How powerful are the Nazgul?
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- Опубліковано 2 чер 2024
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Nobody expects the Nazgul! Our chief weapon is fear... fear and surprise... Our two weapons are fear and surprise... and ruthless efficiency.... Our three weapons are fear, and surprise, and ruthless efficiency... and an almost fanatical devotion to the Sauron... Our four... no... Amongst our weapons... Amongst our weaponry... are such elements as fear, surprise... I'll come in again.”
... (sigh)
"I didn't expect this sort of Mordor Inquisition"
Have you got all the stuffing up one end?
@@curtishammer748NOBODY EXPECTS THE MORDORISH INQUISITION!!!
I would really love if behind every Black rider was an orc making horse hoof noises with a coconut
@@green_dragon_knight😂😂😂 That would be brilliant
Her : i'm sure he is thinking about another woman.
Me : How powerful are the Nazgul?
Yup
Exactly. If I have a preoccupied frown that makes it seem like I'm about to announce something life-changing it's because I'm thinking about Lord of the Rings or Star Trek or the like. "...is he mad at me?" Nope, just pondering the nuances of Shire economics.
@@Peatingtune shire economics lol
But what WAS aragorn's tax policy?
she Elf
Another weakness of the Nazgul is epic paragons of courage and valor, specifically Farmer Maggot.
I thought their greatest weakness was Sauron’s failure to provide a dental plan
I think everyone is afraid of Farmer Maggot.
I worked on farms for a good part of my early life. Generational farmers are not to be trifled with. They’re strong as an ox, stubborn as a mule, and have a broader knowledge of the physical world than just about anyone. And they tend to be well-armed.
I find the Nazguls' Hobbit interactions to be quite funny. This big, scary, evil invisible dude. Wearing a black cloak has to listen to Sam's Gaffer complaining about the neighbors. To me that's one of the funniest things in the books😅
@@Scientist_Salarian Now I'm just flashing back to the 'rural medicine' sketches, and the farmer pain scale topping out at "I'm here, ain't I?"
One of the things that I think is easy to forget about Aragorn is that he wasn't just a king and warrior, but a healer, and that that's a deep part of his kingship. Bit of an aside but as it was mentioned, it's one of my favourite things about him.
The hands of the king are the hands of a healer, and so shall the rightful king be known.
Kingsfoil go brr.
It's a deep and old part of European folklore that kings can heal, even by just a touch.
If I ever get rich, I’m going to produce an audio book of Tolkien’s appendices and histories, and hire Robert to read them. Best voice on UA-cam, hands down
Phil dragash is my favorite lotr audiobook narrator
Male sure he records it in the nude. This will give the reading a vulnerability, an underlying shame just under the surface skin. His shame bleeding through the reading...
@@charlesg5085 50 Shades of Grey got nothing on this LotR narration.
@@charlesg5085nude and on a wooden pony.
Just realized that the Nazgûl were probably one of those aspects of Tolkien's writing most influenced by his time at the Battle of the Somme. The screams, the Black Breath, the sheer horror surrounding them.
Why do people always connect everything they can find in Lotr to battle of Somme?
@@oguzhanenescetin5702 Not always the Battle of the Somme in particular, but it is easy to draw parallels from Tolkien's life as a WW1 veteran, and a few things that appeared in his writings. I mean, anyone who would have survived this hell on Earth that was WW1 would be emotionally scarred for the rest of their life, especially with psychological aid being uhm.. not that advanced at the time
@@oguzhanenescetin5702
It does pop up a lot, but there is good reason for it. The most common comparison is the dead marshes, because we know the battle of Somme was slightly flooded and there were bodies staring up out of the water.
Given that he wrote a great deal of the early history of middle earth while IN the trenches, it’s unavoidable that there would be parallels. I think people default to the Somme because it’s the most well known battle he was in. Though with the Nazgûl shrieking and black breath I think any battle ground in WW1 world qualify as an influence. Missiles shrieking overhead, constant fear of chemical attacks, people around him losing the will to live. Coming up with monsters with those traits and having them be defeated by friendship and good will was probably unconscious catharsis for Tolkien
Chemical weapons used in wwI like Chlorine and mustard gas... Black breath.
