An Open Letter: The Erosion of Trust

[Fatty]

Examples:
1. Well every game in Modern History: SC2 (RTS but hey cosmetics sell lol), GW2 (No expansion in years and gives out its episodic content for free so relies mainly on cosmetics, until Cantha arrives), Warframe (Literally 100% free content and is solely drawing income from cosmetics) SWTOR (I mean, obviously) etc. etc..

SWTOR definately sells expansions... Many races are also only unlockable for money if you are not a subscriber

[istvana]

((LOL at the apologists in this thread. The game owner's position is indefensible.))

Of course - you are so self-evidently correct that anyone that disagrees is not only wrong, but has a position that cannot even be defended.

I think there are many defensible things that can be said. I do not necessarily agree with every single one of them but I think every point below has *some* logic. My point being that you and others are blatantly attempting to demonize and trivialize any position other than your own and we see far too much of that today.

1. The game should be challenging not trivially easy at levels below maximum level. Allowing lower levels to get endgame quality gear that they can use at lower levels runs very much contrary to that. At level 100 or level 105 in Minas Tirith I should not be able to get my LIs up to levels that weren't available in the game for quite a few years after that content was developed. Doing the Waste with two Elderslade quality LIs is just wrong. Having SoEs with location-appropriate caps on how high they can raise a legacy makes perfect sense. Even if it does hurt endgame players that have been farming ancient content that should have been revised many years ago to prevent this. Look back through the forums over the last 5 years and you will see numerous attacks on the "idiotic" LI system that has players get endgame gear from ancient content. About time this was fixed. There - you may disagree with the changes to MT weeklies but I challenge you to say with a clear conscience that no logic supports it.

2. Without War of Three Peaks the grind is much worse. Of course it is. This just in - the more expansions you fall behind the harder it is to keep up using only old content. That is how MMOs sell expansions. SSG has been saying almost forever that the best gear - and gear essentially includes the ability to max out legendary items - should and will come from the newest zones. Thus over time only the new zones provide embers and the old zones provide motes. Nothing unusual about what SSG has done recently it merely supports their age-old view consistent with how other MMOs work.

3. War of Three Peaks is not a real expansion and the charge for it was outrageous. Some truth to this - over the years they have added zones with no charge to bridge the gap before an expansion. Forochel. Great River. Wildemore. At least one more. But I don't need to mention how bad the last year has been. SSG was nice and gave a lot of things away for free. Appreciation for that sure didn't last long. They didn't say why the next major expansion was put off so long but a lot of the unforeseen disruptions had to be a factor. And with that long delay in the next paid expansion they felt a need to charge for a mini-expansion. $20 U.S. without the fluff which is barely more than one month subscription. Not an outrageous amount.

[Thurallor]

LOL at the apologists in this thread. The game owner's position is indefensible.

If this game is struggling to make the same level of profits as it's peers there is only one place to lay blame and it's not the playerbase.

Nobody is blaming the playerbase. Why don't you actually read the thread before LOLing at the participants?

We all agree that the game is run poorly (relatively speaking). I'm simply blaming incompetence/mistakes rather than "bad faith". Apparently that distinction is much too subtle for most people to understand, so I'm not going to continue to repeat myself. I'm out.

[wispsong]

((LOL at the apologists in this thread. The game owner's position is indefensible.))

Of course - you are so self-evidently correct that anyone that disagrees is not only wrong, but has a position that cannot even be defended.

I think there are many defensible things that can be said. I do not necessarily agree with every single one of them but I think every point below has *some* logic. My point being that you and others are blatantly attempting to demonize and trivialize any position other than your own and we see far too much of that today.

1. The game should be challenging not trivially easy at levels below maximum level. Allowing lower levels to get endgame quality gear that they can use at lower levels runs very much contrary to that. At level 100 or level 105 in Minas Tirith I should not be able to get my LIs up to levels that weren't available in the game for quite a few years after that content was developed. Doing the Waste with two Elderslade quality LIs is just wrong. Having SoEs with location-appropriate caps on how high they can raise a legacy makes perfect sense. Even if it does hurt endgame players that have been farming ancient content that should have been revised many years ago to prevent this. Look back through the forums over the last 5 years and you will see numerous attacks on the "idiotic" LI system that has players get endgame gear from ancient content. About time this was fixed. There - you may disagree with the changes to MT weeklies but I challenge you to say with a clear conscience that no logic supports it.

