Well to be fair, most MMORPG cater to non-hardcore players so their quests tend to be easy. For LotR, it's not about the game being easy, but whether or not it has enough content to entertain a hardcore player.
Any game is only as hard as you wan't it to be , So called Hardcore/Casual is crap , People come in here & say this game is to easy or this is hardcore LOL . Fight mobs 3-5 above you or do quests a few levels above you ? Nope the people that shout this is to easy are usually the ones killing Green mobs or doing lvl 15 quests at lvl 20 , Any Game can be easy & ANY game can be hard its up to you how you wan't to play it ...
SpotOn 100% correct.
You want hardcore Lotr or hardcore any game? Lvl the whole time with starter gear.
LOL that would be fun to try , I can see it now your lvl 50 deep inside a dungeon & the named mob drops a Pristine encrusted diamon BP with +100HP , +25SP ect & you say Nah I have my Cloth +1hp BP so I don't need to roll
Depending on how drunk I was I just might do that. (and hate myself in the morning)
LOTRO has 1,500 quests at launch with a live team that will be introducing content probably from month 2 or three and then bi-monthly. If you're so "hardcore" you can blow through that to the point you've completed all the quest content they have in the game and you are literally waiting for new content, heh, you really need to get out more. There's also an addiction clinic in Europe somewhere that helps with game addiction that you may want to visit.
"Many nights, my friend... Many nights I've put a blade to your throat while you were sleeping. Glad I never killed you, Steve. You're alright..."
I hated D&D Online, and i affraid LOTR will be the same.
LOTRO is nothing more than another version of WoW/DDO but with a fraction of the content. WoW's hook was always the 'grind' to see new content, DDO's hook was always the lack of grind which meant you could see all the content very quickly, but the actual game mechanics were essentially variations on a theme.
LOTRO's hook is the simple fact that it uses the LOTRO franchise and has pretty graphics(though they are a little dull, you'll soon get tired of the same variations of trees and fields).
Anyone looking for the so called 'new generation' of MMO is going to be very disappointed. It will give MMO veterans something new to play for a while but given that many have already burned through most of the beta content and that content is more grindy and repetitive than WoW, it simply isn't going to be a game that topples the mighty WoW empire, more of a stop gap until Conan or Warhammer hit.
there is no game made that is not too easy for a hard core gamer. Go over to Vanguard players and do a search for level 50;s and you will find that there are over 40 of them right now. It only took about 2 weeks for the first ones to start popping up. On the other hand I have about 4 hours of play now going from halfway 13 to 14 on one character because I take my time and mess around chatting or whatever. Last night after finishing one quest I needed with a group I helped the PUG fellowship I was in finish another that I had already completed just because I was the groups healer and we were having a good time and were working well together. I don't hurry now and will probably take even more time in release because I am not crafting much in beta, just enough to get the feel of various professions so I can decide what to work on once it gores live.
Bottom line is it is all subjective. Some people will enjoy the game, some will not. Some people will blow through the content, others will take their time. If you are just looking for long grinds consider Vanguard or some of the Korean games, they will give you a month or two of good old fashioned grind if that's your thing.
I agree with what others have said, LotRO is what you make it IMHO, based on my experience playing MMOs since The Realm and Meridian 59 way back in '96 I have been what you would call a hardcore player, when I was single and unemployed, to being a casual player now I have a family. Turbine have a winner here I reckon because it appeals to new players because of the IP, burnt out WoW players (although it is harder/slower than WoW) and it will also appeal to a lot of seasoned MMORPG players. Some may say it's small but Turbine will be adding regular free content, ex-packs will open up the rest of Middle Earth bit by bit, and live events have started in beta and are a blast so far. There is also a *ton* of content as it is and still six weeks until launch. You can quest, but you can also grind on signatures/elites for a harder time, tis up to you.
Moreover LotRO also provides probably the best role playing environment since pre-NGE SWG IMHO. The entire atmosphere of the game makes you want to relax, take it easy and enjoy the journey, not just race to level cap. There are lots of little places in game where players can gather to hang out, smoke pipeweed, play music, watch firework shows, many out in the wilds away from the madding crowds.
