…but I did anyway. And you know what, I think they came out pretty spiffy.

One of the most engaging things about writing about LotRO is being able to go in-game and recreate the scenes I see in my head. I’ve done a lot of writing as a hobby, and the thing I always wished for was to be able to see things with more than just my mind’s eye. It’s this sort of balance of drawing inspiration from what I see vs. being able to recreate what I have in my mind. I have character art. I have action scenes. I have a way to block out in my head the locations of various points that are relevant to the story, because they exist outside of my brain. And I can go and visit them, and refine what I’m producing. Of course, I also have the advantage of readers who are passing familiar with all the people and places I’m describing.

So, when it came time to write the fight scene between Celebarad and the Brigand Captain, I hauled his butt out to Evendim and went and bashed Percy Alroyd around Rantost a handful of times. Trouble is, Percy spawns with more than just a greatsword, and I am a perfectionist, so “a handful of times” is a bit of an understatement. And it wasn’t much of a fight, the guard having outmatched him by 20-odd levels, but it let me stick him on auto, and swing the camera around while fraps snapped a shot every second. Anyway, now that the big climax is out of the way, I can finally share these screenshots. I’m really pleased with the way they came out, and hope they’re a nice little insight into how that fight played out. And, actually, you know what, I think they’re the first real look anybody’s had of Celebarad, so far. That picture of him in the title image of BaDFH really doesn’t do him justice.