2. Without War of Three Peaks the grind is much worse. Of course it is. This just in - the more expansions you fall behind the harder it is to keep up using only old content. That is how MMOs sell expansions. SSG has been saying almost forever that the best gear - and gear essentially includes the ability to max out legendary items - should and will come from the newest zones. Thus over time only the new zones provide embers and the old zones provide motes. Nothing unusual about what SSG has done recently it merely supports their age-old view consistent with how other MMOs work.

3. War of Three Peaks is not a real expansion and the charge for it was outrageous. Some truth to this - over the years they have added zones with no charge to bridge the gap before an expansion. Forochel. Great River. Wildemore. At least one more. But I don't need to mention how bad the last year has been. SSG was nice and gave a lot of things away for free. Appreciation for that sure didn't last long. They didn't say why the next major expansion was put off so long but a lot of the unforeseen disruptions had to be a factor. And with that long delay in the next paid expansion they felt a need to charge for a mini-expansion. $20 U.S. without the fluff which is barely more than one month subscription. Not an outrageous amount.

I agree with 1 as far as that it makes sense. The problems are

1. this should have been implemented with every level increase far sooner then now,
2. all these scrolls should be avaiable at every location for both levelling and end game currency so most players will feel encouraged to continue leveling their ILI
3. after MT everything is locked behind an exessive region end game grind
4. all the added scrolls do not make up for what is lost in MT

This change comes a little late with to little reward (10x as much would really help) and lacks any encouragement to even care nor shows any concern and knowledge by the devs concerning the extensive grind. It also would have been better to level lock instead of region lock. Then really nobody would have been able to add anything. As of now there are still scrolls that can max an ILI even if the player is just lvl 100. I have nothing against the last levels only being avaiable in the last expansion but we are talking about an already extensive grind from imbuement to cap having now been made worse, especially for new players.

[istvana]

((1. this should have been implemented with every level increase far sooner then now,
2. all these scrolls should be avaiable at every location for both levelling and end game currency so most players will feel encouraged to continue leveling their ILI
3. after MT everything is locked behind an exessive region end game grind))


1. I emphatically agree. And have been saying so for quite a few years.
2. I agree that scrolls should be available at many locations - at appropriate tiers to match the area. I do not agree that endgame currency should be available in lower level areas. The way to get endgame gear should not be to "faceroll" low level mobs it should be to do content at least within one expansion of endgame.
3. I assume you mean that in later areas you need to actually do a lot of things in a zone before its weekly quests can be done. I am inclined to feel that this is appropriate - if you want to get goodies from Mordor you should do enough there to open up the dailies and weeklies. As most of us actually did when the expansion came out.

[Altair6]

They don't make money from LI, because people just don't use money for it.

Oh yes they do. I know one person why has spent hundreds on his and that was from a small sample on a Twitch stream. So I'm pretty confident many others have as well.

I mean, I even know people who regularly buy LP to buy Mithril coins just because they can't be bothered making their way back to quest givers to hand in quests. Paying to level your LIs seems sensible compared to that.

[Arnenna]

((LOL at the apologists in this thread. The game owner's position is indefensible.))

Of course - you are so self-evidently correct that anyone that disagrees is not only wrong, but has a position that cannot even be defended.

I think there are many defensible things that can be said. I do not necessarily agree with every single one of them but I think every point below has *some* logic. My point being that you and others are blatantly attempting to demonize and trivialize any position other than your own and we see far too much of that today.