@@oguzhanenescetin5702 definitely not everything, but for some of the horror elements it's easy to see the parallels.
I like the contrast between the Nazgul, men who instill fear and men such as Aragorn, but also Eomer, Imrahil etc. who are not only great warriors by themselves, but also inspire hope.
The Lord of the Rings is truly a clash between light and dark, personified by their respective champions.
It can hardly be a "clash" when any 1 good champion easily beats 9 strongest evil champions. Or in Silmarion's case, even more idiotic 1 elf vs literal evil god (Melkor) almost ending with a draw and said god walking away crippled. Only utter idiocy and holding gigantic idiot ball on the side of 'good' prevented easy and quick stomp of everyone 'evil' in an afternoon...
This fits into Tolkien's whole philosophy when it comes to evil (and its strength/ birth). That being that most of its strength is immaterial; the fear of something wicked, not the actual physical wickedness. In fact, the Nasgul have no form at all, they're specters, essentially. The majority of their power is stopping good people from trying to stop them, which is in Tolkien's words, is all it takes for evil to arise.
Even the Witch King dies in fairly middling circumstance, to a warrior of little regard, but the courage it took to fight him was all it took to overcome him. Gandalf more scares them off than actually fight them, and they shirk away from any being who meets their gaze. Because, for all their power, they are mortal men that have burdened themselves with covetous greed and fear that their power should be taken away.
The most powerful abilities in Middle Earth are those that sway the hearts of men, in essence.
Have I ever said that your videos make reading the books you talk about ever more enjoyable than it already was?
They take double damage from being told off by grumpy farmers, too. Farmer Maggot FTW!
Can you explain me the implications of the joke? I do not understand )=
@@Kriegerdammerung Farmer Maggot was a Hobbit in the Shire. When one of the Nazgul confronted him, looking for the Ring, Farmer Maggot just told him go get lost...not really any fear at all, despite the powers outlined in this excellent video.
@@MrLeafeater I suspected as much. That farmer was the MVP from the correct perspective ;)
If he had a shotgun, they would have been destroyed.
Farmer maggot was originally a Tom Bombadil type character, in early drafts. The Nazgul didnt want to stab their way through the 30 000+ population of the shire.
I don' know if Tolkein ever made it explicit but I always thought that the explanation for the Nazgul being so much less powerful in the Shire and on Weathertop was because their power came from Sauron, the further they are from his stronghold the more their power diminishes. That's certainly the feeling I came away with from just reading the Lord of the Rings, I never delved deeper into the less accessible tomes of the legendarium, that's what I follow this channel for.
I would love a confirmation of this as well, it’s been my thought for years
Do you think they had aerials to pick up stronger dark magic signal strength?
Guaranteed to be in an awkward position and will drop out as soon as you move!!!
That is an interesting idea I do happen to know that the Orcs are more bound to the will of sauron the closer they are to him and less so the farther away they are from him maybe something similar happens to nazgul
I feel like it was stated somewhere that the reason the Nazgul were so less powerful in the shire and on Weathertop, was because Sauron was still weak and gathering strength. It took him 2000 years to reform and return to Middle Earth, and so the Nazgul appeared along with him, and grew in strength as he himself grew. Can't remember where I read this though, so take this with a grain of salt.
@@Greendalewitch Sauron's strength didn't change much during the novels. It was just bad writing on the part of Tolkien honestly.
9:04 come on, its Glorfindel! even Sauron will think twice before facing him.
You're right. He's so over powerful and important he was replaced by Arwen in the movie. Come on man 😂😂😂😂
@@joshuaeason3426 I mean he was replaced so that they could push the whole Arwen and Aragorn love story, and so they didn't have to try and explain to watchers who weren't as versed in Tolkiens works who Glorfindel was, not because he wasn't powerful. Glordindel is at bear minimum just as powerful as Gandalf the Grey while he is wearing Narya as they both faced Balrogs and though they both died, at least their physical form did they also did defeat their respective foes. Being on par with a maiar (and a very powerful one at that) who is also wielding a ring of power is no small feat.
I understand why he wasn’t in the movies, but I still wish we could’ve seen his transformation onscreen.
