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re: First Age RP

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Aemthalion
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Middle Earth w/region of Beleriand before and after the FA

Direct link to map.

Internal setting

Geography

Originally, the name belonged only to the area around the Bay of Balar, but in time, the name was applied to the entire land. Beleriand was originally inhabited by Elves, and later also by Men. To the west and south it had a long shore with the Great Sea Belegaer, to the north were the highland regions of Hithlum, Dorthonion and the hills of Himring, to the east the Ered Luin reached nearly to the sea. The land of Nevrast in the northwest was sometimes considered part of Beleriand.

The River Sirion, the chief river of Beleriand, running north to south, divided it into West Beleriand and East Beleriand. Crossing it east to west was a series of hills and a sudden drop in elevation known as Andram, the Long Wall. The river sank into the ground at the Fens of Sirion, and re-emerged below the Andram at the Gates of Sirion. To the east of the Long Wall, was the River Gelion and its six tributaries draining the Ered Luin, in an area known as Ossiriand, or the Land of Seven Rivers. The River Brithon and the River Nenning were the two lesser rivers of the western land of Falas.

In volume IV of the History of Middle-earth are the early maps of Beleriand, then still called Broseliand, showing the elevation of the land by use of contour lines.

In the northwest of Beleriand, north of the Firth of Drengist and between Ered Lómin (the Echoing Mountains) and the shore of Belegaer (the Great Sea), was a region calledLammoth. Lammoth means "the Great Echo", and it is so named because it is where Morgoth and Ungoliant fled after the darkening of Valinor and Morgoth's theft of the Silmarils. Ungoliant lusted for the Silmarils and she attacked Morgoth in order to get them. He let out a great cry, which echoed throughout the north of Middle-earth. As it is told in theSilmarillion:

Ungoliant had grown great, and [Morgoth] less by the power that had gone out of him; and she rose against him... Then Morgoth sent forth a terrible cry, that echoed in the mountains. Therefore that region was called Lammoth, for the echoes of his voice dwelt there ever after, so that any who cried aloud in that land awoke them, and all the waste between the hills and the sea was filled with a clamour as of voices in anguish. The cry of Morgoth in that hour was the greatest and most dreadful that was ever heard in the northern world.

In "Of Tuor and his Coming to Gondolin" in Unfinished Tales, the name instead refers to the acoustic properties of the location and the natural reverberations they cause. WhenFëanor landed there in the First Age "the voices of his host were swelled to a mighty clamour" by the Echoing Mountains.

Realms of Beleriand

 

Arvernien

Arvernien is the southernmost region of Beleriand, bordered on the east by the Mouths of Sirion.

The Mouths were the refuge of the remnants of Eldar and Edain of Beleriand after the Nírnaeth Arnoediad and the Sack of Menegroth.

This region was home to surviving Sindar of Doriath after that land was destroyed. Some Noldor from Nargothrond and Gondolin, as well as the few survivors of the Three Houses of the Edain, also settled near the Mouths of Sirion. The first rulers of this region were Tuor of the Edain and Idril of Gondolin. Later their son Eärendil Half-elven, married the Half-elven ElwingDior's daughter and survivor of the Sack of Doriath. Elros and Elrond, the sons of Eärendil and Elwing, were born in Arvernien.

Elwing possessed the Silmaril of Beren and Lúthien. The refugees built many ships, sailing across the seas and to the nearby Isle of Balar where Círdan had fled with the survivors of Eglarest and Brithombar.

Eärendil built the ship Vingilótë and sailed far seeking the hidden land of Valinor to ask for the pardon of the Valar. But though his journeys carried him to many shores, Eärendil was unsuccessful. While he was at sea, the surviving Sons of Fëanor attacked the Mouths of Sirion to reclaim the Silmaril. They killed many people but were almost all slain themselves, save for Maedhros and Maglor. Elwing cast herself into the Sea with the Silmaril, but was saved by the Vala Ulmo and sent to Eärendil. Maglor later repented, and raised Elros and Elrond as his foster children.