1. The game should be challenging not trivially easy at levels below maximum level. Allowing lower levels to get endgame quality gear that they can use at lower levels runs very much contrary to that. At level 100 or level 105 in Minas Tirith I should not be able to get my LIs up to levels that weren't available in the game for quite a few years after that content was developed. Doing the Waste with two Elderslade quality LIs is just wrong. Having SoEs with location-appropriate caps on how high they can raise a legacy makes perfect sense. Even if it does hurt endgame players that have been farming ancient content that should have been revised many years ago to prevent this. Look back through the forums over the last 5 years and you will see numerous attacks on the "idiotic" LI system that has players get endgame gear from ancient content. About time this was fixed. There - you may disagree with the changes to MT weeklies but I challenge you to say with a clear conscience that no logic supports it.

2. Without War of Three Peaks the grind is much worse. Of course it is. This just in - the more expansions you fall behind the harder it is to keep up using only old content. That is how MMOs sell expansions. SSG has been saying almost forever that the best gear - and gear essentially includes the ability to max out legendary items - should and will come from the newest zones. Thus over time only the new zones provide embers and the old zones provide motes. Nothing unusual about what SSG has done recently it merely supports their age-old view consistent with how other MMOs work.

3. War of Three Peaks is not a real expansion and the charge for it was outrageous. Some truth to this - over the years they have added zones with no charge to bridge the gap before an expansion. Forochel. Great River. Wildemore. At least one more. But I don't need to mention how bad the last year has been. SSG was nice and gave a lot of things away for free. Appreciation for that sure didn't last long. They didn't say why the next major expansion was put off so long but a lot of the unforeseen disruptions had to be a factor. And with that long delay in the next paid expansion they felt a need to charge for a mini-expansion. $20 U.S. without the fluff which is barely more than one month subscription. Not an outrageous amount.

2. Only Imbuement begins at level 100. that's 30 levels below the latest content, and unless players were here when that old content was new content, it doesn't work.

[Elmagor]

Oh yes they do. I know one person why has spent hundreds on his and that was from a small sample on a Twitch stream. So I'm pretty confident many others have as well.

I mean, I even know people who regularly buy LP to buy Mithril coins just because they can't be bothered making their way back to quest givers to hand in quests. Paying to level your LIs seems sensible compared to that.

I sure they can get more money if WotP don't have so many problems. If you know 1 person who spend money for LI, you also know hundreds of people who don't do that. Sooner or later that person cap all his LI, and SSG lose that source of income. Creating and selling expansion sets give more stable source of money. Main problem what SSG don't care about LI sources for years, if that changes not conentrated in one update damage don't have such impact

[wispsong]

((1. this should have been implemented with every level increase far sooner then now,
2. all these scrolls should be avaiable at every location for both levelling and end game currency so most players will feel encouraged to continue leveling their ILI
3. after MT everything is locked behind an exessive region end game grind))


1. I emphatically agree. And have been saying so for quite a few years.
2. I agree that scrolls should be available at many locations - at appropriate tiers to match the area. I do not agree that endgame currency should be available in lower level areas. The way to get endgame gear should not be to "faceroll" low level mobs it should be to do content at least within one expansion of endgame.
3. I assume you mean that in later areas you need to actually do a lot of things in a zone before its weekly quests can be done. I am inclined to feel that this is appropriate - if you want to get goodies from Mordor you should do enough there to open up the dailies and weeklies. As most of us actually did when the expansion came out.

2./3. The regions haven't been end game in years. Why should characters stay there for months to get their ILIs to region cap? This is what is killing the game. In a sense the ILI is endgame to get it up to the latest cap but to expect new players/characters to do every region and every endgame to get to region cap is insane. Every other piece of equipment is replaced when a new content update comes, essences are replaced but there is never a need for BiS. The LI was replaced every level increase without the need to have it maxed. No end game required for those coming late. We can even choose not to play everything. The ILI is ever growing and has never been adjusted to actually grow with us as promised which at this point it should do to previous cap. Only new cap/region should require a grind.

[wrath247]

SWTOR definately sells expansions... Many races are also only unlockable for money if you are not a subscriber

Yes and they had long periods of expansion droughts in between after KOTER and rn Onslaught and still no expansion. They quite literally rely on cosmetics and subs but let's be real it's main income is cosmetics given how they have to keep continuously releasing more and more to keep player retention. That and the first expansions in SWTOR are also now free so another sign of how outdated we are.

