sun and just having the freedom to be together again.
   I heard you had gotten your own steed, friend. I hope you take care of it, for it will be your faithful companion throughout the battles you are about to face. And not only that, the far places you will visit will seem shorter with them carrying you to your goals.
   Well, now I am to see my cousins of the east, I hope they receive me as one of their kin! May the stars guide your ways.”
   So there came about a question of breeds and which are better and so on. It has been a lively talk. Always with a cup o’ tea. Oh you are going? Well, then have a good trip, we may see each other again.
   Until then, fare well.

From left to right: War, an angmarim reputation steed, Yuleson,
a winter festival steed, and Donnar a regular bay steed.

[Horses is the topic today. This is inspired by some advice chat I have been following while getting some stuff from the festival grounds. Turns out one of the main questions I could read there was: “Which horse is best?”
   Because of the context there, the question was directed towards only two kinds of horses most could get in this area: the Henstacer’s Farm horses or the Festival horses. It may seem like an obvious question to most of us, but for a new player, it is a vital question to understand, so I’ll answer it for them, since for him these choices can be overwhelming with all the options available in LOTRO.
   There are different kinds of horses in the game, although, to be honest, most are just a skin. To start with the first, there is the starter steed, I think the weakest possible. Usually only available for VIP, since it is part of a quest chain, it is obtainable at level 20. But since the LOTRO store is there, many people don’t wait up to that level: most buy the riding skill that you obtain for these quests for 95 TP (or even less!). Remember that this skill is necessary. So many move on to the next range of horses.
   These are the five basic colored ones, with no details or adornments. You could say they are the most “popular”, since they only cost some silver (I don’t know how it applies on the starter horse, but for the first horse you usually pay 500s and then 200s subsequently).
   Next come the festival horses, which you only get at certain moments of the year. Usually you get a choice between two horses per festivities, obtainable for a ownership document (buyable, same rule applies as with the above mentioned horses), a race token you only gain winning, well, duh, a race (Bree-Land and Michel Delving, Shire) and 20 tokens of the corresponding festival.
   Up to here we could already start answering the question: which is better? The answer, if we do not count that starter steed, is none. Both have the same stats: 162% speed, 100 morale. You can think of those horses as different skins for the same horse. Someone once complained that the horses weren’t able to be customized with armor and stuff. Well, think of each kind of horse as one customization option. Once you buy them, you may use any look you like. The only difference will be the name you can give each steed. None is better. Some players like to collect the different looks. Others get two or three and then try to alternate them from time to time (my approach). If you don’t care for looks or collection, you may as well just buy the first one, no matter what kind of horse, and then ride it forever. The main function is still the same, and sometimes moving in Middle Earth without an own horse can be a real pain.
   But then there are other steeds, the reputation ones. Once you get certain reputation with certain faction or get certain (huge) deed done, you get a horse: may it be free or may it be for a price that generally is above 5 gold. Now, those are different, although it may take you a while to get them. Their morale is usually increased to 250 and sometimes some have another 6% more speed to boost.
   Finally, there are some sold in the store, but generally at a price close around 1000-2000 TP. I wouldn’t really buy them unless I had a ton of TP, but some like them for their looks. Stat wise… well, some are as good as a reputation horse, but some (even those you can get for gold in the game) are as strong as a normal horse you get for a festival or in Henstacer’s Farm. In other words, sometimes they are worse than their in-game versions. Which ones are better? Depends if you want to use TP or not. I usually buy them with gold. Those in the store might sometimes be neat, but most of the times they are worse than the one you bought from the faction or just equal to my angamrim reputation horse. You could say they are glorified skins for your horse.
   What do I recommend? Well, it depends on your play style, but to be honest, with one normal and later on a reputation one is more than enough. Anything extra from there is just because you want to show-off, just like me.
   Again, for your first horse, there is no real difference between a festival one and a normal one. I usually choose a festival one; again, just to show off. The good horses come as soon as you get kindred with any faction on Middle Earth.
   But there is a good webpage dedicated to the horses you may take a look at Steeds of Middle Earth. It will give you a list of horses and also the goats, of which I haven’t talked about because I don’t own one.
   All Hail!]