@@joshuaeason3426 bruh, he was replaced cause he litterally does nothing else in the books other than taking Frodo for a ride. Nevermind the fact that him not joining the fellowship (being basically the most powerfull Elven warrior in the 3rd age) is such a weird plothole
@minnumseerrund no shit Sherlock. It's called sarcasm, you should try it some time. 🙄
Thanks for your high quality videos!
Arguably the Witch-King’s greatest weakness was prophecy twists.
Prophecys are dangerous vor a reason. No matter if its LotR, Game of Thrones or Dune prophecys in Literaturen are Always vague Up for Interpretation and hiddeous crimes can be commited in the name of IT
Yep, in the books.
In the movies, tho, it was Mary Sue.
@@mpetrison3799 she isn’t a Mary sue in the movie she struggles killing him and only can together with Merry because of him wounding him with his sword that was forged to fight the WK
If the Witch King had read Macbeth he would have been better prepared.
@@malena5026 In the movie that sword is just a hobbit-suitable sword that Aragorn probably bought in Bree. It's only an enchanted barrow-blade in the book.
Please do a video about "Tolkien's steampunk ponderings on Numenor"!!! That sounds like an absolutely fascinating topic!!!!
He did
@@haraldjensen1839It even has a card in the video.
Hi Rob, I've been a huge fan of this Channel for about 3-4 Years, I was just wondering if you had deleted all your old LOTR content. Really loved those videos, helped me through a hard time.
Thank you! It means a lot to me that my videos helped in some small way. :D And yes, they are returning; updated where we have new information (from new JRRT letters etc) and with improved audio and video.
@@InDeepGeek awesome Robert, we love the content and thank you.
@@InDeepGeek i too miss them dearly as i loved to play the playlist on shuffle as i fall asleep to stop myself from thinking bad toughts, i am glad to see you uploading more often lately 😊
Wow, I started to make a comment and when I typed Nazgûl my auto correct recognized it and fixed it. I’ve never typed it before. That is how iconic Tolkien’s work is, his characters are in the automatic dictionary.
I’ve noticed that when typing Boromir. It at least suggests it after typing bor!
Words and names from my country come up sometimes.
My theory is that our languages are based off country AND popular stuff.
Facing the wind as they ride through the sky
Shadows of Mordor, black horses they fly
always nice finding culture
Good ole Sabaton.
I love how Glorfindel is just a Faith Build powerhouse, that even multiple Nazgul will purposely avoid. It's like they can see some ridiculous bright radiance in the distance, and they just "nope" the heck around that.
I was immediately enthralled when I first read of Glorfindel basically manifesting like Jesus. Dude revealed his true form. Gotta be careful when killing some elves. Sometimes they come back upgraded.
Killing a fallen angel who was a better fighter than their own will do that!
“Nope” pretty much sums up their reaction to Glorfindel 💯 😂
He never came back. Nobody faced balrog and lived or returned from death to tell the tale. Except Gandalf.
Tolkien's magic seems to be based on "will," the ability to intend things into being, as best I can tell. Given this, I think of the Rings as enhancing the person's will, toward a certain end or several. The One Ring's focus was domination, especially magical domination. The Three were made to enhance the ability to preserve, protect, and defend, which is a subtle trap for the Elves: preserving is not growing. It's an open question whether the Dwarves could, in theory, turn their rings to something other than amassing wealth, if they had only willed it. Apparently the Nine served to enhance the ability to dominate another's mind, rather than their will, which was reserved to the One.
"most terrible servants" makes it sound like they were really bad at their jobs... which isn't a super-wrong assessment.
Yeah lmao
Watching this to get hyped for the inevitable Nazgul VS Gandalf/Aragorn/Legolas fight scenes in The Hunt for Gollum.
Let's hope not
The Barrow blades are the only reason the Witch King was beaten by Eowyn and died. Noone can convince me otherwise.
Obviously, otherwise there wouldn't have been a reason for Merry to be there if Eowyn was capable of actually beating him on her own. Like, he broke her left arm with a single swin of his mace when she shielded herself from his attack, in fact, at that point, the Witch King was as strong as Gandalf, a single mortal with a simple sword could've never defeated him.
Why would anyone think otherwise? Without the barrow blade wound, the witch king would be invulnerable to Eowyn.
