Post Sections ⇅
- When is The Tale of the Shipwrecked Mariners?
- Find the Wreck, Pick Up Cargo
- Tips for Lowbies
- Barter Rewards
- Tale of the Shipwrecked Mariners Missions
The Tale of the Shipwrecked Mariners is an unusual event in LOTRO – in a good way! In previous years it only referred to Mariner (Singular). But now there are two tales as SSG has introduced a brand-new storyline in the form of Missions, alongside the previous swimming event. I’ve also written this guide from the ground up, rather than remoulding the old one, so hopefully it’s more streamlined. River pun intended!
When is The Tale of the Shipwrecked Mariners?
- From: 14th September at 10am /servertime
- To: 20th September at 3am /servertime
Historically this event has not had auto-bestowed quests. You will need to head there without being reminded!
How Do I Start It?
Head out West from Bree, or East from the Shire. The quest-giver (and barterer) are on the shore, not far from the gate near Buckland 31.1S, 62.7W.
Speak to Argirion to pick up the original Tale of the Shipwrecked Mariner story.
Why Can’t I Speak With Mindambeth?
Mindambeth, the lady next to Argirion, is the barterer for the Tale of the Shipwrecked Mariners. However, unlike other events, you must do the story quest to unlock her wares.
Or rather, that character has to do it. If other characters of yours have, then they can barter with her.
But, since 2023, there is also another way to acquire what she offers.
More on that in a bit.
Find the Wreck, Pick Up Cargo
He asks you to go and check on the Captain, as he does not know who survived the wreck. Oh, and please pick up cargo on the way. After all, they are “vital supplies for the work” in Annúminas (even the ale).
Where is the Shipwreck?
You can find it – along with some crew members – along the Barandalf in Evendim. The coordinates are roughly 14.6S, 61.7W and the most direct route is to swim there.
Although your quest does not define this yet, you will need:
× 10 Kegs of Cram
× 25 Bottles of Ale
Note: You can make your swim more efficient by collecting the required items before you reach the wreck. You can always port back to Bree and ride back to the quest-givers.
Location Map
The Wreck from the River
Nearest Ports: Trader’s Wharf, High Kings Crossing.
If you have Return to Trader’s Wharf from the Wildwood of Bree-land, this is a good time to use it. You acquire it from the League of the Axe reputation vendor.
Kegs of Cram, Waterlogged Crates and Lockboxes
Swimming down the Brandywine, along the shores are three types of items:
Kegs of Cram
Really obvious barrels that somehow have not got waterlogged. Probably best, who wants soggy cram?
Oh, and this the Keg of Cram you need for the quest as well as for bartering later.
Waterlogged Crates
These crates contain one or two Bottles of Ale.
Waterlogged Lockers
The last type of washed-up container Tale of the Shipwrecked Mariners. Despite the fact that you’re on a search and recovery mission, apparently it’s fine to take the contents of these boxes. Loot them as a normal lockbox.
What’s in a Waterlogged Lockbox?
Trash
Because they act like a normal landscape lockbox, they contain a random assortment of trash and coin.
But that’s not all!
Hats!
In all three that I found on my first run, I had Mariner hats and two designs that matched those are the barterer!
And it looks possible to get all three cosmetic appearances from Lockers, too. Assuming, of course, that you don’t have others competing for them at the same time as you.
So, if you don’t want to keep picking up cram and kegs, swim the Brandywine looking for Waterlogged Lockboxes instead.
Hats as Gear
The primary difference between the looted versions and the bartered ones is that those from the lockboxes are stat gear. Sadly it isn’t scaling gear, so my Level 82 Hobbit did not get Level 82 gear.
But the level isn’t “set” either, as I had a mixture of Level 25 and 45 loot. There are also two different names – at least for the ones I found: Ship Captain’s Hat and Deckhand’s Hat. Per the link below, “First Mate” items can also be found in Lockers.
You can find the full list of possible items from Waterlogged Lockers, over on LOTRO-Wiki
.
Tips for Lowbies
If you are of a lower level (say, under Level 35) then:
- Make sure you pick up crates and kegs in Bree-land.
Or, at least, take them from parts of Evendim where there are no enemies. Some creatures and tomb-robbers stray pretty close to the river’s edge. So, be careful. - Keep Floaty Names On:
enemies with red or purple names will see you from much further away. - Consider taking a friend, or a higher character.
Cosmetics are account-bound so can be shared across character and put into your Wardrobe. Unless you want the XP for levelling, if you have higher-level characters, then run it on those instead.
Barter Rewards
Even with the new event additions for 2023, the Tale of the Shipwrecked Mariners event did not gain any new barter rewards. But if you have not run the event before, then maybe this is your year.
