The Lord of the Rings Online is having a day. In addition to its latest class and Legendary Item revamp being playable on the public test server, the team at Standing Stone Games have unveiled the official name of the long-awaited expansion set in Gundabad. Fate of Gundabad, as it's being called, will launch in Fall 2021 according to the developer today on Twitter.
The expansion has been long announced, though the team delayed it from early 2021 to a late 2021 window earlier this year. However, players have been able to gaze upon Gundabad in the MMO for some time now, as the one of the more recent regions added in last year's controversial War of Three Peaks "mini-expansion," Elderslade, gazes upon the iconic Dwarvish stronghold.
Fate of Gundabad itself continues the storyline that has been woven throughout the Epic questline for the past few years, honing in on the deeds of the Dwarves in the North led by Durin VII, son of King Thorin III. The questline has expanded the story and lore in-game of one of The Lord of the Rings' undertold races, the Dwarves, fleshing out the reclusive civilization in a way no other Tolkien media truly has.
Gundabad itself is an iconic and incredibly important place in the history of the Dwarves in Tolkien's sub-creation, as it is the place where the first Dwarves awoke, including Durin I, also known as the Deathless. It has also been the site of constant struggle between the Dwarves and the Orcs, with incursions in both the Second Age and now in the Third Age seeing the stronghold fall to the Enemy.
Fate of Gundabad itself is slated for a Fall 2021 release, though no official date was given. However, the development team have stated that the new class, the melee DPS/Tank Brawler, will release before the Gundabad expansion. Just a few months ago, the dev team did give a little sneak peak at Fate of Gundabad, exploring the pass that leads from Elderslade into the new regions, while also briefly touching on a new world generation process the team is using to create the new content.