Those races are also gated yes, but that's what makes the VIP far more worth than ours. We have what: 2 race variants still? And VIP doesn't even include it afaik.

We need:

1. A more fluid grind that doesn't force us to backtrack grind to old regions for 1-2months. You want to make them relevant? Add more cosmetics or a unique LI mechanic to it.
2. A cosmetic system instead of an unlocked primary based F2P model
3. More stuff for VIP! They don't even unlock all the vault/shared/wardrobe slots? What? If you wanted VIP to be more worth it that'd be a good place to start, the next would be to tier up the amount of LP earn, add more premium content for them to unlock, like high-elves, stout-axes, the beorning, warden, rune-keeper. Among others. Makes the VIP more worth its money instead of being a glorified character unlocker.
4. Give more for new F2P players

[wrath247]

2. I agree that scrolls should be available at many locations - at appropriate tiers to match the area. I do not agree that endgame currency should be available in lower level areas. The way to get endgame gear should not be to "faceroll" low level mobs it should be to do content at least within one expansion of endgame.
3. I assume you mean that in later areas you need to actually do a lot of things in a zone before its weekly quests can be done. I am inclined to feel that this is appropriate - if you want to get goodies from Mordor you should do enough there to open up the dailies and weeklies. As most of us actually did when the expansion came out.

2. No. The motes earning is basically trash in mordor already as is. This would have been good had it come out with imbuedment but it didn't and now they've only done to increase the grind to months per region. Implement motes earlier on. It has alot of cosmetics which new players would be more into and as if they should be concerned with endgame.

3. Also no. Why should we grind just as hard for an outdated and old region that is no longer endgame? There is no reason to keep the standard at launch. This is just more of the "it was how it was in the past so it stays the same, you folks need to work for it like everyone else!" mentality that MMOs and the whole gaming industry has moved away from. Same with DA: those dailies should no longer be capped, Hytbold is a good example of how to make old content much more feasible when times passed on.

[Gandalfnick123]

I like the game, the only thing I'm disappointed with, is The End-game grind, to get good gear and PvMP being not looked up/Invested into propely.

[mithelenthor]

I am premium. It doesn't cost me anything but my time at this point. I'm not happy with the new release, I've made that clear. I'm standing by my choice not to contribute another red cent until some revamps are done.

And this right here is what SSG can't get a handle on. There are places in this game to go which don't cost money and serving up poor content and then to try and cover over the mistake and cut off the free (or should I say already paid for) route to keep your ILI up to date, they take away those avenues to force you down a blind alley.

45 posts since 2009, sorry nobody knows who you are and most likely nobody cares either

You have the same amount of posts since 2018 - or did you post from the wrong account ...
There is only two reasons to be posting in this forum...

1) because you care
2) because you're an attention seeking troll

Play, or don't play. Pay or don't pay. Complain in the forums about things you think are wrong. No ultimatum or rage-quit post in these forums is going to make things change by itself because forum posters are just the loudest part of the player base, not the most representative.

Without those who put their virtual heads above the parapet and voice their opinion, where would this game be? If you think it is bad now, imagine without any of the feedback.

Yes, a lot of it is ignored but also a lot of it is not ignored.

But, this is completely different situation anyway. Many, who in the past have been ardent backers of anything Turbine and SSG have done have actually had the blinkers removed from their eyes and can actually see how inept and poorly this game is being run.
Management are bringing in 3rd rate developers who keep tinkering with landscape at all levels of the game old and new and 12 months down the line we start to get complete server instability and they cover it over with talk of a new class or some other fluff to divert your eyes away from the fact that they are destroying everything that we have spent over a decade in.

Exactly right. And today was another example. Watched the Cord of the Rings live stream. He basically read portions of the Release Notes for 28.3 out loud, made a couple vague statements about "we had our reasons for doing this and we're going to be adjusting these things in the future", and then said that because it was such a heated and controversial issue, we weren't going to talk about it anymore during the Stream.

And after everything that's happened this week...that was it!!? No explanation? No specifics? No response to the countless players who had questions about why SSG chose to make the LI grind so much worse? (many of whom were trying to ask this very question during the stream!). He admitted at the beginning that the Devs knew before implementing 28.3 that it was going to be "very unpopular". And yet they went ahead and did it anyway, and are now silent on why they made the horrible changes they did.

