LotRO Volume III: Allies of the King book 1: Oath of the Rangers

[CeeKay]

well that's a mouthful.  still no Minas Tirith yet (i know, i know, eventually!) 

[Sadan01]

I think it's a welcome change that you'll now be able to finish Volume 1 (Epic books for the base game: Shadows of Angmar) by soloing them if necessary. Some don't agree but looking for groups for some of the group portions of the Volume 1 books is a pain in the arse.

Even though I don't think there are any plans as yet for this, IIRC, Orion (Turbine Developer) said that they'll be watching the response to the Volume 1 change and if it's positive, they may do the same for Volume II (Moria). Eventually I think they'll have no choice in the matter.

I would think that Rohan may be next after Volume III, but then again, with the Hobbit being made into a movie, it wouldn't surprise me to continue further north from Mirkwood instead, before heading south to Rohan.

[ydejin]

I would think that Rohan may be next after Volume III, but then again, with the Hobbit being made into a movie, it wouldn't surprise me to continue further north from Mirkwood instead, before heading south to Rohan.

The hobbit movie isn't coming out until December of 2011.  I think that's too long for them to stay in Mirkwood.  I do agree that it would make a lot of sense for them to expand Mirkwood northward when that first movie comes out, and then perhaps add in the Lonely Mountain when the second movie arrives in December of 2012.

[Scraper]

I would think that Rohan may be next after Volume III, but then again, with the Hobbit being made into a movie, it wouldn't surprise me to continue further north from Mirkwood instead, before heading south to Rohan.

The hobbit movie isn't coming out until December of 2011.  I think that's too long for them to stay in Mirkwood.  I do agree that it would make a lot of sense for them to expand Mirkwood northward when that first movie comes out, and then perhaps add in the Lonely Mountain when the second movie arrives in December of 2012.

Volume III deals with the rangers, and we know from the books that the Rangers eventually head to Rohan to fight with Aragorn. So I would assume that we would make it to Rohan by the end of Volume III. This is just my guess though, since the devs haven't given any clue as to where they are going next. I really hope it is towards Rohan though. I want to see Mount Doom eventually.

[Jaddison]

I am hoping for mounted combat in Rohan...now that would be fun if done right

[TiLT]

I am hoping for mounted combat in Rohan...now that would be fun if done right

I've been hoping for a while that the legendary item system was just a test drive of the system they will implement for mounts when Rohan hits. Imagine having a horse that can gain levels and skills and that you can equip with various types of barding.

[Misguided]

I think it's a welcome change that you'll now be able to finish Volume 1 (Epic books for the base game: Shadows of Angmar) by soloing them if necessary. Some don't agree but looking for groups for some of the group portions of the Volume 1 books is a pain in the arse.

Really? This is precisely why I quit playing. There were too many quests that were part of the main story that two players couldn't complete, even +4 or +5 levels. What did they change, exactly?

[Booner]

I think it's a welcome change that you'll now be able to finish Volume 1 (Epic books for the base game: Shadows of Angmar) by soloing them if necessary. Some don't agree but looking for groups for some of the group portions of the Volume 1 books is a pain in the arse.

Really? This is precisely why I quit playing. There were too many quests that were part of the main story that two players couldn't complete, even +4 or +5 levels. What did they change, exactly?

They primarily reduce the toughness of the mobs, or buff your stats during the boss fights.

You're still offered the fellowship versions if you're inclined, but it's hard to get one together when the quests are soloable.

[Cragmyre]

This comes out 3/1 and here are the release notes:  http://lorebook.lotro.com/wiki/Release_Notes_Volume_3_Allies_of_the_King_Official

[Booner]

OK...they changed the way you would work these formally fellowship quests in Vol 1. You get a massive buff called 'Inspired Greatness' when you get within the instances. There are areas that you may need assistance to get to (Carn Dum), but once you are there, you can really get to working solo if you care. The other cool thing is that the buff scales to the number of players in the fellowship...so that it always maintains a bit of a challenge. Turbine is getting the thumbs up on this from me. 
 
Yesterday I was able to knock out four books (20+ chapters) on my own as a level 54 warden. It's been great to crawl out of Moria and knock out a ton of stuff that had been lingering in my questlog for so long...it's real fun to push the story forward again and get some nice XP in the process.

[Farscry]

The other cool thing is that the buff scales to the number of players in the fellowship...so that it always maintains a bit of a challenge. Turbine is getting the thumbs up on this from me. 

That's an awesome solution! Big thumbs-up from me too! Also makes it worth looking to see if someone wants to party up for it even if you only end up with a fellowship of 2-3 people; you still get the fun of small group play and a roughly appropriate challenge. Brilliant solution!

[Barrakketh]

I would think that Rohan may be next after Volume III, but then again, with the Hobbit being made into a movie, it wouldn't surprise me to continue further north from Mirkwood instead, before heading south to Rohan.

Some sleuths on the official forums have already dug up indications that an area south of Eregion (Enedwaith) has already been added to the landblocks in-game, but is inaccessible at present. So, it's looking like we'll be able to get closer to Rohan by heading south from Mirobel at some point. It makes sense - the Rangers and Elrond's sons did ride south into Rohan through Eregion to meet Aragorn before heading to Dunharrow.