Spring Shrews, Shrews, Shrews!

Hello hello! I know… you came looking for Ingolemo… but I have to get something off my queue.

Shrews!

Shrews... Shrews... Shrews... Exciting word, yes?

The Spring festival ended two weeks ago and I haven’t written a Spring festival wrap-up post! I will obsess over it if I don’t get it written. I was trying to think which festival I like most, and decided that I like all of them. I love the Haunted Burrow, and the Shrews & flowers, and summer fishing, and even Frostbluff (though the idea of stealing from people makes me sad, so I normally just eat too much food instead).

Spring festival holds a special place for me, because I arrived in Middle Earth during the 2010 Spring festival. As an elf, I started my adventure in Celondim, and I recall seeing the big orange message throughout Ered Luin concerning “Stomp-a-shrew in Duillond”. It took a bit to find Duillond and understand that a festival was going on, but I was hooked.

I’ve said it before, but it still rings true that festival is a great way to break from the routine and meet new people as well as celebrate with people you know. Spring festival was no exception as I got the honor of meeting a few people like Tomeroric, Cessy, and Llynthe.


Here is the most noble Tomeoric. He caught up with me in Duillond and said he actually recognized me from this blog! It is common to ask a fan for his picture and autograph, right? He graciously obliged for this photo.

I had to chase Cessy down into Moria, having missed taking her picture in Duillond with the shrews or flowers. (Note to self, remember to charge the camera each time I go out.) Cessy shows that she can work a Supergirl pose! Own it, girl! Watch out boys, Cessy is Fearless!

And, Llynthe! I was saying hello to people I pass on the street when I came across Llynthe. I was thinking... "she looks so familiar. did we do Foundry? no. Roots? no. Moors? no. Some older content? no." Llynthe is the famous writer of http://thehobbitsinthestories.wordpress.com/.

It is a bit mind-numbing during the Spring festival, but I liked the collecting flowers quest! It is peaceful to roam the countryside collecting flowers, lol! The rewards for collecting flowers were… really lame, hehe. Of course, the only good thing to come out of it was the Steed of the Jester (Jester), which is just a matter of luck, and I got enough Huge flowers that all the hobbit quads could have one. If I was the boss, I might change this quest to reward spring leaves or marks. Even I, who really enjoyed it, couldn’t imagine collecting even one more flower after about 4 hours of it during festival.

Danadalyn (with Cave-claw Masked Steed) paid a visit to the Hobbit golfing statue in Brockenborings. On the "Bullroarer’s Challenge", it takes a bit of patience, steely determination, and nerve to “just go for it”, but the lildanas all got the fence walking done and spring deed completed. That is a fun one. J

"When I grow up, I want to be just like Danaszar!" 
Indeed. Me too little hobbit quest guy. Me too.

Love the festival maze. The only downside is that one can only do it about 4 times a day for collecting barter leaves. I think Danaclaus was more interested talking to the Wandering Elves than actually mazing.

 It is a good place to run crazy, have a few Dire Beers, scold some naughty tween hobbits… Good times.

Symbelmyne Spring horses for all. It suited Danaish quite well as she prepared for a ride across the countryside.

My love/hate part of the festival is the "consumables for deed". If you use 300 of a certain consumable, you will be allowed to do that specific action as a skill. For example, this spring's consumables were the Doom-shrooms and D.R.A.G.O.N. I totally love setting a goal and achieving it, especially with these consumables.

What I Hate though... I deal with the fact that the consumables take many festival tokens (ex. spring leaves), typically about 180 tokens per 300 consumables. However, the really bad part, which is on my top 5 least favorite things in lotro... is that the consumable has a 5 minute Cooldown. With some of the ones in the past (youll-yule-festival), they were on the same CD timer. Fortunately, the spring ones were not, but we still must wait 5 minutes between uses. At best, that is about 25 hours of throwing tricks at other people. AND... they do not advance while in a raid, and they do not work in the Ettenmoors. 

So, you have to be (1) somewhere with people, (2) not in the moors, (3) not in a raid, (4) be willing to continue to throw obnoxious things at people as often as the CD timer expires. I need to make buttons for "/thank you for helping me with my deed" and "sorry I had to hit you. again. with a doom-shroom". My goal is to finish the 300 by the start of summer festival, so I can get more things to throw and wait on long CDs.

Here is one of my victims getting a face full of of exploding shroom and dragon fire.

Alas, spring festival only happens during the spring (or in lotro’s case… early summer). I will see you again next year Mr. Shrew.

Finally, here is Danaszar in her Anniversary hat, Yule robe, riding a Dusk steed, in front of the Angel’s Draigoch statue (draigoch-statue-lil-danas-moving-day). It doesn’t have anything to do with Spring festival, but it was a nice picture and I told her I would post it.

