Middle Earth: Adventures

It is the year 2842 of the third age. Sauron lies dormant in hiding, his followers await his return, the dragon Smaug has made the deserted Erebor his nest for 72 years, and there is roughly 176 years until the end of the War of the Ring and Sauron’s ultimate destruction.

Trouble stirs again in Middle Earth. More so than usual. Rumors have begun to surface of a very powerful ring. Yet, it is not the One Ring.

It is said that Celebrimbor, who helped Sauron forge the rings of power, created, in secret, another ring. Like the three elven rings, they were forged without the guidance of Sauron, and thus; this ring, like the elven rings, is free of corruption.

Through very unlikely circumstances, Barfa the goblin has come in possession of a very powerful ring. He is currently wandering aimlessly around the Ettenmoors, unaware that what he carries is anything more than a shiny object he likes to look at. The dimwitted goblin is alone, and journeying without direction throughout Middle Earth.

The Crebain; crows in service of the Dark Lord, has sighted Barfa with the ring, and not only are these rumors circulating among his followers; they are spreading throughout Middle Earth. Far and wide, whispers are shared about this artifact and what would happen if it fell into the wrong hands.

An important task now falls to you! Adventurers and envoys from all over the land are now embarking on a perilous mission. Look far and wide, in search of this particular goblin, and take this ring, by any means necessary.

For if you do not find it, the lieutenants of the Dark Lord might. If Sauron gets his hand on this powerful artifact, it may very well be the tipping point in his future resurgence.




The ultimate goal within this storybook is to find Barfa the goblin and retrieve the ring. What you do with it then is up to you. Put it on and experience its powers, or bring it to someone certified to keep it safe. It’s the endgame.

However, it’s all about the journey, so finding Barfa is going to be very difficult. He’ll always be two steps ahead of you and sometimes you’ll have to wait for him to give away any signs of life.

That said, there are a lot of options you have in this world. Adventures you can embark on to obtain items which will without a doubt be helpful to you, maybe especially in your ultimate quest for the ring.

A dream scenario would be for this SB to go on for quite a while, and for everyone to have quite the experience and fun with their character before somebody finally tracks down the ring. It’s a huge world, as you can study extensively in the map, and there’s a lot you can do.

You can pretty much do whatever you want from the get-go, albeit with some limits. Aside from a few characters (namely Sauron’s lieutenants), who will get some sparse chapters now and then, I’d like for most other large lore characters to be left out.

The aforementioned lieutenants, who will pursue both Barfa and your characters, are mainly contained to two characters: Khamûl, one of the Nazgûl, leads a search with two of his brethren, and the Mouth of Sauron, one of the most devoted servants of the Dark Lord, has personally headed out to pursue.

Create your character, wander into the world, explore, and go on adventures. Maybe put together your own little fellowship of characters, to journey together, or even better; team up with other storybookers.


Enspoilered is an overview of optional quests you can embark on in your journeys:

Spoiler

Fandral the slumbering dragon – In the far, northwestern corner of the world are the Blue Mountains. Within these mountain ranges, there slumbers a cold-drake. For several millennia, Fandral has only awoken every couple centuries, only to return to his cave after a while. Odds are he has collected quite a few artifacts up through the years. Track him down and claim these treasures for your own, whether that be through combat or persuasion. Not only can he speak; he is quite intelligent.

The lost Palantír of Elostirion – Only seven seeing stones were ever in Middle Earth. Most are now lost, and the Palantír of Elostirion is one of the few remaining. It is located in Elostirion, the tallest of the three towers of Tower Hill, lying between the Shire and the Grey Havens. Being the only stone that can’t communicate to the others, but rather can look into the Undying Lands, it is of great value to the elves that guard it. However, now it has been lost! Due to several raids from rogue Gundabad orcs, it has gone missing. Find it, and return it to the tower. The orcs are most likely still in the general area. You’ll most likely be rewarded; you might even catch a glimpse of the Undying Lands.

Knight of Minas Tirith – The Gondorian military forces are, for the time being, open to recruits from a broad assortment of people in Middle Earth for its war machine, man and dwarf alike. Due to an increased interest in reclaiming Osgiliath from the Mordor forces, who have turned it into a ruined no-man’s land between the two sister cities of Minas Tirith and Minas Ithil (now known as Minas Morgul); the men are looking to retake Osgiliath and establish outposts all along Ithilien. Due to many skirmishes with orc forces, they are looking for more men. Report to Captain Harmon in Minas Tirith for duty. Maybe you have what it takes to become a knight.

