Pastel Brilliance

My, it's been a long time since I've uploaded an actual outfit. The summer kept me unusually busy, preventing me from investing any quality time in LOTRO and leaving me a backlog of outfits. However, it gave me the chance to gradually complete the Cosmetic Weapons Project. I haven't anticipated giving it any major updates in the future, except for new crafting recipes or when new vendors with swords and shields are added. It took over a year to add 1000+ images to that database! I'm glad it's finished, but there was an unforseen cost. I've almost used all of my free storage on Blogspot. That means I'll be cutting down on outfit images, starting today. I've even considered removing some from earlier entries as well, just to extend the life of Material Middle-earth.

Storage issues aside, there have been a handful updates to LOTRO in my absence. I've barely started Vales of Anduin and I very much need to complete it. Since the number of Embers rewarded from Skarhald dailies were reduced, I'll need the Vales dailies to supplement them. I often convert those extra Embers to Figments for cosmetics and housing items. And that brings me to the next topic. The Curator NPC. With the end of the Summer Festival, that particular vendor vanished. I was saddened to hear that, as I was still collecting those items. I wish that SSG had announced the Curator was a seasonal NPC months earlier...or at least from the very start. But now we have Rowan Raspberry...and new cosmetics to collect!

Drake-bane

Posting here again is an incredibly surreal experience for me. A part of me feels like it never left. The rest feels like it's forgotten how to do everything. The last time I wrote a post was back in January of this year. Can you believe it's been eight months? Originally, it was my intent to leave LOTRO entirely, as I had been fed up with the development of the game, the mass exodus of players I knew, the rampant negativity of the official forums, and cosmetic blogging had become a chore. You'd think I'd have been over this MMO entirely by now, but I discovered that I could never truly bid farewell to Middle-earth. Casually leveling my baby Beorning without any attachments to other players allowed me to experience and appreciate the early areas of LOTRO for the first time in years. I fell in love again, having a second romance. It also doesn't help that Tolkien's lore has been a part of me since I read the Hobbit nearly 20 years ago. And then there are the other reasons included in the last post I made.

Order of the Swan - Emeridir of Gladden

It's been several months since Update 14 released and the wave of swan-themed outfits began. I too jumped on the bandwagon and made half a dozen, but I've had multiple creations scheduled between July and now. My automatic blog schedule has finally made its way into swan territory...hopefully this and upcoming ones still feel relevant! Besides, for the United States, Thanksgiving comes at the end of November. Instead of turkey-related outfits (Middle-earth has no turkeys, sadly), I'll have a month's worth of swan inspired ensembles.

This was an old outfit of mine. I remember stumbling across The Starry Mantle's Knight of Dol Amroth sometime in 2012 and feeling inspired to create my own interpretation of the Swan Knights. I don't exactly recall my reasons for choosing the pieces I did, except for two of them; blue and silver being the emblematic colors of Dol Amroth and wanting to portray armor typically worn by Men in an elvish style. Why an elvish style? It was rumored the Princes of Dol Amroth had elvish blood, though little of it, running through their veins. Since we've come this far both geographically and storywise, I thought I'd revive this ensemble in its originally conceived state.

Cosmetic Guide to Dol Amroth Class Armor

Multiple players have been asking on the forums and in world/glff chat where else they can obtain the Dol Amroth class armor skins that came with the release of U14. As a result, I picked up this project in the hopes of creating some sort of guide. Here, I'll list as best as possible the alternative methods to collecting these armor skins. Because this post is strictly for skins, I won't be including dye colors. I'll admit there are some pieces that I don't know. I never bothered to get one of each class to level 95 or subbed long enough to have the entire cosmetic library at my fingertips. However, I'll do my best. Just to warn you, you will see *multiple* pieces listed that share the same skins. 

If you see a piece that's incorrect or an alternative item with the same skin, please leave a comment below.

And by the way, only half of these sets are cosmetically original. I know my blogs and outfits well enough to know some of these have been lifted from other sites and slightly altered, whether it's by dye color or a single piece. If that is the case, I will provide links to the original creators and the specific outfits beneath each set to give credit where it is due.

Hunter ("Of the Liberator" set)

Head: Helm of the Shadow-walker (Barad Guldur level 65 medium armor from skirm camp)
Shoulders: Treasure Hunter's Shoulder Guards (T6 Tailor light armor recipe, or its level 54 or 58 crafted equivalent)
Chest: Battle Armour of the Mark (T8 Metalsmith recipe, guilded or RoR landscape barter)
Hands: Eastemnet Battle Gauntlets (T8 Metalsmith recipe, level 80)
Feet: Woodland Ranger’s Boots (Volume 3 Wildermore Interludes)

OUTFIT ADAPTED from The Starry Mantle by the designers.

