High magic 4th Age Middle Earth idea

[SSquirrel]

This is the best site I've found for Middle Earth maps.

A Tolkien Bestiary. I believe that may well be the book I was trying to remember that my teacher used to have. Find that book it's great if it's the one I was thinking of. Those maps are the same as I remember tho.

Also I found this blurb over at the Encyclopedia of Arda, http://www.glyphweb.com/arda/ .

"Tolkien tells us 'What success they [Alatar and Pallando] had I do not know; but I fear they failed, as Saruman did, though doubtless in different ways; and I suspect they were the founders or beginners of secret cults and 'magic' traditions that outlasted the fall of Sauron.' (The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, No. 211)."

This place also has some amazing maps and such too.

Hagen

 

[Errant]

*Heir apparents: You mentioned having this take place in the future (about 100 years or so). Just out of curiosity, have you considered what canon events have happened at that point?

Just in case you're still curious, so far I'm considering the following canon events to have happened:

Year, Event(s)
1, Beginning of the Fourth Age
6, Samwise Gamgee is elected Mayor of the Shire. Peregrin Took (Pippin) marries Diamond of Long Cleeve. King Elessar decrees the Shire to be under his protection, and out of bounds to men.
7, Samwise Gamgee’s father, hamfast Gamgee, commonly known as “the Gaffer”, passes away
9, Birth of Faramir Ist Took, son of Peregrin (Pippin)
10, Meriadoc Brandybuck (Merry) becomes Master of Buckland
13, Peregrin Took (Pippin) becomes Thain on the death of his father Paladin
15, Death of Gloin, Father of Gimli and companion of Bilbo in his Erebor quest.
20, Samwsie Gamgee is reelected for the third time.
21, Sam, Rose, and Elanor Gamgee visit Gondor. Tolman Cotton serves as interim Mayor for a year.
27, Fourth Election of Samwise Gamgee to the Office of Mayor.
30, Elanor Gamgee and Fastred Fairbairn of Greenholm wed.
33, Birth of Elanor Gamgee’s (Fairbairn by marriage) son Elfstan (elfstone) Fairbairn. Probable year of death of Prince Imrahil of Dol Amroth (Source HoME vol 12)
41, The Shire administrative bounders grow and from this year onwards include Buckland and Westmarch.
42, Faramir, son of Peregrin Took (Pippin), weds Goldilocks, Daughter of Samwise Gamgee.
48, Seventh and final election of Samwise Gamgee to the Office of Mayor of the Shire.
61, Death of Rose Gamgee, Sam's wife (born Rose Cotton). Samwise Gamgee delivers the red book into the hands of Elanor, and passes into the West.
63, Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took deliver their cares to their sons and depart the Shire, going South. Faramir 1st Took becomes Thain of the Shire.
82, Faramir, son of Denethor, steward of King Elessar, dies.
91, Death of the Dwarf Dwalin, one of Bilbo’s twelve companions in the Quest of Erebor.

These events are drawn from the suggestions here, plus information gleaned from the following:
LotR Fanatics Library: Timeline of the Fourth Age

As I decide more I'll edit this list.

I've also started working on adapting the Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth to this setting. Here's the intro so far:

Background Dates (canon as far as I can tell):
SA 1600c Lord of the Nazgul first appears, king and sorcerer
SA 2250 Nazgul first appear,
SA 3441 End of Second Age.
TA 1300 Nazgul reappear, Lord of the Nazgul becomes the Witch King of Angmar
TA 1409 Cardolan & Rhuduar fallen to Angmar
TA 1636 The Great Plague
TA 1974 Athedian falls to Angmar
TA 1975 Witch King defeated at Battle of Fornost
TA 2000 The Lord of the Nazgul & other Nasgul reappear, capturing Minas Ithil (Minas Morgul)
TA 3019 War of the Ring
TA 3021 End of the Third Age.

For the players:

The evil kingdom of Angmar arose in the north of Middle Earth in the 13th century of the Third Age and for 700 years attempted to destroy the Dunedain of the North. Peopled by orcs, hill men and other such creatures under the command of the Lord of the Nazgul, Angmar laid waste to the kingdoms of Cardolan, Rhudaur and lastly Arthedian. In the 1975th year of the Third Age, the Witch King was finally defeated at the Battle of Fornost by a combined army of men and elves, led by Cirdan, Lord of Lindon, Glorfindel of Rivendell, and King Earnur of Gondor. The Witch King’s armies were slain or scattered and the Witch King vanished for 200 years.

