Middle Earth, A New Age


Within Middle Earth, the stories of the ring, and the hobbit who saved us all has become legend. Long after this era of the land however, the people began to rebuild and grow. None more so, then man. Their thirst for knowledge and what they did not have, forged advancements within technology, especially weapons. Power was shifting, the other beings of the land could feel it. Man was not content with what it had anymore, it wanted more, it wanted what they had. The others were deemed as in the way and a threat by a powerful king, who had influence within the lands of man. It was believed that many of the kingdoms of man had stemed from this source, and were influenced by its king and power. Slowly, they began to plot a plan of advancement, sending their armies and men to move forward, deeper and deeper into land that was not theirs. They sought any excuse to overpower and paint their fellow beings as enemies or a threat in a way that justified their means. As their conquest grew, fear of bloodshed and an all out massacre against the other races who stood in the way of man became a concern of the other beings of Middle Earth.

They decided upon taking action, but not without first giving man a chance to answer for themselves, as was customary. A meeting was planned, for representatives of all races, deep within the land of the elves. Even representatives from the lands of goblins and orcs were invited, since without the evil of the eye, the races had calmed some, and evolved themselves as well. They were still a threat, but they had tasted the threat of man as well. Each race was allowed one representative, who was allowed to bring two advisors with them. Wether they be a king or merely an advisor themselves, it was important for each race to be certain and precice with who they sent to the meeting. The meeting would take place in the old castle of Eldon. The members would be locked inside with staff to care for them, and breaks for food and sleep. They would remain there for however long it took to come to a conclusion that would benifit them all and end this threat, before it got out of hand. But something was amiss...Many of the elves could sense it on the wind, and some members of the other races could sense it as well. It was something dark and cold, which told the coming of something bad, but it was to late to cancel, the meeting was about to begin...

Races of Middle Earth

Men:

The race of Men, or Mankind, is one of several races inhabiting Arda. They are essentially the same as real-world men, i.e., Homo Sapiens (human beings).

Elves:

Elves, like Men, are both Children of Ilúvatar (God, The One) and thus are very similar to Men. Unlike Men, however, they are immortal, in that their bodies do not age once they have reached maturity, so that they do not seem to become elderly or die of old age, and they are not afflicted by disease. They can be killed by physical injury however, or they may come to death from wasting away if after long eons of life they lose the will to live. The Elves came into existence before Men, and when they die they pass to the Halls of Mandos in Valinor, where they await the end of Time. Elves are (generally) unusually handsome of face and body, tall and slender, and they have far better vision and hearing than Men. They also have skills and abilities (craftsmen), and perception of things around them, far greater than that of Men, although whether this is an innate quality or is the result of long experience after having lived so long, is not known. They are also light of foot, can travel long distances without leaving tracks, and often can walk lightly across snow where the boots of Men would go through.

Dwarves:

Dwarves were a proud and stern race and were made to be sturdy to resist the dangers of their time. They were physically much stronger than humans, elves, and hobbits, and had great endurance, especially in the ability to resist great heat and cold, and they made light of heavy burdens. Dwarves lived up to two hundred and fifty years and had the ability to learn new skills quickly. A normal dwarf was usually stubborn and secretive, but they had the capacity to be loyal friends. Most of the time, the only thing they cared about were mining and crafts, drawing the hatred of the elves. Dwarves were not hurt by insults, but they had a propensity to hold a long-lasting grudge. Dwarves were greedy, but their stoutness prevented this from corrupting them, as shown by what happened to the Dwarven Rings of Power and their owners. Whereas the Men who owned the nine Rings were corrupted and became the Nazgûl, the Dwarves were unaffected. The only power that the rings had over them was the power to inflate their greed for gold. Some of the wicked oneslikley Blacklocks and perhaps Stonefoots made alliances with Orcs and Goblins. Dwarves were taught special skills by Aulë and lived by mining for precious minerals such as gold, iron, copper, and silver from all over mountains in Middle-earth. In ancient times, the dwarves also found Mithril in the mines of Khazad-dûm. They were also able masons, and smiths. They crafted many famed weapons, armours, and items of art and beauty, amongst them Narsil, the sword of Elendil, the Dragon-helm of Dor-lómin, and the necklace Nauglamír. They built many famed halls including Belegost, Nogrod, Khazad-dum, and Menegroth. Dwarves also reforged the gates of Minas Tirith and rebuilt the walls of Helm's Deep after the War of the Ring. They had a knack for starting a fire almost anywhere out of almost anything. Dwarves did not farm and herd because they lived mostly underground. They traded smithcraft to men and elves in exchange for food. The number of Dwarf women were few, only about 1/3 to 1/4 of their total number, which is the reason for the slow Dwarf population growth, and is in peril when dwellings are scant. Because of their rarity, Dwarf-men oft kept them concealed within their mountain halls to protect them from other races. Dwarf women were seldom seen walking about and seldom do they travel except in great need, and when they do, they dress as Dwarf-men. They are rumored to be similar to dwarf-men in voice and appearance, usually other peoples cannot tell them apart. For this reason, Men have the opinion that there are no dwarf-women and that the Dwarves grow out of stone. Dwarves usually take only one spouse in their lives (unless their spouse died) and, as in all things, are jealous of their rights. Less than one-third of dwarf-men take a wife. Many dwarf-men do not wish to marry, as they are too busy with their crafts. Also, not all dwarf-women take husbands, as they may not have an interest in marriage, or some desire dwarf-men they cannot have and will settle for no other.