Reflecting pools are a nice addition and you will often see high level players and low level players grouped together, not because the higher character is PLing but because it's fun to be in fellowship and help out. I've ran around The Shire for a couple of days as a level 21 Dwarven Guardian getting very little XP but had a blast helping Hobbits do their quests and exploration. It's been so much fun I forget I'm not XPing and that is a very good thing IMHO.
Folks who will definitely not enjoy this game are those who just want to catass to max level and be 'teh ubah'. If on the other hand you like a game that oozes RP potential, are a fan of the IP and want to drink in the atmosphere then you will probably enjoy LotRO very much indeed.
It has also to be said this is one of the most polished betas I have been in. The game runs extremely well and looks great even on lower end PCs. The IP has been treated with respect, sure some liberties have been taken in the name of playability but the game stays true to the spirit of J.R.R. Tolkien's magnum opus as far as possible.
I predict this will be the hit of the year, and may well surprise many just how well it does. I've been asking players I group with two questions, have you played any MMOs before and are you going to buy this game. A very high proportion haven't played a MMORPG and I've yet to find anyone who has told me they won't be playing live, in fact most have already pre-ordered. This suggests, that like WoW, LotRO will pull in a sizeable amount of folks who are new to MMOs and they will not bring a jaded 'MMO vet' perspective into the game. IMHO this is *The* sleeper game of year and may yet 'rule them all', except WoW of course but nobody is taking that crown away in the foreseeable future.
On the downside playing alts is a tad of a let down as there are few starter areas. Elves and Dwarven kin start in the same area as do Hobbits and Men although Hobbits are transferred to The Shire once the main newbie quest is complete, whereas men stay in Breelands. This can be circumvented by taking your alt to another area but I would have liked to see more separation between races at the start.
My only real *big* disappointment is they have decided to ring-fence the game and split the European players from North American and Oceanic players. I really wish this was not the case. I generally hate games that split the MMO community and refuse to play them. It's my belief that MMOs should bring together different nationalities and cultures. Players should be able to choose for themselves which servers they play on. Many of us wish to play with guild-mates and friends we have made in other games. Had I not got into beta, and had such a blast, I personally would have written off LoTRO because of this alone.
The above is based on my beta experience as a level 21 Dwarven Guardian, and several mid-teens alts of other classes. Just my tuppence worth.
Edited for typos.
“Hustlers of the world, there is one mark you cannot beat: the mark inside.”
―
William S. Burroughs
I hated D&D Online, and i affraid LOTR will be the same.
LOTRO is nothing more than another version of WoW/DDO but with a fraction of the content. WoW's hook was always the 'grind' to see new content, DDO's hook was always the lack of grind which meant you could see all the content very quickly, but the actual game mechanics were essentially variations on a theme.
LOTRO's hook is the simple fact that it uses the LOTRO franchise and has pretty graphics(though they are a little dull, you'll soon get tired of the same variations of trees and fields).
Anyone looking for the so called 'new generation' of MMO is going to be very disappointed. It will give MMO veterans something new to play for a while but given that many have already burned through most of the beta content and that content is more grindy and repetitive than WoW, it simply isn't going to be a game that topples the mighty WoW empire, more of a stop gap until Conan or Warhammer hit.
Not sure how much of LOTRO you played, but I have to disagree with most of what you said.
First of all, there's plently of content to keep players going until they add more. It's very hard to grind in LOTRO for the simple fact that xp gained from just killing mobs is very low. The best way to enjoy the game is to explore and do the many varied quests available. Any gamer who chooses to grind levels will run out of content in any game.
The different areas and zones in LOTRO are quite interesting and immersive. There's a great variance in the look of each area, from the Lone lands to Bree, to the Shire and North Downs. Along with the music and the way the environments are created, the game really comes alive.
