Gamer Reverie: Learning LOTRO: Lesson Four

Monday, March 16, 2020

Learning LOTRO: Lesson Four - The Hunter Class

In this new series, I talk about various aspects of The Lord of the Rings Online. This series is meant for newcomers, but may also help veteran players find more to love about the game.

Back in February, I sent out a poll asking LOTRO players to rank the classes from their favorite to least favorite. Not surprisingly to me, the #1 favorite class of the bunch turned out to be the Hunter class with 28.1% of the vote. Not long after I closed the poll results, I created a new baby Hunter and named her Glasbren, which means "sapling" in Welsh.

The following is a basic summary of the creation process and some of the things you'll encounter when you start out in LOTRO with a Hunter.

Character Creation

If you read my previous entry about Character Building, then the Character Creation screen shouldn't seem too scary. On the left you have the list of Races available to you (some have to be purchased) and on the right is the list of Classes (again, some have to be purchased). Since this series is aimed at new players, I chose the Elf race which is available to everyone.

So then we have the Hunter class itself. It is one of two classes available to all of the non-Beorning races (because Beorning is both a race and a class), so that is part of its popularity. Hunter is my favorite class because I've always had a thing for archery even though I've never practiced it myself. (That may be why I am also partial to Mercedes Lackey's heralds in her Valdemar setting.)

The Elf Introduction

I bet you thought you'd get to start in a place like Rivendell, didn't you? Nope, the LOTRO lore runs much deeper than that, and you begin in the Refuge of Edhelion, founded by the Elves of Lindon on the slopes of Ered Luin where they gathered trees for the White Ships and crafted Elven wine. It was a place of peace until the very day your character begins their adventure.

You are initially instructed by none other than Elrond. It seems that Edhelion is under attack by the dwarf Skorgrím Dourhand and his band of dwarves, goblins, and trolls. He mistakenly believes the relics kept at Edhelion will give him immortal life. You are quickly put to work to help repel the attackers!

I should note here that I don't intend to provide any in-depth detail on the story in these entries because it is my firm belief that the player's immersion in the story within LOTRO is one of the reasons people stay and play for the long haul. It is easy to become engaged with the story, and I would absolutely hate to spoil it for anyone!

If you click the "I" button, you'll open up all of your Inventory Bags at once. If you've played the game a while, you'll start with a hoard of account-wide items that are automatically bestowed to each of your new characters. These are items from various Packs, Expansions, and any Account-wide purchases you make (such as mounts). If you have stuff right off the bat, my advice is to ignore it until you're done with the Tutorial portion of the Intro. Be careful not to drag and drop anything outside of your Bags, either -- that will destroy the item! There is a command to re-deliver certain items later on, but we'll cover that in another entry.

After events play out at Edhelion, time advances 600 years. (Remember, you're an elf and very old no matter how young you appear.) Elrond has had a dream that prompts him to send his two sons to Edhelion Watch, an area just outside of the abandoned Refuge and overlooking the dwarf settlement of Thorin's Gate. Both new Elf characters and new Dwarf characters start here and are tasked with discovering what evils are afoot which spurred Elrond's sons to investigate.

You will appear at the Edhelion Watch standing in front of the dwarf NPC named Nos Grimsong. He'll direct you how to get started and refer you over to Elladan, one of Elrond's sons, to begin your investigation. If you look at the picture on the right above, you can see the Quest Rewards available for the quest Glasbren is discussing with Elladan. If you hover your cursor over the Rewards, you can see how their stats compare to what you currently have equipped. In this case, there are 3 pieces of armor available as rewards. The one with the red outline cannot be used by Glasbren because it is Heavy Armor and Hunters can only use Medium or Light armor. The Medium option is the one I have hovered over, and it will provide the better stats as a reward. So when I finish that quest, that is the item I will choose as my reward. Many quests offer choices like this, and it's good to consider your options before picking what you think is the obvious choice.

As you progress in levels, you can also select items you want to use for cosmetic purposes only. To preview what an item looks like, you can use Ctrl + Left Click, which will open the Dressing Room. We'll talk about cosmetics in a future entry, so don't sweat it right now!

Hunter Skills

Let's talk about what your skills are when you start out as a Hunter! You will arrive at the Edhelion Watch with 4 skills (the wiki is outdated/incorrect about level acquisition of some of the skills since the classes have undergone revisions over time).