Even before he became the Lord of the Nazgul, the Witch King was a king of the north and a powerful sorcerer. Legend tells that he gained much of his original might from the discovery of the Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth, ancient caves containing relics of Melkor’s days of power, sealed and lost since the Great Battle at the end of the First Age. The Witch King kept the location of the caverns secret throughout his reign, and since no relics were found after the fall of Angmar, it was presumed that he had secreted his treasures in the Caverns when he foresaw the fall of his stronghold at Carn Dum.

Ages past. Sauron came to power and the Lost Caverns were forgotten again in the face of more pressing dangers. The War of the Ring saw Sauron defeated again and his surviving forces scattered to the far reaches of Middle Earth. Many such survivors found refuge in the north, for the ancient wars and the Great Plague of had left few Dunedain to defend their scattered settlements. In the century since Sauron’s fall, the descendants of his surviving minions in the north have grown strong and numerous. King Elessar has reinforced the northern defenders with armies of Gondor but the marches of Arnor remained ever perilous.

In recent years, attacks against the settlements have grown worse and strange creatures have been sighted in the far reaches. Days ago, King Elessar received word of a worrying encounter between rangers a small band of Urakhai north of the River Mitheithel. Only one ranger survived the encounter and he staggering into Rivendell days later, badly wounded and carrying an ancient map recovered from the Uruk-hai and with a worrying description of the symbol they wore. A symbol not seen since for centuries, not seen since the fall of Carn Dum in the Second Age. The blood red tower of Angmar.

The map is marked with a mysterious verse that has been linked to the legend of the Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth. If the caverns have been rediscovered by someone trying to rebuild the kingdom of Angmar it will mean disaster for the Reunited Kingdom. King Elessar has called for a small but skilled group be swiftly assembled to investigate the map.

You are that group. Called before the King in Minas Tirith, informed of history of Angmar, the Legend of the Lost Caverns, and the ranger’s report. Given a copy of the map, it is your mission to investigate and, if able to locate the Caverns, confirm any threat they may pose to the Reunited Kingdom.​

I plan on setting the module overland map in the Misty Mountains, roughly between the head of the River Mitheithel and the River Langwell on the eastern side of the mountains. The trails marked are small and in places barely passable even on foot, mounted travel is generally risky at best. The scale will be adjusted to 1 hex = 1 mile.

Still a work in progress. If anyone familiar with the module has some suggestions for adapting encounters etc, I'd be more than happy to hear them. At this stage I'll hope to be scaling the module up for L15-16 characters.

 

[Agback]

The Nazgul should be the only servants of Sauron that just dropped dead when he did.

Yes, but the trolls that were caught in sunlight should have turned to stone without his protection.

The Mouth of Sauron could well be alive, since he was a mortal man. Of course, by 100 FA he'd be wormfood in any case.

Possibly not. He was a Numenorean of pure blood, and his sorceries might still have worked.

Also note that they are very few people in the North these days; and with the passing of the Elves everything East of Bree and West of the Mountains is basically empty (Rivendell was the only inhabitation in that region).

A character in the books says so, but I don't think it can be quite true. The Rangers were definitely defending someone (see what Aragorn says at the Council of Elrond after Boromir suggests that Gondor has been keeping everyone else safe). And I have seen a strong argument made that as teh Fellowship headed south from Rivendell they must have passed not too far from where the Dunedain of the North lived (the families of the Rangers, plus whomever grew their food).

Regards,


Agback

 

[Steverooo]

Rivendell

Also, while it has been utterly left out of the above, Elrond's two sons, Elladan and Elrohir, remained behind in Middle Earth, to continue their war with the Orcs (who had once kidnapped and tortured their mother). Rivendell was left to them (and any other of Elrond's people who remained behind).

Also common throughout Iron Crown Enterprise's Middle Earth stuff was the idea that the Elves of Rivendell had the keys to the barrows near Bree. Tyrn Gorthad (IIRC) is a name older than the Dunedain's return to ME, and an unknown people buried their dead there before them. The Elves supposedly held the keys to open the barrows, where many Dunedain lords were buried, with their gear. Sometimes, at great need, it is said, the Elves allowed men to cleanse the barrows, setting the treasures found there out to be taken by all good men and beasts, thus removing the curse from the barrows... Of course, it was expected that the cleansers would take a few items for themselves, as well, for their aid in cleansing the downs... Many weapons and armors of great power were buried with the Dunedain, and the Elves supposedly have records of whom is buried where...