"Bad Faith" indeed.

You do realise that this is a dictatorship don't you? You have no right to complain, no right to appeal. What they say goes and you can do nothing about it. I wish I could tell you my story but I am prevented by law but believe me, no matter how passionate you are in these kind of situations, you cannot put over a convincing argument if it isn't what they want to hear.

Poor and lazy development by 3rd rate developers who are re-enforced by a 3rd rate manager.

Most of us feel that way lately and on a positive side community is very united.

Come what may.

Let this be the hour when we draw swords together!

I couldn't work out whether you are defending them or defending the players... who knows... in times of uncertainty I just read on.

My experience is that ever since we started getting DDO staff moved over to Lotro we've been lead astray - datacentres/performance. If they treat Lotro players as mugs then any staff who deign to still play must have to take much scorn from colleagues. Like actually knowing stuff isn't good for your career. How else do we explain it?

Look, at this stage of the games life cycle... do you think you are going to attract good developers? No, anybody with their future career in mind left years ago and anyone left is either just treading water or just too lazy and neither of them make for a good combination.
As to any developers who have joined in the last few years.... well why? you have to ask yourself... Why have they come to old game with old tech? Because they are not good enough to be anywhere better?

I like the game, the only thing I'm disappointed with, is The End-game grind, to get good gear and PvMP being not looked up/Invested into propely.

This has the sentiment of most folks. We all love the game otherwise why would we even bother to be here posting. (barring trolls)

SSG have to take notice that so many people are not willing to part with their hard earned cash for 3rd rate content. They certainly are not going to part with their hard earned cash because you can't be bothered to develop any content at all and therefore try and extort the cash by closing down the avenues open to complete tasks and force them to pay for your 3rd rate content or even worse force folks to buy the stuff from the store direct.*

*which I hasten to add is the kind of thing was hand on heart promised you wouldn't do back when the store opened.... then again your words mean nothing when you have no heart.

[Temelnosce]

So instead of an open letter, I went ahead and sent an email direct to EG7. It probably won't make any more impact than this thread (and this thread is genuinely great for giving us the community a focal point for our feelings). But for whatever it's worth this is what I sent them.
https://www.enadglobal7.com/contact/ Who knows? It can't hurt to take our concerns CONSTRUCTIVELY to the people in charge.

I decided to do the same and give them all the reasons I, and my kinship and friends, have left LOTRO. I basically summed up all the complaints but stressed that SSG's complete lack of communication is their most egregious misconduct. I just received a reply from Robin Flodin, CEO of EG7, which gives me great hope. Just the fact that he replied says a lot.


"Sorry to hear that you are experiencing issues that have made you quit. We
at EG7 do care alot about the community and will be working together with
Standing Stone and Daybreak to improve.
We do have the intention to care and communicate with the fans of the
games. I hope you feel that overtime our stewardship will be a positive one
and you and your friends decide to come back.

Best,
Robin"

[hfe]

I can understand the sentiment, the pointless grind for LI, my advice: don't do it. Skip grinding. Just make alts at various levels (with turtle experience block), and enjoy the content at the level, do it with friends.. It'll be better than the end game, giving you the full ME vibe, when you want it, at any challenge level you like.

[wrath247]

I decided to do the same and give them all the reasons I, and my kinship and friends, have left LOTRO. I basically summed up all the complaints but stressed that SSG's complete lack of communication is their most egregious misconduct. I just received a reply from Robin Flodin, CEO of EG7, which gives me great hope. Just the fact that he replied says a lot.


"Sorry to hear that you are experiencing issues that have made you quit. We
at EG7 do care alot about the community and will be working together with
Standing Stone and Daybreak to improve.
We do have the intention to care and communicate with the fans of the
games. I hope you feel that overtime our stewardship will be a positive one
and you and your friends decide to come back.

Best,
Robin"

Amen brother.

This right here. This is what we need. Make our voices be heard, let them know our pain. Here's to hoping we modernize.