Hobbits:

Hobbits are between two and four feet (0.6m-1.2m) tall, the average height being three feet six inches. They are not quite as stocky as the similarly-sized dwarves, but still tend to be stout, with slightly pointed ears. Hobbits are known to have originated somewhere in the Valley of the Anduin River. During their early history, there were three subspecies of Hobbit.

The Harfoots were the most common Hobbits. They were smaller and shorter than the other kinds and had browner skin. They did not grow beards or wear boots. They were skilled with their hands and feet and preferred hillsides and highlands to live in. In ancient times, they had frequent contact with the Dwarves of Middle-earth and lived in the foothills of the mountains for a long time. While the other varieties of Hobbits were still in the Wilderland, the Harfoots moved west, travelling across Eriador as far as Weathertop.

The Stoors often chose to live near water or on flat land. They were broader and heavier in build than the other Hobbits and their feet and hands were larger. They were the most reluctant variety of Hobbit to leave the River Anduin, where some Stoors continued to stay. Others travelled west after the Harfoots and followed the River Loudwater southward. Many of the Stoors settled between Tharbad and the borders of Dunland before they continued north.

The Fallohides, who preferred trees and woodland, were the least common variety of Hobbits. They had fairer skin and hair and were taller and slimmer than the others. They also had better relations with the elves of Middle-earth, were more skilled with language and song, and preferred hunting to tilling. They crossed the mountains north of Rivendell and then followed the River Hoarwell.

Ents:

Ents are tree-like creatures, having become like the trees that they herded. They vary in traits, from everything to height and size, colouring, and the number of fingers and toes. An individual Ent more or less resembles the specific species of tree that they typically guard.

Orcs:

Orcs were short in stature and resembled Men (or even Dwarves). They were squat, broad, flat-nosed, sallow-skinned, bow-legged, with wide mouths and slant eyes, long arms, dark skin, and fangs. The orcs' nature is usually filthy and dirty and despise all races of the land in which they live in. Tolkien describes that one 'huge orc cheiftain' as 'almost Man-high' and some of Hobbit height such as the smaller orcs and footsoldiers.

Dragons:

In addition to being long-lived, powerful, and cunning, dragons also possessed subtle intelligence, great physical strength, and an overwhelming greed for treasure (especially gold). By their very nature, it was desirable to them to not only steal beautiful things, but to relish the act of dispossessing those from whom they took such property. It was said that they had a very keen sense of the value of their hoard, but never themselves crafted so much as a brass ring. Dragons were prone to anger, and such fits of rage that towns, countrysides, and certainly individuals close at hand were subject to violent cataclysms of fire and destruction.

They also had a hypnotic power called "dragon-spell"; weaker-willed beings could be put into a trance or bent to a dragon's will when the beast spoke. In addition, this dragon-spell seems to have had the ability to plant mistrust in the listener's mind. This power also extended to a dragon's treasure hoard, causing it to excite feelings of greed and animosity among others. Feuds and battles frequently followed upon the death of a dragon; usually between the Hero who slew the beast and the original owners (or their heirs), as well as an occasional ambitious third party. Some have speculated that this 'curse' played a part in Fram's death at the hands of the Dwarves after he had slain Scatha. The same could be said of the famous 'Battle of Five Armies' upon the death of Smaug.

