other minds content...unless otherwise noted, every contribution in this magazine is published under...

Unless otherwise noted, every contribution in this magazine is published under the

CreativeCommons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license (b n a))

The exact license of a given contribution can be found at the beginning of each contribution.

Other Minds MagazineIssue 4

July 2008PublisherOther Minds Volunteers

Editors Assistant EditorsHawke Robinson Chris SeemanThomas Morwinsky Chris Wade

Proofreaders Art DirectorHawke Robinson Hawke RobinsonOliver Schick

Production StaffThomas MorwinskyHawke Robinson

ContentMain Features

2 Editorial – Baruk Khazâd – Khazâd ai-mênu3 Whither MERPCon

Hawke Robinson

6 The Problem of Dwarven WomenNeville Percy

11 A Brief History of the Dwarven MansionsThomas Morwinsky

22 A Dwarven Runic CryptogramNeville Percy

24 Swept Off By Your Feet...Thomas Morwinsky

25 Outer Names for the Western DwarvesNeville Percy

28 The Giant Armoured MoldewarpNeville Percy

30 The Sword of AulëTom Davie

Other Features33 Fine print34 Creative Commons license37 Appendix:

Maps for “A Brief History of DwarvenMansions”

OTHER MINDS, ISSUE #5will have no specific theme.You may submit any topic.

submission deadline is:

October 1 st 2008

OTHER MINDS MAGAZINE —————————————————————————————————

Finally the Dwarves have come upon you inOther Minds as well. Fortunately for you thistime not in war-gear and with sharp axes readyto chop off heads, but in civilized essays, maps,adventures and the like. This issue of OtherMinds is dedicated to an often under-repre-sented theme in role-playing – the proud“Children of Aulë“ and adopted children of Ilú-vatar.

Since the great events reported in The Sil-marillion and The Lord of the Rings are centeredupon the deeds and histories of Elves and Men,Dwarves play only a minor rôle there. Theonly exception in Tolkien’s works whereDwarves play a central rôle is The Hobbit. Un-fortunately, this is often seen as “only a chil-dren’s book” and consequently the Dwarvesare marginalized with it too.

This lack of focus is unfortunately augment-ed by a lack of first-hand writings about theNaugrim. The Lord of the Rings (mainly the ap-pendices), The Hobbit, The Silmarillion and theHistory of Middle-earth series all offer someguidance, but compared to the wealth of infor-mation provided about Elves, Men and Hob-bits, the passages that deal with the Dwarvesare quite limited in number and extent.

Nonetheless, this is our chance to stand upand develop our own interpretations. Whetherclosely based on Tolkien's – few – notes ormore orientated towards liberal interpreta-tions, we have the chance to further developthe original material by Tolkien and the variousRPG publications into something solid thatgives the Naugrim what they deserve: a firmand broad base to stand upon for further de-velopments!

So far, so good. But what do we have for youthis time? Again, a wide mix of contributionsthat sheds light on many aspects of the Nau-grim. First there is Neville Percy’s fine analysisabout the Dwarven women. Its well-balancedmix of scholarly research and “gameable” ex-trapolations makes it an excellent piece of in-formation for the scholarly-minded as well asthe gamer.

Second comes a contribution by myself thatdeals with the history of the Dwarven man-

sions. In broad strokes it depicts their develop-ment throughout the ages. Its survey-like na-ture leaves ample room for further details de-veloped by “Other Minds” to build upon.

Neville Percy’s prolific output on all thingsMiddle-earth is astounding. He seems to be areal fan of the Naugrim – looking at the num-ber of contributions of any kind he has to of-fer! Beside the above-mentioned treatise onthe Dwarven women he serves us with nottwo but really three short and very “gameable”contributions on top of the first. The first ofthe three portrays a Dwarvish rune-cryp-togram that may be encountered in any size-able Dwarf-hold. It might be an interestinghint for an adventure. Then he provides uswith a very useful list of names for the westernDwarves (both male and female) that might beused in your campaign. The final icing on thecake is his description of a subterranean mon-ster, the Giant Moldewarp, that could be a realchallenge to any Dwarven mining in greatdeeps.

Tom Davies' contribution is a true gamingpiece that deals with a legendary item made inthe distant past for the Dwarves and whichmay be introduced in a campaign. Its structure

as an adventure idea with no specific plotmakes it very easy to use and/or adapt to yourown needs.

Now, beside all the content-related topics,we thought that a little survey of Middle-earth-gaming related websites available outthere are on the net might be helpful. Ofcourse we are aware that there can be no com-plete or even representative answer to that (es-pecially due to the rapidly changing nature ofthe Internet). Do note however, that we willcopy this list in coming weeks to the OtherMinds website in the “links” section, and that allregistered users (it's free, private, and safe) cancontribute links as well. In the past weeks andmonths there have been some new sites – inaddition to the established ones – that definite-ly deserve attention. Enjoy our findings and donot hesitate to send us any new pearls you havestumbled upon!

Oh yes - you will encounter several textboxes whose content is unrelated to the con-tribution it is placed within. These are severaltidbits of knowledge about Tolkien's Dwarves,that is interesting, but not big enough for aseparate essay. Neville Percy, our prolific"Dwarven" writer found them and according-ly the credits go to him.

In addition to our own "categorization" lo-gos (core, optional and house), we introducethe logos of the specific games a contributionhas statistics for. These logos remain the solecopyright of the respective companies ofcourse.

Thomas MorwinskyJuly 2008

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Editorial: Baruk Khazâd –Khazâd ai-mênu

2

———————————————————————————————————— ISSUE 4, JULY 2008

Hail and well met!

Thank you Thomas for the great summaryeditorial, and all your hard work in getting ev-eryone to follow through with their submis-sions. As always your efforts are invaluable tokeeping this magazine rolling!

This issue has a strong tie-in with this year'sMerpCon IV, especially the theme of Dwarves(as Thomas has already greatly detailed).

I thought I would quickly post some otherinformation about MerpCon that is only 9 daysaway, as I write this editorial, and some othertopics. Many of these points I will be coveringin more detail in my opening speech at theevent, but thought I would at least get a sum-mary into this issue before it's final editing andbeing sent off to the presses. Forgive me if thisarticle is a little rambling and tangential, timeis short for getting both the magazine, andMerpCon ready in time.

MerpCon History, Status and FutureMerpCon ( http://www.merpcon.org )

has been held in Spokane, WA, USA on the lastweekend of July each year. It has to date been acompletely free, volunteer-run gathering ofTolkien scholars, enthusiasts and role-playinggamers from around the world. Though it isstill a small event, it is incrementally growingas word spreads and people begin to arrangetheir summer schedules around attempting toattend. MerpCon IV is looking to trump Mer-pCon III in attendance (yay!). So far we havearound 15 people firmly RSVP'd, with anotherdozen probables/possibles. Attendance will beanywhere from 12 to 25 people this year. Seethe table above for a summary of attendancefor previous years.

It is great that the attendance numbers aregrowing. The original plan was that I wouldkeep covering the costs and efforts for makingthis gathering happen annually, completely outof my own pocket for at least 5 years. If it didnot grow by the end of that five years, then Iwould discontinue the effort. It looks promis-ing that I will be able to continue this annuallyand indefinitely. Down the road we will proba-bly have to start charging for the event to justcover costs (and register it as a non-profit),but for now I am happy to keep covering thecosts and helping make it as accessible to ev-eryone for as long as possible.

Prof Chris Seeman (and son) speaking at MerpCon III (2007)

Virtual AttendanceFor those who can not make it to this year's

MerpCon, we will be doing as we did last year.There will be live streaming audio and videoof the event, with a live interactive chatroomwhere “virtual attendees” can post questions tothe guest speakers and the speakers can re-spond in real time during the Q&A sessions.For those in time zones that make even thisvirtual live attendance problematic (there aremany), we will make the audio and videoarchives available on the MerpCon website (http://www.merpcon.org ) shortly after theevent is over. I will even be trying an experi-ment with “stream ripping” to try to make theaudio portion available almost immediately fordownload (albeit unedited), so that those whomaybe just miss the session by a few minutesor hours, will not have to wait days (or weeksor months) to listen to the guest speakers.

There will be at least 2 web cams runningduring the entire event, giving an overview ofthe event. This year's location is a bit more“cozy” than last year, but just large enough tomake it work.

If the growth pattern continues, I will defi-nitely have to look into a larger venue for

MerpCon V. That is the kind of “problem” thatwould be good to have.

Dr. Thomas Morwinsky post-Q&A session at MerpCon III (2007)

MerpCon IV Guest SpeakersThis year we have two guest speakers at

MerpCon. We welcome the return of the pro-lific Tolkien essayist Michael Martinez, as wellas the debut at MerpCon of John D. Rateliff,author of the The History of the Hobbit releasejust last year. Below are some short biogra-phies of each.

John D. Rateliff

John D. Rateliff, Ph.D.

———————————————————————————————————————————

Total Attendees

Convention YearAll 3days

“Physical”Peak “Virtual” Guest Speakers

MerpCon I 2005 7 13 0 1 – Prof. Chris Seeman

MerpCon II 2006 5 7 0 1 – Michael Martinez

MerpCon III 2007 12 15 8 1 – Dr. Thomas Morwinsky2 – Prof Chris Seeman3 – Michael Martinez4 – Joe Mandala5 – Cason Snow

MerpCon IV 2008 12-15 15-24 ? 1 – John D. Rateliff2 – Michael Martinez

Whither MERPCon

3

OTHER MINDS MAGAZINE —————————————————————————————————John D. Rateliff discovered gaming in Febru-

ary 1980 and the work of J. R. R. Tolkien inSeptember 1973. This gaming interest led himto work at TSR, Wizards of the Coast, andHasbro, as well as freelancing for companieslike Decipher, Green Ronin, White Wolf,Guardians of Order, and Chaosium. Amongthe projects he's edited are The CompleteBook of Gnomes & Halflings, Night Below,Return to the Tomb of Horrors, and the thirdedition Player's Handbook and Dungeon Mas-ter's Guide (which established the core d20rules); he also contributed to Decipher's Lordof the Rings core rulebook and the d20 Call ofCthulhu project, along with dozens of other ti-tles over the years. His favorite role-playinggames are Dungeons & Dragons (particularly1st edition AD&D), Call of Cthulhu, and Pen-dragon. In addition to being a longtime gamer,John is also a Tolkien scholar, who has helpedorganize several Tolkien conferences and sym-posiums. He spent many hours working withthe Tolkien manuscripts at Marquette, wherehe got his Ph.D. His major contribution toTolkien studies is probably his edition of theoriginal manuscripts of The Hobbit, with ex-tensive commentary, in a two volume set pub-lished last year by Harper-Collins: The Historyof The Hobbit (Vol. I: Mr. Baggins; Vol. II: Re-turn to Bag-End). He is currently engaged in apiece on Tolkien's writer's block but having ahard time finishing it . . .

Volunteers creating Characters in preparation for MerpCon III

Michael M. Martinez“Recognized around theworld as one of theleading authorities onthe works of J.R.R.Tolkien, Michael Mar-tinez has shared hisknowledge and insights

on Middle-earth with other fans in the onlineworld for many years. His books and essayshave been translated into Polish, Spanish, Ital-ian, Hungarian, Greek, Hebrew, Portuguese,and Finnish. But though he is best known for

his research into Tolkien's chief literary cre-ation, this versatile author has garnered re-spect and acknowledgement in more than onefield.” (From Mr. Martinez’s website atwww.michael-martinez.com).

Michael Martinez is the author of:

➢ Visualizing Middle-earth

➢ Parma Endorion: Essays on Middle-earth

➢ Understanding Middle-earth, published byVivisphere in 2003.

Most of Michael's early professional careerwas devoted to the family of Business Basicprogramming languages which were devel-oped for mini-computers in the late 1960s andearly 1970s, and then ported to UNIX and PCoperating systems in the 1980s. A former em-ployee of Basis International, one of the lead-ing vendors of Business Basic, Michael haswritten numerous technical papers and arti-cles on programming techniques and method-ologies. He has worked as a consultant, ITmanager, programmer, and teacher for manycompanies.

You can view a list of his works and contribu-tions related to J.R.R. Tolkien and/or role-playing gaming in his setting athttp://www.michael-martinez.com/articles-and-essays.html "

DemographicsWe have a nice range of age demographics

this year at MerpCon. Ranging from 8 yearsold to 16 at the “Youth Table” and from 17 tothe 40's range at the other tables. And thereare actually (gasp) some female participants ateach table as well, strangely rare (but wel-come) in role-playing gaming circles thesedays. We don't appear to have anyone fromoutside of the USA attending this year as wedid last year (Thomas Morwinsky from Ger-many), but attendees are from various parts ofthe country, and we hope to have a numberfrom other countries “attending virtually” viathe web. Hopefully more will budget time andresources to make the journey out here incoming years to keep this a truly internationalevent.

Attendees range widely in profession andother demographics. This just illustrates theuniversality of both Tolkien and role-playinggaming. Which leads me to the next topic: TheRPG Research Project.

RPG Research ProjectMany thanks to CAR-PGa (Committee for

the Advancement or Role-Playing Games) forlast year sending Cason Snow as a guest speak-er encouraging RPGers to get RPG contentaccepted at local libraries. This year, unfortu-nately we were unable to get a representativefrom this group, but it is already planned thatthe founder fo this organization will be attend-ing next year.

Something that has been mentioned in pass-ing at previous MerpCons and in some articlesin this magazine, is related to the slowly devel-oping RPG Research Project (http://www.rpgresearch.com ).

The purpose of this project is twofold.

1. To develop a body of scientific work de-tailing the causal ramifications of role-playing gaming.

2. To develop a clear therapeutic modalityusing role-playing gaming.

This project is expected to span at least 10years, and potentially longer. There have beenapproximately 70-80 correlative studies doneon the impact of role-playing gaming in vari-ous circumstances (see Other Minds MagazineIssue 1 “The Battle Over Role-playing Gaming” forsome examples), but very few causal studies,perhaps around 3-4 very small scale, shortterm, and very narrow population focu withsometimes contradictory and inconclusive re-sults.

The hope of the RPG Research project is totest many different variables across a longitu-dinal study with a diverse population and de-termine the causal effects of role playing gam-ing.

This study will eventually hopefully spanmore than 10 years, with over 1,000 test sub-jects (thus the need for significantgrant/foundation funding), with various con-trol groups, across age demographics spanning10 years old on up, and be triple blind so as toincrease the acceptance of the veracity of thedata by the scientific community. Hopefullythis project will build a body of work tocounter the decades long negative press (partof the legacy of B.A.D.D. - Bothered AboutDungeons & Dragons), with irrefutable scien-tific data (and hopefully the positive press togo with it).

The early stages are already underway. I haveconsulted with the heads of various doctorsand the heads of various psychology depart-ments at universities in helping develop thethesis documents and taking the necessarypreparations in submitting grant proposals.

4 ——————————————————————————————————————————

———————————————————————————————————— ISSUE 4, JULY 2008Some pre-core-project tasks are underway,one that was mentioned last year, and is get-ting closer to fruition, is a demographics sur-vey of existing role playing gamers. Currentlymore than 100 people have agreed to partici-pate, and hopefully these numbers will in-crease as the functionality and promotioncomes online. Expect to see updates in comingissues of this magazine. The project will likelybe using Tolkien-based RPGing as one of thetesting mechanisms.

There are also some efforts at introducingrole-playing gaming in ASL (American SignLanguage) locally to include the Deaf andHard of Hearing community in these efforts. Ihave been studying ASL for over two yearsnow, and running a weekly study group tokeep improving both the skills, and the con-nection with the approximately 900 membersof the Deaf community in the greater Spokane,WA and Couer d'Alene, ID area.

Other details will be posted on the RPG Re-search website.

The overarching goal of all this, is of courseto try to turn around the negative, or com-pletely blank response, that people have on thetopic of role-playing gaming, and introduce awhole new generation to the joys of this won-derfully rewarding, social, non-competitiverecreational activity.

Thanks and Other NotesMany thanks to the Middle-earth Radio peo-

ple ( http://www.middle-earthradio.com )for helping provide the audio streaming forMerpCon IV.

Many thanks to the Kung Fu For Life peoplefor freely providing the facilities to run Merp-Con IV

( http://www.spokanekungfu.com ).

The Merp.com Chat Room is back up andrunning according to an announcement justreleased this week. See the advertisement in aseparate insert in this issue for more details.

Though unable to attend this year, be sure tocheck out the ever developing Role playinggaming systems focused on J.R.R. Tolkien'ssetting. Hopefully the creators, or their min-ions, will be able to host a table with their sys-tem(s) next year. There are currently threesystems being actively developed:

• Ambarquenta (see advertisement in thismagazine issue)http://www.ambarquenta.com/

• Hither-landshttp://www.hither-lands.com/

• Eä RPG (currently Eä d20 is furthestalong, but the Eä RPGS is progressing)http://earpg.com/

MerpCon III adventure modules will soonbe released in portions on the NúmenorProject website: http://www.numenorprojec-t.com . My apologies for all the delays in get-ting the previous modules tied to this zineavailable as well. Hopefully by the time this is-sue is released the more complete versionswill already be available for download.

On another note. There is currently aproject underway to put together an “onlineuniversity” of sorts, focused on Tolkien schol-arship. Expect far more details in the next is-sue, and watch the various Tolkien email listsand website for announcements on this excit-ing development.

