LOTRO and The Nazgûn FAQ:
These are questions I hear often from those new to the kin. The FAQ will be expanded as you lowbies ask questions!
Q:What are the system requirements for Lord of the Rings Online?
A: Below are the official requirements as posted by Turbine. Many of our goons players report that this game loves more RAM, so if you are having performance problems, the simple addition of more memory can usually get you the most bang for the buck. Personally, I was originally running with 2gb of RAM and performance was quite acceptable, but increasing mine up to 4gb of RAM was still a night and day difference in things like load times, area transitions, and helped running with higher resolution textures.
Minimum System Requirements:
Processor: Intel Pentium® 4 1.8 GHz or equivalent
Video: 64 MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 3 or ATI® Radeon® 8500
DirectX: DirectX® 9.0c
OS: Windows® XP
RAM: 512 MB
Disk Space: 7 GB available
Internet: 56kbps (broadband who are you kidding)
Optical Drive: 2x DVD-ROM
Recommended System Requirements:
Processor: Intel Pentium® 4 2.8 GHz or equivalent
Video: 128 MB NVIDIA® GeForce® FX 6800 or ATI® Radeon® X850
DirectX: DirectX® 9.0c
OS: Windows® XP / Vista
RAM: 1 GB
Disk Space: 10 GB available
Internet: Broadband DSL/Cable
Optical Drive: 2x DVD-ROM
Q: Does the Nazgûn have any rules or code of conduct?
A: Any rules expected to be followed are listed in the News/Announcements subforum on the Nazgûn forum website, but a basic rule to follow is don't be a enjoyable human being. We're here to have fun and kick back in a fantasy world, so causing drama and being an rear end-hat is not the way to do it.
Q: Are you a raid guild? Do I have to poopsock to play this?
A: No, we definitely don't require mandatory raiding. The only issue is, when you hit the endgame, aside from instances/raiding there isn't much else to do except for PvMP, making tarts, getting random seasonal items, and playing on your lute. This is due to the fact that it's an MMO. Generally, the only thing that you need to do is try to be sociable in the kin. If you are just going to join, and be completely silent and never play with gooooons, there isn't much point now is there?
Q: When I join the Nazgûn, what class should I play? Do you need specific classes?
A: When all is said and done, we'd much prefer you to play whatever class you would find to be the most fun. If you don't find what you are playing fun then naturally you're not gonna be playing for very long. Also, the need of the kinship vary as time goes on. For the longest time, Natsuumi was practically the lone Guardian in the entire kinship. Soon interest was sparked and a whole wave of Guardians rushed in. The latest craze now seems to be wardens, for gently caress's sake...
Q: If I'm having in game troubles and need to contact a GM, how do I do that?
A: Use F7, the default key binding for the help screen. At the top are a list of options available. To submit a message to a GM, use the "New Ticket" option and use "Track Tickets" to track your current and previous submitted tickets. For a GM to help you must be logged in the game. My experience with GM support has been very good and their response time has been no longer than ~20 minutes. It's good to know the F7 screen in general, as it also allows you in-game access to the Support FAQ database and to be able to submit bug reports.
Q: Where should I be questing at my level?
A: There's no hard rule since some things can be done outside the recommended level range, but a basic breakdown will usually go something like this:
Levels 1-15: Your racial starting area (Dwarves/Elves: Ered Luin/Shire, Men: Archet/Combe/Bree, Hobbits: Shire)
Levels 10-25: Bree-land, Lone Lands, Western North Downs
Levels 25-35: North Downs, Evendim, Western Trollshaws
Levels 35-45: Trollshaws, Evendim, Misty Mountains, Western Angmar
Levels 43+: Forochel
Levels 45+: Eastern Angamr, Misty Mountains
Levels 49-51: Eregion
Levels 51-59: MORIA
Levels 57-60: Lothlorien
Levels 60-65 Mirkwood
If you ever feel like you're having a hard time getting over a leveling hump the new Skirmish battle system give a fair amount of XP to help push you over that hump. It's also worth noting that Turbine has been going back and refurbishing old lovely zones, so leveling generally gets easier and faster with every book release.
Q: How can I regain morale/power faster?
A: You regain morale/power faster when out of combat, and that regen rate can be enhanced by eating food. Various types of food are available from NPC merchants, but much better food is made by player Cooks.
Q: How do I link items in chat?
A: You can drag the item to your chat text input box, or CTRL-Right Click. Using CTRL+Right Click can even let you link items to chat you don't actually have in your possession, such as Auction House listings, items from the crafting panel, or equipment or characters are equipped with seen on the inspection panel.
Q: What do the different damage types do?
A: Certain mobs are resistant to damage unless you are using the proper weapon against them. For example, those familiar with the actual lore know trolls are vulnerable to Light and Fire. So in-game, the best weapons to use against them are Light and/or Fire based weapons. A generalized run-down on the damage types can be found here. However, until end-game, damage type on weapons isn't really a concern, so don't fret over it until you're near level 60+.
Q: How do cosmetic outfits work?
A: Instead of looking like a circus reject with your hodgepodge of armours from different sets, cosmetic outfits let you look like... well... most nearly anything you want. At level 20, you unlock the cosmetic outfit slots. You equip items there that alter your character's appearance. You still keep the stats from your actual equipped armour (and you don't gain any bonuses from items equipped cosmetically). When you equip an item to a cosmetic slot, the item remains in your bag, but it does not have to remain there to retain the appearance on your character. If you have a level 50+ character, then all other characters you have can use cosmetic items starting from level 1.
Q: When can I get a horse? How much does it cost?
A: "Starter" horses are now available at level 20 for 220 silver They are slower than a regular horse, but faster than walking. You can purchase a regular horse at level 35 after complete several minor quests. A horse costs 4 gold to purchase. The horse quests and place of purchase are at the Horse Fields north of Bree-town. Look for the horse on your map! If you want to not travel all the time on foot when you get to Moria you have to buy a goat because "mines are no place for a pony, even one so brave as Bill". These can be purchased from any of the Miners Guild rep agents once you have hit acquintance reputation with them.
If you have already bought a horse you get a significant discount on all future horse purchases (if you're a mount collector of some sorts). For example, regular horses are purchaseable at 1 gold 600 silver. However, this discount does not apply to purchaseable rep mounts or the Moria goats.
A large variety of mounts will also be available to buy in the LOTRO Store once F2P is released.
Q: The in-game voice chat sucks rear end! What is the alternative?
A: We have our very own Ventrilo server for your use! It's a great place to chat without having to worry about all tha mucking around with typing, and for some of the more serious groups/raids having Ventrilo is pretty much mandatory. In know some people are too cheap to buy a $10 mic from Wal-mart, but for those instances where you must have Ventrilo we don't care if you don't have a mic (or are just too damned scared to let people on the internet hear your voice). Just as long as you can listen it is a-ok.
The ventrilo server information is located in the Nazgun forums, under the "News & Announcements section".