Turbine never promised a so called "3rd Generation MMO". Actually, all that means is that it's a game that is currently only playable on extremely high end machines, leaving out the majority of MMO players. I'd rather play a stable, immersive, finished game that has incredible graphics that you can actually play with them turned on, than play a "3rd Generation" MMO that you have to turn the graphics down in order to get it to run half decently. I really think this 3rd generation thing is a joke. By the time the majority of the gaming world is able to play them, they're old and outdated. It's just an excuse for an MMO company to release a buggy game... then they can blame the fact that it doesn't run well on the player's computers.
_________________________________ JonMichael
Currently: AION, an MMO Beta under NDA Played: WAR, LOTRO, Hellgate: London, CoX, GW, SotNW, DAOC, EQ2, SWG, WoW, AO, Horizons, Second Life, There, TSO Beta'd: There, Second Life, EQ2, DAOC:LotM, LOTRO, Tabula Rasa, Gods and Heroes, Hellgate: London, Requiem:Bloodymare, AoC, WAR, DDO, Fallen Earth
Well, Lotro has the deed system. which is a form of AA. You cant name me another game that ships with an AA system. So i would say, dont try to judge lotro based on your limited play... If they expand the deed/trait system, this could be very hardcore friendly.
Normally I try to avoid these types of discussions, however so many important aspects of this question are being left out I felt the need to chime in.
To those who say it's easy or casual friendly. Have you tried the instances and content that's actually made to be difficult? And, while I feel Great Barrows is challenging as a first instance, it's still just the first instance so it doesn't really count. I'm currently playing a level 35 Minstrel and have had a consistent group, with a few swap out members, that spent 4 nights at 3-4 hours/night working on Garth Argawen trying to get all the bosses in there down. It's the second 6 man instance, it's level 30-35 roughly (although we've had people higher than 35 every trip and it's still been difficult) with approximately 10 bosses. I'm pretty sure 2-3 of them are rare spawns because they haven't been there consistently. However, Ivar and the Red Maid are HARD. Even the Twins were difficult the first time through, taking a couple wipes to figure out their little tricks.
Ivar, the second "major" boss in the instance after the Twin Wights, is a fantastic fight. It's a 5-8 minute fight if you're of appropriate level. That feels like an eternity at that level, and compared to ANY mmo I've played is FAR harder than any middle-of-the-curve boss. He has two banner carrier adds, that are elite, which heal him. On top of that, he has a dwarf that he changes to undead, also elite, fighting with him. The banner carriers heal him and the undead dwarf hits like a truck. But here's the catch. From the time the last banner carrier dies you have about a minute (haven't broken out the timer, I'll save that for my lotrowiki post) to finish Ivar off. If you don't, he stops and rezzes all 3 mobs. On top of that, the entire time you're fighting him he's continuously summoning "regular" adds to assist in your defeat. These aggro resets and new mobs coming into play makes life as a healer very difficult and requires the entire group to be on their game in order to save the healer.
The best part? He is child's play compared to the Red Maid, which is the last boss in the instance. She summons waves of mobs to attack you in a Survival style fight. At the end of all the summons she gets tired of screwin with you and comes out swinging. Only she comes out with 4 elite shades to help her. On top of that she does a MASSIVE AOE knockback with one of the coolest looking spell effects in the game. She also does AOE roots on top of that, but it's not your normal root. You can actually see the spirits coming out of the water trying to pull you down and hold you in place. VERY cool fight. And some day, hopefully on my return home tomorrow, I will see her die.
I won't even get into Dol Dinen and the City of Fornost out in the North Downs... Or the Valley of Giants in the Misty Mountains. Nah, I'll let you venture there and decide if it's "easy".
Since when were online games "hard" perse', the hardest thing I have ever done in an online game is that mission in the snow on the first guild wars. There is not hard, only the amount of time put into achieve something. If you want hard go play Alex Kidd in miracle world without dying once.
