I subscribed so I could play on the Legendary Server Anor.
That was three months ago, and my 3-month subscription ended yesterday. I don't really plan on renewing it until the next expansion (Moria) is released on that server (which is said to be sometime in March). I may even wait until the expansion after that (Mirkwood) comes. This is, in order to get the most bang for my buck. Assuming the 4-month release schedule, I will probably do another 3-month subscription in May or June. Meaning, I will have Moria for one month of that, and then 2 months of Mirkwood, which should be plenty of time to get to level cap.
Let me tell you about my experience!
In Tolkien lore, female dwarves, by all intents and purposes, look and dress like male dwarves. They should be extremely difficult to tell apart. That said, they are also few and far between, and aren't generally seen in battle with their male counterparts. It is not uncommon to never see a female dwarf in your lifetime.
Enter Neile Peartree. (Pronounced Neil + E). She is named after a famous drummer (in today's lore, not Middle-earth lore). In respect to her namesake, she is a minstrel, and her instrument of choice is a drum. She is from the Blue Mountains, and she's even in a band! Here she is, standing with her drum:
When she's not jamming with her buds, she'll be out exploring the vast expanse of Middle-earth. Here she is imitating a statue at Thorin's Hall. "Hail, Traveler!," she might say. (Also, I never noticed until now that there is a dwarf carved into the mountain at Thorin's Hall.)
So that is Neile. Minstrels are typically a healer class, but they can be known to throw quite a punch (or, yell quite a yell). It's pretty entertaining to just go around yelling at bad guys until they die. She also drums at them. Occasionally, she'll get into a group to be their healer or one of the damage dealers. But mostly, she just has fun completing quests and yelling at baddies. I managed to get her up to level 44 in the Misty Mountains before my subscription went out. (I probably could have gotten her to cap, but there was a month or so during the holidays that I wasn't playing LOTRO).
And then there's Bracken.
Bracken is a hobbit lass I decided to make last-minute. She is a level 6 warden, just barely learning to navigate the Shire. She's never left home before, but she really wants to. So she's teaching herself how to wield a javelin and a shield, and she's eager to fight off whatever threats the Shire is eventually bound to face.
Until then, she spends her leisure time drinking and chilling around Michel Delving, enjoying the sceneries of both the tavern and the local flower bushes.
Here she is, raising a pint to you, the reader, and to the rest of the community on the Legendary Server Anor. Farewell, Neile and Bracken. See you in Moria.
