As a launch special, Turbine is letting players purchase the Hobbit race half off.

After suffering through dead laptops, blistered feet, and hours of video encoding, we’re happy to (finally) kick off our PAX coverage, and what better to start with than the most timely of our stories? Lord of the Rings Online officially launches itself as a free-to-play MMORPG later this week (Head Start users on Wednesday, everyone else on Friday), and we have some great interview footage for you.

If you jumped on the beta, you may already be aware of some of the details, but Patrick still managed to score some quality face-time with the game’s Live Producer, Aaron Campbell. He gives us the low-down and walks us through a preview of a couple new areas added to the experience, including a fresh starting zone for Hobbits and Man, as well as a mini-dungeon full of tricks and traps that is associated with one of the Shire’s upcoming special events.

Keep your eyes open for the rest of out PAX Prime ’10 coverage, which should be coming at you fast and furious over the next few days as we get all this raw footage edited and packaged for your consumption!