Here is how Round 2 is shaping up right now…

The Shire Division

(8) Huan is being handed his walking papers by (1) Galadriel, while the most powerful of the Ainur (4) Morgoth has a solid lead over the eldest ent (5) Treebeard.  (6) Luthien seems poised to take down (3) Bilbo Baggins. But the closest story in this round appears to be the match between the Mirkwood Elvenking (7) Thranduil with a slim lead over the head of the White Council (2) Saruman.

The Erebor Division

The current Cinderella seed (16) Pippin is soundly beating ‘Hot Dwarf’ (9) Fili, can the Heir of Durin put in a late push? Last year’s champ (12) Samwise Gamgee is facing an uphill battle with (4) Beren. The owner of the Last Homely Home, (6) Elrond, is currently leading against (14) Eowyn, unless she can get some support from other Warrior Women. Can she make to the Sweet 16, possibly against Aragorn!? Speaking of (7) Aragorn, he is soundly trouncing the windlord (2) Gwaihir.

The Mordor Division

(9) Gil-galad, the high kind of Noldor, seems destined to lose to the number one seed (1) Smaug. The Dark Lord (4) Sauron is handily beating his dwarven opponent (5) Dain Ironfoot. (11) Fingolfin has a slim lead over (3) Thorin Oakenshield, where is his ARmy? (2) Beorn seems ready to send (7) Shelob packing. If things keep going this way, we could have Smaug and Sauron in the Sweet 16.

The Angmar Division

Not quite a fair battle, but (1) The One Ring seems ready to abandon (8) Frodo Baggins. The Eldar King (12) Manwe, has a very solid lead over a descendant of Girion in (4) Bard the Bowman. Some call him ‘creepy’  and ‘sneaky’ (3) Gollum, but he’s got a lead over the imposing dwarf (6) Dwalin. And last but not least, (10) Merry seems rather outranked and outclassed by (2) Gandalf the Grey.

Voting continues until tonight at 10pm ET. [Vote Now!]

You can choose to play any one of three races: Dwarves, Elves, and Orcs, and you can recruit unique heroes to do your bidding.

I’m not much of a gamer, but I was able to build up a nice little elven village quick smart and take out a low-level Goblin camp pretty easily. Perhaps the difficult escalates later on. Oh, and it’s free to play.

The developer blurb:

It is a time of great turmoil in Middle-earth. Elves and Dwarves, long at odds over ancient slights, are now on the brink of war. Meanwhile, vicious Orcs and Goblins plot to overthrow the other races and burn their kingdoms to the ground. Take up arms alongside the greatest heroes of the Third Age to create your own kingdom within Middle-earth. Build an empire of Elves, Dwarves or Orcs and partner with thousands of players online to crush your enemies and defend your realm. The fate of Middle-earth is in your hands!

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and Turbine announced today the launch of The Lord of the Rings Online™: Riders of Rohan™, the next expansion to the award-winning free-to-play massively multiplayer online roleplaying game (MMORPG). Players across North America and Europe can purchase and play Riders of Rohan for PC today by visiting http://rohan.lotro.com/.

“We are really excited to launch Riders of Rohan, our fourth major expansion to the game,” said Kate Paiz, Executive Producer of The Lord of the Rings Online. “This is our biggest expansion yet and we’re very excited about the introduction of the industry’s best mounted combat system, which brings a whole new form of gameplay to MMO players.”

THE LORD OF THE RINGS ONLINE: RIDERS OF ROHAN FEATURES:

· Explore Largest Landscape Yet — Join with the Rohirrim and ride across the sprawling plains of Eastern Rohan. Raise high your sword to fight for honor and glory in the name of Théoden King! Experience hundreds of new quests, earn new favor, get new gear, achieve new deeds and more!

· Experience Mounted Combat — Ride into combat atop your loyal War-steed as you defend the people of Rohan from the forces of Isengard and Mordor. Charge into battle using strategic maneuvers to outflank and defeat your opponents. Team up with a fellowship to challenge groups of enemies and use the combination of varied skills to triumph. Stomp, trample, kick, and charge your enemies in all new mounted combat throughout the plains of Rohan.

· Master New War-steeds — Enter the lands of the Rohirrim upon a new War-steed to aid you in mounted defence of King Théoden’s land! Hailing from a long line of majestic, highly intelligent, and kingly creatures known as the Mearas, War-steeds are faster, stronger, and more trained for battle than normal mounts. Advance your War-steed’s skills over time and customize your mount with unique appearances.

