Yet Another “Black Screen at Launch” Thread

I have found many, many of these threads but none seem to have an actual resolution other than “it just stopped happening” or “I removed a dll from System32”.


Issue
After selecting a server the game transitions to an indefinite black screen with no sound. This state eventually generates the error “lotroclient is not responding”.


Repro Steps
1) Clean install of LOTRO via download from their site on 3.23.13.
2) Launch game and let it update.
3) Login and select server.


Result
As mentioned above, the game transitions to an indefinite black screen with no sound. This state eventually generates the error “lotroclient is not responding”.


System Info
(all hardware has the latest WHQL drivers installed as of 3.24.13. The system BIOS is also the latest one available.)
OS: Windows 8 Pro x64 + Media Center
CPU: Intel i7 3930K
RAM: 12GB RAM
GPU: Geforce GTX 680 4GB
Audio: SoundBlaster Recon3D PCIe
Monitor Resolution: 2560x1600
Keyboard: SWTOR Gaming Keyboard by Razer
Mouse: SWTOR Gaming Mouse by Razer
Anti-Virus Software: Defender, which comes installed in Win8


Notes
I have tons of other games (MMOs and otherwise) that launch and play without issue including: World of Warcraft, Star Wars: The Old Republic, The Secret World, Tomb Raider, Skyrim, Batman: Arkham City, Brutal Legend, Darksiders II, Alice: Madness Returns, GTA IV, The Walking Dead, Mass Effect 3, Dead Space 3, Dragon Age II, StarCraft II, Diablo III, Spore, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Fallout 3, Amnesia, Civilization V, Resident Evil 5, Rocksmith, X3, etc.


Thanks for any help with this.