Well, I figured we'd start one since it'd be nice to know one another behind our characters!  I'll start:

I'm never really hesitant on saying something about myself and will answer a question or two at will.  My husband actually doesn't like it when I post more than I need to, but I do!  However, if I don't really know you, I'm more cautious.  Anyway, here goes:

My name is Leiza (Aziel backwards), I'm female, 33 years old, happily married, and have 2 kids.  Well, almost 2 kids: I have a 2 y/o daughter, and a baby on the way (I'm 22 weeks pregnant).  Still not sure of the gender of the 2nd one, though I sure would love to know!

I'm of Asian (Filipino) descent, born and raised in the Philippines, but moved to Dallas, Texas in 1996.  I come from a musically-inclined family, my dad is a tenor opera singer, my step mom a mezzo soprano opera singer, and my mom a coloratura soprano.  My relatives are also very musically-inclined on both sides involving voice or musical instruments.  My siblings (I'm youngest of 5) all have been part of a chorus or something or another and won awards.   Whenever we have a family reunion, there's sure to be a concert of some sort at the end of it.

I've always been the "tag-along" in the family, so I became a "rebel" and joined my own type of rock alternative band called isLa.   If you want to check out the songs (we only professionally recorded 4), you can check them out at http://www.myspace.com/islaband though most of it is in my native language, Tagalog.  Our band broke up around 2000 due to unavoidable circumstances but I still love reminiscing the old days.

As far as education goes, though I did finish high school, I have not graduated or gotten a degree but I have 7 years of college in my belt, first 4 years majoring in Physical Therapy and 3 years majoring in Computer Information Science.  I took PT cuz my mom told me to do so (typical Asian upbringing) but I really didn't like it, though I worked for my mom in her PT clinic for 4 years.  CIS was own personal interest but then I got married and had a child and never had the time to finish.   Maybe one of these days I'll go for at least an Associates Degree on CIS and then go from there.  However, I'm currently working in the computer field that allows me to work and play at the same time!  Loving it.    

I love writing as well, though I'm kinda insecure at my writing and will keep criticizing myself forever.  If you would like to read some of my poems or short stories, you can check them out here: http://www.halini.com

I'm not very computer savvy but I do love tinkering with websites.  I have my own blog site that I update once in a while when I'm in the mood: http://www.ihavecramps.com or maintain a games forum: http://the-geek.com

As far as gaming goes, I used to love playing 2D RPG games because I found out that 3D games would make me dizzy and disoriented.  I used to always avoid the 3D ones like the plague.  However, when Lord of the Rings Online came out, I decided I really want to try that since I loved the storyline and figured it would be the only thing that will keep me addicted for a long time.  I still play some F2P games here and there but only just to see how they look like.

I think that's it.  If you have a question or two, let me know.

Hi, I'm a 26yo computer programmer from Canada.

I grew up on Atari, Nintendo, Genesis and then the new age platforms. Always a console kinda guy. Then tried my first MMORPG on a private server...Ultima. Eventually quit that and started the Free Korean games like Rappelz, Cronous, Legend of Ares and liked them.

I was not a fan of Tolkein books at all, the movies were just okay, but after day 2 of my free trial I decided I had to get this game!

I am a college graduate, and due to financial reasons a University drop out lol. Currently work in a small company as an IT guy and it is the most tedious job I've ever had, but it pays the bills yah

out of Lotro I like rollerblade Hockey, bowling, web programming, and reading The Wheel of Time. Glad to meet everyone in Aoll

Good idea, Az ... and I am so envious of people who have such musical talent!

I'm a 47 yo professor of physiology (cardiovascular) at a medical school, married with 4 kids who are much smarter than me (HS through college).  Always liked video games, but watched the kids playing WoW and never thought it looked fun.  Read Hobbit and LOTR in high school and liked them, but that was about it.  Decided to re-read them when I heard the movies were coming out and got HOOKED!  I was amazed at what I missed the first time I read them.  Bought the Silmarillion and became an elf and lore junkie.  Joined LOTRO in beta with 2 accounts - the second for my daughter Ingwaay.  She's a WoW veteran, which explains why she's better than I am at most aspects of the game.  Got a 3rd account for my son; he's now a 44 captain but doesn't have the patience to play with Ing and me all the time, so he's in a different kinship.

We tried a couple of kinships that never actually talked or helped out, so we left.  Stumbled onto Az the hunter (Lei, Lai ... I'll never keep them straight) one night when she and a companion answered Ing's plea for help finding a quest target over near Fornost.  Ing asked for a kinship invite and, viola!  AoLL really is a great group of people, and I've also enjoyed all my interactions with The Team and other allies.