Obviously, there are many undead-fighting adventures, built in here... and since it isn't clear that the One Ring had anything to do with the raising of the Barrow Wights, they would have continued to be a problem long after Sauron passed. King Elessar would no doubt be looking for a capable group to undertake such a mission.

Clearing the Trollshaws of Trolls would also be a problem, no doubt, and the remaining Elves' of Rivendell's war with the Orcs would continue for as long as their are any, lead by the sons of Elrond.

Mordor needs a good scouring, also, especially in the north. In the south, the King gave the land to the slaves who formerly worked them, and this would be a new kingdom in need of protection (especially from all of the bad things coming down from the north).

Shelob is, I think, dead, by this point. Even if she is, however, her lesser offspring still inhabit the Ephel Duath, just as she was a remnant of Ungoliant. Mirkwood/Greenwood would also have some of these beasts (although much less powerful) to clean out.

And the rebuilding?

Gondor was failing at the time of the War of the Ring, and had been for centuries... With 100 (very good) years to rebuild, Aragorn would have continued the fence-mending that began just before the war, and would have restarted Ecthelion's (Denethor's father's) policy of taking good men - from wherever - into the King's service... Rohan would have sent to the Eorlings in the north (where they originally came from), and rebuilt their strength, too!

Lorien, at least by the time of Aragorn's death (20 years into your future) is totally deserted... Rivendell is probably... very quiet. The Greenwood is home to Lakemen, Woodsmen, and Sylvan Elves, with Celeborn and Thranduil probably still in charge. Legolas is more likely nearer the King, until his death (we know he brought some of his people to landscape Minas Tirith, after the war, and later went to the Aglarond).

The Grey Havens seem to have remained occupied LONG after Cirdan, Gandalf, etc., left. While Legolas might have been able to construct an Elven ship by himself (doubtful), Samwise certainly did not! So someone was still there... But then, 120 years is a short time to wait, for an Elf, I suppose... (There is also a Palantir, here, although it looks out only towards the sea, and cannot be made to look anywhere else... Cirdan may have taken this with him, though, I can't recall.)

Enemies in the Fourth Age:

Men, men, men! In Tolkien's ME, the worst monsters are always men! The Easterlings, Balchoth, Wainriders (who I always thought of as Gypsy-ish), the "cruel" Haradrim, etc. Also, the oft-mentioned Mouth of Sauron was a "Black Numenorean" - one of the Numenoreans who had turned to evil... These were a lot like the Dunedain; long-lived, powerful, psychic, tough, tall, and strong. Think "Black Aragorn".

We know that Aragorn and Eomer fought together, many more times, against the Easterlings and Haradrim. Umbar, once taken, had to be held, and fortified. Gondor had done this many times, throughout its history... What would Aragorn (counselled by Mithrandir and Galadriel, before they left) have done to keep it, this time?

The Orc problem is probably well in hand, by now, as travel through the passes seems to be no problem, after the war. Are they all dead, hidden in small bands in out-of-the-way places, or banded together and gone... where?

The Troll population in the Trollshaws is probably about the same. More to eat, now, but more good folk to hunt them, too...

The great intelligent, speaking spiders of Mirkwood are definitely in decline, as well. The Elves will be slower to mend, but the Woodsmen will be greatly increased. While there may be pockets of resistance, or small, hidden bands of these, too, most of them will be distant memories (except among the Elves).

The Dunlending problem has likely also been solved. The Gap of Rohan seems freely passable, by the century after the war, so I doubt that these are a problem. Between Aragorn and Eomer, and what they saw at Helm's Deep, I think they would not have the courage to attack again, and living so long under their rule, would have made peace.

So, I see small, hidden pockets of monsters, but with men and perhaps some Black Numenoreans as the major threats. Of course, undead can wait forever...

Missions the King might send some of those good men he's attracted upon include:

Messengers - Good enough reasons to get low-level PCs together, or from one place to the next.

Search for the Ents - What are they up to, in the "short" time since the war?

Search for the Entwives - Sam's cousin saw one, north of the shire, shortly before the war. After meeting up with Merry & Pippin, and hearing all about the Ents, maybe Sam's slow brain finally put two and two together, and he sent word to the King, who issued orders to the Rangers of the North to be on the lookout... After many, many years, a reported sighting has finally come in... Someone must make the long trek to the far north to check it out!

