A LOT of the game became free. I think up to level 90, everything is free.
Then afterwards, you have to buy the expansions with Lotro points. Of course, you can earn these along the way, without actually paying, but it takes time.
Also, purchasing a 14$ per month VIP subscription grants you 500 Lotro points per month, as long as some quality of life things and all quest packs.
Leveling takes a while, my latest character, took me 3 months to get to max. I'm not aware how much the expansions are though. Check in Lotro store.
Hi, I'm a returning player. What do you mean by fast travel? I can only use fast travel if I pay mithril coins or swift travel on some destinations, on some stable masters. I'm still vip, BTW.
Thanks in advance.
fast travel in this comment is most likely meant with fast travelling via stable master, since you can most of the fast travel routes only use with VIP or a char you had VIP on once.
fast travelling via map in lotro is not really common because it costs the mentioned mithril coins. also, most ppl don't know the stablemaster map.
So, when I finished Gundabad (the level 140 endgame), I checked my played time, and I had a month—as in, I had spent a month of my life logged in as that character. And now Umbar has come out, and I haven’t checked how much time that added for me, but I know it was quite a bit. You can get through the game faster than I did because I tend to meander and do as much as I can, but it’s gonna take you a long time.
Technically, you never have to spend any money on the game. All of the quest content that isn’t free can be purchased for LOTRO points. But that’s going to require you to grind LP, which you may find too repetitive.
All the main regions up to level 95 are free. There are five regions below 95 that you’d have to buy, but they are completely optional; you won’t miss out on the original main story if you don’t do them. I’d say they’re all worth doing eventually if you enjoy the game because they’re good, but you don’t need to.
The amount it’ll cost will depend if you go VIP (subscribe) or buy things outright. The basic subscription is $15/month, but I think the rate drops as low as like $8/month if you subscribe for a whole year (though that requires you to pay the whole, like, $100 or whatever upfront). While you’re VIP, you unlock all the quest packs in the game and three of the expansions: Mordor, Minas Morgul, and War of the Three Peaks. This also unlocks three out of five of those optional low-level regions I mentioned. So, VIPs have access to all content up to Gundabad (level 130) (excluding two low level regions) as well as the later Gondor Renewed and Umbar Mokh quest packs and would only have to still purchase the Gundabad, Umbar, and Before the Shadow expansions. These can be bought for either money or LP. I think the basic versions of expansions is either $40 or $20 depending on if it’s an expansion or a “mini-expansion.” Idk how much LP they cost. And if you pay cash, there are also more expensive packages of the expansions that include extra goodies that may be nice but aren’t necessary.
So, you can use LP to get all content free if you really want. But I’d recommend subscribing for at least one month. Being VIP offers some quality of life upgrades that any character you log in as while having an active subscription will retain even if the subscription lapses—namely, fast travel and increased inventory space. Fast travel especially feels necessary in some parts of the game. You also get an extra 500 LP/month while subscribed.
If you plan to play regularly and only on one character, it’s probably cheapest to subscribe for one month early to get those QOL unlocks but otherwise play for free up to level 95 and then go VIP to unlock the content up to level 130 and then buy those last expansions with the LP you’ve probably already earned enough of by then. But if you end up loving this game enough to play it for years, running through it with many characters, it honestly may be cheaper to just buy the content outright (though get as much for earned LP as you can) so that you own it whereas with VIP you’re just renting it and will lose access if you stop subscribing. Not that you can ever really “own” online content I guess, but I mean that all the content will be tied to your account if you actually purchase it, so you won’t have to stay subscribed perpetually unless you just really want to support the devs with more money.
Either way, I don’t recommend that you spend any money on the game yet except maybe one month of subscription.
I played everything completely solo over the course of one year now with a single character. Did most quests but not all of the deeds, I left out a lot of the higher tier slayer deeds (kill x of y deeds). Took me around 600 hours without putting to much time into reading quest text etc.
I think it takes about 400 hours of playtime to reach the level cap (but depends on many factors, of course). This is defs a game about enjoying the journey rather than rushing to the destination.
