Thread: New Pet Appearance Ideas

Hello Captains

I've been having a lot of conversations with other Captains lately about the Captain Class Pets Appearances. All of us love our Oath-Breaker Pet and we also love using other cosmetics at different times too. Unfortunately you can't always use the Oath-Breaker because of traiting, so we go for what suits us out of what is available. Oath-Breaker - This guy just looks plain fantastic!

I've seen a Dunland Pet a few times on other Captains (though I myself have not done enough exploring to find just where to get this fancy guy - I'm assuming crafted though). Sadly I don't see too many of them, which I think is too bad; They look great!

So, two of my Captain buddies said it would be an interesting idea to post a topic asking your opinions on what new pet appearances we could have in future expansions (not necessarily right away, but maybe distant future). Moria gave us our Oath-Breaker... What should the next expansion bring us?

Leave your interesting or creative responses below. If you want to post a link to a picture you found online so we can get an idea of what you are interested in having as an appearance for a pet, please do (link it, don't use [ img ] if it's a large image).

Someone watches = 3. But on topic I would like a herald, or pet as some call it, with a cape, or some kind of cosmetic clothing customization.

I think an overhaul of the entire system is needed more. Make it so that the cosmetic is in fact a cosmetic, for instance the best one is the oath-breaker... I dont want a ghost following me around, but I don't want to settle for second best either.

As far as cosmetics go, i'd like to see one that is like the people of Rohan, since we are coming upon a Rohan-based expansion (Not to mention my captain is that of Rohan).

At one time I thought heralds should share the same "customize appearance via traits" system like the skirmish soldiers.

Recently, I've been getting quite frustrated over the limited variety even in soldier appearances too. The problem with banners or traits is that we'll always be limited by the finite number of appearances provided by Turbine's artists.

Now, I think heralds should have the same "customize race/sex/hair via traits" system like the skirmish soldiers and on top of that "customize clothing via cosmetic tab" system like our own characters do, so they can appear to wear whatever individual armour pieces we put on them, with the exact colours we want too. The technology is there. Turbine just needs to work on the interface. Even the random brigands we kill and the nameless Rohirrims we see idling in town have more variations in their appearances.


But then again, it's all just cosmetics and the class probably has far greater issues that need to be addressed right now.


I don't like the ghost either. Unless the ghost actually has special abilities, which I've not noticed, I don't think it's that big of a deal to go with the "second best" living heralds. The difference in the armour bonus is fairly trivial.

I'm happy enough to forgo herald cosmetics for improved utility.

Re Oathbreaker Heralds - I like the look but they need more oomph. Where our other heralds should wield damage types that match our main LI/weapon damage type, I'd like to see the Oathbreaker wield shadow damage. Sauron's hoards (including creeps) would be vulnerable to shadow damage?

Surely this would also be a better lore fit - seeing our enemies weakened (debuffed?) by their terror in the face our our vengeful shade?

Hm, probably too hard to balance the shadow +dps/debuff against the other heralds (although perhaps a good case for how far to improve them too)?

Note: many are allergic to 'pet' classes, which is fair enough. I'm not suggesting to buff heralds beyond banners, just budge them up enough to be a viable alternative choice.

Originally Posted by Bootroz

Note: many are allergic to 'pet' classes, which is fair enough. I'm not suggesting to buff heralds beyond banners, just budge them up enough to be a viable alternative choice.

Having them share a physical mastery score with us would do wonders for their DPS.

Originally Posted by Bootroz

I'm happy enough to forgo herald cosmetics for improved utility.

Re Oathbreaker Heralds - I like the look but they need more oomph. Where our other heralds should wield damage types that match our main LI/weapon damage type, I'd like to see the Oathbreaker wield shadow damage. Sauron's hoards (including creeps) would be vulnerable to shadow damage?

Surely this would also be a better lore fit - seeing our enemies weakened (debuffed?) by their terror in the face our our vengeful shade?

Hm, probably too hard to balance the shadow +dps/debuff against the other heralds (although perhaps a good case for how far to improve them too)?

Note: many are allergic to 'pet' classes, which is fair enough. I'm not suggesting to buff heralds beyond banners, just budge them up enough to be a viable alternative choice.