[Mirhaen]

I couldn't work out whether you are defending them or defending the players... who knows... in times of uncertainty I just read on.

Message was my reply to OP. Perhaps while you read on, you have stumbled upon other comments I've made that would clarify my position to you, but to be sure, yes, I'm standing with and in support of my fellow players.

[WorrBinpike]

Exactly right. And today was another example. Watched the Cord of the Rings live stream. He basically read portions of the Release Notes for 28.3 out loud, made a couple vague statements about "we had our reasons for doing this and we're going to be adjusting these things in the future", and then said that because it was such a heated and controversial issue, we weren't going to talk about it anymore during the Stream.

And after everything that's happened this week...that was it!!? No explanation? No specifics? No response to the countless players who had questions about why SSG chose to make the LI grind so much worse? (many of whom were trying to ask this very question during the stream!). He admitted at the beginning that the Devs knew before implementing 28.3 that it was going to be "very unpopular". And yet they went ahead and did it anyway, and are now silent on why they made the horrible changes they did.

"Bad Faith" indeed.

This is always the same if an unpopular patch comes out. Afaik it was the same when they patched the keys out of the game. On the other hand he just can't do anything against it.

For me, Helms Deep to Dol Amroth was the highpoint of the game. I know this is not a popular opinion, but it was the most solo-friendly that also had group content. Yes, I like epic battles. That was the sort of group content I preferred, though I also did well in all of the Gondor 3 and 6 mans. Why? Because it was possible without crafting essences with rare or store items.

For me WB and Kate Paiz were the best gamerunners. Again, I know all you leet raiderzzzz disagree and are terribly triggered at hearing the name. But Pelargir is still run every day. Why? Because it's something everyone can do together. Not just the 1 percent.

[Neonisys]

Cancelled my subscription today. Just outright had enough.

[Marancil]

I think I am actually going to pitch in with the negativity...

- Crafting was ok up to 95. It has been said a million times. Then you ruined it with gating and instances and hard to get items and hard to get recipes.
- LI- never went there. I can't muster the energy to do more to my LI's and that is not even two thirds done on one character. I have 12.
- MC, yeah well not many care but Mounted Combat has needad an upgrade since Gondor.
- I play less these days, a lot less, yet I keep a couple of my 5 accounts VIP.

Worldbuilding is great, the game is great, it is what you will have us do above level 100 that is not so great anymore.

[Moondog548]

I decided to do the same and give them all the reasons I, and my kinship and friends, have left LOTRO. I basically summed up all the complaints but stressed that SSG's complete lack of communication is their most egregious misconduct. I just received a reply from Robin Flodin, CEO of EG7, which gives me great hope. Just the fact that he replied says a lot.


"Sorry to hear that you are experiencing issues that have made you quit. We
at EG7 do care alot about the community and will be working together with
Standing Stone and Daybreak to improve.
We do have the intention to care and communicate with the fans of the
games. I hope you feel that overtime our stewardship will be a positive one
and you and your friends decide to come back.

Best,
Robin"

Wow, that is great! I mean it's the least they can do, but that is something and as you say a helluva lot better than we've been led to expect!

I don't think I got a reply to mine, unless it got caught in spam ;p

[Marancil]

Wow, that is great! I mean it's the least they can do, but that is something and as you say a helluva lot better than we've been led to expect!

I don't think I got a reply to mine, unless it got caught in spam ;p

Proud Swede! We care about gamers! Go Robin!

[K1llyah]

The Erosion of Trust

Awakened from a long slumber, a threat to Middle Earths' very existence has emerged. You and your party dare not tarry, do you have what it takes to best the Erosion of Trust?

Boss 1 & 2 - two enormous Forum trolls accompanied by a horde of minions.
Relatively easy fight. The first line of defence serves more as a DPS test than actual challenging content.

Friendly Giants - A nice change of pace. Lots of goodwill, freebies and friends to be made. Occasional waves of irritation, such as mounted combat and lag spikes, but nevertheless a nice addition.
Gather around, take a breather, fill up your party and stock up on hope tokens. Huh? Can't actually barter for anything useful? Keep the currency anyway and move on.