Currently Playing: Everything but MMORPGs Cancelled: L2, FFXI, VSoH, LotRO, WAR, WoW Looking Forward To: SW:TOR
Since when were online games "hard" perse', the hardest thing I have ever done in an online game is that mission in the snow on the first guild wars. There is not hard, only the amount of time put into achieve something. If you want hard go play Alex Kidd in miracle world without dying once.
The challenge very rarely extends into solo play. There is absolutely nothing "hard" or "difficult" about playing a minstrel solo. In fact, it's probably about as easy as it gets. Outside of respawns or a random patrol pulling additional mobs it's pretty rare you die solo on something you meant to do. Perhaps you got adds you weren't expecting on the pull, but that doesn't make it diffucult.
Difficulty in an MMO always enters with teamwork. The arguement of raiding being easier because you have more people is silly. Rather than having to depend solely on your own skill you have to depend on and coordinate other people. Strategies often have to be executed perfectly in order to win an encounter. Difficulty lies in coordination, not in an individual's ability.
That said, at least from a 6 man standpoint (compared to 5 mans in WoW), I feel like I have made the difference, or seen the actions of an individual make a much larger difference in a group than was ever possible in WoW. That gives me high hopes for raiding.
And if you want difficult, get a group of pugs to pull off the Wrath of the Oathbreakers conjunction.
Normally I try to avoid these types of discussions, however so many important aspects of this question are being left out I felt the need to chime in. To those who say it's easy or casual friendly. Have you tried the instances and content that's actually made to be difficult? And, while I feel Great Barrows is challenging as a first instance, it's still just the first instance so it doesn't really count. I'm currently playing a level 35 Minstrel and have had a consistent group, with a few swap out members, that spent 4 nights at 3-4 hours/night working on Garth Argawen trying to get all the bosses in there down. It's the second 6 man instance, it's level 30-35 roughly (although we've had people higher than 35 every trip and it's still been difficult) with approximately 10 bosses. I'm pretty sure 2-3 of them are rare spawns because they haven't been there consistently. However, Ivar and the Red Maid are HARD. Even the Twins were difficult the first time through, taking a couple wipes to figure out their little tricks. Ivar, the second "major" boss in the instance after the Twin Wights, is a fantastic fight. It's a 5-8 minute fight if you're of appropriate level. That feels like an eternity at that level, and compared to ANY mmo I've played is FAR harder than any middle-of-the-curve boss. He has two banner carrier adds, that are elite, which heal him. On top of that, he has a dwarf that he changes to undead, also elite, fighting with him. The banner carriers heal him and the undead dwarf hits like a truck. But here's the catch. From the time the last banner carrier dies you have about a minute (haven't broken out the timer, I'll save that for my lotrowiki post) to finish Ivar off. If you don't, he stops and rezzes all 3 mobs. On top of that, the entire time you're fighting him he's continuously summoning "regular" adds to assist in your defeat. These aggro resets and new mobs coming into play makes life as a healer very difficult and requires the entire group to be on their game in order to save the healer. The best part? He is child's play compared to the Red Maid, which is the last boss in the instance. She summons waves of mobs to attack you in a Survival style fight. At the end of all the summons she gets tired of screwin with you and comes out swinging. Only she comes out with 4 elite shades to help her. On top of that she does a MASSIVE AOE knockback with one of the coolest looking spell effects in the game. She also does AOE roots on top of that, but it's not your normal root. You can actually see the spirits coming out of the water trying to pull you down and hold you in place. VERY cool fight. And some day, hopefully on my return home tomorrow, I will see her die. I won't even get into Dol Dinen and the City of Fornost out in the North Downs... Or the Valley of Giants in the Misty Mountains. Nah, I'll let you venture there and decide if it's "easy".
Nice. Just reading that got my blood boiling. Haven't done these but I look forward to doing them.
"Many nights, my friend... Many nights I've put a blade to your throat while you were sleeping. Glad I never killed you, Steve. You're alright..."
Comments
SpotOn 100% correct.
You want hardcore Lotr or hardcore any game? Lvl the whole time with starter gear.