I’m already excited for Summer festival! It must be coming up soon-ish!

Happy 5th Anniversary, lotro!

Happy 5^th Anniversary to lotro!

And Thank you all for visiting Danania.net! Last Friday, the site saw its 10,000th visitor, which is absolutely amazing to me as the site is right at 2 months old. Thank you! спасибо! 谢谢 Danke! Salamat! Bedankt! Merci! Thanks, eh?! (...to my Canadian friends).

There is so much excitement in Middle Earth and the Anniversary party is in full swing! It is such a hit that the party's end has been extended from April 30 to May 9.

I have been having a great time and I hope you are also! Often, when festivals start, I rarely leave to do anything else. This time my friend Lartessa set up a Helegrod run and I couldn’t pass that up (still need to kill Thorog, but at least now I am eligible to open the Dragon Wing when the opportunity presents itself), and Nimitar organized a visit to Ost Dunhoth and I had never had the opportunity to see much of that and we totally ran the tables (I got some good pictures for another post).

However, today’s post is about the Anniversary party.  Since the previous horse post went over so well, we will have more horses today. J

First of all, when planning to maximize fun, I always visit party planner Goldenstar at  casualstrolltomordor.com  . I would say I just visit for the highlights, but in reality I study and absorb everything she posts like I am preparing for the medical boards.

One of the best things about the Anniversary festival is obviously the fireworks. Middle Earth has had fireworks before but nothing on the scale of what came with the Anniversary party.

Here is a shot of me visiting the Methel stage in the Shire. The funny thing is, it seems like I’ve seen that stage before when I quested through the Shire as a much younger elf, but that has been so long ago...

I wanted to ask my friend Gandalf about it, but he seemed preoccupied, like his mind was elsewhere. He muttered something about hidden hobbits, but it was drowned out by the blasts and flash of fireworks around us. So we just stood and enjoyed the festivities.

One of the Anniversary quests, Firework Explorer, takes you on a tour to launch fireworks and bring festivities to other parts of Middle Earth, which earns the title “Firecracker”. The most far-reaching place is Elrond’s house in Rivendell. That is an easy leap for a Supergirl but was no small task for the lil danas. Fortunately, there are kind hunters and captains around to help out. Memyr delivered all the lil danas safely to aid in the spreading of party cheer.

OMG! Memyr, why are you on one knee in front of Danaszar?? <blush, omgomgomg> 

Whew, just lost a contact lens?

When Danadelion saw Rivendell for the first time, it brought back memories of just how lovely it is. Imagine fighting through the Trollshaws, hurriedly crossing the Ford of Bruinen, arriving at Rivendell, and finally seeing this breathtaking sight?

We had a great time at the beer brawl! There are three versions: Beginner (1 token), Intermediate (2 tokens), Expert (3 tokens). As long as there aren’t 50 people in the arena and you aren’t being targeted specifically to fail for some reason, the Expert version is totally achievable, gives the most tokens, and leads toward a deed which awards the title “Battered, Bruised and Contused” for 25 expert wins. For hitting others 200 times in brawls, you can earn the title “Clubber”.

When you win on Expert, you glow for 3 minutes in the glory of your victory. Danadalyn wears her glow proudly.

When you launch 50 fireworks of one color, you get an Anniversary token. When you launch 50 fireworks of all 6 colors, you earn the title of “Master Blaster”. DanaClaus was having good fun whacking people around and working toward the Master Blaster title. The interim between brawls is a good time to launch fireworks.

Macswife was one of the first people I met who had the /toast emote from the Lost Invitations quest. Ok, so it isn’t the most flattering picture. Lol. It is funny and the emote is a good one.

Even the lil dana hobbits get into the act. Danaarodel, the “keeper of dana outfits”, dressed up in a green imp outfit complete with oversized flower from the spring festival and did a lil toast-ing herself.

Danaish was the first lil dana to get a steed from the Lost Invitations. Here she is riding the “Steed of the Dusk Watch” (aka Warden’s steed). It has very nice leather-embossed tack.

It took a bit, but I also got the Lossoth steed from the Lost Invitations. The picture isn’t the best; I was mostly asleep when I took it and it was a black horse in the dead of night (Note: If you are awake, wait til daylight to take better pictures.)

Definitely, one of the best things about festival time is that it brings people together, some of whom you otherwise don’t see often. Here is a shot of my friend Jastirria who I had not seen in ages. When I was a level 48 noob, Jas was the one who pointed out that I had to go get a Legendary Item (even though I had no idea what it was or where to get one) and came and picked me up out of Forochel and drop kicked me into the Gates of Moria. Some people and events you never forget. Thanks Jas.