Other 2 kids and my wife don't play, and I catch holy hell if I'm on too late, so that has taken a lot of the zip out of hitting level 50 because we aren't able to raid much.  I've gotten back to working on the books, so that has gotten Ing's interest back up.  Outside interests:  archery (Ing, too), bowling (wife and I are in a league, mainly a beer drinking activity), hunting, bicycle racing, playing catch-hitting baseballs with the kids.  Only TV I watch is ESPN when I cycle before work, a game when I lift in the evenings, and football here and there on weekends.

Got the extended versions of the LOTR movies for Father's day, so I do watch movies, and that'll keep me busy awhile.  See you in-game!  (playing Heurin, my captain, a lot recently)

Name's Mike, btw, which served me well in my many years tending bar.

Well, I guess this is a bit of a belated introduction, but here goes:

I'm David, a 20-year old college graduate, living with his girlfriend of almost two years, in a beautiful apartment on the river in Boise, Idaho. I was born in California and moved to Idaho when I was almost six. Before we moved, an accident involving a sliver of wood that was lodged in my left eye, put me in the hospital and I ended up undergoing several surgeries. Long-story short, I'm still live and kickin'.

I dropped out of high school in my Junior year, got my GED, and enrolled in a local community college, of sorts. Apollo College. Most westerners will know what I'm talking about. I got a certificate in Massage Therapy, but it has never paid off. Being a [straight] male, it is hard to break into the field, even graduating at the near top of my class. Now I'm stuck paying off a tuition that doesn't pay for itself (among other things), but I have plans and goals still, and will follow thru with them.

Gaming... Started out on Nintendo. Then to Genesis, where the greatest invention came into play - the Sega GameChannel. If you don't remember this, you missed out. Every Tuesday or so, new full-version games would be uploaded to your GameChannel cartridge. You'd have them for a week, and then play a new set of games. After that, I purchased a PSX (original PlayStation) with money from the paper route I had as a kid. Then the PS2 came out, which I purchased with my 'real job' money. Now we're into the era where console gaming and PC gaming are both very vast markets, and neither one really dominates the field, except when it comes to genres. I do not own a console gaming system, as they are priced outrageously, and I cannot justify putting forth that sort of money for a gaming system. So I maintain my gaming craves via my Apple MacBook Pro, running both Mac OS X and Windows XP.

That's about it.

in-game characters: Roigan (GRD), Tolimond (BRG)

Me too.  A plus for WoW was support for Apple, but once Mac added the Intel chip it was a non issue.  Supposedly there's a workaround to run LOTRO in Parallels while booted on the Mac side, and it would be slick it there was an easy way to do that, but running as a straight Windows machine works fine.  Sorry I got off the thread ... got excited by the fellow MacHead.

Plus, it looks like I messed up on how you insert a quote in a reply.  Oh well.

/ninjas AoLL's thread

It's your own fault, you made it a public thread =]

Name's Artie (anybody who's hung out with me at ALL in LotRO will know this), I'm a 26 year-old computer programmer from central Indiana. Been married to the lovely Ashley for a little over 3.5 years now, no kids yet but not on purpose    I'm a serious believer in strong families, and decided to commute an hour to work so I can be close to mine (parents are around the corner, hers are 3 minutes away, brothers and sisters all close as well).

I've been hooked on video games since I was a kid, causing a bit of strife along the way =]  I didn't do the RPG thing whatsoever until on a total whim I downloaded the Dungeon Siege demo (yes, you read that right) when MS first released it. That was my 'gateway' RPG, and eventually followed one of my best friends to Asheron's Call after having made fun of him for playing it for years. He moved to AC2 shortly after, but I stuck around in AC1 on and off for three years, having found an awesome Allegiance to call home. I swore I'd be there until they pulled the plug, but Ben got into the LotRO closed beta, and I decided to apply as well. I've loved the stories since I was a kid, and liked the movies although I wish they could have stuck to the books a bit better. All it took me was 8 hours in CB to get hooked, and the rest is history =]

Ben, Bill and I started the Team day one of open beta, since Ben knew exactly what he wanted in a kinship and the best way to get that is to start your own. We have a paradigm that puts relationships above anything, and that there are always real people behind the characters. This is why I insist everybody calls me Artie and why I bug people for their real names =]

Finally, I'm a Christian to the core, with a serious love for apologetics. I'm not pushy about what I believe, but neither am I a pushover =]

Much love to the Avatars!

Hi, I'm Tom and I'm an Alc.....wait wrong forum

I'm 30 years old. I'm an E6 in the united states navy. I'm an Communications Electrician. My wife bev is also USN. I have 2 kids- Josie 5, and Thomas 3. I'm a huge fan of the LotR and all of Tolkiens works. I read the books regularly, and I hang out on the official forums and encyclopedia of Arda while at work. Yes I'm a lore junky!!

I played AD&D regularly growing up. I still have a large collection of the 1st edition books somewhere in my garage. Always been a fan of video games. The only time I play consoles anymore is when on sea duty and out to sea. I played Asherons Call for around 7 years.

