As Darbur freezes and finds friends in Forochel

Alliteration is awesome.

Anyway, in the spirit of [or lack of] variety, Darbur decides he likes the cold and the snow. He first journeyed in the Misty Mountains, helping out his fellow dwarves in fighting off snow beasts and worms and the like. He staved off some Nazgul threats with the help of his friend Gloin, ransacked Goblin-town, and met some friends named Floid and Dewitt while exploring the vicinity.

He proceeds to Forochel because, well, because he's already got his snow gear on. And it's spiffy and he loves his scarf. Who says dwarves couldn't have a little fashion sense now and then? As he goes through the various settlements of Forochel, he learns that the Lossoth are not very friendly to outsiders. As in, they purposefully settled in the frigid north so that they wouldn't be bothered. Unfortunately for them, they STILL get bothered. By baddies from Angmar. And Dourhand dwarves. They don't like to admit it, but they need Darbur's help in taking out their enemies.

And that's exactly what he does! Because Darbur is a bro. So, he dons his spiffy coat and scarf and boots, summons his pet flame to keep him company (and warm (although, it doesn't actually provide a warmth buff)), and rides about the vast expanse of Forochel, saving the day one settlement at a time.

After a bit of travelling, he ends up in Suri-kyla, which is essentially the capital of the region. And by capital, I mean Quest Hubs of Quest Hubs. You see, most settlements give Darbur, oh, maybe 4 or so quest lines. He does those quest lines, and he moves on to the next settlement. But when he arrives at Suri-kyla, he accepts not 4, not 8, not 12, but 14 (fourteen!) quests. Wowza. It's like a whole 'nother region. So before he sets off on those quests, he buys a spiffy new cloak to keep him extra warm, and he's on his way. These quests take him everywhere. To the Angmarim keep. To beat up worms and bears at the bay. To the Guaradan camp near Zigilund. To the Kuru-leiri camp (that's on the complete opposite side of the map and it takes like 20 minutes of real time just to get there. argh.). And when he finishes those tasks, he has to go accept the rewards back in Suri-kyla. So, he essentially goes "there and back again."

In one of the camps, he gets a quest to defeat some ice wights at a nearby abandoned dwarf keep. He goes to defeat these ice wights, and finishes his quest. He's on his way back to civilization, when he spots his new friends from the Misty Mountains, Floid and Dewitt! Small world. He hangs out with them for a bit before finishing up everything he has left to do in Forochel.

Unfortunately, Darbur knows he can't stay much longer in Forochel. He still needs to go to Angmar in his Epic Quest. But he will at least be remembered among the Lossoth as a friend and ally.

Current level: 51

In which Cynfleda finds a light in the darkness that is Mirkwood

Cynfleda just can't catch a break.

All she wants to do is study, dang it!

Too many major settlements with their so-called "craft halls" and "craft areas" do not have a study with which scholars can do their crafting (*cough* Esteldin *cough* Ost Guruth *cough* Suri Kyla *cough*). Those desks are a necessity for the scholarly arts beyond expert level.

Furthermore, even among the craft areas that DO have a study, there is often something else missing. In Bree, the relic- and forge-masters are on the OTHER SIDE of town. In Rivendell, the vault is a whole floor below the study, meaning you have to leave, go down a floor, find the vault keeper, and go back upstairs to study. Don't get me started on the mailbox location. Just... don't try heavy crafting in Rivendell. Period. It's ugh. Too much having to run across Rivendell proper. Lothlorien is doable, but is too much of a maze to be worth it. Crafting in Moria is a hefty improvement. There is a vault, mailbox, auction hall, and relic- and forge-master all in fairly close proximity to each other. And as topping on the cake, they are all close to the hunter port.

When Cynfleda leaves Moria and passes through Lothlorien (because, frankly, Lothlorien is just kind of a pretty, scenic bridge between Moria and Mirkwood), her epic quest takes her to Mirkwood. She has quite the love-hate relationship with Mirkwood. The scenery is both haunting and pretty at the same time. There are orcs and wargs everywhere, mostly due to the fact that Mirkwood is on the doorstep of Dol Goldur. There are also plenty of merrevail and shades and spiders to go around. In other words, this place is RANK with evil beings, brought up by the Necromancer to take over Mirkwood (which, fun fact, used to be called "Greenwood" before it became....less green and more dreadful).

This is just a sampling of Mirkwood. 

Which is what makes the zone fun! There is no shortage of heavy, dark forests; haunting, gassy swamps; and fortresses and ghost towns, all overrun by enemies. The possibilities are endless! It's like the Barrow-downs and Fornost had a baby.

Now, you may be thinking, "Cyn, what in the Middle-Earth does this have to do with crafting?" 

One day (yesterday, in fact), Cynfleda was wandering around Mirkwood, doing random quests east of the Drownholt. She's searching for sage bushes for Bingo Boffin, and she stumbles upon a mighty fortress outpost held by the Malledrim and Galadhrim. She soon discovers that this place is called Ost Galadh, and it is EXACTLY WHAT SHE'S BEEN MISSING IN HER LIFE. There is a vault. There are 4 (FOUR!) mailboxes. There is a skirmish camp. There are relic- and forge-masters. There is a large craft hall with TWO studies. There is a second vault-keeper IN the craft hall. Hooray!

Like, oh my goodness, Cynfleda could live there forever. Forget purging Mirkwood of the Necromancer. It's study time.

The only downfalls, which are fairly forgivable, are that there's no auction hall, and the hunter port isn't very close. But other than that, Cynfleda finds that Ost Galadh is quite the light in the darkness that is Mirkwood.

Current level: 68