Boss 3 - "Chad" - the sole Chat Moderator.
Relatively easy fight. The regex hasn't worked for years anyway, the mechanics are broken. Does this boss even exist?

Boss 4 - "Lagfest" - Fire orc living in the datacenter.
Everything burns. Worms, drakes, all must perish before the actual orc is revealed. Just keep kiting the problem at hand, one day you will suddenly get past.

Boss 5 - "Halfwit, Captain of the Guard", commonly referred to as Class balance.
Before this boss is reached, age-old breather of problems: legendary items (fumaroles suddenly bursting from the ground),
and subproblems "urfons" (nasty chore-like scrolls grinds) must be defeated, only to reveal a bunch of uncoordinated devotees sacrifice themselves to save the boss from activation.
Any attempt to tackle to problem directly results in reflected damage. Nasty suprises in the form of balance passes, caled darklings, are revealed occasionally. These are quickly tossed aside as useless.

Boss 6 & 7 - the nameless of the Art department.
Ugly, slow moving monstrosities spawning a myriad of unimpressive copies of previously encountered NPcs (darklings). While uneventful, remains the least harmless of all bosses. Feels like filler content.

Boss 8 - "Evermoors" - Purveyor of Grind cycles.
Seasonal event drawing flocks of players, never to be updated after release. Seemingly difficult but repeptitive, tasteless fight once familiar. The unprepared, however, may be facerolled. Clunky mechanics.
Stand with your butt at the backdoor to easily exploit any mechanics. While unaware, a lot friendlies (Creeps) are to be fought, only to realize the real enemy lies further within.

Boss 9 - Harbringer of Despise.
Its monotonous opening sequence, "in the near future" is to many the least favorite memory of wonderful Middle Earth. Chained for years, this creature takes a long time to be activated after a fight starts.
After some nice-looking yet very familiar adds (cats) are dealt with, the actual fight begins. The boss immediately, at all costs tries to quench the one hopeful, who still attempts to self-heal through this reckless hate.
Occasionally wipes all hope with baleful roar "sooooon". Utmost care is required here. All members should keep distance, as area of effect punishments, known as "bans", are distributed.
Defeating this creature is rewarding, however. It drops coveted items such as "the apology" and "thank-you-for-subscribing"-buffs, and is the giver of elusive in-game titles.

Boss 10 - Seer of Sorrow.
Wait, there is another boss? An once in a lifetime experience, the doors to the lair are opened, revealing the Blind Seer within. Quickly enter, as the opportunity to enter this elusive event is extremely short.
Quickly dispel its putrid brewings by turning wheels "2" (mini expansion) and 3" (premium housing) to unlock the door to freedom

Boss 9 - Daybreaker of the Hopeful.
All wrath unleashed, the true destructive end-boss is revealed. Once again, all hope is wiped. Anybody in its sights gets hit with instant defeat "store purchase".
Mechanicss such as "Aura of Rage: Mithril Coins", and "Aura of Protection: Currency caps" provide boons to this raging fury, while especialy abhorrent "Aura of Retribution: Mission" saps the very morale of those who seek engagement. At low health, makes one last furious attempt "Sell out".

At the end, a nice lootbox awaits. Want to go again, on alts?
Note: Apologies for the lackluster design. We had to recycle content as we're short staffed. Updates expected soon.

[wispsong]

I decided to do the same and give them all the reasons I, and my kinship and friends, have left LOTRO. I basically summed up all the complaints but stressed that SSG's complete lack of communication is their most egregious misconduct. I just received a reply from Robin Flodin, CEO of EG7, which gives me great hope. Just the fact that he replied says a lot.


"Sorry to hear that you are experiencing issues that have made you quit. We
at EG7 do care alot about the community and will be working together with
Standing Stone and Daybreak to improve.
We do have the intention to care and communicate with the fans of the
games. I hope you feel that overtime our stewardship will be a positive one
and you and your friends decide to come back.

Best,
Robin"

I just hope they get around to it fast. I also hope they are willing to put some money into SSG, especially Lotro, to get the game out of the p2w and on more stable servers. This is the most story driven game I ever played and I would hate to stop playing it.