Pretty sure that blade unwraithed him allowing Eowyn to deal the death blow, but I do agree technically. Even if she didn't kill him it would've been possible for anyone else in the battle to kill him at that point.
I have been watching your videos for quite some time now, can't say for certain how long, but it feels like a good few years at least!
Even though by now most parts of the Tolkien lore is no longer new, I still get excited to watch your uploads.
The selected artworks are always stunning, and your calm and relaxing narrating, make them a joy to watch and listen to, and allow me to immerse myself entirely and once again 'step into' this wonderful universe we all love.
Thank you for your content!
Having your cloak catch on fire is "quite annoying" - Rob 😂 That made me chuckle
4 videos in 1 week? love to see it
I believe that at least a couple are re-uploads. Not sure why, but l am absolutely not complaining.
@@davidtatro7457 i think only the ASOIAF videos are re-uploads but what can you expect when GRRM doesn’t give any new material to work with
That was one of the best videos and interpretations of the Nazguls power, and so we'll said, so we'll narrated, I could really feel everything he was saying. Very well done❤
I always felt like each of them had different power levels with the witch King being the strongest
By far. Khamul is the only one we can conclude was more powerful than the other seven.
And I would say the gap is like
Other 7 < Khamul
Excellent video! Thanks!
Yay, new video! Always happy for a new lotr upload!
Anything you do about the Nazgûl is amazing. Love your channel
These are the best depictions I've seen in your videos!
One great thing about the original (and arguably best CCG ever) Middle Earth card game, Middle Earth: The Wizards by I.C.E is the companies desired and direction to not break canon.
They only took liberties when Tolkien left questions unanswered, as he did with the Nazgul.
One of the names for the nazgul in I.C.E is Adûnaphel. Firstly, that is such an excellent name. Secondly, Adûnaphel was depicted as a female nazgul.
Unfortunately, the honor and respect it took to not break canon did not move forward with Amazon nor Wotc.
Middle Earth in Magic the gathering and RoP are Tolkien in name only.
You can even describe those products as Untolkien.
brilliant video, ty
Thank you. I enjoyed it.
Your video has enriched my understanding of the topic. Thank you for your dedication.
Hey! I really like your content. Keep it up!
Thank you Robert
Very intriguing thank you for sharing! 😃👍
Love the lore videos!
Another excellent video. The level of quality this channel continues to produce is worthy of high praise.
Great Video. I think the nazguls are one of a kind when it comes to depicting power being bound to depencies
Great video.
Cheers, interesting as always
so glad u still make viedos about lotr , just got home enjoying this with an ice cold dry cider thank you, bless
is thier somewhere u have all your videos as files , i whould def buy this as cd box set or a long movie with it all recorded
When you think about it, the Nazgul got a heck of a deal. Well worth it.
You are incredibly good at explaining Tolkien's lore. I've read the source material, but not gleaned the nuances you bring forth in these videos.
I always got the impression that they were ethereal in the beginning because Sauron's power was still rising and had he had the ring they would have been fully physical.
They are too slow in combat, but very effective in pyschological warfare.
Morale is a major component of warfare and rulership. We do best to remember it!
Onr thing that bugged me in Return of the King (movie version) was when the Witch King faces down Gandalf, and breaks his staff.
Very silly, as Gandalf- especially the White, was quite a bit more powerful than the Witch King.
Im a new fan of LotR and I love your videos! Thank you for making them!
You rock bro!
Cool listening to this guy. It’s like listening to David Attenborough.
One of the things I liked most about shadow of war was how they gave a few more nazgul personas. I know it’s not canon and also doesn’t match the timeline. But I like it.
Best Tolkien UA-camr!
Of course they may also avoid Glorfindel as he was the one who prophesied that no mortal man would defeat the Witch King, a prophecy the Witch King believed in, but then Glorfindel had died and been returned to middle earth mafter defeating a Balrog mellenia earlier.
What happened with the "Lord of the Rings from the Witch King's perspective" video and some others from before? Are they exclusively for patreon currently?
Somehow I didn't catch the bit about Frodo's blade glinting back when I read the books, so that was fascinating to learn.
Please do a video about the powers of the different rings and why the one ring is so powerful!
Thank you
"The leader... raised up his hand. Frodo was stricken dumb."
