Riding

This page is about the basic Riding characteristic (Passive Skill). For details on its use, see Travelling.

General Information

The Riding skill is required to ride any permanent mounts. It is learned from Trait: Riding Characteristic, and is auto-applied upon acquisition.

There are three Riding Traits available:

Riding - Basic riding skill allowing a character to ride mounts for up to +68% mount speed, depending on the mount.
Apprentice Riding - Boosts all travelling mount speed to +68%.
Journeyman Riding - Boosts all travelling mount speed to +78%.

How to Obtain

Free Quest

If the "Shadows of Angmar" tutorial option is selected, then

Men and Hobbits can obtain this skill from [1] A Little Extra Never Hurts -- Part 2, bestowed by Jon Brackenbrook in Archet during the Introduction.

Dwarves and Elves can get the same quest from Dwalin in Frerin's Court during their introduction

If the "Before the Shadow" tutorial option is selected, or the character's race is River Hobbit, then

The character's intro ends in Mossward, and it is trivial to access the Blacksmith Shop and complete [1] A Little Extra Never Hurts -- Part 2, bestowed by Skardí Bendblade.

For others, who missed the quest in their introduction, as well as new Beornings, High Elves, and Stout-axes, for whom the quest was not offered in their intro, they will need to get to Mossward to do this quest. This can be a bit of a logistical challenge, since the intro for such characters ends in Ered Luin, Bree-land, or the Shire, and the travel routes from those areas are Swift Travel only.
- Fortunately, Mossward is auto-discovered from everywhere, meaning, that travel routes to it are open, as long as all other prerequisites are satisfied.
- If Swift Travel is unlocked on the character, then direct routes to Mossward are available from Celondim, Michel Delving, Thorin's Gate and West Bree.
- Otherwise, a Writ of Special Passage can be used to temporarily unlock Swift Travel. An account-bound version of this is obtained from Gift for a Starting Adventurer the present received as a reward for attaining a Character Level of 6.
- A single Mithril Coin can also be used as a one-time override of the Swift Travel requirement for a stable-master route, or, for 2 Mithril Coin, to travel to Mossward from anywhere, via the Collections Panel.
- A Mariner of level 7 or above can port himself/herself to Tharbad, using the Sail to Tharbad skill, and from there, take a stable ride to Mossward.
- A Hunter Port, Mariner Port or Captain Summon may be available from other players, or one of your alts on a different account. Note that the port or summon only needs to be to a stable-master in Swanfleet, to Herne, or to Tharbad, or somewhere near those locations, since a stable ride is available from all of those. Most convenient, however, would be for a Captain to summon directly into the Blacksmith Shop.
- The housing item Caras Gelebren Mural Alcove can be used to teleport to Caras Gelebren in Swanfleet; there is a stable ride from there to Mossward. Publically-usable teleporters are available on all servers, check the forums for their locations. Travel to the relevant housing neighborhood is available for free from the Housing Broker in Bree.
- It is possible to get to Mossward overland from classic starting areas, even at low levels, but highly advisable to first obtain the 24-hour item Wrapped Horse Whistle which summons a +32% mount, not requiring Riding Skill to use. This item is only obtained from Gift Pack , at level 5. The safest route is to take the portal from the Shire to Sarn Ford (the Shire-to-Cardolan portal is near the Shire Homesteads portal, south of Michel Delving), across land, following roads, to Herne, and then take a stable ride from there. Note that while the route is relatively safe, it is not without risks -- the hostile creatures between Sarn Ford and Herne range from the low to mid 20s. If your character is defeated at a low level -- less than level 20 -- you lose eligibility for one or more Survival Titles (see Survival Titles).

VIP Subscribers

Players with a VIP Account can also acquire this skill for free by completing the level 20 quest Proving Your Quality, given by Éogar at Hengstacer Farm, north of Bree.^{[22.3S, 52.3W]}

Mithril Traders

The skill can be bartered from Mithril Traders in the starting areas for 10 .

LOTRO Store

This skill is also included as part of packages from the LOTRO Store.

Item		Uses	Minimum Level	Points
Apprentice Riding Trait	Upgrades your mounts to have +68% speed. Includes basic Riding Skill, Apprentice Riding Trait, and Smell the Roses.	Single Character	5	995
Apprentice Riding Trait (Account)	Upgrades your mounts to have +68% speed. Includes basic Riding Skill, Apprentice Riding Trait, and Smell the Roses.	Account-wide	None	1995
Journeyman Riding Trait (Account)	Upgrades your mounts to have +78% speed. Includes basic Riding Skill, Apprentice Riding Trait, Journeyman Riding Trait, and Smell the Roses.	Account-wide	None	2995

Notes

This skill is required to participate in Festival Horse Races during Special Events.