Lord of the Rings Online Captain's Ability Guide

Ever fan of J.RR Tolkein, or at least a fan of Peter Jackson’s movies knows the tale of Faramir.   If Faramir were a character in Lord of the Rings Online, he’d be a member of the Captain class.  Members of this class are competent fighters, but more important to their role in the fellowship is their ability to inspire the men who fight under them.

The mechanics, although there are those who would decry the comparison, are similar to World of Warcraft’s shaman.  Unlike the shaman, however, the captain can double as a tank in a tough spot.  This character class can use a wide range of weapons, but it is only available to humans.

Lord of the Rings Online Captain Traits

All character classes in the mmorpg based off of Tolkein’s works get two traits which affect their abilities.  The officer traits are captain’s valor and captain’s hope.  Each of these adds additional effects to the flag of the appropriate type.

Officer Abilities

Characters who only want to use their weapon skills to full effectiveness should consider playing a champion or a hunter instead, but this class is the idea mix of skills and combat abilities for those who want to be on the front line of the battlefield and rally their troops to greater victory.  Like the minstrel, the Lord of the Rings Online captain boosts the ability of the members of his fellowship.  Just randomly pressing buttons to place banners will not work.  Having an idea what each banner does is necessary for a player to achieve maximum effectiveness with his character.

Below is a list of the banners and what they do, compiled from IGN Vault and the Lord of the Rings war cry sites.

Rallying Cry – boosts a group’s morale
War Cry – used when an enemy is beaten.  Gives group members hate on next opponent
Command: Make Haste – speeds attack and movement rates
Defensive Strike – a defensive combat pose.  Reduces damage, increases defense
Enraged Shout – increase the captain’s combat stats, debuffs enemies
Pressing Attack – a double attack
Harrowing Mark – causes party members to increase damage on the target
Telling Mark – decreases the target’s armor value, increases the critical hit chance
Cry of Vengeance – used when a party member dies.  Increase the combat stats of the rest of the group

Leveling a Captain in Lord of the Rings Online

The best strategy for leveling a captain is not to rely on solo play.  While the captain can solo competently and easily, the player who decides to level up his (or her) captain by joining fellowship and using the banners to the best of his ability.   As for soloing, it is not the fastest class to solo, but it can be done, as with many other classes, with care.