Many of you were keen to see me take on a more feminine form, but I thought better than that, why don’t I introduce you to my sisters of the forge? They are all Maiar of Aulë, no less capable of wringing fine shapes from metal or swinging a hammer than I. Why don’t we meet them?
From left to right, this is Dutiful-One, Meticulous-One, Magnificent-One, and in the back I see Brilliant-One and Patient-One.
Dutiful-One oversees smelting in this division, but is a capable smith in her own right. If you see a 14 tonne crucible being poured by a single Maia holding its chain, it is likely to be Dutiful. She has a heart of gold and arms of tungsten.
Meticulous-One, or as I like to call her, “I’ll-Break-For-Sabbath-After-All-These-Rivets-Are-Done-It-Should-Only-Take-Another-Century!” ……That’s…. That’s a wordplay that works much better in Valarin, I apologize. Meticulous! Take your lunch hour already you madwoman! The extra hinge pins can wait!
Magnificent One is a force to be reckoned with, aren’t you madam? She is chief architect and designer in this sector. Her word is law, her tongue is sharp, and her standards are high. I have the distinction of being the only one to have ever beaten her at arm wrestling, but her title as undefeated champion at the ingot-toss still stands. We’ve been friends for eons, I miss her very much. (She is an absolute surgeon with a whip– taught me everything I know. Ssh!)
And behind them: Brilliant-One is in charge of forge maintenance a temperature control– she can change the burn heat of your coal just by looking at it. No one has more accurate timing or gauge of melting points. Her combinations of fuel often mean the difference between our steel coming out just a hair too brittle or supple and unbreakable as the back of Tulkas.
Patient-One I have not met personally; I hear she is quiet, thoughtful, and an excellent metallurgist. I believe she invented a new copper alloy? A fine worker! I am sure she will do well in this unit.
Ah, there are more, so many countless more! I built mountains with this family, sunk the basins of seas with them… I would be heartless if I had no regrets about leaving them behind. You deserve to see the fine women of Aulë’s forges in flesh and spirit, not merely a costume worn by me– not that I have objections to said costume! But my sisters wear it much better, I think you’ll agree.
Silm Prompt: Lorgan, of the Easterlings under Morgoth–RivkaZ 2016
We don’t know much about Lorgan, but I envision a savvy, pragmatic leader, trying to make the best decision for his people, which in this case meant siding with Angband in in the Nirnaeth Arnoediad. In exchange for his people’s services, he was “rewarded” with the lands of Dor Lomin, which kind of sucked, and all the stragglers left in it as vassals and slaves. He was in charge of parceling them out to his clan, which lead to Brodda occupying the lands where Morwen, Turin, Nienor, etc lived. He’s not a figure that will be remembered well by history; he did not cover himself in glory by siding with Morgoth and enslaving his fellow men, but keeping people alive in the First Age is a tough job, and he bet on the team that won (for a while), rather than the team that died honorably. All in all, probably an interesting dude. (Thanks to @crocordile for the request and for informing me of Lorgan’s existence!)
Baby Ear :B ❤ He’s gonna get freckles like his dad when he’s older.
Lots of layers in Gondolin, I figure. It’s cold up there! Idril running around with bare legs making Turgon anxious because she could catch a chill… Idril coming to bed with ice cube feet and putting them on her furnace of a viking husband… Good times.
(guest-starring a ghosty maeglin from the previous model sheet.)
Some spoopy courtly outfit designs in preparation for an upcoming project! I think #5 is my winner for this round…
I’ve whined about drawing Maeglin before on this blog; he’s really hard for me to put on paper because I instinctively want to do something more complex and less generic than the version in my head (who looks like Kylo Ren and Sasuke and 8 Hot Topic employees rolled into one being), but the more I deviate from the original template, the less he feels like Maeglin to me. So I may just… stop fighting the tide and see where that design takes me, and what quirks it develops on its own.
Someone please pat me on the back and vindicate the incredible amount of sleep I’ve lost because of this stupid thing. X__X
Most of the parts that actually look good were cannibalized from models in the 3D warehouse. This is just for my own drawing reference, I’m not uploading it anywhere as a finished product.
Also please enjoy the entire cast of the Akallabeth played by Stan Lee and Stan Lee’s Clones.