Game Systems.Last year we ran with 4 different Game

Masters using different systems for differentsessions at two tables simultaneously (until thefinal session when the two groups weremerged for the “finale”). These systems includ-ed ICE MERP 2nd Edition, Rolemaster /MERP hybrid, ICE HARP adapted to Middle-earth, D&D 3.5 (Eä d20). No one actuallywanted to use the Decipher Lord of the RingsRole Playing Game System even though wehad prepared to use it.

For MerpCon IV, it is panning out that wewill be running 3 simultaneous tables with 4different GMs (including John Rateliff) usingthe following systems:

• Ea d20 (D&D 3.5 adapted to Middle-earth)

• Rolemaster (MERP-ified)

• Decipher LotR RPG

Contributions and Future of theMagazine

We would REALLY like to get some moreadventure submissions from everyone. Ofcourse we want all kinds of content submis-sions of any kind. Issue 5 of Other Minds Maga-zine will not be themed, but will likely be amix of responses to previous issues as well asother content. So please do start sending inyour submissions as soon as able. Even if it'sjust a “pet idea”, let us know. Send an email [email protected] with your ideasand/or drafts.

This magazine is now officially on a quarter-ly release cycle, so we expect the next issuesto be available on October 1st and then Febru-

ary 1st. We look forward with great excitementand anticipation to everyone's future contribu-tions.

ArtworkWe desperately need more artwork. So

please, if you have any artwork you thinkwould be relevant to any future issues of OM,please submit it as well, it really helps to havethe community artwork to liven up the pages.

Many thanks to the vast array of peoplehelping support all these efforts, it is the com-munity that is not only keeping alive the joy ofrole-playing in J.R.R. Tolkien's universe, butactually helping it to grow.

The Future of MerpConSome possible ideas for next year's Merp-

Con V that we will be endeavoring to makehappen.

Live music by a Tolkien-music related group.The list is long (see Chris Seeman's TolkienMusic list at http://tolkien-music.com/ ) ofpossible candidates. Announcements will bemade on the MerpCon website as we arrangefor who can actually attend.

Additionally, we hope that either (or both!)the Ambarquenta or Hither-lands RPG devel-opers will be able to host a table here nextyear.

We do not yet have any specific guest speak-ers besides the representative from CARPGalined up for next year, but are open to sugges-tions from anyone. We would love to have pre-vious speakers attend again as well, so if youhave been, or would like to be a guest speaker,or know someone who you think would be in-terested, please email us as soon as you can sowe can make preparations. Keep in mind wecan't afford to actually pay anyone to attend,but we can help alleviate some of the costs ofroom, board, or in some instances even travel.

Meanwhile, many thanks to everyone forsupporting this magazine, MerpCon, and themany other community efforts out there en-couraging the development and enjoyment ofTolkien-based scholarship and role-playinggaming.

Namárië,

Hawke RobinsonJuly 2008

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by Neville Percy © 2008per the terms of the CC license: b n a 1

“It’s the beards” ...?

GIMLI: It’s true you don't see many dwarf wom-en. And in fact, they are so alike in voice and ap-pearance, that they are often mistaken for dwarfmen.

ARAGORN: [whispering] It’s the beards.

GIMLI: And this in turn has given rise to thebelief that there are no dwarf women, and thatdwarves just spring out of holes in the ground!

– Peter Jackson's cinematic interpretation ofThe Two Towers.

This light-hearted interlude is used by the film-makers of The Two Towers to touch for just a fewseconds on the knotty problem of what femaledwarves are like. If this is more than Tolkien ever of-fered us in the main text of LOTR, that is at least inpart because he actually failed to establish to hisown satisfaction what they were like and why theyseem to be unknown to members of any other race.We have no definitive statement on the matter. Butgamers, if they ever want their stories to take theminto the further deeps of a dwarf-hold, must decidewhether dwarf-women are bearded or smooth-faced,the equals of dwarf-men engaging in the same pur-suits or so cherished and protected as to be kept asvirtual prisoners in their own halls, all but unmen-tioned in dwarven history.

OriginsThe historical and mythological tradition in

which Tolkien’s inspiration takes root hasdwarfs (the rare OE dweorgas; the more com-mon ON dvergar) as wizened bearded figuresassociated with mining the wealth of the earthand with crafting wondrous artefacts. The lackof female dwarfs may have been because theseprofessions were seen as typically male, or justbecause the whole tradition of the earlymediæval period was so male-dominated.Whatever the reason, when Tolkien includedthe dwarves in his own mythology, he too was‘blind on his distaff side’: his dwarves werebearded and for decades exclusively male.

The dwarves of Tolkien’s legendarium arenot beings of the spirit-world or creaturesborn from and returning to the element ofstone. The dwarves were made by Aulë as in-spired by his glimpses of the elves and men inthe Vision of Eru, and his making of them wasratified by Ilúvatar, who added the spark ofsoul and free will. Like elves and men,dwarves reproduce by the physical union of bi-ological male and female , but the male bias isthere right from the tale of their creation inThe Silmarillion: it mentions only “the SevenFathers of the Dwarves”!

Dwarf-women are not mentioned at all inThe Silmarillion, which mostly depicts warfareand history in broad strokes,mentioning a few espe-cially notewor-

thy indi-vidu- als by

namebut oth-

erwise

telling of “the dwarves” as a people. The onlyindividuals to receive significant attention arethe petty-dwarves, Mîm and his two sons.These three are the last survivors of a commu-nity of ‘fallen’ dwarves, exiled from the truedwarf-holds, and finally set to die out whenthere were no dwarf-women left amongstthem.

Nor are dwarf-women mentioned any-where in The Hobbit. Thorin and the twelverelatives, advisors and supporters who followhim upon the Quest of Erebor receive close at-tention but the female component of the ge-nealogies linking them are not mentioned be-yond the reference to Fili and Kili beingThorin’s “sister-sons”.

Dwarf-women are still not mentionedwhen Glóin returns in The Lord of the Rings,accompanied by his son Gimli (mother un-mentioned), nor at any point in Gimli’s con-versations with the others of the Fellowship.

Tolkien finally acknowledges the matter ofdwarf-women only in the Appendix to LOTRthat discusses the dwarves as a race. At thispoint it is apparent (if it had not already beenso since the tale of Mîm) that he was wellaware of the significant omission of any refer-ence to dwarf-women. It was this passage inAppendix A that was paraphrased by the film-makers:

It was said by Gimli that there arefew dwarf-women, probably no morethan a third of the whole people.They seldom walk abroad except atgreat need. They are in voice andappearance, and in garb if they mustgo on a journey, so like to the dwarf-men that the eyes and ears of otherpeoples cannot tell them apart. Thishas given rise to the foolish opinionamong Men that there are no dwarf-women, and that the Dwarves ‘growout of stone’.– ‘Durin’s Folk’, LotR AppendixA III, p. 1053

The more definite “It’s the beards”comment given to the mischievous film-

Aragorn is not present in Tolkien’s ap-pendix. The “in voice and appearance …so like to the dwarf-men that … other

peoples cannot tell them apart,” that wedo have what would seem to imply that

The Problem of Dwarf-women

6 ——————————————————————————————————————————

———————————————————————————————————— ISSUE 4, JULY 2008

the appearance of dwarf-women includesbeards no different from those of their men-folk. The implication is that half the reason noone’s ever seen a female dwarf is that they’vesimply never realised it even when they did seeone.

But bearded ladies have always been theobject of ridicule and prurient spectacle, and itis understandable that people should be reluc-tant to put anything close to that idea at thecentre of a role-playing game. Game compa-nies’ interpretations have differed.

But the published version of The Lord of theRings, which is all the game companies wereallowed to use under the copyright license, isnot the only record of Tolkien’s thoughts onthe matter. Christopher Tolkien presents anddanalyses more of his father’s original notes in‘The Later Quenta Silmarillion’ in The War ofthe Jewels and ‘The Making of Appendix A’ inThe Peoples of Middle earth.

§5 […] no Man nor Elf hasever seen a beardless Dwarf […] Forthe Naugrim have beards from thebeginning of their lives, male andfemale alike; nor indeed can theirwomenkind be discerned by those ofother race, be it in feature or in gaitor in voice…– ‘Concerningg The Dwarves’(1951), HoMe 11 (1994) p 205

The first draft of the key passage in Ap-pendix A mostly survived into the final version

… except for the statements thatthey are never forced to wed againsttheir will (which ‘would of course beimpossible’), and that they havebeards. – ‘The Making of Appendix A’,HoMe 12 (1996) p. 285

Tolkien also gave considerable thought tothe origins of the dwarf-women. Christopherdescribes him in HoMe 11 as being “much ex-ercised about the details of the making of thefirst Dwarves”. He presents no fewer than fivetentative and roughly-written draft notes, themost informative being this:

But it is said that to each DwarfIlúvatar added a mate of female kind,yet because he would not amend thework of Aulë, and Aulë had yet madeonly things of male form, thereforethe women of the Dwarves resembletheir men more than all other [?speaking] (sic) races.– ‘Concerning the Dwarves’(1951), HoMe 11, p 211

Far from having the Seven Fathers of theDwarves be joined by corresponding Mothersof the race, the Fathers are each given “a mateof female kind” – even the phrase itself ispainfully circumspect. Three of the five draftnotes have the dwarf-women made by Aulëand only the one quoted attributes them toIlúvatar, although one of those does say hemade them at Ilúvatar’s bidding. All have themales made first with the females as additions,and in all of them it was Aulë himself whomade all his first dwarves male.

If Aulë’s design of the Dwarven form,beard and all, honoured by even Ilúvatar him-self not wishing to amend it, then it becomesalmost a matter of religious observance. Stat-ues and sculptures of bearded dwarves mightbe more than decorative, but actually be state-ments of reverence for the form chosen byAulë, Mahal the Maker.

The danger of using material in the HoMebooks as a source is that its unpublished statuspoints to Tolkien’s own reservations about it.The beard references do not appear in Ap-pendix A, and were probably kept out of itquite deliberately. The final wise words on thematter go to his son Christopher:

In the final text, as printed in TheSilmarillion, my father evidentlyabandoned the question of the originof the female Dwarves, finding itintractable and the solutionsunsatisfactory.– ‘Concerning the Dwarves’,HoMe 11, p 212

So Tolkien may not have found a satisfactorysolution, but he had the luxury of being able tosimply avoid discussing the domestic existence

of the Dwarves. Any gamer wishing to engageclosely with Dwarven characters or culture islikely to need to make a decision in such mat-ters.

The influence of Peter Jackson’s film andthe assumption in the majority of Tolkien’sown notes, despite his reservations about pub-lishing them, suggest that most people willfavour the interpretation that dwarf-women ofMiddle-earth are bearded.

The Role of Women in Dwarvish Society

Dís was the daughter of Thráin II.She is the only dwarf-woman namedin these histories.– Durin’s Folk, Appendix A III,p. 1053

If Tolkien intended dwarf-women’s beards tobe a reason why no one outside the dwarvenrace had knowingly seen a female Dwarf, hedid not make it the only explanation. The keypassage in Appendix A also says that they arefew in number, and that they do not willinglyleave the safety of the fortified dwarf-holds. Itsays that dwarf-women dress similarly todwarf-men only when they must go on a jour-ney. Within the dwarf-hold, therefore, dwarf-women presumably do dress differently fromdwarf-men, but are still not seen by guests orvisitors.

An alternative statement in WotJ puts it:

[…] nor indeed can theirwomenkind be discerned […] in anywise save this: that they go not to war,and seldom save at direct need issuefrom their deep bowers and halls.– ‘Concerning the Dwarves’(1951), HoMe 11, p 205

It seems likely that Dwarf-holds have dis-tinct ‘married quarters’ areas where theDwarf-women live and the Dwarf-children areraised, in the deeper reaches of the mountain(where, incidentally, Khuzdûl may be spokenfreely and inner names used) rather than in thetrading town areas in which guests are wel-come (where every dwarf must go by an outername). Note that “Dís” is a female Norsename following the Longbeards’ tradition of

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• ICE’s MERP had dwarf-men taller and heftier than dwarf-women, and suggested that the hoods of the dwarves’ travelling garb included flaps or a mask todraw across the face, with the implication that no one could then tell whether a small dwarf was a bearded male or beardless female; Liz Danforth’s illustra-tion of Dís presented her wearing something like a highwayman’s kerchief across her lower face.

• Decipher’s LOTR RPG said “their men grow thick, luxuriant beards in which they take great pride,” (emphasis mine) implying that their women did not,without making a statement on the matter one way or the other.

• Most generic fantasy books, games, miniatures and illustrations depict female dwarves without beards.

• Turbine took the radical approach of having male and female dwarves indistinguishable, to the extent that the game of Lord of the Rings Online does not as-sign dwarves a gender at all.

7

OTHER MINDS MAGAZINE —————————————————————————————————using outer names derived from the speech ofthe Northmen of the Second Age. Whilst Díswas forced to travel abroad in Middle-earth,dwarf-women who did not leave their holdsmight not have had outer names at all; if so,this would reinforce the tendency for themnot to be named in histories or genealogies.

Reading further in the passages quotedabove, we learn:

It is because of the fewness ofwomen among them that the kind ofthe Dwarves increases slowly, and isin peril when they have no securedwellings. For Dwarves take only onewife or husband each in their lives,and are jealous, as in all matters oftheir rights. The number of dwarf-men that marry is actually less thanone-third. For not all the womentake husbands: some desire none, somedesire one that they cannot get, andso will have no other. As for the men,very many also do not desiremarriage, being engrossed of theircrafts.– Durin’s Folk, Appendix A III,p. 1053

Whilst “very many” dwarf-men are too en-grossed of their crafts to be interested in mar-riage, Dwarf-women are not included in thisstatement. So even unmarried Dwarf-womenstill do not pursue the traditional Dwarvenprofessions of mining, crafting etc.

Despite how few mentions of dwarf-womenthere are, the conclusive statements are stillmostly negative ones about what they did notdo. The only conclusive positive statementsare concerned with the importance of dwarf-women to the demographics of the race.

The broad sweep of Tolkien’s alternate his-tory sees the Elves fade into Faerie and Hob-bits disappear, but the Dwarves’ holds fall andtheir numbers dwindle. He may have con-ceived this as far back as the tale of Mîm thepetty-dwarf. In the Appendices to The Lord ofthe Rings he certainly projected the start of theDwarves’ dwindling back into the latter half ofthe Second Age:

… the halls of Khazad-dûm weretoo deep and strong and filled with apeople too numerous and valiant forSauron forto conquer from without.Thus its wealth remained longunravished, though its people beganto dwindle.– Durin’s Folk, Appendix A III,p. 1046

Their slow population growth is a factoragain in the late Third Age (preceding TH),when it was explicitly linked with the fewnessof women amongst that contingent.

… at last they made a home inexile in the east of the Ered Luinbeyond the Lune. … but theyprospered after a fashion, and theirnumbers slowly increased.2

2 They had very few women-folk. DísThráin’s daughter was there. She was themother of Fíli and Kíli, who were born inthe Ered Luin. Thorin had no wife.– Durin’s Folk, Appendix A III,p. 1050

It is said, also, that theirwomenkind are few, and that savetheir kings and chieftains fewDwarves ever wed; wherefore theirrace multiplied slowly, and now isdwindling.– ‘Concerning the Dwarves’(1951), HoMe 11, p 205

For the race to multiply at all, howeverlong-lived its individuals might be, more thanjust the kings and chieftains must marry! Butthis statement still suggests a trend for pros-perous ‘upper class’ dwarves to be more likelyto marry and raise children than the crafting-and working classes. This in turn suggests thatin dwarvish society a suitor has to pay a heftybride-price (rather than fathers paying dowriesfor their daughters), or that child-care and ap-prenticeship fees are particularly expensive.

But the fact that Dwarven populationsgrow only slowly at best and are often proneto dwindling does not mean that they are ob-sessed with breeding and treat their wom-enkind like brood mares. On the contrary,they seem to have this problem precisely be-cause child-rearing is not a high priority forthem. We have already seen that the males areoften too busy crafting, that widows do not re-marry and that not all Dwarf-women marry atall. Further to that, when they do marry theydo so relatively late in life and have relativelysmall families despite the long years of vigourthey still have.

It is then said that the Dwarvesmarry late, seldom before they are 90or more,18 that they have few children(so many as four being rare). Theyare devoted to their children, oftenrather fiercely: that is, they may treatthem with apparent harshness(especially in the desire to ensure thatthey grow up tough, hardy,unyielding), but they defend themwith all their power, and resentinjuries to them even more than tothemselves. […] Finally there is a note on theabsence of record concerning thewomen of the Dwarves: They areseldom named in genealogies. Theyjoin their husbands’ families. But if ason is seen 110 or so years youngerthan his father, this usually indicatesan elder daughter. Thorin’s sister Dísis named simply because of thegallant death of her sons Fili andKili in defence of Thorin II.18 In the genealogical table all the ‘kingsof Durin’s Folk’ from Náin I to ThorinOakenshield were born either 101 or 102(in one case 100) years after theirfathers.– The Making of Appendix A,HoMe 12 p. 285

The Holy Dwarven Family

Durin was indeed held by theDwarves to be the Deathless that hadreturned; for they have many strangetales and beliefs concerningthemselves and their fate in theworld.– Durin’s Folk, Appendix A III,p. 1046

The Dwarves are unique amongst the FreePeoples in having been made directly by theVala Aulë. When the Seven Fathers of theDwarves (and in fact the six mothers!) wereaccepted as ‘adopted Children of Eru’ and eachgiven the divine spark of a soul with its ownfree will, this was only a last addition to thework of Aulë. Even before they received thesesouls like those of the other Free Peoples, theywere animated by a portion of the soul of Aulëhimself.

