What changed in Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™ in 2018

Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™ Definitive Edition includes all DLCs and updates.

Definitive Edition includes all Story DLC, Slaughter Tribe, and Outlaw Tribe.

Fixed issue where Spiders could instantly kill Captains.

Fixed an issue with Showdown Missions disappearing from the map under certain circumstances.

Fixed an issue where descriptions of Training Orders would not appear when playing offline.

Fixed an issue where the Rune Affix for Draining or Dominating to Gain Health wasn’t working correctly.

Fixed an issue where the 'Eastern Front' Achievement was not being properly awarded for completing the mission 'Unfinished Business' in Lithlad.

Fixed an issue where incorrect Overlord dialogue could play during the penultimate fortress assault.

Fixed an issue where Undead Followers could betray Talion if he attacked their Blood Brother.

Fixed an issue where 'Bright Lord’s Wrath' Skill was not restoring health properly.

Fixed issue where the Dark Eltariel skin could revert to regular Eltariel skin when Curse effects expired.

Fixed an issue where the 'Elven Conquest' Achievement was not unlocking when the Dark Eltariel skin was equipped.

Fixed an issue with the Dagger/Sword character pose when viewing Legendary Gear Sets.

Fixed Dagger Affix 'Gain Might on Quick Throw.'

Fixed an issue where swords broken by Sword Breakers would not level above 70 when reclaimed.

Fixed issue with 'Focus on Hit' Ranged Prestige Skill. It will now work against all enemy types.

Fixed various Localization text issues.

Fixed an issue with gear not being properly awarded in Friendly Online Conquests.

Fixed an issue where Nazgûl Masks were not being properly awarded for completing various years during Shadow Wars.

Fixed an issue where the player could exploit the Mask of the Undying to gain Might during infinite teleport-dash attacks.

Fixed an issue with Empty Spots in the Hierarchy that couldn’t be replaced.

A free demo is now available, allowing players to explore the region of Nurn and its quests.

Enraged By banners now display in the HUD during Pit Fights.

Tighter cooldown added to the Berserker’s whirlwind attack.

Overall spawn rates for Legendary Orcs have been increased.

Players can now choose to appear as Celebrimbor and Dark Eltariel.

Captains recruited during these modes can now be found in your Garrison.

Fixed issues where deploying Captains could lead to lost Orcs or block progression.

A variety of Orc attacks now charge through Defender shields.

Players can spend perfect gems to re-roll secondary traits on gear.

Fixed an issue where Shadow Dominating could block mission progression.

Added mission start points in Minas Morgul and Lithlad for easier campaign switching.

Players can now reach level 80, with enemy Orcs able to reach level 85.

Fixed issues causing missions to become blocked under certain conditions.

Gang-fighting behavior in Fight Pits has been improved.

The Market is removed, replaced with an updated Garrison menu for Orcs, Chests, Training Orders, and Boosts.

Players can spend Mirian to raise gear levels to match Talion’s current level.

XP rewards and costs above level 30 have been rebalanced.

Reduced stages and missions required for 100% completion of Shadow Wars.

New Prestige Skills allow for character customization after Act III.

Unspent Gold currency has been converted into Gold Loot Chests.

Beasts now have increased attack and defense values against high-level Captains.

Shortened the duration of rage if the Enrage Allies ability is used without Wrath.

Spoils of War Rewards and Community Challenge Reward Chests now focus on Training Orders instead of Orcs.

Captains killed during Online Vendettas and Ranked Conquests now drop gear.

Fixed various issues affecting game stability and progression.

New gear pieces awarded for completing Shadow Wars, including Servant’s Blackened Armor and others.

Fixed an issue where the difficulty setting displayed in the Main Menu would sometimes not correctly apply to gameplay once loaded in.

Fixed a number of issues where Achievements were not being awarded properly.

Fixed an issue where Gear Challenges were sometimes not being tracked correctly.

Fixed an issue where an assigned Follower would become unassigned after advancing time via a Headir.

Addressed an issue where the player could get stuck on an infinite loading screen when starting a Fortress Defense.

Resolved an issue where an Orc would spawn incorrectly during an ambush, leaving the player stuck for 30-60 seconds.

Fixed an issue where bodyguards assigned to an enemy Overlord did not betray the Overlord and attacked the player instead.

Fixed an issue in the Desolation of Mordor Story Expansion where rewards were not being given when capturing an Outpost on subsequent runs.

Resolved an issue where decoys could get an invisible body after promotion.

Players can command the forces of Man against a new Orc threat to the East.

Fixed various issues in the user interface, including Photo Mode and error messages.

