What a difference...

I finally decided to take a hard look at the gear and weapons that my Lore-Master, Elahedor, has equipped, and to find out what I need to do to improve it. I posted the question in the forums, and detailed what I was wearing...

It was shocking.

Oh, most of my armour is fine; I'm wearing most of the Stone-Reader's set from Moria. All I need is the helm and shoulder guards.

It was the jewelry that was the real shocker. Most of what I was wearing was 15-25 levels below my current level. Something had to be done. Luckily, someone posted an answer, and I was able to get a kinmate to craft some of it.

In short, my Morale and Power jumped over 1,000 points each. My Will, Fate, and Vitality also all got a tremendous boost. In fact, Will (which effects total power and power regeneration out of combat) and Fate (which effects in-combat morale and power regen) are almost maxed out. I just need to work on getting more vitality, which affects your overall survivability by boosting morale and resistances.

I was able to get everything but bracelets and a pocket item.

I'd been frustrated with the toon, because he seemed to die frequently. I went through a period when it seemed like every instance I attempted ended in spectacular failure, and I just seemed unable to do my job (crowd control and power resupply). I finally decided that grouping was just plain bad for me, and I continue solo unless the instance wasn't overly complicated.

However, after boosting the stats, I got brave enough to take Elahedor into Sammath Gûl (SG), one of the instances in Dol Guldur (the Necromancer's Tower) in Mirkwood. SG was one of the instances that previously required radiance.

I was pleasantly surprised with my performance and survivability. As a group, we wiped twice time, once at the first boss and once just before the third boss. The problem in the first case isn't clear...the room catches on fire in sections, and we either misjudged the way the fire was progressing, or it didn't progress as it should have. Nonetheless, we lucked out and took the boss with us, so we didn't have to repeat the fight.

This instance also offers traps in the form of bone piles. If you walk over a pile, it spawns a shade and several skeletons. Unfortunately, one of the MoBs in the instances has a mean knockback, and two of us (myself included) got booted right into a pile, triggering two major shades and a swarm of skeletons. We learned our lesson, and, working with a burglar, I was able to keep two of the guys stunned, while everyone else took out the other guys.

We made our through the last two bosses, and I ended up getting a sweet earring (one that was suggested in the forum) and the pocket item I needed. But, more importantly, I had a good time, and wasn't frustrated by the run.