Also unlike any of the other Free Peoplesthey were directly taught by Aulë before theywere placed in Middle-earth. He designedtheir form, making them fittingly tough to re-sist the forces of Morgoth, then dominant inthe world, and gave them the language,Khuzdûl, which they have maintained un-changed ever since as an article of religious de-

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———————————————————————————————————— ISSUE 4, JULY 2008votion. What further wisdom he gave them,they share with none of other race.

One possibility is that the Dwarves believethey each bear a tiny part of the soul of Aulë.The elves have drawn unflattering parallels be-tween the dwarves and the trolls and dragonsof Morgoth, both being creations of a Valarather than of Ilúvatar. If there is any truth inthe parallel, then that portion of the soul ofAulë may persist in the race of the Dwarves.Even if the soul is diluted down the genera-tions, it is refreshed at those points whenDurin is reborn to the Dwarves (and quitepossibly the same for the other Fathers).

For an injury to a father a Dwarfmay spend a life-time in achievingrevenge. Since the ‘kings’ or heads oflines are regarded as ‘parents’ of thewhole group, it will be understoodhow it was that the whole of Durin’sRace gathered and marshalled itselfto avenge Thrór.– The Making of Appendix A,HoMe 12 p. 285

It is plausible that the dwarves do not talk of‘Fathers of the Dwarves’ or regard their ‘kings’as ‘parents’ simply as a poetic turn of language.It more probably reflects a genuine sense offamily that joins the entire race in general, andparticularly the dwarves within each of theSeven Houses. Bifur, Bofur and Bombur differfrom the other dwarves in the company as be-ing descended from Moria dwarves, but not ofDurin’s line. This suggests that the SevenHouses retained their separate identities anddid not interbreed even in the thousands ofyears in which the Broadbeams and Firebeardscohabited with the Longbeards in Khazad-dûm.

Where they have a king (or more cautious-ly ‘king’, in inverted commasquotes, in theabove), these kings are never despots ortyrants of their people. Even the lifelong pos-session of one of the Seven only makes themmildly possessive in their last years. Similarly,the Dwarves are not described as having a so-ciety of feudal ranks like dukes or barons whomight place their own interests before those ofsociety in general; the king’s closest relativestend to serve as advisors, ambassadors andcompanions.

To a dwarvish couple, having and raisingdwarf-children, bearers of a portion of thesoul of Aulë, could therefore be seen as an al-most religious duty – not something to be un-dertaken lightly. In contrast to the elves whosimply choose not to have children in times ofdoubt or strife, the Dwarves trust in the secu-rity of their fortified mansions, but never take

the children (or women) on journeys awayfrom them.

There may further be a particular signifi-cance to the protection of the dwarf-hold thatdictates against leaving it. On one hand thewomen and children never leave the hold, anddwarf-men may risk journeying abroad whilstalways maintaining their ties. On the otherhand we have the example of the petty-dwarves of The Silmarillion.

…Dwarves that were banished inancient days from the great Dwarf-cities of the east […] they becamediminished in stature and in smith-craft, and they took to lives of stealth,walking with bowed shoulders andfurtive steps.Of Turin Turambar, TheSilmarillion ch. 21, p. 245

The great Dwarves despised thePetty-dwarves, who were (it is said)the descendants of Dwarves who hadleft or been driven out from theCommunities, being deformed orundersized, or slothful and rebellious.But they still acknowledged theirkinship and resented any injuriesdone to them.– Elvish names for theDwarves, HoMe 11, p. 389

These passages confirm that even thosewhom the Dwarves have cast out are still seenas being of the Dwarven family, and also sug-gest that being exiled from the ‘Communities’or ‘Dwarf-cities’ caused the loss of stature,lore and moral fibre. It is almost as though theDwarf-hold, under the protection and rightfulauthority of a king, is like a hallowed place tothe Dwarves. Perhaps we should not seeDwarf-women as unusual in not travellingforth from their holds, but see all Dwarves asremaining in their holds unless high deeds suchas war or the winning of gold require it.

Notes1 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-

nc-sa/3.0/

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The crucial statement that the eyes and ears of other races cannot tell them male and female Dwarvesapart indicates that sexual dimorphism – the differences in physical form (and, incidentally, vocal quali-ty) between male and female – is minimal.

Whilst other Dwarves are not necessarily fooled, Dwarvish ‘male impersonators’ or ‘female imper-sonators’ would presumably still have better chances of success than their Mannish, Elvish or Hobbitishcounterparts.

Given the rigidity of Dwarvish society, it might be thought that spirited dwarf-women might bestrongly tempted to try and pass themselves off as dwarf-men and travel beyond the hold of their birth,pursue quests or even go to war. But the attentive upbringing of the parents and the whole strength ofdwarvish tradition would indoctrinate them against such behaviour, and the same rigid society wouldimpose particularly stern penalties for transgression.

9


Ambarquenta is a role-playing game specifically designed for J.R.R. Tolkien’s legendary land of Middle-earth. In this effort, it is our goal toproduce a game system that is all at once enjoyable, flexible, balanced, and playable, but we also strive to remain true to Tolkien’s shining literaryexamples. Ambarquenta (meaning ‘Tale of Fate’ in Quenya or High-elvish) aims at experienced role-players who desire a complex, yet intuitivelycomprehensible set of rules which provides hooks for the Turambar (i.e., the Gamemaster) to develop his stories, instead of distracting from them.

At the time being, preview release 5.0 is available for download from our website, located at www.ambarquenta.com.

It comes as a 214-page PDF-document, containing all chapters on character creation. To open and print this eBook and future preview releases,you’ll need to type the password, ‘ambarmeldor’ (meaning ‘Friends of Fate’ in Quenya).

The current preview version of Ambarquenta features a brief Introduction to the game’s mechanics, and chapters on Your Character’s Tale (1),Attributes (2), Races and Cultures (3), Skills (4), Abilities and Flaws (5), Weapons and Gear (6), Finishing Touches (7), Character Improvement (8)and Adventuring (9). In addition, Appendix A introduces you to the optional concept of everyday Occupations.

With a little creativity to fill in the gaps and the convenient Microsoft-Excel-based character sheet (also available for download fromwww.ambarquenta.com), an experienced group of gamers should well be able to start a game of Ambarquenta; in any case you’ll get an excellentimpression of the game’s mechanics and features from the preview. Expect detailed chapters dealing with Combat (10), Magic (11), prominent(NPC) Lords of Middle-earth (12), a Bestiary (13), and appendices on various topics such as herbs and poisons and creature design in futureversions of Ambarquenta.

We’d greatly appreciate to learn what you think about the published material, and, of course, about your ideas for improving the game’s existingchapters and completing its missing chapters. The best way to get in touch with us and our friends who are involved in the design process ofAmbarquenta is to discuss your ideas and suggestions in the Heren Turambarion’s forum, located at http://ambarquenta.tt.cx.

Design Principles

While downloading the rulebook, you might be interested to learn a little more about our design principles: First, Ambarquenta is a fairly‘realistic’ game. Of course there will be magic spells (as well as other forms of magic) and everything else a fair Middle-earth RPG requires, butcertain conditions of real world physics are still represented by the system. Hence, it isn’t the kind of game in which you can create ridiculouslyoverpowered starting characters, or ever hope to become a cinematic superhero.

The second principle is playability, and this frequently overrules realism. The most accurate combat system isn’t worth a penny if it makes asimple encounter last for hours, or (and this was even more important to us when we decided to write an RPG ourselves) if the Turambar has tokeep too many details in mind. Thus, realism governs the character creation and improvement process, while playability dominates the actual gameplay. So prepare for fast-moving play-rules that are far more realistic and satisfying than those you may know from many other major role-playinggames.

Another important element is flexibility. A character has the opportunity to learn or practise almost any skill or ability, without the usuallimitations by abstract concepts such as levels, character classes, or character points. Nevertheless, by the system’s inherent mechanics, yourcharacter will show a unique pattern from the beginning on, a personal aptitude towards being whatever you want him to be...

THE HEREN TURAMBARION

Creators of Ambarquenta

eMail [email protected] www.ambarquenta.comForum http://ambarquenta.tt.cx

10 ——————————————————————————————————————————

———————————————————————————————————— ISSUE 4, JULY 2008

by Thomas Morwinsky([email protected]) © 2008

per the terms of the CC license: b n a 1

This essay is an attempt to present a concise anal-

ysis of the Dwarven mansions and the most likelydistribution of their locations across Middle-earth.It is based on a textual analysis of what Tolkienwrote on the matter (unfortunately not much). Us-ing this as a starting-point, further investigationscan establish a sound basis for further developmentsin this area. While the houses of the Ered Luin andDurin’s house are documented reasonably well byTolkien, the eastern houses are not and it is especial-ly here where there is room for further developmentof the placement of cities and their demography. Inlight of the latter, I hope to give a usable demo-graphic framework that can be used for furtherwork.

I constrain myself to outlining the broad detailsof the mansions and their histories. Smaller settle-ments used only for mining or exploration cannot becovered here. You may notice a distinct neglect ofmannish names or communities with whom theDwarves likely had relations. This is intentional toavoid collision with later and more in-depth essayson the matter.

I hope to give food for thought and inspiration foranyone working out the Dwarven communities andhistories in more detail.

A note on namingAll of the names used below are either

Khuzdûl (mostly the mansions) or the mannishnorthern style language we are acquaintedwith through the convention in Durin’s folk ofusing northern names. Since the Naugrim take‘outer names’ in the languages of the peoplearound them (generally men), these original‘outer names’ are specific to the region inwhich the house in question resides. Thus wewould expect the ‘outer names’ of theDwarves beyond the Northwest of Middle-earth to have different origins than those ofDurin’s tribe.

Owing to the way in which they have beenreported in the West, however, the ‘outernames’ of all the Naugrim are given accordingto the “Durinic” adoption of names in the lan-guage of the Second-Age-Northmen. Althoughthis does not authentically represent theDwarves’ outer names near their homelands,it shows those names under which theseDwarves are known in the West (if they comethere). These may be either names that Durin’shouse uses when addressing their eastern rela-tives in conversation with men (or elves) fromthe West, or names taken by individuals fromthe eastern houses when they dwell in theNorthwest of Middle-earth.

The sourcesThis essay strives to provide useful gaming

material that is as close as possible to whatTolkien has written about the Dwarves and es-pecially their mansions and their wanderings.

On the other hand, we have several gaming

publications (both commercial and fan-made)that deal with the Naugrim. In the section onsources at the end of this essay I list all of themand where to find them on the net (ifavailable).

The Lord of the Rings provides us with someuseful passages about the Dwarves of Durin’sFolk. HoMe 12 contains further desperatelyneeded information about the early history ofthe Dwarves. In addition, The Silmarillion is agood source for all the events of Beleriand, allwhile it has to be checked with the originalsources (e.g. the HoMe 11) for greater accura-cy.

The HoMe 12 with its important essay OfDwarves and Men is one of the most importantsources for many aspects of Dwarven history.It gives descriptive names for all seven tribes,for instance. In the table below this informa-tion is combined with relevant parts of theRPG sources mentioned above.

Past RPG developmentsThe Dwarves, their history and mansions

have – naturally – attracted the imagination ofmany writers. Both RPG companies that havepublished information on the Dwarves. Whilethe output of DEC has been quite limited, ICEproduced more; the most comprehensive be-ing Lords of Middle-earth, Vol. 3 – Hobbits,Dwarves, Ents, Orcs & Trolls (LoMe III). Here theauthors give us some information on their vi-sion of these matters. The material on theDwarves however, is somewhat problematic,since it is often fragmentary and incoherent.Even worse, its internal structure is quite dis-

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Tribe # Number ofAwakening Place

Name of father/founder according toTolkien ICE* Decipher*

Descriptive name byTolkien

region

1 1 Durin Durin Durin Longbeards Northwest2 2 unknown Dwalin Úri Firebeards Northwest3 2 unknown Thrár Linnar Broadbeams Northwest4 3 unknown Thelór Sindri Ironfists East5 3 unknown Bávor Thulin Stiffbeards East6 4 unknown Drúin Var Blacklocks East7 4 unknown Barin Vigdi Stonefoots East* The correspondence of the ICE tribes to Decipher tribes is somewhat problematic. The Decipher version accordsbetter to Tolkien descriptions but it is not easy, and sometimes arbitrary, to assign the ICE tribes to them. Therefore,the table should not be seen as more authoritative than other interpretations.

Table of Awakening Places and Dwarven tribes

A Brief Historyof the Dwarven Mansions

11

OTHER MINDS MAGAZINE —————————————————————————————————organised and the information scattered ran-domly throughout the ages of Middle-earthand with little or no internal context.

With respect to the theme of this essay – theDwarven mansions – the value of LoMe III isalso limited since it is in my opinion mostly in-compatible with the HoMe 12. The blame forthis cannot be placed with the authors, sinceLoMe III was published in 1989, well before theHoMe 12 (1996). It is important to note, how-ever, that in ICE’s version, the mansions of theDwarves were scattered all over Middle-earth.This was done without doubt to give each re-gion its Dwarven tribe, in order to serve the‘classic’ RPG clichés in every corner of thecontinent. Again, while suitable for the time,with the current knowledge and textual situa-tion, a critical review of this interpretation isnecessary.

In The Silmarillion, there is the following pas-sage that deals with the Places of Awakening(see below):

Then Aulë took the Seven Fathersof the Dwarves, and laid them to restin far-sundered places; and hereturned to Valinor, and waited whilethe long years lengthened.– The Silmarillion.Of Aulë andYavanna

ICE could have considered this. Instead,they chose to base all tribes at Khazad-dûm,whereas there was evidence, even at this time(1989), in favour of separating the places ofawakening.

Places of AwakeningLots of discussions have taken place about

the places of the Dwarven awakenings. Sincethey are pivotal for the further placement ofmansions and the locations of Dwarven terri-tories in later times, this is an important mat-ter indeed. The central quote about it can befound in the HoMe 12:

In the Dwarvish traditions of theThird Age the names of the placeswhere each of the Seven Ancestors had‘awakened’ were remembered; but onlytwo of them were known to Elves andMen of the West: the most westerly, theawakening place of the ancestors ofthe Firebeards and the Broadbeams;and that of the ancestor of theLongbeards,(24) the eldest in makingand awakening. The first had been inthe north of the Ered Lindon, thegreat eastern wall of Beleriand, ofwhich the Blue Mountains of theSecond and later ages were the

remnant; the second had been MountGundabad (in origin a Khuzdulname), ... The other two placeswere eastward, at distances asgreat or greater than that betweenthe Blue Mountains and Gundabad:the arising of the Ironfists andStiffbeards, and that of the Blacklocksand Stonefoots. Though these fourpoints were far sundered theDwarves of different kindreds were incommunication, and in the early agesoften held assemblies of delegates atMount Gundabad. In times of greatneed even the most distant wouldsend help to any of their people; aswas the case in the great War againstthe Orks (Third Age 2793 to 2799).– HoMe 12.Of Dwarves andMen (my emphasis)

This quote is of course important and pointsthe way, but it also lacks precise locations. Inmy opinion its most important piece of infor-mation is the inference that the Places ofAwakening were not randomly distributedamong the mountain ranges of Middle-earth,but deliberately placed in the north of the con-tinent. Here I take the phrase “...were east-ward [of the known ones] ...” as the centralpoint. It is not said that they were “south-east-ward”, “south” or anything else but eastward.Of course this leaves some room for interpre-tation, and the passage does not indicate a per-fect correspondence in latitude. It does mean,however that the principal direction is indeedeastward, and deviations to the north or southare very likely considerably smaller than thedistance eastward.

We might also want to consider that theDwarves were from the beginning designed asresilient:

Since they were to come in thedays of the power of Melkor, Aulëmade the Dwarves strong to endure. –The Silmarillion.Of Aulë andYavanna

One might imagine that the Dwarves weredeliberately placed in some kind of “picketline” in the northern part of Middle-earth.Aulë was well aware that the Utter North hadbeen Melkor’s domain in the days of Utumno.This is indirectly supported by the followingquote:

But as the third age of thecaptivity of Melkor drew on, theDwarves became troubled, and theyspoke to King Thingol, saying thatthe Valar had not rooted out utterly

the evils of the North, and nowthe remnant, having long multipliedin the dark, were coming forth oncemore and roaming far and wide.‘There are fell beasts,’ they said, ‘inthe land east of the mountains, andyour ancient kindred that dwell thereare flying from the plains to the hills.’

