Token of Hope

They hurried along with all the speed they could make, and after a mile or two they saw the Last Bridge ahead, at the bottom of a short steep slope. They dreaded to see black figures waiting there, but they saw none. Strider made them take cover in a thicket at the side of the Road, while he went forward to explore.

Before long he came hurrying back. 'I can see no sign of the enemy,' he said, 'and I wonder very much what that means. But I have found something very strange.'

He held out his hand, and showed a single pale-green jewel. 'I found it in the mud in the middle of the Bridge,' he said. 'It is a beryl, an elf-stone. Whether it was set there, or let fall by chance, I cannot say; but it brings hope to me. I will take it as a sign that we may pass the Bridge; but beyond that I dare not keep to the Road, without some clearer token.'

(...)

[Glorfindel said] 'It was my lot to take the Road, and I came to the Bridge of Mitheithel, and left a token there, nigh on seven days ago. Three of the servants of Sauron were upon the Bridge, but they withdrew and I pursued them westward. (...)'

J.R.R. Tolkien Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring







Yes, our Hope Tokens are made of Beryls! :D

The stone trolls

"Dawn take you all, and be stone to you!" said a voice that sounded like William's. But it wasn't. For just at that moment the light came over the hill, and there was a mighty twitter in the branches. William never spoke for he stood turned to stone as he stooped; and Bert and Tom were stuck like rocks as they looked at him. And there they stand to this day, all alone, unless the birds perch on them; for trolls, as you probably know, must be underground before dawn, or they go back to the stuff of the mountains they are made of, and never move again. That is what had happened to Bert and Tom and William.

"Excellent!" said Gandalf, as he stepped from behind a tree, and helped Bilbo to climb down out of a thorn-bush. Then Bilbo understood. It was the wizard's voice that had kept the trolls bickering and quarrelling, until the light came and made an end of them.

J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit







'Surely this is a troll-hole, if ever there was one!' said Pippin. 'Come out, you two, and let us get away. Now we know who made the path -and we had better get off it quick.'

'There is no need, I think,' said Strider, coining out. 'It is certainly a troll-hole, but it seems to have been long forsaken. I don't think we need be afraid. But let us go on down warily, and we shall see.'

The path went on again from the door, and turning to the right again across the level space plunged down a thick wooded slope. Pippin, not liking to show Strider that he was still afraid, went on ahead with Merry. Sam and Strider came behind, one on each side of Frodo's pony, for the path was now broad enough for four or five hobbits to walk abreast. But they had not gone very far before Pippin came running back, followed by Merry. They both looked terrified.

'There _are_ trolls!' Pippin panted. 'Down in a clearing in the woods not far below. We got a sight of them through the tree-trunks. They are very large!'

'We will come and look at them,' said Strider, picking up a stick. Frodo said nothing, but Sam looked scared.

The sun was now high, and it shone down through the half-stripped branches of the trees, and lit the clearing with bright patches of light. They halted suddenly on the edge, and peered through the tree-trunks, holding their breath. There stood the trolls: three large trolls. One was stooping, and the other two stood staring at him.

Strider walked forward unconcernedly. 'Get up, old stone!' he said, and broke his stick upon the stooping troll.

Nothing happened. There was a gasp of astonishment from the hobbits, and then even Frodo laughed. 'Well!' he said. 'We are forgetting our family history! These must be the very three that were caught by Gandalf, quarrelling over the right way to cook thirteen dwarves and one hobbit.'

'I had no idea we were anywhere near the place!' said Pippin. He knew the story well. Bilbo and Frodo had told it often; but as a matter of fact he had never more than half believed it. Even now he looked at the stone trolls with suspicion, wondering if some magic might not suddenly bring them to life again.

'You are forgetting not only your family history, but all you ever knew about trolls,' said Strider. 'It is broad daylight with a bright sun, and yet you come back trying to scare me with a tale of live trolls waiting for us in this glade! In any case you might have noticed that one of them has an old bird's nest behind his ear. That would be a most unusual ornament for a live troll!'