Fight to survive in Mordor as a human without the power of a Ring or a wraith.

Added additional entries to the Player Stats page.

Complete a host of new outpost missions and overthrow the imposing Marauder fortress of Shindr‚m.

Overlords can now have Bodyguards, which function the same as Warchief Bodyguards.

Fixed various issues affecting game stability.

Unlockable Baranor character skin for the main story campaign.

New side missions that involve the character Torvin.

Introduction of new human mercenaries and bodyguards in the game.

Adjusted player damage against Orcs of vastly higher level.

Significantly increased the damage grunt Orcs deal to Captains.

A new story campaign featuring Baranor, the Captain of the Tower from Minas Ithil.

Reduced rate of Orc power growth in late game.

Face new enemies, including the mythical Were-wyrms.

Corrected too-high Wrath recovery values on certain sword gear properties.

A new difficulty setting where enemies are fast and lethal, but player damage is increased.

Introduction of new human mercenaries and bodyguards in the game.

A new story campaign featuring Baranor, the Captain of the Tower from Minas Ithil.

A new region of Mordor called The Desert of Lithlad is added.

You can now choose to appear as Baranor.

The Desolation of Mordor Story Expansion includes a new story campaign, side missions, mercenaries, a new region, and beasts.

Fixed issues with various achievements not unlocking correctly.

New stickers, styles and filters inspired by the Desolation of Mordor Story Expansion.

A new region called The Desert of Lithlad is added to the game.

New side missions that involve the character Torvin.

Introduction of a new beast type called Were-wyrms.

Fixed various issues related to Talion's abilities and actions.

Increased variability of levels of Orc Captains in late game.

Play as Talion in the new region of Lithlad, expanding your main story campaign.

Unite with Torvin to craft powerful new combat gear, including the shield, gauntlet, grapple and kite.

Reduced damage of multi-hit attacks on Gravewalker difficulty.

Open a new front in the war for Mordor as Baranor, Captain of the fallen city of Minas Ithil.

The Desolation of Mordor Story Expansion includes a new story campaign, side missions, human mercenaries, a new region, and new beasts.

Added the ability to search by player name in Friendly Online Pit Fights and Conquests.

Introduction of new beasts known as Were-wyrms.

Resolved an issue where some players experienced an infinite loading screen when attempting to launch the quest.

Future updates will include Nemesis System updates, new player skins, skill tree additions, and gear system upgrades.

Gold, War Chests, and the Market will be permanently removed to restore the core promise of the Nemesis System.

The Shadow Wars section will be improved with new narrative elements and streamlined for a more cohesive experience.

Challenges that awarded Gold will now award Legendary gear after the Market closure.

Online Conquests and Vendettas will continue to award Loot Chests, with changes to the contents of Spoils of War chests.

The Endless Siege update will still be available for players continuing fortress defense missions.

Loot Chests can still be earned in-game but the ability to purchase them will be removed.

Daily Challenges that awarded Gold will now award Legendary gear after the Market closure.

Gold, War Chests, and the Market will be permanently removed to restore the core promise of the Nemesis System.

Unused Gold will be converted to Gold Loot Chests after the Market closes.

The Shadow Wars section will be improved with new narrative elements and streamlined for a more cohesive experience.

Players will have more options for recruiting and upgrading Orcs, including during Online Conquests and Vendettas.

Players will have more ways to recruit and upgrade Orcs, including during Online Conquests and Vendettas.

Any remaining unused Gold will be converted to Gold Loot Chests after the Market closes.

Victories from Follower vs. Follower Pit Fights will contribute to the community-wide tally to determine the winning tribe.

Week 2 of the Tribal Wars event has started, allowing players to send Dominated Followers on Assassination or Pit Fight missions.

The second week of the Tribal Wars event has started, allowing players to send Dominated Followers on missions to contribute to their tribe's score.

Victories in Assassination and Pit Fight missions will contribute to a community-wide tally to determine the winning tribe.

Players can send their Dominated Followers on Assassination or Pit Fight missions to earn victories for their tribe.

Resolved a progression blocking issue where players encountered an infinite loading screen when trying to launch the quest.

Resolved an issue where deploying an Orc in Cirith Ungol could cause it to instantly become an Overlord, blocking progression.

Fixed an issue where the Orc rewards from the Blade of Galadriel DLC were not given to the player upon completion.

Resolved an issue where the drake Eltariel was riding became invisible, causing Eltariel to become stuck in the air.

Fixed an issue that prevented the player from applying a training order to an Orc that was their bodyguard.

Fixed an issue where reassigning followers to Cirith Ungol in a specific story state would block progression.