Rebuilding Annuminas - The North Kingdom was restored in Aragorn's time, and Sam's daughter served as one of Queen Arwen's handmaids, there. With the Dwarves to help build the walls, and Elves to landscape it, it's once again a beauty to behold! Does the rebuilding still go on? Dwarves and Elves work slowly!

Aglarond - Gimli practically lives here, as do many of his and Legolas' folk... How far under the Ered Nimrais do these caves go? How deep? And who rules, there? What secret ways are down there?

The Paths of the Dead - Are they open, now? Aragorn freed the dead of Dunharrow, but the door was left sealed, when he passed... Are any of the dead still there, guarding their secrets? If not, what lies hidden, there?

Fangorn - Can Legolas really learn to understand their speech? Can the "dark" parts of the forest be cleansed?

The Old Forest - If Farmer Cotton knew of Old Tom, it's a cinch that Aragorn did, too. Will he send greetings? What about the evils in the Old Forest? Will he or Bombadil be interested in clearing them out?

The Iron Wind - Tolkien tells us very little of lands beyond where the war was fought, not even very much about the overthrow of Dol Guldar... See if you can find I.C.E.'s The Iron Wind, which tells of another great evil in the far, frozen north of ME.

The New Magics - One Silmaril circles the heavens on Earandil's brow, but another was thrown into a volcano, and a third into the sea... The ruins of ancient Gondolin are also down there, as are several Palantiri... As the new magic emerges, surely Aragorn recognizes the applicability of Water Breathing. Surely, others do, too! The race is on!

Magic Items in Middle Earth:

Magical swords are fairly common... Too many age-long wars, in ME. Bilbo/Frodo had one, and all the hobbits had longknives from the barrowmounds. Aragorn had the shards of Narsil reforged into Anduril. Glamdring and Orcrist, ancient blades of Gondolin, appeared in a mere Troll's hoard... The Witch-King's was certainly magical. The barrows certainly contain more, and I think the armmories of Gondor and the Dwarves and Elves, as well...

Magic armor probably is similar, as are magical ammunitions. Too many wars, in ME, for far too long... Isildur's sword was passed on for generations, among the Dunedain. Bilbo's Sting was passed to Frodo. Armors likewise probably have a similar history, and magic arrows are more common than swords.

As for rings, Gandalf describes the One Ring "as though it were a lesser ring", which seems an odd thing to say about a ring of Invisibility... Apparently, ME has its own fairy tales, and such things were not unknown, if rare...

Then there are the Elven Cloaks (boots not mentioned, but...), the Elven Rope (apparently the inspiration for Ropes of Climbing). There were also the magical Dwarven toys from the Lonely Mountain... Now any world that has magical TOYS certainly can't be described as Low-Magic!

Also, the Miruvor of the Elves sounds like a healing potion, to me. A single sip relieved fatigue! Even the Orcs had their own fiery versions!

What IS missing is all of the Flash-BANG!-gosh-gee-whiz sort of magic. No Wands at all, very few Rods and Staves, and relatively few Miscellaneous Magic Items (although they are there, they don't have flashy effects).

 

[Errant]

Steverooo - Far out, where DID you dig up such a wide range of gems!? You can guarantee those suggestions are going to be filed away for when I can run a regular 4A ME campaign.

One questions for now though (while I digest the rest of your post):

The Orc problem is probably well in hand, by now, as travel through the passes seems to be no problem, after the war. Are they all dead, hidden in small bands in out-of-the-way places, or banded together and gone... where?QUOTE]

Where did you dig the status of the passes from?

 

[Intrope]

Yes, but the trolls that were caught in sunlight should have turned to stone without his protection.

Actually, I think they were actually an entirely new breed of troll, and were naturally (if that means anything for an evil pit-spawned creature) sunlight immune. The same as Uruk-hai, that weren't weakened by sunlight.

Possibly not. He was a Numenorean of pure blood, and his sorceries might still have worked.

I can't believe I forgot that he was a Black Numenorean. 100 years might still see him in his grave naturally, though. I'd expect his sorcery to work (to the extent we know anything about magic in Arda, it appears to derive from the caster). Of course, all the examples are Valar/Maia, so that's not really definitive.