I so wish Jackson had filmed this moment exactly as written so the kids could say, "hey, he's copying Darth Vader!" only to realize no, it's the other way 'round.
They also were not fond of Water and could be confused by it.
The Nazgûl are arguably the most badass and tragic monsters in fantasy.
Couple of points to nitpick on .
1. Their horses were not speacially bred for them, but rather stolen in the night from rohan.
2. Felbeasts have some sort of connection to the moon. Forgot the details thouhh
I'd love to see a video about these human sorcerers.
Now I just want to see a montage of the Witch King training in the Barad-Dur gym to get more powerful 😂
nice video, but you forgot to mention their fear of the power of Ulmo and Orosse - thats why they feared to cross the water so many times and thats why Sauron had never made open war on sea...Ulmo was still very present even in 3rd age...he cared a lot, maybe even more than Manwe
Woah that would make a great What-If Video, what if Frodo killed the Witch-King on Weathertop?
I was about to say Aragorn would have to deliver the finishing blow, but that would conflict with the prophecy that "not by the hand of man shall he fall."
Therefore, the 4 hobbits would have to jump him
Can you do a video on what is or what is the significance of the Eye of Sauron?
Sauron had to have known he was cooked when all of his top brass Nazgul cornered Frodo on that tower and Aaragorn 1v9's them with a torch.
The nazgul are so preciousssss
Nazgul, were absolutely loyal to him. Perhaps the adjective "loyalty" does not even fully encapsulate just how strong the connection between the nine and the dark lord was. This, more than their combat prowes, was much much more important to Sauron. It was their most valuable trait. He dispatched them to find the ring, not because they were the best scouts or the best diplomats, I am sure that Sauron could at least found some humans for this task which would be less noticeable, but he chose the nazgul because they were the only once whou would bring the ring back if the were to find it.
They were individually powerful, sure, but their obedience was what made them so important to Sauron.
My InDeepGeek coffee mug arrived today! ⚔️☕
I would point out that the Witch-King was able to strike Frodo dumb and break his sword during the time that Frodo had a piece of a Morgûl blade in his body where it had been festering for days; there is no indication that the Witch-King could do this to just anyone at any time.
07:26 what scene is he talking about? I tried to find it but cant, is it in fellowship of the ring? Frodo draws his sword when they move down bellow them and unseen world we see only after ring is on and the sword long gone.
I've always thought the nazgul were supremely interesting. Also, more Witcher content please!
The Nazgul have always been my favorite characters in Tolkien mythos, still to this day I wish he expanded on them even more but at the same time I love that he didn't because the unknown makes them that much more interesting of characters.
Part of me wishes to have Frodo turn into a mini Nazgul. He'd look like a kid on a war horse. How fearsome would he have been?
Everyone speaks the phrase "fell beasts" as if that describes a particular sort of animal, like saying "dragon" or "balrog". But the word "fell" is simply an adjective that means "of terrible evil or ferocity; deadly". Tolkien used the word simply to avoid further defining what kind of beast the nazgul rode.
Beregrond calls them hellhawks.
Another key point is when all 9 are gathered together. Gandalf for example, on weathertop, only faced 5 to of the Nazgul and I believe their leader was not present at that battle.
"having your robes catch on fire is annoying even for a Nazgul" LOL...
9:00 AAYYYEEE I didn't know David spade rode horses 😅
I've often considered that the Nazgul can't hold the weapons themselves, they are wearing armor and clothing and especially gauntlets and it's the clothing that is "holding" the weapon. It's the armor that is sitting on the horse and it's the boots touching the ground.
I ponder that because of a statement made about how, after the Ford of Bruinen, they are unrobed and that effected them greatly.
Occam's razor probably suggests that is a level of complexity over necessity, but that statement at the Ford troubles me without it.
If Saruman had gotten the ring could the Nazgûl have switched sides
They would have, they serve the ring not sauron. It was only because nobody had yet dominated the ring the way Saruman would have that they still obeyed him
@@GrancigulCould Saruman have controlled the Ring, that’s the question. Even Galadriel was afraid that the Ring would consume her, and she was arguably more powerful than Saruman, at least in the literary canon. Sauron was a more powerful Maia than Saruman, having been Morgoth’s chief commander, and having spent around 7 millennia longer in Arda than the Istari. I tend to think Sauron’s influence would have consumed Saruman far more easily than Saruman thought possible.