Quick Shot: This skill is a Hunter's bread and butter. There are various interactions with Traits and Stances that will do anything from increase Focus (required cost for some skills) to increase Morale (health), to removing inductions and increasing critical chance.

Penetrating Shot: Since this skill costs a bunch of Focus, it isn't always available (it will be greyed out on your skill bar when you have insufficient Focus to use it), but it packs a punch when you do use it.

Blindside: When an enemy gets up in your face and you're taking a beating, this is a great skill to use. Not only is it a melee skill, but it will interrupt any skills the enemy is trying to use which has an induction time, making it a great way to avoid hard-hitting attacks close-up.

Barbed Arrow: This attack will slightly slow your enemy (good for when you don't want a particular enemy to get too close, like one that can daze or stun you) and also bleed them, which means they take damage over time.

Over the course of the introduction, you should at least reach level 8 and acquire 3 other skills gradually:

Set Trap: For a particularly nasty enemy, you can set this trap and back up a ways before using a ranged attack. When they hit the trap, they will be rooted to that spot for 30 seconds, with a chance to break free when they start taking damage from other attacks. I don't personally use this skill much, but it is a boon to have when used smartly.

Stance: Strength: The first Stance skill is basic but helps a great deal. When you have this skill toggled on, your bow damage is increased and Quick Shot will slow down your enemies.

Focus: Finally, a way to give yourself a boost of Focus to use some of those costly skills without waiting around forever!

Depending on which trait tree you select when the game prompts you to choose a Specialization, you will also auto-gain one or two of the following:

Huntsman (Blue Line): Scourging Blow, Barrage
Bowmaster (Red Line): Pinning Shot
Trapper of Foes (Yellow Line): Lingering Wound, Decoy

Part of the Introduction will send you to the Hunter Trainer. Each class has its own Trainer, and they aren't as useful as they used to be. Back in the day, you had to go to your Trainer to learn your new skills when they became available (meaning you had to remember to go back to them to check). Ever since the class revamp a few years ago, the skills are now auto-bestowed. Does that mean the Trainers are obsolete? No way! They still have class-specific items you can buy or barter for, as well as some level-specific items for various quests. Trainers can be found at most main hubs in the game, and as long as you have the NPC icons enabled (that's yet another entry in the future) you'll see your class icon over your Trainer, but not over the others. This helps you find your specific trainer in a crowd.

Titles & Traits

One of the fun aspects of most MMORPGs is the ability to display special titles. These are earned in various ways, and there are a LOT of them available in LOTRO. Deeds and quest completion are the primary ways of obtaining titles, but there are also special events, real life meet-ups with developers, expansions, and festivals that offer a myriad of other titles.

One of the most popular titles, especially for those playing Elf characters, is the series of Survival Titles:

The Wary: You have reached 5th level without being defeated in battle.
The Undefeated: You have reached 10th level without being defeated in battle.
The Indomitable: You have reached 14th level without being defeated in battle.
The Unscathed: You have reached 17th level without being defeated in battle.
The Undying: You have reached 20th level without being defeated in battle.

Accidental death from a high fall will rob you of these titles, so mind where you're walking, running or riding!

As linked above, there are three specific Trait Trees that you can choose from for Specialization when the game prompts you to pick one. Huntsman (Blue Line) is good for self-sufficiency. You lose out on your distance a little bit in exchange for mobility -- you can move and shoot your bow at the same time. Bowmaster (Red Line), on the other hand, is basically the Glass Cannon build. You have the longest range and best damage, but you have to stand still. This makes you a potent sniper in a group, but is a challenging choice to play solo in the long term (not that THAT ever stopped me!). Trapper of Foes (Yellow Line) is one I don't really have any experience with. You lay a lot of traps and distractions, which makes you good at drawing attention away from your allies and buying some time. Play around and pick the trait line that you feel most comfortable with!

Once you have chosen a Trait Tree (I chose Red Line for Glasbren), this is what you will see. On the far right you can see there are 3 tabs. 2 of them are available to you, so you are free to switch between two trait lines. The third is available for purchase with Mithril Coins. This layout allows you to see the skills you will acquire as you earn points to spend for your chosen trait line. These are bestowed by level and also for completing class deeds. You can acquire traits from the other two lines if you wish to, but they cost twice as many points and it diminishes the efficacy of your chosen line.

