
Post Sections ⇅
- Starting Comments
- What’s in the LOTRO Before the Shadow Ultimate Fan Bundle?
- Choose Your Before the Shadow Edition
- Further Reading
- TL;DR Is the Before the Shadow Ultimate Fan Bundle Worth It?
With the latest expansion of The Lord of the Rings Online being released in early November 2022, it’s time to have a look at the LOTRO Before the Shadow Ultimate Fan Bundle! Let’s unbox it all and let you have a peek in to see if that is the package for you. I’ve marked which features apply to which package in most cases to help you out, too. This guide is mostly done at last so, enjoy!
Starting Comments
Image Quality/Load Speed
Usually I compromise image quality to gain load speed. While I have compressed the images slightly, I’ve not gone as far as I would normally. The reason is that some people may or may not choose to pay real money based on what they see in this Ultimate Fan Bundle review. Therefore, I’ve kept the picture quality high so you can make informed judgements either way. Until tech evolves again in a way to use higher-quality images on faster connections, I apologise if load time is slower here than my other content.Disclaimers
- LOTRO gave me a Code for the Before the Shadow Ultimate Fan Bundle for free.
- There was no expectation or inference from them that I should, or would, publicise it in anyway.
- There were absolutely no conditions on my receiving of it.
- I am reporting on it, with the occasional opinion. You are responsible with your money. Hopefully.
What’s in the LOTRO Before the Shadow Ultimate Fan Bundle?
The main items included are (use the links to jump to items of interest!):- (Mount) Elk of Flowing Silver
- (Mount) Valiant Steed of the Dúnedain
- (Outfit) Cosmetic Armour of Flowing Silver
- (Outfit) Valiant Armour of the Dúnedain
- (Pets) Friendly Heron and Loyal Turtle
- Weapon Aura of Elven Blessings
- Emote: /dance_elf4
- Mounted Emote: /mountdressage
- Flowing Silver Stones (Two Types)
- Carry-all Selection Box
Mounts
Before you open your boxes and ask Where are my Before the Shadow Mounts that I paid for?, the answer is that they are…wait for it… in your Mounts Panel! You don’t need to click anything to activate or “learn” them as you do with pets.Elk of Flowing Silver
UltimateValiant Steed of the Dúnedain
Ultimate Collectors
Outfit Cosmetics
I am aware I’ve mostly only shown female ‘Big People’ here. I wanted to get something out for you all. I have started on other races/body shapes, so will release these soonish.
Cosmetic Armour of Flowing Silver
Ultimate
Health Warning: don’t look at this in broad daylight – it’s very reflective! The Armour of Flowing Silver is a combination of – I think – metal plate and cloth. As with other Elven sets, there is a nod towards nature; either leaves themselves, or the veins found on leaves are used, but in a tasteful way.The only other thing I’ll give an opinion on is I think the helm is weird. The plate on the cheekbones and across the nose are great, but the spikes upward seem a bit more Angmar-inspired than Elven. But maybe I’m missing some lore in terms of how the Eldar dressed, or something?How Well Do These Dye?
I need to experiment on all pieces, but from my initial quick tests, the plate metal bits do not dye. I’ll provide screenshots soon.Valiant Armour of the Dúnedain
Ultimate Collectors
How Well Do These Dye?
I’ll provide shots soon, but the only bits that dye are where you can see red. Bits like the cloak’s trim, the pauldrons’ fabric, that kind of thing.Weapon Aura of Elven Blessings
Ultimate
For auras to show, equip a ‘blank’ in the equipment/gear panel. They do not appear to work if an actual aura is in the gear and a different one in the outfit slot.
Cosmetic Pets
Friendly Heron
Ultimate Collectors
Loyal Turtle
Ultimate
Emotes
Flowing Silver Stones
These are Pocket slot items and have different effects. Only people who purchase the Before the Shadow Ultimate Fan Bundle are granted these stones.What is the Difference?
Characteristics shared by both stones are:- Both have Scaled Combat Stats for the ‘core’ values of Might, Agility, Vitality, Will and Fate.
- Both grant 10% Landscape Token bonus for regions up to Western Gondor (L100 Quests).
- Both are Bound to Account. In one sense it does not matter as all your characters on that account will receive them. But if a character loses theirs, they can share with another character. The normal Tortoise Stones are bound to character, not account.
Flowing Silver Stone
Ultimate
Flowing Silver Stone of the Tortoise
Ultimate
Titles

Carry-All Selection Box
Ultimate
- Healer’s
- Crafting
- Task Item
- Essence and Tracery
- Instrument
- Housing Decoration
- Dye
Other Items
Ultimate Collectors
- Extra Character Slot
- Improved Expedition Supplies
Ultimate
- Extra Character Slot
- Shared Storage Slots × 10
- Ultimate Expedition Supplies
- A “Housing Teleporter”: I’m not sure what that is…considering we already have “Return to” for both standard and Premium properties like the Rohan Housing but the FAQ references Caras Gelebren Mural Alcove.
- Monster Skins…sounds gross but I guess it’s for PvMP rather than a Task Board!
What are Expedition Supplies?
Improved Expedition Supplies1 × 5,000
VXP Accelerator
5 × 5,000 Reputation
Boosts
- 5 × +100% XP Boosts
- 5 × Rare Crafting Components
15 ×
1,000 Virtue XP
4 ×
5,000 VXP Accelerators
- Ultimate Carry-All Selection Box
- Flowing Silver Stones
Choose Your Before the Shadow Edition
- The expansion story and quests: in case that needed saying…
- Additional Character Slot (Ultimate/Collectors)
- 10 × Shared Storage Space (Ultimate)
- The Mysterious “Housing Teleporter”: no doubt it’s been announced someplace and I’ve missed it.
Further Reading
TL;DR Is the Before the Shadow Ultimate Fan Bundle Worth It?
That is a question only you can answer! I’m not completely copping out. LOTRO have put a lot into this bundle, but I think the number of items and bonuses given for each tier is representative of the proportional increase in price.Had SSG not given me a code for a LOTRO Before the Shadow Ultimate Fan Bundle, my choice would have been based on our family’s financial situation, rather than what I thought I was happy to buy into.After all the above, my favourites are the Weapon Aura and the new Tortoise Stone, which may not be what SSG would anticipate! Anyway, whichever you go for – even if that’s the basic package – remember “basic” includes two new regions and a shedload of new storywriting and world exploring. I’m looking forward to it!