Woodland Spirit - Emeridir of Gladden

Moonlight Mage - Faewynn of Gladden

Forgotten Darkness Kinship Cosmetic Contest

Hey there everybody! What a great way to kick off this cosmetic blog for LOTRO players with a kinship contest I had hosted! There were quite a few submissions from fellow kinsmen, for which I'm thankful. It excites me to know players that have an interest in fun and fashion : )

Anyway, this was a simple cosmetic contest--a best of three show. Submissions featured costumes that spanned a few themes, ranging from casual, to professional, to formal attire while utilizing gear from all three armor types. Everybody was allowed to submit up to three costumes, however I seperately judged and chose the best outfit from each player and counted it toward the contest.

I'll display the winners, followed by the honorable mentions, and then the alternate submissions of contributing players.

And I do apologize for the slight pixelation...for the time being, I only have MS Paint for editing : p

Winners:

1st Place:  Oskamayer

2nd Place: Elyariel

3rd Place: Noobythemidget

Head: Thrill-Seeker's Helm (Washed, Rift barter item)
Cloak: Keen Cloak of Fate (Black, world drop)
Shoulders: Shoulder Pads of Might (Black, world drop?)
Chest: Lesser Breastplate of Dundolen (Sienna, Ost Dunhoth barter item)
Hands: Enduring Gloves of Vigour (Umber, world drop)
Legs: Arrow-Fletcher's Leggings (Black, Loth barter item)
Feet: Boots of the Westfold (Washed, Isen pre-order item)

Head: Extravagant Festival Cap (Yule Festival, olive dye)
Cloak: Cloak of the Silver Birch (Burgundy, LOTRO store)
Shoulders: Shoulders of the Mighty Verse (Burgundy, Moria barter item)
Chest: Jacket of the Shade Finder (Burgundy, Quest item)
Hands: Tawarwaith Gloves of Knowledge (Olive, t6 crafted)
Legs: Golden Host Leggings of Awakening (Burgundy, t6 crafted)
Feet: Tawarwaith Shoes of Knowledge (Olive, t6 crafted)

Head: Tactical Helm Dye: Crimson)

Cloak: Singed Cloak (Dye: Black)
Shoulders: Burnished Warrior's Shoulder Guards (Dye: Black)
Chest: Armor of Fem (Dye: Black)
Hands: Wood-cutter's Gloves (Dye: Black)
Legs: Matti's Thick Winter Leggings (Dye: Black)
Feet: Boots of Fem (Dye: Black)

Honorable Mentions:

Cloak: Thaliongol (Ered luin blue, Malledhrim barter item)

Shoulders: Blademaster's Shoulders (Ered luin blue, Moria barter item)
Chest: Blademaster's Breastplate (Ered luin blue, Moria barter item)
Hands: Blademaster's Gauntlets (Ered luin blue, Moria barter item)
Legs: Blademaster's Leggings (Ered luin blue, Moria barter item)
Feet: Blademaster's Boots (Ered luin blue, Moria barter item)

Head: White Rose Circlet (Washed, Spring Festival)

Cloak: Fine Radiant Cloak (Crimson, t5 crafted)
Shoulders:  Superior Sellsword’s Shoulder Guards (Washed, t6 crafted)
Chest: Ulfar’s Robe (Evendim blue, Quest item)
Hands:  Superior Sellsword’s Gloves (Washed, t6 crafted)
Legs: Superior Sellsword’s  Leggings (Washed, t6 crafted)
Feet: Treated Elven Steel Shoes (Washed, world drop)

Alternate Submissions:

Head: Arastil's Helmet (Red, quest item)

Cloak: Cloak of Mordirith's Bane (Vol. 1 epic item)
Shoulders: Enduring Elven Cloth Shoulder Pads of Fleetness (Red, world drop)
Chest: Fighter's Ward (Red, GA drop item)
Hands: Restored Guardsman's Gauntlets (Red, Guardian barter item)
Legs: Steel Leggings (Red,  T3 crafted)
Feet: Boots of Fem (Red, quest item)

Head: Boar Festival Mask (Purple, Harvest Festival)

Cloak: Golden Tree Summer Cloak (Purple, Harvest Festival)
Shoulders: Shoulders of the Swift Arrow (Purple, Mirkwood barter item)
Chest: High Herald's Armor (Purple, t6 crafted)
Hands: Gauntlets of the Swift Arrow (Purple, Moria barter item)
Legs: Starkmoor Caretaker's Leggings (Purple, quest item)
Feet: Hillman's Cracked Leather Boots (Purple, quest item)

Head: Dolen-Helm (Evendim blue, quest item)

Cloak: Wig-Feld (Grey, Ost Dunhoth drop)
Shoulders: High-Officer's Shoulders (Evendim blue, t6 crafted)
Chest: Ancient Inlaid Breastplate (Evendim blue, quest item)
Hands: Isengard Prisoner's Gloves (Evendim blue, epic quest item)
Feet: Isengard Prisoner's Boots (Evendim blue, epic quest item)

Head: Mask of Fleetness (Red, world drop)

Cloak: Wood-Wanderer's Cloak (Red, LOTRO store)
Shoulders: Pathfinder's Shoulder Guards (Red, quest item)
Chest: Jacket of the Shade-Finder (Red, quest item)
Hands: Gauntlets of Durin's Guard (Red, Moria barter item)
Legs: Unnecessary Gardener's Leggings (Red, quest item?)