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Elf of War
What, you think Talion's the first dude to raise an orcish army in opposition to Sauron? Pssh. Celebrimbor was dominating orcs before it was cool, as you can see for yourself in The Bright Lord, the final piece of Season Pass DLC for Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor. The campaign takes place a thousand years before the start of Talion's quest, following Celebrimbor's attempt to cut short Sauron's rise to power.
The Bright Lord's campaign adds ten new missions complete with more powerful orcs who wield deadlier abilities. Don't worry, the elf has some new tricks of his own: improved Elven Archery, new ways to dominate enemies, and, oh yeah, he can slip on the One Ring to turn invisible, hobbit-style. The DLC also adds a new set of challenge maps starring Celebrimbor, called Test of the the Ring, and lets you dress up as him in the original campaign. It's available now, on its own or as part of the $24.99/19.99 season pass.
Be vewy vewy quiet, I'm hunting cawagors
Talion grows a beard and goes full medieval mountain man in Shadow of Mordor's Lord of the Hunt DLC. This expansion sees the ranger fight alongside dwarven hunter Torvin once more, this time to kill/terrify/brainwash a new breed of Uruk-hai captain called beastmasters. These leaders of orcs will ride into combat on Mordor's aggressive fauna, meaning that Talion isn't the only one who can wreak havoc on the back of a raging Graug.
Speaking of Graugs, the Lord of the Hunt DLC adds a new venom-spewing variant called the Wretched Graug, as well as the hardy Caragaths and summonable Ghul Hordes - be sure to power them up with five new epic runes before you go rampaging. Aside from extra story missions, players can set out on Beast Hunting challenges to prove their prowess and earn more Mirian, or see how they compare in Test of the Wild with an online leaderboard. And they'll do it all in style with that macho-ponytail sporting character skin.
This one's on the house
Like a cunning drug dealer looking to get you hooked, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor gives you the first taste of its DLC content for free. If you own the game, you can download the Power of Shadow DLC, which unlocks a new skin and three additional runes to play with. If you're wanting a change from the rugged good looks of Talion, you can get in touch with your evil side by equipping the Black Hand of Sauron skin (which must make some of the cutscenes look pretty damn weird). No word yet on if the skin changes your voice, but you should know that the Black Hand is played by Nolan North. Of course.
Then there are the three Epic Runes. One with Nature gives you immunity from poison, Ascendant grants you twice the slo-mo Focus when using your bow, and Elven Grace halves the damage of enemy strikes. Sounds like they could make Talion pretty OP - perfect for a second playthrough or the decimation of your greatest Nemesis.
Other goodies
The season pass also includes an exclusive Orc Warband mission called Guardians of the Flaming Eye and the Trials of War challenges (think the Batman: Arkham score attacks).
More-dor
That's all the Shadow of Mordor DLC we know about so far. Do you think these are worthwhile expansions to the world of Mordor? Let us know in the comments section below!
Be sure to read our Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor review if you haven't already, as well as 8 things to do in Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor before you die.
