This is the appendix for https://lotroplayers.com/2022/04/18/li-base-guide-u33/. This appendix will focus on the farming, grinding, technical deep-dive portion of the LI system. Where to find the most materials, best traceries and the most efficient ways to get these. If you’re unfamiliar with how the LI’s work or are a new or returning player read up on the base guide first.

• Do i need to farm or grind?
• Legendary reward track and farming item xp
• Aquiring major LI components
  • Tracery general and ancient script
  • Tracery teal + gold
  • Tracery barter tokens
  • Runes of enchantment
• Non-140 level ranges and unfinished repeatables

Do I need to farm or grind for LI items?

My general guideline is that if you’re just leveling along or playing on landscape there is no reason to go out of your way to get extra runes or better quality traceries for your LI. Especially in the level range of 105-135.There are plenty of random tracery boxes in the epic, black book or legacy of Durin to fill out your LI.

Exceptions make the rule. Level 50 to 95 is a long level range where it might be worth getting some missing traceries if you miss one. Endgame, self-imposed level cap or server level cap (whatever server you’re on) is the moment where you will start investing time into upgrading your LI. 

In general enhancement runes are not suggested to spend time on. Finding better gear, essences or virtues will give a better result.

Legendary reward track

Any character that has completed the moria intro can contribute towards the reward track with item experience from quests or mob kills.In short there is no easy way to “abuse” item xp while questing. However item xp runes can be used to speed up the reward track. Use the xp rune as close to its shown minimum level. Using a level 50 rune on a 140 character will only deliver a fraction of progress. See https://lotroplayers.com/2022/02/15/quick-tips-for-the-li-track-u32/ for details

Season 1 is called Gundabad. Meaning that tracery tokens will be for the level 131-140 range. Season 2 will start around the 23rd of may 2022. Its contents or xp requirements are unknown at the moment. 

Unknown as well is what happens to any unclaimed boxes from season 1.

Farming item experience

The main fuel for the reward track is item experience. Any quest or mob above level 50 usually awards item experience. It’s all about the quantity of quests. Though group quests do provide more, but these are also fewer inbetween. 

Instances such as Sword halls are your best bet. Otherwise large daily bundles such as Forge and Loft at 140 or repeatables of other level caps. Questing rewards plenty of xp to reach level 100 within the 3-month period of the reset.

At this time I’m unsure if farming item xp purely for the reward track is needed. Season 1 repeatables are abundant enough in normal use, but 50 scripts per box is too little to get me warm for it.

Xp research – Understanding xp gain

Level range boxes

Major components

Below you’ll find the most frequent or easiest spots to find the ingredients for your LI. These will only list the repeatable rewards. Some raidbosses (on higher tiers) have a small chance to drop rare rewards.

Ancient script

Any tracery can be used for ancient script. Otherwise you’re relegated to the (repeatable) reward track boxes. Purple traceries will award 40 scripts, with teal 60 and gold 80. However most will come from purple traceries. For the grind it’s all about quantity. See traceries (general) for the grind spots.

Traceries (general)

Instances award random traceries from their bosses. The preferred options are instances you would be running anyways for gear, xp or weeklies. Otherwise there are some tactics to speed up the tracery lottery.

Speed run purple traceries

As many boss chests that have no locks. However above level 100 any chest that would award a teal tracery won’t give you any. For example a 132 instance of a level 140 character will get a yellow rune.

School of tham midraim at a lower level then you’re. For example switch between level 132 and 131 as you kill boss 1. If you want you can kill the last boss for a yellow rune. Running instances at 140 would reduce the killing speed too much. 15 runs with 3 people is about 30 minutes.

Teal tracery

At this moment teal traceries only come from chests that have locks. Higher tier favoured locks such as T3 of Gundabad instances. The exception for this is T2 featured instances will award a teal tracery as well.

Scaled instances at level 140 T2 will award a teal tracery. Tier 1 is purple. Usually not worth the time or effort. 

The following instances are on my shortlist for teal traceries (along with the other rewards they provide). 

• Hiddenhoard Tier 1 boss 3 (weekly quest, ember, set boots)
• Den of puglak Boss 3 boss 1 (5 locks per week relatively easy with only 1 tank needed)
• Featured instance 140 T2 (Fornost water, Swordhalls, Iorbars peak)

I’ve no experience in farming teal traceries on non-regulars servers

Gold tracery

Currently there are no easy repeatable sources for gold traceries. However level 121 gold traceries are still useful for level 140. However T3+ Stairs, lamentation and rest currently drop teal due to tier 4 and 5 sharing locks with 3 (Mithril chest instead of a seperate chest).

