The multiplayer beta is right around the corner, but before it's out for playtesting, we've packed in one more exciting bit for the players! The newest addition to the Northern Folk: Mandos!
The Northern Folk faction, now consisting of the three Valar
Mandos is the Valar of death and judgment, keeping recorded and passing justice onto the souls of the deceased. Worshiping him in battle are the mysterious men of Forodwaith, Mandos is not just a culture, like the rest of the Northern Folk (Hobbits, Dwarves), he is a unique civilization, complete with 13 new god powers and six new Minor Gods.
Mandos' debut will replace the previously vacant "Unused" slot in the Major Gods roster; a god initially reserved for scenario designers to make use of an entirely blank culture, such as Dwarves in the Hobbit. Powerful units, and new strategies await with this new God! We hope you'll enjoy him in the beta at the end of the month!
The following is a personal note from the dev, reading further will not reveal any direct news on features of the mod, but if you are interested in a bit of behind the scenes, please continue.
Hi, my name is Venlesh, also known on AomH as "The Elva_Rokk", but my real name is Andrew. I originally intended to keep personal news off the site pertaining to the mod, but this and my personal life affect each other at this stage of development, and I thought the small following of eager players should know about any and all news I have to offer about anything that will affect this mod.
Legends of Middle-Earth has been a huge part of my life since I began creating new content for it last August, 2016, and while I was aiming for an August release this year, it will not make it in time. LOME has been an entirely solo project for me, only receiving an occasional helping hand here or there, but that's not what any of this is about. Last month in May, my fiancée of almost half a decade decided to end our relationship permanently. Almost over night, my life was railroad tracked onto another course, a course without the one thing driving in my life. In the course of a few days, she'd eliminate any trace of herself, anything she'd ever promised me, and any of the years we spent together from my sight and soul. This reality has rippled a shockwave into everything I do, all the way to waking up in the morning, and has sent the mod's progress to an absolute halt. She was a huge driving force behind my ability to make this mod, as we both share a deep rooted love for Tolkien's work-- she even went so far as to provide her voice for the game as well.
It's been only a few weeks, but I'm back to work on things, slowly picking up the pieces of my life without the thing I thought gave me a purpose. The multiplayer beta release will still see a release as planned, possibly in the early first week of July. The overall release of the completed mod, however, will most likely see a late fall release.
Thank you for reading this very personal note, and I hope anyone looking forward to the original release date is not too disappointed.
I hope everything gets better for you. Take all the time you need to recover and don't worry about a release date, for what is a few more months when you have been waiting years.
Thanks for the support, I guess a few months really isn't much when the last update was from 2012. In any case, I'm doing my best to carry on.
Hello!
I'm a big fan of both the Age of serie and Tolkien's work. When I saw this on ModDB I instantly hit that 'follow' button.
I know it doesn't really mean something from someone you don't know irl, but let me tell you that you have all my support, and I'm really looking forward to see this mod flourish !
Life can get harsh sometimes. Finding an objective and having a strong goal might be the best thing to keep your head up and carry on ;)
On the contrary, any support at all means a lot to me! Knowing there's even one person interested in the release of this mod keeps me going day in and out. To be honest, I didn't think the mod would get even half as much attention as it has thus far. Even if that number is a small one, it all makes a huge difference to me. So thank you very much for feedback and support!