– The Silmarillion.Of theSindar (my emphasis)

Both these hints, the toughness of thedwarves and their placement close to the olddomain of Melkor, can be seen as an indicatorof a special purpose: That they might form afirst line of defence for the northern part ofMiddle-earth denying Melkor’s evils easy ac-cess to good strongholds from which to assailthe more southerly and lower lying parts ofMiddle-earth. It must be borne in mindthough, that this is far from a close and forti-fied border (e.g. like the Roman limes or theGreat Wall of China). It would be more of abuffer and a hindrance for an overly easy ac-cess. If we follow this reasoning, Aulë mighthave chosen the sites of Awakening also strate-gically to deny the best mountain locations toMelkor’s evil creatures.

The following paragraphs contain what isknown in more detail about the specific tribesas well as some reasonable further inferencesthat can be used for the purpose of this essay.

The Ered Luin tribesThe mansions of the western tribes are nat-

urally the easiest to locate. From The Silmaril-lion, we know the great cities of Nogrod andBelegost in the Ered Luin. The above quotefrom the HoMe 12 implies (as noted there byChristopher Tolkien), that the Firebeards andBroadbeams are to be identified with the twincities of Nogrod and Belegost. These twotribes had a lot of dealings with the Eldar ofBeleriand and their impact on the history ofthe First Age is not to be underestimated. Themain quote above shows us that these man-sions were not the places of their birth. Proba-bly some time after the awakening, they trav-eled southward and founded Nogrod (Kh.“Tumunzahar”) and Belegost (Kh. “Gabilgath-ol”). The exact location of these cities is notentirely clear when we look at the develop-ment as outlined in the HoMe 11, but the ver-sion which is printed in The Silmarillion is suffi-cient for our purposes.

Tolkien tells us that these tribes were largelyabsorbed by Durin’s people in Khazad-dûm(continued on next page):

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After the end of the First Age thepower and wealth of Khazad-dûmwas much increased; for it wasenriched by many people and muchlore and craft when the ancient citiesof Nogrod and Belegost in the BlueMountains were ruined at thebreaking of Thangorodrim. – LotR.Appendix B (DurinsFolk)

This is supported in another passage in theLord of the Rings:

c. 40 [Second Age] Many Dwarvesleaving their old cities in Ered Luingo to Moria and swell its numbers – LotR.Appendix A

A problem persists however. If these twotribes had completely merged with Durin’speople, there would have been no sevenDwarven lords on whom Sauron could bestowa Ring of Power each. Therefore it is likely thatnot all of these dwarves went into Moria, butthat a substantial number stayed in the EredLuin – probably with their respective kings.This is also the thinking in Other Hands # 25,which deals with the Naugrim of the BlueMountains.

Decipher followed this argumentation anddeveloped a two-fold solution: On the onehand, there remained independent cities ofthese two tribes (though small by Khazad-dûm’s standards), while on the other hand themajority of these people took shelter in Khaz-ad-dûm. Only later, when even the smaller in-dependent cities failed and Sauron regainedthe Seven (at least those not destroyed), didthe survivors relocate to Khazad-dûm as well.In all respects they acknowledged Durin’s heiras their overlord, but they remained de iure in-dependent. This latter fact is emphasised byfighting under their own house’s banners inwar.

Durin’s folkFor Durin’s people, the situation is similar

to that of the Ered Luin tribes. Their origin isdescribed in the HoMe 12 (see initial quote).They later settled in Khazad-dûm (Moria), thegreatest and most famous of all Dwarven settle-ments. Similar to the Ered Luin tribes, theyleft their original place, but remained withinthe same mountain range.

Since the information provided by Tolkienabout Durin’s folk is the most comprehensivewe have about the Dwarves, it is this modelthat serves as the base for many of the laterconclusions. The complex fate of Durin’shouse and the massive external pressure on it

(a Balrog, several dragons) is a good indicatorof the maximum distance from their place ofawakening where Dwarves are willing to buildpermanent mansions.

This process [the early to mid-Second Age alliance of Northmen andDwarves] began not in barter andtrade, but in war; for the Longbeardshad spread southward down the Valesof Anduin and had made their chief‘mansion’ and stronghold at Moria;and also eastward to the Iron Hills,where the mines were their chiefsource of iron-ore. They regarded theIron Hills, the Ered Mithrin, and theeast dales of the Misty Mountains astheir own land. But they were underattack from the Orks of Morgoth.– HoMe12.Of Dwarves andMen

‘Long and deadly was that war,and it was fought for the most part indark places beneath the earth; and atthe last the Dwarves had the victory,and in the Battle before the Gate ofMoria ten thousand Orcs were slain.But the Dwarves suffered alsogrievous loss and his folk were now sodiminished that Thrain dared not toenter Moria, and his people weredispersed again.’ – HoMe 12.The Making ofAppendix A (Durins folk)

The HoMe 12 presents to us what Tolkienenvisioned the Appendices (or part thereof),but had to cut short due to space considera-tions. It is one of the rare circumstances wherehe tells us some precise numbers, too. That theOrcs in the decisive Battle of Nanduhirion lostabout 10,000 warriors is a very interestingpiece of information that can be used to gaugethe relative military (and indirectly overall de-mographic) strength of Durin’s people nearthe end of the Third Age.

The eastern tribesInformation by Tolkien about the eastern

tribes is very scarce. Apart from the initialquote about their places of awakening, thereare only vague passages that deal with their re-lation with other people. There is absolutelyno further evidence about their mansions.2 Ac-cordingly, we have to use a good deal of imagi-nation, common sense and educated guess-work to fill these lacunae.

Following the interpretation adopted by De-cipher in the Moria sourcebook, Var’s folk took

to a separate lifestyle from the middle of the25th century of the Third Age: The children andwomen were sheltered in the ancestral homeof Vigdís, while the men formed mercenarycompanies in their quest to redeem theirwrongs. This period lasted from T.A. 2458 toT.A. 3019 when Sauron was finally van-quished. During this time, Var’s people formedseven mercenary companies that were away ontheir quest to fight the minions of Sauron.Whenever possible, one or two of them wereat Baraz-lagil, returning booty and treasuresfrom the others back home. Thus six of themwere away, fighting their own war againstSauron. Along this line, three or four of thetemporary mansions (see below) were occu-pied at the same time.

Compared to the other houses, both Thulin’sand Sindri’s people never had a great numberof mansions at any one time. The former – be-ing smaller in number from the beginning –kept closer together due to the harsh climateof their home. The latter kept closer togetheraround their primary mansion, preferring tobe stronger in a single place rather than scat-tered throughout a greater area. Their strategicposition, especially in the First Age and thefirst third of the Second Age, allowed them tocontrol much of the west- and eastbound traf-fic in this region. This did not earn them thegratitude of their mannish neighbours, in turnreinforcing the need for a more centralisedsettlement pattern.

The late Third Age, when Var’s people led apersonal war of vengeance against the DarkLord and his minions is marked by the exis-tence of several temporary mansions foundedby this tribe. These so-called “war-mansions”are characterized by a total lack of women andchildren and their overall strict military orien-tation (e.g. there is no mining beyond the nec-essary minimum for the maintenace of thewar-gear). They are essentially semi-perma-nent military camps and bases for the Axes ofNargubraz in their vendetta.

Please note that Var’s folk has no “war man-sions” in the Northwest. Whenever a companyof the Axes of Nargubraz happens to operate inthe Northwest, they are sheltered in a mansionof the western Dwarves. The same happens forother regions in which other tribes have man-sions.

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Methodology for the eastern places ofawakening and further mansions

It is of the utmost importance to gauge thewandering tendency of the Dwarves, sincebased on their supposed birthplaces, an esti-mate of their – claimed – territory can bemade. At first, a passage from the HoMe 12 isof great help:

Though they were loth to migrateand make permanent dwellings or‘mansions’ far from their originalhomes, except under great pressurefrom enemies or after somecatastrophe such as the ruin ofBeleriand, they were great and hardytravellers and skilled road-makers;also, all the kindreds shared acommon language.– HoMe12. Of Dwarves andMen

So it is only under great duress thatDwarves migrate. This is not surprising, giventhe low number of women and accordinglytheir demographic vulnerability if they were tolose a significant number of them in a war ornatural disaster. Thus it is indeed reasonable toassume, that the people stay in their fortifiedmansions whenever possible. The distinctionbetween permanent and temporary man-sions makes it possible to locate “real” Dwar-ven cities in limited areas while temporarydwellings can be found further away. A perma-nent mansion may be defined by the presenceof women, who where even less inclined towandering than the men, and who thereforestay in the permanent residences.

This sedentary lifestyle of the Dwarves isalso stressed in another passage of the same es-say:

... for while the Dwarves stilllived in populous mansions of theirown, such as Moria in particular, andwent on journeys only to visit theirown kin, they had little intercoursewith other peoples except immediateneighbours, ... – HoMe12. Of Dwarves andMen

The information that even without any ex-ternal threat or necessity, the Naugrim are nogreat wanderers, is also important. In this con-text it is logical that both the tribes from theEred Luin and Durin’s people only settled inthe same mountain range where they awoke(or the adjacent ones in the case of the EredMithrin and Emyn Engrin for the Longbeards).Later in its history, Durin’s tribe was forced toleave their homes three times: first the Balrog

colour House # founder mansion # name of dwelling notes1st Durin 1 Gundabad/

Gunduzbad2 Khazad-dûm/Moria3 Erebor4 Thakalgund Norr-dûm in the ICE canon5 Barukkhizdín Azanulinbar-dûm in ICE canon6 Gindabaz* unnamed (by Tolkien) dwelling in

Dunland7 Azelanduzur* unnamed (by Tolkien) halls of Thorin

(Hobbit, UT)8 Aglarond founded by Gimli in early Fourth Age

2nd Úri 1 Buzdûm-Mazar* Awakening Place3 Tumunzahar/

Nogrod4 Kalbarazûd*/

Tumnogoth IaurICE name

3rd Linnar 1 Buzdûm-Mazar* unnamed awakening place andintermediary home after ruin ofBelegost

2 Gabilgathol/Belegost

5 Barazbizar/Carn Dûm

10 Baruk-zigil*/Mount Gram

2nd and/or 3rd

PettyDwarves

6 Nulukkizdîn/Nargothrond

7 Ruzandum*/Amon Rûdh

8 Narukgindín*/Cameth Brin

ICE creation

9 Tharâg*/Bar-en-Ibûn

ICE creation

4th Sindri 1 Akgundîm* Awakening Place3 Gamil-nâla ruined after Akallabêth4 Sigal-Nâra* second home; partly destroyed and

occupied by dragons in mid-TA5 Nurunkhizdín OH (Inland Sea)

5th Thulin 1 Akgundîm* Awakening Place2 Kibil-tarag occupied by dragon in mid-TA6 Buzan* modest base for trade and barter,

small community to supportdragonslayers

6th Var 1 Baruzkhizdîn* Awakening Place2 Nargubraz ancestral home; abandoned until

after fall of Sauron4 Narindazdûm* colony in contact with Sindri5 Garaz-Khamil* colony in contact with Sindri9 Khalarazûm ICE name (originally a temple of an

eastern tribe)15 Námagalûz Fourth Age settlement for contact

with the West10 Narad-dûm ICE name (from Bávor’s Folk)11 Naragul ICE name/creation (Blackflame in

Shadow in the South)12 Akhuzdah ICE name (a name for an eastern

mansion)13 Azagarbhun* ICE name (Thelór’s home in central

M-e)14 Mablad-dûm ICE creation (see Greater Harad)

7th Vigdís 1 Baruzkhizdîn* Awakening Place3 Baraz-lagil ancestral home6 Baruzdazar*7 Kharukthalad*8 Felbuzad*

*: These names were generated randomly. They may be replaced by more genuine ones in the future

Table of major Dwarven mansions

14 ——————————————————————————————————————————

———————————————————————————————————— ISSUE 4, JULY 2008drove them out of Khazad-dûm and laterSmaug the Dragon seized Erebor. Betweenthese events, other dragons had struck the newmansions in the Ered Mithrin, killing kingDáin I and many more and forcing the Nau-grim from their homes in the Grey Mountains.After each of these events the tribe was forcedto wander again, eventually settling in a newhome, but probably with ever-decreasinggrandeur and wealth. In my opinion all of thisexceptional misfortune (a Balrog and severaldragons) adds up to “great pressure” as ad-duced above. Apart from Sauron personally,there are in my opinion hardly greater calami-ties imaginable than those which befell theLongbeards.

Hence the following principles have beenapplied in the development of the mansions asdepicted on map 1.

1. Taking Durin’s people as an example, allknown major mansions of this peoplehave been marked on the map. An imag-inary circle has been drawn with Gund-abad (the place of awakening) at its cen-tre to encompass all the mansions ofDurin’s House. This imaginary circle isused to encompass the maximum areawhere a Dwarven house is made perma-nent dwellings even under the most in-tense pressure.

2. If we apply the same radius to the twotribes from the Ered Luin, we get anarea that fits well the – admittedlyscarce – textual evidence about the ac-tivities of these people.

3. When we have a look at the northernend of the Ered Luin/Lindon and Gund-abad, we see that both lie at about thesame latitude.

4. In applying the same latitude to the east-ern places; we must remember that thedistance to the east has to be at least thedistance between the Blue Mountainsand Gundabad. Since there are nomountains in the region (at about thisdistance) on Tolkien's LotR map, we haveto assume that the first of these placeswas off the map provided in the Lord ofthe Rings and that the distance east musthave been “greater” than the distancefrom the Ered Luin to Gundabad.

5. When applying this latitude and mini-mum distance to the Other Minds, Issue#2 map, we end up with possible placesfor these sites as depicted on map 1.

6. Having determined these places, themaximum radius of wandering (derivedfrom that of Durin’s people) is appliedto each. For me, this is the best possible

way of reconstructing the location of themansions and the maximum area ofwandering and secondary mansions, us-ing the maximum amount of evidenceavailable.

The mansionsUnfortunately, we do not know much about

the mansions themselves. Khazad-dûm/Moriais almost our exclusive source for some infor-mation. In the Lord of the Rings, the West-gateof the city, which the Fellowship of the Ringused to enter the once proud Dwarven city, isdescribed. We are also given some informationon the East Gate in a note:

8. They [the Runes; e.g. the onesfrom Daeron or the Angerthas Moria]did not, however, appear in theinscriptions on the West Gate ofMoria. The Dwarves said that it wasin courtesy to the Elves that theFëanorian letters were used on thatgate, since it opened into theircountry and was chiefly used by them.But the East Gates, which perished inthe war against the Orks, had openedupon the wide world, and were lessfriendly. They had borne Runicinscriptions in several tongues: spellsof prohibition and exclusion inKhuzdûl, and commands that allshould depart who had not the leaveof the Lord of Moria written inQuenya, Sindarin, the CommonSpeech, the languages of Rohan andof Dale and Dunland.– HoMe12. Of Dwarves andMen

Thus it is not improbable that every primarymansion of a tribe was similarly protected. Ofcourse we do not know the level of protectionthese spells provided, but they surely helped tokeep Durin's House safe for two and a halfages of the world.

The mapsThe maps supplementing this essay can be

found in the Appendix of this issue of OtherMinds. These maps contain several recurring el-ements that ease the navigation.

First they contain elements in four colors.These represent the awakening order of theDwarves. Since this is important throughouttheir history, the colours are retained for allfeatures pertaining to a tribe. The colours areassigned in the following way:

colour House #1st

2nd and 3rd

4th and 5th

6th and 7th

Colour codes for mansions on the maps

The maps depict Middle-earth during vari-ous times from the First throughout theFourth Age.

It is interesting that there were three pairsof Dwarven fathers laid together and oneplaced alone. The evidence written by Tolkiensuggests that the histories of those houses thatawoke together were somewhat more inter-twined (for good or bad) with each other thanwith those of the other houses.3

In addition to the colour codes, you see sev-eral symbols on the maps. These are:

Place of Awakening of one or twotribes.

Icon for a mansion of the first housefrom a given site of awakening.

Icon for a mansion of the secondhouse from a given site of awakening.

Icon for a Petty-Dwarven mansionknown in the West.

Icon for a temporary mansion usedby Var’s people from the 25th to the31st century of the Third Age.

In the Appendix there are twelve maps ac-companying this essay. Thwe following tablelists their themes. For the abbreviations used,see the next page, column to the right.

Map Theme1 Awakening Places of the Seven Houses on

a map of the First Age. Circle of maximumdistance of mansions from Place ofAwakening are provided.

2 Period of the First Age from Y.T 1100 to Y.S.590

3 Period around S.A. 12004 Period around S.A. 20005 Period around S.A. 26006 Period around S.A. 32007 Period around T.A. 1008 Period around T.A. 13009 Period around T.A. 200010 Period around T.A. 281011 Period around T.A. 300012 Period around F.A. 100Temporal foci of the maps

These periods are not fixed, for most placesa few years earlier or later the maps are stillvalid.

In addition to these “place-icons”, you cansee some coloured circles on map 1. Theircolour corresponds to the respective place of

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OTHER MINDS MAGAZINE —————————————————————————————————awakening and they are centered on this place.These circles represent the maximum radiuswhere we can expect permanent Dwarvenmansions from the given house. The methodol-ogy for choosing this radius has been detailedabove. Note that some of the coloured circlesoverlap. This means that the radius of perma-nent settlements is not exclusive, and thatdwarves of different tribes may even settlenear each other. Therefore the circles aroundthe Places of Awakening must not be seen asexclusive but as a guideline.

The mansionsOnly major mansions are shown here.