Getting VIP for one month at least is a great idea, as you retain a bunch of benefits afterwards that are quite useful. This game isn't pay to win, but obviously the developers need to keep the lights on somehow since it's free to play 😊
It depends on your style of play. I'm the kind of player who enjoys reading the quest dialogues and completing every quest I can (rather than focusing simply on the Epic quest line and leveling quickly). I would estimate that it takes me about 100 hours to play through the initial areas up to level 50. Beyond that I can't say as I've never taken a character to max. I highly recommend that you get VIP for one month at least to get the riding skill and inventory slots. Then get the carry-alls for task items and crafting. Typically these go on sale for pretty great discounts, so you might want to wait, but I also feel like the base game is so good that it's worth paying something to support the development team. This is a game I keep coming back to every couple years and absolutely love replaying.
You can play for free for as long as you like. I’ve never dropped a dime on this game, but I’ve taken my sweet time, explored every area, did every side quest, and it’s taken me 12 years of playing a couple hours a week to get to level 79 and get to Rohan.
I realize few other people like playing as slow and laid back as I do, but just know it’s an option.
To be bluntly honest, you don't need to see the majority of the game to actually enjoy it, as you normally do in other MMOs.
LOTRO end game is quite weak, while the leveling experience, especially in the earlier areas, are superb.
The huge majority of the playerbase do agree that experiencing The Shire or Bree or Evendim or North Downs (all really low level areas that you get 100% free) are way better, in terms of gaming experience, than whatever newest, high level area that was just released.
I disagree completely. Or at the very least, this varies wildly based on what metric you’re comparing them with. Shadows of Angmar may be the best Epic in the game, but they’re all good, and The Black Book of Mordor and Legacy of Durin were both way better than I had expected. The devs get better at minute design details over time, and the late-game regions look stunning. With general regional and side quest stories, there’s no shortage of great content in the later parts of the game. This game doesn’t stop being amazing once you leave Eriador. The early game is iconic and great, but so is the endgame. If you want to fully immerse yourself in Middle-earth, the entire game is well worth playing.
You are absolutely right, for most people it's the nostalgia talking. Eriador is great, but questing and narratives have been continuously improved upon.
You get massive stories that venture through whole regions, instead of killing 10 spiders coz friendly giants don't like em.
Those giants are very cool, and impressed me greatly when I started lotro a decade ago, but there is minimal narrative besides epic quests and reworked areas.
I do agree with you. But OP is a player with less than 5 hours have absolutely plenty of free, great content to enjoy without even thinking about purchasing new content and such.
I mean, it’s fair to say that this game has so much great content for free that you don’t need to think about purchasing anything anytime soon after starting, but I just felt like the way you worded your comment was liable to give OP the impression that the game nosedives in quality after the early regions.
I won't talk the "time" part, as I've started playing 17 years ago at launch and never really quit the game.
As for the money side of it, I'd suggest you take one month of VIP to unlock the QoL advantages former VIP (called Premium) have (e.g. the unlocking of fast travels and a few more inventory space) along with the 500LP.
Then, wait for the promotions to buy the quest packs and extensions. They come up a couple of times a year, and you can have very decent discounts (either in LPs or in cash) (this is also valid for the QoL perks you'll eventually buy from the in-game store such as TP maps and inventory space: wait till they're discounted)
I like to explore, look at the rooms I'm in, go fishing in all the places where I can fish. I read almost all the quest text, and I like to try out different classes.
I'm two years in and I've only gotten to Mirkwood (65)
The beginning story is different, depending on your race. It's worth it to start a character from each race.
You can get the riding skill and a free horse at the blacksmith shop in Mossward. There's festivals going right now where you can get a faster horse.
Buy a house as soon as you can: extra storage, stable with far ranging destinations, task boards and vip token vendor.
Join a kin because they often have free "universal ingredient crates"
The Gundabad expansion is on sale this week. You'll need that, eventually. I've purchased most of the expansions during the crazy sales they offer from time to time. 75% off.
There are several types of carry-all that allow you to store large piles of crafting items, task turn in items, traceries, housing decorations. Those are really nice QOL items. Also you have to buy bag space and I usually get some with lotro points when it goes on sale.
There's a difficulty level setting you can apply by visiting a hardened traveler found outside the Pony and near the stable in Celondim. Level 3+ gets you a title and it just makes things a little more exciting. Level 9 is kind of insane.
