In this 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.
What defines the unique qualities of the races of Middle-earth? What makes each stand apart as its own separate and wonderful Free People? This week we talk about Racial Traits and what they mean for the player characters in Lord of the Rings Online.
In LOTRO, each playable Race in the game has its own series of Racial Traits (even the Monster Players -- but that's a separate entry). These Traits are obtainable by -- you guessed it -- completing Deeds. If you need help understanding Deeds, you can visit last week's entry. To make sure your character is made of the right stuff, however, these Racial Traits and their Deeds are only available at specific levels. In this entry I have each Race's Traits listed, so feel free to click the jump link here for the one you want to learn about today!
How To Access The Racial Trait Panel
The Racial Trait Panel is one of those things we looked at during the Hunter Class entry, but I promised I'd discuss it later. Well, it's later -- so look at your bottom bar and look for the round wizard icon. This button opens up the Trait Panel. Today we'll just be dealing with the middle tab.
Beorning
Beornings in LOTRO are both a Race and Class, and are based on the character Beorn from The Hobbit -- a skinchanger who could take the form of man or bear.
As you can see, Demantura is still a work in progress. She's level 37 and COULD have all of the Racial Traits unlocked, but that hasn't happened because I promise I'm allergic to grindy slayer deeds. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. In any case, if I get some more of those deeds done, I can still only have a maximum of 5 slotted at a time. These traits don't make or break the game for me, but some people consider them of the utmost importance -- and certainly the ones that unlock specific skills are worth obtaining!
Bake a Honey-cake. Available at level 13. Just as the name implies, this trait grants you the skill to bake a honey-cake no matter where you are. You can stockpile them for yourself or give them away to friends, and they grant morale and power both in combat and out. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Goblins.
Emissary. Available at level 15. This trait grants you +20 Fate, which will help with in-combat Morale regeneration (but not Power, since Beornings don't use Power), increases critical rating, tactical mitigation, resistance rating, and a little bit of finesse. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Spiders.
Return to Grimbeorn's Lodge. Available at level 18. This skill lets you... return to Grimbeorn's Lodge. Pretty straightforward! To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Goblins II.
Beorning Club and Axe Damage Bonus. Available at level 25. Apparently becoming a bear isn't good enough, so beornings get a bonus with clubs and axes? To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Goblins III. (Y'all really hate those goblins, fam.)
Might and Conviction Bonus. Available at level 29. This basically lets you contribute a boost to two Fellowship Maneuvers (and that's yet another thing for my list of things to talk about later). To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Spiders II (because by now you've probably wiped out all the nearby goblins).
Feral Presence. Available at level 30. This means you're boosting your Fellowship's Fate. Look at you go! To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Orcs. That's a nice change of pace, now isn't it?
Virtuous Beorning. Available at level 30. This and a Trait point are the rewards for the Beorning's level 30 class quest, Hatred of Bear and Man, which takes place in the Lone-lands. This trait gives you bonuses to a set of Virtues (again -- we'll cover that in another entry soon!).
Natural Diet. Available at level 35. So, um... your unique diet apparently gives you some resistance to disease, but... you unlock this trait by completing the deed Enmity of the Orcs II. Dude... what have you been eating???
Bracing Roar. Available at level 35. Apparently you're so badass that you let out a big enough roar to heal yourself a bit and boost your Wrath (that bar Beornings have instead of Power). Nice. To unlock this trait, you'll need to complete the deed Enmity of the Spiders III.Dwarf
Dwellers of stone and miners of metal. For those of us in the LotR fandom, we usually think immediately of Gimli or Thorin. We know the dwarven race to be tough and resistant to corruption... but not to the likes of greed.
It's been a long while since I've done anything with Gedri, my highest-level dwarf. He's been sitting idly on the Arkenstone server for a couple years now. He should definitely have more than 2 racial traits unlocked by now, but... that dang allergy of mine. They just don't make EpiPens for grindy slayer deeds!
Head-butt. Available at level 13. Um... just what it says. It gives you a headbutt skill. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Dourhands.
Fateful Dwarf. Available at level 13. Much like the Beorning's trait above, this grants a Fate bonus. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Goblins.
Guile and Might Bonus. Available at level 19. This is the dwarf contribution to Fellowship Maneuvers. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Dourhands II.
Dwarf Axe-damage Bonus. Available at level 25. Self-explanatory, really. Dwarves love their axes. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Dourhands III (because them's the low-life line of dwarves that made Thorin's Gate a mess because of Skorgrim, if you recall).
Return to Thorin's Gate. Available at level 29. I don't know if I really understand the requirements for this but... basically, kill enough goblins via the Enmity of the Goblins II deed... and they'll "let" you return? That's cold, but I guess it's pretty accurate.