The thing I dislike the most about LoTR is how we never get to witness what the ring is *_capable of. What does it actually do?_*
The invisibility isn't even something it's *_designed to do!_* It's entirely unintentional, due to it allowing you to perceive the wraith world.
Besides the ability to command and control the wraiths, does it grant sorcery or spellcasting; turning a mortal into something akin to a sort of Shadow Istari?
Does it enable the mind control of other, non-wraith mortal beings?
Does it boost your physical prowess and martial skills?
Does it grant knowledge? How to create new orcs or on corrupting elves into such?
Across the entire series, it only turns people invisible and occasionally mentions its connection to the wraiths, but that doesn't actually tell us anything.
@@Scientist_Salarian Yes, Saruman could have dominated the One Ring. And no, Galadriel was *NOT* more powerful than Saruman. Saruman is a Maiar, of the same order as Sauron himself. Both former servants of Aulë the smith. Galadriel was just an elf. One of a royal and noble lineage, but still just an elf. And Sauron did not just gain more power by serving Morgoth, he just became more learned in sorcery.
@@Scientist_SalarianSauron _was_ more powerful than Saruman originally, but the lion's share of that power went into the Ring itself. If anyone in Middle-Earth could have dominated the Ring, it would be Saruman
I wonder where their spirits went. Halls of Mandos would be a tough room for them.
They ended up in Des Moines Iowa.
@@majornugzzz5424 That checks out
In the book " The Wizard of 4th Street, there's a band named " The Nazgul"...the book is from the '80s, and well worth finding...
The scary bit is that the persons who became the Nazgûl were originally not necessarily evil. At this time, Sauron could still take on a pretty appearance and pose as a good guy. The elves of Eregion didn't see through it until it was too late. They only saw a nice bloke that knew about magical rings and was willing to share his knowledge. These pre-Nazgûl were basically just a bit too eager for power and knowledge, but so were Celebrimbor and his mates. Maybe some of them didn't even take the ring for their own benefit, but to help others. That is tragic.
The Numenorian ones were, they King's Men.
You only included part of the quote from the letter from Tolkien, which directly discusses the power of the Nazgul
"Their peril is almost entirely due to the unreasoning fear which they inspire (like ghosts). They have no great physical power against the fearless; but what they have, and the fear that they inspire, is enormously increased in darkness. The Witch-king, their leader, is more powerful in all ways than the others; but he must not yet be raised to the stature of Vol. III. There, put in command by Sauron, he is given an added demonic force. But even in the Battle of the Pelennor, the darkness had only just broken.
JRR Tolkien, The Letters of JRR Tolkien, “Letter 210”
Tolkien makes it quite clear that their main weapon is fear. Part of the reason why they aren't that much of a threat against the likes of Gandalf, Elrond or Glorfindel.
One thing I find interesting is that Nazgul used to be men and its men who are most affected and fear them most (hobbits being of the race of me). Dwarves couldn’t turned into Nazgul by rings of power, they are way too stubborn to have their minds dominated by someone else. They just got really greedy and they don’t appear to be as scared of them as men do - if anything they find them annoying as the don’t stand and have a good punch up. When a rider who is assumed to be a Nazgul visits Erebor Tolkien writes all who it came across shuddered, quite different from throwing yourself on the floor wanting to crawl into dark places and die. Elves who have been to the blessed realm don’t fear them as men do as they both live in the seen and unseen worlds anyway - and powerful Elves are more than happy to take the fight to them. I think Elves relationship to Nazgul is born out of knowledge of the difficulty they pose in being defeated, and what they represent ie Sauron on the move. So i wonder are men just more susceptible to the fear the Nazgul project than other races or is it because the Nazgul were once men. I don’t think an Elf could become a Nazgul as they already live in both worlds but maybe Dwarves could with a much more powerful ring than Sauron made for them first time - and in turn they would be scared of this? I really don’t see a dwarf becoming a wraith though - just too stubborn an pig headed !