[Terannl]

The Erosion of Trust

Awakened from a long slumber, a threat to Middle Earths' very existence has emerged. You and your party dare not tarry, do you have what it takes to best the Erosion of Trust?

Boss 1 & 2 - two enormous Forum trolls accompanied by a horde of minions.
Relatively easy fight. The first line of defence serves more as a DPS test than actual challenging content.

Friendly Giants - A nice change of pace. Lots of goodwill, freebies and friends to be made. Occasional waves of irritation, such as mounted combat and lag spikes, but nevertheless a nice addition.
Gather around, take a breather, fill up your party and stock up on hope tokens. Huh? Can't actually barter for anything useful? Keep the currency anyway and move on.

Boss 3 - "Chad" - the sole Chat Moderator.
Relatively easy fight. The regex hasn't worked for years anyway, the mechanics are broken. Does this boss even exist?

Boss 4 - "Lagfest" - Fire orc living in the datacenter.
Everything burns. Worms, drakes, all must perish before the actual orc is revealed. Just keep kiting the problem at hand, one day you will suddenly get past.

Boss 5 - "Halfwit, Captain of the Guard", commonly referred to as Class balance.
Before this boss is reached, age-old breather of problems: legendary items (fumaroles suddenly bursting from the ground),
and subproblems "urfons" (nasty chore-like scrolls grinds) must be defeated, only to reveal a bunch of uncoordinated devotees sacrifice themselves to save the boss from activation.
Any attempt to tackle to problem directly results in reflected damage. Nasty suprises in the form of balance passes, caled darklings, are revealed occasionally. These are quickly tossed aside as useless.

Boss 6 & 7 - the nameless of the Art department.
Ugly, slow moving monstrosities spawning a myriad of unimpressive copies of previously encountered NPcs (darklings). While uneventful, remains the least harmless of all bosses. Feels like filler content.

Boss 8 - "Evermoors" - Purveyor of Grind cycles.
Seasonal event drawing flocks of players, never to be updated after release. Seemingly difficult but repeptitive, tasteless fight once familiar. The unprepared, however, may be facerolled. Clunky mechanics.
Stand with your butt at the backdoor to easily exploit any mechanics. While unaware, a lot friendlies (Creeps) are to be fought, only to realize the real enemy lies further within.

Boss 9 - Harbringer of Despise.
Its monotonous opening sequence, "in the near future" is to many the least favorite memory of wonderful Middle Earth. Chained for years, this creature takes a long time to be activated after a fight starts.
After some nice-looking yet very familiar adds (cats) are dealt with, the actual fight begins. The boss immediately, at all costs tries to quench the one hopeful, who still attempts to self-heal through this reckless hate.
Occasionally wipes all hope with baleful roar "sooooon". Utmost care is required here. All members should keep distance, as area of effect punishments, known as "bans", are distributed.
Defeating this creature is rewarding, however. It drops coveted items such as "the apology" and "thank-you-for-subscribing"-buffs, and is the giver of elusive in-game titles.

Boss 10 - Seer of Sorrow.
Wait, there is another boss? An once in a lifetime experience, the doors to the lair are opened, revealing the Blind Seer within. Quickly enter, as the opportunity to enter this elusive event is extremely short.
Quickly dispel its putrid brewings by turning wheels "2" (mini expansion) and 3" (premium housing) to unlock the door to freedom

Boss 9 - Daybreaker of the Hopeful.
All wrath unleashed, the true destructive end-boss is revealed. Once again, all hope is wiped. Anybody in its sights gets hit with instant defeat "store purchase".
Mechanicss such as "Aura of Rage: Mithril Coins", and "Aura of Protection: Currency caps" provide boons to this raging fury, while especialy abhorrent "Aura of Retribution: Mission" saps the very morale of those who seek engagement. At low health, makes one last furious attempt "Sell out".

At the end, a nice lootbox awaits. Want to go again, on alts?
Note: Apologies for the lackluster design. We had to recycle content as we're short staffed. Updates expected soon.

You forgot the Community Manger boss: the mechanic: flippant responses has wiped many a group of adventurers