Gollum – The creature known as ‘Gollum’ is somewhere in the Misty Mountains. He may very well have seen Barfa the goblin cross the mountain passes, and he might let you in on some information if you play a game of riddles with him. (Note, do not try to kill Gollum and/or steal The One Ring. He will kill you, and pick his teeth with your bones)

Desert Necromancer – In the sweltering deserts on Harad, there is a mad necromancer raising skeletons from corpses wherever he may; apparently building some sort of army of the dead. Find this necromancer and kill him, before his forces grow too strong. But be careful, or you might end up in it yourself.

Spawns of Scatha – Scatha was a great serpent-like dragon which scoured the Grey Mountains and made a lot of trouble for the Dwarves. Now, long after her death, her spawn are still creeping around in the Grey Mountains. Despite having no wings, they will still be a major undertaking for any adventurer, as they can both breathe fire and eat a man in a single bite. Nobody knows for sure how many there are, but there can’t be more than a handful. Eradicate these monsters and the Dwarves will surely compensate you for your deeds.

Fangorn Forest – Goblins from the Misty Mountains are busy establishing outposts along the foot of the mountain, and they are about to begin harvesting trees from Fangorn forest for their use. This is a big threat to the Ents! Surely someone will intervene and find a way to stop these outposts? The Ents are certainly not going to stand for it. Yet, they’re pretty slow to immobilize themselves and spread information. If someone comes to their aid, you’ll definitely be in their favor.

Farmer Maggot’s crops – Someone, or something, is stealing carrots, cabbages, onions, and potatoes from Farmer Maggot’s crop. Whatever is going on, he is paying handsomely for someone to figure out what is happening, and stopping it. Heck, he might even let you marry one of his daughters.

In the Shadow of Mirkwood – This massive forest is not the green, lush thing it once was. For a long time now, a shadow has stretched across it. Dark creatures began scurrying about. Among them, giant spiders. It is said that in the southern part of Mirkwood, there was a wood-elven outpost, tall enough to look over the treetops, and across the wastes. In this, long abandoned outpost, there is apparently a golden bow, crafted during the second age. It supposedly gives true aim to whoever wields it, skilled archer or not. Find the outpost, find the bow, and it’s yours. The fact that a gathering of giant spiders have made the outpost their web-covered nest is sure the make the task much more difficult. And don’t get lost in the forest! It has a way of playing with your head…

There are a wide variety of races and people in Middle Earth. When creating a character, these are your options:

Spoiler

Men - Men are the humans of Middle Earth. There are many variants however, and some of them differ more than others. They are:

Gondorians – Men of Gondor. Inhabiting most of the land of Gondor, their capital is Minas Tirith. They are fairly standard men.

Dúnedain – The Dúnedain men are descendants from the Númenóreans, a greater race of men who are no longer around. Due to this, they have a notably longer lifespan than that of regular men. Roughly three times as long. They mostly come from Eriador and Arnor, though some have settled in Gondor. In the third age, their numbers have diminished quite a lot, and many of the remaining people have become the Rangers of the North.

Haradrim – Men from the lands of Harad, south of both Gondor and Mordor. Being in a much warmer climate, their land is characterized by sweltering deserts, and a nomadic lifestyle. Further eastward however, the climate turns into a more jungle-like environment. Simply put, Haradrim men have a Middle Eastern appearance.

Northmen – Mainly from Lake-Town (Esgaroth) and the areas around the ruins of Dale.

Rohirrim – The men of Rohan. Often thought of as the Horse Lords, because of their heavy use of horses and their large, flat area of land.

Dwarves – Dwarves are mainly from the Blue Mountains, the Grey Mountains, and the Iron Hills. They used to have other large kingdoms. One of them, Moria, fell apart earlier in the third age, when they uncovered a Balrog, deep within the caves of their underground city. Another was Erebor, or the Lonely Mountain rather, but it’s currently occupied by a dragon.