A character in the books says so, but I don't think it can be quite true. The Rangers were definitely defending someone (see what Aragorn says at the Council of Elrond after Boromir suggests that Gondor has been keeping everyone else safe). And I have seen a strong argument made that as teh Fellowship headed south from Rivendell they must have passed not too far from where the Dunedain of the North lived (the families of the Rangers, plus whomever grew their food).

I kind of think that the inhabited part of the north is all to the southwest of the highway that runs from Bree to Isengard--all the lands east were depopulated during the Angmar era, and not repopulated (possibly because Orcs from the Misty Mountains would come out to raid? who knows...)

I'd have to mention that I don't think it makes logical sense that the whole region has been depopulated since the fall of Angmar...just that that seems to be the implication of the books. Maybe it was some sinister plot of Sauron's, to keep the north from rising again?

Anyway, hope that helps!

 

[Steverooo]

Steverooo - Far out, where DID you dig up such a wide range of gems!? You can guarantee those suggestions are going to be filed away for when I can run a regular 4A ME campaign.

Just by asking: "What happened to X after Y?" Here's one I forgot, and left out:

The Druadan Forest was given to the Woses, for Ghan-Buri-Ghan's aid during the war... What's happened to these people, in the century since? Has Aragorn ever gone to meet Ghan's descendants, for some reason? There might be an adventure there, too!...

One questions for now though (while I digest the rest of your post):

The Orc problem is probably well in hand, by now, as travel through the passes seems to be no problem, after the war. Are they all dead, hidden in small bands in out-of-the-way places, or banded together and gone... where?QUOTE]

Where did you dig the status of the passes from?

Compare the passages through the mountains after the War of the Rings (the Grey Company did it, apparently without problem, Arwen's wedding procession did it, Aragorn, Gandalf, Galadriel, the Hobbits, and the rest of the Wise did it) to Bilbo's perilous passage in The Hobbit. The Grey Company's passage occurred off-stage, so we don't know, but there's nothing said about Orcs in the passes of the Misty Mountains. Arwen's Wedding Procession came the same way, and had no problems, and the various ridings of the keepers, and the Wise, also had no problems. After the War, we're told that the King ordered all things... Now compare that to Bilbo's passage through the Misty Mountains, where he, the Dwarves, and Gandalf were attacked by Orcs in a cave, and all but Gandalf were taken prisoners...

This doesn't mean that there are no bands of Orcs, just no Orc armies, as anything large enough to cause problems (or leave traces) would be hunted down and killed off. A century is a long time to set thing right, for men. Orcs will have to be hidden, and probably in small bands, operating only at night, if in Human lands. Otherwise, they will have to congregate in large groups somewhere where people don't go (and that includes Dwarves, Elves, Hobbits, and Woses).

 

[Steverooo]

Northern Depopulation

Don't forget that a plague took care of a lot of that, a century or two back... Cardolan and Rhudaur died before the Witch-King and his armies defeated Annuminas. So most of the land's depopulation occurred BEFORE the Witch-King sacked Arthedain (although he was probably behind all of it).

 

[Belegbeth]

Tolkien misc.

A very interesting and cool thread!

However, some of the things you stated in your campaign posts surprised me, Errant. In particular:

a. "Once [magic was] a gift only seen among the immortal Valar."

This does is not correct. The Elves obviously had magical abilities, though they did not see them as such (Elrond, Luthien, Galadriel, etc.). Many of the Dunedain also appear to have had 'magical' abilities. In particular, some Dunedain had gifts of foresight and healing. One of the Northern Dunedain, Malbeth the Seer, foretold that Arvedui would be the last king of Arthedain; he also foresaw the events concerning the heir of Elendil and the Paths of the Dead. In the Second Age, some Numenoreans could call their steeds by thought alone. Elves, Dunedain, and Dwarves could all craft magic items -- the blade that slew the Witch King was crafted by the Dunedain of Arthedain. The Dwarves also had special abilities with respect to runes, and *The Hobbit* mentions magic toys (!) of Dwarvish creation. I am sure that there are other examples of non-Valar magical abilities (like Beorn's abilities).

And there is, of course, this famous quote:

"I once knew every spell in all the tongues of Elves or Men or Orcs, that was ever created for such a purpose. I can still remember ten score of them ..." (Gandalf, TFotR, outside Moria) Hmmm ... 200 knock spells?

b. You claim that the Witch King vanished for 200 years after his defeat in T.A. 1975. I am afraid that this is also not correct -- he reappeared only 25 years later, capturing Minas Ithil (which subsequenty became known as Minas Morgul). And he slew the last king of Gondor 50 years later.

