Fan of Frostbluff (with Halenna of Gladden)

For those who don't know, Halenna and I are actually really close friends in real life, and so when the Yulefest came about again this year, I knew of the perfect Christmas gift for her, since she is such a huge fan of the festival.

This outfit was actually one of the first proper outfits I had Eadyth wear for a lot of her initial journey through Middle-earth, probably the first as I had her wear this not after The Great River. Back then, I didn't have the variety of pieces nor the creativity to make outfits, so this was the one I stuck with. Essentially three pieces, with a simple choice of quiver. 

Also, because Halenna's a relatively new player, she too was in that same circumstance I was in when Eadyth first started off, so I thought what better time and situation to give her the pieces I had. Granted, it's not hard to get those pieces, but I just felt like doing something for a friend, especially a friend like Halenna.

Halenna's been having a hard time finding outfits, and I've tried looking with her for pieces, though there are some pieces that she picked out that I don't think work very well with anything else she really has at her disposal right now, unless she just wears a complete set from the skirmish camps, which I don't think she wants. So we're still working on it, but I hope that during the holidays, we'll find time to look.

Sometimes it's nice to have all colours in the outfit match one another, this is one of those times when that isn't necessarily the case. The brown on the quiver stand out so much against the blues and whites and greys, but I felt it gives the outfit a more genuine look, like it would actually be a plausible thing to see, because in all reality nothing matches perfectly. 

Merry Christmas, everyone, and Merry Christmas, Halenna!

Head: Westemnet Assault Hood of Fate (navy);

Shoulders: Mathom-hunter's Mantle (white);

Chest: Snowy Tunic and Trousers (white);

Back: Fine Quiver (navy).

Guardian of Gondor

In his last days, Gildomir gave his all protecting the lands of Gondor. Knowing his time was nearly up, he lead a small command of soldiers on a suicide mission to reclaim Pelargir against the entire corsair host, buying as much time as they could for Aragorn and his host to arrive.

I can't really say which was the main piece of the set, but if I had to make a guess as to which piece I built the outfit around, I think it was the cloak, because when it was released in game, it really struck me as Turbine hadn't made a beautiful cloak like that before as a festival reward. Inspired, I paired it with the Nadhin heavy armour chestpiece and we had our basis of the outfit.

I knew I wanted to buff his shoulders up, and I thought what better way to do that than with the fluff of something, just like the fur shoulders on Celebindil's The Master over Lore and Life outfit. However, the colour just didn't work, and I was ready to give in to using just another piece of metal when I stumbled upon this beautiful shoulderpiece in Lalia's Market. I bought it instantly, and the rest just fell into place.

The helm was one I'd been hoarding for literally years, sending from alt to alt as I deleted them off slowly, until I finally found a use for them. I think I remember them from an outfit on Lotro Fashion and I told myself I just had to use it in a future outfit - about 4-5 years down the road I finally get there! 

Gildomir clutches his trusty spear and shield, weary of the battle he has faced so far, takes a breath, before charging his final charge into the fray...

Head: Strong Westfold Battle Helmet (black);

Ceremonial Stone-reader's Shoulders (steel blue); 

Back: Reveller's Cloak of the Odogil (steel blue);

Chest: Heavy Nadhin Jacket (steel blue);

Hands: Dwarf-make Iron Gloves (white);

Feet: Lesser Cry of the West Boots (walnut brown).

Sinister Silhouettes

Sorry not sorry about the inability to see much colour in the pictures for this outfit, because this time I tried something different: an outfit based almost solely around the overall silhouette.

Calonice would be my third (I think) toon to run through Mirkwood, and though I enjoyed the story the first time, the experience got pretty old. It also didn't help that I hate the gloom of the place, and it would have been a nice break from such gloom after spending 10 levels with it in Moria. My inability to see much colour in such an environment really annoyed me for a long time, but I thought I should make the most out of it by trying this new idea. 