Danadelion actually won a Steed of the Champion in the champion’s lottery! This steed is the first and only steed we have ever won in the lottery. Of course, I went and bought one for myself, but I’m not catty and will let Delion have her moment in the sun. Like the rest, it is a beautiful horse. :)

In the “can’t have too many steeds category”, we all went and got our Anniversary steeds. The new one is the Fireworks steeds. It actually does randomly shoot fireworks out the saddle pack.

The 2011 Anniversary steed is the white garbed one.  For fun, I scrolled back 9000 pictures  and pulled last year's picture out of archive to show the steed. That day, for that picture, I tried on the 2011 Anniversary clothing that I had borrowed from my friend Sparowen. (Yes, I probably should have taken off the red gloves…)

Alas, time to go to sleep and dream. May your festival spark and pop and your dreams be pony-filled.

Lil Danas

(archived from December 8, 2011)

Hey hey! A lil downtime there since my last post... I blame the tryptophan (http://hsionline.com/2002/11/27/thanksgiving-drowsiness/) though general holiday bustle is far more likely!

Someone asked recently what the lil danas are up to. They will show up throughout the columns, so I decided to give them their own column as an introduction.

Which lil dana was first? Darn good question. I have no idea, but am certain it was one of four choices. On the lil dana staff, I have four quadruplet hobbits, an elf, two humans, a dwarf, and another hobbit. All except Danaish grouped together to form the Angels. They are a great support staff working primarily in crafting and AH marketing, but each has a unique personality.

One of the quadruplets was first, but getting an answer to who showed up on my doorstep first is like trying to resolve which was born first. Even if I thought I knew, they look so similar I could have been mistaken. Alphabetically, they are Dana Arodel, Dana Boffin, Dana Horn, and Dana Onar. All four hobbits were hired to do “consignment craft quests” (http://lotro-wiki.com/index.php/Quest:Consignment:_Thick_Hides), which have been obsolete for more than a year.

Basically, the hobbits would show up and pay an NPC to gather resources for far cheaper than could be bought on the AH. The only catch would be that you would have to re-show up to pick up your materials at least 40 hours later. It was quite the pain for me to stop what I was doing to go get the consignments, but to have the four sit there and wait on the mats was a perfect job for young entrepreneurial hobbits.

So, with the quest cancellation, Arodel, Boffin, Horn, and Onar went on extended vacation until it was decided that they would become Thorin’s Hall greeters. Since then, they have become very proficient at marketing and make their living buying and selling at AH.

Arodel: She is more of a nature-lover than the others. She might look like just a farmer-girl but she has good fashion sense. Arodel originally worked in Celendim, at the scholar’s enclave. She now manages the entire clothing line and advises the rest of the danas on how to dress. The quads tend to dress in festival attire, while many of the others have tended toward fashions out of Dunland.

Boffin: She knows how to work a deal, watching the markets to buy when commodity prices fall and resell when she can turn a profit. Of the four, Boffin has the best head for business. She originally worked out of the Shire in Overhill, very near where they were born. She manages corporate dana-buys and sales.

Horn: True to their first jobs, Horn kept in the crafting line. While none of the four actually know how to craft, Horn keeps up with craft related sales, which include recipes that look like that might turn a profit and crafted items from other danas when coin is in short supply. She originally worked east of Bree.

Onar: She is the festival and housing accountant. If ever I need to know, “do we have…x”, Onar will know the answer. Her job transition was easiest; her consignment job was near Thorin’s Hall. Now all four sisters work together there.

Danaish: Danaish was the next lil dana. Danaish is the only lil dana that is a Rider of Rohan; in fact, she was in the rider kin nearly a year before I was.

Danaish has been out and about and was once known as Sno White of “Sno White and the five Chees”... but that is a story for another day.

Here is a picture of Danaish’s first visit to Rivendell. She attended the Riders of Rohan 4th Anniversary party, in which the Riders rode from Thorin’s Hall to Rivendell. This shot is Danaish dancing the afternoon away with others on Elrond’s front doorstep.

Like the other lil danas that came after her, Danaish loves to craft and loves the festivals! If you go to festival, you are likely to see her.

I first met Danaish when she tried to pick my pocket in Bree. Rather than vaporize her, I opted to rehabilitate her. The Riders gave her a home, I set her on the path toward becoming a jeweler, and now she is a productive contributor spending most of her time in Esteldin. Undoubtedly, she has not forgotten her Burgling roots and may someday put those skills to use.

I will tell you more about Danaish's origin down below and her ties to Archet. For the moment, I will show you one of her favorite tops I sent home from Dunland; it was a sleeveless green-trimmed blouse.

Danadelion: Danadelion is a champion and has the attitude to match. It shouldn’t be a surprise that she is the Head Angel, leader of the lil danas group. She is fearless, except when it comes to bugs. Please don’t tell her what lies within Skumfil.