Figure 1: A young scamp from Umbar, showing early signs of delinquency. Figure 2: The newly made pirate captain, setting his sights on fame and fortune. Figure 3: Having acquired fame, fortune, and unfortunately, a ring of power, the now-infamous Ji-Indur serves the Dark Lord in Mordor and is bent to His will. Figure 4: Post War of the Ring, our pirate enjoys his extended un-life in retirement, and says never mind to all that wraithrubbish.
Fun With Fanar 2.0: The Revenge: The Surprise Sequel 2017
Orca!Sauron returns to the blog, now with reliable buoyancy and propulsion! It’s been over a year since he was thrown into a cliff and banned from Sea World, let’s see how well things go this time.
That is the difference between upholding a facade for many years, sensitive to every detail lest it betray your intentions, and performing a version of yourself that your enemies expect, while letting them do the tedious work of engineering their fate.
More was at stake in Eregion. I had to make myself quite vulnerable to infiltrate the elven kingdoms; my foothold was tenuous, my goals uncertain. Securing power in the west required the cooperation of at least one ruler, and depending on whose ear I gained, the method of influence would change to match. My plans had to remain flexible, my disguise absolute.
…I was very lucky to have gained the trust of the greatest smith of the Second Age. Of all the rulers of elfindom, wooing the grandson of Fëanor was more than I had dared to hope. If everything had gone as I desired, I could have formed a powerful alliance; our kingdom could have been iron-fast, a seat of industry and ingenuity. I admired Tyelpë very much. It was less a ‘seduction’ than a slow-formed bond. Many times I regretted the deception that lay between us; like a pane of clear glass… easy to forget, until one stretches out a hand.
“Annatar” was less a lie than an omission; he was comprised of truths, leaving out only what would compromise. What was built on those truths was genuine– but it was not enough. And I learned that too late.
…But the lesson I remembered. I will never again allow myself to become so close to my enemies that I feel sympathy on their behalf– not that this was very difficult. I despised Tar Calion. Only his grandfather was a more despicable despot, and he a less lustful conqueror.
This may surprise you, but the East is dear to me. Men, as a race, I do not love, but the people of Umbar, Harad, Khand, and Nurn are different from the Edain; they are less stuffed full of the presumption and arrogance of the Valar. They are rich with gods and heroes unheard of in the West; they have built temples to science and art, they reject no ideas for being too full of what fools call “Melkor’s influence”– as if my Master gave any thought to the taxonomy of nature, or mathematics, or industry. I find this refreshing. The country too is as rich and varied as its people. I have tried to be a good ruler; preserving the existing kingships and systems of governance and religion wherever I could.
The Sea Kings ran rough-shod over every foreign land they came across. Though the Numenorian influence has long since been integrated into the local milieu, most continue to begrudge the hierarchies brought with it. Their ships and dignitaries are no welcome sight.
Ar-Pharazôn came with armies and slave galleons. He routed my armies throughout Harad and where he did he left garrisons and exacted tribute, burnt heresies and forbade teachings. …I am no stranger to many of these practices. I have known ages of war, presided over a kingdom’s worth of prisoners. Yet this was a systematic purging of history and culture I have never seen before. I have come to loathe it.
Calion was an arrogant, brutal little man. It became clear to me that the easiest way to manipulate him was to give him the semblance of victory wherever he sought it. My attacks became feints, my retreats led him farther and farther inland, until he came to my very gates. The sea of tents and banners that stretched into the desert was a glorious, chilling sight indeed… but if it had come to battle, that bloated army would have sunk under its own weight crossing the Mountains of Shadow. But I came to him like a tame horse, and stretched out my neck for him, and let him parade me through the streets of Armenelos; a vanquished god, an exotic beast. He would have me perform transformations for his amusements, sing songs for his court like a minstrel or a trained bird. I obliged his every whim, and the more he was reminded of the power he had conquered, the more besotted with he became. I was his private wishing-well, a genie at his command. Calion was a man of many violent passions; he considered himself a great lover of women and, occasionally, young men of certain castes (there was little distinction made in the laws of the land). I do not believe he was ever attracted to me, as I was… but the thought of a powerful warlord on his knees was a potent drug to him; enough to bring him panting and fumbling at his laces– at least, until old age withered such impulses at the root.