Smaller communities or settlements are omit-ted. The placement of the tribes’ major abodesis a good indicator of where smaller settle-ments could be located.

The table to the right complements themaps. The first column is the colour code usedon the map. It is intended to clearly differenti-ate the four Awakening Places of the Dwarves.The second is for the house name (to differen-tiate between those houses that awoke in thesame place). The fourth column numbers themansions (from 1 to x in each colour code),while the fifth column gives the Khuzdul nameof the specific mansion.

Please note that not all mansions do exist inevery age. Therefore the numberings on themaps do not always contain all numbers for agiven house. This is intentional to ease thenumbering scheme.

A number of mansions have been markedwith asterisks (*). These names have been cre-ated randomly and may need checking formore authentic names.

The map for the First Age depicts all theplaces of the First Age until the War of Wrath.The later maps assume the situation as it was atthe precise date.

TimelineThis time line uses two ways of measuring

time in the First Age: From the founding ofValinor until the rising of the sun4, ‘ValianYears’ are used. These are synonymous inlength with the ‘Years of the Trees’ (YT). It isnot entirely clear and without doubt how thesetwo methods (Valian/Tree Years and Sun Years)of reckoning should be synchronised, but themost comprehensive and best-documentedversion equates one ‘Valian/Tree Year’ with9.582 ‘Years of the Sun’.

The ‘Years of the Trees’ began with the foun-dation of Valinor and the growing of the Two

Trees Telperion and Laurelin. They lasted untilthe year 1500 when the sun and moon werecreated and rose into the heavens. Thus, thispart of the First Age lasted about 14,373 Yearsof the Sun.5 Anyone interested in more detailsof the Valian Years and the count of time intheir term should have a look at the HoMe 10.The ‘Year of the Sun’ column has negative val-ues for the first entries. This is a hypotheticalvalue that is calculated backward from the ris-ing of the sun based on the above mentionedcontext between both reckonings.

The timing of the awakening of the Khazâdis no easy task and we have to use a lot ofguesswork here. At least Tolkien provides uswith a few hints from which to start:

[Year of the Trees] 1250. §19. Inthis year the Norn-folk came firstover the mountains into Beleriand.This people the Noldor after namedthe Naugrim, whom some Men callDwarves. Their most ancient dwellingswere far to the East, but they haddelved for themselves great halls andmansions, after the manner of theirkind, on the east-side of Eryd Luin,north and south of Mount Dolmed, inthose places which the Eldar namedBelegost and Nogrod (Gabilgatholand Tumunzahar). Thence they nowcame forth and made themselvesknown to the Elves; and the Elveswere amazed, for they had deemedthemselves to be the only livingthings in Middle-earth that spokewith words or wrought with hands;and that all others were beasts andbirds only.– HoMe 11. The Grey Annals

The passage above implies that in the year1250 the tribes of the Ered Luin had alreadyestablished their cities after migrating south-wards from their birthplace. This means thatthey must have multiplied to such an extentthat they were able to build considerable man-sions (Nogrod and Belegost) and subsequentlyfelt secure enough to venture forth and con-tact the Sindar. Since the Quendi awoke in theyear 1050, there are only 200 Years of theTrees left for the Awakening of the Naugrim.Taking into account the problems mentionedabove (increasing numbers and establishing“cities”), the Awakening of the Naugrim shouldnot be placed too long after that of the Quen-di. We face another problem in the Battle ofthe Powers: This titanic clash between theforces of Melkor and the Valar was fought pri-marily in the North, the region of theDwarves’ awakening. Surely Aulë must havetaken precautions that his Children were either

securely sheltered or placed in regions werethe battle was less violent (perhaps inspiredsubconsciously by Eru in his choice for theseplaces?).

However, Tolkien writes in a note, that theDwarves had been in Beleriand before the El-dar came there:

Indeed it was one of their [theDwarves’] grievances against theEldar that they had hunted and slaintheir lesser kin [the Petty-dwarves],who had settled in Beleriand beforethe Elves came there.– HoMe 11. Quendi and Eldar

In any case, in my opinion it is unlikely thatthe Naugrim awoke from the slumber beforethe Battle of the Powers was won. SinceMelkor was led to captivity in Valinor in theyear 1100, I assume this year a convenient datefor the awakening of the Khazâd. Of coursethis leaves only very little time for a significantmultiplication of the Khazâd and the buildingof mansions, but in my opinion leaves theseevents possible.

Major events for all the houses are men-tioned, but the focus of the time line are stillthose events connected to the Dwarves of theWestlands (Durin’s, Linnar’s and Úri’s peoplerespectively).

The following abbreviations are used:

YT – the “Years of the Trees” in theFirst AgeYS – the “Years of the Sun” in theFirst AgeS.A. – Second AgeT.A. – Third AgeF.A. – Fourth Age

First AgeY.T. Y.S. Event1100 -3833 Awakening of Durin (1st house).

-3832 Awakening of Linnar and Úri (2nd and3rd house).

-3830 Awakening of Var and Vigdís (6th and7th house).

-3824 Awakening of Sindri and Thulin (4thand 5th house).

1106 -3775 The Bond of Blood and the ordering ofthe houses.

1108 -3756 Durin comes to Kheled-zarâm andfounds Khazad-dûm.

1110 -3737 Linnar and Úri wander south and foundthe twin cities of Belegost and Nogrod.

-3732 The ancestors of the Petty-dwarves areexpelled from the mansions in the EredLuin and begin to wander in Beleriand.

1111 -3727 Gamil-nâla founded by Sindri.1112 -3718 Kibil-tarag founded by Thulin.1115 -3689 The march of the Eldar reaches

Beleriand.

16 ——————————————————————————————————————————

———————————————————————————————————— ISSUE 4, JULY 2008

Y.T. Y.S. Event-3685 Nargubraz founded by Var.

1116 -3679 Baraz-lagil founded by Vigdís.1134 -3507 Death of Linnar.

-3503 Death of Sindri.1135 -3497 Death of Var.

-3492 Death of Vigdís and Thulin.1136 -3488 Death of Úri.1141 -3440 Foundation of Nulukkizdîn (later called

Nargothrond) by the Petty-dwarves.1152 -3335 Elwë awakes from his trance. He

gathers the Sindar and becomes theking of Beleriand and is subsequentlycalled Thingol.

1164 -3220 The Sindar are first attacked by thePetty-dwarves; always from ambush.They hunt them, mistaking them forvicious animals or creatures of Melkor.

1171 -3152

1181 -3056 Death of Durin I. "the Deathless".1220 -2683 Founding of Garaz-khamil.1250 -2396 First contact between the Sindar and

Úri's and Linnar's people. Grievancesconcerning the Petty-dwarves are setaside.

1289 -2022 Daeron first devises his runes. Theyare later eagerly adopted by theDwarves for carvings in stone.

1300 -1916 Melian counsels Thingol to build afortress against the looming threat fromthe remnants of Melkor's realm.Excavation of Menegroth is begun withthe aid of Linnar's people.

1308 -1840 Telchar is born in Nogrod.1310 -1821 The building of Menegroth is finished.1311 -1811 Baruzdazar founded by the folk of

Vigdís.1318 -1744 Linnar's and Úri's people are troubled

again by creatures bred by Melkor thatmultiply again. They take counsel withThingol.

1320 -1725 Thingol is arming his realm because ofthe threat of Melkor's creatures. Úri'sand Linnar's people teach the Sindarabout crafting weapons and armour.

1330 -1629 Thingol drives off Melkor's creaturesand Beleriand has peace again.

1337 -1562 Telchar dies.1350 -1437 Denethor comes to Beleriand. He and

his folk settle in Ossiriand. Beginning ofthe Golden Age of Beleriand with blissand peace.

1369 -1255 The Petty-dwarves abandonNulukizzdîn.

1371 -1236 Ruzandum/Amon Rûdh founded.1377 -1179 Daeron improves his runes

considerably; now called Cirth.1450 -479 The Petty-dwarves found Amon Rûdh

as their last mansion in Beleriand.1495 -48 Melkor/Morgoth returns to Middle-

earth. He begins the re-building ofAngband and the breeding of foulthings. End of the Golden Age ofBeleriand.

1497 -29 First assault of Morgoth uponBeleriand. His eastern army is utterlydefeated by Thingol and Denethor. Therescapees are waylaid and routed byLinnar's and Úri’s people.

1500 1 Rising of the Sun, awakening of men inHildórien.

Y.T. Y.S. Event52 Finrod begins the building of

Nargothrond in the abandoned halls ofNulukizzdîn.

150 Úri's and Linnar's people firstencounter the Noldor (Caranthir'speople). Relations are cool, but theymake alliance in the face of thecommon enemy. The Naugrim learnmuch craft from the Noldor.

468 The Union of Maedhros is beingformed. Úri's and Linnar's people join itboth with troops and supplies ofweapons and armour.

473 Nirnaeth Arnoediad. The Dwarves ofBelegost win renown by holding therearguard. Azaghâl, the lord of Linnar'speople is killed by Glaurung afterwounding the great dragon.

489 Ruzandum/Amon Rûdh abandoned.502 Thingol commissions the insertion of

the Silmaril into the Nauglamír. Quarrelof Nogrod's smiths with Thingol who isslain.

503 The host of Nogrod sacks Menegroth.On the return the host is destroyed byan army led by Beren at Sarn Athrad.The lord of Úri's people is killed.Linnar's people are dismayed by theruthlessness of the Nogrodians.

529 Gundabad is taken by Morgoth's Orcsin an attempt to secure hissoutheastern flank for furthercampaigns after the final defeat of theEldar and Edain.

560 Establishment of Narukgindín/CamethBrin in Eriador by Ibûn's Petty-dwarves.

590 End of the War of Wrath. Morgoth isdefeated and Angband broken. Most ofBeleriand begins to sink beneath thewaves of the Belegaer.

Second AgeYear Event36-45 Many of Linnar's and Úri's people leave

their old cities which have been shatteredbeyond repair by the War of Wrath. Thisexodus swells Durin's people in Khazad-dûm whose craft and wealth is increasedby the new arrivals.

40 Second Union of the Khazâd convoked.Gundabad retaken from the Orcs.Alliance of Dwarves and Northmenfounded in Rhovanion.

72 Barukkhizdín founded in the Iron Hills.

120 Thakalgund founded by Durin's people inthe Ered Mithrin.

724 Mithril discovered in Khazad-dûm.

750 Noldorin realm of Eregion on the westernside of Khazad-dûm founded.

1020 Founding of Narindazdûm by Var'speople.

1196 Kharukthalad founded by the folk ofVigdís.

1200-1550 Sauron in Eregion; crafting of the Ringsof Power (the Nine and the Seven)

1600 Sauron finishes his Ruling Ring.Celebrimbor discovers the plot of Sauronto enslave the Eldar. He seeksGaladriel’s counsel.

1693 Durin III. receives the First of the Sevenfrom Celebrimbor and is asked to keep itin his and his heirs' care. The Dwarf-kingagrees and takes Celebrimbor's counselnot to use his Ring as long as Sauronholds the One.

1699 Gundabad taken by Orcs. End of theDwarf-Northman alliance in Wilderland.

1700 Narukgindín/Cameth Brin abandoned inthe wake of the war in Eriador.

1701 Sauron defeated in the War with theElves and driven out of Eriador. He hasgained posession of the remaining of theSeven and all of the Nine however.

1734 Tharâg/Bar-en-Ibûn founded in the RastVorn.

1901 Durin III. dies.

1932 Third Union of the Khazâd. Gundabadretaken.

c.2100-2150

Sauron bestows the remaining six of theSeven to the remaining Dwarven kings.

2324 Beginning of the feud between Var's andVigdís's people.

2772 Gindabaz founded by Thrór in Dunland.

2797 Sindri's people expel their king and otherDwarves who side with Sauron. Theseexiles found Nurunkhizdín.

2911 Linnar's people found Barazbizar (CarnDûm) in later Angmar.

2979 Foundation of Baruk-zigil/Mount Gram byLinnar's people.

3113 Felbuzad founded by the folk of Vigdís.

3400 All of Var's and many of Sindri's peopleseduced into open alliance with Mordor.Abandonment of Garaz-khamil by Var'speople.

3434 Dwarves fight (on both sides) atDagorlad. Only few fight on Sauron’sbehalf however.

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OTHER MINDS MAGAZINE —————————————————————————————————Third Age

Year Event1-40 Abandonment of Gamil-nâla by Sindri's

people.13 Sigil-Nâra founded as the new primary

mansion of Sindri's people.58 An unknown evil befalls Nurunkhizdín, and

news of the renegades ceases. Sindri's ringpasses out of all knowledge.

280 Tharâg/Bar-en-Ibûn is deserted when thelast of its inhabitants die.

1280 Felbuzad deserted by the folk of Vigdís.

1289 Scatha the Dragon sacks Makalkukhizdín.

1302 Gundabad taken by Orcs under thecommand of the Witch-king.

1305 Baruk-zigil/Carn Dûm taken by the Witch-king's forces.

1307 Witch-king occupies Angmar and capturesBarazbizar. Linnar's ring comes intoSauron's possession.

1480 Buzdûm-Mazar abandoned by Linnar'speople.

c. 1650 The Dragon wars begin.

1660 Feud between the peoples of Var and Vigdísformally set aside.

1712 Thulin's ring and heir devoured by a worm.Loss of Kibil-tarag to the dragons. Legacy ofthe Dragonslayers born.

1720 Buzan founded by Thulin's folk.

1722 Akgundîm occupied by a dragon.

1723 Sigil-nâra attacked and occupied by a greatworm.

1729 Fourth Union of the Khazâd. The advance ofthe worms is halted, though both Kibil-taragand Akgundîm remain lost.

1852 Baruzdazar falls to the dragons.

1855 Baruzkhizdîn falls to the dragons.

1871 Narindazdûm sacked by a dragon.

1873 Fifth Union of the Khazâd. Further progressof the worms is halted again, but no territorycan be won back.

1981 The Balrog conquers Moria. Durin's peoplego into exile.

1999 Thráin I. founds Erebor

c. 2000 Fram the Northman slays Scatha but fallsvictim to Dwarf-malice.

2063 Sauron flees Dol Guldur into the East, wherehe takes refuge at Nargubraz. War withVigdís's people erupts again.

2460 Saruman helps Var and Vigdís's people toexpel Sauron from Nargubraz. The feudbetween the two houses set right once andfor all.

c. 2480 Sauron begins to colonise the upper levels ofMoria with his minions.

2480 Khalarazûm is founded by the Axes ofNargubraz in the Red Mountains.

c. 2570 Time of Afflictions begins for Durin's people.Dragons capture the Dwarf holds of the GreyMountains.

2589 Dáin I. and Frór slain by Skell. Kúri - lord ofÚri's people - perishes while holding thePass of Nuril-lagil in a heroic rearguardaction.

2590 Thrór returns to Erebor. Grór goes to thesettlements of the Iron Hills.

c. 2600 Golden Age of Erebor begins. Dale founded.

2614 War mansion of Mablad-dûm founded.

2675 Khalarazûm closed for the first time.

2705 Akhuzdah as a war mansion founded by theAxes of Nargubraz.

Year Event2770 Smaug desolates Erebor and Dale.

2772 Gindabaz founded by Thrór in Dunland.

2778 Thrór and Thráin II. settle in Dunland.Gindabaz founded.

2790 Thrór slain by Azog.

2793 Sixth Union of the Khazâd. War of theDwarves and Orcs begins.

2795 Gundabad retaken by the Union.

2799 Battle of Dimrill Dale (Nanduhirion). DáinIronfoot becomes Lord of the Iron Hills.

2800 Narad-dûm founded by the Axes ofNargubraz.

2801 Thráin II. abandons Gundabad and settles inthe Blue Mountains.

2802 Second occupation of Khalarazûm by theAxes of Nargubraz.

2810 Azelanduzur founded by Thorin II. in theBlue Mountains.

2815 Gindabaz abandoned by Thorin II.

2841 Thráin II. sets out to reclaim Erebor. Hisparty is shadowed and harassed by Sauron'sminions.

2842 Orcs under Bolg retake Gundabad.Akhuzdah closed by the Axes of Nargubraz.

2845 Thráin II. captured in Mirkwood and taken toDol Guldur. Sauron recovers the last of theSeven from him.

2850 Gandalf discovers Thráin II. in Dol Guldurand obtains the map and key to Ereborbefore the Dwarf dies. Naragul founded bythe Axes of Nargubraz.

2905 Azagarbhun founded as a war-mansion bythe Axes of Nargubraz.

2915 Narad-dûm abandoned by the Axes ofNargubraz.

2941 Quest of Erebor. Battle of Five Armies. DáinII. becomes King under the Mountain.

2989 Balin attempts to re-colonise Moria.

3005 Azagarbhun closed by the Axes ofNargubraz.

3018 The War of the Ring begins.

3020 Khalarazûm abandoned the second time.Naragul and Mablad-dûm left by the Axes ofNargubraz.

Fourth AgeYear Event

1 Nargubraz re-occupied by Var's people.

2 Barukhizdîn re-taken from the dragons.

7 Aglarond founded by Gimli.

10 Felbuzad re-opened on a modest scale.

23 Akgundîm re-taken from the worms.

31 Námagalûz founded by Var's people.

61 Khalarazûm re-opened again for trading. Itremains a temporary outpost though, sinceno families dwell there.

70 Gundabad re-taken from the Orcs in a greatunion of the Free Peoples of the West.

Listing and shortdescriptions of mansions

The mansions are listed in the same manneras in the table above, i.e. according to the or-der of the Dwarven houses. The numbers inparenthesis refer to the mansion’s number inthe table above in reference to the houses’

place of awakening. The number’s colour refersto the same colour in the maps.

