Lothlorien Sentinel

I’ll be honest. I’m pretty proud of this one. If you’re at all familiar with my blog, it should be no surprise by now that I generally prefer LOTRO’s tunics (chest and legs combined) to separate upper body and leg pieces. This one, however, is an exception. Composed entirely of Harndirion pieces, this one is entirely composed by me. I actually struggled quite a bit making up my mind as to what I wanted – there were just so many options!

I actually put this all together while visiting the vault in Galtrev, but once I had it figured out I instantly knew that Lothlorien was the only place that could do the outfit justice. Not only that, but it also made the most sense there in my opinion.

Can I just mention real quick how GORGEOUS Lothlorien is???

I remember the first time I got to Lothlorien. My champ had just finished an arduous trek through Moria (and I mean arduous – I was a serious completionist first time around so I did EVERY quest I could in a region. Don’t worry – I’ve since moved on!) and after a few weeks of nothing but darkness (he was the only toon I was playing at the time) I remember emerging into the bright light of the Dimrill Dale. Maybe it was due to having spent so much game time without sunlight, but immediately I deemed it to be the most beautiful region I’d laid eyes on.

And then of course I actually got inside the city of Caras Galadhon, and what I already thought was beautiful became even more so. The golden Mallorn trees surrounding Cerin Amroth were breathtaking enough, but the towering trees and intricate Talans (the tree-house like structures) inside the lady Galadriel’s home took that breath away completely.

My horse’s eyes look kind of creepy in this pic…

No place in LOTRO had so perfectly captured the images my mind had conjured when I first read the Fellowship of the Ring. Since first entering the Golden Wood, I have seen many new and exciting regions (excluding Mordor – I hate that place. But I guess I’m kind of supposed to? So good job SSG?) but Lothlorien remains my favorite. My RK was the first toon I made that actually hails from the region, though it will never be more magical than that first time I explored it with my champion, feeling very much like a human in an elven world.

My champion is also the only toon to reach kindred with the Galadhrim. This was back before I had a war horse – before the obsession started – and I REALLY wanted that white horse. I spent days doing Lothlorien dailies just for that mount…I don’t think I’ve used it once since getting my war steed….

My RK didn’t do that. I was in a rush to get her to Rohan so I rushed through regions as fast as I could. I’d already gone through everything twice by that time – first on my champ then on my LM, so the shine had kind of worn off.

Lothlorien, though, will always be that surreal, magical place of golden trees and blooming flowers. A land of perpetual spring. A land of light and peace, where the stewards of the land see that its inhabitants are protected and that the greenery (or goldenry?) doesn’t fade.

This outfit combines a lot of that bird inspiration found throughout elven-styled outfits in LOTRO with the gold/white coloration of the Lorien elves.

The war steed outfit I put together to match it is based around the caparison of the Elder Autumn – Not only is it gold, but it has that “feather” like embellishments that go well with the whole “bird” aesthetic. I refused to use the headpiece though, because I, um…well…I don’t like it.

Here’s it with the head-piece. I guess it’s not terrible…I guess I kind of like it…I don’t know…it’s just sort of weird…if any one actually reads this blog, give me your thoughts! I’d love to know!

Outfit:
Shoulders: Lesser Arrow of the West Shoulder Guards (white)
Chest: Lesser Blade of the West Breastplate (white)
Hands: Lesser Secret of the West Gauntlets (white)
Legs: Lesser Defender of the West Leggings (white)
Feet: Lesser Cry of the West Boots (white)

Warsteed: 
Head: Head-Piece of the Northern Herald (white)
Body: Caparison of the Eldar Autumn (white)
Saddle: Saddle of the Northern Herald

White Knight of the Withered Heath

So this is another outfit that just sort of…happened. Initially I was just trying to match one of my favorite yule/wintry war steed outfits, and then things started going down a VERY different route. That being said, once I got the vision in my head, I was SUPER determined to get it right. Like, I spent a lot more time gathering pieces for this outfit than I normally do.

So the Breastplate of the Slayer’s Raiment has been out for a while now, but I only just recently decided to barter for it. It’s probably because I don’t normally outfit my champ in long hauberks, and it just didn’t seem to match the aesthetic of my lore master (whom I regularly dress in hauberks and robes). But for one reason or another, I decided to give it a try.

Then there’s also the new heavy shoulder-pieces that drop from t1 and t2 Grey Mountain instances (there’s a very slight difference in appearance between the two tiers). Anyways, I’ve been obsessed with these new shoulders, and on a whim I tried them on with the breastplate. The rest of the outfit just kind of followed from there.

I really liked how the breastplate looked with the white dye – It gave it that sort of “noble” air that white armor tends to give, but it has enough gold and copper hues to it to make it looked much more worn and used. To me this look says, “I want to do the right thing but I’ve seen enough to know that doesn’t always work out,” which is sort of the mentality I imagine my champ has.