• House of rest Tier 4 boss 3? (tier 5 no tracery)
• Hiddenhoard Tier something probably

Tracery (shattered and cracked token)

These barter tokens currently come from 4 sources. From most to least 

• Appraisal of an LI by a level xx character (max Minas morgul tokens)
• LI reward track
• Epic story quests (see below)
• Very rare drops from raid bosses (no idea which, what tiers etc)

For a list of the current known quest rewards visit.

https://lotro-wiki.com/index.php/Category:Shattered_%26_Cracked_Traceries

Currently the most relevant quests would be. 

level 140 (normal server)

Legacy of Durin chapter 11.5 (1 teal) and it’s epilogue (1 gold). There are several teal and gold random tracery boxes available in earlier chapters. While random these can work for the level 140 level cap.

Level 50-95 (Treebeard)

The final quest of the followig epic V2, Book 6 and V3 book 9 for 1 gold each. With V2B5 and 6 and V3B10 awarding 1 teal token.      

Runes of enchantment

For the better part of the game. Runes of enchantmant are not worth farming for. The stat increase you get from a better piece of gear or another level outweigh them significantly. Their use largely depends on how long you will spend at the level cap they work for. As such this part will focus mostly on general advice and level 140.

General use with a level range

When you get them use them. With the exception that if you have or are planning to get a large quantity. Use them in the correct order. A teal will work on any upgrade (450-490), but a yellow will only work the lower part (450-460). The same with runes of higher level ranges (400-450).

Reward track

The early 50 levels provide a good chunk of yellow and purple runes. While the latter 50 do provide (an albeit smaller quantity) teal and some gold runes. However, don’t use them at this time. Save them for whenever gundabad LI’s go beyond the 480 range.

Barterable runes (all levels)

In case you’re looking for a bulk option. The only place you can barter the runes is the Tracery room for ancient scripts. Yellow runes are relatively cheap for 40 scripts. For the lower levels you can barter purple (100 script) and teal (180 script). At this time for level 140 you can only barter yellow runes for 450-460.

Repeatables

With the quantity of runes you need at some point there is no way to escape doing repeatable quests or instances for them. 

Level 140

The only repeatable quests for level 140 are contained within the gundabad expansion. These are often referred to as Forge and Loft or Floft in world chat or groups. These are 2 public instances with daily locks. In here you can do 2* 5 quests that all award 1 yellow and 1 purple rune.

In the same area you can pick up 3 kill quests for mobs in Floft or any area. There are another 3 landscape quests for items available as well.

Most other sources are really slow compared to Flofts. The crafting instances next to Floft are like that. But can be considered a nice bonus on top of the content. 

• First instance bosses give runes (later give traceries)
• Weekly quests (gundabad) + bonus teal
• Featured instance box
• Mission weekly box

Other level ranges

I’m unaware of any special rune sources in the quantity such as Floft (see level 140) awarding you 10-15 of yellow and purple runes for 30 minutes of your time.

In general if you’re not sticking to a level range for the instances or raids, such as on a legendary server. It’s a time-waster to aquire the runes. 

Treebeard might be the exception since each expansion you would only need 10 runes instead of 50 to max a tracery slot per expansion. The compact level 50 to 95 range.

Unfinished repeatables for non-140

As of this time SSG hasn’t made any significant effort in expanding the repeatable sources to level ranges outside of Gundabad. Hardly any of the repeatables during these expansions have been extended or rewards added to these quests. Below you’ll find a list of confirmed working or non-functional LI sources.

The only repeatable source that I’m aware of that comes close to Forge and Loft are the Minas Tirith dailies.

130	Minas morgul	Instance quests	Not expanded
130	Wells of langflood	Limlok bounty	Weekly (2 boxes)
120	Skharhald	Crafting instance	Weekly (2 boxes)
120	Hultvis	Public instance	Weekly (2 boxes)
115	Udun	Area and public instance	Weekly (2 boxes)
115	Dale-lands	Landscape	Weekly (2 boxes)
105	North-ithilien	Landscape	Weekly (2 boxes)
100	Minas Tirith	Public instance	Daily (2 boxes)
95	Helms deep	None?
85	West-rohan	All	Daily (1 box)
75	Dunland	Galtrev solo	2 runes
65	Mirkwood	Malledhrim	1 box
60	Moria	‘Infused” daily	2 runes