On the left side of the window, you will see that there are 3 tabs, each with a unique symbol. Clicking on the second one will display the Race Traits. All of the slots are locked at a low level, and they will gradually open as you level up. The Traits themselves have to be earned by completing various deeds. I'll be discussing these, for all of the races, in another entry.

The third tab is for Virtues. Sure are a lot of them, aren't there? If you hover your cursor over any of them, they will show you the kind of bonus you will receive from them. But don't get too excited -- the slots are locked for these until you level up some more. I'll be discussing Virtues in another entry. You used to have to chase after Ranks for each Virtue by completing deeds, but now it's a matter of leveling them up individually. You and I are going to delve into that topic together, so get ready for it.

Jump To: Character Creation | Elf Introduction | Hunter Skills | Titles & Traits | Thorin's Gate | Quests | Beyond the Intro

Thorin's Gate

If you follow the quest chain in the Intro, you'll be sent to various locations in the Thorin's Gate area, including the abandoned Refuge of Edhelion (that place is a big downer, so don't linger long). The Silver Deep Mine is where you'll start learning to use your combat skills against Young Cave-claws. Take your time and kill as many as you want. This is a good opportunity to learn how your skills work and find the rotation that works best for you! You'll follow a path to some unfriendly Dourhand dwarfs and have to do as they say in order to play nice.

From there you'll be sent to Frerin's Court and will deal with some friendlier Longbeard dwarfs who really need your help. This is also where you can get your first look at the Cosmetic Dummies. These four dummies are located at all of the major hubs and they change every month. You can buy the full set of what they're wearing for 50 Mithril Coins. Unless you absolutely love one of them, I'd suggest waiting until you're out of the Intro. There's a place in Bree to preview individual items, and other options through the Skirmish Camps as well. We'll talk about that in the Cosmetics entry in the future!

This is your one and only opportunity to explore something in this area also, as it is inaccessible once you are out of the Introduction. I don't know if this has ever been addressed anywhere (maybe on the forums?), but there is a place to the left if you're facing the central statue -- the Silver Deep Guard House. I've taken some screenshots in case you've blown past this or have never played the Elf/Dwarf Intro before.

Quests

Follow along with all of the quests and you'll run into the other son of Elrond and some dark, no-good, very bad stuff going on! After this, you'll come to a point where there are only two quests left. Dwalin will have an Instance quest that asks you to Travel. There will also be some text in red warning you to finish other quests before you start his. If this is your first time playing LOTRO, I recommend doing the one other quest that is available, "Intro: Signs and Portents." There is a dwarf by a bedroll and he suggests getting some rest. You should do this and enjoy the dream that comes to you!

As I stated before, I won't give any spoilers. I even took care to take screenshots devoid of textual clues, though I'm sure you will be able to figure out at least two of them, if not three. It really depends on how much of a LotR nerd you are!

Once you wake, there's just the one quest left for you to finish in the Intro area, and you speak to Dwalin to start it. This quest takes you into an Instance (much like the opening tutorial in Edhelion during the attack on the Refuge), and you have to do this solo even if your best buddy started a character alongside you and you quested together to this point.

My advice to you is to stay next to Dwalin no matter how tempted you are to run ahead or stay behind for anything. The instance can sometimes get stuck or be bugged, and the only thing that matters is Dwalin surviving and ending up at the end when you do!

Beyond the Intro

Congratulations! You are now deposited in the Elven settlement of Celondim. From here there are a myriad of paths you can take because you are no longer in the confines of the Intro. You may now consume various items in your bags if you have them (such as Riding Skills or Mounts, to add them to your collection). You can also now go visit the Vault Keeper nearby and stash stuff there so your Bags don't overflow! Most importantly, you will see a Milestone nearby. You should use bind to it for easy returns and not be forgetful like me. (I once had a character reach level 50 whom I'd forgotten to bind her first Milestone skill. I didn't realize it until I wanted to go back to Celondim quickly for something!) You can change this binding as you level up, and even collect more Milestone skills. But that, again, is going to be in a future entry!

And that's as far as we go this time, my friends! I know there was a LOT in this entry, but I hope you kept pace with me. Future entries will cover the myriad of extra topics I didn't discuss in depth this time, and hopefully the next class-specific entry will be much shorter!