I looked at the trees a lot in Mirkwood trying to find any light to brighten up my day, but instead I saw sinister silhouettes towering over me, just like the dark towers of Dol Guldur. Then it hit me: what if I tried mimicking the environment with what I wore? I threw a few pieces of armour together, ones mainly with accentuated points, stuck to a very basic and darker colour scheme (you could have it completely in black or grey, or really any other dark colour you wanted), and I was very pleased with the result.

Head: Helm of the Gentle Nudge (crimson);

Shoulders: Shoulders of the Deathstorm (crimson);

Back: Cloak of the Unwelcome Guest (black);

Chest: Jacket of the Shadow-walker (crimson);

Hands: Gauntlets of the Indomitable Protector (crimson);

Legs: Spellweaver's Leggings (red);

Feet: The Huntsman's Boots (black).

Guarding Gorgoroth

I've been keen on making another Gondorian outfit for Eadyth for a long time now, and I've played around with many options, especially with having the idea of a plate-bearing tower guard. However, as Mordor is such a difficult area to survive in, I thought the idea of plates on a hunter not specifically defending against sieges wouldn't be too bad an idea.

Just like with Kyix's outfit, I love the way the metal reflects even whatever little light there is, and it really does seem to give hope to anyone in Mordor who needs it (which is mostly everyone, let's be real honest here). Also, as you may be aware, I couldn't help but jump on the bandwagon of using new quest and ash rewards to come up with this, having already being beaten to that by someone else on my own blog!

I still regret my computer's lack of ability to capture quality pictures like those you may find in Wandering Around Arda and Material Middle Earth, and that bugs me a lot that such great pieces are subject to this sort of unfortunate treatment. However, one must do the best they can, and this is, I swear, the very best that I can at the moment. The U.S. is way more expensive to live in than I anticipated, and I already expected it to be pretty hard.

If you look back at Eadyth's last Gondorian outfit, you will recognise that I kept the shoulders and quiver, just changing the dye on the shoulder cloth to fit the outfit better. I thought of this as those being her more personal articles of attire that she intends to keep over everything else that she changes and upgrades to. I think it gives the outfit a bit of a personality, as in we know it's Eadyth when we see those pieces.

Now, some may be wondering why there is so much green in this Gondorian outfit - and to you, I say to look to the captain to her left. He's not wearing blue, white or black like a 'typical' Gondorian might. A lot of this association, I feel, came from the movies, where basically Rohan = Green and Gondor = Silver/Black. While that is a great tool to distinguish characters from a distance in war scenes or establishing shots from far away, it's not how things work in LOTRO. Just play Helm's Dike (you don't really have to - I know you don't want to) and you'll see so many colours adorning the Rohirrim soldiers. Whilst blue is used more often in Gondor within LOTRO, you can still find soldiers not wearing those 'typical' colours. So, that is my long-winded justification for using green.

Head: Strong Helnet of the Reclaimed City (olive);

Back: Fine Elven Quiver (white);

Shoulders: Medium Nadhin Shoulders (olive);

Chest: Reinforced Chestplate of the Last Alliance (olive);

Hands: Burnished Gauntlets of the Dunland Warlord (white)*;

Feet: Lesser Cry of the West Boots (grey).

* This would look (though subtle) much nicer dyed with Lorien Gold, but I have not been able to find any of that for months, so I left it as white. However, if I get my hands on some, I will be re-dyeing this piece.

A Flying Flare (with Kyix of Gladden)

I rescheduled the posts to accommodate this outfit being posted here when it is because I wanted to board the "use new Mordor quest rewards" ship as soon as possible. After all, what point would there be to let people see outfits based on these pieces starting June next year (yes, I have posts scheduled until then)? 

By now, Kyix is no stranger to My Middle-earth Mode, and her constant contributions have been stellar so far.* This one, however, takes the word "stellar" and brings it further as the outfit simply glimmers under the light of the sun, gleaming hope into the hearts of all the citizens of Gondor. Obviously, the winged theme is used here in the boots, gloves and helm, but my favourite part of the outfit is its use of armour/cosmetic pieces from all over the place.

* I just realised that she has submitted many outfits but only two, including this one, have been published so far.

