Update 12.1(.1): Unstable start but new Gems

smaug thumbnailSo a few days ago update 12.1 and later 12.1.1 hit the stores. First for Apple and Kindle, and later for Android. Many many Apple users erported highly unstable gameplay, sometimes not even being able to get in-game, prompting many to not update if they had a choice. Right now, the 12.1.1 patch seems to have fixed most problems and all versions are running as stable as we can expect.

In the 12.1 update preview I already posted a list of likely things to be coming in this patch, but now we know for sure. Here are the changes from previous versions:

  • 3D maps can now be toggled (2D/3D), hopefully removing some of the lag with the 3D map.
  • Heroes in Training position now defend wall and rein even when the city is closed. By far one of the biggest changes, meaning no more free wall TKs unless no Hero is assigned, and the option to simply close during TK without giving away rein troops for free.
  • Some changes to item orders and unpacking orders. I still hate the unpacking order. Just keep it as it was: add new chests to the bottom and do NOT have the screen jump around….
  • Two more slots for Oystering Boats. Useful? We’ll see..
  • And lastly: NEW GEMS! Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald and Citrine Gems are coming. I am confident they will work identical to Artamir gems, but simply have the type of buffs for each gear piece switched around, so it would be possible for example to get Attack debuff on every piece of your CHS gear instead of just the ring…Wil scores go up to 1.5B? Probably. Will it widen the gap between top and bottom players even more? Likely. Will it make TK comps even more tedious as noone is gonna stay open? I hope not….

Lake-Town 5th City: All you need to know

laketownarticleheaderLake-Town is the new expansion city to the Kingdoms of Middle Earth that was released late November, and which will be available to everyone after the 4th of December for free! Unlike the 4 older cities, the style of the city matches that of the human Lake-town from the movies, instead of the familiar Elven or Dwarven theme. Although a lot in the city will seem familiar, some key differences with regards to gameplay and buildings also come with the 5th city. In this article I will sum up all available information on this newest city.

  • 1. The Basics
  • 2. The Buildings
    • 2.1 Familiar Buildings
    • 2.2 The new and changed Buildings
  • 3. Construction
    • 3.1 Lake-Town architects
    • 3.2 Pearl and Lake-town architect full overview
  • 4. Oysterboats, Pearls and Tactical training
    • 4.1 Pearls
    • 4.2 Oystering Research
    • 4.3 TT training
  • 5. Heroes
  • 6. How to start with your City construction

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City Buildings: the Sage Tower

headerThe Sage Tower acts as the event center of your cities. Uniting your cities, only one center can be constructed, serving all your four or five cities. Items won in special events can be exchanged in the Sage Tower, while other items such as gear and Gems can be exchanged for materials acquired in campaign primarily. As there are a large number of Sage Tower trades, this articles is meant to give an overview of these for less-experienced players.

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Lake Town City preview!

ladetown deedFrom friends from a (I believe) Spanish server, we have gotten the first impressions of Lake Town, the new 5th City that will be released shortly. It looks darker and completely different from the previous cities, and the main purpose will be to produce Pearls needed for TT training.

Also given the look of the Lake Town deed to open up Lake Town. These are gonna be incredibly rare during the first few weeks after introduction, so be sure to compete as hard as you can in the ToM that will award them first!

city5preview

KoM 101: Farming made easy

small-farm-tractorsPerhaps not long awaited, but certainly long planned…my post on farming in Kingdoms of Middle Earth. Farming resources from other players is on of two ways of gaining resources, the other being producing it yourself in your cities. Farming other players however, is vastly more profitable than producing, and so will quickly become essential for your might growth, if done properly of course.

In this article, I will explain to you my method of farming. I know there are many methods and styles to choose from, so if you don’t like this style that’s ok. I’ve just found that it nets me more than enough resources in a short time, trying to be as efficient as possible. It will take some effort to set up, but once working, will really ease your farming trips.

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KoM 101: Getting through your first 7 days

bubbleWhen you start playing Kingdoms of Middle Earth, you are thrown into a busy, confusing world, with cities, wilds, goblins, alliances and players yelling in GC. It can be difficult to get a grasp of the many game aspects. I remember my starting point as extremely slow in hind sight…Figuring everything out by myself, occasionally guided by the KoM wiki, progressing ever so slowly. If I would have known what I know all now, progress would have been much faster.

This article is meant for new players who, instead of figuring out everything by themselves, want to get a head start. Starting a new game, you are placed in your safe bubble for 7 days. But how do you start your journey? What should you build and train, what aspects to focus on? All this and some more tips after the break!

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10+ Daily things to do in Kingdoms of Middle Earth

calendarJust a few tips on things you just HAVE to do on a daily basis when you play KoM (semi) seriously. This will really help you in the long term and will keep you from getting farmed, bring you better prizes in premium chance sales, and use your time as efficiently as possible, at the cost of a mere 30 minutes max per day!

Here goes:

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What to spend your Hobbit Building Crews on

HBCA couple of times I’ve heard people ask, both in GC and AC, what the best building to spend a Hobbit Building Crew on is. Although I recognize that for many players this question will be obsolete by this point in the game, some newcomers might find my views helpful in deciding where to spend their HBC’s.

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How to train Tier 4 troops

dwarfphalkanxIn light of Tier 4 troops now being almost completely available for training (just waiting for Ranged troops atm), I thought it would be handy for those that do not train them yet, to chart which buildings and researches you have to upgrade to train them. It’s gonna take a lot of time to get there, and once there, the troops also train hella slow, but here goes.

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How to best use your Heroes!

gandalfsmallIn a number of earlier posts, the use of a Hero is mentioned in optimizing certain game processes such as training troops.

This posts is meant to shed some light upon the use of the Heroes, which can be assigned to various tasks within your city. Once you are in your 2nd/3rd week of city building, your Hero becomes invaluable in saving precious time!

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Why bonuses in training/ construction/ research appear smaller than expected

This happened to me a week ago: I go to train some troops, and look before queing at the training times: it was something in the order of 10 minutes. I remembered that I needed to put my hero in the training job, so I did. He was level 65 at the time, so, I expected something around a 30% decrease in training time.

To my surprise, when I did the calculations, turned out the decrease was only ~13%! This messed up my mind. I was thinking: “Wait, if the time normally is 100, it should now be 70, 30% less. And if other bonuses are in play, say, another 50% or something, 50-30 is 20 left, a 60% decrease…..i.e. the decrease in training time should ALWAYS be ~30% OR more!

I’ve never been so wrong in my life….

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