LOL that would be fun to try , I can see it now your lvl 50 deep inside a dungeon & the named mob drops a Pristine encrusted diamon BP with +100HP , +25SP ect & you say Nah I have my Cloth +1hp BP so I don't need to roll
Depending on how drunk I was I just might do that.
LOTRO has 1,500 quests at launch with a live team that will be introducing content probably from month 2 or three and then bi-monthly. If you're so "hardcore" you can blow through that to the point you've completed all the quest content they have in the game and you are literally waiting for new content, heh, you really need to get out more. There's also an addiction clinic in Europe somewhere that helps with game addiction that you may want to visit.
"Many nights, my friend... Many nights I've put a blade to your throat while you were sleeping. Glad I never killed you, Steve. You're alright..."
Chavez y Chavez
You pretty much answered your own question there
LOTRO is nothing more than another version of WoW/DDO but with a fraction of the content. WoW's hook was always the 'grind' to see new content, DDO's hook was always the lack of grind which meant you could see all the content very quickly, but the actual game mechanics were essentially variations on a theme.
LOTRO's hook is the simple fact that it uses the LOTRO franchise and has pretty graphics(though they are a little dull, you'll soon get tired of the same variations of trees and fields).
Anyone looking for the so called 'new generation' of MMO is going to be very disappointed. It will give MMO veterans something new to play for a while but given that many have already burned through most of the beta content and that content is more grindy and repetitive than WoW, it simply isn't going to be a game that topples the mighty WoW empire, more of a stop gap until Conan or Warhammer hit.
CoH/CoV - D-Zol/Kinslayer
Auto Assault - Slayer
WoW, LOTRO, DDO - Kinsul
Matrix Online - Tempest
there is no game made that is not too easy for a hard core gamer. Go over to Vanguard players and do a search for level 50;s and you will find that there are over 40 of them right now. It only took about 2 weeks for the first ones to start popping up. On the other hand I have about 4 hours of play now going from halfway 13 to 14 on one character because I take my time and mess around chatting or whatever. Last night after finishing one quest I needed with a group I helped the PUG fellowship I was in finish another that I had already completed just because I was the groups healer and we were having a good time and were working well together. I don't hurry now and will probably take even more time in release because I am not crafting much in beta, just enough to get the feel of various professions so I can decide what to work on once it gores live.
Bottom line is it is all subjective. Some people will enjoy the game, some will not. Some people will blow through the content, others will take their time. If you are just looking for long grinds consider Vanguard or some of the Korean games, they will give you a month or two of good old fashioned grind if that's your thing.
I miss DAoC
I agree with what others have said, LotRO is what you make it IMHO, based on my experience playing MMOs since The Realm and Meridian 59 way back in '96 I have been what you would call a hardcore player, when I was single and unemployed, to being a casual player now I have a family. Turbine have a winner here I reckon because it appeals to new players because of the IP, burnt out WoW players (although it is harder/slower than WoW) and it will also appeal to a lot of seasoned MMORPG players. Some may say it's small but Turbine will be adding regular free content, ex-packs will open up the rest of Middle Earth bit by bit, and live events have started in beta and are a blast so far. There is also a *ton* of content as it is and still six weeks until launch. You can quest, but you can also grind on signatures/elites for a harder time, tis up to you.
Moreover LotRO also provides probably the best role playing environment since pre-NGE SWG IMHO. The entire atmosphere of the game makes you want to relax, take it easy and enjoy the journey, not just race to level cap. There are lots of little places in game where players can gather to hang out, smoke pipeweed, play music, watch firework shows, many out in the wilds away from the madding crowds.
Reflecting pools are a nice addition and you will often see high level players and low level players grouped together, not because the higher character is PLing but because it's fun to be in fellowship and help out. I've ran around The Shire for a couple of days as a level 21 Dwarven Guardian getting very little XP but had a blast helping Hobbits do their quests and exploration. It's been so much fun I forget I'm not XPing and that is a very good thing IMHO.
Folks who will definitely not enjoy this game are those who just want to catass to max level and be 'teh ubah'. If on the other hand you like a game that oozes RP potential, are a fan of the IP and want to drink in the atmosphere then you will probably enjoy LotRO very much indeed.