With the power of the Silmaril, Eärendil and Elwing found a passage to Valinor, where he pleaded on behalf of Elves and Men with the Valar.

In one version of the Silmarillion mythology, the chief army of the Valar landed at the Mouths of Sirion during the War of Wrath. By the end of the War, most of the survivors of Beleriand gathered at the Mouths and the Isle of Balar, and many of them went to Lindon until the Elves were summoned to Valinor, and the Edain to the new isle of Númenor.

Doriath

Doriath is the realm of the Sindar, the Grey Elves of King Thingol in Beleriand. Along with the other great forests[5] of Tolkien's legendarium such as MirkwoodFangorn andLothlórien[6] it serves as the central stage in the theatre of its time, the First Age. On this stage many of the notable characters and events appear such as: The Geste of Beren and Lúthien from The Lays of Beleriand, parts of The Children of Húrin and, of course, The Silmarillion. It is called the 'Fenced Land' because Melian, the queen of that land, put a girdle of enchantment about it, so that none can enter without the leave of King Thingol.

East Beleriand

Himlad (Sindarin: 'cool plain') was a land in northeast Beleriand situated between the rivers Celon and Aros. On its northern border to Lothlann were the hills of Himring and theMarch of Maedhros. Along with the Pass of Aglon, Himlad was held by Celegorm and Curufin until the Dagor Bragollach, after which it remained uninhabited.

Thargelion (S. 'beyond Gelion') was the land east of the river Gelion and north of the river Ascar, and therefore not counted as part of Ossiriand. After the Exile of the Noldor this was the land of Caranthir, one of the Sons of Fëanor, and after him it was often called Dor Caranthir. The Second House of Men briefly dwelt here until they were nearly wiped out in an Orc-raid.

Maglor's Gap was a lowland region lying between Himring and the Blue Mountains, the widest break in the northern mountain-fences of Beleriand. It was guarded against the forces of Morgoth in the early First Age by Maglor, second son of Fëanor. During Dagor Aglareb the Gap was breached by Orcs however they were pushed back. During the Dagor BragollachGlaurung came through the pass and the Elves were defeated; Maglor fled to Himring, along with most survivors of the battle in that region and Thargelion was deserted.

Falas

The Falas was the realm of Círdan the Shipwright and his people in the years of Starlight and the First Age of Sun, Sindarin Elves who were known as the Falathrim. They lived in two great walled havens, Eglarest at the mouth of the River Nenning, and to the north of that Brithombar at the mouth of the River Brithon. The Havens were besieged during theFirst Battle of Beleriand, but during the Dagor-nuin-Giliath the Orcs that besieged the cities went north to fight the Noldor, and were all slain. After 45 F.A. West Beleriand was ruled by Finrod Felagund who ruled from Nargothrond, and Círdan was his ally.

The Havens of the Falas held out during the later Battles of Beleriand until they were finally destroyed in F.A. 473, and Círdan's people fled to the Mouths of Sirion and the Isle of Balar.

Gondolin

Gondolin was a secret city of Elves in the north of Beleriand. As recounted in The Silmarillion, the Vala Ulmo, the Lord of Waters, revealed the location of the Vale of Tumladen to the Noldorin Lord Turgon in a dream. Under this divine guidance, Turgon travelled from his kingdom in Nevrast and found the vale. Within the Echoriath, the Encircling Mountains, just west of Dorthonion and east of the River Sirion, lay a round level plain with sheer walls on all sides and a ravine and tunnel leading out to the southwest known as the Hidden Way. In the middle of the vale there was a steep hill which was called Amon Gwareth, the "Hill of Watching". There Turgon decided to found a great city, designed after the city ofTirion in Valinor that the Noldor had left when they went into exile, that would be protected by the mountains and hidden from the Dark Lord Morgoth.