· Continue The Epic Story — The Fellowship is on the move once again and must achieve their task at all costs. It falls to you to clear the path and turn the Eye of the Enemy away from their progress as you aid the Rohirrim in their own struggle close by. Witness the breaking of the Fellowship at Amon Hen; forge alliances with the Ents of Fangorn; and aid Éomer, adopted son of Théoden, as he seeks to protect his homeland from the growing Shadow.

· Advance to Level 85 — Learn what it means to be Rohirrim as you face new challenges throughout the Riddermark on your journey to level 85. Continue your legend as you grow in power with new skills and deeds and get new armor and gear to aid you in the battles to come.

The Lord of the Rings Online™ is the ultimate adventure! This award-winning free-to-play massively multiplayer online role-playing game delivers an interactive experience brimming with life and filled with the familiar people, places, and monsters from the most famous fantasy of all time. For more information, visit www.lotro.com.

The all-volunteer, unpaid team of game enthusiasts behind the mod say they repeatedly attempted to negotiate a compromise that would allow them to proceed in some form, but Warner Bros. rebuffed all of their proposals. Warner Bros. first requested that the 40-person-strong development team cease all work on the project, called MERP (Middle-earth Roleplaying Project), in July.

“Modding” is a term used to describe when users unofficially adapt or alter a game beyond its original specifications. Modders will often create new characters, character skins, plotlines and dialogue, music or even entirely new worlds for their favourite games.

Mod developer Alasdair Hurst believes MERP’s main problem could be that people need to buy Skyrim first.

“But the mod itself will be available to all the fans for free.”

In a brief statement to PC Gamer, Warner Bros. VP of Public Relations Remi Sklar said: “While we appreciate our fans’ enthusiasm, we also need to protect our IP rights.”

Despite requests from TheOneRing.net, Warner Bros. declined to to answer any questions for this article regarding the C&D against MERP, or about Lord of the Rings game-modding.

Created solely out of love for Tolkien

“Everyone on the team is doing this because they love it,” Mr Hurst told TheOneRing.net. “A lot of the team have kids of their own and businesses of their own, and some are still in school, college and university. Everyone works on this in their spare time.”

MERP’s developers are currently consulting their own lawyer from the Organisation for Transformative Works (OTW). They hope to argue that MERP is “fair use” because it is what is called a “transformative work”.

They are also gathering signatures from fans petitioning Warner Bros. to reconsider its position. The petition has already gained more than 16,000 signatures.

“…will detract from the value proposition bargained and paid for by legitimate licensees”

Warner Bros. lawyers first contacted MERP developers in July. In the initial letter, Warner Bros claimed:

“The release of MERP into the marketplace will likely result in customer confusion and cannibalization with respect to such legitimately licensed LOTR/Hobbit games and will detract from the value proposition bargained and paid for by legitimate licensees of the LOTR/Hobbit properties.

Furthermore, projects and games like MERP will diminish and erode Warner Bros.’ ability to manage and protect the brand, reputation and quality of the LOTR/Hobbit properties that it has invested significant resources to cultivate over the years.”

Initially, Warner Bros. lawyers also requested an outline of the MERP mod developers’ plans, indicating they wished to “explore … ways to modify MERP to address our concerns from the intellectual property rights-holder’s perspective while, to the extent possible, allowing you to achieve at least some of what you wanted to accomplish with MERP.”

Mr Hurst says that MERP replied, asking what was infringing, and what could be changed.

“They dismissed our attempts at negotiation,” he said. “We sent them another letter asking if we could continue privately without any release, and they also denied that.”

MERP would base Skyrim players in the world of Middle-earth near the end of the Third Age, not long before the War of the Ring. Players would be able to become involved in a number of adventures related to the Ringquest, or just indulge in free-roam play.

An ambitious, world-spanning project aiming to be faithful to Tolkien

Mr Hurst said that the group was inspired to develop the Skyrim MERP mod because the current holders of Middle-earth IP — including Warner Bros — had failed to develop “any decent games which allow the player to traverse the whole of Middle-earth. We thought that we should make it ourself![sic].”

He said the team had generated 90 per cent of the Rohan landscape, and were working on detailing it and creating each of the villages and cities.

He said that existing games often departed extensively from book lore, pointing to examples such as “elves at Helm’s Deep and orcs casting magic fireballs.”

On the other hand, MERP aimed to be as close to Tolkien legendarium as possible with the design of buildings, locations and characters.

“It is a large project, but the final outcome is something which everyone wants to see,” Mr Hurst said.

Existing versions of MERP — initially developed and released for Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind and then Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion — have been freely available since 2008.

One of the most popular game mods

Mr Hurst said MERP was a very popular game mod.

