How far and how clear could the &quot;Eye of Sauron&quot; see? Could it see through the whole of Middle-earth or is it limited to only Mordor? Could it distinguish the human face, the small artifacts like rings, or not? Saruman says the &quot;Eye of Sauron&quot;  &quot;sees all — his gaze pierces cloud, shadow, earth and flesh. You know of what I speak, Gandalf — a great Eye… lidless… wreathed in flame&quot;  when he is intimidating Gandalf. This implies that Sauron could see everything, just like Superman. If this is true, how could the One Ring escape his gaze? Sauron just needed to scan the land of the Shire. I am afraid that the meeting in Rivendell is also under Sauron's sight. When Frodo brings up the One Ring and Gimli wields his axe, Sauron will see. And once he saw the Ring, he can see it always. Does this mean that Saruman is exaggerating? What is the true limit of the &quot;Eye of Sauron&quot;?
124223
I am aware that the "Eye of Sauron" in Peter Jackson's movies was not Sauron's actual physical form.  What the answers at '' don't indicate is, despite this, what abilities of vision Sauron may have had.  Did he have the ability to see from afar? If so, what are his limitations or details of this power? Is it some kind of Elvish-sight like Legolas but stronger? Was it a magical power? Or perhaps with the help of the Palantir (I'm not sure of this last one because I dont remember if the Palantir could only see what other Palantíri were seeing or anything he wanted)?
27032
So, I've been reading Lord of The Rings, and other Tolkien books, and I've always wondered something. What did the other rings of power, given to the various races by Sauron actually do?
43317
Are orcs and goblins really the same in The Hobbit and LotR, and where does it say that? Are they variant sub-races or something, explaining the different physical attributes? Or is my assumption they were different from the different terminology in the Hobbit and LotR novels, and then reinforced by a non-canon interpretation by Jackson in his films?    I recently re-read and then watched the movie of The Hobbit.  It made me do some research on Azog the Defiler, as he was in the movie but wasn't in the book itself but in various other Tolkien-bits.  I saw that his son Bolg then led the goblins of Moria, which seemed odd, and then I stumbled across something that really confused me, which is the much-wiki'ed claim that orcs and goblins are the same thing.  I had never heard that before, and I read The Hobbit originally some 30 years ago and then again a couple times over the years, and Lord of the Rings at least twice since. It never really crossed my mind that they weren't separate kinds of humanoids (and in fact I was a little griped at them inserting orcs rather than goblins as the foes in the Hobbit movie). It seems odd, especially since there's the whole 'the goblins won't go out during the day' thing, but in both LotR and at least the film Hobbit, the orcs seem all large and in charge during the day and certainly seem physically different from goblins in all the representations I've seen.   I know there are the Uruk-hai which are even more buff and light-tolerant orcs, but the goblins, both in my book recollections and in their depictions in the movies, seem different even from rank and file orcs.  In the films they spider climb all over the walls and ceilings (both in Moria and in the Great Goblin's place - if orcs could do that the siege of Helm's Deep would have been over in ~30 seconds) and unwillingness to, even enraged, go out during the day when even the non-Uruk orcs in the Hobbit film are tooling around on wolfback at noontime. I know hobbits are referred to both as "hobbits" and "halflings" by different races, but the references to orcs and goblins don't seem to be split in a logical way where one could claim they're just different words for the same thing...
69092
During the time frame of the Lord of the Rings, was the Eye of Sauron Sauron's actual physical form? If not, what form did he have?
69773
Who is the Lord, as referred to in the title? Frodo? Sauron? Someone else? Or is it more of an abstract title, not referring to a single person, like "He who wields the One Ring"?
44965
There is evidence that Tom Bombadil is unaffected by the One Ring's power and he has magical ways about him that can't be explained.  It seems that Tom did not participate actively in the War of the Ring, even though he was clearly more powerful than others.  Is it possible that Tom Bombadil could have used his magic to defeat Sauron?
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It says that Sauron waited over a thousand years or more laying dormant regaining his strength after being destroyed when his ring was severed from him. But does the text say how he actually recovers strength?
91341
Gollum managed to keep the One Ring safe in his possession for . His cave is very well hidden, the goblins living nearby appear to be unaware of it and aside from Bilbo's visit there doesn't seem to have been any threat to him continuing to hold onto it .  Did Tolkien highlight what would have happened if Bilbo hadn't recovered the Ring (or if Gollum had somehow died in his cave)? Would the Master Ring have simply remained undetected for the foreseeable future?
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In the Lord of the Rings I recall some mention of when Cirdan gives Narya to Gandalf when the Istari arrive in Middle Earth. I think it is in the appendices but I cannot recall exactly, but I remember something about him suspecting Gandalf's origins and giving him the ring to aid in the fight against Sauron.  Throughout the novel, we learn that Saruman is more powerful than Gandalf and is his superior in some way. I recall somewhere in the novel Gandalf himself confirms this when he describes Saruman as the head of his order (here I assume that when he refers to "his order" he means the Istari - please correct me if this is wrong).  This being the case, I wonder if Tolkien ever discusses in interviews or other works the reasons that Cirdan chose Gandalf over Saruman as the person to pass Narya onto. It would seem to me that without the knowledge of the events to come that Saruman would be the more natural choice if Cirdan was intent on passing on Narya to someone else.
40497
There are two characters who seem to be able to handle and wear the One Ring without being affected by its power. One is the mysterious Tom Bombadil. Later in the book, another character seems to have a similar ability:     Sam, believing Frodo to be dead, takes the ring and vows to finish the job. Upon learning that Frodo is still alive, Sam hurries to him and willingly gives the ring back to him. He was able to do this despite being inside Mordor, and despite Sauron's actively seeking the ring bearer.   How was Sam able to resist the temptations of the ring at such a critical stage in the journey?