Dwarf-endurance. Available at level 30. This one lets you contribute Vitality to your Fellowship, you hardy little stone-loving, bearded thing that you are. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Trolls (go big or go home).
Virtuous Dwarf. Available at level 35. This trait gives you a bonus to set of Virtues, not unlike the Beorning one -- but you don't get it handed to you for completing a quest. Nope, you have to hunt it down. Once you've reached Friend status with Thorin's Hall, you can go visit the Blue Stone Garrison and buy the item Award of Dwarf Virtue from the reputation vendor there. That's right, you BUY your virtue like it's some kind of recipe ingredient. But, y'know, go you?
Shield Brawler. Available at level 35. This trait gives you a Block bonus because you probably became very proficient with a shield while fighting all the trolls to complete the Enmity of the Trolls II deed required to unlock the trait.
Endurance of Stone. Available at level 35. This is definitely a good trait to unlock for a dwarf, as it grants a skill that reduces damage taken for a short time. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Goblins III. (Best get to them before the Beornings.)Elf
Known as the Fair Folk, the elves were the first race and tried to be good older siblings to the younger races -- but younger siblings seldom behave and now the tired elves tend to keep to themselves.
I probably could've chosen a better Elven example than Fylgja, but I tried to be consistent in using my highest level of each race for this. She is a 120 because of a level boost from an expansion (which I completely regret -- I advise against using them!), but clearly I haven't done much with her despite that and I have a lot of things that still need to be completed even though she has the levels to face more advanced regions of the game.
Silvan Shadows. Available at level 13. Be dark and mysterious and difficult to see, no matter your class. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Goblins.
Friend of Man. Available at level 13. Here's the elven version of the Fate boost. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Orcs.
Tactics and Conviction Bonus. Available at level 19. And here's the elven contribution to two Fellowship Maneuvers. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Goblins II.
Elf Bow-damage Bonus. Available at level 25. Elves and bows just seem to go together like hobbits and elevensies, don't they? Naturally they get a bonus to bow damage. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Goblins III.
Return to Rivendell. Available at level 29. You get to travel back to Rivendell, which is a complete hack since you can't unlock the stable ride there until level 40. But whatever. I'm not mad. Much. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Orcs II. 
Elf One-handed Sword-damage Bonus. Available at level 30. This never fails to make me think of Arwen challenging the Nazgul in Fellowship of the Ring (the movie, not the book... I know the difference), because she holds up her sword with one hand while holding Frodo with the other. So, take this extra weapon damage you're being given here, elves! To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Drakes.
Virtuous Elf. Available at level 35. Here's your elven bonuses to a set of Virtues that, yes, you will have to purchase. Make sure you're Friend to the Elves of Rivendell, then go visit the reputation vendor in Imlad Gelair in Rivendell, and purchase the item Award of Elven Virtue.
Power of the Eldar. Available at level 35. This is your contribution to your Fellowship's Power. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Drakes II. 
Eldar's Grace. Available at level 35. Because you're basically the OP star of Cirque du Soleil, you get access to this skill that will let you parry lots of things for a short time. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Orcs III.High Elf
The oldest of the firstborn, the high elves have seen the realm of the Valar to the west of Middle-earth and will one day return there. Once they ensure that Middle-earth is safe to leave in the hands of Men, they will set sail for the Undying Lands.
My first High Elf was Aarawynn the Captain, made in the earliest days of the race's availability and thus unable to ever attain the Undying title (which has since been remedied for High Elf characters). Despite that, I so thoroughly enjoyed the race that I now have a veritable flock of them -- seven in total. The downside of Racial Traits for High Elves is that they cannot be finished until the minimum of level 60.
Grace of the Firstborn. Available at level 13. This is a great skill, especially if you already have a movement bonus from a class or item to stack it with. Gotta move fast! To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Orcs.
Wrath of the Firstborn. Available at level 19. This is auto-bestowed and lets you give a bonus damage to your Fellowship simply because you're what you are. 
Grace of Valinor. Available at level 25. This also is auto-bestowed, and wow is it a good one! This trait gives you a skill to revive a defeated ally out of combat. It's always handy to have an extra rez in the party.
Those Who Remain. Available at level 29. Yep, another auto-bestowed trait, you lucky dog. Because you're being stubborn and not sailing away from the problems of Middle-earth, this trait gives you a bonus to your Will that adjusts with your level. 
Travel to Caras Galadhon. Available at level 32. Of all the cheaty traits, this one's the cheatiest. While everyone else has to make it all the way through Moria and prove to the Galadhrim they're no threat all while reaching some level in the 60's... you get an auto-travel into Caras Galadhon itself at the lowly level of 32, as long as you first complete the deed Enmity of the Orcs II. I have to admit that I'm not entirely sure what good this does if you're so far under the area's level.