Jadelady and I came over to LotRO together. She and I had been playing together on the Harvestgain server of AC for a few years- Where for a time she was the leader of Avatars of Lost Light there after Braxis Prague stepped down. So we were both very excited to find you all here!!

For awhile my daughter would sit on my lap while I play LotRO. She got mad at me when I'd kill the wildlife "daddy don't kill the bear" but clapped when I'd kill the scary "dorks" (orcs)

I'm also musically inclined. I played electric guitar in several heavy/thrash metal bands while in high school, was a roady for a year for a couple bands after HS. Had a year of college but spent more time partying then in class. Didn't know what to do then so I joined the Navy back in November '99.

I've been trying for forever to get Bev to play games with me, but she doesn't see the point. Oh well!

I don't play with floaty names on LotRO, so if I run past and don't see you-It's not like I'm dissing you or anything!!

Well thats all I can think of, see you ingame!!

I'm Nick, born in September 1981. Live in Australia, spent most of my early years living with my mum and two younger sisters. Graduated high school, went to UNI and college, got a Diploma from college in Manufacturing Technology. Started gaming on my Aunty's Commodore 64. Moved on to the SEGA Master System, Megadrive, and Playstation. I always enjoyed flight sims, RPG's, strategy and a few FPS and beat 'em ups. First computer was a 386 that could only take floppy disks. Eventualy got a Pentium 1, that when I was able to fully get into computer gaming with games like Diablo, Baldur's Gate and Mechwarrior 2.
Diablo was the very first game I played online. As I got better computers, I moved on to Neverwinter Nights. Been playing NwN since release, and if I had started X-fire back then, the hours racked up would quadruple the total hours I have on SWG. About 5 years ago I found a NwN mod that was pure roleplay. Character biographies, the works, so been playing that mod as well as a few other more light hearted mods.
A friend I met in NwN got me into SWG a couple years ago. Met a great group of people there and have been playing SWG since. I've tried Dark Age of Camelot, Guild Wars, Tabula Rasa and City of Heroes. None had the holding power like SWG or LoTRO though. Been playing LoTRO since open beta, over on Landroval. My guild over on SWG deceided to make characters on LoTRO early this year and they chose Elendilmir, so here I am
Outside of computer games, I listen to heavy metal, go to the occasional concert, like watching DvD's, and have been collecting Warhammer minatures since I was in high school. I have a few armies for both Warhammer Fantasy, and Warhammer 40,000. And currently waiting for the new Warhammer Online MMO to be released.
Currently I'm unemployed and living off a disability pension.

Let see some of you may know me some may not since it has been about 2 months since my last log in and about 4 months since I regularly logged in.

My name is Tom, I am 32 married (9.5 years Melissa) and 2 daughters (Emily 7 and Allison 14 months). I am a police officer at a State University in Ohio. I have been a cop for 6 years now and love almost everyday of it.  We have an arena on campus so I get to "see" work alot of concerts. I deal with the same everyday problems that all police officers deal with, it isnt different just cause I work on a University campus.  I primarily work nights right now that is 7pm-7am.

I grew up playing just about everything Texas Instruments TI-99, Atari 2600 and 7800, Nintendo, Commodore 64 and 128, Gameboy, Gameboy Advance, Playstation and various desktops from an old 386 to present. Except for the fact my desktop is a p4 pre-dual core. 
I just like gaming.

My first MMO was SWG I played on the Scylla server and was a Imperial BH (Die Rebel Scum lol)

I played in a guild called VR or Vortex Reborn it was run by my cousin and he was the one that got me into the whole MMO thing.  In VR I met Seshayn and Pants ( although I had known Pants for years since we went to HS together)

I grew bored and upset with SOE for all the changes that were made to SWG and quit playing. I bounced around free MMO's for a bit Runescape,Silk Road and few others and ended up signing up for LOTRO beta testing. I was accepted into B1 and played 3 days before the wipe and start of B2.  There I ran around mostly by myself ( you will see me do that alot) until I found out Pants got accepted into Beta as well. I hooked up with him and he had been running around with this person named Aziel and the rest is history.  I  joined AoLL and we all ran around with each other for the rest of Closed Beta, Open Beta and then  game release.  And that is that.

IRL I enjoy watching Rescue Me, The Unit, NCIS, COPS, Deadliest Catch. I listen to Opie and Anthony on XM (Spread the Virus), play golf and softball and want to get a motorcycle (wife is opposed to that one).  Well I guess that about sums it up...

You can always try the "good gas mileage" argument.  Doesn't usually work, but worth a try.  I ride a YZF 600R, even though I regained consciousness one day in 2002 as the fire dept was jacking a pickup truck up to free my helmet (and head) from being wedged between the subframe and street.  They're so dangerous I don't know why I ride, except that they're so much fun .... and they get good mileage!

