Thread: Horse Race Tokens?

Okay... I have tried three races so far. All of them low route, but I always seem to just run out of time. I mean I've tried going back again and taking the high route but I just can't seem to stay on the planks for the entire way. I make it to the middle, try to jump onto the second one and miss entirely. My question is... is there a trick to the low routes? Can you even win on the low routes? And if not is there any other way to get the horse race tokens. I have never really wanted a festival mount until I saw the Simbelmyne one and now I'm just determined to get it.

the secret to winning the race is practice practice practice and you can practice from your usual horse, espcialy the tricky parts like the plank jumps
and the bree track is easier imho than the shire one, maybe because ive used it since forever .. and unlike that fence racing which your toon runs drunk the festival horse races are easy, once youve got the knack.

try to relax while running the race, if you pannic youll most likley miss either the plank or the jumps

the only other way to get the festival horse tokens that im aware of is to win the lotteries, there have been a few since the festival started which give the race tokens. when their having a lottery run they tend to appear hourly at the top of the hour or more frequently so check back often

AFAIK the low routes are a punishment for missing a jump, and if you miss both the race timer is set in a manner to not let you win.

Originally Posted by Zetsubousensei

AFAIK the low routes are a punishment for missing a jump, and if you miss both the race timer is set in a manner to not let you win.

Actually, if you use the LOTRO store-bought horse speed buff food, which is a 1-hour 20% buff, you can win even if you hit both slow-down spots.

Originally Posted by Zetsubousensei

AFAIK the low routes are a punishment for missing a jump, and if you miss both the race timer is set in a manner to not let you win.

Definitley incorrect for The Shire course. I never bother with the high route. No need for any speed buffs, either.

Here's my two cents on how to win the horse races.

When I first started doing them a few years ago I also went the water route. I figured out to ride just to the edge of the water, but not into it, and jump out as far as the horse can take you. It seemed to shorten the slowing effect? If I hit most of the fence jumps correctly I almost always made it. Just make sure and go around the first fence in the bree race-there is a spot to ride thru the bush to the right-and go around the fallen tree in the shire. Every split-second can count. If they have shortened the timer my old method might not be so great, but I wish you luck.

As for going across the planks...just remember that real-life physics dont really apply in LOTRO, so you can turn your horse in mid-air, ride across the mis-matched planks without falling off (for the most part) and jump a series of fences before it looks like the horse is ready. And as the previous poster said, practicing on your own mount cant hurt. Oh, and I start my plank jump early or I end up going to far and falling off the other side. Also, you really only need to make it across one 'bridge' to have plenty of time. The speed burst a successful jump gives you is all you should need-works from either bridge.

Originally Posted by Finglonger_UK

and the bree track is easier imho than the shire one, maybe because ive used it since forever

Interesting how peoples experience varies. I have NEVER managed to complete the Bree course successfully, but have a pretty near perfect record in The Shire.

I always take the low route as my hand/eye coordination is pathetic.

I don't know how much of a difference it makes, but I always set graphics down to Very Low, and I run the course on my own horse first to preload everything.

In the shire I go around those obstacles that I can. And making small directional changes while in the air on the jumps seems to feel slightly quicker.

A little tip for the planks: when jumping, jump from either the second last plank on the near side to the first plank on the far side, or the last plank on the near side to the second plank on the far side. Your horse will have enough speed to make the distance and you won't have to worry about turning much, as those planks line up much better than the ones closest to each other.

This may seem an obvious comment, but since I know someone who actually didn't know...

Are you navigating with the mouse, right?
Because trying to race using the keyboard is a real suicide...

One hand on the mouse with both buttons pressed, and the other one on the spacebar for jumps.

As far as I can remember I never failed a race in this way: even falling down a series of planks or getting the wrong timing jumping the fences, I always finish with at least 3-4 seconds spare.

A good frame rate helps a lot, anyway, especially on the planks.

The race can be won on both tracks taking the low route, I got the old spring horse on 2 characters already this festival.

That said in the last 3 races I have run in the Shire I cross the finish line with plenty of time and have not been given the win, the last 2 times at Bree I have had rubberbanding which equals loss. No problems until the last patch, going to defrag and/or copy back and forth between 2 disc to get the files cleaned up.

One of my characters just won a race token from the lotteries so just need to get the rest of the leaves for the new horse.
They seem to be doing festival lotteries everyday so make sure you check and do them everyday.

That is a great idea, mjk47, to ride the route first on your own horse to make sure the entire area is loaded. I have had the game lag about halfway thru the race. Can really screw up your time.

And TinDragon's description of the plank jumps is right-on. Sometimes its the little things that make a big difference.

I'll have to try the lower route again soon. See if my old methods still give enough time.

Originally Posted by LadyElaiya

Okay... I have tried three races so far. All of them low route, but I always seem to just run out of time. I mean I've tried going back again and taking the high route but I just can't seem to stay on the planks for the entire way. I make it to the middle, try to jump onto the second one and miss entirely. My question is... is there a trick to the low routes? Can you even win on the low routes? And if not is there any other way to get the horse race tokens. I have never really wanted a festival mount until I saw the Simbelmyne one and now I'm just determined to get it.

Originally Posted by Zetsubousensei

AFAIK the low routes are a punishment for missing a jump, and if you miss both the race timer is set in a manner to not let you win.

I have won both the Bree and the Shire horse races in the current Spring Festival taking the low route. I don't win every time, but most times.

I usually play on a laptop and get a little local stutter because of lower graphics. My stratagy is to run the whole track once on my normal horst to make try and load the track in my local game cache. I don't know if this actually works, but when I don't do this, I seem to have more stutter running the race. Practice the jumps so you don't get caught on the fences. Getting stuck on more than two fences will usually loose me the race.

The Shire race is a little easier on the fences. If you keep to the inside of the track, the walls are a little lower. When you come to wagons, you can jump over the wagon toungs, though I usually go around. As mentioned, on the broken tree, you can pass by on the right side instead of jumping over it.

As long as I jump all the fences/walls, I never have any trouble running straight through the mire on the low side over the water traps. As far as the timer for the race, ever since they changed from racing someone else to the current form of the race, the Anniversary race has always seems to be a little mor lenient than the other festival races, meaning it seems you have a few more seconds to run the Aniversary race than any of the other festival races. Just my observation,.

Originally Posted by swattz101

I usually play on a laptop and get a little local stutter because of lower graphics. My stratagy is to run the whole track once on my normal horst to make try and load the track in my local game cache. I don't know if this actually works, but when I don't do this, I seem to have more stutter running the race.

Oh this definitely works and is a VERY good tip. Since buying that SSD I keep forgetting how annoying all those stutters in LotrO were. VERY recommended BTW even on an old Laptop.

And they DO cost the race because the time on the server is ticking on while your client is sitting there doing nothing waiting for the textures to load.

Originally Posted by mjk47

Definitely incorrect for The Shire course. I never bother with the high route. No need for any speed buffs, either.

Nopy the low IS definitely punishment, Shire route is just easy enough so it doesn´t make a difference.
One really should make the 2nd high road as the following single jump is easier to manage than the multiple ones after the 1st high road. Similar strategy in Bree.
And yeah, keep in mind the horsies here can "fly", so keep steering while in the air.

Also a neat tip for those who absolutely hate the race, grind for kindred standing with Ale Association or Inn League.
You can just buy a race token from them. Use it to first to buy their sturdier mount though.