Durin’s people

Gundabad/Gunduzbad (1)The Place of Awakening for Durin. Most of

its history it is inhabited by his house. It is oc-cupied by Orcs only briefly in the early andaround the middle of the Second Age and sincethe beginning of the second millennium of theThird Age. Its status as the birthplace of themost ancient revered “founding father” makesit a special place for all Naugrim. For instance,it was the place of many and regular diplomat-ic meetings between embassies of all the sevenhouses.

The term ‘Gunduzbad’ is the original Dwar-ven name, but time has altered the spelling (inthe Dwarven neighbours’ tongues), so that‘Gundabad’ prevailed as the most widely usedform.

During its eventful history, it changed handsseveral times. It was first taken by Morgoth’sOrcs In the Year of the Sun 529. In S.A. 40 theSecond Union of the Khazâd re-took the an-cient halls. In the wake of the War of the Elveswith Sauron, Gundabad is again taken by theOrcs in S.A. 1699 though. It took 133 yearsuntil the Third Union of the Khazâd was ableto expel them again. In the year 1302 of theThird Age, the future Witch-king conqueredthe ancient Dwarven citadel in his quest tofound a realm in the North. The Dwarves areunable to dislodge him again and it is only dur-ing the Sixth Union of the Khazâd that Gund-abad again comes under Dwarfish rule in T.A.2795. However, since the strength of theDwarves is insufficient, it is deserted by Dur-in’s people in T.A. 2802. Forty years later theOrcs under Bolg are able to breach the protec-tive measures that the dwarves used to secureGundabad and another era of Orcish rule be-gins. It is during Elessar’s reign, in F.A. 89,that a union of Durin’s house (including theremnants of Linnar’s and Úri’s houses), theElves and Dúnedain finally expels the Orcsfrom this site for good.

Khazad-dûm/Moria (2)There is no need to describe this most fa-

mous Dwarven dwelling in much detail here.Both Tolkien’s books as well as the RPG inter-pretations of ICE and Decipher offer ampledescriptions and accounts of its history.

Erebor (3)This mansion does not require much by way

of an introduction owing to being featured inThe Lord of the Rings and especially The Hobbit.Though adjactent to the territory of the Long-

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———————————————————————————————————— ISSUE 4, JULY 2008beards (see quote on page 12), it was not set-tled as a Dwarven mansion until T.A. 1999when Thráin I. founded the Kingdom underthe Mountain. From then, it was continuallyinhabited until T.A. 2770 when Smaug took itas his own. After the death of Smaug in T.A.2941 again it once became the main mansionof Durin’s folk.

Thakalgund (4)This settlement is the primary Dwarven

mansion in the Iron Hills. It was founded inS.A. 120 after the foundation of Barukkhizdínto secure communication between the MistyMountains and the Iron Hills. During the timewhen the Longbeards were marking theirclaims in the mountain ranges in the vicinity ofGundabad. Throughout the remainder of theFirst, Second and much of the Third Age it re-mained an important but modest settlement insize. It was only after T.A. 2210 when Thorin I.relocated his throne to Thakalgund, that a mas-sive expansion took place, transforming thesmall old dwelling into a veritable and splen-did mansion. It was given up in T.A. 2589when the dragons were starting to pressagainst Durin’s people harder and harder.

A controversy remains however. In the Ap-pendix A of The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien tells usthat the Grey Mountains were explored littlein the late Third Age:

But Thorin I (d. T.A. 2289) hisson removed and went into the farNorth to the Grey Mountains, wheremost of Durin's folk were nowgathering; for those mountains wererich and little explored. – The Lord of the Rings.Appendix A

On the other hand the HoMe 12 tells us:

They [the Longbeards] regardedthe Iron Hills, the Ered Mithrin, andthe east dales of the Misty Mountainsas their own land [in the earlySecond Age].– HoMe12. Of Dwarves andMen

In my opinion these seemingly contradictorypassages can be reconciled. The Grey Moun-tains were claimed by Durin’s People and ex-plored in a limited area very early, but theirprimary value was their strategic location be-tween the Iron Hills and the Hithaeglir (seethe quote at the beginning of the chapterabout Durin’s people). Thus they served as arelay and a link between the two areas: TheIron Hills as the primary source of iron oreand the Misty Mountains as the tribe’s popula-tion centre. In these times, the resources of

Durin’s tribe were bound in the Iron Hills,Gundabad and Khazad-dûm with unearthingvast riches; reducing the grey Mountains to aminor status with very limited resources. Itwas only much later in the Third Age, whenthe Misty Mountains were lost for the Long-beards, that they considered a more thoroughexploration of this neglected area and werepleased by the resource that they found.

In addition, we might use a combination oftwo genuine Tolkien sources as a further expla-nation: First, the quote above says that theGrey Mountains were only little explored.This leaves room for a bit of exploration thatbrought forth satisfying results. This can easilybe achieved by adding Thakalgund as an earlysmall colony that explored its surroundings abit, but never much: The abundance of wealthfound elsewhere in those happy ancient daysmade the Ered Mithrin a low-priority area forDurin’s folk (at least in terms of extensivemining). With the relocation of the tribe aftertheir expulsion from Khazad-dûm, the GreyMountains came into the focus of its folk. Therelative long time since the appearance of theBalrog and the final abandonment of the placeby the Dwarves suggests some kind of orga-nized evacuation. This is likely to include pre-cious items and minerals/metals too (ofcourse in such an extent that was feasible tomove around). Thus Durin’s folk was perhapsnot driven out from Moria in poverty. Herecomes the second original source into play:

The Ring Of Power still possessed by theheir of Durin might have been used to com-pensate the lost treasures by locating and min-ing new ones. Usage of the Ring is only effi-cient when its owner already has riches; theRing needing “gold to breed gold” in Thrór’swords. Fortunately for the Dwarves, their re-maining funds were great enough to effectivelyuse the Ring. Now the Grey Mountains sud-denly became very important: Their apparentwealth of minerals was a tempting target forre-gaining wealth lost in Khazad-dûm and thusDurin’s heir decided to move his seat here.

Barukkhizdín (5)This is the Longbeards’ primary mansion in

the Iron Hills. It was founded early in the Sec-ond Age after the influx of immigrants fromNogrod and Belegost both swelled the tribes’numbers and increased its skill. The increase inpopulation led to an era of expansion for theDwarves of Durin. In the course of this expan-sion, Barukkhizdín was founded in S.A. 72.

Gindabaz (6)Founded in T.A. 2772 by Thrór after Smaug

occupied Erebor. Finally abandoned by Thorin

in T.A. 2815.

Azelanduzur (7)Founded by Thráin II. in T.A. 2810. It was

occupied into the Fourth Age, serving as a basefor Durin’s people in the west of Eriador.

Aglarond (8)This settlement was founded by Gimli early

in the Fourth Age (year 7). It remained theoutpost of Durin’s Folk within the ReunitedKingdom for many years thereafter.

Linnar’s and Úri’s Peoples

Buzdûm-Mazar (1)The awakening place of Linnar and Úri and

consequently sacred to both tribes for manymillennia. After the ruin of Belegost andNogrod, Linnar’s heir built new halls directlyadjacent to the old ones. This new part of themansion then served as his residence for a longtime. In the year 2900 of the Second Age, thelord of Linnar’s people left it for the new man-sion at Barazbizar. Buzdûm-Mazar remainedoccupied. It was not until T.A. 1480 that themansion was finally abandoned. The remainingpopulation resettled to Khazad-dûm. This wasalso the end for Linnar’s people as an indepen-dent house. From then on, their fate was inter-twined with that of Durin’s people.

The abandoned halls of this mansion are the‘old dwarf-mines’ where Arvedui, last king ofArthedain, took refuge after his flight beforeAngmar’s victory in T.A. 1974:

‘For a while Arvedui hid in thetunnels of the old dwarf-mines nearthe far end of the Mountains, but hewas driven at last by hunger to seekthe help of the Lossoth, the Snowmenof Forochel.’– LotR.Appendix A

It is likely that the Dwarves protected theabandoned halls from unwanted intrudersthrough several means. Therefore Arvedui’scompany probably is therefore likely to haveonly seen the upper, meagre, halls.

Tumunzahar/Nogrod (3)This city is well-known from The Silmaril-

lion. It was founded in YT 1110. It was desert-ed by the Naugrim following its ruin in thesinking of Beleriand.

Kalbarazûd/Tumnogoth Iaur (4)This mansion was founded in S.A. 28 by the

king of Úri’s folk after the ruin of Nogrod inthe War of Wrath. It was continually occupieduntil T.A. 2610 when Úri’s line failed and itslast inhabitants attached themselves to themansions of the Longbeards (though keeping

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OTHER MINDS MAGAZINE —————————————————————————————————themselves as a house apart there).

Gabilgathol/Belegost (2)Being a sister city to to

Tumunzahar/Nogrod, both its foundation dateand the time of its ruin are the same as that ofthe great mansion of Úri’s folk.

Barazbizar/Carn Dûm (5)This hold of Linnar’s folk was founded in

S.A. 2911. Soon thereafter, it became thehouse’s primary mansion and flourished into areminiscence of lost Nogrod. Made strong andrich by the Ring of Power granted to Linnar’sfolk by Sauron, the Broadbeams prosperedhere and created great works. Barazbizar waslost in T.A. 1307 to the forces of the Witch-king in his quest to found his realm (which waslater called ‘Angmar’).

Normally the Hithaeglir were regarded asLongbeard territory by Durin’s house, butthey came to an agreement with Linnar’s folkthat the latter might settle and build on thetwo northeastern spurs if they confined theiractivities to these regions alone. Thereafter,this agreement was mostly respected by bothsides and hostilities on these issues occurredonly occasionally.

Baruk-zigil/Mount Gram (10)This was the second mansion of Linnar’s

folk in the Misty Mountains. It was their pri-mary settlement in the southern spur of whatwould be later called the mountains ofAngmar. Founded in S.A. 2979, it continuedto be inhabited by the Naugrim until T.A.1305 when it fell to the invading forces of theWitch-king. It’s population had been consider-ably reduced by this time however and therewas no serious hope of resistance. The sur-vivors fled to Barazbizar where they swelledthe numbers of the defenders.

Nulukkizdîn/Nargothrond (6)This ancient site of the Petty-dwarves was

founded early in the First Age in the Year of theTrees 1141. In YT 1369, the halls were aban-doned by the Petty-dwarves; most likely be-cause of population decline. Much later, 60years after the rising of the sun, it was occu-pied by Finrod Felagund and enlarged into thefamous underground city-fortress of Nar-gothrond.

Ruzandum/Amon Rûdh (7)This was the last known refuge of the Bele-

riandic Petty-dwarves. Its fate is told in thelegends of the Children of Húrin. It was offi-cially built in YT 1371 and abandoned in YS489 when it was sacked by Orcs. The last sur-vivor – Mîm – then left for ruined Nar-gothrond.

Narukgindín/Cameth Brin (8)This last great mansion of the Petty-dwarves

was founded by Ibûn in YS 560 after decade-long wanderings in the wilds of Middle-earth.It was occupied by the last remnants of thispeople until S.A. 1700 when it was sackedduring Sauron’s invasion of Eriador and its lastinhabitants were either killed or driven away.The few remaining survivors re-located to theRast Vorn peninsula where they founded thelast Petty-Dwarven community in the West-lands.

Tharâg/Bar-en-Ibûn (9)This last Petty-Dwarven refuge was founded

in S.A. 1734 after the abandonment ofNarukgindín. It continued to serve the lastPetty-dwarves as a humble home until T.A.280 when its last inhabitants died and withthem the legacy of the Petty-dwarves.

Thulin’s and Sindri’s Peoples

Akgundîm (1)This is the place of awakening of Thúlin’s

and Sindri’s peoples (the 4th and 5th houses). Itcontinued to be inhabitated until T.A. 1765when it fell in the dragon wars. It was cleansedof the occupying worm in F.A. 23.

Gamil-nâla (3)This first and greatest mansion of Sindri’s

folk was founded in YT 1111. After the end ofthe First Age its fortunes already began todwindle, since its strategic position which hadallowed it to exact heavy tribute from the mencrossing the area began to fail due to the slowrecession of the Sea of Helcar. Though not de-stroyed outright, its many mines failed andwith them the source of its wealth. With thiscame an ever-increasing evil reputation. Con-sequently, it was gradually abandoned over thefirst four decades of the Third Age.

Sigal-Nâra (4)This, the second home of Sindri’s folk was

founded in T.A. 13 and finally replaced Gamil-nâla as the tribe’s principal home. It served inthis role until T.A. 1723 when Sindri’s peoplewere driven from it during the dragon wars.

Nurunkhizdín (5)This mansion was founded by the exiled

king of Sindri’s people in S.A. 2797, when themajority of the house would not have anymore dealings with him and his followers dueto the latter’s open friendship with Sauron. Itcontinued to serve in the royal seat (thoughnot the population centre) of Sindri’s peopleuntil T.A. 58 when all contact with the man-sion was lost. The remainder of the house didnot investigate why and Nurunkhizdín passed

into oblivion.

Kibil-tarag (2)This primary mansion of Thulin’s people

was founded in YT 1112 by Thulin. It washabited by his house until T.A. 1712 when itfell during the dragon wars.

Buzan (6)This modest mansion was a temporary

refuge to Thulin’s tribe after its expulsion fromKibil-tarag and was founded in T.A. 1720. It isnot a real ‘mansion’, but a trading post withthe outside world and a resupply opportunityfor the scattered families. Thus it is staffedwith only a small number of people (comparedto a real mansion). This “garrison” is rotatedregularly between all the families of the tribe,so that every single clan has the opportunity ofpursuing the ultimate goal of Thulins house:hunting down dragons. Buzan remained occu-pied until the Fourth Age. It is intentionallydevoid of any typical Dwarven riches. It stocksonly simple supplies, no gold or other trea-sures that a dragon might covet which theDwarves hope may prevent the worms frombecoming interested in Buzan .

Var’s and Vigdis’s peoples

Baruzkhizdîn (1)This place saw the awakening of the fathers

of the 6th and 7th tribes (Vár and Vigdís respec-tively). It served as their primary place of rev-erence throughout the ages until T.A. 1855when it was sacked by the worms in the drag-on-wars. In F.A. 2 it was re-taken from thedragons.

Nargubraz (2)The ancestral home of Var’s people, Nar-

gubraz was founded in YT 1115 and stood fastand unconquered from the outside right intothe Fourth Age. After T.A. 2460 when theNecromancer was expelled from its halls, Var’shouse willingly left their home, vowing only toreturn after Sauron had been defeated and thetribe’s shame being redeemed. After Sauron’sfall, Var’s people officially re-located their roy-al home to Nargubraz in the first year of theFourth Age.

Narindazdûm (4)This mansion was built in S.A. 1020 in the

central mountains of Middle-earth; near Sin-dri’s mansion of Gamil-nâla. It served as atrading outpost as well as strengthening tieswith Sindri’s people. At times (especially afterthe distribution of the Rings), Var’s peoplewere helped by Sindri’s house in its feud withVigdís’ tribe. Here Narindazdûm served as theperfect link. Since the beginning of the Third

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———————————————————————————————————— ISSUE 4, JULY 2008Age, its wealth and mines began to decline. Itwas finally sacked and occupied by the dragonsin T.A. 1871; the last dwarf-hold to be lost tothe worms during the dragon-wars.

Garaz-khamil (5)This early settlement was founded in YT

1220. Its rich mines served Var’s people welluntil they were flooded and ruined after theAkallabêth flooded much of these. Conse-quently, Garaz-khamil was gradually aban-doned until S.A. 3400, when the last Dwarvesleft.

Khalarazûm (9)One of the war-mansions used by the Axes

of Nargubraz in their self-imposed revengeagainst Sauron. It was founded in T.A. 2480and occupied until T.A. 2675. A second occu-pation took place from 2802 until 3020. In theFourth Age it was again opened as a tradingoutpost in the year 61.

Námagalûz (15)This mansion of Var’s people was founded

relatively close to the old place ofNarindazdûm. Even though the dragon occu-pying it had been killed by a Dragonslayer inT.A. 2954, the memories of the sack and occu-pation of Narindazdûm together with theirmemories of their past questionable deeds ledVar’s people to the establishment of this newmansion rather than moving back into the oldhalls. In addition, the location of Námagalûz isstrategically ideal to establish contacts with theWest through its location on a river that leadsto the Sea of Rhûn. The mansion was foundedin Fourth Age 31. Though modest in size(compared to Nargubraz), it served Var’s peo-ple well in this period.

Narad-dûm (10)This war-mansion in the Yellow Mountains

served for the Axes of Nargubraz from T.A.2800 to 2915. After that, it was sealed and notre-opened again.

Naragul (11)This war-mansion in the uttermost south-

west of Middle-earth was home to a companyof the Axes of Nargubraz from T.A. 2850 to3020. Thereafter it was sealed and left alone.

