bullroarer
Latest
LotRO's update 14 opens West Gondor, raises level cap to 100
Turbine has just released preliminary patch notes for Lord of the Rings Online's update 14 on the Bullroarer test server. Here are the highlights: The level cap has been raised to the nice shiny and round number of 100. Three new regions -- free for VIPs -- have been added. "Explore and enjoy West Gondor!" says the team. Volume IV of the epic story has been implemented. It's free for all players. The Essence system is functional. "New gear found throughout the world can be upgraded and enhanced by placing Essences into available slots. These Essences are currently earned as drops." The game now has a new global chat channel, accessible through /world or /wd commands. There's much more to the notes, including trait tweaks for the classes, on the official forums.
Update 11 hits LotRO's public test server
It's not quite yet time for Update 11 to hit Lord of the Rings Online officially, but it is time for folks to start testing it out on Bullroarer, the public test server. The testing patch notes have been posted, so let's take a look at what we may see in Update 11. There's a new LotRO launcher with several changes. A new region, Wildermore, has new quests, warbands, and endgame activities. The story is pushing players into Wildermore with Book 10: Snows of Wildermore. Mounted combat is getting a big update which will give players a class-specific trait tree for optimal maneuverability. The UI is getting worked over a bit to change the way players can view alerts. Players will now be able to pay for their housing further in advance, which will now go into foreclosure six months after they stop paying for upkeep. Read the full update notes for Update 11 on the official forum.
LotRO barters, gallops and tasks with advance patch notes
Those who assumed that Turbine would be taking it easy for its next Lord of the Rings Online patch may want to sit down, buckle up and prepare to be thrust into a wall of patch notes. The list of changes and additions for LotRO's November update have been posted, and players may check them out on the Bullroarer test server. While the notes are "subject to change," they contain an impressive list of additions we've known were coming (such as expanding the free-to-play coverage to include the expansions all the way up through level 65) as well as a few surprises. Among the surprises are a new barter wallet to hold inventory-clogging skirmish and anniversary tokens, the ability for former subscribers to use swift travel routes, upgrades to reputation mounts, new ingredient packs for crafters and an overhaul of the Dwarf and Elf starting area. The notes also give us a peek at the mysterious "Task" system. According to Turbine, this system will add 250 repeatable quests to the game, be accessible by all tiers of players, and will require current trophy drops. Tasks will also come with a new set of deeds and rewards, hopefully adding to the amount of free Turbine Points that players can accrue. You can read the test server patch notes on the LotRO forums.
Newest patch notes for LotRO Bullroarer server available
Game patches that bring loads of new content and items are always welcome, but sometimes it's nice when a game does some housecleaning on the current content. This is exactly what the fine folks behind Lord of the Rings Online have done with the next upcoming patch. The notes for patch 1 of Volume III, Book I have been released with the standard caveat: they currently only apply to the Bullroarer test server, and are subject to change. While a few new things have been added, such as the Pale Golden Summer Steed, the vast majority of this patch includes small fixes. Lots of bugs and issues big and small, across the entire game, will get some tweaking. Crafting, Skirmishes, Quests, Deeds, you name it and Turbine has given it a once over. Once the patch goes live on all servers, players should notice a much smoother ride through Middle-earth, so take a look at the current patch notes and see if your favorite pet peeve is getting fixed!
Lord of the Rings Online to get hardware upgrade
The folks at Turbine are planning a significant hardware upgrade for Lord of the Rings Online, and are asking players to help test it out. The Bullroarer server currently has the new hardware, and is open to anyone who currently has an active subscription. You can copy up to five of your characters over using the character copy tool in order to join the test, and you'll find some nice bonuses in exchange for your time: all of the content from Mines of Moria and Siege of Mirkwood is on the Bullroarer server. If you don't own the expansions, this is an excellent way to check them out. Turbine has one more thank you gift for players: everyone who plays on the Bullroarer server for at least an hour between now and Friday will be entered in a drawing for a Best Buy gift card. One person will receive a $250 card, one will receive a $150 card, and five people will receive $100 cards. The Bullroarer server can be downloaded here.
Help stress test LotRO to win cool prizes and meet devs
Isn't it funny? People are always clamoring to get into closed betas but once an MMO launches, test servers are usually pretty empty, even for special events. Turbine has decided to offer some great incentives for players to participate in their upcoming Lord of the Rings Online performance test and is giving away several high-powered computer accessories and making sure the devs are online to interact with. Subscribers and even trial-account holders can log into the Bullroarer public test server between 9:00PM and 11:00PM Eastern on Thursday, May 14 and have a shot at winning: Two (2) first prizes - AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition CPU + OCZ Platinum 4GB DDR3 SDRAM Five (5) second prizes - OCZ Vertex 60GB MLC Solid State SATA II Hard Drive Ten (10) third prizes - ATI Radeon HD 4890 Video Card Twenty (20) fourth prizes - Signed copy of The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria In order to qualify, you must play the entire two hours of the event and be a resident of the United States. Disconnects will not disqualify you as long as you log back in immediately. You can download the Bullroarer client here. Good luck!
LotRO's test server to get max level advancement today [UPDATED]
According to a recent post on the official forums by Meghan "Patience" Rodberg, the Eyes and Guard Inn should be implemented on LotRO's test server today during the patch. The game's Community Manager said in the post, "We have news! Assuming the new build passes QA, we'll be updating Bullroarer tomorrow, and will be opening the Eyes & Guard Tavern as well. So, while not 100% guaranteed that we won't run into a delay, that's the current plan."For those not familiar with the importance of the Eyes and Guard Inn, be sure to check out this guide created by us for the previous test server, Roheryn. The guide still applies on the new Bullroarer server, as it's basically a way to get a newly-created character to max level for testing purposes. Plus, if you'd like more information on the test server and when/if your server and your characters may be copied over, check out this FAQ.[UPDATE] Patience gives a bit of an addendum to the test server guide with how to get from level 50 to 60.
LotRO releases new PTS and preliminary Book 7 patch notes
Turbine has just announced a brand new public test server for Lord of the Rings Online called Bullroarer. This test server will allow plays to experience content before it is ready to go live, allowing the players to help test the content and give their feedback. You will need to download Bullroarer separately from the live game client, and you must have an active LotRO account.What's even more exciting about this announcement is the fact that the newest content update, Book 7, is live on Bullroarer right now for players to explore! Since this is a test server, it will incorporate a copy from a live server. Right now that first server is Elendilmir, but anyone is invited to create a character and experience the new content. Turbine says they will soon enable the Eyes and Guard Inn in-game to allow anyone to boost their characters up to max level and experience everything. Check out the current Book 7 patch notes (that are subject to change before going live) and count on Massively for much more coverage of Book 7 as it nears live release.