Elves – The elves is an immortal race of Middle Earth, inhabiting it long before the race of Men. Scattered across Middle Earth, most of them gathered in elven-realms, such as Rivendell, the Woodland Realm (Mirkwood), Lothlórien, and Lindor, which is situated at the western edge of the land, past the Shire.

Hobbits – Hobbits are an offshoot of the race of men. They are characterized by being much smaller than an average man, as well as curly hair, and large hairy feet. They as mostly contained to The Shire and apparently care nothing for adventure.

Detailed, interactive map:
Middle Earth


Character list:
Brynja daughter of Hakon - @Morrigan
Tembril the Alchemist - @Chaser
Ellovina daughter of Cephorin - @rockycait
Maggo 'Mags' Leafhill - @Birkhoff
Adir'Heitor - @Birkhoff
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Character profile template:

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[b]Appearance:[/b] (Including a picture is nice, but please write a summery too)
[b]Personality:[/b]
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Please keep to the rules and most of all; have fun!

Gnats. Stupid filthy gnats. That was mainly what Barfa’s mind was occupied with thinking. Having had no luck in trying to hunt the local wildlife, he had resorted to trying to catch fish in the riverbed. But in the light of the moon, the only thing that fed on any prey was the gnats, on him. The hour had already grown late; time passed faster than he would like it to. He quickly gathered his few belongings and ventured further into the forest, looking for suitable shelter.

Finding a reasonably comfortable spot underneath some low-hanging branches, he scattered his supplies around the spot and laid down, making use of his tattered cloak as a makeshift pillow. He thought back to how he had found it necessary to abandon his life with the other goblins. How he had accidentally injured Gonko in the head with a frying pan. So much for trying to help, he muttered to himself.

His supplies were scattered around him; his shoddy bow, his short sword, a bag of smaller items, and his satchel for water. His most valuable belonging, although its true value is unbeknownst to himself, was without a doubt the ring. Just a simple ring. Golden. Many months ago, he had come across it. He had caught a fish in the river, more successful that day, and as he tore into its raw flesh, he almost choked on this ring. Now, he lay under the branches, and he pulled the ring from his pocket and put it on his finger. There were no noticeable change, and he felt no different. Yet, he liked it. He enjoyed wearing it sometimes, and he especially liked how shiny it was.

But he would put it aside again now, as his mind was again occupied on only one thing.

Stupid filthy gnats.

“You’re mad!” Borno exclaimed, as foamy beer splashed from his mouth. He slammed his mug down on the table where he sat with Mags and Sullen. The youngest of them, Sullen, burst out in laughter. Waiting for them both to stop chuckling, Mags eyed them both with annoyance.

“Well, surely you cannot be serious, Mags?” Sullen asked. He looked back and forth between Maggo and Borno, the latter wearing a quizzical look. “Yes! Of course I’m serious! You didn’t think I packed for nothing, did you? Or that I’m now asking you to water my garden while I’m away?” Mags replied, “And yes, I’m leaving tomorrow morning.”

The two hobbits sitting across from him by the table were confounded. Neither of them could understand why on earth someone would want to leave the Shire. “Where would you go?” Borno asked. “Wherever the road takes me,” he replied, as he took another gulp of his ale.

“I always knew you were keen to explore, Mags, but this? This seems big.” Borno continued, “There’s a dangerous world out there. And now you’re leaving the Shire, one of the safest places there is? It’s madness.” He let out a simple sigh. “But who are we to stop you, eh?”, both Mags and Borno smiled at each other.

“But he’s our friend! We can’t just let him wander off into the night!” Sullen exclaimed. “Now, now. First of all, I’m leaving in the morning, so there’s no nighttime involved here.” Mags joked as all three of them chuckled slightly, “and second of all, I’ll be fine! I’m a Leafhill from under the Treetops. Nothing’s going to get in my way, and if it does, I’ll remove it.” He went on.

“Oh, you’ll remove it. Is that right?” Sullen asked poised. “Aye, I’ll remove it. There’s more to me than meets the eye, Sullen. Remember that.” And there was. Borno, who grew up with Maggo, could perfectly remember how he’d outsmarted all the younglings during their games. He had always been a troublemaker. And an explorer. Trickster. Hooligan. He could lists things for a long time. Heck, he was even there that one time when he stole. Mags didn’t lose the nickname of ‘thief’ for a long time. Thinking back on it, it had been nothing major. Trivial even. But he knew Mags regretted it then, and still does. He was sure of this. Just as sure as he was that Mags was being serious now. He’d leave tomorrow, and for all Borno or anyone knew, he could never be seen in the Shire again.