Akhuzdah (12)Another war-mansion of the Axes of Nar-

gubraz. These halls were opened in T.A. 2705and closed in 2842.

Azagarbhun (13)This war-mansion served as a link between

the war-mansions in the south as well as a basefor operations in central Middle-earth. It wasoccupied by the warriors of Var’s people from

T.A. 2905 to 3005.

Mablad-dûm (14)This war-mansion in the central Yellow

Mountains was the main base of operations inthis area. It was opened in T.A. 2614 and con-tinually occupied until T.A. 3020.

Baraz-lagil (3)The ancestral home of Vigdís’ folk was

founded in YT 1116. It remained occupied byhis folk until the Fourth Age; the only ancestralmansion in which its founding tribe was ableto remain undisturbed.

Baruzdazar (6)This mansion of Vigdís’s people was founded

in YT 1311 in the First Age. The profitable andrich colony thrived until it fell in T.A. 1852during the dragon wars.

Kharukthalad (7)This colony of Vigdís’s people was founded

in S.A. 1196 in the valley were later a branchof the Talathrant would flow. The richness ofthe surrounding hills and (later) the access fortrade by river made this mansion a very suc-cessful one. It continued to be habited into theFourth Age.

Felbuzad (8)This final settlement of Vigdís’s people was

founded in S.A. 3113 and served as the princi-pal point of contact with the men of the east-ern plains. It was abandoned in T.A. 1280 dueto growing hostility in this Sauron-dominatedarea. In the year 10 of the Fourth Age it wasre-opened with a modest number of peopleand again served its ancient purpose.

SourcesThe following books/publications were par-

ticularly useful when researching this essay.The most important are of course Tolkien’sbooks and the various official RPG publica-tions, but fan-made material as well as auxil-iary software was helpful as well.

Colburn, R. Mark et al. - Lords of Middle-earthVol. III – Hobbits, Ents, Orcs & Trolls. IronCrown Enterprises 1989

Mearls, Mike; Seeman, Chris – Moria. DecipherInc. 2003

Tolkien. J.R.R. - The Hobbit. George Allen &Unwin 1937

Tolkien. J.R.R. - The Lord of the Rings (2nd edi-tion). George Allen & Unwin 1966

Tolkien, J.R.R. (edited by C. Tolkien) - Mor-goth’s Ring: The History of Middle-earth,Volume 10. HarperCollinsPublishers 1994

Tolkien, J.R.R. (edited by C. Tolkien) – The Warof the Jewels: The History of Middle-earth,Volume 11. HarperCollinsPublishers 1994

Tolkien, J.R.R. (edited by C. Tolkien) – The Peo-ples of Middle-earth: The History of Mid-dle-earth, Volume 12. HarperCollinsPub-lishers 1996

In the Yahoo fan-sourcebooks group you canfind the comparison between the ICE and De-cipher interpretations of the Dwarves. Thegroup can be accessed at:

http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/fan-modules/

The random names from a number of themansions were created with the help of theEverchanging Book of Names (EboN) software. Youcan find this fine roleplaying aid at:

http://ebon.pyorre.net/


nc-sa/3.0/2 Which is not surprising, since Tolkien did

not even detail the ‘East’ in any way beyondvague sketches.

3 This is of course based on the sole exampleof the Dwarves of Nogrod and Belegost.

4 The First Age is not only the time from therising of the sun and moon, but also theyears before these events. See the HoMe 10for more details of the chronology of eventsof the earlier First Age.

5 Before that, the Valian Years from the entryof the Valar into Arda until their retreat toAman following the destruction of Almarennumbered 3500. The total span of the FirstAge from the very beginning until thedeath of the Two Trees was therefore 5000Valian Years (equates to 33,537 Years of theSun). To this come the 590 years after therising of the sun, bringing the whole FirstAge to the equivalent of 34,127 Years of theSun.

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You might encounter this small piece of informa-tion anywhere in the abandoned abandoned halls ofKhazad-dûm. It is the key to further adventure andtreasures and may be placed in any place convenientfor your campaign.

It is intended as a sidekick within an ongoingcampaign rather a campaign itself (though youmight devise the bigger story behinfd this of courseto make it a campaign in its own right).

The runes on the image below read as fol-lows:

: Th e • sh ee l d • w a l l • o v • b a v e r n : the y • f e l l • i n • kh a z a d d u m • th a t • th e• t r e zh u r e • e n t r u s t e d • t o • th e y r •h ou s e • sh u d • r e m aa n • t o • th e • kh a za d • ee v e n • a z • s oo • m u ch • e l s e • w oz • m u s t n ee d z • h i d d e n • s ee k r e t • and • s aa f e :

The Shield Wall of Bavern. They fell in Khaz-ad-dûm that the treasure entrusted to theirhouse should remain to the Khazâd even as somuch else was must needs hidden secret andsafe.

The inscription purports to be a memorialto the memory of the retainers of Bavern, adwarven loremaster of great wisdom who hada somewhat chequered relationship with DurinVI in the years before the coming of Durin’sBane. The inscription implies that they died sothat a treasure in the keeping of the house ofBavern should remain in dwarven hands whenmost of the treasures of Moria were beingsealed up in their vaults as the Dwarves fledinto exile in Rhovanion.

The inscription itself is of little significance,except to establish the correct context for thetrue message encrypted in the image of the‘shield wall’ of dwarves itself.

In An Introduction to English Runes, R. I. Pagereproduces archaeological “cryptic rune typesfound in Bergen”, including a row of bearded

faces in which the number of strands in the lefthalf of the beard direct the code-breaker torow 1, 2 or 3 of the futhark or Norse rune-rows, and the number of strands in the righthalf give the individual rune within that row.

This cryptogram extends that principlesomewhat artificially to the columns in whichthe runes of the Angerthas Moria are arrangedin Appendix F of The Lord of the Rings: the lefthalf of the beard gives the column and theright half (with a ‘V’ strand of beard countingfor 5 singles) gives the row.

The beards of the Dwarves in the ShieldWall of Bavern therefore spell out GIMLU-NITÎR, (Khuzdul: “star’s kindler”2). This phrasecould be the command word – “the spell in thetongue of the dwarves” as Gandalf might havecalled it – for the treasure that this Bavernsmuggled out of Moria as such great cost oflives. Or a GM could use the same cryptogramfor any puzzle within their own game.


nc-sa/3.0/2 Ardalambion:

http://www.uib.no/people/hnohf/khuzdul.htm

A Dwarven Runic Cryptogramm

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The world that iSEä:

“Ilúvatar called to them, and said: 'I know the desire of your minds that what ye have seen should verily be,

not only in your thought, but even as ye yourselves are, and yet other.

Therefore I say:Eä! Let these things Be!

And I will send forth into the Void, the Flame Imperishable,and it shall be at the heart of the World, and the World shall Be;

and those of you that will may go down into it.'And suddenly the Ainur saw afar off a light, as it were a cloud with a living heart of flame;

and they knew that this was no vision only, but that Ilúvatar had made a new thing:Eä, the World that Is.”

--J.R.R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion, Ainulindalë (The Music of the Ainur).

The Eä RPG system is dedicated to role playing gaming in J.R.R. Tolkien's universe.

Eä d20 is currently well along in it's development with the “Races & Cultures” tome nearing completion. Eä d20 is the adaptation of the OpenD20 (D&D 3.5) role-playing gaming system modified to more accurately fit the “feel” of Tolkien's Middle-earth.

Tomes of lore include:● Races & Cultures (near completion)

● Magic in Middle-earth (core mechanics complete, conversino charts in progress)● Destinies & Lore (Classes, Skills, Feats, etc. - in early stages)● Creatures & Monsters (Ancalagon through Zigurim) (planned)

● Valar & Maiar (Includes Vala, Maia, Istari, Lords and Characters of Reknown) (planned)

Find details and downloads at: www.earpg.com

23


by Thomas Morwinsky © 2008


“It's a dangerous business, Frodo,going out of your door,” he [Bilbo]used to say. “You step into the Road,and if you don’t keep your feet, thereis no knowing where you might beswept off to...” – The Lord of the Rings.Book I(A shortcut to mushrooms)

There are many paths prone to take yousomewhere if you are not careful and the in-ternet is certainly among them. Its vast reach-es harbour numerous roads and paths – somedangerous and some not – but it also has manyhavens of lore and respite where the wearytraveller or loremaster seeking knowledge mayfind what he is looking for. In order to ease thenavigation, this new clumn of Other Mindswants to give you a quick overview and orien-tation what might be an interesting Middle-earth RPG-related link.

To each link we give you a short descriptionof its primary purpose and content to give youa overview for better judging its content com-pared to your needs.

The following list does not claim to be ex-haustive or representative. All the content ofthese pages lies in the responsibility of theiroperators. They are listed in alphabetical order,so there is no order of preference on our sidewithin this selection. If you find any other sitesthat may be fitting for this rubric, just drop usa mail, and we will check and (likely) list it.

Chronicles of the North: A board thatdeals with Decipher’s (now defunct) Lord ofthe Rings Roleplaying Game. It focuses on sev-eral campaigns (hence the name) that mightprove inspirational for your own.http://rpg.avioc.org/boards/

Fan-sourcebooks: This Yahoo group (for-merly fan-modules) was founded in 2001after the demise of Other Hands.http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/fan-modules/

Games Workshop: If you are interested inminiatures made after the movies, then theGames Workshop miniature line (actuallytabletop accesoire) is for you:http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/

The Hall of Fire: is an excellent resource ifyou are looking for game-oriented materialfor Decipher’s Lord of the Rings RoleplayingGame (LotRRPG). They also have a wiki andan extensive link section in their zine them-selves.http://www.halloffire.org/Wiki:http://wiki.halloffire.org/Main_Page

Lindëfirion: This site has quite a lot of inter-esting information on several territories ofthe Northwest. The imagery draws heavilyfrom the movies and movie-inspired prod-ucts (e.g. miniatures).http://wiki.lindefirion.net/

MERP.COM: The site devoted to roleplayingin Middle-earth (not just ICE’s MERP asthe title may suggest). It contains a vastvault of useful of information and gamingmaterial.http://www.merp.com/

MERP printing edition reference: Agreat reference for all the editorial changesand different printings of MERP 1st edition.If you are interested in the various editionsof MERP 1st ed., this is for you for sure!http://homepage.mac.com/guyf/MERP/PrintingEditionReference.html

Mithril miniatures: This company has beenaround in the Middle-earth figurines busi-ness since 1988; thus being one of the old-est still in uninterrupted business. Theynow have a general line (though diminished

in volume compared to earlier times) andan exclusive fellowship one with access tovery expensive but well-done miniaturesfor only this “club”. They also have a boardwhich is mostly miniatures-centered butsome general Middle-earth related infor-mation can be found as well.http://www.mithril.ie/Forum:http://mithrilfigures.proboards19.com/index.cgi


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Swept off by your feet...

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This list of dwarves’ outer names is presented asan expansion on the The Hobbit- and The Lord ofthe Rings-derived (and therefore to many gamersnot reusable) names often listed in game books.

BasicsIt starts from a review of Norse names, and

avoids: (1) those derived from or imitative ofChristian, Celtic or Latin names; (2) namestoo similar to their own modern survivals (e.g.Bjorn, Erik, Olaf); (3) names linking the indi-vidual with European places or nations (e.g. –iutr, –gautr, –finn, –dan: the Jute/from Jut-land, the Gaut/from Götland), the Finn/fromFinland, the Dane, from Denmark); (4) namesconspicuously composed of two common ele-ments, such as Aðalsteinn, “Noble stone”.These are common in Old Norse, if not socharacteristic as they are of Old English, butnone of the Norse names Tolkien used fordwarves were in this style; (5) names usingAlf- referring to an elven quality(!); (6) namesusing Thór-, Frey-, -þórr etc. referring to thegods of northwestern Europe; (7) names re-ferring to wolves (Ulf-, -ulfr) or dragons(Orm-, -ormr) which are consistently evil inM-e; (8) names based on ships and maritimereferences; (9) names that are too different instyle from the simple forms of TH; (10) namesusing consonant-combinations that are difficultin the English language use to represent theCommon Speech, such as Gj-, Gn- J-, Lj-, -kk-Skj- Spj-, Sv-, Thjo-

For the remainder diaereses are mostly sim-plified to single vowels or the -ái- and -ói-vowel combinations Tolkien did use, and theguttural ON ending –R is omitted.

Usage of the tables is pretty straightforward:You either pick a name of your liking or youroll 1d100 and then 1d4 to generate a malename or 1d100 only to generate a femalename.

Rolls 1-50Roll Male I Male II Male III Male IV Female01 Abbi Erlend Hani Róin Ádís02 Afi Erli Hár Róki Aerin03 Agi Evi Hara Róki Áfrith04 Agnar Fadi Harthi Rónar Alma05 Agni Fari Hári Rorik Arngerth06 Agwith Fastar Harri Roth Arnóra07 Áki Fasti Hávar Rother Ása08 Alar Fathi Haver Rothi Ásný

Roll Male I Male II Male III Male IV Female09 Aldi Fathir Hegi Rúni Astrith10 Áli Fati Helm Sandar Athisla11 Almar Feg Herni Sarth Auga12 Alver Fegi Hersir Scagi Autha13 Ambi Feti Hervi Scalli Bera14 An Firir Hethin Scarthi Birla15 Áni Flain Hildir Sefi Birna16 Anki Flár Hior Selvi Bolla17 Api Flóki Holfi Sibbi Borga18 Ari Flosi Holti Sigar Busla19 Arn Fóli Hugi Siggi Dageith20 Árni Forni Humli Sindri Dagný21 Asar Forsil Húni Sinir Dalla22 Asel Fraki Hursi Skáld Drífa23 Ási Frithi Ígal Skefil Dýrfa24 Áskel Frosti Ingi Skeggi Eilíf25 Ásli Frothi Ívar Skithi Eirný26 Ásmar Fugli Kabbi Skógi Embla27 Ásti Fúl Kafli Skúfi Erna28 Aswith Fuldar Kál Skúli Ethla29 Ati Fúlnir Kani Skúti Ethný30 Atli Fundin Kapi Slóra Eyfura31 Aunn Fúsi Kári Slóthi Eyild32 Authin Gadi Kárni Snari Falgerth33 Autir Gagar Kárr Snerrir Fasta34 Aver Gagi Karsi Snorri Fastný35 Bagi Galandi Kasi Solgi Folka36 Baldi Galin Keli Solvi Fritha37 Bali Galli Ketil Staki Geira38 Balsi Galmi Kilfir Stáli Gerth39 Barki Galti Kobbi Stari Gilla40 Barni Gamal Kofri Starr Ginna41 Barth Gamli Kolli Stigand Gísla42 Basi Gapi Kóri Stóri Grélath43 Begi Garni Kúsi Stóthi Gróa44 Beli Garthar Láfi Stúrla Gudda45 Belir Gási Lafsi Styrmir Gufa46 Benir Geda Láki Styrr Gulla47 Bersi Gegnir Lefi Súlki Gynna48 Bili Geilir Lini Sútari Gyra49 Birgir Geir Lófi Syvurr Gytha50 Bisi Gelir Lothin Taf Gythríth

Rolls 51-100Roll Male I Male II Male III Male IV Female51 Biur Getir Magni Tanni Halla52 Blár Gildi Máni Tárr Hallbera53 Blási Gilfir Már Tassi Hálma

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Outer names for theWestern Dwarves

25


Roll Male I Male II Male III Male IV Female54 Blesi Gili Miki Tati Heith55 Bodi Gilir Morth Thialfi Hildiríth56 Bófi Gipi Múli Thrain Hithindís57 Bógi Girgir Munán Thrand Holma58 Bói Gísi Mundi Thrassi Hulda59 Bóla Gísli Nafni Tindr Ithun60 Bóli Gizur Nagli Tiorvi Jódís61 Bondi Glaggi Naki Tófi Jóka 62 Bóndi Glethir Nani Tóki Jólinn63 Bósi Glóthi Narfi Tóli Jóra64 Bóti Glúm Nasi Torfi Jóreith65 Bóvi Gorm Nefi Tósti Káta 66 Bragi Goti Nefi Tóti Kila67 Bredi Grái Nem Trani Kisla68 Bresi Gráni Nolar Trausti Kitta69 Brísi Grefi Obbi Trion Kolla70 Brodi Grein Ogur Tubbi Leikný71 Brodir Grepi Óli Túni Leith72 Brosa Gretir Olver Tyrvi Líf73 Brúni Grími Omun Ubbi Lúta74 Brúsi Grímsi Ónar Ubin Mábil75 Brynki Grípi Onas Uffi Maer76 Bryti Grís Öndur Uggi Máfa77 Bugi Gróm Ongli Úlfar Molda78 Buki Grubbi Orlog Uli Mungerth79 Buldi Grúmi Ormi Unar Nauma80 Bur Gubi Orn Unir Óleif81 Burir Gufi Orri Unni Olrún82 Bursti Gulli Ótta Vafri Refna83 Butni Gumi Óttar Valdi Riúpa84 Dali Gunar Ozur Váli Róta85 Dari Gurthir Ragi Vani Rótha86 Dómari Gusi Ragni Varin Sefa87 Dómi Guthi Randi Varr Signý88 Dóti Guti Rangi Vathi Sítha89 Dreng Gutir Rani Vati Thruthi90 Drosbo Habi Ranver Vékell Thyra91 Dúfa Hadi Rathi Veni Tobba92 Dúsi Haki Refi Vífi Tófa93 Dúthi Hákon Refli Vífill Tóka94 Dýri Hali Reinn Vígi Tóla95 Egil Hali Reithar Víkarr Tonna96 Einar Halmi Rifli Víli Tóra97 Eitri Halti Riger Vithar Torfa98 Ekil Hamall Ríki Vithi Unna99 Éldi Hamarr Rithir Víti Uth100 Endrith Handi Róar Róin Valka


nc-sa/3.0/

The Dwarves of different communities (probably the Seven Houses) possessed systemsof sign-language that they called iglishmêk. They used them

“for secrecy and the exclusion of strangers. … The component sign-elements of anysuch code were often so slight and so swift that they could hardly be detected, still lessinterpreted by uninitiated onlookers. … they could speak with their voices but at thesame time by ‘gesture’ convey to their own folk modifications of what was being said. Orthey could stand silent considering some proposition, and yet confer amongst themselvesmeanwhile.” – The War of the Jewels p. 395

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“Then Ilúvatar said to them: 'Of the theme that I have declared to you,I will now that ye make in harmony together a Great Music. And since I

have kindled you with the Flame Imperishable, ye shall show forthyour powers in adorning this theme, each with his own thoughts anddevices, if he will. But I will sit and hearken, and be glad that through

you great beauty has been wakened into song.'”- Ainulindalë (The Music of the Ainur)

The Silmarillionby J.R.R. Tolkien

Listen to music by the many musicians around the world inspired by the works of J.R.R. Tolkien.

