Renkosi's Guide to the Siege of Mirkwood

Three months and one week after placing the order for all the parts for the new PC, it’s finally working! Other than the Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit OS, it’s decidedly a last-gen (ie. DirectX10) system for now. The new DX11 cards were tempting but I’m simply not willing to spend that much just for a video card any more. On a side note, I find it interesting that when I was younger and living paycheck to paycheck I had no problem sacrificing and saving up for the brand-new hardware and now that I can afford it without batting an eyelash, ... [click title to read more]

A very Happy Birthday to one of my favorite Hobbits in the world!  Today is Goldenstar’s birthday!  And although a team of ponies could not drag out of me just how old she is, let me state that she is younger than me and that’s all that matters!  She is both a wonderful mother, an incredible wife, and the best friend anyone could hope for.  She is an amazing woman and the source of all the happiness in my life. I love you!

I have an odd habit of chatting with the NPCs in game and it makes me curious if I’m the only one. I’ve done this as far as I can remember. Some of your may have answered them yourself. What may be considered odd is that I typically will type out my response in /say as if I’m really talking to them. Merric just takes it as a silly quirk of mine but I believe it enhances my game play to believe they’re real characters. That’s not just a mindless NPC, that’s Aragorn or Gandalf. It doesn’t have to be ... [click title to read more]

Morfuin encounter in the Skirmish: Rescue in Nûrz Ghâshu.

In our last segment (for now) of the current soldier cosmetics, we take a look at the Man cosmetic items.  I would like to thank Kaelin of my Kinship, The Council of the Secret Fire for their help with the gathering of these photos.  It is very much appreciated! Remember, that each cosmetic costs 1 specific Campaign Mark and 77 Skirmish Marks and can be purchased from a Cosmetics vendor at any of the Skirmish Camps. Thanks everyone who made these possible!  As we see new updates I’ll be sure to add them, but until then…. Happy Skrimishing! Cosmetic Picture Campaign Mark White Hair Adlan Campaign ... [click title to read more]

This it truly just jaw dropping beautiful to to me. Minas Tirith made completely out of matchsticks! The project that took nearly 3 full years was recently completed last month. Built by Patrick Acton the model is built out of 420,000 matchsticks and 24,000 small wooden blocks (who counts this stuff!?). I envy the patience Mr. Acton obviously has! I encourage you to visit the page on MatchstickMarvels.com to see more pictures and views of this mammoth model. Special thanks to Chris (@thinbluline) for emailing us the link to this story!

In this episode, we discuss our first run in a duo skirmish. We had very differing views of the duos but overall I believe we both think they are a great addition. We discuss the mobs we ran into and the new Leech-Warden lieutenant. Goldenstar’s runekeeper is 16 and Merric’s minstrel is now level 26. Merric has started the Volume III, Book 1 quests and is not going as quickly as most people are talking about because he’s choosing rewards rather than the quick travel options. Just for reference, Merric talks about what skill he gets when he was 4 and I ... [click title to read more]

Sapience has posted an advanced warning that LOTRO will have a scheduled downtime on Monday, March 8th from 6:00am to 10am EST. The forums and lorebook will be available but you will not be able to login or manage your turbine game account.

This poll may take a little extra explaination but the basic question is: How many defeats are too many before moving on? Example: You and your fellowship have been trying to kill a monster, clear a dungeon, or finish a skirmish but keep dying. How many times do you try before deciding to move on and do something else? Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Today while browsing the world wide interwebs I found myself watching a video of a Russian LOTRO Server. The video was titled "LOTRO, Creeps in Forochel" and can be viewed on theLOTRONetwork.com or on YouTube. The video title immediately threw up a flag for me. Lets go over a little back story here. Forochel is the region just north of Evendim. The snowy, ice covered bay is best known for its involvement with Volume I, Book 14. The area contains many mobs and a few very cool small dungeons and caves that are a real treat to explore. The zone has ... [click title to read more]