Believe it or not, that’s the last time Lord of the Rings online released new legendary servers, it was the pair of Treebeard and Shadowfax in June 2021. Before that, there was only one other time we got to experience these special progression shards, and that was when the original duo Anor and Ithil opened in November 2018. Today are three of those four closed, while Treebeard still plods on, hmm hmm.
Suffice it to say: new LOTRO legendary servers don’t come around every day. We’ve known for over a year now that SSG had a new idea for the next batch in the works, but the studio has remained tight-lipped about it until this week. During last night’s livestream, executive producer Rob Ciccolini finally revealed the next set of servers. And this time there are a few surprises involved.
Welcome Angmar and Mordor!
Ciccolini confirmed that the next two servers will be called Angmar and Mordor.
The first surprise is that the studio has positioned a server in Europe to host Mordor, making this its first LOTRO Shard has been physically based in that region since the Codemasters days (Angmar will be based in the US). “That’s super exciting for us,” Ciccolini said. He expressed concern that a single EU server could be ‘flooded’ by too many players rushing to it.
Players could also expect a different kind of leveling experience on these two servers, if their namesakes weren’t warning enough. SSG labels both shards as “Veil of the Nine servers,” an indication of the increased challenge. As players adventure into the world after level 15, they will occasionally be attacked by one of the smaller wraiths hunting them, which can be a minor hassle on normal difficulty or a nail-biting experience if your difficulty is increased.
Additionally, one of nine Ringwraiths may appear for players at the current level cap. Ciccolini said there’s no way you can solo this one; he expects groups of up to 50 players will be needed to fend them off. So it will be an occasional server event to bring the community together.
To help combat the Ringwraiths, players will find that it helps immensely to find one of the 12 tradable special rings hidden throughout the game world. Anyone who finds a ring can hold onto it for ten days before losing themselves and hiding again. But as long as you have that ring, you’ll be in high demand for those Ringwraith battles. Successful battles are rewarded with special rewards.
Stress testing on these servers should begin within a week, with a launch sometime in July. As with the other legendary servers, Angmar and Mordor should be VIP-only experiences. The level cap starts at 50 and continues normally from there. Additionally, the leveling speed will be more or less standard, as you’ll find on any server (though there may be some level nudging to help people reach the limit a little faster).
These servers will also mark the debut of LOTROs new 64-bit server technology, which should greatly reduce lag and allow the game to preload all instances. Between that and the fact that all the characters will be brand new, these shards should feature some of the most lag-free experiences in the MMO right now.
Comments on the Veil of the Nine servers
There’s certainly a lot to be excited about here, if nothing more than getting the first new starting servers since 2021. Ideally, that should be a huge draw for players looking to get in on the ground floor with a community that works side by side will stand. them. I absolutely loved my “do-overs” of Anor and Treebeard at the time, and I’m already planning which character I’ll make for Angmar when it arrives.
This is definitely great news for European players who have been experiencing higher latency as they connect to normal overseas territories. Having a shard in their backyard will be a huge boon, so to speak, and provide an unparalleled gaming experience in Middle-earth. Personally I don’t benefit from this, but I am quite happy for my EU friends.
When I mused about what I’d like to see in a legendary server, my big theme was “a bigger challenge.” While this doesn’t go as far as I would have liked, it still has the potential to be exciting. There’s the individual threat of a smaller specter emerging at any moment to attack you, which should keep us on our toes (and perhaps provide a few jump scares!).
But those larger Ringwraith battles have the potential to bring the entire server community together for impromptu battles. I certainly hope the rewards are good enough (and spread to everyone involved) that this is tempting to go beyond the novelty.
So we still have about a month before these servers open. That’s plenty of time to make plans, organize affiliations, and fan the flames of hype. I think it’s a perfect time for LOTRO to get this out there, especially if it comes with Update 41’s quality of life improvements. There’s not a lot of meaty content coming until this fall’s expansion – which Ciccolini didn’t want to talk about – so a new server or two certainly gives us something to do in the meantime.
What do you think of the Veil of the Nine servers? Will you roll up a new note or ignore it completely? Let’s get the conversation going in the comments!
Every two weeks, the LOTRO Legendarium goes on adventures (horrible things, that kind of thing) through the wondrous, terrifying, inspiring and, well, legendary online world of Middle-earth. Justin has been playing LOTRO since its launch in 2007! If you have a topic for the column, send it to him at justin@massivelyop.com.Advertisement