Resolved an issue during the 'Poisoned Ground' quest where the Overlord could get stuck inside the fortress, blocking progression.

Resolved an issue where the 'Kill Command' tutorial would not trigger.

Fixed an issue where the Orc rewards from the Blade of Galadriel DLC were not given upon completion.

Resolved an issue that prevented players from applying a training order to an Orc that was their bodyguard.

Fixed an issue where the 'Gravewalker' skin was not being provided to the player.

Fixed an issue in the Blade of Galadriel DLC where progression would become blocked if Eltariel had died at least once during the mission.

Resolved an issue where deploying an Orc in Cirith Ungol could cause that Orc to instantly become an Overlord, blocking progression.

Resolved an issue where failing the fort assault in Gorgoroth and retrying would cause Captains to ignore Eltariel.

Fixed an inconsistent sound effect when toggling Orc levels on/off in the hierarchy screen.

Fixed an issue in the Blade of Galadriel DLC where progression could be blocked if Eltariel died during the mission.

Resolved an issue where the 'Kill Command' tutorial would not trigger.

Resolved a progression blocking issue where players encountered an infinite loading screen when trying to launch the quest.

Fixed an inconsistent sound effect when toggling Orc levels on/off in the hierarchy screen.

Fixed an issue during the 'Poisoned Ground' quest where the Overlord could get stuck inside the fortress, blocking progression.

Fixed an issue where the 'Gravewalker' skin was not being provided to the player.

Resolved an issue where the drake Eltariel was riding became invisible, causing her to get stuck in the air.

Resolved an issue where failing the fort assault in Gorgoroth and retrying would make Captains ignore Eltariel.

Fixed an issue where reassigning followers to Cirith Ungol in a specific story state would block progression.

Enhancements to the Photo Mode as detailed by the UI Lead.

Players can now experience Eltariel’s story and journey within Mordor.

A brand new Elite Challenge has been introduced for players.

A brand new Elite Challenge for players to engage with.

Players can now experience Eltariel’s story and journey within Mordor.

A new ability to assist players in their journeys with Eltariel.

Enhancements to the Photo Mode as detailed by the UI Lead.

A new ability to assist players in their journeys with Eltariel.

Fixed various crashes and performance issues for multi-GPU machines.

Players can choose to appear as Talion or Eltariel in the main story campaign.

New menu for tracking various in-game statistics.

Fixed an issue where some Steam Achievements were not consistently awarded.

Play as Eltariel, the elite Elven warrior, with new combat abilities and skills.

Ologs no longer grab players when dashing over them from behind.

Fixed color issues with lights in Photo Mode when HDR is enabled on a 4K screen.

Followers can now bring players the gift of a Treasure Orc.

New options for customizing the user interface and field of view.

Addressed various movement and out-of-environment issues.

Summon Bodyguard/Mount abilities now reset their cooldowns when starting a quest.

Players can upgrade Orc Followers with Training Orders in the Garrison.

Layout and messaging improvements to the Inventory screen for better usability.

New traits and behaviors for Orc Captains, including Tunnel Rat, Sniper Shot, and Tremor.

New filters, frames, styles, and adjustable expressions added to Photo Mode.

Improved performance for online connected features.

Improved stability for online connected features.

New collection of community challenges with rewards to bolster player armies.

Continued coverage and teasers for The Blade of Galadriel story DLC, including new foes and gameplay tips.

Monthly streams featuring gameplay tips, community challenges, and cosplay tips.

Elite Challenges are back with new opportunities for exclusive rewards.

Continued coverage and teasers for The Blade of Galadriel story DLC, including new foes and gameplay tips.

New collection of community challenges with rewards to bolster player armies.

Elite Challenges are back with exclusive rewards for top-tier players.

Monthly streams featuring gameplay tips, community challenges, and cosplay showcases.

Eltariel’s story continues with the upcoming DLC release.

Eltariel’s story continues with the upcoming DLC release.

Elite Challenges are returning for the community, requiring mastery of the game to complete.

Elite Challenges will return for the community, requiring mastery of the game.

New in-game Community activities with rewards for completion.

Participate in the Elite Challenge to upgrade a Common Trickster to Legendary for a chance to win an official Shadow of War OST.

Participate in the Elite Challenge to upgrade a Common Trickster to Legendary for a chance to win a signed OST.

Live streams will continue in 2018, featuring gameplay and discussions about the upcoming DLC.

First story DLC featuring Eltariel, set to release in early February.

First story DLC featuring Eltariel, set to release in early February.

Kickoff of live streams featuring community interactions and gameplay insights.

New in-game Community activities with rewards for completion.