I took a long-steeped and subtle pleasure in the reversal of power; sweet as Umbarim tea. Each submission was a victory, every humiliation I endured became a knot around his soul. He was a clever man, a cautious, paranoid, ambitious man… but precious easy to bind, if one had a little patience. Even while he thought me his toy, I had his ear. How tame he was, how easy to steer once the hooks were in.
It was his wife that was the true obstacle to my designs. Lucky was I, that time and the chains of propriety had done their work long before I came to power. Her rebellions were toothless, lacking the support or structure necessary to supplant me. Still, she worried me more than Calion and his armies ever did. What an empress she would have been…
But as I said, no enemy since has come close to my heart. Tormenting her with my victories was part of a daily game that brought me great amusement.
Sending that whole hateful island to hell almost made my loss worthwhile.
Tsch… you test your limits with me, brother; asking so very many impertinent questions! Don’t you have have more pressing matters to attend? Curling your hair, maybe? Or tongue exercises?
No? A pity. Very well:
Item one: The Numenorian’s hospitality, and their impeccable standard of hygiene. The bath house in the capital was a favorite destination of mine; always ready to heat the waters particularly hot for my visits, and provide most exquisite attendants. Some of their number I admit to taking a special interest in… their company must be among my favorite things as well.
The second: I do, but only as a chick who has left the nest: I have flown to better things. I could not return to that narrow life now, even if I wax nostalgic for its moments of joy, or its solidity of purpose.
Aulë was as good to me as he knew how to be… as he could have been, as the father of my making, if not of my choice.
Thirdly: Yes. As should you. As should we all. One day perhaps, we will reach a level of industry that would allow us to explore such an expanse as the Outer Dark and probe its mysteries… but not the Void. It is that which is outside of Creation, a prison of unimaginable bleakness. What being trapped there would do to the mind… I shudder to think.
And finally: *Gestures to forging apron, encompassing his whole ensemble of boots, gloves, and capelet.* These are the most practical for working in. I don’t believe I have a favorite mode of attire, but this is certainly my most frequent.
…Anything else, dear brother? I don’t suppose you’d like to know the number of hairs on Drauglin’s ass, or which hand I favor for polishing my hammer?
“Hah! You think I need to curl my hair? Brother deary – I look like this naturally. No curling or oils needed. I admit I do treat myself with some old nùmenorian oils, as I miss them just as much as you do. And oh their jewelry and their sense of fashion! I almost find myself missing it at times – Especially the smell of our temple”
“And yes – of course I fear the void. As you say, we all should. That’s just how it is.
…. And concerning your ‘hammer polishing’ I would love to hear all about it~ The thought of you ‘polishing your hammer’ is quite… stirring after all. Do tell me – which hand do you use? Both for your literal hammer and your cock, deary”
“Both hands– for both hammers.”
*waits to see if the Truth Curse will contradict him*
I find myself at a loss when it comes to bestowing a proper gift upon you. All riches are already yours, and any material thing you desire is readily provided. I am no craftsman to attempt a work in your honor, and I cannot even offer myself as you own me already.
What does one give to a spirit who already has everything?
If there is anything you desire, anything at all that I could retrieve for you or offer to you, as always you need only ask. I hope this season brings you victory and satisfaction.
-K
Khamul, Khamul, old friend. You owe me nothing for this season or any other– your abiding service is enough.
But as you mention it, I recall there is something…
I’ve heard tell of a clever device built by the Men of old Arnor; I suspect with help from interested scholars in Rivendell. It is a kind of map and celestial clock combined, called an astrarium.
There are many such astronomical engines of course (I recall there was a sizable planetarium in Umbar before its sack), but most of these are more decorative than practical– especially now that the world is globed, and the old maps of Varda’s heaven are obsolete.
The scale of such devices is often greatly skewed, given the vastness of the celestial sphere; but this one is just large enough to simulate the movement of the stars and planets with some precision. It takes up the space of a whole chamber, and is as complex and complete a model as can be made with the tools of men. I don’t doubt I could improve it if I had it in hand; nor do I doubt I could refine the accuracy of my own calculations with its help.
I suspect it lies somewhere in Elrond’s kingdom, which would make it exceedingly difficult to extract, and more so to transport, given its size and the delicacy of the instrument… But if you truly wish to please me, and find something useful to my purposes, that would be a wondrous gift indeed.
MisbehavingMaiar: Tumblr Archive 