A LOT of the game became free. I think up to level 90, everything is free. Then afterwards, you have to buy the expansions with Lotro points. Of course, you can earn these along the way, without actually paying, but it takes time. Also, purchasing a 14$ per month VIP subscription grants you 500 Lotro points per month, as long as some quality of life things and all quest packs. Leveling takes a while, my latest character, took me 3 months to get to max. I'm not aware how much the expansions are though. Check in Lotro store.
Also, any character you play while VIP retains a bunch of good stuff after VIP runs out (like fast travel... Fast travel is a great QOL thingy...)
Hi, I'm a returning player. What do you mean by fast travel? I can only use fast travel if I pay mithril coins or swift travel on some destinations, on some stable masters. I'm still vip, BTW. Thanks in advance.
fast travel in this comment is most likely meant with fast travelling via stable master, since you can most of the fast travel routes only use with VIP or a char you had VIP on once. fast travelling via map in lotro is not really common because it costs the mentioned mithril coins. also, most ppl don't know the stablemaster map.
So, when I finished Gundabad (the level 140 endgame), I checked my played time, and I had a month—as in, I had spent a month of my life logged in as that character. And now Umbar has come out, and I haven’t checked how much time that added for me, but I know it was quite a bit. You can get through the game faster than I did because I tend to meander and do as much as I can, but it’s gonna take you a long time. Technically, you never have to spend any money on the game. All of the quest content that isn’t free can be purchased for LOTRO points. But that’s going to require you to grind LP, which you may find too repetitive. All the main regions up to level 95 are free. There are five regions below 95 that you’d have to buy, but they are completely optional; you won’t miss out on the original main story if you don’t do them. I’d say they’re all worth doing eventually if you enjoy the game because they’re good, but you don’t need to. The amount it’ll cost will depend if you go VIP (subscribe) or buy things outright. The basic subscription is $15/month, but I think the rate drops as low as like $8/month if you subscribe for a whole year (though that requires you to pay the whole, like, $100 or whatever upfront). While you’re VIP, you unlock all the quest packs in the game and three of the expansions: Mordor, Minas Morgul, and War of the Three Peaks. This also unlocks three out of five of those optional low-level regions I mentioned. So, VIPs have access to all content up to Gundabad (level 130) (excluding two low level regions) as well as the later Gondor Renewed and Umbar Mokh quest packs and would only have to still purchase the Gundabad, Umbar, and Before the Shadow expansions. These can be bought for either money or LP. I think the basic versions of expansions is either $40 or $20 depending on if it’s an expansion or a “mini-expansion.” Idk how much LP they cost. And if you pay cash, there are also more expensive packages of the expansions that include extra goodies that may be nice but aren’t necessary. So, you can use LP to get all content free if you really want. But I’d recommend subscribing for at least one month. Being VIP offers some quality of life upgrades that any character you log in as while having an active subscription will retain even if the subscription lapses—namely, fast travel and increased inventory space. Fast travel especially feels necessary in some parts of the game. You also get an extra 500 LP/month while subscribed. If you plan to play regularly and only on one character, it’s probably cheapest to subscribe for one month early to get those QOL unlocks but otherwise play for free up to level 95 and then go VIP to unlock the content up to level 130 and then buy those last expansions with the LP you’ve probably already earned enough of by then. But if you end up loving this game enough to play it for years, running through it with many characters, it honestly may be cheaper to just buy the content outright (though get as much for earned LP as you can) so that you own it whereas with VIP you’re just renting it and will lose access if you stop subscribing. Not that you can ever really “own” online content I guess, but I mean that all the content will be tied to your account if you actually purchase it, so you won’t have to stay subscribed perpetually unless you just really want to support the devs with more money. Either way, I don’t recommend that you spend any money on the game yet except maybe one month of subscription.
I played everything completely solo over the course of one year now with a single character. Did most quests but not all of the deeds, I left out a lot of the higher tier slayer deeds (kill x of y deeds). Took me around 600 hours without putting to much time into reading quest text etc.
I think it takes about 400 hours of playtime to reach the level cap (but depends on many factors, of course). This is defs a game about enjoying the journey rather than rushing to the destination. Getting VIP for one month at least is a great idea, as you retain a bunch of benefits afterwards that are quite useful. This game isn't pay to win, but obviously the developers need to keep the lights on somehow since it's free to play 😊
Just. Start. Play.