“There is a mod site for lots of mods for multiple games ([hosting] around 17,000 mods), [on] which we consistently place between first and tenth place,” he said.

“If you take a look at Skyrim Nexus, you can see the vast amounts of mods that are available for the game. The same goes to its predecessor; Oblivion.”

Mr Hurst said intellectual property is a significant problem and ongoing for not-for-profit fan-modders.

“Mods such as large total conversions to Lord of the Rings, Pokemon and other previously made games seem to face these problems a lot of the time,” he said.

“The intellectual property holders always seem to send the cease and desist notices far into the development so that the fans waste as much time as possible on something they love.”

Links:

• Save MERP on Facebook
• MERP on MODDB
• Save MERP petition

Read more about the game after the break…

In keeping with the notion of the smallest people changing the world, the idea behind ‘Hirelings’ is that it’s the somewhat inept and incompetent ’baggage carriers’ who suddenly find themselves in the middle of an adventure.  Bill Sininger, one of the game’s creators, says, ‘We designed it so kids can start learning to make choices, and parents can enjoy gaming with their kids.’  It’s a fairly straight forward game, suitable for kids from age 5, but the concept will appeal to adults and the artwork is, according to fathergeek.com in their review, ‘simply outstanding’.

The catch is – this game is in the development phase and needs funding!  You can learn more about the game at their kickstarter page, where you can support if you wish – and maybe grab yourself a fabulous tshirt into the bargain!  Looks like a lot of fun to us here at TORn; and TORn old timers may be interested to know that designer Bill Sininger is the nephew of former TORn staffer Balin, who sadly sailed into the West but is never forgotten round these parts.

The clever folks on our message boards have very recently unearthed on Pastebin a list of film-related gaming miniatures that GW is set to release in the near future. This is potentially of interest not only to tabletop gamers, but also to film spoiler hunters.

It’s hard to to know far one can legitimately extrapolate from this list to scenes, and creatures, that might make it into the movies, but there is certainly heaps of food for thought here! If you want to put in your two cents, head on over to our message boards where a healthy discussion is going on about the implications.

Full list below the cut — and, be warned, plenty of potential spoilers too!

The dwarves

• Dwarves: Kili & Fili & Longbeard Archers
• Dwarves: Bombur with Kettle
• Dwarves: Drogo Baggins & The Tavern Maid
• Dwarves: Dáin & Iron Hill Berserkers
• Dwarves: King Thráin & Longbeard Vanguard
• Dwarves: Young Thorin & Longbeard Mattockguard
• Dwarves: King Thrór
• Dwarves: Dragon Mithril Company of Dwarves
• Dwarves: Dáin Ironfoot & Iron Hill Boar Riders
• Dwarves: Dís, Mother of Kili and Fili
• Dwarves: Gimli (Stubble)
• Dwarves: Samwise Gamgee (Red Book)

The wargs

• Wargs: Dire Warg
• Wargs: Grinnah & Mirkwood Werewolves
• Wargs: Feral Wolf Pack
• Wargs: The Werebeast
• Wargs: Lagdush & Orc Wolfcloak Warriors
• Wargs: Narzug & Orc Warg-Riders
• Wargs: Dol Guldur Orc Overlords
• Wargs: Orc Chieftain on Warg
• Wargs: Orc Wolfbone Shaman

Dol Guldur

• Dol Guldur: Leaping Spiders / Shiverfang Spiders
• Dol Guldur: Spiderlings
• Dol Guldur: The Willowhags
• Dol Guldur: Bloodwraiths
• Dol Guldur: Gwethil
• Dol Guldur: The Necromancer / Flesh Avatar
• Dol Guldur: Narzug & Orc Summoner Coven
• Dol Guldur: Tomb Wights
• Dol Guldur: Mounted Tomb Wights
• Dol Guldur: Saruman & The Ringwraiths
• Dol Guldur: Vampire Bat Swarms

The White Council

• White Council: Mounted Rivendell Nobles
• White Council: Lindir the Harper
• White Council: Arwen & Estel
• White Council: Galadriel (Barrel)
• White Council: Radagast with Roäc & Swoop
• White Council: Galadriel (Water Steed)
• White Council: The War Council
• White Council: Galadriel & Lórien Drumhooves
• White Council: Chief Aravir & Dúnedain Rangers
• White Council: Dúnedain Runecaster
• White Council: Elrond & Rivendell Spearguard
• White Council: Elros & Rivendell Outriders
• White Council: Radagast’s Chariot / Spellfire Cart
• White Council: Cirdan the Shipwright