With respect to some of the other things mentioned in this thread:

1. The Mouth of Sauron would very likely still be alive in F.A. 100, if he survived the War of the Ring. According to Robert Foster's *Guide to Middle-Earth*, the Mouth of Sauron was a Black Numenorean who "became a great sorcerer, which is how he preserved his life for thousands of years." Thousands! Unlike the Nazgul, the Mouth of Sauron had no ring of power. So unless his sorcerous powers were somehow tied to Sauron in some other way, there is not reason to think that he would have "croaked" from old age by 100 F.A.

2. Shelob was wounded by Samwise -- there is no reason to think that she necessarily died. So she might still be haunting Cirith Ungol! A nice Middle-earth dungeon crawl: cleanse Cirith Ungol!

3. I think Steveroo mentioned that Cirdan left the Grey Havens at some point prior to 100 F.A. This is not correct. Cirdan remained in Middle-earth, serving with his wisdom and his ships, until the sailing of the last white ship sometime well into the Fourth Age. He would probably be the most powerful Eldar lord in Middle-earth in 100 F.A.

4. I think Steveroo also mentioned that Legolas went to Aglarond with Gimli's people. I am afraid that this too is not correct: Legolas settled in Ithilien with some of his folk from Greenwood in order to assist in the healing of that land. So there would be an Elven colony in Ithilien -- very close to Minas Tirith -- in 100 F.A.

5. The breed of trolls known as the "Olog-Hai" (Black Trolls) did not turn into stone in the sunlight. They were also very cunning. Hence they would make formidable foes in a 100 F.A. campaign.

6. The orcs might be down, but they are definitely not out. They breed like vermin. Though the passes of the Misty Mountains might be safe in the early Fourth Age, I would expect the orcish tribes to be regrouping in Mount Gundabad and/or the Grey Mountains.

Some other campaign possibilities to think about:

I. The last son of Feanor, Maglor, may still be alive. There is not tale of his passing. It is simply said that, after throwing the last Silmaril into the sea when it burned his hand, he wandered the lands of Middle-earth singing in pain and regret. His return would make for a *very* interesting campaign possibility.

II. Tolkien's unfinished story entitled "The New Shadow" can be found in *The Peoples of Middle-Earth* (Vol. 12 of the History of Middle-earth). Though it is only about 13 pages long, it is very very cool! It is set a little later than your campaign, Errant, shortly after the death of King Elessar. But it captures the mood of a new sinister force within the Reunited Kingdom. Worth the price of the book alone, I think.

As for RULES...

I agree with Afgncap and Remathilis that the Generic Classes from AU are probably appropriate for a Middle-Earth campaign (though I would at least improve the Expert -- e.g. give him a d8 HD and 8 skill points). I also think that Defense Bonuses might be appropriate, given that Middle-earth is a 'rare armour' world (no plate mail, etc.).

Even if you use the Generic Classes, though, I would keep a FEW standard classes as well, but restrict them to certain kinds of characters. Or perhaps treat them as restricted prestige classes. For example, I would limit Rangers to Dunedain and Elves, and Bards to Elves. (For a very nice variant on the Bard class, check out Monte Cook's *Complete Book of Eldritch Might*. Such a Bard would be great for Tolkien Elves.)

You should definitely throw out at least a third of the spells in the PH for a Middle-earth campaign as well. Check out the ENWorld ME site for some suggestions on this.

I would treat pure Dunedain as half-elves, but replace the "low light vision" ability with the extra skill points that humans get. Dwarves and Hobbits can (more or less) remain unchained.

Well, this thread has really got me thinking about good old Middle-Earth again ...

 

[Errant]

A very interesting and cool thread!

However, some of the things you stated in your campaign posts surprised me, Errant. In particular:

a. "Once [magic was] a gift only seen among the immortal Valar."

This does is not correct...

Well, that was my pretty much first draft of a players' introduction to a High Magic 4th Age Middle Earth, but after all the input here I think I'll be changing it to "Once a gift seen rarely, except among the Valar and Maiar of Middle Earth, magic is now shared by every race in every known land."

As for the length of the Witch King's disappearance, that was simply bad arithmetic during late night brainstorming.

With regard to the rules, I would happily use the Armor/Defense rules from the Grim n Gretty system but my players don't like straying too far from core rules. :\