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.
It's 24 hours late, but now it's time for the fourth class-focused entry in the series! Today we get to talk about the Burglar class! The race for this character means a slightly different intro experience, but mostly the same as the last one -- so I can focus more on the class features. Spoiler, though: I don't really care for this class... but I'm going to do my best to treat it fairly!
The burglar class is restricted to Hobbit, Man, and Stout-Axe. Since I've been trying to cover the accessible-to-anyone races first, and having just covered Man in the last class entry, this left me with the perfect choice of Hobbit. The color/theme supplied by my BFF and husband was "black" and "desert," so I bent my Welsh to the task and came up with Ducras, loosely meaning "arid black." (Look, I know it's not perfect, but it sounds like an okay hobbit name. Which surname do you think suits that kind of name? Comment if you have an opinion!)
So with that out of the way, 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 Burglar.
So with that out of the way, 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 Burglar.
Character Creation
We've been here a few times before, and this time we're making the last of the four races that are available to everyone: a hobbit. As I stated above, I'm not a big fan of the Burglar class, but if you're going to play one then a hobbit is an excellent choice.
Tuck away any ideas of being a nimble assassin like in the Assassin's Creed series -- this is a different kind of stealthy. The Burglar variety of stealth involves a bit of assassin-like strikes from the shadows, but also a lot of tricks to put enemies at a disadvantage, as well as debuffs to make them more susceptible to damage and status effects from your allies. The best analogy I can offer is this: Your enemies are the Wet Bandits from Home Alone. A LOTRO Burglar booby-trapped the McAllister house. You may now taunt the bandits without fear -- because you probably have a Guardian with a shovel looking out for you, too.
Hobbit Intro
I bet you know where you're going after that last pic, don't you? Before we get to that, let's discuss the Burglar skills.
Class Skills
Burglars get to do a whole lot of fancy things as they level up and mature through their trait trees, but the basics are going to be your bread and butter for a while. Don't underestimate these skills!
Sneak: I recommend this going in your first slot, as it's a great way to open an attack by pairing it with Surprise Strike (potentially doing an astounding amount of damage).
Surprise Strike: Best used when you Sneak, allowing you to get behind an enemy without being seen first and dealing more damage!
Cunning Attack: If you want to make your enemy bleed for a while (damage over time), then this is the skill to use. This skill's damage over time does more damage if you attack while stealthed (using Sneak).
Subtle Stab: Just a basic stab, but this one has a quicker cooldown than the others, so prepare to use it often after you come out of the shadows.
By the end of the Introduction, and at least level 8, you will also earn these additional skills:
Double-Edged Strike: Just what it says -- if you manage a critical hit, you'll do damage with both of your weapons (as long as you have one equipped in each hand).
Find Footing: Chances are pretty good that you're going to get knocked about or stunned because you're getting up close and personal with your enemy. Use this skill right away to shake off being stunned!
Riddle: I love this skill when playing solo. I can use it on one enemy to stun them for half a minute while I fight another enemy, and the stunned enemy won't wake unless they are damaged or the time runs out. It's a great way to manage a crowd of enemies when your attacks focus on single targets!
Trait Trees
I am not as well-versed with the Burglar trait trees, but I can comfortably solo with any of them. Play around and find what works best for you with the skills unique to each tree!
You can read up on the trait lines here:
Archet Revisited
Yep, you were right. We're back in Archet Dale. Instead of being a random prisoner, however, you were taken captive alongside the wrong Baggins. Other than that, the rest of the Intro plays out exactly as it would if you were a Man/Woman. Sorry. But maybe a second time through will show you things you missed the first time, eh?
Quests, Again
You'll want to recheck those mannequins because it's a new month (Ducras got a great outfit!). Visit your Trainer. Be sure to choose Medium armor for your quest rewards. And if you want to farm for XP, your best bet will be the wolves and boars to start with, then the Blackwolds and spiders.
Beyond the Intro
Mercifully, when you're done saving those who need saving, you are deposited back in the Shire. It's marginally better than the Bree area for starting out, at least, and the hobbits tend to be more interesting with their personalities. If it isn't your thing, you can always hike to Celondim or Thorin's Hall to pick up on the Prologue there.
Two skills I want to mention that you won't acquire until levels 14 and 20, are Burgle and Track Treasure. The first will let you loot from humanoid enemies while you are stealthed, and sometimes you can get some nice items. The second will let you see chests and such on your mini map that you can loot. Definitely have this toggled on when you're near ruins, camps, towns, etc.!
Random Find
I've said before that Archet is not my favorite starting area, so I was pleased as punch to catch an NPC saying something absolutely hilarious while I was taking screenshots for the entry!
And that's as far as we go this time, my friends! I hope it wasn't too obvious that I'm not a huge Burglar fan, but I did my best to give you a good foundation to start from. I'm also sorry this entry took me an extra day to prepare -- but family (and my beauty sleep) had to come first!
Without anything further to say right now, I leave you with some pictures of my Burglar characters!
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