Frag, questions about LOTR online

[Smooth Groove]

I got an email promotion that's offering the whole LOTR online game (all expansions included) for $10. 

I'm interested but I want to know if 1)Can I play the game mostly by myself since my gaming time is too sporadic to join a guild?  2)Are the DX11 features implemented yet? 

Thanks

[Eric P]

1) yes.  you can solo the main quest stuff now for the early stuff.  You either get buffs or easier enemies.  It's a lot of fun for solo stuff. 

2) dunno

[ManaByte]

I thought the $10 deal just expired?

[Smooth Groove]

uh, you're right.

Still, I would like to know.  The regular price is only $20 more.  If I hear good things from Frag also, I'll give it a go. 

Eric P, how far along are you in the game?  Is it fighter friendly?  I didn't really enjoy Age of Conan because my warrior kept getting owned. 

[Van Cruncheon]

i have been playing as a captain and had no issues, i can take down hordes pretty easily

[Eric P]

yeah it's pretty fighter friendly.  There are 4 different melee classes to choose from

Warden, which is a tank / off tank and dps combo very versatile but kind of hard to master right out of the gate because you use attacks to lead up to super attacks in a sequence.  combat with it can get kind of repetitive though.

Captain, which is a team buffer, you get a bonus fighter that you can "summon" to help you and you can coordinate attacks with them.  I find this to be the most fun option because when you defeat an enemy, you can then enact a buff like healing or more damage.

Guardian, basically a tank.  horrible for solo play because until 15th level you won't really be able to do enough damage to blow through rough combats.

Champion, low armor high damage area of attack guy.  lots of fun in the low levels because you kick out a disgustingly high amount of damage, but your survivability kind of tanks around lvl 20 and you have to learn to be a bit more strategic.

i had a lot of fun with the game, but never got out of the 30s because i would get bored of the slow progression and would go on to other things.

edit: as an aside i think the best fighter in Conan is the Bear Shaman.  High DPS and Healing.  raowr

[Fragamemnon]

DX11 goodies aren't in yet. They said Q1 2010 but missed that goal and haven't heard any updates.

Game is surprisingly friendly-the "book" quests  for volume one are now all soloable so you can see the entire initial game release story unfold, Mirkwood adds the skirmishes which is a great way to pop in , play an hour solo, and log off with a lot of exp and things you can cash in for good loot.

It's a very good casual MMO. Once you get to max level your soloing options kinda plummet, but with casual play it'll take months to get to that point.

[Smooth Groove]

Thanks for the info.  So, based on Eric's quick summary, Warden and Champion are the best long term options for soloing?  Champion sounds really cool but I don't want to be stuck with a class that can't do solo beyond the mid levels. 

edit: as an aside i think the best fighter in Conan is the Bear Shaman.  High DPS and Healing.  raowr

Did they change the intro?  I'll like to give AOC another try since I really liked the feel and atmosphere of the world  The graphics were already very good at launch and I'm interested to see how it looks now that it has DX10 features.   My only concern is playing the same old intro quests again.  If I pick Bear Shaman, I'll be stuck with the same beginning area as last time. 

[etiolate]

You can solo just fine. The game uses "Inspiration" now for soloing group quests, which buffs you up the wazzoo.

edit:

Also for melee is burglar, which is a theif/rogue type of character with CC and debuffs. Only leveled mine to around level 15, and can say not as much survivability as some other classes, but fun to play. Favorite melee so far has been Warden because of the gambit system and because they don't ever seem to die.

[Eric P]

Did they change the intro?  I'll like to give AOC another try since I really liked the feel and atmosphere of the world  The graphics were already very good at launch and I'm interested to see how it looks now that it has DX10 features.   My only concern is playing the same old intro quests again.  If I pick Bear Shaman, I'll be stuck with the same beginning area as last time. 

you'd be doing the same quests and getting hella frustrated.  Until about level 15, bear shaman are pretty much the worst class to play.  low dps, low heal over time, and low armor.  death after death after death greeted me starting with about level 10.