I also loved the opportunity to showcase some of the new Ered Mithrin pieces – both cosmetic and armor. I’m not a big fan of the chest pieces and boots that have come with the recent update, as they seem too bulky to really be worn by any other race than a dwarf (which, to be fair, is fine considering all the elven cosmetics we’ve had in the past), but I do love the shoulders, the gloves, the cloaks, and I especially love the new patterns. They remind me a lot of Celtic designs, which I am ALWAYS here for.

I also found that this served as the perfect opportunity to give the Ered Mithrin war steed cosmetics another try, as first time around I wasn’t too impressed with them. My first complaint was that the barding seemed a little…”boxy,” if that makes sense. Then there’s also the fact that you can’t dye it. But I have to admit, when paired with the right rider outfit, it’s a very eye-catching look.

I thought the cosmetics really popped when paired against the black coat of the horse. Since I tend to have my champ ride an enormous white stallion as his default war mount, however, the majority of screenshots are of his normal horsey 🙂

Plus, the white steed does kind of go better with the whole “white knight” theme.

I know I’m posting a lot of war steed pics, but like I’ve said in previous posts, I really LOVE my horses. And I’m just so into this combination.

Seriously, you can stop scrolling whenever you want and just skip to outfit details. I just can’t resist all the pretty pictures 🙂

OUTFIT:
Shoulders: Pauldrons of Stonehelm (white)
Chest: Breastplate of the Slayer's Raiment (white)
Hands: Gauntlets of the Grey Mountain Elite (white)
Boots: Reworked Boots (default)
Back: Perfected Heavy Cloak of Stonehelm (white)

WARSTEED:
Head: Head-Piece of the Ered Mithrin Steed
Body: Caparison of the Ered Mithrin Steed
Saddle: Saddle of the Ered Mithrin Steed

Cause you know one rearing pic just wasn’t enough 🙂

Spearman of the March

That’s right – run away. Run from my level 22 warden!!

So I finally rolled a warden! And let me just say, it is a FUN class. I actually created this toon right about the same time I broke down and bought an Aria of the Valar. I intended to use it on my hunter, but once I started getting into the warden I confess I was torn. In the end though, I decided a class as long as complicated and lovingly-made as the warden deserved to be leveled all the way through and granted the time to properly learn the class dynamics.

The warden was immediately more to my liking than the hunter – probably because I’m so used to playing a champion and my instinct is to rush into the fray and get into the action, and that doesn’t work so well on a hunter. It does, however, work well on a warden 🙂

Sorry wolf. I need your pelt for a quest.

Also, my warden immediately seemed like the perfect candidate to wear that specific blend of plate armor and leather jackets – i.e., the Bowmaster’s Jacket (medium isengard t1 armor). There’s just something about the warden class that seems more organized than the other classes – like, being a warden is actually a JOB – it’s not just a hobby for random Middle Earthians who want to go kill things.

In fact, wardens are present at many Middle Earth Settlements – particularly early on. You’ll see them standing outside the gates of Archet, and Comb – you’ll find them in Esteldin in the North Downs and in Michael Delving in the Shire. I don’t know who exactly is organizing them, but there’s definitely something going on there.

Anyways, about the outfit – I once again paired the Isengard medium jacket with another set. This time, however, it wasn’t from Harndirion, it was actually the medium Survivors of Wildermore crafted armor.

In my mind, the Wildermore armor actually matches the gold of the jacket much closer than the Harndirion armor pieces did – though they certainly come with a more “armor” like appearance (if that makes any sense?). I think it fits the warden though. He looks battle hardened, prepared, and well organized.

OUTFIT:
Shoulders: Wildermore Shoulderguards of Combat (burgundy/default)
Chest: The Bowmaster's Jacket (burgundy)
Hands: Wildermore Gauntlets of Combat (burgundy/default)
Feet: Wildermore Boots of Combat (burgundy/default)
Shield: Thistlewool's Buckler

Ancient Master

So it finally struck me that even though I’ve posted quite a few outfits by now, none have featured my lore master. Which is strange, considering she’s one of two toons I’ve leveled up past 100 without any boosts and I consider her to be one of my most fashionable models.

The main reason is probably just that the items I’ve been trying to get in game lately have been for other toons – not her. Lots of jackets, lots of boots, shoulder guards, etc., and my LM is more of a robe wearer. Also, with the recent update, I feel like LMs have been put at a serious disadvantage and are a lot harder to level now, which I have to admit has discouraged me from playing the class.

That being said, recently I’ve been playing around with trait trees a lot and I seem to have found a couple that I can work with. There’s blue line – beast master – for the really tough stuff where I need something to tank for me, and then there’s red line – nature’s fury – for some SERIOUS damage. The key is to play your pet as well as your toon – something I’m not very good at yet.

It also doesn’t help that the eagle is BY FAR my favorite LM pet because it’s just so friggin’ majestic, but it can’t compare to the bear in terms of tanking or the sabre cat in terms of dps. It’s just not extremely potent in any specific way, but it does have a ton of health, great survivability, and the ability to rez you. Which, let’s face it, kind of rocks.

I’m also a sucker for birds. I just am. I love them. I really, really love them.