J.R.R. Tolkien Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring



Aw, I forgot to upload a screenie of the nest =.= Yes, it's there. And I have to go back and make one of the long-abandoned troll-hole as well!



Edit: well, here they are :) Closeup on the trendy birdnest...





...and an image of the long-forsaken troll hole the Fellowship has stumbled upon:

Raids'R'Us first Balrog down

First Balrog to go down under the swords, arrows, songs and knowledge of lore of Raids'R'Us members!



Roggie ain't a very hard boss to bring down if all members know what to do and do it before Raid Leader even speaks up. But for this kind of coordination and tactics knowledge, practice is needed. Long, irritating and costly practice. But it payed off, we got two weapon gems! And second Blade of Thaurlach for the Raiding Hall (first one Sil ninja'ed from Silver Blades' raid just a week or two earlier ^^).





Glathlírel says, ''Strangers... you were sent to me by the Eldgang?''

Glathlírel says, ''Then it is as I have feared. There is little time, but you must know the peril you face! Prepare yourselves and listen to my tale.''

Glathlírel says, ''Long ago, at the breaking of Thangorodrim, Thaurlach flew to this land and I gave chase.''

Glathlírel says, ''At his coming, all was beset with brimstone and flame, and he eluded me.''

Glathlírel says, ''For long years he lay hidden, until the Dark Power rose again and Thaurlach awoke from his secret slumber.''

Glathlírel says, ''He was revealed to me in that moment, and I struggled with him in battle.''

Glathlírel says, ''With the aid of the wizards I threw down my foe: defeated, but not slain.''

Glathlírel says, ''Thaurlach sued for pardon at the feet of the wizards.''

Glathlírel says, ''They deemed he should be imprisoned where he could await his judgment at the end of days.''

Glathlírel says, ''Long have I here waited for Thaurlach to seek his freedom, that I may end his menace for good if he sought to escape!''

Glathlírel says, ''When I open this seal, the true test of your will shall begin!''

Glathlírel says, ''First, I must remove the seals.''

Glathlírel says, ''Now to open the locks....''

Glathlírel says, ''You have come just in time! Thaurlach is stirring. There is something amiss!''







Gandalf says, ''Indeed it is...a link from the chain Angithron that was forged when this world was young.''

Gandalf says, ''A Balrog lies defeated.''

Glorfindel says, ''Ai!''

Glorfindel says, ''A Balrog of Morgoth!''

Glorfindel says, ''You are mightier than I first perceived.''

Gandalf says, ''Yes, one which was awakened long ago by his master's call.''

Glorfindel says, ''You speak, then, of Thaurlach, Glathlírel's Bane. My heart is heavy still from her loss.''

Glathlírel says, ''Then let your heart be lightened, Glorfindel, for I have returned!''

Glathlírel says, ''Mithrandir speaks true. I was with the adventurers when the Balrog fell.''

Glorfindel says, ''And even more wonders, Glathlírel! When you did not return...we feared....''

Glathlírel says, ''I found aid unlooked for in the North.''

Gandalf says, ''Two others of my Order, who have since vanished into the East, aided her in imprisoning the Balrog. Alas, for the treachery of the Enemy.''

Glathlírel says, ''I remained in Nûrz Ghâshu as the warden of the Balrog until another of Morgoth's servants sought to free him.''

Glorfindel says, ''And with the aid of these heroes which you mention, you were able to overcome Thaurlach?''

Glorfindel says, ''I will compose the song of their triumph myself, and it will be known to all the Elves that yet dwell....''

Gandalf says, ''I think not, Glorfindel...''

Gandalf says, ''For even among the Elf-lords, you still keep secrets...battles and deeds enough for a thousand songs.''

Gandalf says, ''No...not until the world has changed should this tale be told in full.''

Glathlírel says, ''The Dark Lord of Mordor would be troubled by the death of Thaurlach...''