Middle-earth Radio make available four different Internet radio streamsdedicated to the audio and music inspired by the works of J.R.R.

Tolkien.

You can tune in 24 hours a day, 7 days a week from anywhere in theworld where you have an Internet connection, with your favorite

streaming media player.

And when you hear a piece of music you like, be sure to support themusicians by purchasing their music (if applicable).

See the lengthy list of inspired music at the Tolkien Music website:www.tolkien-music.com

Tune in today and listen at:

www.middle-earthradio.com

27



In Middle-earth the mythic, the magical or themonstrous may always be within a day’s march. Butthose who have read a lot of fantasy, and seasonedgamers who’ve battled any number of different mon-sters, may think the bestiary of the Free Peoples’ foeslimited: there are clear details ‘only’ of orcs andtrolls, wolves, spiders, dragons and a smattering ofmore-or-less undead beings.

At various points Tolkien offered less-than-glimpses of “dark shapes”, “dark things”, “fell beasts”,“great beasts”, “shadows” and “strange creatures”.Where Tolkien’s books were best served by chillinghints, gamers in Middle-earth may wish for otherminds to offer more specific details.

Gandalf: “Far, far below thedeepest delvings of the Dwarves, theworld is gnawed by nameless things.Even Sauron knows them not. Theyare older than he.” – The White Rider, LOTR, p.491

The evil of Melkor and the blightof his hatred flowed out … andbeasts became monsters of horn andivory and dyed the earth with blood– Of the Beginning of Days,Silm. p. 41

Whether once-natural beasts warped by theMordo, the outpouring of Morgoth’s own cor-rupted soul-power into Middle-earth, orwhether bred in the pits of Angband, the ori-gin of these monsters is lost in the deeps oftime. In the Common Speech they might bedescribed as giant armoured moles, or wherethe Common Speech is coloured by Northrontongues, moldewarps.2

Where the common mole does have tinyeyes, the eyeless moldewarp is truly blind, andrelies entirely on its excellent sense of sound

and smell. It detects sound vibrations as muchthrough its body and whiskers as with its ears,which are small and hidden within its fur. Inaddition to its whiskers, which spread as wideas its shoulders, the snout which projects for-ward above its fanged mouth bears a strikingarray of fleshy tentacles radiating from its nos-trils.3 The legs are shorter than in many crea-tures but stout and immensely powerful, withscaled, shovel-like forefeet turned outward toangle the strong claws for digging.

These creatures are able of digging throughrock like their lesser cousins through earth. Ittakes longer of course, for the Moldewarp todig through living rock.

Where common moles are voracious, eat-ing two to three times their own body weight aday, the giant moldewarp of the Underdeepscan enter a state of hibernation-like torpor inwhich, as for the sleep of dragons, it is sus-tained by its own dark spirit

Notes for Game-PlayThe head, back and flanks of a Giant Molde-

warp are covered with horny plates of armour,much-scarred by scraping through rock-tun-nels. Its short limbs mean its body remainsclose to the ground, making it difficult to land

Bestiary of Middle-earth:The Giant Armoured Moldewarp

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———————————————————————————————————— ISSUE 4, JULY 2008a powerful blow on its furred-hide under-re-gions. Seeking to stab an eye below the brow-armour will prove vain.

To fight such a beast calls for a dragon-slayer’s valour. Its most vulnerable point is itssnout, a blow to which will cause it to recoil inpain, or thrash about in a dangerous but unfo-cussed fashion. But to attack its snout is to putoneself in the path of the two mightyforepaws, the digging-like attacks of which arelikely to sweep a man off his feet and poundhim against the tunnel wall to left or right.The sensing-tentacles are also coated with aslime that will paralyse or at least slow a man-sized victim if they contact exposed skin. Astunned, pummelled senseless or paralysedvictim will be finished off with a stab of theclaw-points.

Game Statistics


nc-sa/3.0/2 OED2 says this exists in fully 136 variant

spellings, some of which are still in use inNorthern English dialects. Moldywarp isattested from 1325, but the origin is OldEnglish:

Moldwarp etc., n. [OE. moldwerp: AS.molde soil + weorpan to throw up…]– Webster's Revised UnabridgedDictionary (1913)

A popular term for the mole was the“Moldwarp” or “Mouldiwarp,” so calledfrom the Anglo-Saxon, denoting turningthe mould [or earth].– Folklore of Shakespeare, TF ThiseltonDyer, p. 184

3 After the manner of a star-nosed mole.

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Type Lvl #/Enc Size/Crit Speed Hits AT DB Primary/2ndary/etc Attack NotesGreat Moldewarp 7 1 (1-5) M MD/SL 150 Pl/18 25 40HBa×2/25LCl/30SSt (pois)

Huge Moldewarp 10 1 (1-5) L/La MD/SL 250 Pl/18 35 50HBa×2/40LCl/30SSt (pois)

Giant Moldewarp 13 1 (1-5) H/SL MD/SL 400 Pl/18 40 60HBa×2/40LCl/30SSt (pois)

Ravenous. Blind but other sensescompensate.Adult Moldewarps might be thesize of a bear, a cave bear, or a cavedrake.

Dwarves and Crossbows?

Tolkien never once uses the word “crossbow”, so despite most people now thinking theDwarves’ mechanical bent suits their use of crossbows, Tolkien quite possibly never intendedit.(Into Norman times, when crossbows became more common, “bow” and “archer” seem tohave been used for crossbows and longbows alike; and note that Tolkien only uses “bow”, not“long bow” or “short bow”, either.)

29


by Tom Davie © 2008([email protected])


This small campaign idea takes up motives andideas from a broad range of Tolkien’s creativity. Asecondary influence is from the various ICE (IronCrown Enterprises) MERP (Middle-earth Role Play-ing) modules and fan-created files and ideas foundon the Internet. You might notice that these ideas arein many places not compatible with other contribu-tions found in this issue of Other Minds. This is nei-ther a fault nor an oversight on our part. It is theexpression of our wish to provide a broad spectrumof opinions and interpretations of Middle-earth.This gives you – our readers – the best possible poolof ideas to choose from for your own games or ideasabout Middle-earth. Perhaps you also feel inspiredto make a contribution that is based on an earlierone found in these pages and thus enhance the co-herence over several issues.

-- Editors

The taleOne of the legends from the Elder Days tells

how Melkor was made war upon by the otherValar, captured and imprisoned due to thecoming of the elves, known as The Tale ofMelkor’s Chains. According to the books Trans-lations from the Elvish compiled by Bilbo Bag-gins and included in the Red Book of Westmarch,the version of this legend told of how Melkorwas bound by the chain Angainor that had beenwrought by Aulë for this purpose.

Origins of the swordAnother version of this legend calls the

chain Angaino, and that Aulë created a newsubstance called tilkal, being an alloy of sixmetals: gold, silver, iron, copper, tin & lead.The word tilkal represents the initials for thewords for each metal, thus: tambë (copper),ilsa (silver), latúken (tin), kanu (lead), anga(iron), and laurë (gold). Tilkal had all theproperties of the six metals used to make it,and also its own properties: it was brightgreen in colour (or red in varying lights) andcould not be broken, and only Aulë couldforge it. According to this version, there wasonly enough tilkal for Aulë to add a little toeach link of the chain.

But there is another version of this legendthat Bilbo was either not aware of or was notable to translate at the time. In this version ofthe legend Aulë had often seen Melkor corrupthis work, and indeed it was Aulë and his wifeYavanna who went to Manwë concerned atthere being any of Arda left unmarred whenthe Children of Illuvatar arose. So Aulë creat-ed a new substance called tilkal, being a mix-ture of the six metals, and from this new metalforged a sword that would hopefully removeevil corruption from Aulë’s works. It was atthis point that a council was then called andthe problem of how to capture Melkor wasmentioned. Aulë then used the remainingtilkal to forge the chain Angaino.

But with the Darkening of Valinor and the theftof the Silmarils, Aulë realised that the sword it-self could also be perverted by Morgoth. ButAulë did not destroy the Sword, as he foresawa time when it would be needed. So he brokethe sword into pieces, transformed them andscattered them around Middle Earth. Trustingto Iluvatar that the Sword

istence in the tome The Arcane Mysteries, and gothis Noldor apprentice Rumil to swear an oathnot to reveal the truth, and to pretend that allthe tilkal had been used on the chain Angaino,and thus most versions of the Tale of Melkor’sChains are copies of Rumil’s version. This oathAulë took from Rumil applied only to theFirst- and Secondborn, as he supplied thisknowledge (even if only in legendary form) to‘his’ children – the Dwarves.

The tome The Arcane Mysteries was written byRumil but the only surviving copies of it werehidden by him as part of his oath to Aulë tokeep secret the Sword’s existence. This tomeincludes the version of The Tale of Melkor’sChains mentioned above, and also goes intomore detail about the Sword itself and thepieces that make it up. Where copies of thistome now lie is not known, as the knowledgehas been lost…

Properties and Appearance of the SwordWhen remade the Sword in its scabbard

looks rather plain and ordinary. It is the size ofa normal elven longsword except that theblade when revealed is bright green, but thesword is blunt or like a ‘rebated’ weapon2, asAulë did not make it to inflict physical harm.Physically it only does damage as a rebatedlongsword would do, but if the sword strikesan ‘evil’ object that has been crafted (i.e. ofAulë’s realm) the evil – the mordo – is expelledfrom that object. Aulë named the sword Celeb-vagor (‘Dark bane’).3

The sword was broken into seven pieces andtransformed back into the original materialsused to make it – i.e. gold, silver, iron, tin,lead and copper for the tilkal, with the seventhpiece being the enchanted blade runes andscabbard. The blade runes hold the sword to-gether and say ‘Celebvagor’.

The Sword piecesNow as there were seven pieces of the origi-

nal sword, Aulë gave one piece to each of theseven Fathers of the Dwarves as a gift. Alldwarves know of the legend of Aulë’s Sword,but most regard it as a legend and a fairy talefor children. There is an ancient rhyme taughtto all dwarves when they are young:

‘Seven is the number of the Khazâd tribes

And Seven are the Fathers of the Khazâd.

The Sword of Aulë

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———————————————————————————————————— ISSUE 4, JULY 2008Seven is the number of the sacred halls

And Seven are the useful arts.

Seven is the number of the rings given bythe Deceiver

And Seven are the gifts given by Mahal”.4

The number seven is a superstition sharedby most dwarves, because of the rhyme theyare taught, and the coincidence that most ofthe important things in Dwarvish history hap-pen to number seven. The last line of theverse has been disputed by many historians,both Dwarvish and non-Dwarvish. Some his-torians argue that this line refers to the piecesof Aulë’s sword, others argue that Aulë gaveseven gifts to each of the seven fathers.5

Now when Aulë gave the pieces to eachDwarven father (except for Durin), he toldthem that they would ‘know’ when the metalshould be used. Aulë said that the metal wasenchanted, and there would be enough metalto achieve whatever purpose was required.Thus a transformed piece of the sword can beof any size or shape.

The transformed pieces of the sword are:

Gold – The uttermost spire of the goldentower at The Great Oasis in Far Harad(mentioned in the ICE Far Harad module).The spire was constructed by the Fire-beards tribe of Belegost for Forlindaal theLast, in thanks for the smithcraft he taughtthem. After the fall of Beleriand, he tookthe spire with him into the South.

Silver – The Mirror of Aulë of the Stonefoottribe of the Far East (see ICE’s Lords OfMiddle Earth III). Its current whereaboutsare a mystery.

Iron – The Hammer of the North, of the Stiff-beards tribe from the hold of Kibil-tarag inthe Far North (see Lords Of Middle Earth III).Where the Hammer rests is also a mystery.

Tin – A special circular room made out of tin,the room was originally constructed byRunin the Headstrong when he led a smallportion of the Ironfist tribe to the Moun-tains of Rhun to found the mansion of Nu-runkhizdin.

Lead – Tomb of Beren on the central island ofthe Isles of the Dead that Live, made bysome of the Broadbeams tribe of Nogrod,as restitution for the sack of Menegroth.The location of Beren’s tomb has neverbeen found, largely because of the fearsomereputation the islands have with sailors

Copper – Rune key made by the Blacklockstribe for Imrazor I of Mirëdor for the mazebelow the Watch at Unulló, in thanks forImrazor saving the life of the Dwarven Heir

(see ICE’s Shadow in the South). Blade runes & Scabbard – Leatherbound

book, placed secretly by Aulë himself withDurin the Deathless of the Longbeardtribe, in a secret cave just beside the mainchambers at Gundabad.

In order to locate a piece of the sword, ei-ther a copy of the tome The Arcane Mysteriesmust be found as the tome will reveal thecommand word to transform a piece back intoshard of the sword, or already have a shard ofthe Sword form. A piece of the sword willglow if near another piece, and will glowbrighter the closer to the other piece.

ReferencesThe Main References for this campaign/ad-

venture idea are:

1. The History of Middle-earth, Vol. I:The Book of Lost Tales, byJ.R.R.Tolkien, pp 100-101 & p 268.

2. The History of Middle-earth, Vol. XII:The Peoples of Middle Earth, byJ.R.R.Tolkien, pp 301-302, 322.

3. Seven Tribes (CODA vs. ICE) by EricDubourg (on the Yahoo fan-moduleswebsite). You have to register in thegroup to be able to download this file

4. The Inland Sea (in fan-moduleswebsite; see above).

5. Lords of Middle Earth Vol. III –Hobbits, Dwarves, Ents, Orcs &Trolls (ICE, 1989), pp 42, 44, 56.

6. Sea Lords of Gondor (ICE 1987), pp33-36.

7. Shadow in the South (ICE, 1988), pp6, 9, 33, 39, 41-42, 61-62.

8. The Northern Waste (ICE, 1997), pp61,63,75,81,105.

9. Far Harad (ICE, 1988)10. Moria (incl. Dwarves of Middle

Earth, pp 12-27. Khazad-Dûm p 24,2003)

Notes

1 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/

2 Rebated weapons were commonly used inlate Medieval Europe for tournaments, andthese weapons were the normal weaponsbut with the edge and points ‘rebated’ orblunted so as to minimise damage. Iassume that this technique would have beenknown to Aulë.

3 This is the Sindarin form of the name – theQuenya form will vary.

4 The ‘sacred halls’ are the original hallsdelved by the Fathers of each tribe. The

‘useful arts’ taught to all dwarven childrenwere: warcraft, smithcraft, stonecraft,outdoorcraft (survival), lore (includedreligion and history), healing craft(medicine) and leisure craft (music andtales etc.). The Deceiver is a Dwarven titlefor Sauron. Mahal is the Dwarven name forAulë.

5 ICE had the ‘Seven Hammers’ for eachtribe. GM’s should decide for their owncampaigns.

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The eldest of the listsThis Tolkien discussion group has existed since the

First Age before the world was made round.....

Join and contribute Our list has existed since the early 1990s with many

members who have been here for years beyond count....

Now we have moved to Google and have become a privateGoogle Group.

To request to subscribe to this group, please visitthe following page:

http://groups.google.com/group/tolkien_list/subscribe?hl=e

or contact [email protected]

(Elena Rossi, ½ Listowner)

The Tolkien Email List

32 ——————————————————————————————————————————

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SubmissionsYou can submit your contributions bysending them via email to

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Please send as plain text for all textcontributions. For artwork and maps,please send the files as .PNG or.JPEG/JPG (please no TIFF or GIF) at aminimum resolution of 300 dpi and nogreater than 600 dpi. If your file is toolarge to send by email (more than acouple of MB), then you can create anaccount on the Other Minds website

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Fineprint

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Appendix:

Maps for “A Brief History of the Dwarven Mansions”

37

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