Preview by: Toni Schwartz

Turbine has announced the latest expansion to its award-winning Middle-earth MMORPG, The Lord of the Rings Online. Not coincidentally, Turbine debuted this expansion, called Siege of Mirkwood, at this year’s Penny Arcade Expo. I spoke with LOTRO Executive Producer Jeffrey Steefel at PAX as he discussed and demonstrated the upcoming changes and features included in this new content.

Siege of Mirkwood falls in between the free Book updates that players receive every several months and paid full expansions such as The Mines of Moria. Although SoM won’t be free at $19.99, the content is greater than the usual Book updates but lesser than MoM. It will be available only as downloadable content and cover Volume 2 Book 9, and the Epilogue that leads to Volume 3 Book 1. In terms of the storyline, a Nazgûl Lieutenant based in Dol Guldur in Southern Mirkwood plans to build an army to invade Lothlórien, prompting Celeborn, Galadriel, and Elrond (and of course us) to band together and defend the peaceful Elven region.

Like the dark, claustrophobic dungeons of Moria and the lush, green woods of Lothlórien, Mirkwood’s foggy, depressing forest is another example of the rich, diverse Middle-earth landscape that Turbine provides its players. “Every time we go to a new area, a new region, we want to make sure that it really feels different,” said Steefel. “This is a place that in history used to belong to the Silvan Elves; it was very beautiful. Now it’s been corrupted by Sauron, so it’s this dark, foreboding place.”

Siege of Mirkwood will bring a number of new features. The level cap is extended to 65, which according to Steefel will be reflected in titles, skills, quests, and crafting. There will be new 3-man and 6-man instances, including a new 12-man, multiboss raid in which you face the Lieutenant of Dol Guldur himself and his fell beast at the end. And oh yes, this raid will include shiny new gear for your collecting pleasure. He didn’t mention if the new raid set will contain radiance, but it sounds like a definite possibility. “You can see all the dread; you’re definitely gonna need some major radiance in here. I’m cowering like crazy,” remarked Steefel, as he ran through one of the towers of Dol Goldur on his Warden character.

The biggest update to gameplay is the addition of Skirmishes, which are repeatable 30-40 minute customizable instances. You can create a Skirmish at any time by clicking on the option in the UI. You can decide many details about the Skirmish, including the group size, character level, and level of difficulty. Although they’re repeatable, the Skirmishes won’t leave you bored, because every time you enter one you’ll encounter one of nine possible objectives. Completing Skirmishes will give you points that you can spend on rewards, such as earning more skills for your NPC soldier. To add a new level of competition among players, Skirmishes will have stats that will be showcased on leaderboards on my.lotro.com.

There’s a Skirmish instance available for all levels in many regions of Middle-earth, even beginner areas such as Tuckborough in the Shire, and all are accessible at any time. Steefel demonstrated this by having his Warden, which was in Moria, enter a Bree Skirmish. In the Skirmish, people are trapped inside the Prancing Pony. A group of brigands threaten to burn down the famous inn and everyone inside it. You must stop them.