The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar game preview - Page 2 of 4

The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar
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I only experienced the starting Burglar abilities, but even those were cool. I could shout at enemies (dealing damage from a distance), fight defensively (dealing less damage but adding to armor), and -- my favorite -- immediately after taking down a foe I could perform a rallying cry to heal myself and nearby allies.

The game will initially cover only part of Tolkien's world.

As in WoW, dying is not a big problem. Rather than appearing as a ghost, a dead character simply reappears at the nearest resurrection spot (unless you want to wait for a healer). I didn't notice any kind of XP penalty, but to be honest I wasn't paying attention; I was eager to get back to the fight.

Which, in most cases, meant fighting beasts and critters. In the course of the stress test weekend, I killed enough wolves, bulls, boars, bees, spiders, and bears to warrant a restraining order from PETA. (In my defense, I didn't slay the lone coney I encountered in a field in Tuckborough, and I actually rescued three chickens for a nearby farmer.) There were a few Men and plenty of goblins to fight, and I'm sure humanoid and monstrous opponents become more numerous at higher levels.

The architecture in Elven lands is impressive.

Changing gears, I retired my level 2 Burglar and switched to an Elf hottie. Um, I mean a female Elf Hunter. The Hunter can use a bow, which is nice until the enemy gets close and forces you to switch to melee. My Elf had skills that enhanced both her melee and bow attacks, though, so it worked out. Elves can also choose from the other classes available to Man, except for Burglar or Captain.

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