The helm, albeit winged themed as well, isn't actually part of a Gondorian armour set - both gloves and feet are - but rather is a quest reward from Dunland. Not only that, but the shoulderpiece used here is a 2016 Summer Festival cosmetic item which I imagine shouldn't have Gondorian history behind it - but it works so well!

I feel that the chestpiece is the one piece to bind them all together in such success. Being a one-piecer, it allows for a consistency from the neck all through the torso and legs to the feet, which allows for  more deviations from the set in other areas. Also, looking at the outfit from close up shows the obvious and beautiful glints of light on the metal pieces all over; and I can totally see this being used to great effect in Mordor as the idea of this outfit contradicts the very nature of Mordor, giving hope to those who would fight alongside Kyix in such a dark and desolate place.

Overall, I utterly love this contribution from Kyix, and she has really raised the bar for the quality of outfits on this blog from today on. I might just try my hand at using some Mordor quest pieces in my outfits right now, despite just starting my second semester here at Berklee College of Music - all is going really well, by the way! 

Head: Reinforced Leather Dunlending Helm (Belegaer blue);

Shoulders: Mantle of the Summer Sea (grey);

Back: Cloak of the Unwelcomed Huest (Belegaer blue);

Chest: Invader's Heavy Hauberk (Belegaer blue);

Hands: Heavy Nadhin Gloves (steel blue);

Feet: Heavy Nadhin Boots* (Belegaer blue).

* although supposedly being in the same set as the gloves, this piece has a very different look from the gloves. Kyix said she found it on the Auction House, but I haven't been able to find any of the other pieces in that likeness, so I can't say if there is a whole set like this or if it's just the boots.

Celebrating the My Middle-earth Mode family!

After a year and a half, I'd like to celebrate the ever-growing My Middle-earth Family, as well as (finally!) an actual logo for the blog!

Just a huge thank you to:

1) my inspirations, the other LOTRO fashion websites, and especially Nathrien of Material Middle-earth whose comments bring a smile to my face and motivates me to keep doing this;

2) the friends I've made on Gladden who contribute to the blog by sending me screenshots of their toons in costumes they made: Kyix, Sintuilë & Halygr;

3) my audiences from all across the globe, who make it worth actually documenting these outfits and publishing them online.

Guy Like Gaston

No one's strong like Gaston,
fights bad orcs like Gaston,
stands and ponders his long life in pubs like Gaston.

I wanted to use Gaston as an inspiration for an outfit simply because we had this beautiful rustic looking town called Bree and it would be a shame not to make use of that. Since Gildomir was mainly a crafting alt, he wouldn't have gone far away, so to give him a nice costume to match his surroundings seemed like the thing to do. I didn't take pictures outside but I felt the Prancing Pony seemed like a great place to stage the pub scene from the movies/musical. All we need is a hobbit playing Le Fou!

The cape was added because I loved the way the crimson mixed with the steel blue just like it did in the cartoon movie, right at the end, as he leads the villagers to the Beast's castle. It kinda pops on out of nowhere but it was a very nice design choice that accentuated Gaston's turn to evil, as he was only ever a douche when the movie began - the deep blue finally cloaks the bright pride of red and consumes him in this darkness.

Back: Cloak of the Unwelcome Guest (steel blue);

Chest: Boar Clansman Sentry's Jacket (crimson);

Feet: Fine Westernesse Protctor's Boots (walnut brown).

You could find gloves dyed gold or ranger green to get it more similar to Gaston, but I felt it would stand out too much, thus why I omitted the gloves altogether.

Elf From Korea? (with Sintuilë of Gladden)

Inspired by their own culture, Sintuilë's player decided to dress her champion first in a traditional Korean Hanbok-inspired outfit. Although it's a simple outfit that needs not much explaining, I think she got pretty close with the pieces available to her.

I've personally tried on that outfit, and found that a lavender dyed dress looked more like the picture of the real life hanbok. Now of course the hanbok has many variations in terms of colour, but I do like lavender more than the rose. Unfortunately, the dye costs 20+G in the Auction House so I don't Sintuilë is willing to spend that money on one dye. 