I think it would be fair to buff heralds - maybe not "beyond banners" but equal to them. Banners would still have their uses, since a lot of fights have nasty AoEs ect that can kill the herald afterall.

I've always thought it was dumb that heralds don't give Captains the individual stat increases that banners do anyways. That's the problem right there. It's very hard to give up those nice stat increases. So it's not that heralds are so bad. Frankly it's that banners are so good.

Maybe so... but the heralds bring more to the table then a buff. They are cappy selfheal pots on legs, can kinda offtank and add some personal damage and they are not stationary like banners so don't need to be re-summoned nearly as much. So comparing only statsbuff to statsbuff isn't quite fair. Though I would not mind a bit of an improvement. Think a wet towel hits harder then my herald

I'd love some more costumisation. Even if it were just one or two color alternatives for each existing herald (or preferably also clothes) and a complee new one, from Rohan for instance. But that said... all costumisation is welcome... and i would be thrilled to have a system like in the skirmisch even if that's still limited. It is a huge jump forward.

Physical mastery to add DPs on archer and melee pets like it was BEFORE mastery made it one stat
Plz...dont change OB appearance...its the best pet i game hands down...plz Dont

Originally Posted by Tangaar

Physical mastery to add DPs on archer and melee pets like it was BEFORE mastery made it one stat
Plz...dont change OB appearance...its the best pet i game hands down...plz Dont

I'd love it if they separated appearances into talisman like objects (like what they did with the LM pet appearances), then gave us one armament per level range. We can use whatever appearance we want, and the stats are no longer an issue.

As far as the armaments go, they should have stats, hopefully the same as the least of melee offence and morale found on the banners.

Originally Posted by Almagnus1

I'd love it if they separated appearances into talisman like objects (like what they did with the LM pet appearances), then gave us one armament per level range. We can use whatever appearance we want, and the stats are no longer an issue.

As far as the armaments go, they should have stats, hopefully the same as the least of melee offence and morale found on the banners.

aaah there you got me! indeed i like that.

Originally Posted by Orticia

Maybe so... but the heralds bring more to the table then a buff. They are cappy selfheal pots on legs, can kinda offtank and add some personal damage and they are not stationary like banners so don't need to be re-summoned nearly as much. So comparing only statsbuff to statsbuff isn't quite fair. Though I would not mind a bit of an improvement. Think a wet towel hits harder then my herald

I'd love some more costumisation. Even if it were just one or two color alternatives for each existing herald (or preferably also clothes) and a complee new one, from Rohan for instance. But that said... all costumisation is welcome... and i would be thrilled to have a system like in the skirmisch even if that's still limited. It is a huge jump forward.

I wasn't really trying to compare them. I was just giving a suggestions on how to make Heralds more popular.

That is the reason higher-level Captains don't use heralds more often - because the banner gives them better stat increases. If they made the herald give them also - then Captains would use heralds a lot more.

But anyways... no need to try and convince me of the uses a herald brings. I often point them out on this forum in fact - though for some reason when I use the term "off-tank" it creates a firestorm of controversy - yet when everyone else uses the terms you don't hear a peep. I love how that works lol

But yeah, heralds are handy, especially earlier on while the Captain is gearing up. I used my herald a lot, and though I have somewhat outgrown him now - he did help me a lot on my way up. If used effectively, they can deffinitely give you an edge.

fascinating ideas all around, so far

I *personally* love the oathbreaker, right up until about minute 2, when the constant wheezing, sighing and ominous whispering gets on my nerves, and I just wish the poor thing would shut up.

That being said, I'd like to see some serious variant heralds - why not heralds for our different traitlines?
I also like the idea of expanding the skirmish soldier customization (even skillwise) into heralds

I've also experimented with herald alterations as animals (not for the archer, so much, but why couldn't my herald skills be as applicable to a large dog, for example, as they are to a man?)

wouldn't be entirely out of line to give each type of armament it's own particular effect (shield-maiden armament transfers 2% of damage done to captain to herald - man-at-arms armament improves armor value of captain by 2%, Lossoth Herald provides 300 tactical resistance, or whatever modest buff would be lore-appropriate)

and so on

Shameless self-promotion here, but if you can stand the trolling (and me getting suckered into answering it), this sounds like a lot of what you suggested.

http://forums.lotro.com/showthread.p...er!&highlight=