It has also to be said this is one of the most polished betas I have been in. The game runs extremely well and looks great even on lower end PCs. The IP has been treated with respect, sure some liberties have been taken in the name of playability but the game stays true to the spirit of J.R.R. Tolkien's magnum opus as far as possible.
I predict this will be the hit of the year, and may well surprise many just how well it does. I've been asking players I group with two questions, have you played any MMOs before and are you going to buy this game. A very high proportion haven't played a MMORPG and I've yet to find anyone who has told me they won't be playing live, in fact most have already pre-ordered. This suggests, that like WoW, LotRO will pull in a sizeable amount of folks who are new to MMOs and they will not bring a jaded 'MMO vet' perspective into the game. IMHO this is *The* sleeper game of year and may yet 'rule them all', except WoW of course but nobody is taking that crown away in the foreseeable future.
On the downside playing alts is a tad of a let down as there are few starter areas. Elves and Dwarven kin start in the same area as do Hobbits and Men although Hobbits are transferred to The Shire once the main newbie quest is complete, whereas men stay in Breelands. This can be circumvented by taking your alt to another area but I would have liked to see more separation between races at the start.
My only real *big* disappointment is they have decided to ring-fence the game and split the European players from North American and Oceanic players. I really wish this was not the case. I generally hate games that split the MMO community and refuse to play them. It's my belief that MMOs should bring together different nationalities and cultures. Players should be able to choose for themselves which servers they play on. Many of us wish to play with guild-mates and friends we have made in other games. Had I not got into beta, and had such a blast, I personally would have written off LoTRO because of this alone.
The above is based on my beta experience as a level 21 Dwarven Guardian, and several mid-teens alts of other classes. Just my tuppence worth.
Edited for typos.
“Hustlers of the world, there is one mark you cannot beat: the mark inside.”
― William S. Burroughs
LOTRO is nothing more than another version of WoW/DDO but with a fraction of the content. WoW's hook was always the 'grind' to see new content, DDO's hook was always the lack of grind which meant you could see all the content very quickly, but the actual game mechanics were essentially variations on a theme.
LOTRO's hook is the simple fact that it uses the LOTRO franchise and has pretty graphics(though they are a little dull, you'll soon get tired of the same variations of trees and fields).
Anyone looking for the so called 'new generation' of MMO is going to be very disappointed. It will give MMO veterans something new to play for a while but given that many have already burned through most of the beta content and that content is more grindy and repetitive than WoW, it simply isn't going to be a game that topples the mighty WoW empire, more of a stop gap until Conan or Warhammer hit.
Not sure how much of LOTRO you played, but I have to disagree with most of what you said.
First of all, there's plently of content to keep players going until they add more. It's very hard to grind in LOTRO for the simple fact that xp gained from just killing mobs is very low. The best way to enjoy the game is to explore and do the many varied quests available. Any gamer who chooses to grind levels will run out of content in any game.
The different areas and zones in LOTRO are quite interesting and immersive. There's a great variance in the look of each area, from the Lone lands to Bree, to the Shire and North Downs. Along with the music and the way the environments are created, the game really comes alive.
Turbine never promised a so called "3rd Generation MMO". Actually, all that means is that it's a game that is currently only playable on extremely high end machines, leaving out the majority of MMO players. I'd rather play a stable, immersive, finished game that has incredible graphics that you can actually play with them turned on, than play a "3rd Generation" MMO that you have to turn the graphics down in order to get it to run half decently. I really think this 3rd generation thing is a joke. By the time the majority of the gaming world is able to play them, they're old and outdated. It's just an excuse for an MMO company to release a buggy game... then they can blame the fact that it doesn't run well on the player's computers.
