Shadow of the Vale

 

Between 2012 and 2021, I've uploaded over 200 outfits to Material Middle-earth. I'm still astonished by that number. It wasn't always a labor of love. Not all of these outfits came together easily or naturally. There were some that were a genuine struggle that took days or even weeks to feel like they were complete. And there were some, though not very many, that never felt worth uploading.

This particular appearance was one of them. I don't know why—in fact, I don't remember why—I left this one in a folder labeled "Unfinished Ideas" in 2020. In that folder, there are screenshots of outfits that never made it beyond the in-game dressing room panel. Perhaps it took the full three year absence to appreciate the unique blend of contrasting styles and armor types seen here.

Not quite a Gondorian set, and not quite an Orthanc set, the combination of those pieces still offered a sleek, mostly black and white appearance. Given how long it's been, I'm entirely unsure of this outfit's concept. I have a feeling I originally designed this for scouting or stealth maneuvers under the cover of night. Perhaps it was even something designed to fit the bleak atmosphere of the Dawnless Day or for traveling inconspicuously though the eerie Morgul Vale.

Regardless of how or why, I'm glad to have revived and shared this.

Head: Circlet of Osgiliath's Fury (White, Dome of Stars T2 Lore-master class set)*

Shoulders: Embroidered Mantle of the Pathfinder's Artifice (Black, crafted from the Superior Doomfold Pauldrons recipe)

Back: Cloak of the Bridge-warden (Black, drops from T2 and T2C Osgiliath instance chests)

Chest: Jacket of the Osgiliath Shield (Black, T2 Ruined City Warden class set)**

Hands: Gloves of the Thamen (Default, Ox-clan Merchant Camp Warden class vendor)

Feet: Boots of the Thamen (Default, Ox-clan Merchant Camp Warden class vendor)

Weapon: Sealed Reshaped Warden's Spear of the First Age (crafted from woodworker recipe of same name)

Shield: Blackroot Tempered Warden Shield (reward from the quest A Dark Pact)

*Rune-keepers and Minstrels can also win this skin from the Osgiliath Ruins Armour box. Must run at level 100 or higher on T2 for chance to drop.

**Hunters and Burglars can also win this skin from the Osgiliath Ruins Armour box. Must run at level 100 or higher on T2 for chance to drop.

His & Hers - Riverside Attire

It's been about seven years since I last wrote an entry for a His & Hers set. Perhaps I should have explored that theme more often. Over the years, festivals have offered tunic and dress pairs (sometimes robe and dress) with similar designs. And on the rare occasion, reputation factions have done the same. It's a wonderful thing to have that kind of flexibility in clothing styles. Quite often in the past I've looked at a cosmetic reward, loved the colors and design, and said to myself "It's too bad there isn't a dress alternative, because it would look lovely!"

During the Black Friday sales, I cashed in what LP I had left and purchased the Superior River Hobbit Bundle at a remarkable 75% discount. Aside of housing items, they contained a jacket, dress, and an assortment of other cosmetic pieces for the newest playable race, the River Hobbit. I may not have shown all of the coffer's pieces in these outfits, but the dress and jacket look amazing on all races.

Shoulders: Wildermore Shoulderpads of Tactics (White, crafted from the Wildermore Shoulderpads reputation recipe)*

Chest: Dress of the River-folk (Burgundy, Superior River Hobbit Bundle)

Feet: Westemnet Campaign Shoes of Fate (Burgundy, crafted from the Westemnet Campaign Shoes recipe)

*The Tailor's Guild also offers this recipe, allowing the player to bypass the Wildermore reputation requirement.

Back: Snow-strider's Mantle (Olive, Yule Festival barter reward)

Shoulders: Shoulderpads of the Osgiliath Bowmaster (Grey, Ruined City T2 Hunter class set)**
Chest: Jerkin and Trousers of the River-folk (Burgundy, Superior River Hobbit Bundle)
Feet: Westemnet Campaign Shoes of Fate (Burgundy, crafted from the Westemnet Campaign Shoes recipe)

**Wardens and Burglars can also win this skin from the Osgiliath Ruins Armour box. Must run at level 100 or higher for chance to drop.

Stone-cleaver

 

In honor of purchasing Gundabad, my first impulse was creating another dwarven outfit. Two cosmetic bundles came with the Ultimate tier, the Fateful Gundabad set and the Gundabad Reclaimer set. I didn't particularly like the Reclaimer one, given how bulky and plain it was. Neither did it dye very well. However, the Fateful set offered far more flexibility. Largely a grey colored set, dyes affected the  dwarven patterns etched across the midsection of the chestplate and the central cloth tasset of the leggings. 

