LOTRO: Tying Up Loose Ends
I discovered an excellent thread on the official Lord of the Rings Online forums today, created by Tesalion Lortus, which tackles the complicated subject of outstanding and unresolved storylines within the game. It is a very well researched and comprehensive post. I try my best to keep abreast of the various ongoing stories within the MMORPG but this list of plotlines that have yet to be completed, is a timely reminder of the sprawling narrative that Turbine/Standing Stone Games have woven over the last 14 years. The story is a major reason for this game’s longevity and many players enjoy the way it references and compliments so much of Tolkien’s overall lore. But it would appear that there are numerous story arcs that have not reached fruition, going back as far as the Helm’s Deep expansion that was released in 2013. Naturally, now that this matter has been highlighted so well, I am curious to see what SSG intends to do to resolve the situation.
I won’t repeat all of the plot points provided in the original forum post. Here is sufficient to give you an indication of the scope of research that Tesalion Lortus has carried out.
The Bugdatish storyline.
Borangos the Horror and his plan.
The fate of Karazgar.
Thostír the Rank, a great fire-drake of the East.
Brathar Crack-helm and his Dourhands.
Jajax and his brother.
Where is Corudan?
Thankfully, one of the things that SSG does well is write complex and long term story arcs well in advance of their release. It is not unusual to find characters from the dim and distant past resurface years later in the LOTROverse. For example Atli Spider-bane, who we initially encounter at Archet in Bree-land at the start of the game, later returns at Lhingris in Mordor, on the far side of Cirith Ungol in the Morgul Vale. Then there is the enigmatic Trév Duvárdain warrior Aviar, who was exiled from her tribe and had her clan name removed. We first encountered her in Forochel. Living as a brigand, she was shown mercy by the Ranger Lothrandir. However, his compassion irked her and so she followed him and so she was ensnared by Saruman. This ultimately led to Lothrandir capture and imprisonment in Orthanc. Saruman called her Gun Ain (without name). During the ruin of Isengard she was again subject to the Rangers justice. On this occasion Halbarad renamed her “mercy” and set her loose. Perplexed, she wandered into Rohan and was shown kindness by Bingo Boffin when he met her at Grimslade. It is a rather unusual and redemptive story arc.
Tesalion Lortus thread on the forum regarding these multiple loose ends garnered a response from LOTRO developer, Made of Lions. They said “To be honest, we have so many of the items on this list earmarked for future quest stories already!” which is reassuring. Because if the history of gaming has proven anything it is that players remember everything and the internet is a pedants paradise. Plus I find continuity in storytelling integral to my enjoyment of LOTRO. Hence it is important that such standards are maintained for the sake of both the game. However, let us not forget that for every LOTRO player that revels in the dense narrative, there is always another who dismisses all quest texts and chooses to remain oblivious to the subtleties of the plot. It takes allsorts I guess. Although the latter group are free to play as they see fit, I feel that they are missing out on a key component of the game. Yet for some, the MMO genre is about “doing” and any framing story is purely an optional extra.
