Discussion: New Player Advice

Hi all. I'm a new(ish) player. I tried out LotRO when it first went F2P, but dropped out quickly due to real life issues. I decided to come back and try it again now that I've got some time and I know a coworker that just started up as well. Currently I'm a level 18 hunter (I know, I know... but it seemed like the best to get into how this game all works).

I've been reading through the forums the past few days to get a handle on a couple of things that have come to mind. So far I haven't found all the information I'm looking for, so I'm hoping to find some advice this way. Here are a few things that have come to mind.

1. When (if ever) should I consider purchasing a house?
2. Does it make any sense to look at joining a kinship if I'm only playing a few hours a week? I typically get in some game time over lunch 2-3 days a week, and then a few hours 1-2 nights a week (less than 10hrs total a week).
3. At what point does making an alt seem to be a good idea? I thinking mainly about vault space in this case.
4. Is there any advantage to getting a premium membership early on?
5. I have an unused Mines of Moria set, should I hold off on using it until I reach a certain level?

Thanks for all the help.

1. When (if ever) should I consider purchasing a house?

If you have a yen to decorate, want a bit of extra storage, or a more private spot to socialize with friends than the pony, a house makes sense. There's no rush, though the discount you get from the vendors in the neighborhood is an extra little bonus.

2. Does it make any sense to look at joining a kinship if I'm only playing a few hours a week? I typically get in some game time over lunch 2-3 days a week, and then a few hours 1-2 nights a week (less than 10hrs total a week).

It can really enrich even the casual gaming experience to find the right kin. You want one that is more socially focused than raid focused. (If you happen to be on Gladden, this is where I advertise my kin, Rangers of the West, as just that kind of kinship. ) It may take a couple of tries to find the right fit.

3. At what point does making an alt seem to be a good idea? I thinking mainly about vault space in this case.

I think as you get up to 20, it makes sense to bring up at least one alt-maybe to fill out crafting skills, but even just to have a mule to mail stuff to when your bags are too full and you don't want to head back to your vault.

4. Is there any advantage to getting a premium membership early on?

I think it's useful to wait if you can till you're approaching level 20. Subscribers (premium means something different here-simply that you've purchased something with actual money) do have the chance of doing a quest for their riding skill at level 20 instead of having to purchase the riding skill. There are several other unlocks, such as the gold cap and bag space as well for any characters you log in while subscribed. So, even if you're not going to play them all for a while, I'd create your alt and level them a little during that time. Even if you just log in and log out with them, however, you'll get the basic unlocks.

5. I have an unused Mines of Moria set, should I hold off on using it until I reach a certain level?

I assume you mean the free month code, and so I'll refer you to my answer in Q4.

Welcome back, and I hope you enjoy your sojourns in Middle Earth.

1. house purchase is totally optional and doesn't really have a best time. May be when you have sufficient funds, and need some additional storage space.

2. Kinship also totally optional, and depends on the kinship. Some are very welcome to new players, and they can be extremely helpful in providing low level mats for crafting, assistance in killing bosses when you cannot find groups at low level, and answering questions you may have . Other kins wont look at you if you are not max level with decent gear. On the whole tho, I think you will only benefit from a kinship. Most are perfectly happy to let you involve yourself as much as you want, not as much as they want.

3. As you level you will learn what to keep and what to vendor. I personally never found my vault totally full with stuff I absolutely had to keep. Gold returns from questing generally keeps up with you vault costs (depending on how much you like to craft), so just try to open more slots when you can/need to. A mule toon, just for vault space, can be made any time and is strictly up to you, and when you think its is needed. Its a pretty minor time commitment in any case.

4. I have always been VIP so cannot say for certain. My suspicion is that you could get a fair ways into the game (level 30 to 35?) before needing or really wanting to come off F2P. Gold will not be an issue til then, as you will be spending it, and you will still be in the F2P areas. But perhaps a premium player should speak to this. One thing that might be worth doing is paying for a month of VIP then dropping to premium. You will permanently unlock things like the bag and gold limit (I think) and the on-going cost (after the first month) is the same as F2P. Its a win-win.

5. Not sure what you mean by Mines of Moria set. If it is as Bel-Asarte indicated, a free month in MoM, you wont be seeing that place until level 45 at minimum, solo probably closer to 50. So hold off, and as indicated, figure out what your status needs to be.

1 - Your choice. House is mostly for storage and to put your war trophy in.
2 - You can still find peoples to do instances/fellowship quests if you are part of a Kinship. You can also find people to craft some gears. I will suggest that you specify that you are a casual player before joining a kinship. Most will have no problem with that, but some are really raid, very active, players oriented.
3 - Your choice again. At the beginning, I tried all classes a bit, destroying characters to create a new one. Than I kept one, than 2 and now I have 9 characters, one of each classes.
4 - VIP unlock a lot of things, bags, virtue/trait slots, swift travel, ... for existing character. So, taking one month of VIP will avoid you unlocking a lot of things without TPs. But if you want to create 1 or more alt, do it before.
5 - How do you get a Moria Set at level 18? But yes, if you have it, keep it. It's a very good kit. I kept mine up to level 69-70.

Enjoy the game!

Thank you all for the advice!

I guess I should have clarified on the Mines of Moria piece. I was talking about the expansion (http://www.amazon.com/Lord-Rings-Min.../dp/B001FS7FE0). I'll keep everything else in mind. It helps me a lot. Thanks again.

Regarding the Moria Set

First thing you need to make sure of.....

Is it the Turbine version or the Codemasters ... Check on the box for the logo

If Codemasters then it is useless

If Turbine you can add the code to your account at anytime.
It will give you the Moria Expansion (Inc Moria Quest Pack), Warden and Runekeeper classes, TWO extra character slots and will upgrade your account to Premium instead of Free. Which means some restrictions will be lifted

You wont be able to access Moria until at least lvl 45 but you will have access to all the other Expac items

Don't have much to add to the good advice above but just wanted to say Welcome to Gladden!