Between Lotro and DDO

Hey gang,

I'm a long-time lurker, and decided to post this question...

In two weeks I'll be finishing my student teaching, and I'm looking for something to play until spring semester starts.  I've been playing MMOs since Ultima Online, Legends of Kesmai, through EQ, DAoC, Vanilla WoW, etc...

My last addiction was EQMac (unfortunately it's shutting down), and before that was pre-Pandara WoW (well, LoL was an addiction for a while too), and I'm curious how LotRo and DDO are these days.  Also, if you have additional recommendations, I'd be glad to listen.

Stipulations:

1. I converted to Macs now.  It's not really my choice, my school made me buy a brand new macbook pro.  I won't partition or install windows on this machine, because I'm still under the scrutiny of my school's IT department.  So please limit games that have Mac software.

2. I like grouping.  Soloing is cool sometimes, but I want games with a big emphasis on pre-endgame group content.

3. I love a good community.  EQMac had an amazing, yet small community.  I would love to see a game that had a similar spirit of helping newbies and constructive cooperation.

4. I like RP and immersion.  I don't necessarily speak in Shakespearean English, but I like to be immersed in a game.

5.  FTP is nice and all, but not a requirement.

6.  I like a deep fantasy setting.

7.  I like games with polish.  I love WoW and EQ because wizards, druids and mages, warlocks have teleport spells, summons, tables, polymorphs, etc.  These are spells that don't just make things go boom.

So I'm looking for recommendations.  Specifically, I'm wondering how LoTRO and DDO are doing these day.

Thanks!