Enmity of Darkness. Available at level 35. This trait gives you a boost to Light-type damage, which is always a great thing to have, but I am confused about the required deed. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Dourhands.
[Aside: Now, if we follow the Elf introduction of the game, Edhelion was attacked and ruined by Skorgrim Dourhand, but that was well into the Third Age. We're not given much else about the Dourhands before then, aside from their kingdoms in the Blue Mountains having been long since ruined. So... I'm not sure why the High Elves have Dourhand slayer deeds when there are easily others to use that make more sense! Like, what about spiders given the history of Ungoliant poisoning the Two Trees of Valinor? Settling for Dourhands just because they're choosing to side with the Enemy seems like a weak reason given all of the possibilities.]
Glory of the First Age. Available at level 38. This trait gives you a skill to immobilize your enemy. Handy. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Dourhands II. *sigh*
Blade Dancer. Available at level 42. You're awesome with swords of any type! To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Orcs III.
Virtuous High Elf. Available at level 60. Unlike the other Virtuous races, you don't need to purchase anything to acquire this trait -- you need to simply reach Friend standing with the Galadhrim in Lothlorien.Hobbit
Known for loving the simple life and six square meals a day, hobbits have only recently been noticed by other Free People of Middle-earth. And for that they can blame Gandalf, I suppose.
I won't lie -- I'm not a huge fan of hobbits. I can't take them seriously. Aumai Goodness is the most I've really done with any hobbit character, even though -- as you can see -- I've done little to no actual questing. She's primarily a crafter and just a fun character to run around festivals. You might recall her narrative from the Yule Festival. 
Stoop For A Stone. Available at level 13. You're pretty short, so you get to reach down and pick up a stone and throw it. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Wolves.
Hobbit-stature. Available at level 13. Unexpectedly, this trait gives a Might bonus! To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Spiders. 
Guile and Conviction Bonus. Available at level 19. You get a Fellowship Maneuver contribution, too, you little rascal. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Wolves II. 
Hobbit Club-damage Bonus. Available at level 25. This trait gives you a bonus to club damage, but that seems like a huge waste of lore to me. Why not give hobbits a damage bonus with daggers? In any case, to unlock this trait you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Wolves III.
Hobbit-stealth. Available at level 29. Like the elves, you get to move about like a sneak to go peeping into treasure hoards. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Goblins.
Return to Michel Delving. Available at level 29. This one's a real bummer, man. By the time you're done and way past the Shire... you get this trait to... return to where you started. I guess it's handy for festival time? To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Spiders II.
Virtuous Hobbit. Available at level 35. We're back to buying virtue again! Once you're Friend with the Mathom Society, you can go visit the Mathom House to buy the item Award of Hobbit Virtue. It will give you bonuses to a set of Virtues.
Hobbit-silence. Available at level 35. You get to play dead for a full 30 seconds! It's actually a pretty nice trick to have up your sleeve. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Goblins II.
Hobbit-resilience. Available at level 35. You're the cute, adorable mascot in this case -- you can raise your Fellowship's Hope a little bit just by being you. But before you can channel the antics of Pippin, you'll have to complete the deed Enmity of the Spiders III.Man
The race of Man gets the short end of the stick in many ways -- not as long-lived, sturdy, resilient, or wise as other races, prone to making bad choices that affect generations, but somehow... still the race that's going to be top dog after the elves say goodbye? I guess there's something to be said about courage.
Hey, look! This one has all of the traits unlocked! This shining example of completion comes from my main on Landroval: Birle Harmon, The Wise. She's a lore-master who, um... is behind a bit on content in comparison to her level. Despite that, I've done my best to get the foundations to work from, like the racial traits. But the less said about class deeds, the better.
Upper-cut. Available at level 13. "Hey guys, what basic skill can we give the race of man?" I'm guessing this was the end result of that conversation. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Dead.
Man of the Fourth Age. Available at level 13. Destined for greatness in the Fourth Age, but stuck toiling away in the Third... so you get a Will bonus. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Wargs.
Tactics and Might Bonus. Available at level 19. This is your Fellowship Maneuvers contribution. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Dead.
Virtuous Man. Available at level 20. Once you reach Friend standing with the Men of Bree, you can go visit the Bree-town Hunting Lodge to buy the item Award of Men's Virtue, which will give you bonuses on a set of Virtues.
Man Sword-damage Bonus. Available at level 25. Swords aren't just for elves. This trait gives you a damage bonus on one-handed and two-handed swords. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Dead III. (You ain't afraid of no ghosts!)