Sullen had just finished quizzing Mags on all sorts of details on his journey, which only resulted in vague answers, when Borno slowly stood up from the table and grabbed his mug of ale; “To going on adventures, and never giving up on dreams!” he cheered, as the two other Hobbits quickly joined him in drinking.

There was a lot of drinking that night. And tales of old times and of pieces of history. Maggo shared, again, his favorite story of Bullroarer Took and his defense against the orc invasion. His eyes always lit up when he told it.

The next morning, or rather midday, as their gathering last night had resulted in quite the hangover for all three of them, both Borno and Sullen met up outside Mags Hobbit hole in the outskirts of Bywater.

The door was already open, and seeing as they heard ruckus inside, they went ahead and pushed the door open, only to be met with the somewhat disturbing image of Mags galloping outside, throwing a large bag down on the stone steps. The disturbing thing being that he was only wearing a bath towel, which slipped entirely as he flung the knapsack.

“I’m late!” Maggo yelled as he met them in the doorway.

“Oy!” They both exclaimed. “Cover up, mate!”

Mags was already inside again, distressingly looking left and right, presumably for more supplies before he heard them shout again. He turned. “Think you’d want to cover yourself up?” Borno asked, as he threw him the towel.

It took a moment for it to dawn on Mags what had happened, but ultimately he said; “good idea!” as he slipped the towel around himself again and ran into the bathroom. When he emerged minutes later, he was wearing his full traveling getup. “Fellas, I’m afraid I don’t have time to waste around here anymore. I’m dreadfully late.” He told them.

“Late for what?” Is the road leaving without you?” Sullen asked. “No, it’s just the principle. I said I would leave in the morning, and it’s no longer morning. Any minute now, I could get the silly, wimpy idea of not going and just staying at home, where it’s safe, and I got tea, a decent food storage and brandy as old as my grandfather. Or the thought of my comfy bed will urge me to stay. In any case I’m not supposed to be here now. That’s all.” Mags explained to them as he walked around the place, gathering up small things, and putting them somewhere else.

“Maggo, if you feel like you don’t want to leave, then there’s nothing forcing you to.” Borno told him as he hurried about around him. Sullen and he felt as if they were watching a bee buzzing around.

Ignoring them, he grabbed his walking stick and went outside with it. There he laid it on the ground next to his knapsack. “Let’s see, knapsack filled with bare essentials, food to last a good while, even more food, my father’s map, my mother’s locket, my tools, cutlery…would I need cutlery? Maybe just a fork. I think I’ll ditch that.” He spoke to himself as he looked over his supplies. “My good old walking stick, small frying pan notched to the sack, and finally; ‘Cutter’, the short sword I bought from that traveling merchant years ago.” He scratched his head.

The other two Hobbits appeared in the doorway.

“I think I have everything I need,” Mags said to no one in particular before turning to them, “I’m sure you both know exactly how to look after my garden. It’s easy. It’ll be a minor task for any of you fine Hobbits.” He looked up at them both.

“Maggo, are you leaving right this second?” Sullen asked.

“Well of course! Daylight’s burning.” He replied.

Borno walked down the stone steps until he stood by Mags. “Have you had breakfast? Let’s eat together before you go.” Mags was already heaving his knapsack over his shoulder, had his short sword in the hilt and had the walking stick in his left palm. “Yes, yes. I’m sorry, but I really have to run.” He stepped towards the gate, opened it and stepped onto the road. Then he stood there for a moment.

“But what about second breakfast?” Sullen yelled from the doorway.

“To hell with second breakfast! I’m going on an adventure!” Mags yelled as he suddenly sprang to a run. Borno and Sullen ran down to the edge of the garden, only to watch his slightly blurry shape disappear down the road.

“Crazy fool. We might never see him again, you see?” Borno laughed heartily to Sullen.

“He better come back, the crazy idiot. He better.” Sullen said as he watched the horizon.

