Before I even checked out the Angmar revamp I logged with my friend in Esteldin and we decided to kill some aurochs for a couple quests. Not really paying attention to there levels or icons since we have done the quest many times before we just about get done with the quest and my friend mentions they seem easier than before. So I target one and behold, its a sig and not an elite anymore! They where easy enough with 2 people before but now........its not even fun.

So then I decide to check out the new, improved, solo friendly Angmar alone. OMG I nearly hit the cancel account button after 20 mins of roaming all of angmar except the CD and BG areas. Luckly thoes are fairly unchanged. Imlad Balchorth really ****ed me off. It was one of the more chalanging areas while still being soloable. Now Angmar is just pathetic! Mobs are so spread out and its so boring I nearly fell asleep riding my horse around. Now I could point my horse in one direction and hit auto run, walk away to take a leak and still be riding when I get back.

I know some of you will disagree with me but wow book 12 took the game in a direction that I just dont see myself paying for much longer. I figure I will give it till book 13 comes out but if they pull another book 12 on me I will have to look for another game. That really bums me because I am/was really enjoying myself. Its just after seeing the direction they took angmar (which I disagree with alot of people, angmar was just fine before) it really bummed me out.

guess you didn't run into all the Elite Enraged Fell-Spirits in Imlad Balchorth ?

What do you want from a high end area ? Personally I'd like to be able to get to the quest hubs solo, and to solo quest areas solo, and to have some significant areas that need a good duo, significant areas that need a group, and some areas that need a raid.

What I've seen so far pretty much meets that. You can get from A to B solo at the levels you'll first get there (45ish), with care, and some fighting. There is some nice new content there now, though I've not done much yet - Loved Keeper of Books, the new instance is much nicer than the old fight.

Darzil

I completely disagree with you. I quit LOTRO (many months ago) because of a few reasons, one of them was the end level area was just too damn hard for my Minstrel to get about there, let alone do any quests. I still have quests left unfinished there from the other week when I logged in.

The bitter taste I had while leveling there has stayed with me until this present day, and is one the reasons which has put be off from making another character/ playing the game ever again.

Btw I'm only here browsing the forums to see if theres any big improvements since the last I properly played (last year). So take this as how-ever you see fit.

However, I'm glad they've re-done that area, but it's probably too little too late.

Captain Ackbar, you say you might stop playing until the next book. Well, there were probably a lot more people than just you and your friend who quit because of feeling this change didn't come sooner.

Explorer: 93.33% - Socializer: 53.33% - Achiever 40.00% - Killer 13.33%

Oh, here comes mister "forced grouping" again... *sigh*

Now you know in what direction the game goes, so the choice is yours to put your money where your mouth is... for me, those changes all go in the right direction, providing options for all play styles until max level. For forced grouping, you can go play Everquest.

I to feel it's much too easy mode now.
Yes was annoying been dismounted all time but Angmar was the only challanging place left.

Now there's only the actual raids and BG

I have to agree with the OP and PysoFalcon, Angmar was tough and in some places a real test of your ability's. I enjoyed leveling the game because for the most part you needed to group and things where tough. I do feel Angmar is now in "Easy mode" annoying, but oh well, i never liked it much as a zone... the sky just plain looked silly.

Just because it was annoying before doesn't mean it was challenging. The new changes, in my honest opinion, are for the better.

I never died in normal Angmar, well, now and then I did, but 95% of the time I was just inconvienced by the spawn.

Before, when solo, it was just - run through and hope you survive the aggro, cos you'll not be able to fight through. Now you can fight through. I prefer that.

There are still plenty of dangerous areas. If you leave the road in Imlad Balchorth you'll find lots of elites that weren't that hard before.

Darzil

What? Well I agree EQ changed over the years, but it was far from forced grouping....


LOTRO (with exception Hunter and a stacked Minstrel) has been notorious for being a forced grouping MMO, which is not surprising, as it's just following in others' footsteps.

While Angmar might have been a bit too 'tough' in some areas before, it's too dumbed down now. If you want to lighten up an area, try some of the lower areas, so players don't get annoyed, frustrated, bored and ultimatley give up on the game because nothing says 'lame,' like a quest that rewards little, but involves somehow getting to a quest objective mob, that's surrounded and guarded by a plethora of elite mobs which also happen to be three or more levels above the recommended quest level. Oh wait, I forgot, that's recommended FELLOW/group quest level. Ah..right... ;rolls eyes;
Elite mobs for the most part, are a nice little and convenient way for developers to take shortcuts when designing, coding and scripting mobs. They can just plop down a bunch of 'heroic' strength monsters and say 'ok, that looks 'difficult' enough!'; as opposed to making them strategically challenging. God forbid people have to use their brain anymore...



We all know the 'lack of raids' arguement, but at least when people said to me 'well what do you do if you don't raid?' I could tell them that you adventure, because in the higher end areas, there's real competition all over the place, not just channeled or bottlenecked into some far corner of the region, or in an instance.

I like having to dodge and weave and wait for mobs to move when travelling through hostile territory. I like having to 'journey' to my destination whilst using caution.

Angmar did need some fixes, but that was a bit too much.