I admit it, I play Turbine’s “Lord of The Rings Online”.  I will also admit that I play it pretty badly for the most part and I am more interested in wandering about exploring than I am in hacking and slashing my way through various foul creatures.  So given that I am not a hardcore gamer and more a hardcore explorer I decided to try and find a way to add another dimension to my game play.  Fortunately for that was really simple owing to the wide variety of incense I have lying about the place.  So for what it is worth, here is a little post about what incense goes well with Lord of The Rings Online in various areas of the game.

If you create an Elf or Dwarf as your character you will start the game at Thorin’s Gate.  A wintry, snowbound and desolate place.  A good incense for that area is eucalyptus because of the clean, clear and crisp scent that it provides.  Another good one would be frankincense for the clear scent that it provides.  Unfortunately there are no campfires in that area or Amitayu Tibetan incense would work great.

If you start out as a Hobbit, you will begin your adventures in The Shire.  Any good cedar, pine, juniper or sage works pretty good for that area.  Especially the aromatic woods like pine or cedar.  There are a lot of trees in The Shire and fresh woodsy scents work well to help immerse yourself in the scenery and general feel of the area.

If you start your character as a man, then you start out in Archet.  A tiny little hamlet with not much of note except for a pond and a smattering of trees at the other end of a largish field.  Again, pine and cedar are good here.  Up until the part where Archet is burned to the ground when you complete the introductory quests.  Amitayu Tibetan incense is great here because of its wonderful smoky, burning wood scent. After that is Combe and the deep Chetwood forest.  Pine, and Cedarwood are the only things that come to mind here.

Eventually, for Man, Dwarf, Elf and Hobbit, all roads lead to Bree.  Bree is a busy city with chimney smoke, people, horses, the terrific Prancing Pony Inn with all of its antique wood and more.  Sandalwood is great if you are going to be hanging around the north side of Bree.  Lemongrass, Sweetgrass, Rose and Chamomile are great for the southern end near where the skirmish camp is located.  You will have many adventures around Bree, but in particular The Old Forest and The Barrow Downs stick out in my mind.  The Old Forest is perfect for pine, cedar, spruce and other woodsy scents.  The Barrow Downs is another story entirely.  It is perpetually filled with fog, barrows (crypts) and various shades spread across a desolate landscape devoid of a single tree or bush.  Frankincense works for me here because it reminds me of church and since I am in essentially a graveyard, it fits right in.  Cannabis,  Gonesh no. 6 Ancient Times and Tulasi nag champa are good here as well.

To the east of Bree lie The Midgewater Marshes and eventually The Lone Lands.  The Midgewater Marsh would probably stink to high heaven in real life with fetid water and mud, but a good warm nag champa like Satya‘s version will get you through.  The Lone Lands are desolate fields, rocky outcroppings and sparse trees.  It does have Weathertop though and that is a perfect place for Amitayu Tibetan.  The rest of the time sage, sweetgrass, lavender or lemongrass work just fine.

By now you will have leveled up enough for Trestlebridge, Esteldin and The North Downs.  Trestlebridge is a sad, smoky place that works well with Green Tara, Amitayu Tibetan, Frankincense and on the other side of the bridge, sandalwood.  Esteldin is aromatic woods once again like pine and cedar and fir.  The North Downs proper are endless fields and rocky outcrops that need sweetgrass and lavender but with a colder edge to them.  Like eucalyptus or camphor.

So for now, you can smell The Lord of The Rings as you journey through Middle Earth.  I would love to hear suggestions for other scents and scents for other areas as well.  I know there are creative people out there that know just the perfect thing for battling evil in Moria or trees in The Old Forest.