I'm actually amazed that the first scene with frodo and the nazguul had lore reasons behind why it sniffed and sensed them but didn't manage to find them. I always just thought that was an oddly lucky, maybe even far-fetched thing they wrote in just for suspense. .
I have a point on the possible weakness collumn if i could get your opinion on it: at or around the council of elrond, someone shows concern that the nazgul could possible assail the ring bearer on the way out of rivendell. I believe it was gandalf who said they were disrobed and were nothing more than shadows after the river flood, needing to return to their master for new robes and steeds. Is it possible that nazgul cannot interact with the physical realm if they arent clothed in physical clothes? Like they are so much in the other realm that they need a form to latch on to to affect the physical realm? If this is true, fire may have a stronger effect as it may burn their cloaks away, but might have been useless against someone light the witch king in armor.
I'd love a video about the fame of the ring. As in, did ordinary folk even know about it or were the soldiers in these battles just under the impression they were fighting an invading force. When the final band of good guys matched on the black gate did the average soldier even know why or did they think they were actually going to invade Mordor?
there were human wizzards in tolkien world? :) nice, everyday I learn something new.
Whose art at 4:40 with Éowyn and the Witch King?
The thing I dislike the most about LoTR is how we never get to witness what the ring is *_capable of. What does it actually do?_*
The invisibility isn't even something the One Ring is *_designed to do!_* It's entirely unintentional and due to it allowing you to perceive the wraith world.
Besides the ability to command and control the wraiths, does it grant sorcery or spellcasting; turning a mortal into something akin to a sort of Shadow Istari?
Does it enable the mind control of other, non-wraith mortal beings?
Does it boost your physical prowess and martial skills?
Does it grant knowledge? How to create new orcs or on corrupting elves into such?
Across the entire series, it only turns people invisible and occasionally mentions its connection to the wraiths, but that doesn't actually tell us anything.
What do the *_other_* rings of power do? Gandalf has the fire ring, but he's also already the fire Istari… what does the ring grant him that he wasn't already capable of?
Can Galadriel control the flow of the oceans?
Can Elrond cast hurricanes?
What do the wraith's rings do??
Almost not a single one is properly explained, despite the entire series being about them.
I'm not sure that they are immune to 'normal weapons.' Eowyn's sword was, as far as we know, a 'normal' weapon, though of course Merry's was not. Both were destroyed. What we do know is that Aragorn tells us that all blades perish that pierce the Witch King. We also know that they became permanently invisible, which is how they become wraiths, as they are drawn more fully into the spirit world. They require something to actually take shape in the mortal world, which may or may not be somewhat more than merely putting on black cloaks. The flood released on the borders of Rivendell would have killed a mortal caught in it, as it did their horses, so they can survive what would kill a mortal (there's also the fact that one survived having his flying mount shot out from under him at a great height). So it may be that when confronted with such a situation, they may be forced to abandon their shape in the mortal world and flee more fully into the wraith world and return to their master to take shape again.
Merry's sword dealt the Witch KIng a serious blow, but I'm not convinced that was enough to kill him by itself.
It seemed to me that it broke "the spell that knit his unseen sinews to his will" only temporarily on the Pelennor field. That was enough for Eowyn to deliver the coup-de-grace.
Given that the Witch KIng must have met a lot of armed opponents during his thousands of years, many of them must have hit him with arrows. This must have stung a little bit. But it took the double hit of Eowyn immediately following Merry's special blade to do him in.
What I don't get is how the Dunedain of Arnor could make such 'magical' weapons well into the Third Age when their arts and knowledge were so much less than at the height of Numenor and when Ringwraiths were probably not a problem the Numenoreans had to deal with.
I didn't expect to hear about madara's limbo attack as done by the witch King
Idea for a video: What would happen if the rings given to the dwarfs had done what they were intended to do?
7 more wraiths, so what? Innit?
I think the Nazgûl are just as powerless as Mr. Dark from Something Wicked This Way Comes. If the person who faces them is a complete master of themselves, courageous, beyond guilt or self reproach (like Bombadil), then laughing at them disables them. In her moment of complete perfection, Eowyn laughs at the Witch-king, and with Merry's help vanquishes him. Of course, there's more to it than that, but the sum of all events leading up to that moment was a power that the Witch-king couldn't overcome.