A Lord of The Rings Party (Detailed Builds)

A guide to creating a fun and effective Lord of The Rings party for Hard+ games. Detailed builds and roles for Aragorn, Gimli, Gandalf, Frodo, Legolas and more.

Introduction

For my second playthrough (now with White March) I decided to create a Lord of the Rings party, something I loved doing in Baldur's Gate II.

The idea is to create a party of characters inspired by the LOTR books/movies but adapted to the games system, leading to a good gameplay (considering mostly Hard mode but you can PotD if you want).


I don't like Min-Maxing that much so I mostly avoid having very low attributes or chosing weapons/classes/races based solely on effectiveness. I do like RPing and creating faithful characters though, so I put some thought on which class and race would better fit a given hero. However, some adjustments had to be made otherwise they would have similar gameplay and eventually would be hard to play with. In other words, I wouldn't create Aragorn as a Godlike for Min-Maxing reasons, but I also don't worry too much about having Frodo use a bow/crossbow (instead of a glowing dagger).


This is my LOTR party (details below):

1) ARAGORN (PC) - Human Paladin: Melee DPS/Off-tank;
2) GIMLI - Dwarf Fighter: Melee Tank;
3) GANDALF - Human Wizard: Melee DPS/CC;
4) ELROND - Elf Priest: Ranged Support;
5) FRODO - Orlan Rogue: Ranged DPS;
6) LEGOLAS - Elf Ranger: Ranged DPS

* I've used many of the tips and basic builds of the nerdcommando's guide on character development (recommended): http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=416939844

About the Classes and Roles

I've read many posts on LOTR parties for RPG games. There are many interpretations on which class a given character should be. Aragorn could be considered a Fighter, a Paladin or a Ranger (although I would name him Strider in this case). Elrond could be either of those, plus a Priest, plus a Wizard... To be honest, after much thought, I do believe the class that best fits Elrond is the Druid - heck, it even has a wave-like spell quite similar to the one we see in The Fellowship. So some decisions had to be made, and some adaptations. I've finally settled on something fair, fun and effective.

* Those stats and screens are from the recently assembled party. I've developed them a little further (so should you), but I'm yet to reach Act II. I got the full party just before Raedric's Hold, so I did clear the hold (plus Kolsc - killed them both) with all characters at level 3 (only Aragorn was 4). I'm now kind of rushing things to get to the the White March quickly.

Party Builds - Details

ARAGORN son of Arathorn

Race: Human (Meadow Folk)
Class: Paladin (Kind Wayfarers)
Main Attributes: Mig 20, Per 16, Res 14
Party Role: Melee DPS / Off-tank

The King is my PC (who else?). He helps Gimli in the frontline, off-tanking when needed (still need to improve on this, he will need good gear). But he is also a Melee DPS warrior, having some buffs and heals for the party. He has reasonable Lore (a must for this party - I expect to have 3 high lore/mig/int chars so I can use Scrolls of Confusion, Paralysis and such on tougher fights). He's the leader, helping the party in the ways it needs the most (there's honor in staying behind to buff the third line damage dealers when needed). Because of Strange Mercy he's constantly chasing down weak enemies to finish them. Even if they get frightened, it's not nearly frightened enough.

Main Weapon: anything swordy. Right now I've Justice (Great Sword) but I intend to have Tidefall.

Important Talents/Abilities (early on): Flames of Devotion, Lay on Hands. Anything that boost damage. Anything that makes him a little less squish.

GIMLI son of Gloin

Race: Boreal Dwarf
Class: Fighter
Main Attributes: Mig 14, Con 19, Res 19
Party Role: Tank

Gimli is my tank so I have him running Defender most of the time (yes, it was nerfed). I mostly go for defensive stats but I didn't like the idea of making him too weak, so he is able to do some damage (specially after switching to a 2h polleaxe or something big).

Main Weapon: bring your pretty face to his axe.... We Toki is a good option but a hatchet can do just fine. Make sure you switch to some big ass 2 handed weapon from time to time, so he won't be too behind Legolas damage-wise.

Important Talents/Abilities (early on): Defender, Knock-Down (low-int so not that long, but I like it and it fits him well - he's a natural born sprinter!).

GANDALF the Grey

Race: Human (Savannah Folk)
Class: Wizard
Main Attributes: Mig 19, Dex 16, Int 18
Party Role: Melee DPS + CC

Gandalf is a wizard but it has been duly noted that he joins the frontline constantly in the stories, having a taste for a staff and a sword. So I decided to make him a Melee Wizard, trying out the Parasitic Staff for the first time. It has been challenging for now, but I believe he will be quite good by mid-game (specially after fighting the demon in Caed Una and becoming Gandalf the White). He also helps with CC and some damaging spell.

