Howdy, Stranger!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Quick Links
Have Moria box, activate now or after F2P launch?
ShadowKnt
Member Posts: 10
I just completed a 10d trial and I bought a new copy of the Moria expansion that includes SoA and 30d free game time. I haven't activated/applied it yet and was trying to figure out the best time to do so. While I do enjoy the game, I don't mind waiting a bit to activate my account.
I've read that if you have ever purchased MoM, when the game goes F2P, you will alway have access to the MoM content. I've also read that the f2p content will let you level to ~25 fairly easily. Ideally, I'd wait for the game to go f2p, level to 25, then apply my MoM code to my account and play for 30d with all the VIP content post level 25. I could then decide if I wanted to continue as premium f2p account until i hit Moria, or decide to pay the monthly fee. Heck, if I got high enough level to play the Moria content, I could side step the turbine store a good bit.
What a don't know is if I can apply the MoM code to my account after the game goes F2P. I could apply the MoM code now and start playing, but I'd feel like i'd miss out on some of the TP from deeds and the like. In the end, I got the MoM box expensively, so it's not a big deal. I'm not opposed to paying for a VIP account if i like and play the game enough either, but i'd rather pay the least amount for what I'm getting.
Any advice?
Comments
Everything I've seen from Turbine on this refers to what happens if you have already activated the MOM key before they go f2p. If you have the key activated, you will always have access to the MoM areas and the 2 extra character classes, tier 6 crafting, max lvl 65, etc., but they either a) havent thought about, or are b) avoiding discussing activation of game keys post-launch.
I suggest contacting customer service to see if you can still activate an account key AFTER they go live, as account/subscription handling will most likely be changed on their end.
If you can activate it after the f2p launch, then from a $$$ to play aspect, I would personally see how far I can get and how it goes until I feel the need to go VIP for 30 days by activating the key. Unless I was really sportin a chub for the rune-keeper or warden, I don't see any advantage to activating it early.
Well, even if they don't give you a month of VIP, I'm sure they'd still count it as "Moria". So I wouldn't think you'd have much to lose.
I wonder what they will do to the retail boxes, though. For another game I used to play, the company went from P2P to F2P, and they redeemed the boxes as item mall money.
So some guy bought the entire back stock from a distributor. Like 1,000 copies (maybe 10,000? He posted a picture of himself with all the boxes).
And I bought about 15 of them. Because you'd get like $10 (or $20? Can't remember) worth of cash shop money, but you could get them on ebay for $1-2 each.
R.I.P. City of Heroes and my 17 characters there
This has already been asked and answered on the Beta forums. Being that LotRO is NOT going F2p; but only adding a f2p option to the existing sub base they already have, all those boxes in store's etc... are still going to be good, just like the DDO boxes you can still find. They might not produce any more of them, but they won't be re-calling them either.
Shadowknt - I think your plan is a sound one. As long as you don't mind waiting until 'the Fall' for the F2p option to go live. If you do pop it now, your 30 days of free play might be ending when the change starts just a guess though. You won't lose any of the free TP's as the free 30 days don't count I believe, I think they only kick in when you start forking over the monthly fee.
Remember if you use your same account / password from the 10 day trial, those characters will be avaliable to you when you start playing the regular game (either before or after the change).
SWG (pre-cu) - AoC (pre-f2p) - PotBS (pre-boarder) - DDO - LotRO (pre-f2p) - STO (pre-f2p) - GnH (beta tester) - SWTOR - Neverwinter
After looking at the F2P sub forum on the LOTRO forums, It seems that there are some unclear benefits to being a subscriber before the game goes F2P. The ones that I took note of where the bag slots, gold cap, and trait restrictions. There was some talk of characters created before the game goes F2P not being subject to the limits placed on a character created after the game goes F2P. The FAQ implies this about any VIP->premium down grade but the mechanics involved were not very clear, and reportedly not easy to test in the beta.
Oddly, I can not find the posts I was looking at before, as if they were removed.
2010.8.17
I think while one is a 'VIP' (an ongoing subscriber) during the ftp release they keep access to content they have already payed for (e.g. the MoM expansion) and any characters one creates while VIP maintains those benefits (5 starting loot bags, quest access in the new zones, no gold cap, 5 char slots, RK & Warden access, and access to riding skill @ lvl 20...)
but once the subscription lapses one is degraded to 'Premium' (having now been a previous cash buyer of LotRO content) and then you are limited to three character slots and you have to use their cash shop to buy access with 'quest packs' (costing 750 turbine points EACH) to access those quest you previously had access to while VIP.
whereas a ftp person now trying the game w/o ever having bought content before is limited to a single character and about a 2 gold in-game cash limitation and three loot bags (? 18 or 30 slot each, they fill up FAST), though even ftp can buy 'turbine points' (tp) from Turbine.com
example their DDO points
420 Pts $6.50 400 Turbine Points (+ 20 Bonus Points) to use in the DDO Store
1,550 Pts $19.50 1,200 Turbine Points (+ 350 Bonus Points) to use in the DDO Store
2,500 Pts $29.50 1,820 Turbine Points (+ 680 Bonus Points) to use in the DDO Store
5,000 Pts $49.99 3,100 Turbine Points (+ 1,900 Bonus Points) to use in the DDO Store
As it is, they see forcing purchase of tp will bring in ALOT more money than a single $10 monthly subscription charge!
Like 595tp for an extra char slot, 750tp for each quest pack (access to quest in other than the three starter zones), 295tp for basic riding skill, 2495tp for MoM expansion (retails for $10 at Amazon.com), bank slot upgrade from 30 to 45 slots 495tp, removal of the currency cap 495tp. They are looking at people having to spend $30 to play the game whereas previously people could play it fine for just $10 and adding another expansion for a one time $10 purchase.
...cash shops are evil...
Sorry, you're wrong. If you previously paid for MoM or Mirkwood, you get to keep those in f2p, as with the starter areas (levels 1-20). Only the quests in between need to be purchased if you don't continue to subscribe.
And as for subscribing vs. buying, it's all about CHOICE. what works for you. If you don't play every day, and it takes you say four months to do a zone, it would be more cost effective buy the zone rather than sub for four months.
And "ownership" wasn't even an option under the p2p model. It's suddenly evil that they gave you that choice? Some people are just never happy.
Activate now. You'll get 500 points per month before launch (now to launch should count) free. What you should -not- do is grind deeds you don't need - as after launch you'll get turbine points for them (5-15ish).