The Lord of the Rings Online: Where Dragons Dwell Update Live

Yesterday, Standing Stone Games released Update 23 for their venerable MMORPG The Lord of the Rings Online. Entitled Where Dragons Dwell, the update will take you on a journey to the dwarven homeland, increase the game’s level cap to 120, introduce new crafting options, and much more. You can read all about the update here and watch the full atmospheric trailer below:

You can find the latest release notes right here. And since they’re fairly extensive, here’s just an overview of the new features:

Where Dragons Dwell

Update 23 features a journey into the homelands and histories of the dwarves, including the Longbeard descendants of Durin the Deathless. Beginning with an expanded Erebor, you will adventure into the fabled Iron Hills, and finally arrive in the lost dwarf kingdoms of the Grey Mountains. The Where Dragons Dwell Quest Pack is free to VIPs and Lifetime Account members, and includes more than 120 quests and deeds, along with three resource instances, a new Instance cluster, and releasing soon – a new raid! These new Instances are currently available to play up to Tier 2 difficulty, and a new Tier 3 difficulty will be released soon! Tier 3 is a new challenge level that replaces the former T2C difficulty, and offers a new challenge in addition to new rewards.

Black Book of Mordor: Chapters 7 and 8

Two new chapters of the Black Book of Mordor story are now available! The War of the Ring brought darkness and bloodshed to the Lonely Mountain, but now the dwarves of Erebor seek to rebuild their home and make certain their legacy. Your adventures will bring you to new lands in the company of allies familiar and unexpected, as you uncover secrets that have been hidden for an age. Stand with Gandalf the Wizard against Sauron’s lieutenants, and beware the weapons of Karazgar, the Weeping Warrior! Any player who has purchased the Mordor expansion will continue to have access to the entire Black Book of Mordor story line. Players who have completed Chapter 6.7 can speak to Gandalf at King Thorin’s throne in the Hall Under the Mountain to begin Chapter 7.1.

Hobbit Avatar Update

Hobbits have a new look! We’ve updated hairstyles, head styles, and more for the hobbit race. Players can continue to use their existing look if they wish to by unchecking Avatar Update Visible checkbox in the Advanced Graphics section of the game options.

Increased Level Cap

Players can now level their characters to 120! The increase features new gear, appearances, and cosmetics, among other things.