Return to Bree. Available at level 29. Handy to have at this level because you'll constantly need to come back to Bree as a hub until you're big enough to be using Esteldin for everything. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Wargs II.
Balance of Man. Available at level 30. Just can't trust those country bumpkins that won't bow down to the rule of organized Kingdoms, because they always seem easily bought by the Enemy. So in order to gain this trait that bestows Evade, Parry, and Block Rating perks, you'll have to complete the deed Enmity of the Hillmen.
Strength of Morale. Available at level 35. This trait lets you boost your Morale when you need it most. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Hillmen II.
Duty-bound. Available at level 35. As if the previous trait wasn't enough, this one lets you boost your Fellowship's Morale. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Wargs III.Stout-Axe
Known as Drása's Folk, the Stout-axes were once part of one of the seven houses of the Dwarves, but they were brought to ruin by their desire for the ring granted to them by Sauron. It's a compelling background story for this race, giving players the story of redemption and liberation to play off of.
I just have the one Stout-axe character so far, and I have to say -- I really enjoy the race a great deal. Carregaur is only level 20, however, so I have a lot of progression ahead of me. I normally choose a straightforward damage-dealing class for dwarf characters, but decided based on this background and racial traits to try a different route with the Burglar class. 
Unwritten Destiny. Available at level 13. This is auto-bestowed and gives an increase to Vitality, because you're now among the Free People of Middle-earth.
Fortitude of the Stout-Axes. Available at level 19. Having been in the shadow of the Dark Lord, you now know how to inspire your Fellows to resist it. This is auto-bestowed.
Flame-tempered. Available at level 29. Compared to the fires of Mount Doom, everything else may as well be bath water. This trait gives you some Fire Mitigation and is auto-bestowed.
Needful Ingenuity. Available at level 29. Having spent your time honing your craft skills in the service of the Dark Lord, you earn yourself a 10% Craft Experience Modifier. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Cultists. (See, a slayer deed that makes SENSE.)
Heart of Fire. Available at level 35. This trait gives a bonus to Fire Damage dealt to enemies. (I feel like the developers modeled Stout-Axes after D&D Artificers...) To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Orcs.
Nimble-handed. Available at level 35. Woo! Axe AND dagger damage bonuses! This trait is part of why I chose to make Carregaur a Burglar. To unlock this trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Cultists II.
Return to Thorin's Hall. Available at level 35. Though it isn't the home of the Stout-Axes, it is your newfound home among the Longbeards because you have sworn to fight the Enemy. To unlock this travel trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Cultists III. (You might have a chip on your shoulder from being enslaved by Sauron.)
Stout-shield. Available at level 38. This trait lets you have a skill that lets you have a 75% Block chance... even without an actual shield. To unlock this awesome trait, you have to complete the deed Enmity of the Orcs II. Fair trade!
Virtuous Stout-Axe. Available at level 40. Even though you technically start out in Thorin's Hall after your Intro, you'll have to wait 30 levels to claim this Racial Trait. The good news is that you should manage to have Friend standing with Thorin's Hall by then, which is the requirement to finish this deed. No purchase necessary.In Summary?
I'm not sure there's much to say to summarize all of this. Most of the traits seem fairly balanced when compared to each other, and there's an obvious pattern across the races (mostly): an added attack or special skill, a specific damage bonus or two, contributions to Fellowship Maneuvers, a stat boost, a Virtue boost, a Return travel skill, and then some kind of defensive or healing skill. And to get them, a whole LOT of slayer deeds. ACHOO!Overall, the race that allows for the fastest completion of Racial Traits is Man, followed by Hobbit and Beorning. Dwarf and Elf are neck-and-neck in the middle of the pack, with Stout-Axe only slightly better off than the High Elf in last place (because of that 60+ requirement for Friend standing with the Galadhrim). Man is definitely poised to be a big deal in the Fourth Age, but the rest of the races offer a good variety of perks to make them just as beneficial to play.
So one item I always wonder about is scaling of the racial traits. From what I can tell the Beorning honeycake does do that, so always nice to have. Others granting say, X-amount of fate, seem like after 10-20 levels to be inconsequential & then I leave utility traits (honey cakes, sylvan shadow, travel to rivendel) permanently slotted. Any thoughts?
ReplyDeleteIf you click on the links for the traits above, I'm pretty sure all of the ones that grant a stat bonus -- EXCLUDING the Virtous (Race Name) ones -- scale as you level. The wiki indicates that the stats scale, anyway, unless that has changed. I personally don't use the utility traits unless I really need the travel skill. I can't remember using Silvan Shadows even once after my initial use of it on my first elf character. But I think that's why there are five slots and 9 options -- it lets players choose how to build their character.
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