All accounts of interaction between dragons and other beings makes mention of them speaking, using the Common Tongue. Those unfortunate episodes inevitably culminated in the dragon manipulating the individual to believe things either false, or in the worst possible light. These creatures evidently delighted in sowing discord and strife among others, which is reflective of their nature. Dragons apparently had a love of riddles and puzzling talk, spending long hours trying to decipher it. Therefore, speaking in ambiguous riddles was the best way to converse with a dragon, as it was quite unwise to either tell the full truth or to directly refuse them.

Dragons had an acute sense of smell. During his encounter with Smaug, Bilbo Baggins was informed in no uncertain terms that (even though the dragon could not determine what manner of creature he was) he knew that he was in the company of Dwarves due to the scent of a "dwarf-ridden pony". Furthermore, despite his invisibility, thanks to the Ring, Smaug was aware of the hobbit's presence by both his breath, and the movement of the air he caused in the great hall. They were known to sleep with half an eye open, on the alert for intruders if they were suspicious. The hobbit also reported a pale ray of light eminating from Smaug's eye as he probed the chamber back and forth for the burglar. Dragons were well known for sleeping on piles of treasure.

Dragons had strong scales, which could resist most weapons, though young dragons had to grow into their armoury. Mithril is said to have been as strong as dragon scales, though lighter in weight. The underbelly of the dragon was described as soft, slimy, and unarmored; however, Smaug from The Hobbit, had lain so long on the heap of treasure in the deep of the Lonely Mountain that gems and coins had become encrusted in the slime, so that he was "armored above and below with iron scales and hard gems"he was also said to have had scales there too making his underbelly harder to strike at than his back. The Dwarves appear to have had some skill at fighting dragons, as seen when they held off Glaurung for a time in the Nirnaeth Arnoediad. This was one of the few instances where the battle was not due to stolen gold. The age old fight between dwarves and dragons was primarily a result of the dwarves placing great value on their hard earned treasure, and the dragon's habit of stealing it. Dain I and his son Fror of the Grey Mountains were both slain at the doors of their hall by a great cold-drake. Both races had a lust for beautiful metals and gems, and so, naturally came into conflict with the dragons generally prevailing.

A great stench went before Glaurung, and his blood contained some sort of venom, though it is not known if all dragons had these two traits, although the Dwarves commented on the reek of Smaug that filled the Lonely Mountain's halls after the dragon's long stay there. Dragon fire was hot enough to melt the Rings of Power. Indeed, four of the seven rings gifted to the Dwarves were consumed by dragon fire. However, it was said by Gandalf that no dragon's fire would be hot enough to melt the One Ring, not even that of Ancalagon the Black, mightiest known member of that great race.

Uruk-hai:

Uruk-hai breathed harshly and deeply, and were enormously strong, tense creatures, top-heavy juggernauts with massive chest, neck, shoulder, and jaw development. They snarled and grimaced constantly, as they were in constant pain and their only relief lay in violence. Their gait was like walking uphill on narrow poles, probably because as soon as they were spawned they were locked into heavy plate armor, so there was a perceived sense of crushing weight and momentum to their stride. They had difficulty turning quickly. They probably had limited formal training, just basic drill work, but they were lethal, instinctive fighters, much more dangerous than [common] Orcs. They used their falchions and spiked shields pretty much interchangeably, smashing and bashing. Their defenses were power blocks - no finesse, no deflections, just brutal chops that could bounce an attacking weapon back the way it came.

Sometimes they didn't even bother to defend themselves; they just relied on their armor and moved straight into the attack. They would hammer and chop, and occasionally flip their swords around and use the back-spike to pinion an enemy, or gut them with the prongs on their shields. In the books, they were described as black skinned, had slant eyes and hated Goblins and called them hole maggots.

Wrags:

Wargs measured about 5 feet at the shoulder, and could be up to eight feet in length from snout to muzzle full of huge fangs and a long, prehensile neck; its eyes were small and set back to each side of its head, its ears at the back of the skull. This arrangement gave greatest sensory range while keeping its vulnerable areas protected, and the long neck gave it reach, flexibility and power when biting into flesh. There was a large well muscled hump above its forelegs, that propelled it at high speeds, not only allowing the beast to run swiftly but also smash and tackle prey and foes.

