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Conjunctions and monsterplay

I've been playing MMORPGs for 7 years and hit AC, AC2, DAoC, AO, WoW, CoH etc in the process, for background.



Gameplay:

I've heard a lot of people saying it's kind of bland.. well in the first few levels it is quite bland, but that changes a lot as you level up. At 22 as a burglar, I have 2 bars full of skills that I use pretty frequently. I still only use maybe a few more than I would on WoW, but an important difference in gameplay for me that I rarely hear mentioned would be:



Conjunctions. As mentioned, I play a burglar, and this is something that is unique to the class (in the sense that they can happen randomly, but burglars can perform them on demand). It brings up a panel with 4 circle- red/yellow/blue/green (as pictured: i16.tinypic.com/2mqjhbm.jpg)



Red is direct damage, yellow is damage over time, blue is power renew and green is morale renew. The system at lower levels is pretty basic. Everyone hammers yellow if it's over 50%, red if under, and green or blue if needed. However, if you want, you can try to perform moves like "the wheel" which end up with results far surpassing the simpler ones, which is done as such:

Person 1: Blue

Person 2: Red

Person 3: Green

Person 4: Yellow

Person 5: Blue

Person 6: Red



This all takes quite a bit of coordination to start with, but when these combinations get pulled off, it's worth it. Here's a screenshot of a simple red/yellow combination (with the animation):

i18.tinypic.com/4fu9jlc.jpg





It makes grouping a little more interesting than tank and spank, even at the lower levels.



The other thing I wanted to touch on was monster play. It's gotten sort of a bad rep for being PvE by some and ridiculous by others.. but it was a way for them to stay true to the lore of LOTR while allowing some world PvP objectives. It does have it's downside that early on it's nothing but monsters, as none of the players have reached 50 yet, but as the game grows a little older, it balances out. The problem of course is that with players being able to switch easily between both sides, it makes balance very unpredictable.



However, besides that, I find the flavor of the quests (if you die, you fail half your quests), skills (crack the whip is a morale heal for orcs), and actual pvp to be quite enjoyable. There's an obvious advantage to the players who have a wider variety of skills from which to choose, but the battles end up closer than you would think. Not to mention, you acquire a lot of destiny points which can be used to buy rested xp for your free peoples character (4-5 sets of 3-4 bars to start with, and when that is out, you accrue another set of 3-4 bars every 24 hours maxing at 5, which is about an entire level. I've not seen it fade, and it is very cheap).



If this is all very old news, I apologize, but I don't see these things mentioned often.



edit: links

Comments

  • wyzwunwyzwun Member Posts: 328
    Thanks a lot for the info, great post. so the burgler starts all the junctions? I am trying to figure out how I would know what skill to use? seems like there maybe trying to link them by element?

    Rites of the Four Horsemen
    http://www.rotfh.com

  • DaymooseDaymoose Member Posts: 16
    Originally posted by wyzwun

    Thanks a lot for the info, great post. so the burgler starts all the junctions? I am trying to figure out how I would know what skill to use? seems like there maybe trying to link them by element?
    The burglar can initiate them at will starting with a skill "Exploit Opening" that you get early on that's on a 5 minute cooldown. You later (level 26 or 28 I think) get a skill trip that has to be used in stealth that also opens it on a 5 minute cooldown. I'm not sure if they're shared, but I'm guessing not.



    However, they can also pop up randomly if you "break through defenses" (as seen on the second picture), the problem with those is that they happen randomly, and that kind of damage when a monster only has maybe 5% health left or is a random non-elite add doesn't help much.



    The Burglar's allure is that they can start one the very second you initiate a boss or a tough group of creatures to make the encounter a bit easier if you're coordinated.



    edit: Forgot to address the second part of your question. They're sort of randomized I think in how they add up, so I might have to spend some time discovering new orders if I can find a fellowship that follows it well. However, the simple method works decently if you can't get that coordination of just using yellow if they're above 50 and red if they're below.
  • airheadairhead Member UncommonPosts: 718
    Is this like EQ2's group combo moves? In eq2, someone (any of the four archetype classes) will start a group combo (with a special move) and then others will make moves and group combos will get performed. The SCOUT class gets to switch and control the combos as they are happening.



    So in LOTRO, have they just made it where the scout (buglar only) starts the combo or "group move" ?   I never grouped with a burglar this past weekend, so I never saw the wheel you are showing.... more info please...



    EDIT: nvm... you are answering my question while I was posting...
  • TymoraTymora Member UncommonPosts: 1,295

    There are definitely some interesting features in LotRO.  At first, when testing, I thought it seemed pretty similar to World of Warcraft, but I haven't advanced far in level, and I heard that the more you see of the game, the better it gets.  I am looking forward to the Open Beta, and hopefully I can tear myself away from Vanguard long enough to really check out LotRO.

    One great thing about it is the pre-order deal for Founders.  I am already planning on pre-ordering just to get the discounted subscription rate, but from what I've seen and heard, the game will be worth it.

  • DaymooseDaymoose Member Posts: 16
    Originally posted by airhead

    Is this like EQ2's group combo moves? In eq2, someone (any of the four archetype classes) will start a group combo (with a special move) and then others will make moves and group combos will get performed. The SCOUT class gets to switch and control the combos as they are happening.



    So in LOTRO, have they just made it where the scout (buglar only) starts the combo or "group move" ?   I never grouped with a burglar this past weekend, so I never saw the wheel you are showing.... more info please...



    EDIT: nvm... you are answering my question while I was posting...
    Never played EQ2, but it sounds like a similar system. The Burglar is less involved in the process though and is mainly just used for the timing. Other things that burglars can do include a ranged sap like maneuver that's called Riddle, tricks which slow down attacks or heighten the miss rate, stuns, and burgling =D



    Very fun class. Also the least played, and sought after for groups.
  • daeandordaeandor Member UncommonPosts: 2,695
    I found the monster play unimpressive.  Fun, yes, but overall it didn't trip my trigger.  Personally I see it getting exploited in it's current form with the ability to switch back and forth.  I'd like to see it expanded on though and made more robust for there to be incentive to play the monster side and to actually keep your 'evil side' active.
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