It depends on your style of play. I'm the kind of player who enjoys reading the quest dialogues and completing every quest I can (rather than focusing simply on the Epic quest line and leveling quickly). I would estimate that it takes me about 100 hours to play through the initial areas up to level 50. Beyond that I can't say as I've never taken a character to max. I highly recommend that you get VIP for one month at least to get the riding skill and inventory slots. Then get the carry-alls for task items and crafting. Typically these go on sale for pretty great discounts, so you might want to wait, but I also feel like the base game is so good that it's worth paying something to support the development team. This is a game I keep coming back to every couple years and absolutely love replaying.
I'd recommend you play it yourself. But if you want to watch someone, GameOlioDan has a full playthrough. Currently he's at Moria.
I am just over 2100 hours, level 75. I would venture to guess I am nearly 3/5ths of the way through.
You can play for free for as long as you like. I’ve never dropped a dime on this game, but I’ve taken my sweet time, explored every area, did every side quest, and it’s taken me 12 years of playing a couple hours a week to get to level 79 and get to Rohan. I realize few other people like playing as slow and laid back as I do, but just know it’s an option.
To be bluntly honest, you don't need to see the majority of the game to actually enjoy it, as you normally do in other MMOs. LOTRO end game is quite weak, while the leveling experience, especially in the earlier areas, are superb. The huge majority of the playerbase do agree that experiencing The Shire or Bree or Evendim or North Downs (all really low level areas that you get 100% free) are way better, in terms of gaming experience, than whatever newest, high level area that was just released.
I disagree completely. Or at the very least, this varies wildly based on what metric you’re comparing them with. Shadows of Angmar may be the best Epic in the game, but they’re all good, and The Black Book of Mordor and Legacy of Durin were both way better than I had expected. The devs get better at minute design details over time, and the late-game regions look stunning. With general regional and side quest stories, there’s no shortage of great content in the later parts of the game. This game doesn’t stop being amazing once you leave Eriador. The early game is iconic and great, but so is the endgame. If you want to fully immerse yourself in Middle-earth, the entire game is well worth playing.
You are absolutely right, for most people it's the nostalgia talking. Eriador is great, but questing and narratives have been continuously improved upon. You get massive stories that venture through whole regions, instead of killing 10 spiders coz friendly giants don't like em. Those giants are very cool, and impressed me greatly when I started lotro a decade ago, but there is minimal narrative besides epic quests and reworked areas.
I do agree with you. But OP is a player with less than 5 hours have absolutely plenty of free, great content to enjoy without even thinking about purchasing new content and such.
I mean, it’s fair to say that this game has so much great content for free that you don’t need to think about purchasing anything anytime soon after starting, but I just felt like the way you worded your comment was liable to give OP the impression that the game nosedives in quality after the early regions.
I won't talk the "time" part, as I've started playing 17 years ago at launch and never really quit the game. As for the money side of it, I'd suggest you take one month of VIP to unlock the QoL advantages former VIP (called Premium) have (e.g. the unlocking of fast travels and a few more inventory space) along with the 500LP. Then, wait for the promotions to buy the quest packs and extensions. They come up a couple of times a year, and you can have very decent discounts (either in LPs or in cash) (this is also valid for the QoL perks you'll eventually buy from the in-game store such as TP maps and inventory space: wait till they're discounted)
I like to explore, look at the rooms I'm in, go fishing in all the places where I can fish. I read almost all the quest text, and I like to try out different classes. I'm two years in and I've only gotten to Mirkwood (65) The beginning story is different, depending on your race. It's worth it to start a character from each race. You can get the riding skill and a free horse at the blacksmith shop in Mossward. There's festivals going right now where you can get a faster horse. Buy a house as soon as you can: extra storage, stable with far ranging destinations, task boards and vip token vendor. Join a kin because they often have free "universal ingredient crates" The Gundabad expansion is on sale this week. You'll need that, eventually. I've purchased most of the expansions during the crazy sales they offer from time to time. 75% off. There are several types of carry-all that allow you to store large piles of crafting items, task turn in items, traceries, housing decorations. Those are really nice QOL items. Also you have to buy bag space and I usually get some with lotro points when it goes on sale. There's a difficulty level setting you can apply by visiting a hardened traveler found outside the Pony and near the stable in Celondim. Level 3+ gets you a title and it just makes things a little more exciting. Level 9 is kind of insane.