As a metalsmith, she has proven to be a dominant crafter. Like most crafters, she could settle down and make her living as a master of the forge. She is leading the lil danas to greater things, including a large house in Duillond within a few months. Here is a shot of Danadelion shortly before she organized the lil danas toward the common goal of buying a bigger house. Danadelion called first dips on the yellow star blouse from Dunland. It fits her style and attitude.

Danaszar: Danaszar is a very laid-back hunter. She is the only elf on staff and we share a common bond of having both come from Lorien. The only thing that gets a good rise out of her is the competition of seeing just how fast she can get through the festival races: horse races, Bree maze races, Shire haunted burrow races. Otherwise, Danaszar is very low-key and takes her time; in fact, she is a hunter that knows very little about porting; she rides where she needs to go. True to her low-key nature, she can often be found in a Rohirrim red outfit.

Danaszar is also good with her hands, a real top-notch wood crafter. Mostly, she hangs out in Esteldin waiting for the next festival and managing wood inventory and wood craft.

Danaclaus: Danaclaus is one of the newest members of the lil dana family, joining the danas less than a year ago. He is a jolly old dwarf and the only male on staff. He seems wise and patient, a good Guardian of the group, protecting the others.

Through experience, he has learned that one can indeed get into trouble out in this world. He and Danaszar are the only lil danas to ever meet defeat; hers was due to being very under-geared as she cut a path toward Esteldin to setup Shoppe. Danaclaus knows the moment he met his match. In the Lonelands, he stumbled across Asht, a higher level elite warg, who had other wargs around him. It was a good lesson indeed... that tanks are NOT indestructible.

Recently, as December rolled in, Danaclaus started getting very busy crafting things, and he was making lists and started checking those lists twice.

Last Delion heard, Claus took off on his Cremello pony Dasher, saying that he had to attend to some business up North for a few weeks and would be back before January.

Danadalyn: Danadalyn really joined the lil danas full time around Fall festival. She really livens up a room with her stories about adventures in Middle Earth and likes to play games and jokes on others (Fun Fall Festival, Friends!). I am told, she is quite the performer, getting the patrons of the Prancing Pony to pay attention.

She is really kind to all she meets and will talk to anyone, sheep included.

I taught Danadalyn to ride recently; she has taken to it like a hobbit to food. With her rise in skill, like the other lil danas, she too got to buy fall festival steeds and is looking forward to winter festival. Here she is on a Rohirrim steed. She chose a white long jacket from the clothes I sent back from Dunland. 

Of all the lil danas, Dalyn is the one I understand best. She is no rune-keeper but is close enough that I understand her. She knows when to hit, how to hit, when to run, and when and how to heal. She is an adventurer after my own steps. Here is Dalyn facing down a bear near Bree; fearless right? :)

Archet Ties: I have known for a long time that Danaish came out of Archet, but I didn’t really get the full story until I hired Dalyn recently.

Danaish, now a teenage girl, is or was the daughter of Ned and Peg Pruner of Archet. Before Archet’s burning, Ned was the jailor of the settlement and his wife Peg was a local supplier of simple goods. They made a decent living in the small community just northeast of Bree. I won’t go into the entire story of how Archet burned, many of you know it and I couldn't do justice to Dalyn’s ballad if I tried, but the gist was that Danaish’s father was killed. Dalyn found his body while following Jon Brackenbrook’s team into Archet as it was burning. Danaish’s mother hasn’t been seen since the fire and is presumed dead.

Danaish escaped the fire, but was haunted by the nightmares of carguls. She turned up in Bree a year later gaunt and starving, trying unsuccessfully to become a pickpocket.

Danadelion was a guard working in Archet for Captain Brackenbrook. When Amdir betrayed the Captain, Delion cowered in fear amidst the fire and watched the decimation of the town and death of her friend. After Archet, she started working as a guard against the Blackwolds in Bree and eventually became good enough with blades to venture forth and do more. She takes personal responsibility for Danaish, undoubtedly feeling shame related to her failures at protecting Danaish’s parents and the Captain of Archet.

As for Dalyn? She persevered to tell the stories of those who fought and died at Archet. She knew them all or seems to be able to fill in details with plausible stories. Whenever, the ale starts flowing in the local taverns, rest assured, you just might catch Dalyn telling the tales of Jon Brackenbrook, Atli Spider-bane, Constable Thistlewool, Cal Sprigley, and Ned Pruner.

If you like festivals like I like festivals, you will most likely see the lil dana team around. Feel free to say hello! Soon enough Delion will get her way and move the team out to the country... but that is another story.

(I love comments, and kept the comments from the original posting, reposted @ final-comments)