Nonetheless, if you'd like to use this outfit, all you need are the same pieces, and you can almost mix and match any colour combination you like (though I think the hairstyle plays an integral part as well!) - just search "korean traditional dress" on Google and you'll get a vast selection of choices to follow that could suit any situation!

ps. I've been reminded to remind that despite it being Sintuile in game, it should be spelled Sintuilë, with the accent. It translates to "new spring" in Quenya which I can only guess is the player's real name :p

Shoulder: The Beast-keeper's Shoulder Pads (white);

Chest: Festive Azure Party Dress (rose).

Artificial Auroch

I'm really surprised I hadn't yet posted this considering this outfit was one of the earlier ones I've made. Nonetheless, here it finally is. Also worth noting is that I used the chicken head cosmetic helm for a long time before switching to this one here.

After making so many outfits, I realised something: I don't really have a deep, long, processed train of thought when I do - the outfits just happen. I might have a theme, a colour, a piece, something, but other than that, it's whatever I find and whatever I think fits. This outfit is no exception, in fact it might be the outfit that began me using this strategy.

The idea was to make a badass piece of armour for a goofy chicken head helm, and so I got some of the biggest plates and leathers together in a brownish tone, mixed-matched the different hues of brown, and voila! this outfit was a reality, and from about level 20-60 the head was a chicken. Now I've forgotten why I switched out, but it might have been due to the story becoming more serious, and so did my outfit have to mirror that. It doesn't stop Isenbran from goofing around from time to time, however...

Head: Keen Helm of Determination (white);

Shoulders: Ceremonial Town-saver's Shoulders (white);

Chest: Ceremonial Breastplate of the Aurochs (sienna);

Feet: Ceremonial Pathfinder's Leggings (rust).

Lothlórien Lookout

As thanks for training her in her developing years in their art of marksmanship, Eadyth aids her fellow elves in their defense against the darkness that lurks just beyond the borders of Lothlórien. She does so as she does with any other region she protects, in their own garb, to show her allies that she is one with them.

One may think that the first piece I decided on using for this outfit would be the chestpiece, which is a beautiful piece of metal that, unfortunately, is one of the only special looking armour pieces in the Great River region. Truth is, though, the shoulderpieces were the center of the outfit, starting Eadyth on a sharp/pointy edged motif that repeats from head to toe.

It wasn't too hard to find the other pieces, however, as a three pieces use leaves as a theme (chest, back, and hand), already fulfilling the pointy-edge motif. The boots I had her wear were very generic in most of my outfits - it's kinda the piece I go to when I find nothing else that works, but I think it works just fine here.

Head: Ceremonial Helm of the Whirlwind (gold);

Shoulders: Ceremonial Shoulders of the Gloom-bane (gold);

Back: Sturdy Elven Quiver (grey);

Chest: Ancient Inlaid Breastplate (gold);

Hands: Gauntlet of the Hidden Paths (gold);

Feet: Lesser Defender of the West Boots (umber).

Worm Wrangler (with Kyix of Gladden)

Wearing the hide and scale of her foes, this fearless captain charges into the lairs of drakes on her trusty dragon-clad steed. Together, their might keeps the worms at bay and keeps Middle-earth safe.

I have to say I am loving the new cosmetic armour rewards for this Anniversary Festival; they just look amazing. Well done to the new design team who brought such freshness to the table - it's paid off, as I've already received an outfit submission based around the new helm. Granted it's not the most versatile piece, but it does look amazing.

It definitely looks great in combat stance too, as the points on the helm and the shoulders create this intimidatingly beautiful outline. I use the same shoulders on my Rune Keeper and I can testify to the silhouette of her riding down the dark forests of Mirkwood looking absolutely stunning.

Head: Helm of the Unflagging Dragon (red);

Shoulders: Shoulders of the Deathstorm (ranger green);

Back: Cloak of the Boar Warrior (ranger green);

Chest: Scaled Hauberk (red);

Hands: Ceremonial Dragon-scale Gloves (gold);

Feet: Boots of the Unflagging Dragon (crimson).