The upcoming Book 12 patch will be bringing new taxidermist barter items for all you house decorating types out there. We have compiled a page that will give you information on all of these as well as some screenshots. You can find this new info at http://www.lotrolife.com/book_12_new_barter_items/

If you can't wait to see what  new hair styles you can choose in new Book 12 feature Barbershop, LotroLife will help you.

Just click  this link and enjoy, some of them are really great!

We haven't had this type of news in a long while so we are happy to report that there is a new LotRO dedicated site out there called Lotro Lore. The fansite scene for LotRO has been slow with the official lorebook available and all and that is why we welcome any independent new site on the scene. Lotro Lore provides guides and articles (there are some great ones with armour sets) as well as a quests database and I am sure you'll enjoy it. The link is http://lotro-lore.com

New dev chat with new questions and answers like

• When are you planning to open up lands , the other side of the mistys?
• Are there any plans to enable outfit system for cloaks so that it works in Ettenmoors?
• Will the haircut includes Mohawks?
• I was wondering if any of the issues with maps are going to be addressed?
• Are you looking at balance in ettenmoors regarding burglars and loremasters?
• I would like to ask a question about the percentage rising for engraved beryl recipes

You can read it here

We're pleased to announce the LOTRO Loading Screen Contest! LOTRO-Europe fans, it's time to show your favourite pictures: we’re giving you the opportunity to submit an in-game screenshot taken throughout your adventures of Middle-earth and have it featured as a new loading screen within LOTRO! See the full list of rules for this competition on the next page. Good luck!

• To enter you must submit an in-game screenshot to lotrocompetition@codemasters.com with the subject line "LOTRO Loading Screen Contest".
• All screenshots must be unedited, although cropping is permitted.
• The dimensions of the final screen will be 1024 x 512.
• All entries must include the player’s name, date of birth, email address, primary player and/or forum name (if any), and the desired name to credit (for example: players real name, player name or forum name).
• You may only submit one (1) entry per player per week.
• The Competition is open from 10.00am GMT on 31st January 2008 to 11.59pm GMT on 29th February 2008.
• Entrants must be 18 years of age or over.

A Brief History

In ages long past, dwarves delved throughout the Misty Mountains and there drew forth precious ore from the land. At the foot of those mountains, beneath the shadow of what is now called Mount Gram, is one such delving – The Delving of Fror. *

Long before the Men of Rhudaur made the land now called the Ettenmoors their home, the dwarves who lived there carved deep beneath the mountains. The Delving of Fror was mined to exhaustion and abandoned for many years until the Men of Rhudaur arrived and themselves discovered its depths. The Men of Rhudaur eventually fell under the sway of the Witch-king, and Angmar demanded that they build subterranean holdings meant to serve as defenses against the forces of Cardolan and Arthedain. The Rhudauran complied, and built small holdings in the abandoned mines.

The Men of Rhudaur discovered too late the true intentions of the Witch-king and the people of Angmar. The long-lived and terrible gaunt-men came to roost within the subterranean halls of Fror, and succeeded in bringing great evil there. Before the evil could be unleashed, however, the Dunedain and Elves cast down the Witch-king and banished him evermore from Angmar. Without leadership and directives, the gaunt-men fell upon each other, and the evil they wrought was sealed within The Delving of Fror.

Angmar and the Free Peoples alike assail the terror that dwells within The Delving of Fror, each for their own reasons. For Angmar, the thought of bringing such potent allies to bear against the Free Peoples and the promise of power from their leader Mordirith provides motivation. For the Free Peoples, the dissolution of great evil that would threaten the relative safety of Eriador drives them into the unwelcoming depths.

*This is not the Fror who was killed at the gates of his Dwarf home in the Grey Mountains with his father – this is a different Fror.

What is The Delving of Fror?

The Delving of Fror is a new public dungeon accessed only through the Ettenmoors. The dungeon features five raid-style bosses, more than fifteen group bosses and a host of creatures spanning from solo to group level in difficulty. Each denizen has the potential to drop loot equivalent to that found throughout the Ettenmoors, and also draws upon a set of new barter items used at the bases for both Free Peoples and monster players.

How do you get into The Delving of Fror?

Access to The Delving of Fror is gained by controlling three of the five locations found throughout the Ettenmoors: Tol Ascarnen, Tirith Rhaw, Lugazag, Grimwood Lumber Camp, or the Isendeep Mine. Controlling the majority of these locations means that the battle is tipped toward the Free People or Angmar and affords access to the portals (located at Ost Ringdyr for the Free Peoples or Dar-gazag for the forces of Angmar). Controlling the dungeon allows those inside to remain there, but losing control of the Battle in the Ettenmoors means the enemy will be able to enter the dungeon and drive you out.

Example: Let’s say that currently, Free Peoples players control The Delving of Fror. Suddenly, the tide of battle turns and the monster players retake all the locations in the Ettenmoors! Free Peoples players may continue fighting within the Delving of Frór, but if ousted can no longer return to the depths until they once again have the upper hand in the battle. Further, the monster players now have access to the Delving of Frór and could soon enter the dungeon to drive the Free Peoples out!