Ellovina "Vina" Daughter of Cephorin--Somewhere east of Rivendell

"Did you hear that the old Farmer Sange got another woman to marry-"
"What's troubling you Young Flaubin? I'm sure many men know-"
As Ellovina sat in the crowded tavern, silently nursing her Ale, she could't help but listen in to some of the more interesting (a kind word for it she knew) conversations taking place around her. "Rumor has it, there's a powerful ring somewhere around-" Just as she had heard this sentence, if one could really call it that, someone loudly placed another pint of Ale in front of her. A young bespeckled man had sat down across from her, grinning ear to ear. "Hello miss, you were sittin' here lookin' loney of sorts and I though I might just come over and say-" He was interupted by Ellovina's strong glare, something she had perfected in the world outside of Rivendell.

He stuttered and did not continue with his speech. Ellovina leaned forward slightly, into the light and smiled. Her teeth glistened dangerously. "Alright boy. I'm not here to chat. I just want an Ale or two and then I'm on my way. Whatever you thought you'd be getting when you sat down beside me, won't be coming your way." Ellovina leaned back into the shadows and winked "Unless it's a death wish." The young man was still flustered and clearly not planning on moving anywhere any time soon and so Ellovina decided to give him a little more persuasion. Ellovina kicked the chair from beneath the table so it skidded back into the room a little. The man almost fell over, but was saved by several drunkards who were just on their way to grab more drinks. His bespeckled cheeks were now about 4 shades darker, and he looked at Ellovina in astonishment, which quickly turned to fear. He scurried out of the tavern as if his life depended on it. Although, knowing Ellovina, it probably did.

As the young man left, Ellovina tried to catch the conversation about that ring again, but it seemed as though the person discussing it had left or stopped talking about it. She let out a sigh and then downed her Ale. As she was feeling nothing she took the Ale the young man had left and downed that too. Still nothing. That was the trouble of being an elf; it takes you much more money than you have to get yourself good and drunk.

She let out another sigh and got up out of her chair. Grabbing her cloak, she manuevered swiftly between the sweating bodies and out into the open air.
With no need for a horse Ellovina casually started jogging in a random direction. She was intrigued now. All she wanted was to find out more about that ring. And what Ellovina wanted, she got.

The desert winds were rising steadily. A dust storm was brewing, about to be released soon. Adir’Heitor trotted along the dune banks on the back of his camel. He has wrapped himself heavily within swaths of dark clothing, culminating in a tightly fitting robe. His camel, slightly worn at this point, carried a good deal of equipment. Much of it supplies, such as food, tools, and small trinkets. Besides this, his trusty bow was strapped to the side of the camel, with its many arrows safely in the quiver hanging beside it. A broadsword hung strapped across Heitor’s back, though it was slightly smaller than your average broadsword.

For nine days had he traveled through the desert. Throughout his life he had found himself in widely different occupations. In his early days, when he first reached manhood, he was a hunter. Simple and easy. An unnoticeable addition to the vast tribe he was brought up in. After that, he left the tribe, and he traveled the land. He walked the damp jungles of the more eastern lands of the Near Harad, where he again used his skills as a hunter to survive amongst the new people. However, he found these lands far more dangerous and hard to live in than he would like. He didn’t stay long.

After this, he again traversed the land and ended up in the seaport town of Umbar. It is here that his career path really took a turn. In his years there, he honed his existing skills to a fine point, and he learned a lot of new skills. He took these skills to use as he became an assassin. The gold flowed into his pockets and he gained reputation.

During these years, he also took work as a mercenary, and for a long time he sailed the seas with the Corsairs of Umbar. Due to the beautiful sights at sea, the feeling of the wind on his face, and the great sense of adventure, Heitor really loved this time.

Now, years later, life in Umbar has become far too familiar to Heitor. To that end, he has set his eyes towards the greener lands of Middle Earth. And not only is he going there looking for unexplored territory; he is following a rumor. A rumor of a powerful ring. A ring that the servants of the Dark Lord is seeking. They certainly shouldn’t get their hands on it, Heitor had thought to himself. It would probably look better on his own finger. At least that’s what he told himself.

“Halt.” He whispered to his camel. The southern lands of Gondor were ahead of him. He’d set his camel free soon and continue on foot. Beyond the border, he would find a horse better fitted for these lands.