Turgon and his people built Gondolin in secret. After it was completed, he took with him to dwell in the hidden city his entire people in Nevrast — almost a third of the Noldor ofFingolfin's House — as well as nearly three quarters of the northern Sindar.

Hithlum

Hithlum is the region north of Beleriand near the Helcaraxë. It was separated from Beleriand proper by the Ered Wethrin mountain chain, and was named after the sea mists which formed there at times: Hithlum is Sindarin for "Mist-shadow"; its Quenya counterpart is Hísilómë. Hithlum was subdivided in Mithrim, where the High Kings of the Noldor had their halls, and Dor-lómin, which later became a fief of the House of Hador. Hithlum was cold and rainy, but quite fertile. The Noldor landed here in the Firth of Drengist and first camped at the shores of Lake Mithrim.

The Ered Wethrin ("Mountains of Shadow") formed the southern and eastern wall, and had only a few passes; as such they formed a natural defensive line. The western wall was formed by the Ered Lómin or "Echoing Mountains", which curved north-westward to Helcaraxë. The land of Lammoth lay west of the Ered Lómin and was not part of Beleriand or Hithlum. The land of Nevrast was separated from Hithlum by the southern part of the Ered Lómin range. Nevrast was usually seen as part of Hithlum, but its climate was that of Beleriand.

Later in the First Age, Hithlum was continually under attack by Morgoth, finally being lost after the Nírnaeth Arnoediad. The Hadorians were scattered, killed, or enslaved, the Noldor were enslaved in Morgoth's mines if they could not flee in time, and Morgoth trapped the Easterlings there. Hithlum was completely destroyed during the War of Wrath.

March of Maedhros

When the Sons of Fëanor went east after Thingol became aware of the Kinslaying at Alqualondë, a great fortress was built on the hill of Himring in northeast Beleriand. It was the chief stronghold of Maedhros, from which he guarded the northeastern border region that became known as the March of Maedhros. The Hill of Himring is described as "wide-shouldered, bare of trees, and flat upon its summit, surrounded by many lesser hills". To the east of them was Maglor's Gap and Ered Luin; to the west the Pass of Aglon, whichCurufin and Celegorm guarded. In the wooded hills around Himring were the springs of the rivers Celon and Little Gelion.

The fortress upon Himring was the only in the East Beleriand to stand firm through the Dagor Bragollach, and many survivors from the surrounding regions, including Maedhros' brother Maglor, rallied there. But in the Battle of Unnumbered Tears the Sons of Fëanor were utterly defeated; the March of Maedhros was no more, and the Hill of Himring was garrisoned by the soldiers of Angband.

After the Drowning of Beleriand during the War of Wrath, the peak of Himring remained above the waves as the Isle of Himring.

Nargothrond

Nargothrond (S. Narog-Ost-Rond, 'The great underground fortress on the river Narog'), called Nulukkhizdīn by the Dwarves, was the stronghold built by Finrod Felagund, delved into the banks of the river Narog in Beleriand, and the lands to the north (the Talath Dirnen or Guarded Plain) ruled by the city. Inspired by Menegroth in Doriath, and seeking a hidden place from which to be safe from the forces of Morgoth, Finrod established it in the early years of the First Age, in the Caverns of Narog beneath the forested hills of Taur-en-Faroth on the western bank of Narog. The original denizens of this huge cave system had been the Noegyth Nibin, the so-called 'Petty-dwarves', but whether they were driven out of their homes by Finrod's people, or earlier by the nearby Sindar, is not known.

Finrod ruled Nargothrond until he joined Beren in his quest for the Silmaril, and the regency passed to his nephew (or brother) Orodreth. Later, Túrin Turambar came to Nargothrond and became one of its greatest warriors, but he also persuaded the people to fight openly against Morgoth (the bridge was built at this time), which eventually led to its sack by the army of the dragon Glaurung. Glaurung then used Nargothrond as his lair until his death not long afterwards at Túrin's hands, after which the caves were claimed byMîm, the last of the Petty-dwarves, until he himself was slain by Húrin, Túrin's father. After Húrin's deed, the caves were probably completely abandoned, as they fall out of recorded history in Tolkien's fiction, but they were certainly drowned and lost along with the rest of Beleriand at the end of the First Age.