_________________________________
JonMichael
Currently: AION, an MMO Beta under NDA
Played: WAR, LOTRO, Hellgate: London, CoX, GW, SotNW, DAOC, EQ2, SWG, WoW, AO, Horizons, Second Life, There, TSO
Beta'd: There, Second Life, EQ2, DAOC:LotM, LOTRO, Tabula Rasa, Gods and Heroes, Hellgate: London, Requiem:Bloodymare, AoC, WAR, DDO, Fallen Earth
Rites of the Four Horsemen
http://www.rotfh.com
Normally I try to avoid these types of discussions, however so many important aspects of this question are being left out I felt the need to chime in.
To those who say it's easy or casual friendly. Have you tried the instances and content that's actually made to be difficult? And, while I feel Great Barrows is challenging as a first instance, it's still just the first instance so it doesn't really count. I'm currently playing a level 35 Minstrel and have had a consistent group, with a few swap out members, that spent 4 nights at 3-4 hours/night working on Garth Argawen trying to get all the bosses in there down. It's the second 6 man instance, it's level 30-35 roughly (although we've had people higher than 35 every trip and it's still been difficult) with approximately 10 bosses. I'm pretty sure 2-3 of them are rare spawns because they haven't been there consistently. However, Ivar and the Red Maid are HARD. Even the Twins were difficult the first time through, taking a couple wipes to figure out their little tricks.
Ivar, the second "major" boss in the instance after the Twin Wights, is a fantastic fight. It's a 5-8 minute fight if you're of appropriate level. That feels like an eternity at that level, and compared to ANY mmo I've played is FAR harder than any middle-of-the-curve boss. He has two banner carrier adds, that are elite, which heal him. On top of that, he has a dwarf that he changes to undead, also elite, fighting with him. The banner carriers heal him and the undead dwarf hits like a truck. But here's the catch. From the time the last banner carrier dies you have about a minute (haven't broken out the timer, I'll save that for my lotrowiki post) to finish Ivar off. If you don't, he stops and rezzes all 3 mobs. On top of that, the entire time you're fighting him he's continuously summoning "regular" adds to assist in your defeat. These aggro resets and new mobs coming into play makes life as a healer very difficult and requires the entire group to be on their game in order to save the healer.
The best part? He is child's play compared to the Red Maid, which is the last boss in the instance. She summons waves of mobs to attack you in a Survival style fight. At the end of all the summons she gets tired of screwin with you and comes out swinging. Only she comes out with 4 elite shades to help her. On top of that she does a MASSIVE AOE knockback with one of the coolest looking spell effects in the game. She also does AOE roots on top of that, but it's not your normal root. You can actually see the spirits coming out of the water trying to pull you down and hold you in place. VERY cool fight. And some day, hopefully on my return home tomorrow, I will see her die.
I won't even get into Dol Dinen and the City of Fornost out in the North Downs... Or the Valley of Giants in the Misty Mountains. Nah, I'll let you venture there and decide if it's "easy".
Currently Playing: Everything but MMORPGs
Cancelled: L2, FFXI, VSoH, LotRO, WAR, WoW
Looking Forward To: SW:TOR
The challenge very rarely extends into solo play. There is absolutely nothing "hard" or "difficult" about playing a minstrel solo. In fact, it's probably about as easy as it gets. Outside of respawns or a random patrol pulling additional mobs it's pretty rare you die solo on something you meant to do. Perhaps you got adds you weren't expecting on the pull, but that doesn't make it diffucult.
Difficulty in an MMO always enters with teamwork. The arguement of raiding being easier because you have more people is silly. Rather than having to depend solely on your own skill you have to depend on and coordinate other people. Strategies often have to be executed perfectly in order to win an encounter. Difficulty lies in coordination, not in an individual's ability.
That said, at least from a 6 man standpoint (compared to 5 mans in WoW), I feel like I have made the difference, or seen the actions of an individual make a much larger difference in a group than was ever possible in WoW. That gives me high hopes for raiding.
And if you want difficult, get a group of pugs to pull off the Wrath of the Oathbreakers conjunction.
"Many nights, my friend... Many nights I've put a blade to your throat while you were sleeping. Glad I never killed you, Steve. You're alright..."
Chavez y Chavez