37810
"One Ring to rule them all"...  Is there any detail in Tolkien's work indicating what those "all" rings - for Men, Elves and Dwarves - were made of?  Mithril?  Platinum?  Gold?  Some other magical material?  I would expect that The One's material would be "superior" to the ones it ruled?  Related to "  "
101555
Did Frodo take it off? Or was the fell spider's sting simply too strong to be stopped by Mithril?  If it is the latter, that would be pretty surprising, because that would mean Shelob could possibly sting a sleeping dragon! (I remember Gimli saying "Mithril... hard as dragon scales!")
108183
Sauron was defeated in the War of the Last Alliance and his spirit fled from his body. Where did he flee away and hide for thousands of years? Are there any details as to where he went or is it just plainly 'his spirit left his body and didn't return until the Third Age'?
62354
The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, The Histories of Middle Earth, all lore related to this universe is acceptable fodder. Regardless of their power, susceptibility to The One Ring, amount of appearances, or any other constraint, who or what is the oldest?   Since Eru is the "easy" answer, then who or what is second? Any canon source, including letters, is acceptable.  I am asking this as more defined version of  which was put on hold.  And if it matters, the criteria would be oldest at the end of LotR or whatever place he left off in his tales whether the being was alive or not at that point. Example: if being 1 was 999 years old at point A and died, and being 2 was 998 at point B (years after point A) and died, being 1 was oldest in the lore.   (I am not well-read in the Histories and letters and such. If he continued the tale much past the end of LotR, then that is the cut-off point. Oldest sentient being, alive or dead, at the end of canon.)  If you have a question about if some source counts, ask yourself: Did it come from JRR or Christopher working from his father's notes? If the answer is Yes, then it counts. If it does not come from the family, then no. I can trust scholars, but would like the trail to be only one degree of separation. If your case is compelling enough, a pass may be granted.   EDIT  If it's not bad form, can I extend the question to the oldest four? Eru is too obvious and as Kevin comments, "Eru was clearly first, he created the ainur second, and it's generally indicated that Tom Bombadil is tied to Middle-Earth and so third." The "generally indicated" thing is not decisive, but, if this is indeed accurate, I'm curious to know just a little bit more. Please either play along with me, or slap my hand for grabbing too many cookies. It's a fascinating and complicated history I know too little about. (I do plan to remedy this someday.)  NEWER EDIT  I just noticed this question still gets viewed and was active a few months ago. Let me further clarify. I am after the oldest entity AT ANY POINT in the canon. If a creature lived to be 99 years (I'm using low numbers to keep it simple) and then died, and another lived to be 98 at the close of the canon, the dead one wins. Living, dead, doesn't matter. Age at end of canon is all that counts.
34131
How could the One Ring help them? Leaving aside the evil inside the One Ring, how could the One Ring bring any help to Gondor?  It seems that one of the useful powers of the One Ring is that it could control the lesser Rings given to the Elves, Dwarves and Humans. But how could that help with their war?
15834
The temptation of the One Ring, we quickly learn, is always tied up with power: each character's fantasies of possessing it seem to be about what they would do with great power. Even Sam, as I recall, imagines the power to create great huge sweeping gardens. Boromir wants the power to save Gondor, etc.  But does the One Ring actually convey power to anyone but Sauron? It actually seems to diminish its bearers: Bilbo feels "thin" and "stretched", Sméagol becomes the wretched Gollum, Frodo is never quite the same even after it is destroyed. None of them seem more "powerful," even in the abstract way that magic-users in Tolkien operate. No mention is made, that I can recall, of a Ringbearer having greater stature or authority, or of people naturally following them or obeying their commands, while they possess the Ring.  The accepted answer to  implies that a being as powerful as Gandalf could dominate the Ring and break Sauron's hold over it, but even then Tolkien says that "It would have been the master in the end", and his descriptions of a Ringbearing Gandalf sound pretty much like Gandalf is using his own powers, not terribly augmented by the Ring:     [Gandalf] would have remained 'righteous', but self-righteous. He would have continued to rule and order things for 'good', and the benefit of his subjects according to his wisdom (which was and would have remained great).   Now that sounds out of character for a being as humble as Gandalf, but it doesn't actually sound like something he would have been unable to do before. It's a twisted motive, but not really an enhanced power.  Pretty much everyone in Middle-earth agrees that the One Ring will corrupt you, but they all seem to agree that it DOES convey great power even so. Why? Do we ever see any actual, "positive" effects from possessing the One Ring?
105547
A  on a recent question stated     The Undying Lands doesn't prevent mortals from dying so, in fact, [Frodo] died... maybe sixty years (or more, if his life was prolonged) after the end of the story.    If this is correct, Gimli certainly would have died.  Is there any direct reference to his death (preferably with age)? Failing that, what canon states or implies that mortals will still die there?  The Undying Lands might not prevent death, but the One Ring seems to. Gollum lived for over 500 years because of it. Bilbo, Frodo, and Sam all aged slowly before making their way to Valinor, even after the Ring's destruction.  My impression was that because of the Ring's influence they were expected to live forever, and their residence in Valinor served not only to make them comfortable, but also (perhaps even moreso) to protect them from becoming wraiths due to the Ring's effect.   So, did the Ring Bearers live until the End of Days in Valinor, or did they eventually expire, and at what age? Were they mortal once again because the Ring's power had been broken by its destruction, or the magic of the Undying Lands, or did the Valar themselves reverse it?  I'd also appreciate canonical references to age at death if it did happen.