I've always been curious as to why, as of Update 23, Where Dragons Dwell, dwarven clothing became characterized by a stylized celtic block pattern. It made it easier to coordinate what other pieces I'd mix with the Fateful set. I drew, mainly, from the Ironfold crafting tier and Grey Mountains reputation vendors.

A Temporary Return to Middle-earth

It's been three years since I made my last entry. Three and a half since I last made a new outfit. I never expected to return to LOTRO or to reopen Material Middle-earth. If it weren't for some stubborn, but well-intentioned friends, I would have been content to let this blog exist as both a wonderful memory and—though sometimes trying—labor of love. Yet, here I am.

I've had the pleasure of joining the Ainuthala kinship, and their progression raiding subcommunity, on Evernight. We've been stopping at each previous level cap, through the use of the Stone of the Tortoise, to experience older LOTRO content as originally intended. Ainuthala has already completed The Rift, Dar Narbugud, Barad Guldur, and Tower of Orthanc and is currently on a leisurely track for the Erebor raiding cluster. Although I'm primarily here to enjoy experiencing LOTRO's classic content, it doesn't mean I haven't been bringing my fashionable best. Between reaching the next scheduled level cap and waiting for the next community event, I've been spending some free time outfitting.

A Fond Farewell

(Blog comments and the Contact Me page have been disabled as of 10/31/21 to prevent bot, spam, and phishing abuse.)

It's with a heavy heart that, tonight, I've decided to announce the closing of Material Middle-earth. It's been a wonderful nine and a half years creating content for the LOTRO community, at least in the form of outfits. The journey, despite all of the ups and downs, has been remarkable. I wish I could find the proper words to express my regret for leaving and my gratitude for the near decade of kindness and motivation. As the saying goes, "All good things must come to an end." I was hoping it wouldn't be so after six months away from LOTRO, but that wasn't the case. Given the choice to go back in time knowing how and when it would end, I would do it all over again.

Although I don't need to, I would like to tell you why. 

My feelings, largely, haven't changed since my previous blog entry. The drive to remain cosmetically creative has disappeared entirely. I completely skipped collecting the Anniversary Festival, Summer Festival, and Farmers Faire rewards and feel neither shame nor remorse. Those were major signs that my time blogging and outfitting were likely coming to an end. Just last week, I started bartering for and crafting as many old legendary items as I possibly could, since U30.3 was essentially removing them from the game. I figured they'd come in handy for future outfits, on the chance that I'd continue here. However, I would find myself staring at the screen unmotivated while shuffling through several dozen of them. That was the moment I realized it was time to hang up those outfitter's robes.

That being said, I've been playing LOTRO lately. I just finished prepping my new Legendary Items. I also used the very generous LOTROQUESTS2021, which is still good through November 30, 2021, a few weeks ago to collect my missing quest packs for The Mists of Wilderland, The Wildwood, and The Blood of Azog. To be honest, I've also had great difficulty enjoying the new Dwarven storyline. It feels  very much a stretch of the lore that SSG can legally access. I also felt that LOTRO's story, having played since the game's open beta in 2007, came full circle with Minas Morgul's conclusion. Loose ends with Mordor, Isildur and the One Ring, and Mordirith were tied up after all these years. I felt satisfied. It's for these reasons that I'm hesitant to purchase Fate of Gundabad, the upcoming expansion.

It may also be time to leave LOTRO as well, to set foot, like many of the elves, on one  ships departing Mithlond for Valinor. The thoughts have weighed heavy upon me. As much as I've loved my time in Middle-earth and as much as I'd love to stay, that voice beckoning me away grows stronger by the day. I've told myself to wait until December, when there's a much better look into Gundabad's story and content, but it's unlikely I'll even need that much time to decide.

Whatever happens, my time here has been well spent. I wish the cosmetic community a fond farewell. And, as a heads up, I'll be giving everyone a two week grace period to make their final comments or send their last messages before I disable those as well.

If you're still looking for fresh cosmetic inspiration, please turn your gaze towards the last remaining bastions of Cosmetic LOTRO, Wandering Around Arda, Laurel's LOTRO Den, Valkyrique's LOTRO à la Mode and the cosmetics thread on the old LOTRO forums. And if you're a Twitter user, follow the #LOTROCosmetics hashtag too!

With all my heart,

Nath