Nevrast

Nevrast is a coastal region in the north of Beleriand. The name means Hither Shore in Sindarin, as opposed to the Distant Shore of Aman and was originally applied to all the shores of Beleriand (although Nevrast was usually not included in West Beleriand). Nevrast was the centre of an Elven kingdom of Turgon for about a century until ca. 125 F.A., when the people began their trek to Gondolin. Turgon's capital (and it seems the only city of Nevrast) was Vinyamar. The land was not permanently inhabited after that, and indeed was utterly abandoned until Tuor came there, guided by Ulmo. Nevrast was the first part of Beleriand the Noldor settled, but was previously inhabited by Sindar. Nevrast's population was soon very mixed, far more so than any other region of Beleriand.

Ossiriand

Ossiriand, or Land of Seven Rivers, was the most eastern region of Beleriand during the First Age, lying between the Ered Luin and the river Gelion.

The Seven Rivers were, from north to south:

  1. River Gelion
  2. River Ascar or Rathlóriel
  3. River Thalos
  4. River Legolin
  5. River Brilthor
  6. River Duilwen
  7. River Adurant

Along the northern shore of the Ascar ran the Dwarf-road to Nogrod. Ossiriand was a green and forested land, and it was not populated by the Sindar. In the early First Age before the rise of the Moon, a part of the Telerin Elven people called Nandor entered Ossiriand under their leader Denethor, and were given permission by Thingol to settle the lands. After them the land was often renamed Lindon, for The Singers, after the old clan-name of the Telerin which the Nandor still used in their tongue. They became known as theLaiquendi, or Green Elves.

North of Ossiriand lay the land of Thargelion, and south of the river Adurant later lay the Land of the Dead that Live, where Lúthien and Beren lived their second lives.

Ossiriand was the only part of Beleriand that survived the War of Wrath, but Belegaer the Great Sea broke through the mountain chain at the former riverbed of Ascar, creating theGulf of Lhûn. In the Second Age and Third Age the former lands of Ossiriand and Thargelion were known as Lindon, where Gil-galad and Círdan ruled.

Dor Daedeloth

Dor Daedeloth, or Land of the Shadow of Dread, lay around the fortress of Angband and on both sides of the Ered Engrin. It was here that the Orcs and other creatures of Morgoth lived and bred. Dor Daedeloth lay north of Ard-galen, the great grassy plain north of Beleriand.

The march of the Noldor in early First Age was halted there, when Fëanor was mortally wounded by Balrogs. The Noldor then encircled the land (at least in the south), starting theSiege of Angband.

History

At the end of the First Age of Middle-earth Y.S. 583, Beleriand was broken in the War of Wrath by the angelic beings, the Valar against the demonic Morgoth (himself a Vala fallen into evil). As the inhabitants of Beleriand, including masterless Orcs, beasts of Angband, Elves, Men and Dwarves, fled, much of Beleriand sank in the sea. Only a small section of East Beleriand remained, and was known after as Lindon, in the Northwest of Middle-earth of the Second and Third Age. Other parts of East Beleriand survived into the Second Age, but were completely destroyed along with the island kingdom of Númenor. One reference to a part that was not destroyed was made in The Silmarillion to the places of death of Túrin TurambarMorwen and Nienor. Fulfilling a prophecy, the graves of Túrin Turambar and Morwen survived as the island Tol Morwen. Likewise, a part of Dorthonion became Tol Fuin, and Himring became an island.

Of note is what Galadriel said to Treebeard at their parting in Isengard, "Not in Middle-earth, nor until the lands that lie under the wave are lifted up again. Then in the willow-meads of Tasarinan we may meet in the spring. Farewell!" This seems to imply that Beleriand may be existent again, in Arda Healed.

