Update 37 - River-hobbits

[LordOfTheSquids]

Update 37 - Introducing the River-hobbit​

A new starting race is available!

The last of their kind remaining east of the Misty Mountains, River-hobbits are a lithe and silvan folk, steeped in wood-lore and attuned to the mountains where they remain hidden. Dwelling among the dells of the Misty Mountains, the River-hobbits of Misthallow are a rustic folk, quick-tongued and nimble-fingered. Known mainly in old tales and songs, they seldom venture outside their secret vales.

When creating a new River-hobbit, you may select any class to play except Beorning.

River-hobbits may start their journey in a new unique tutorial by selecting the "Shadows of Angmar" tutorial option during character creation, or River-hobbits may choose to start "Before the Shadow" in the town of Mossward. Access to quests and deeds in Swanfleet as well as the Before the Shadow Prologue, Book 1, Book 2, Book 3, and Afterword will be included with any River-hobbit Bundles for those who do not already own the Expansion: Before the Shadow.

Note: Racial traits, several icons and background images are still placeholder during this Beta.

A new height slider is available for River-hobbits characters!

 

[TesalionLortus]

River-hobbits start their journey Before the Shadow in the town of Mossward.

Wait, so they don't have any intro/prologue/tutorial in their origin area like the others? And are just... so overly generic, as far as implementation of this race goes?

 

[Pharone]

Can't wait to check it out after work today!

 

[auximenes]

When creating a new River-hobbit, you may select any class to play except Beorning.

Hmmm, I don't think I like this decision.

 

[Dol]

This new race's lack of its own unique prologue is disappointing :(

 

[auximenes]

I don't feel that Captains, Lore-masters, or Rune-keepers are an appropriate choice for an isolated group of farmers and fishermen tucked into a hidden mountain valley that has no history of conflict or a tradition of higher education.

 

[Demelsa]

Hmmm, I don't think I like this decision.

Yeah, seconding this, if it makes it to live.

Many of us are in favor of some restrictions in order to keep things feeling like Middle-Earth. Hobbit RK makes little sense, and it'll be very frustrating if River-hobbit Captains are allowed when they weren't for standard hobbits, but Lore-masters were. I'd think hobbit Captains would make more sense for Shire-hobbits.

This feels like it comes at a cost of the race's uniqueness, what with getting no intro instance of their own and almost everything-goes class selections.

 

[TesalionLortus]

Yeah, seconding this, if it makes it to live.

Many of us are in favor of some restrictions in order to keep things from getting absurd, keep them feeling like Middle-Earth.

They are already absurd gameplay wise and have been for a while, so there is nothing "off" with that. (As a choice).

What's bad is the game not having much to show for written flavor for what is what in terms of the actual lore, at these creation screens, and now they're also not having any flavor in the form of unique prologue for this new race...

PS: This lack of more-in-detail written flavors that would involve some aspects of culture/ethnicity/appearances, now coupled with this "no unique prologue" approach... basically means a new player chooses this race and they know utter sh*t about who (and came from where) they're actually playing before making that choice (regardless of what a small bit of info in Before the Shadow intro says in that one dialogue box).

 

[Babble]

When creating a new River-hobbit, you may select any class to play except Beorning.

I'm so happy about this! And I really wasn't expecting the new race until Fall. Thank you for the great surprise!

 

[Dol]

All the same, I will definitely make a river hobbit character and I hope that when my character reaches level 130 and gets into Lyndelby's quests, it will somehow be reflected that he is one of them, and not a stranger.

 

[Demelsa]

They are already absurd gameplay wise and have been for a while, so there is nothing "off" with that. (As a choice).

What's bad is the game not having much to show for written flavor for what is what in terms of the actual lore, at these creation screens, and now they're also not having any flavor in the form of unique prologue for this new race...

There was at least some consideration before. No hobbit Runekeepers, for example. Now it's everything-goes if it goes through.

 

[Happy Kirby]

I hope devs still haven't finished the unique introduction instead of no unique intro. If not, it would be disappointing :(

 

[TesalionLortus]

There was at least some consideration before. No hobbit Runekeepers, for example. Now it's everything-goes.

Consideration that had little grounds because if you're opening up, well, you're opening up. What worries me more is that when SSG does something like, at least based on what we have here, they go straight 180 degrees and now it's "nothing matters, who cares!" so they didn't even bother to create an intro. (Just like they did not bother to add more origins to race of man...) Are balance and "common" sense of immersion - involved in such things - really such bad words for SSG? They can only act as perfect connoisseurs who lock features out for 2007 sense of classic immersion OR this "oh well, everything allowed and nobody cares, nothing matters anymore so why do it" impression behind their implementation of these things?

 

[Demelsa]

Consideration that had little grounds because if you're opening up, well, you're opening up. What worries me more is that when SSG does something like, at least based on what we have here, they go straight 180 degrees and now it's "nothing matters, who cares!" so they didn't even bother to create an intro. (Just like they did not bother to add more origins to race of man...) Are balance and "common" sense of immersion - involved in such things - really such bad words for SSG? They can only act as perfect connoisseurs who lock features out for 2007 sense of classic immersion OR this "oh well, everything allowed and nobody cares, nothing matters anymore so why do it" impression behind their implementation of these things?

I didn’t get the impression they were opening up in Orion’s stream on Friday when he previewed the River-hobbits briefly. It seemed very much a question and consideration they were still having, and it seemed unlikely Rune-keeper would go through. And while I know nothing before going live is set in stone, I’m sort of surprised and I can’t deny disappointed.

I agree that no prologue is not really selling the race as all that special to me, along with the class issue. I want to care about it more than I do, because hobbits, but that’s limited for me if it feels generalised.

 

[Babble]

I don't see race change tokens listed on the Eyes and Guard Tavern instructions. Is such a thing available or do we need to build a new character?

 

[TesalionLortus]

I didn’t get the impression they were opening up in Orion’s stream on Friday when he previewed the River-hobbits briefly. It seemed very much a question and consideration they were still having,

Well, I think, perhaps, in this case specifically, it was the matter of "whether some of the needed class polish will come through" ?

 

[Demelsa]

I don't see race change tokens listed on the Eyes and Guard Tavern instructions. Is such a thing available or do we need to build a new character?

You should be able to get LOTRO points in the Eyes and Guard Tavern from one of the NPCs and then buy a race change token from the store.

 

[MadeOfLions]

I agree that no prologue is not really selling the race as all that special to me...

It's interesting, because the "special" part of being a River-hobbit is the part that you add to it: what's your story going to be, rather than what has it been to this point. The 'Before the Shadow' introduction was specially-designed to support the addition of River-hobbits, since one of their primary defining traits is that they're not from the Shire: you've arrived in Mossward from "elsewhere" and get involved in an unfolding adventure that takes place far from lands with which the Shire-hobbits are familiar. There's still a lot of work to update quests that assume you know what the Shire is all about, and some special River-hobbit text throughout the entire game, but that's the plan.

MoL

 

[Happy Kirby]

Hmm about the intro, maybe about the vales of arduin, or lyndelby hobbit village? Assuming the river hobbits origin is from there?

 

[Arabani]

Finaly I'll be able to make a rune keeper and a captain and enjoy their races! At last I'll be able to hobbit everything! Thank you!