LotR: Galadriel Triumphant

[resistor]

Galadriel is OLD. She was born, if I remember correctly, in the Blessed Realm, before the exile of the Noldor that started the First Age. I would definitely credit her with being able to put her own stamp on things and even resist the ring outright for a time. So she might accomplish considerable good before the ring slowly twisted her.

But when it did...Oh, boy. She followed Feanor out of an earthly paradise to seek vengeance for what was basically an insult to her people and family. This is somebody you do NOT want to cross.

And I wonder how she really feels about this upstart monkey-king marrying her granddaughter...

Yes, she's the daughter of Finarfin, Feanor's brother. I think she's the only remaining Calaquendi (an elf who saw the light of the two trees before Morgoth, the original dark god, corrupted them) in Middle Earth. Cirdan might be approximately as old, but Galadriel is almost certainly stronger, being in part descended from the Vanyar, in addition to just the Noldor.

It's also worth noting that her power is quite possibly far more than is ever demonstrated in the book, especially re-enforced with one of the elven rings. Some of the deeds of her contemporaries: Feanor was able to single-handedly kill several balrogs before Gothmog finally overwhelmed him. Fingolfin was able to maim Morgoth in single combat. And she was described as being just as fierce as Feanor and his sons in the pursuit of Morgoth.

It would not be surprising to find out that defeating a balrog without the aid of the One Ring was well within her capabilities.

 

[SoulsFury]

Great thread. I'm loving reading all this. Great ideas are being presented here... to add to it... what if Gandolf had lost to he Balrog, but Galadriel got the one ring? Gandolf would be the one to think with reason, but with him gone, and her running things... who knows what could happen.

 

[Edena_of_Neith]

I think she would actually manage to banish Sauron back into the shadow state he was in after his defeat by the Last Alliance.

She would stop the Ruffians from cutting down trees in the Shire, as Sam asked her to. LOL ... yes, that is how it would start.

Before it was over, we'd have a Menibonean style Empire of the Elves stretching across all of Middle Earth. Galadriel would directly dominate the minds of her higher-ups, reducing them almost literally to puppets pulled by strings. Everyone else of any consequences, would be crushed and reduced to a puppet, or killed.
Gandalf and anyone else from Valinor sticking their noses into Middle Earth, would have said noses chopped off.

Men would be useful, at first. But eventually the Usurpers, the Traitors, the Weaklings (remember the Swarthy Men betrayed the Noldor) would have to go, and the extermination would be swift and complete.
Dwarves would be permitted to remain, as lowly Nibelungen style slaves ... so long as the mithril and other wealth continued to flow.
Ents would disappear. Galadriel would not tolerate a second race interfering with her slaves in the forest.

And hobbits? Perhaps they would make amusing carnival sideshow exhibits? Court jesters? Freak shows? Or, 'good sport' as the orcs might say, because of their high constitution and endurance ('it is a wonder that one so small, could endure so much pain. And he did, Gandalf. He did.')
If they did, those would be the only hobbits left alive ... the unlucky ones.

Before it was over, Galadriel would rival Vecna in terms of power and depravity. She'd make Ar-Pharazon look like a nice guy.
It is even possible Galadriel would deliberately torture the world and everything and everyone in it, in order to torture the Valar (who are stuck watching this torture unfold and unable to do anything about it) in order to enact revenge on the 'perpentrators of all elven misery, the original and ultimate traitors against all the Quendi.'

 

[Mathew_Freeman]

On another note, what if Treebeard had the Ring?

Well, in the Good News category, he's take a very long time to decide what to do with it.

In the Bad News category, whilst forests would spread and all living things would grow in the short term, I imagine that eventually forests would cover the whole world, with fearsome Ent-Guardians crushing anyone or anything that dares to interfere with the trees. Other races would have to live in tiny villages, never seeing each other.

It'd be pretty scary, frankly.

 

[Herobizkit]

Galadriel would become a... Dark... Elf...

...
...
...

Yeah, I know. Sure would 'splain some D&D stuff, though.

 

[Quartz]

What if she blamed the Valar for the sinking of Beleriand?

 

[Rackhir]

Galadriel might well be able to corrupt Gandalf if she had the One Ring. It does let the holder peer into the minds of people who had the three elven rings and the Istari were susceptible to corruption after all. So she could see what buttons to push in Gandalf to bend him to her will. Though Gandalf would likely be aware of this as the elves were when Sauron first put on the ring.

 

[Shadeydm]

Very enjoyable thread.

I am not so certain that in the event she had obtained and mastered (not a guaranteed outcome by any means) the ring, that it would really have changed the outcome of the war. I suspect the vast array of forces at Sauron's disposal would have prevailed against what remained of the forces for good on Middle Earth. There were precious few elves left in Middle Earth at that point. The Kingdom of Men would have been reduced in essence to Gondor's army and what remained of Rohan post helm's deep. Not very good odds IMO.

 

[WhatGravitas]

I am not so certain that in the event she had obtained and mastered (not a guaranteed outcome by any means) the ring, that it would really have changed the outcome of the war. I suspect the vast array of forces at Sauron's disposal would have prevailed against what remained of the forces for good on Middle Earth. There were precious few elves left in Middle Earth at that point. The Kingdom of Men would have been reduced in essence to Gondor's army and what remained of Rohan post helm's deep. Not very good odds IMO.

Hmm.. not that sure. She's a fair bit of history, after all, she followed the other Noldor out of Valinor, and only her refusal of the ring lifted the ban on her. And AFAIK, Tolkien perceived the elves of the third age as a "fading" race, full of melancholy, epigones of their former glory, only in Galadriel was a lingering bit of the old fire.

Considering the formidable might of the old elves, and hence Galadriel, she's pretty powerful in terms of middle-earth power, she's literally a relict of the time when the gods walked the earth - her kin wounded Morgoth, Sauron's master. If the ring contains most of Sauron's power, it is very possible that Galadriel could defeat Sauron's presence in Middle-Earth.

Furthermore, as I perceive Galadriel, she wouldn't have succumbed to the ring in such a blatant way like becoming evil, I guess a more likely course would have been revenge on the Valar, blaming them for the loss of Beleriand, her ban from the Blessed Realm, for allowing Morgoth to kill the trees - she would renounce the Valar and probably proclaim herself as new god-like being of Middle-Earth, trying to recreate the First Age, minus the oppression by Morgoth.

She wouldn't actively terrorize humans or hobbits, they'd simply be overlooked, like bugs. And extolling the elven traits, including hubris and arrogance. It'd be a peaceful reign, but more because people must worship and respect her, people have no choice. And they'd embrace her outlook. They would simply fit into her order, a bit like a 1984, but with all people willing to live "oppressed". Very surreal.

Cheers, LT.

 

[Klaus]

All would love her, and despair.

Middle-Earth would be the epitome of celebrity-worship, where people's lives would hang at the opinion of their beloved Queen.

Instead of a realm of Shadow, it's be a realm of blinging Light. Even if Galadriel doesn't become Evil, her subjects could verge on fanatism and do unspeakable things in her name. It's be a realm of supreme peace and friendship... until you discovered the camps for extermination of orcs, goblins, haradrim, pirates and all others who were "undesirable".