Concept and creation

Beleriand had many different names in Tolkien's early writings:

  • Broceliand, Broseliand (borrowed from medieval romance)
  • Golodhinand, Noldórinan ("valley of the Noldor")
  • Geleriand
  • Bladorinand
  • Belaurien
  • Arsiriand
  • Lassiriand
  • Ossiriand (later used as a name for the easternmost part of Beleriand


Last edited by Aemthalion on Thu May 07, 2015 2:15 pm; edited 1 time in total
 
Aemthalion
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re: Minor places in Beleriand

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A

Aelin-uial
(S. 'Meres of Twilight') A marshy confluence of Aros in Sirion, held to be a part of Doriath. It was protected by the Girdle of Melian and secret ferries were maintained on the east shore.
This area had a strong connection to Ulmo, who was able to send visions to both Finrod and Turgon bidding them to seek a place where a stronghold hidden from the eyes of Morgoth could be established.
Aglon
See Pass of Aglon
Amon Darthir
A peak in the Ered Wethrin to the south-east of Dor-lómin, over which led the only pass over the mountains. The stream of Nen Lalaith sprang from its side, and after the coming of the Easterlings some outlaws of the House of Hador maintained a refuge in a cave here.
Amon Ereb
(S. 'lonely hill') The broad, shallow-sided hill between Ramdal and the river Gelion that dominated the southern plains of East Beleriand. As the highest point in that region and the easternmost hill of Andram, which was standing alone, it had tremendous strategic importance, because it guarded the eastern passage around the long wall of the Andram into the southern parts of Beleriand and the northern Taur-im-Duinath.
It was here that Denethor Lord of the Nandor met his end in the First Battle against the Orcs in the Wars of Beleriand, and much later, Caranthirfortified it to guard his escape into the south after the Dagor Bragollach and the Fëanoreans withdrew there after Nírnaeth Arnoediad. The hill was also called "Ereb" for short.
Amon Ethir
(S. 'hill of spies') A hill raised artificially by the people of Finrod in the wide plain of Talath Dirnen, a league (approximately 5 kilometres) east of the Doors of Nargothrond above the river Narog. Over the years, trees grew on its flanks, but from its clear summit the watchers of Nargothrond could watch the lands about with the clear sight of the Elves, and so the hill got its name, Amon Ethir, meaning 'Hill of Spies'.
After the Sack of Nargothrond, the hill still stood, and it was here that Nienor encountered Glaurung the Dragon. Having plunged the land into a thick fog of dragon-reek, so that only the hill remained above the mists, he cast Nienor into a deep spell of darkness and forgetfulness.
Amon Rûdh
(S. 'Bald hill') In the First Age, Amon Rûdh was a stone hill south of Brethil in West Beleriand. It had only deep red flowers called seregon "stone's blood" growing on its top, which made it seem blood-covered.
Mîm the Petty-dwarf lived within Amon Rûdh with his two sons, Ibûn and Khîm. Mîm was captured by a group of outlaws led by Túrin Turambar and forced to reveal the location of his refuge, which was then called Bar-en-Danwedh "House of Ransom". (Previously, it had been known as Bar-en-Nibin-Noeg "House of the Petty-dwarves".) When it was discovered that Khîm, who had been shot at, had actually been killed, Túrin repented and offered his services to Mîm, who from then on tolerated the presence of the outlaws.
Amon Rûdh became the base of operations for the outlaws and with the arrival of Beleg, it became the heart of the area known as Dor-Cúarthol "Land of Bow and Helm" (referring to the two captains, Beleg and Túrin), a centre of resistance against the forces of Morgoth. Túrin's location was eventually discovered and orcs slew the outlaws and captured Turambar, covering the hilltop with real blood.
Amon Rûdh was lost under the sea with the destruction of Beleriand during the War of Wrath at the end of the First Age.
Andram
(S. 'long wall') A long line of hills that ran across Beleriand, from Nargothrond and the Gates of Sirion in the west to Ramdal (Wall's End) in the east. It marked a steep fall in the height of the land of Beleriand.
At the easternmost edge stood Amon Ereb, which usually was not considered a part of the Andram.
Androth
A complex of caves in the Mountains of Mithrim. After Nírnaeth Arnoediad, some of the Sindar and Edain that survived the battle took refuge there. Tuor was fostered by theElves of Androth.
Annon-in-Gelydh
(S. 'Gate of the Noldor') A subterranean passage below the Ered Lómin. Originally through it a river from the Mountains of Mithrim flowed towards Cirith Ninniach. The tunnel was enlarged and carved by the Noldor of Turgon when he dwelt in Nevrast to ease the communication with Fingon in Hithlum. Later Gelmir and Arminas led Tuor through this passage, apparently at the bidding of Ulmo.
Ard-galen
("Green Region"), later Anfauglith, was the wide green plain that lay north of the highlands of Dorthonion and south of Morgoth's fortress of Angband in the Iron Mountains, in the First Age.
In the first days after the rising of the Sun, Ard-galen was a green plain with rich grass, reaching from Hithlum and the Ered Wethrin in the west to the Ered Luin in the east, and rising into highlands of Dorthonion in the south. But the plain was laid waste by rivers of flame and poisonous gases that issued forth from Angband in the Dagor Bragollach and renamed Anfauglith ("Gasping Dust").
The Fifth Battle of the Wars of Beleriand, called Nírnaeth Arnoediad (Unnumbered Tears), was fought upon the plain, and the dead bodies from that battle were piled up, forming a hill in the midst of the plain, named Haudh-en-Ndengin, the Hill of Slain, by the Elves, and Haudh-en-Nirnaeth, the Hill of Tears; grass grew again upon the hill but nowhere else in Anfauglith.
Like the other lands around it, Anfauglith sank beneath the waves after the War of Wrath at the end of the First Age.
Arossiach
ford in Dor Dínen near the north-eastern edge of Doriath known as The Fords of Aros. It connected the Esgalduin on the west and Aros on the east. Besides providing the only pass between Himlad and Dor Dínen, the crossing was part of an ancient road running from Vinyamar to Ered Luin.

