Standing Stone Games
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The MOP Up: Guild Wars 2 gears up for its PvP Rush event
Guild Wars 2 is launching its PvP Rush event on July 7th, offering boosted rewards and intense competition. The article also rounds up other smaller MMO news, including a fishing update for Outbound, Godot Engine's stance on AI, a Diablo IV Warlock trial, hotfixes for Dune: Awakening, new items in AdventureQuest 3D, a Standing Stone Games meetup at Gen Con, server adjustments in RIFT, and a reversed decision regarding XP boosters in Battlefield 6.
Lord of the Rings Online plans a big expansion reveal at this month’s Gen Con
Standing Stone Games has outlined the next two quarters for Lord of the Rings Online, with Update 49 focusing on PvP enhancements, a new class, and quality-of-life improvements. The studio will reveal the name, setting, and details of the major expansion planned for the fourth quarter at Gen Con on July 31st.
LOTRO delays subscription price hike while DDO tests expansion quests and level cap increase
Standing Stone Games has delayed the planned price increase for Lord of the Rings Online's multi-month subscription packages by at least a month to allow for additional testing and to accommodate other game launches. Meanwhile, the sister MMO Dungeons and Dragons Online has begun testing its new Terror of Demogorgon expansion, which includes five quests and a level cap increase.
LOTRO Legendarium: Four positive outcomes from the Umbar expansion trilogy
This article analyzes the positive outcomes of the Lord of the Rings Online Umbar expansion trilogy, highlighting its diverse environments, the successful reimagining of the Midsummer Festival, generally excellent storytelling despite some pacing issues, and the engaging new Mariner class. Standing Stone Games is praised for its work in bringing these southern regions to life and for the quality of its writing team.
Lord of the Rings Online tests its new PvP class and Delving of Frór open dungeon
Lord of the Rings Online's Update 49 is currently being tested on the Bullroarer server, introducing the new Angmarim Sorceress PvP class and reopening the Delving of Frór PvP dungeon with adjusted bosses and quests. The update also aims to improve relic capture, artifact capture, and player-earned infamy systems, with new equipment designed for Ettenmoors combat. Separately, Update 48.7 unlocks the third tier of the Pagru-kirít, the Garden of Corpses instance.
Massively OP Podcast Episode 570: Card Wars 3
The Massively OP Podcast episode 570 covers various MMO industry news, including Guild Wars' card game, a potential ArcheAge revival, and Richard Garriott's interest in Ultima. Discussions also touch on World of Warcraft's upcoming patch, Dungeons and Dragons Online's new race, and EverQuest Legends pre-orders.
LOTRO Legendarium: Are there other playable races LOTRO could add?
This article discusses the potential for Standing Stone Games to add new playable races to Lord of the Rings Online, considering lore restrictions and existing race variants. It explores various options based on J.R.R. Tolkien's lore, such as the Drúedain or specific Man variants, while acknowledging the challenges and risks involved in expanding the game's roster.
Lord of the Rings Online releases a festive new ‘Garden of Corpses’ six-player dungeon
Lord of the Rings Online has released Update 48.6, introducing a new six-player dungeon called Pagru-kirít, the Garden of Corpses. The dungeon is available in Tier 2 difficulty for VIP players or those who purchase the Quest Pack: A Glorious Hunt, with Tier 3 launching soon. The game's Midsummer Festival is also ongoing, with the Farmers Faire event planned for August.
LOTRO Legendarium: Four quality-of-life improvements that are overdue in LOTRO
This article discusses four overdue quality-of-life improvements for Lord of the Rings Online, including account-wide virtues and reputations, automatic wardrobe collection, and clearer business models for expansions. The author suggests these changes would significantly enhance the player experience in the MMORPG.
Lord of the Rings Online welcomes back its revamped Midsummer Festival with a new horse race
Lord of the Rings Online's revamped Midsummer Festival returns, featuring a new horse race called the Shield Isles Midsummer Run on the tropical island of Zír Aktar. Players can earn Midsummer tokens, Virtue Experience Points, and the 'Sea Horse-master' title. New rewards for 2026 include the Flowering Sun cosmetic set, an elk mount, garden furniture, and an owl pet.