Why go to the Delving of Frór?

All denizens of The Delving of Frór have the potential to drop barter items that are used by both monster players and Free Peoples players.

Monster Players

Monster players use these new barter items to purchase new racial skills, corruptions, and items. We have implemented a new suite of corruptions for purchase with the Delving of Frór. These second-tier corruptions promise to further enhance monster players in battle on the Ettenmoors. In addition, we have introduced new food, items, potions, and other goodies for the monster player in all of us. We didn’t stop there, however, and have also included new racial skills for all monster players! This expands the number of racial slots available to monster players to three per character.

New Monster Skills

Here is a smattering of some of the new skills available to monster players.

Orcs

• Dying Rage: As the orc nears death, he can spend his remaining energies to launch one last savage attack against his foes. He becomes immune to stuns, dazes, knockdowns, and fear as his fury reaches a peak. Unfortunately, there is no escaping the death that the expenditure of such rage brings.
• Front-line Fodder: Increases parry, block, and evasion.

Spiders

• Born of Shadow: The spider cloaks herself and her nearby warband in deep shadows. She gains the benefit of a bit of damage reflection and mitigation to damage from Light-based damage. Only her warband can share in this protection against the Light.
• Eight-legged Menace: Increased movement speed and parry chance.

Uruks

• Get a Grip!: Heals a fellow for a large portion of their health.
• New Breed: Increases armor, morale and power.

Wargs

• Pack Hunter: Marks a target for the pack to attack, increasing damage dealt to the target from all warband sources.
• Pack Mentality: Increases parry and evasion and increases defense against tactical and physical sources.

New Monster Items:

A number of items (too many to list here) have also been added to assist monster players. Some of these items will increase speed or armor for short periods, and some are increased healing potions or increased power recovery potions. In addition to these, a new invoked item can be purchased to gain temporary immunity to negative combat states.

Free Peoples Players

Not to be outdone, Free Peoples players obtain new barter items to gain access to a new suite of class-based set items. These include new armor sets, weapon sets, jewelry sets and a host of other items meant to assist players in the Battle of the Ettenmoors.

New Player Items

Class Weapon Sets: New weapons geared toward assisting your player while in the battlefield. Each is based on the signature weapons of your class and may enhance your damage against the foes you face in the Ettenmoors.

These weapons are geared to deal more damage against the monster player types found throughout the Ettenmoors.

Class Armor Sets: Built with PvMP in mind, these new armor sets are based off the Helegrod set in looks, but garner set bonuses that are meant to enhance the overall experience within the Ettenmoors.

Each of the set bonuses enhances a skill used by the class that is very useful in PvMP.

Jewelry Sets: New jewelry sets are meant to augment one of three aspects of your character: damage output, healing output, or overall effectiveness.

Items: New items include new potions for players to use and consume while fighting in the Ettenmoors, and also a new invoked item that will grant them short term immunity to negative combat states.

Summary

The Delving of Frór is meant to be an engaging new location available to Free Peoples and monster players alike. The foes found there can be brutal and very difficult to kill. Add to this the threat that your opposition could gain control of the Delving at any moment, and you’ve got a hotly contested area of the game world ripe for conflict!

We’ll see you in the depths come Book 12!

Book 12 with new cosmetic upgrade system will allow players to create unique appearance. Once you've reached level 20, you'll have access to a few new tabs in your Character Journal which allow you to toggle between your base Equipment and both Outfits.  Any item you drag on the corresponding Outfit Slot will be equipped cosmetically, overriding the appearance of the item in their base Equipment slot, as you can see in the following video

From: dexikovicek

If you missed the last WarCry Dev Chat Log, and answers to questions:

Will you give us the ability to light our torches and fireplaces?
What kind of mount advancements will we be getting in the future?
Will we be seeing any live events soon, such as attacks on Trestlebridge?
Will we ever see the costline in the areas we currently have to explore?
Any plans on taking off/reducing the cooldown on Burglar stealth?
Is there the possability to make a message/bulletin board in the kin house for people to post short term (daily/weekly) events or messages?

........ and many many more

You can read it here

Codemasters Online Announce Connect Tickets on sale
We’re excited to announce that today sees the launch of the full Codemasters Online Connect website at www.codemastersconnect.com. To coincide with the site's launch, tickets are now on sale and can be purchased from the website.

The Connect website will be the main resource for all the information related to the Connect weekend and will feature a whole host of announcements detailing the various events, special guests and gaming news over the coming weeks. Also featured on the website are a blog and the Connect event's official forums, where players can arrange meets or discuss the latest Connect news.

We look forward to seeing you all there!

Welcome to Book 12: The Ashen Wastes!
Welcome to the latest free content update for The Lord of the Rings Online™: Shadows of Angmar™! Among the many items featured in Book 12 are a revamp of the Angmar region, updates to the Burglar, Champion, and Guardian classes, improvements and additions to the Reputation system, social clothing, a new cosmetic inventory system, barber-shops (and new hairstyles to go with them), and the introduction of the Ettendeep!

Details....