B

Barad Eithel
The fortress of Fingolfin. It is located in the mountainous eastern foothills of the Ered Wethrin, at the source of the River Sirion.
Barad Nimras
A tower built by Finrod, on the Falas between the havens of Brithombar and Eglarest. It was built to keep watch, should Morgoth try to assail them from the sea.
Bay of Balar
An ocean inlet of the Belegaer south of Beleriand, fed by the River Sirion. It was presumably created in the cataclysms that accompanied the struggles of the Valar with Morgothlong before recorded history. The Isle of Balar was a large island in the bay.
The name refers to the Valar (and Maiar), especially Ossë, who was associated with continental shelf areas.
Belegost
One of two Dwarven cities in the Ered Luin, lying to the north of its neighbouring dwarven city Nogrod. It was the home of the Dwarven people known as Broadbeams. Both clans were early trading partners of the Sindar in Beleriand. Belegost translates from Sindarin as "Great Fortress". The dwarves called it by its Khuzdul name, Gabilgathol of unknown meaning, and although Tolkien used Mickleburg as an Anglicization of the Westron form of the name, this would clearly have been retrospective translation of the Sindarin name, as Westron, 'the common speech', did not begin to develop until centuries after Belegost's destruction.
Belegost's only named king, Azaghâl, lived in the First Age, and forged a firm alliance with the Noldorin Prince Maedhros after the latter rescued him from an orc ambush. Towards the end of the Nírnaeth Arnoediad, Azaghâl was killed in combat with Glaurung, the Father of Dragons, but his attack wounded it so badly that Azaghâl's debt to Maedhros was repaid: the remaining Noldor were able to escape from certain destruction when the wounded Glaurung fled the field along with all his brood.
In the years after the battle, the surviving Dwarves of the Micklebu


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