LOTRO Legendarium: Could LOTRO’s PvP monster classes cross over into PvE?
This opinion piece discusses the potential for Lord of the Rings Online to bring its Player versus Player 'creep' classes into the main Player versus Environment game. The author explores the design and lore challenges of such a crossover, considering the effort already invested in the new Angmarim Sorceress class for PvP.
Dungeons and Dragons Online tests Terror of Demogorgon, addresses teleport concerns
Standing Stone Games is conducting a second round of testing for Dungeons and Dragons Online's upcoming expansion, Terror of Demogorgon, focusing on Update 80. The test includes new content like the Duergar race and Mindcleaver iconic, alongside changes to cosmetic teleport styles and a shift from instant-cast teleports to a channeled casting time, which has raised community concerns.
Lord of the Rings Online raises progression server caps and begins new legendary reward track in today’s patch
Standing Stone Games has released a new patch for Lord of the Rings Online, increasing the level cap on Angmar and Mordor progression servers to 105. The update also introduces the 18th legendary items reward track, the seventh PvMP reward track, and includes fixes for Rivendell premium housing. Additionally, a detailed player-created map of Middle-earth has been shared, breaking down regions by level, story, and expansions.
LOTRO Legendarium: Appendix A, on Hobbits and subscription price increases
Standing Stone Games has increased the prices for multi-month subscriptions for Lord of the Rings Online, marking the first hike since the game's 2007 launch. While the one-month subscription remains unchanged, longer-term plans now offer significantly reduced savings compared to the monthly rate. This change, attributed partly to inflation and potential pressure from parent companies Daybreak Games and EG7, has caused community concern, though players with existing multi-month subscriptions can lock in old prices until the end of 2027.
Lord of the Rings Online is hiking its multi-month subscription fees with a grace period through 2027
Lord of the Rings Online is increasing its multi-month subscription prices for the first time since its 2007 launch, with changes taking effect after June 30th. Existing subscriptions will be grandfathered in at the old rates until the end of 2027. The game will also see new content updates and its developers will attend Gen Con.
Dungeons and Dragons Online announces Terror of Demogorgon expansion and new Duergar race
Standing Stone Games announced the upcoming 'Terror of Demogorgon' expansion for Dungeons and Dragons Online, set to release in summer 2026. The expansion will introduce a new playable race, the Duergar, and their associated iconic character, the Mindcleaver. A public preview server is now available for players to test the new content.
Lord of the Rings Online tests its Angmarim Sorceress class and Garden of Corpses dungeon
Lord of the Rings Online is testing Update 48.4 on its Bullroarer server, featuring the new Angmarim Sorceress class for evil players in PvP zones and a six-player dungeon called Pagru-kirít, the Garden of Corpses. Standing Stone Games has made changes to simplify the Sorceress's gameplay.
Lord of the Rings Online unlocks the last chunk of Update 48’s Glorious Hunt storyline today
The final part of Lord of the Rings Online's Update 48 has been released, concluding the 'A Glorious Hunt' storyline. This update also includes backend adjustments to reduce lag in raids and large instances by improving server instance load balancing.
Lord of the Rings Online takes action to reduce lag in raids
Standing Stone Games is implementing changes to Lord of the Rings Online's load balancer to address severe lag issues experienced in raids. These adjustments aim to reduce performance impacts caused by multiple groups sharing server instances. The studio plans to release these changes this week and gather player feedback.
Lord of the Rings Online makes huge changes to the upcoming Angmarim Sorceress PvP class
The Lord of the Rings Online is implementing significant changes to its upcoming Angmarim Sorceress Player versus Player class, which will be exclusive to the PvP zone for players aligned with Sauron. Lead designer Orion detailed adjustments made over the past year, emphasizing the class's role as a flexible support character with four distinct stances. The Angmarim Sorceress is expected to return to the test server soon, and the game's 19th-anniversary festival has been extended.