Glathlírel says, ''But I fear he would gain much knowledge of hidden things that should remain lost were the full tale known.''

Glorfindel says, ''Your deeds will not be forgotten among the Wise.''

Gandalf says, ''Certainly not! It is the responsibility of the Wise to keep such lore until its chosen time.''

Glorfindel says, ''And it is well that you have returned out of the darkness, Glathlírel.''

Glathlírel says, ''It seems that Imladris will require my sword and more if we wish to continue the fight!''

Glorfindel says, ''We have fought many battles, but alas, our time has passed...''

Glorfindel says, ''The duty of great deeds has fallen to others. The time of the Elves is fading.''

Glathlírel says, ''Then it seems there is little left for me here...''

Glathlírel says, ''I will travel to Mithlond and join our kin where I may find peace.''

Glorfindel says, ''And what do you make of this, Mithrandir? What now should be our course?''

Gandalf says, ''Our course?''

Gandalf says, ''What should have been done two thousand years ago has been done...''

Gandalf says, ''All that is left now is to plan for the journey to come, and I have much to do before that journey begins.''

Glorfindel says, ''Creatures such as Thaurlach do not easily fall, my friend. You have brought hope unlooked for to our struggle against the Shadow, both in the East and in the North.''



Actually, only when I read the dialogue again, it stroke me how utterly irrational Glorfindel sending
Glathlírel away was: the war is at hand, The Nine have just awaken and there ain't that many that can match them. And here we have 
Glathlírel, a hero of the Old Days, returning miraculously and Glorfindel... sending her away?! Than why did he, Elron or Galadriel stay behind, if it's an Age on Man?



OK, I know that if he didn't, the cat-fight between her and Silirien would be unevitable, but seriously.. it's not that Sil stays at Riv all the time. He could have send
Glathlírel away after the war!



Men >.> Just so typical...

Silirien's humble abode

With the given definition of humble, of course.



Recently Silirien used to live at Falathorn, besides the riverbank, in a petite, but beautifully placed elven home, but after she joined Sanctuary, she moved to Bree homstead Bromburg to live be closer to her friends (and pay less; if one is a fashion victim, he becomes a master in savings).



As I logged on today, a most peculiar bug bit Sil: she woke up in the basement of her house. I've made some screenshots from this unusual point of view. Maybe i'll add some "normal" ones later, who knows!



Here's where beautiful elves dwell these days:

Enmity of Drakes

Long since gone, yes.



But every time I see those raging spirits attacking huge monsters, I feel amazed - looked too good not to take a screen shot.



And the spirits match my dress, too...

From Dusk 'till Dawn

I always admired Tolkien's work. I wasn't a crazied fan, to be honest, I wasn't even a fan. I know for some this might seem a heresy, but some parts of his stories seemed a bit shallow to me even... but tan again others, like Children of Hurin, in turn made me bow. And weep.

And the scope of it all!

Even if the stories themselves didn't always 'speak' to me, I loved the detailed world.
As I always, always loved computer games. So it was just natural that once LotRO came to be, I'd land here sooner or later.

I must say that I view this game as the most mature one among all MMOs I have ever played, and I did play quite a bunch. Not only the community, but the gameplay itself! And there's so much to discover, even more so, if you recall Tolkien's writings. I was afraid I will loose all those little discoveries of mine, hence I created my first LotRO blog here. Unfortunatelly, the provider choice wasn't too great, hence today I've moved all my previous posts here.

Hope you will enjoy as I do :)

Saviour of the Luxons

Luxons, noble savages.
There are a few reasons to why Cher is helping them.
One, beautiful green lands and jade-frozen sea like in japanese traditional paintings. Loves.
Two, beautiful bauables and sexy yet comfortable clothes.
Three... sexy strong men that do not try to spend more time doing makeup that Cher.

Should have posted that quite a while ago.
Annother step towards the Farming God...

I don't miss Guild Wars... I am literally forcing myself to attend it sometimes to progress in my last title, but it ain't easy. And the title takes time.