Okay, so in looking back over the past 10 or so pages to catch up on stuff, I spotted something out that was nagging at me before that I certainly want to comment on.
Originally posted by Tptmanno1
I might also toss Halatir in there too, although he was dodgy, he's still trying to get control of the army, and why would he betray something he could be potentially fighting for?
Could be possible, you know. Might seem unlikely, but could be a double-bluff? He wants control of the army. I dunno, but betraying Arthedain and the king and throwing everything into disarray could allow him a good opening to make his bid for power - or at the least argue his way into being placed in charge.
Rhudaur is 100% owned and populated by the Dunlendings, allies of the Witch-King. All resistance died centuries ago.
Cardolan is harder to call. The North-East has no central civilisation; isolated settlements prone to Dunlending- and even Orc- raids are not uncommon and basically free life as you would recognise it there had collapsed. Much of the population is uprooted and fleeing. The North and Mid west, closer to Arthedain, is safer but rough. Since the alliance with Baranar, the most North-westerly part is relatively civilised again.
To the far south it's a different story; Cardolan's old capital, Tharbad, is still intact. It doesn't run a place called Cardolan any more; Tharbad is effectively a city state of itself, but the city is untouched and protects itself and the surrounding areas well- in fact, its biggest problem of late was the plague, not the Witch-King. The royal family is sadly all dead so it is merchant-run these days, but its continued existence probably vexes the Witch-King. It's too far from him to reasonably take unless he masses a very big army; more likely he would concentrate such forces against Arrthedain instead.
So in short, the further south you go in Cardolan, the better it gets.
Lorien has as little to do with Man as possible. It's only recent issue is curiosity about the curse on the Barrow Downs- no Man has wielded such power in amny Human lifetimes. Curiosity is about as far as it goes.
Rivendell is the crux point for the Elves because it is always the settlement closest to Man. But, to rehearse the old arguments again... It is not the Elves' time, it is Man's; Man put himself in this situation by his own inability to work to higher purpose (after all, there was only a Rhudaur there to fall in the first place because Arnor split itself in three), and besides which there isn't much reason to think that anyone lse will be next. The Witch-King- A Man (rumuored to be a Black Numenorean, basically an evil Dunadain) is a powerful man attacking other Men. Ok, so he has also taken command of the Orcs on Gundabad, but that's not staggeringly significant; Orcs like a strong leader.
Over the last two thousand years there have been many wars of Man- the Kin Strife in Gondor, where an argument over the purity of the Dundadain line caused a horrible civil war. Or the massive invasion of the Wainriders, which nearly destroyed Gondor. These things are simply not the business of the Elves any more than the ancient wars weere the business of Man. With the time of the Elves gone, the remaining havens are there more as a memory than anything else. They themselves, protected by the ancient powers of the Elves, are not in danger.
To top it all of, the fact is that Elrond, despite all of that, overrode the general feeling of his own people and already went to war five centuries back. Whehn Rhudar first fell and Cardolan was shattered, and the Witch-King was sucessful at the battle for Amon Sul (the one that Arthedain abandoned its allies at, a big bone of contention), the Rivendell Elves went to war and drove the Witch-King back to Rhudaur and Angmar. That was Elrond's one-off favour, in the name of his historical connections of Man since the siege of Barad-Dur. it was kinda his 'last chance' for Man- he lost a lot of Elves doing it, and they cannot be easily replaced (the whole immortailty thing always made actual death more of an issue for Elves as well of course), and the idea was meant to be that this final intervention would make it possible for Man to sort out his own affairs.
Five centuries later and Arnor never re-unified. Well, Elrond and the Elves have had enough- they are not going to die any more to solve Man's mistakes only for it to simply happen again later. Man can sort out his own issues or not at all, the Elves refuse to go down with them any more.
(Elrond, of course, is getting more and more grumpy and disillusioned with Man, as seen in the films.)
There IS a vibe- fronted by Gandalf, who turned up in Part One, and by King Arvedui- who is following Gandalf's advice- about how the free peoples of Middle-Earth really should stand together. But it simply has not been demonstrated as feasible yet.
That theme is exactly what the game is about. You guys are meant to be proving the practicality and usefulness of such unity. Elrond might listen if it works.
So Elrond has no faith in Arvedui, and doesn`t consider him the worthy descendant of his brother Elros, not to mention Berem and Luthien? Elrond`s opinion is quite important for Elladil, as he didn`t have much contact with humans before.
It is interesting that the main sin of humans, especially descendants of Numenor, is pride. The same weakness that doomed Feanor and Noldor. Elves have learned humility, but wasn`t their inner flame replaced by apathy? Certainly young Elladil may lack the patience and perspective of his kin, and is more likely to believe in the need to act now.
Let`s say Elladil`s journey was difficult and he is a bit late. He would like to see the King first.
Elrond has long had no confdence in his brother's bloodline. In Gondor it virtually no longer exists and in Arnor it split and argued amongst itself to near destruction as well (at least in Gondor the line was hurt in genuine battle against outside invaders, not internal strife).
Elrond has had pause about Arvedui, basically because Gandalf has told him to watch that one. And like I say, Elrond has asked PC Elves in the game to 'observe' in Arthedain. he'll see for himself
Gandalf's confidence in Arvedui seems well-placed thus far. it is Arvedui who opened up communications with Gondor once more after hundreds of years of silence, and who even tried to re-unify all the Dunadain lands by claiming- rightfully, indeed- the crown of Gondor. Gondor's pride denied him that, and Arvedui was not prideful enough to push the claim by force.
And Arvedui's plan to build a new Kingdom of unity, with help from all the free people's of Middle-Earth, certainly sets himself out from his recent ancestors.
The problem with the Elves is that they always saw themselves tied to fate. Feanor's compatriots, even after they realised their sworn quest was futile and even evil, would not break away from the destiny they set themselves. So it is more fatalism than apathy that is the legacy of those days. Nonetheless, theire is still some fire to be found in the Noldor.
That the Dunadain have suffered from the same sin is indeed an irony- and to be worse, Man is eminently corruptible also.
Is it known by some that Witch King is the servant of Sauron, servant of Morgoth? It means that this eternal war hasn`t ended in a way.
How much should I be concerned about etiquette and humility before the King and his Lords? Even if Elladil is almost a child by elfen standards, he is still quite wise, with powerful, noble presence. Would he be considered equal to Dunadain Lord in status?