The Taproom

this debate seems to be of some interest as it comes up from dark corners again and again.

i think we all have to accept, that tolkien was never as precise as some wish and this is exactly, what makes his world so interesting and fascinating. tolkien wrote his stories as if true and long forgotten history was told and no one ever knows what exactly happened. that is also the case for the reproduction of orcs. to bring in much more confusion, some passages of his texts are contradictory, some just confusing, e.g. the mentioning of more than just orcs, like goblins hobgoblins and so on. nobody really knows what they were and nobody will really know where they come from.

what could be stated as relatively sure is, that orcs must have ‘liked’ females of other races as they took them as prisoners (at least in the first age) but that might be because they are beautifull and orcs hate all beauty.

not to know everything is what makes things magical and fascinating. think of movies, where not everything is explained in full detail, it makes them more fascinating and marvellous than in the (typical American style) movies, where everything is explained like in soap operas. what did you like more: Ridley Scotts Alien movie or a soap of any kind?? why was the x-files series so powerfull? because the audience did nor get more than very few hints. when was the mystic over? when more and more was explained- the series became boring.

think of all the mysterious scenes in lord of the rings explained?? Just think of a complete explanation of the paths of the dead. horrible!!!!!! dreadfull!!!!!
the whole literature of tolkien is based on private imagination. let it be.

*cough*

Goblins are orcs. Goblin is the Hobbit word for Orc. Tolkien also made a minor boo-boo with Hobgoblins. He assumed Hobgoblin meant “big” Goblin. Instead it meant something like “good goblin.” Since Arneson and Gygax took every fantasy idea that wasn’t nailed down, and many that were, Hobgoblin entered the fantasy universe as some sort of bigger goblin and thus it has remained since (of course, Kobold is the German word for Goblin – and the result is that now Kobold is some sort of separate non-Goblin type creature.

The world of fantasy gaming is weird that way.

…. who knows why he decide to vote for Variag archer, but for me this is better solution than another one orc commander or not…….

As I said: there won´t be two releases. But nobody is interested in this, right!
Well, as far as I am concerned I loved that the Variag archer is been chosen. I think everybody knows so far that I am a real fan of “Easterlings”.
Please don´t explain to me the difference between Easterlings and Variags!
I have suggested a mounted easterling archer- mongolian lookink like. Now we will have a Variag foot-archer.
I will wonder how “mongolian”-kind he will be. Maybe such “mongolian”-kind as the already existing Variag is.
I am really looking forward this miniature! Absolutely great!

Hello Holger,

Check your PM.

You are right indeed Master Ent!
And as I wrote on the GF board, the mounted Variag is waiting for a friend…

I added my suggestion in mount doom again. I wish it will get good support one day. a very nice diorama is missing in this place…

Indeedy:

Variag is the same word as Varangian, hence Varangian guard. There’s a fascinating history of political identity politics going on in Russia as to whether the Russian people were “essentially” Swedes (AKA “Rus” AKA Vikings AKA Varangians) or Slavs. A great way to get into trouble during the communist era was to dig up a Viking town and say “hey, this looks like the Swedes made it”

As for the Pechenegs, I’d thought the good barman and I had decided they were a good parallel with the Wainriders :p