Main Weapon: Concelhaut's Parasitic Staff. This weapon is crazy good. When it's not active I use a quarter-staff, sometimes a sword (can't do both, unfortunately).

Important Talents/Abilities (early on): Arcane Veil (his def stats are terrible), Bonus 1st Level Spell (staff), anything defensive.

ELROND the Half-elven

Race: Wood Elf
Class: Priest (Eothas)
Main Attributes: Mig 18, Dex 16, Int 19
Party Role: Ranged Support

Elrond, Lord of Rivendell, is one of my favorite chars. I like to make him an archer in most RPG games I play, but in truth he is strong with pretty much anything. Since both Paladins and Melee Wizard spots were taken, I liked the idea of having him as a Priest. He's quite good at that, really, although he's also one of the mightiest heros in Middle-Earth. With a good ranged weapon and some buffing he will be able to help damage-wise too and I need the CCs/buffs.

Main Weapon: a good ranged weapon (no guns). I like the idea of having him with a Warbow, but he will have to compete with Legolas and Frodo on those.

Important Talents/Abilities (early on): Holy Radiance, 1st level and 2nd level spells are all you need. I've never played a high-level priest before but I understand he will be quite effective end-game.

FRODO the Ring-bearer

Race: Hearth Orlan
Class: Rogue
Main Attributes: Dex 20, Per 20, Int 16
Party Role: Ranged DPS

Frodo Baggins is a must in a LOTR party, even if it's not a Fellowship-only one. I also love the rogues in this game, so he's one of my main damage dealers. I don't like the idea of having squishy chars in the frontline, so I made him ranged. With his stealth and sneak attack he opens up most fights and later on I intend to have him doing a lot of stuns (that's why he has high int - also, having a 20 mig Frodo didn't seem right).

Main Weapon: Warbow. Will use the stun bow after Copperlane.

Important Talents/Abilities (early on): He must have Shadowing Beyond (invisibility) - supposedly you can choose it as an ability, but some say it's actually a ring that grants him this power. Blinding Strike, Crippling Strike, Marksman and other offensive stuff are welcome.

LEGOLAS Greenleaf

Race: Wood Elf
Class: Ranger
Main Attributes: Dex 20, Per 17, Int 16
Party Role: Ranged DPS

Legolas could be a rogue himself, but then again he could also be a barbarian and join the front-line. I do like him as a ranger though. The animal companion doesn't quite fit the general idea, but I mostly have him out of the way. Ranged DPS (specially in the openers) is awesome in this game so I like him as a Ranger. He can also contribute with some CCs later on.

Main Weapon: Warbow. Is there a second one that stuns? =)

Important Talents/Abilities (early on): Wounding Shot, Marksman, Specialization. Other CCs (later on) should be considered in favor of companion buffs.

Enjoy!

This is it. I hope you try some custom built, RPish parties such as this. They are fun.

I have some ideas for some other adventurers that can join the party later (Galandriel, Arwen, Faramir). I actually played my first time with a Bear Druid named Beorn.

I'm having a lot of fun with this party and things are going quite easy (considering the rush on HARD, with the exception of Raedric) so it's also effective.

Let me know if you have any suggestions or would like to try something similar.

[RARESTKARMA]

we can just pretend the archery target is Boromir.... WHAT! too soon...

[Lampros]

I think this is a cool concept, but I don't like Elrond in this party, as his combat appearance in the books is minimal. I would have preferred Boromir in there. Or if you needed a priest, then even Arwen would be more lore-consistent than Elrond.

[Erikkustrife]

@ashferar Bombadil would be a chanter. Like not even another choice. He is a chanter 100%. He uses the oldest magic of their exitance which is song.

[thalian]

What class would you make Bombadil? Druid? Ranger? Tho I was thinking he might make for a cool chanter...I seem to remember him singing and reciting bards in the book, but I'd have to double check to make sure.

[Zangetsu]

bruh..ur fantastic....thnx for the feeed!

[D'amarr from Darshiva]

For the off-tank Paladin with a Great Sword, higher Dexterity is much more useful than high Might.

[Erosジ]

It's a LOTR party, not a Fellowship one =). Also, including all hobbits, you couldn't have the full Fellowship if you tried =). Anyway, I specifically wanted to create a LOT party so I could try other chars like Elrond, Bombadil and Faramir. But a Fellowship one would be cool too!

[Whitizi]

yeah wtf one does not simply rp lotr without boromir

[sking]

No Boromir!!!!!