Apart from its ruff, the warg had short dense fur, which would have kept injury from tooth and claw to a minimum. Not all damage could have come from the men and beasts it was attacking; wargs were ferocious and could quickly turn on other members of their pack as well as their handlers. Many warg riders displayed gruesome scars from encounters with their mounts. Coloration and patterning of the fur doesn't seem to vary throughout the breed. Powerful haunches and a dewclaw allowed the warg to climb.

Troll:

Trolls are a very large and monstrous (ranging from between 8 to 10 feet tall), and basically unintelligent humanoid race inhabiting Arda and Middle-earth.

Giant Spiders:

Giant Spiders are massive in size and appear mostly in the forests of Mirkwood. They are descended from the spider-creatures of the Ered Gorgoroth (Mountains of Terror), and/or the evil spider-like being known as Ungoliant. Like all arachnids, they have eight legs, many eyes, and are known for constructing large webs to trap their prey. After mating, the female often devours the male. The female will lay thousands of eggs, and the offspring will often devour her, and/or vice-versa. Giant Spiders were once found in Mirkwood, as well as originating from the Ered Gorgoroth and Nan Dungortheb. Ungoliant and her descendants, the Spiders of Mirkwood, could speak, though it is unknown if all spiders could.

Mûmakil:

Mûmakil resemble elephants, except they have six tusks instead of two. Two are on the bottom jaw, two larger tusks are where an elephant's would be, and there were two smaller tusks above those.

Goblins:

Goblins are of smaller build than other orcs. The goblins of Moria are also a very green colour compared to the varied colour of orcs elsewhere, they also had larger pointier ears and huge bulbous eyes, as expected from creatures that live in the dark. Goblins seem to lead a much more tribal life, often having a chief among smaller groups. When compared to orcs recruited by Sauron they tend to be much less organised using a vast range of scavenged items of clothing, armour and weaponry rather than specifically designed armour and weapons made. They also have a fear of light and the sun and will not step out in daylight most of the time, later orcs and uruks don't seem to mind the light as much as goblins.

Additional Races of Middle Earth

Rules and Profile Skeleton

Rules:

1. Respect all members of the roleplay
2. Follow all Mene rules.
3. Yaoi and yuri allowed, so respect this, and if you do not like it respect those who do.
4. PM all profiles to Me titled with the name of the Rp or they will not be looked at (NO ACCEPTIONS, and limited spots, so first come first served)
5. Keep ooc within the ooc, I do not like ooc in the rp thread, so keep it out. This is your only warnning.
6. No killing off other characters without their permission, but npcs are free game if you wish.
7. No godmodding please -.-
8. Please post at least a good sized paragraph per post, NO one or two liners.
9. If you have a new race, type up an explination for the race (as is present for the others), and run it by me first. It has to fit, if not, it will be rejected.
10. If unsure about what would be alright technology, do not be afraid to ask. DO NOT just assume.
11. I will add/subtract and update the rules as needed.


Character Skeleton:

[CENTER][IMG]Appearance[/IMG]
[COLOR="Your Color Choice"][FONT="Vivaldi"][SIZE="5"][B]Name[/B][/SIZE][/FONT][/COLOR]

The path I walk is that of a[COLOR="INSERT POST COLOR HERE"] ( Race). [/COLOR].

[B][SIZE="3"]☨[/SIZE][/B][size=1] My time of (age) years has been well spent. [/size]
[B][SIZE="3"]☨[/SIZE][/B][size=1] I was born as a (gender) [/size]
[B][SIZE="3"]☨[/SIZE][/B][size=1] When looking for my soulmate, I am more interested in (boys/girls/ both boys and girls.). [/size]
[B][SIZE="3"]☨[/SIZE][/B][size=1] I am seen as (Personality.). [/size]
[B][SIZE="3"]☨[/SIZE][/B][size=1] My weapon of choice is a (weapon, though if no weapons, get rid of this. Magic can be used as a weapon, but only for evles. If you make a race that has powers (as stated in rules) run it by me first). [/size]
[B][SIZE="3"]☨[/SIZE][/B][size=1] I am the rank of a (low class, royal, highclass...basically your job/position in your society.)[/size]


[/CENTER][JUSTIFY][INDENT][INDENT][INDENT][INDENT]
[B][SIZE="4"][color="your choice"]☨  My History [/color][/SIZE][/B][INDENT][size=1]
Biography, or anything we need to know.

[/size][/INDENT][/INDENT][/INDENT][/INDENT][/INDENT][/JUSTIFY][INDENT][INDENT][INDENT][INDENT][/INDENT][/INDENT][/INDENT][/INDENT]

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