Winter Series - Keeping Warm

"It is strange to see so many strangers this far north. Sûri-kylä has not seen anything like it since the old times. At least, that is what the old tales tell. We have had so many traders, yet provisions are still short. There has been a long cold, and many have felt a change in the winds. The Elders fear that we may not see an end to this bitterness for some time.

One supply that I am in great need of is bear-fur. It is used in many of our clothes and rituals, but the hunters have had great difficulty in obtaining any.

The bears often wander down by the bay hunting for fish just south of Sûri-kylä. If you would go there and collect some bear-fur for me, I may find a way to reward you for your services."

- Nôra, "Against the Cold", Lord of the Rings Online

It's not terribly often I have the chance to visit or quest in Forochel anymore, as almost all my toons are level 75 and higher. Of all the zones offered, it's one of my top three zones. Evendim and Ered Luin would be the others. Anyway, I was floating around Enedwaith finishing up some deeds when I realized I still had leftover Medallions of the North-men in my barter wallet. I generally don't barter for the OD pieces because of the off-tones they tend to have that are a royal pain to match outside of those sets. When I saw the Lesser Memory of the West Robe, I automatically thought about Forochel and the typical fur-lined clothing of the Lossoth. And so I worked hard, trying to piece together an outfit that would blend in well with Lossoth settlements as well as Forochel's native people.

While I had been designing this, I had done some lore research on the region. Sadly, I turned up very little. Forochel is actually the remnants of Forodwaith (meaning loosely Northern Waste and literally Northern Land) from the from the First Age. Angband, the fortress of Morgoth, and the Iron Mountains were practically destroyed during the War of Wrath at the conclusion of the First Age. What remained after the breaking of the world and the defeat of Morgoth was renamed Forochel, after it's cape and ice bay. Even Morgoth's evil cold lingered far into the Third Age.

Here's a little trivia for you found on the LOTRO Wiki. Many names of the names in Forochel are actually Finnish. For example Jänis-leiri means Rabbit-camp, Korkea-järvi means High-lake and Talvi-mûri means Winter-wall. Although there is no letter "û" in Finnish language, the letter is used here to represent a double u (uu.) Talvi-mûri in real Finnish would be Talvi-muuri.

Shoulders: Ceremonial Mammutti Shoulder Guards (Sienna, crafted T5 metalsmith, Lossoth friend standing)
Back: Bearskin Winter Cloak (Sea Blue, LOTRO Store)
Chest: Lesser Memory of the West Robe (Sea Blue, Lore-master OD medallion barter)
Feet: Ceremonial Thrill-seeker's Boots (Washed, Rift skirm camp cosmetic vendor)