LotR: Galadriel Triumphant

[NealTS]

For some odd reason I had a hankering to dig up my Lord of the Rings DVDs and give'em a whirl. I watched the Fellowship of the Ring (extended edition) this afternoon, and I was struck by Galadriel's "All shall love me and despair" speech. This got me to thinking: What if?

What if Frodo had given Galadriel the ring? What would Middle Earth look like? I'd like to avoid the whole "Galadriel has the ring for a while, then an orc kills her and Mordor gets it" line of thought. Let's give her a little credit, here. Obviously, the ring would bend her to its ends more than she would twist it to hers, but her personality and the elven aesthetic would definitely "color" the dystopia that would result.

I'm imagining goblins being massacred and discarded as "unclean." Galadriel, fortified by the power of the ring but still connected to the mindlink with the other elven lords, quickly dominates them and brings them under her control. Coldly noble elves, the new tools of Sauron, rule over the world with an iron fist. The methods of evil shift from industrialism to magic. Remote dwarven delves are the last desperate holdouts against the new world order.

So what do you all think? I know it's not a D&D topic per se, but sometimes the best campaign ideas come from brainstorms like this. I'm admittedly not much of a Tolkein scholar, and I'd be interested to know the thoughts of those among us who've read all of the prehistory stuff. Of course, this is alternate history, so all thoughts are welcome.

 

[2WS-Steve]

That's really cool -- and a great twist on the dark empire. Instead of being ruled by fear it's governed by fanatical devotion and love, perhaps almost like a cult.

It could even have a creepy, too-perfect aesthetic. Not nightmare landscapes but everything made too beautiful. Ira Levin wrote this book, This Perfect Day, that might give a sort of take on the picture.

 

[Klaus]

For some odd reason I had a hankering to dig up my Lord of the Rings DVDs and give'em a whirl. I watched the Fellowship of the Ring (extended edition) this afternoon, and I was struck by Galadriel's "All shall love me and despair" speech. This got me to thinking: What if?

What if Frodo had given Galadriel the ring? What would Middle Earth look like? I'd like to avoid the whole "Galadriel has the ring for a while, then an orc kills her and Mordor gets it" line of thought. Let's give her a little credit, here. Obviously, the ring would bend her to its ends more than she would twist it to hers, but her personality and the elven aesthetic would definitely "color" the dystopia that would result.

I'm imagining goblins being massacred and discarded as "unclean." Galadriel, fortified by the power of the ring but still connected to the mindlink with the other elven lords, quickly dominates them and brings them under her control. Coldly noble elves, the new tools of Sauron, rule over the world with an iron fist. The methods of evil shift from industrialism to magic. Remote dwarven delves are the last desperate holdouts against the new world order.

So what do you all think? I know it's not a D&D topic per se, but sometimes the best campaign ideas come from brainstorms like this. I'm admittedly not much of a Tolkein scholar, and I'd be interested to know the thoughts of those among us who've read all of the prehistory stuff. Of course, this is alternate history, so all thoughts are welcome.

I like it.

This reminds me somewhat of that arc in "Angel" when a goddess came and everyone loved her, and there was world peace, but she ate people everyday.

 

[Ilium]

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...

 

[Dioltach]

Isn't it implied that she would have the power to vanquish Sauron? Which seems great, except that the power of the Ring is essentially Sauron's strength, which in turn had been inherited from Morgoth (this is all off the top of my head).

So she would believe that she was doing good and that she had driven evil from the land, but instead she would be corrupted.

I'd say that the Ring wouldn't allow her to kill Sauron: she'd maybe keep him prisoner at first, and slowly she'd adopt him as a lowly, servile counsellor (think Wormtongue, but on a much grander scale).

Sauron's physical strength would be kept low, particularly at first. But with both him and Galadriel linked to the Ring, I see it ultimately leading to a titanic clash of wills to see who controls the Ring (or at least, who possesses it).

On another note, what if Treebeard had the Ring?

 

[Blue]

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.

SO, what happens if she takes the ring, does some good, starts to get twisted, and is given a wake-up call she can't ignore, perhaps from a mortal or group of mortal. (If you want to read "group of mortals" as "PC adventuring party" go ahead.) She pulls together all of her willpower and gives the ring away to the mortals, telling them to flee quickly with it and how to destroy it. And soon after, as the clarity of her epiphany fades and the Gollum-like to repossess the ring washes over everything, she and all the forces she can bring to bear go looking for it.

So there is no sanctuary. Everyone wants it for their own purposes. Perhaps Sauron's armies have weakened in the time since - her will could hold for centuries.

So we start with PCs in a nigh utopia, which turns out is really a dystopia, and then we have them get the ring and all the forces of heaven and hell after them, including many of the lawful good-guys under Galadriel who don't realize that she is getting corrupted. Perhaps rebels to the elven order can provide temporary relief and sanctuary, but in the end the PCs face an epic task.

Just thoughts how to bring it back to a D&D campaign.

Cheers,
=Blue(23)

 

[DrunkonDuty]

That would be a cool campaign.

Cate Blanchett. <sigh>

 

[rgard]

Cate Blanchett. <sigh>

Oh yeah.

 

[NealTS]

I imagine that the ring's and Galadriel's goals would coincide, at least at first. Galadriel would seek to rid the world of goblins because they are foul and wicked beasts. The ring would seek to eliminate them because elves probably make better minions, anyway, and a (successful) crusade against the "minions of Sauron" would cement the elves' loyalty to the Shining Queen.

This strike against Mordor would also win over the undying loyalty of the men of Gondor, who had suffered much as a buffer against Sauron's forces. And with both Aragorn and Boromir near at hand when Galadriel receives the ring, the very heart of Gondor's power structure can be conveniently dominated. The members of the Fellowship would likely be granted positions of respect in her court.

I see Galadriel's first truly evil act being the betrayal of Gandalf the White. With Mordor crushed, the treachery of Saruman would conveniently come to light. Galadriel would have Saruman killed, and would likely be goaded into declaring the entire Order corrupt. With Gandalf the White coming back from his battle with the Balrog to find the ring on Galadriel's finger, he would recognize the peril the world is in, and work, either overtly or covertly, against her. Reasoning that Gandalf "could not possibly understand," and possibly filled with fear of Gandalf's possible designs on the ring, she would, with a heavy heart, include him on the black list. Now whether Gandalf is killed once and for all or manages to go into hiding, I don't know.

Hobbits, with their green thumbs, would be all too happy to work tirelessly in Galadriel's impeccable gardens. Thoroughly obsessed with the Shining Queen, they wouldn't think of betraying her (and barely notice the disappearance of the few bad apples among their number). In Rohan, Wyrmtongue would likely be banished and Theoden would become a vassal-king of Galadriel. This would be the ultimate publicity ploy (Meet the new boss, same as the old boss).

Keep the ideas coming. I love brainstorms like this.

 

[Rabelais]

You 'n me both DD