The mountain orcs

• Mountain Orcs: Azog & Orc Needlers
• Mountain Orcs: Azog (Wounded)
• Mountain Orcs: Bolg & Great Goblin Bodyguard
• Mountain Orcs: Armoured Hill-Trolls / Frenzied Trolls
• Mountain Orcs: Orc Stone Thrower

The men of Esgaroth

• Men of Esgaroth: King Girion
• Men of Esgaroth: Fram the Watchman
• Men of Esgaroth: The Master of Lake-Town
• Men of Esgaroth: Bard & Greystreak Bowmen
• Men of Esgaroth: Bain & Quickstrings Gang / Trout Guild Militia
• Men of Esgaroth: Alfrid & Loyal Town Guard
• Men of Esgaroth: Garf & Footsoldiers of the Dale

The Grey Mountains dragons

• Grey Mountain Dragons: Fire-wyrms
• Grey Mountain Dragons: Braga & Goldscale Worshippers
• Grey Mountain Dragons: Venomblade Assassin
• Grey Mountain Dragons: Goldscale Priest
• Grey Mountain Dragons: Bofur on Cold-Drake
• Grey Mountain Dragons: Dragon Thrall
• Grey Mountain Dragons: Money Bags & Hired Knives
• Grey Mountain Dragons: Fell Hatchlings

The Beornings

• Beornings: Woodmen Healer
• Beornings: Fair Daughter
• Beornings: Meneldor & Swiftbeak Flock
• Beornings: Gorm & Woodmen Axethrowers / Skin-Changers
• Beornings: Whisperbark / Gnarlfir
• Beornings: Black Bear Pack
• Beornings: Enraged Beorn
• Beornings: Grimbeorn (Greataxe)

The Silvan elves

• Silvan Elves: Legolas & Mirkwood Fire Archers
• Silvan Elves: Mirkwood Warhost
• Silvan Elves: King Thranduil (Battle Garb)
• Silvan Elves: Tauriel (Mounted)
• Silvan Elves: Castellan Amroth

Adventures and scenes

• Adventure: Gandalf’s Quest
• Adventure: The Battle at the East Gate
• Adventure: The Fall of Dale
• Adventure: The Belltower
• Adventure: A Thief in the Night
• Adventure: The Clearing of Foul Roots
• Adventure: Assault on the Barrows
• Adventure: Clash of the Beasts
• Adventure: The Last Stand
• Adventure: The Raven Hill
• Adventure: Thorin’s Folly
• Adventure: The Battle of Five Armies
• Adventure: Breaking the Siege
• Adventure: Revenge of the Goblin King
• Adventure: Blacksoil Slope
• Adventure: The Final Onslaught
• Adventure: The Clouds Burst
• Adventure: The Ritual
• Adventure: The Haunted Tombs
• Adventure: The Blight Breach
• Adventure: Gollum’s Escape

And, finally, here’s a few that don’t fit into the naming pattern:

• Frodo with Red Book
• Smaug the Golden
• Gandalf (Dual sword)
• Turin, The Dragonslayer

Update: We also now have this translation courtesy of Ringer Elpidha.

And it is Amazon.de that releases information about the Special Edition version of the videogame LEGO Lord of the Rings now in preorder (release date: October 2012). We discover that the minifig of Elrond will be included as a bonus with the collector’s edition of the game, and it is indeed the same minifig that was seen in the minigame available on the line’s official site (see that article).

The minifig is a success, no doubt about it. It remains to be seen if it will also be available in a future set or if it will be necessary to go to Bricklink or eBay to buy it separately.

[Original French]

We’ve now seen several card previews from the forthcoming cardgame expansion. As always, the artwork for these cards, not based on film images, is imaginative and well-executed. As noted in earlier previous teasers, this set still requires the original The Lord of the Rings core set. Fans of the game will likely enjoy the expansion, but new players will also have to get the core set — gift-givers or new players should take note.

Also note that the Shadow and Flame, completing the six-part Dwarrowdelf expansion cycle for the core game, will also debut soon.

[More]

It’s called The Siege of Helm’s Deep. Personally, I found it a bit confusing, but go try your hand!

If nothing else, the lead-up cut-scenes look really, really cool.

[More]

We may have missed a couple of cool reveals about the game that emerged at E3 around the beginning of last month.

So here’s a re-cap, including an 18-minute on-stage demo that Nick Ricks gave at E3. It reveals a long in-game sequence from the Mines of Moria, including Balin’s tomb. You can also pre-order the game here.

Props to Ringer Lars for the links.

The E3 game demonstration and interview

The Lego Lord of the Rings trailer

Lego Lord of the Rings image gallery