Race of Man Traits

Revised for Update 2

As a Man, which race traits you equip will depend on three things: your class, your level and which traits you have earned.

Free and Premium players have an additional consideration: you start with only two race trait slots. Of the four traits types, buying more race trait slots should be your lowest priority.  Simply equip your best two.

Just because a racial deed opens up at level 13 doesn't mean you can complete it. Men in particular have a hard time finding the right mobs at low levels. Don't sweat it - just level up and work on the deeds when you get to the mobs as part of your natural level progression.

Which Race Traits to Equip as a Man

The list below is ordered from most useful to least useful. Pick the first five (or two, if you are Free or Premium) that apply to you!
  1. Strength of Morale, the "man heal" emergency skill, is helpful to every class. Most players will earn and equip this soon after leveling to 35.
  2. Balance of Man, with its boost to block, parry and evade, is a strong survivability skill for most classes with the possible exception of Champions who run in Fervour for a significant chunk of the time.
  3. Man of the Fourth Age (+20 Will) will be helpful to most players, but especially attractive to healers and other casters. Each point of Will adds 3 Power, increases your chance to resist Fear effects, including Cowering, increases tactical offence and increases your out-of-combat Power regeneration rate (OCPR). Man minstrels, captains and lore-masters will benefit from bigger heals.
  4. Return to Bree is helpful for most classes, with the exception of man hunters and wardens who have alternate travel skills.
  5. The Man Sword-damage Bonus adds a little damage for character who melee with a sword.
  6. The Tactics and Might Bonus adds a little power and damage to fellowship maneuvers if you go blue or red. Could be useful depending on your class (are you likely to go red or blue in an FM?) and how much you group.
  7. Upper-cut is a decent attack at low-levels and used situationally by some melee at high level for a chance to stun.
  8. Duty-bound is situationally useful for boss fights where adding 2% extra morale to the whole fellowship is helpful. Be sure you have a way to recover the power it uses.
  9. Virtuous Man might be useful if you need another rank of these virtues and have a spare race trait slot. Not many players trait Confidence or Patience, so this is pretty situational.

    Race of Man Traits

    Deed-based

    LevelTPDeedObjectiveWhere to Hunt at Level (earlier locations also work)TraitTrait Effect
    135Enmity of the DeadDefeat 50 wightsBarrow Downs (Bree-land)Upper-cutWeak melee attack. Can be used every five seconds and has a small chance of stunning the target for 3 seconds.
    1910Enmity of the Dead IIDefeat 100 wightsBarrow Downs (Bree-land)Tactics and Might Bonus+5% to Stallion's Spirit (blue) and Ent's Strength (red) Fellowship Maneuvers
    2515Enmity of the Dead IIIDefeat 150 wightsBarrow Downs (Bree-land) and Great Barrows (Bree-land)Man Sword-damage Bonus+2% to 1-hand and 2-hand sword damage
    135Enmity of the WargsDefeat 50 wargsWeatherfoot or Minas Eriol (Lone-lands). These are the lowest level wargs in the game.Man of the Fourth Age+20 Will
    2910Enmity of the Wargs IIDefeat 150 wargsHaud Eglan or Kingsfell (North Downs)Return to BreeOnce an hour port to Bree. Uses 1 travel ration.
    3515Enmity of the Wargs IIIDefeat 250 wargsNan Amlug or Rhunenlad (North Downs), east of EsteldinDuty-bound+2% increase to fellowship morale for 10 minutes. Can be used once an hour.
    305Enmity of the HillmenDefeat 150 hillmenAgamaur (Lone-lands) or Nan Amlug East (North Downs). Group up for these.Balance of Man+1% to Evade, Parry, and Block
    3510Enmity of the Hillmen IIDefeat 250 hillmenAgamaur (Lone-lands) or Nan Amlug East (North Downs). Group up for these.Strength of MoraleRestores ~3000 Morale
    Total: 75

    Faction-based

    LevelFactionStandingTraitTrait Effect
    35Men of BreeFriendVirtuous Man+1 Confidence, Justice, Patience

    Related Articles

    Race Trait Basics
    Race of Man Traits
    Dwarf Racial Traits
    Elf Race Traits
    Hobbit Race Traits
    Reputation by Level and Content

    4 comments:

    Anonymous said...

    Minor nitpick, but it's Agamaur, not Amagaur.

    Lunatuna said...

    Good catch, thanks!

    Anonymous said...

    At L13 Ered Luin would be a better place to kill Wights.

    Houma said...

    The difference in levels between the wights in Ered Luin and the Wights in Barrow Downs does not make up for the fact that the Barrow Downs Wights are much more abundant. Besides, that deed is over so fast if you are level in Breeland that you scarcely notice it. I had the very same though, but then decided just to keep going in Bree and was pleased with the results.

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