Massively's exclusive tour of LotRO Book 14: More Critter Play
If you've ever had the chance to run through the Shire farmlands as a chicken, or bashed in some freep skull as a Troll, you know what Critter Play is all about. In Book 14, Critter Play will be extended into a whole new realm. Not only will you be able to play as some insanely over-powered heroes in your own instanced solo quests, but it will be part of the epic storyline. Players will be able to participate in some exciting time-shift scenarios where you'll be playing as legendary heroes from the earlier ages.
In our session, we were able to play through The Fate of Laerdan, the Elven hero whose legend is told to us by Elrond. Playing as Laerdan gives you an insane amount of morale, amazingly powerful skills (that cannot be interrupted) and the ability to mow through baddies easier than ever before. The folks at Turbine explained to us that they realize these hero characters are overpowered, but that's the point! It's simply something fun and rewarding for players. There will be many more of these Critter Play quests, with some being revisits of quests you have already completed in previous chapters. Although this time, you can be the evil nemesis boss that you may have originally beaten your first time through.