That sucks...I have seen and heard about some bad accidents...my cousin was involved in one where he was in a coma for 2 weeks and his GF died.  I am looking at VTX 1300, i am more of a cruiser guy I think if i was younger I would go for the crotch rocket.

Hi All,

I think you all know my real name is Will (Artie is quite the enforcer). I just turned 40 and had a nice surprise party. I have been married to my lovely wife, Elizabeth, for just over a year. She's in grad school so things are often hectic. No kids and no plans yet, but we have an adorable, sweet hound mix named Calli. I am her primary caregiver as those of you have heard me talk about "doggie aggro" know.

If there's one thing you need to know about my wife, it's that she is obsessed with blue crabs and crab decor is the dominant theme of our house. Also, Calli is short for Callisomething Something (Callinectes Sepidus is the closest I can spell and likely very wrong), the Latin name for blue crabs. Oh, and she has ALL of the musical talent in the family.

I've been a geek all my life. I've read Tolkien many, many times, played AD&D, etc. I forget when we first got a computer but I know we has a TRS-80 and an early mac. I worked with the mainframes in high school as well.  I think I've played games on them the whole time. I like tons of them (Planescape: Torment is the best RPG ever) and also have a PS2 and PSP, but don't use those nearly as much. I had never MMOed before LOTRO but a bud of mine works at Turbine and got a few of us into alpha and I've never looked back. I was in a kin created just for alpha (the Pink Alpha Fairies) and it dwindled as more and more people got into beta and standing kinships got started (a lot of the PAF crowd are in Safe Havens of Arda, Hall of Fire, House of the Moriquendi, etc.). One day after a wipe, I couldn't find anyone in PAF. Lucky for me, within a week, Az found me in a pug in Ered Luin and I've been at home ever since.

I started college as a comp sci major but it turns out I'm a very extroverted geek so that major didn't suit me.  I ended up going to grad school as a policy masters student (studying the environment) and then got a PhD and now I'm an economist at the U.S. EPA. So I'm still a geek for sure though we try to save the world a little bit.

A big part of my non-work life is the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Team in Training. I used to volunteer at an AIDS charity and they have annual fundraising bike ride and I signed up for that (first time was 2002, I think).  Shortly thereafter, two of my friends were diagnosed with leukemia and I signed up for Team in Training. The deal is that you commit to an endurance event (marathon, triathlon, or century (=100 mile bike ride) and raise funds and the team trains you.  I did one event and then another (because yet another friend was diagnosed) as a volunteer captain/mentor and I'm now hooked and have risen through the ranks to become a team coach, so I'm responsible for setting the schedule, leading the rides, training tips, etc. It's terrific--I really love it. I'm doing my eight cycle event with the team and also training for a marathon at the same time (see http://pages.teamintraining.org/vtnt/nyc08/wwheeler for more info on that!). I think I've mentioned that I'm a cycle coach a little, but I often have to get up early, which is why I haven't been doing too many Friday night raids--I gotta get up early on Saturdays.

This is a fun thread, thanks for starting it!

Will








I am on Myspace as willwheels (don't use it that much) and Facebook as Will Wheeler--look me up.

ZOMG Prien-how can you be that hyper and play a loremaster!!!!

well anyways-your dang good at what ya do!!!! both IRL and ingame.....and I thought the navy physical fitness tests were a pain!! let alone kicking balrog butt!

and glad to see that there are still people left in this world to cheer eachother on when bad things happen-very admirable friend!!

Edit: Mordread-much admiration for you and yours in that line of work. Being in harms way is also a very giving thing!!! I've known for a long time that your a police officer-doesn't matter where ya work. There is still the same dangers- I know, I've been shot at-NOT FUN!!

I am Rho, my critters (short for characters) are Windie, Bamoko, and Rhondda.  We were just brought into the fold yesterday morning.  As in "we", I include my husband, whose critters are Uilfrik, Corlik, and Dryman.  It seems our hobbits, Bamoko and Dryman made a pretty good impression on Adinarr, sense he was the one who invited us.  We have one son, Will, who is 15, and plays all kinds of games, and really prefers the ps3 to the PC.  He and I both love Rock Band, but Cleave (Dryman RL name) not so much.  Cleave and I have been together about 20 years, he's been doing the retro-style (PnP) gaming thing since 1976, and I hit the books during the golden age of the early 1980s.  We seem to know what we are doing out there once we get to know the system pretty well.  Haven't started crafting yet, and it's so hard to choose where to start.  We'll be on most everyday, if we can.  Thanks for bringing us in.

Hi, my name is Cleave though most people call me Will or William cause of work, but I preffer Cleave. I work on line doing website designs and maintenence and can't do anything without a spell checker at times. Rho is my IRL wife and we enjoy playing online games together both as a team or as individuals.

Seems Rho told you all alot about me already