Assuming you did not manage to pick up any Waterlogged Lockers, then you can barter for Mariner (or pirate)-style hats with Mindambeth.
Each item costs the same: 10× Kegs of Cram and 25× Bottles of Ale.
Mariner’s Hat
Mariner’s Eyepatch
Mariner’s Hat and Eyepatch
Do They Dye?
Whether it’s worth dying it will depend on your shoulder and upper-body cosmetics. With Myrlas, most of his upper body clothing is tunics with high-ish collars. So, in that case, there would be little point.
I suppose if you had a looser Corsair piece, or the new Jacket of the Shipwrecked Mariner, then it might work.
Tale of the Shipwrecked Mariners Missions
I am re-running the Missions now to check everything, and will remove this notice once I'm done. Enjoy!
Stowaway: The Old Man on the Sea
Very much new to 2023 is a new storyline played out in the form of eleven Missions. But there’s no quest, vector or map to direct you to the quest-giver.
The missions are a combination of storytelling and combat, with a couple of them requiring no fighting at all.
The series of missions are Stowaway 01 to Stowaway 11. The quests and mission names are different though, so I’ve put both in the overview below.
Are They Worth Doing?
This tale is very well-written. You should totally experience it at least once.
Where is the Missions-giver?
You will find Falnavar sat on the opposite side of the Brandywine to the actual Shipwreck. So, he is in Evendim and his coordinates are 16.3S, 60.6W. And he is another Shipwrecked Mariner!
Mariner Missions Overview
I don’t want to spoil the story for you but here is a quick look at what each chapter entails. If you want to go in “blind” (which, to be honest, is recommended!) then click/tap here and you’ll skip the overview.
I have purposefully kept most of these images small so they’re teasers. Maybe next year I’ll go into my impressions of the story myself. Maybe.
These Missions do not appear to count for the 'Continuing Mission' Weekly wrappers. I suspect this is because some are really short and others need no combat at all.
01 Ignoble Beginnings
Mission: A Life at Sea
02 The First Tour
Mission: Attack on Pelargir
Tip: The people you need to rescue have
quest rings in the Mini-map.
03 The Turning Tide
Mission: The Tolfalas Shore
04 Kinship
Mission: My Bosom Friend
No combat required.
05 The Incident
Mission: The Nenglor
Tips:
- The people you need to rescue have
quest rings in the Mini-map. - The Corsairs here do respawn during the Mission.
06 Shore-bound
No combat required
Mission: The Nenglor Reborn
Tips:
- Put floaty names on to find places to put posters up.
- Use your “select nearest item” shortcut.
07 Too Far Afield
Mission: The Sermon
No combat required
08 No Longer in Service
Mission: To Plot Revenge
09 To Vengeance Bound
Mission: Marked
Tips: I found the end fight tricky, so:
- Keep potions to hand.
- Know where your “cleanse” ability is.
10 On Strange Shores
Mission: The Beast
11 I, Mariner
Mission: A Final Vengeance
Mission Reward: Cosmetic Outfit
Legendary Item XP. Admittedly it’s a fair amount of LIXP and some missions are very quick turnarounds.However, completing the series grants you a whole Mariner’s cosmetic outfit set.
To avoid mindless repetition I’ve just labelled the items by the item description. But each is “…of the Shipwrecked Mariner”.
Important: Your outfit is found in the 'Recruitment Notice' quest item in your bags. You have to read it to complete the Stowaway 11 quest and receive your cosmetics.
Headband
Does It Dye?
Yes
Shoulder Guards
Does It Dye?
Very Limited
Jacket
Does It Dye?
Yes
Gloves
Do They Dye?
Very Limited
Boots
Do They Dye?
Very Limited
Note: Items marked as 'Very Limited' only allow you to dye a bit of border. You can just about tell, but unless it really clashes, I wouldn't use up dyes on such a tiny part of the outfit.
Looking for Outfit Inspiration?
Then take a look at Laurel’s Den’s selection of Shipwrecked Mariner-themed cosmetic outfits!
TL;DR Experience the Tale of the Shipwrecked Mariners for Yourself
I wish I could share how the story of the new Missions made me feel, but that would give too much away, I think. Go read it, play it and experience it for yourself. LOTRO’s writers have done brilliantly to create a mini-story that you are a part of and you don’t know who you are representing until near the end.
The Tale of the Shipwrecked Mariners event may only take you 1-1½hrs to complete, but it is well worth it. See yous later, me-hearties!
About the Author
I have been playing MMOs for about ten years and began writing guides to The Lord of the Rings Online in 2017. I've only been creating content about Final Fantasy XIV since 2022, but I am glad for the mix. My current games include LOTRO, FFXIV and the occasional Palia session too.
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