What do your elf eye’s see?
Don’t you mean, what do your *eagle’s* eyes see? Heh, heh, heh, heh…

btw, /look is a great emote. Just saying.

Another thing that has held me back from posting these outfits has been the fact that every time I log in to play my LM, it’s night. So pictures are harder

Also can I just say that I love how the /sit emote works for females in the game? So regal.

OUTFIT:
Shoulders: Ceremonial Pauldrons of the Mark (black)
Chest: The Beast Keeper's Robe (default)
Hands: Gauntlets of the Grey Mountain Stalwart (default)
Feet: Medium Nadhin Boots (default)
Staff: Lore Master's Staff of the Third Age (this is a pretty common skin)

The Martial Artist

So as I’ve said, I’m currently on a quest to create cool outfits based on the medium t1 armor bartered from the Isengard instances. Here is the second (if you ignore the first one I did on my RK which really just fell together without much thought)!

The more I use this piece, the more I am surprised by how well it goes with Harndiron pieces. As with the previous post regarding this jacket, this outfit is modeled by a champ – although the former is my main and this one is just an alt I use primarily for storage and deed farming. This guy here is a dual wielder while my main uses a two handed great sword (don’t @ me! I just like the lore of it better 🙂

He’s also the only one so far that I haven’t invested any war steed cosmetics in. He is, after all, an aria, so I’m not nearly so attached. But maybe one day…When I finally decide what to rename him and figure out his character more. For now, he’s just another devilishly handsome model 🙂

Default warsteed with aria-granted barding and default dyes. YEAHHHH baby!!!!!

I don’t know what I’m doing here. I have literally zero quests in this region

This place I recognize…I did many quests here for armor pieces that I was way over-leveled to actually wear.

OUTFIT:
Shoulders: Lesser Cry of the West Shoulder Guards (default)
Chest: The Bowmaster's Jacket (steel blue)
Hands: Lesser Ward of the West Guantlets (default)
Feet: Lesser Cry of the West Boots (steel blue)

WARSTEED:
Head: Citadel Halter (Indigo)
Body: Citadel Caparison (Indigo)
Saddle: Plain Black Saddle
Legs: Citadel Leggings (Indigo)

Blade of Renown

So, for some reason, the medium T1 Isengard instance jacket is kind of hard to style. I’m not really sure why – I suspect it has something to do with the cut, or maybe the way it always dyes slightly bluer than you intended it to be…or maybe it’s because it definitely looks like armor, but it’s not bulky enough to look battle ready or worn and leathery enough to fit the ranger category…It’s like, fancy armor, but also still sort of functional? Like the armor of someone who’s prepared to draw their sword but would rather show everyone that’s the case rather than actually prove it. It’s just…weird. That being said, I’ve wanted it ever since I first saw it worn in game.

The jacket shown here is skin available form the hunter trainer at the ox-clan camp in pre-flood Isengard (The general appearance of this jacket is the same for hunters, wardens, burglars, and beornings – the only difference is the emblem on the chest and back). Oddly enough, the default color is actually DARKER than what you get if you dye it black (a fact that I honestly can’t wrap my head around but have decided to live with).

Turns out, however, that this armor pairs pretty well with the lots of pieces from the Harndirion armor barterers due to the subtle gold and white accents they both have. Gold isn’t normally a color I like to work with, but it really became the centerpiece here in my opinion.

I’ve actually used this jacket before in a pairing with harndirion armor (check out my post: Executioner of the Wicked), but this outfit definitely draws more attention to the jacket than the previous one…I was very skeptical at first but the more I play with this outfit the more I like it 🙂

OUTFIT:
Shoulders: Lesser Blade of the West Shoulder Guards (black)
Chest: The Bowmaster's Jacket (default)
Hands: Gauntlets of the White Mountains (black)
Feet: Lesser Cry of the West Boots (black)
Sword: Mercenary's Heavy Blade
Bow: Smooth Lebethron Bow of Precision

WARSTEED: 
Head: Captain's Halter (black)
Body: Heavy Caparison of the Norcrofts (black)
Saddle: Plain Black Saddle
Legs: Dol Baran Leggings (default)

Executioner of the Wicked

Another Barrow Downs! Like I said, I just got a bit inspired and the outfits just came together.

*Edit* – I’ve finally redone the screenshots with my new laptop. Well, I say new. I’ve had it for a couple years now. But I DIDN’T have it at the time when I first made this post lol*

Also, can I just say how much I love my pet crow mimicking my every action in the background?

Okay…maybe I’m just imagining it.

Whatever. Crow is Bae.

I honestly don’t have much more to say about this one – I just enjoy feeling epic 🙂 Plus I had a bunch of photo ops as I was running around killing spirits in Huadh Iarchith. Gotsta get those deeds!!!

OUTFIT:
Shoulders: The Beast Keeper's Shoulder Pads (default)
Chest: The Bow-Master's Jacket (default)
Hands: Lesser Secret of the West Gauntlets (black)
Feet: Lesser Boots of Dunlammad (default)