What do you recommend for getting into the LOTRO community and finding a kinship? Also, what do you recommend for the sub option?
Yay LOTRO!Â
Ok, to begin with, the servers are all a little different. I am on Landroval and I’ve never really played on another server, but I’ve never wanted to because I enjoy Landroval so much. It is still a populated/active server, and the players are generally friendly and helpful. It is roleplay encouraged (RE) so you can find roleplay if you want it, but you don’t have to do it. Whereas on the roleplay enforced server (Laurelin) you HAVE to name your character a certain way and roleplay everything so you don’t break immersion for anyone else.  I also feel like Landroval’s PvP (called Player vs Monster Player on lotro—PVMP) is still fun on Landroval although it has changed a lot over the years. The PVP zone in lotro is small because it is largely a PvE game.  There are german and french servers too if you want the game to be in those languages. There are lots of European, British, and Australian players (and other countries too!) on Landroval, although I guess it’s largely an American server. https://www.lotro.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?77-Servers That said, here is a list of servers on the forums and you can read about them to get more info. I’m sure other people on the lotro tag are on an array of other servers and would be happy to pimp theirs too. BUT I still really love Landroval.
When I started playing, there wasn’t a Free to Play (F2P) option, but there is now. I say go for it! Play the starter zones and see if you enjoy the game. You can grind Turbine Points (TP—the currency to buy upgrades) within the game, or buy TP with money if you decide you want the expansions, other classes to play (like Warden and Rune Keeper), etc. All the time in chat on the game I see people who have started F2P and are able to accumulate enough TP (through different mechanisms in gameplay) to expand as they want. Some also enjoy the game so much they become subscribers. The expansions also regularly go on sale, too. The VIP (subscriber) option is nice because you will have access to all the zones within an expansion, and have perks like not having a cap on the amount of money you can have, accessing certain things in game that F2P can’t—like your mailbox anywhere—more storage space, etc. As VIP you also get 500 TP a month, which you can save up to buy expansions with or spend on cosmetics or whatever you want. That said, even VIPs have to purchase the major expansion packages (like Moria and Rohan). I’m there there are lots of forum threads talking about the pros and cons of VIP vs F2P. But F2P is a great way to get a taste of the game to see if you will enjoy it enough to spend money on it. Here is the F2P registration link! http://signup.lotro.com/lotro.php?ftui=LOTROWeathertopHCVideo&cl=75&hf=0&abrs=823_1411565321
As far as Kinships go, on Landroval there is lots of recruitment happening daily with the worldwide game chat. You can also check out the kinships on the forums. You sort of have to know what you want—role play only? Do you want a kin that raids a lot at end game? Or do you want a more relaxed and social kin that likes to adventure together? Like I said, you can read about kinships on the forums too!
Hope that answers your questions but I’m happy to answer others if you like.
