#I love my dwarves

[thephoenixandthecrocodile]

This is what I was thinking as well. Durin is in such a precarious position right now. I mean technically he could offer to return the payment his father extracted but something tells me the dwarf lords are going to demand the rings anyway. Additionally the only two people who know the true circumstances of Durin the elders death are Narvi and Disa. It isn’t beyond the realm of possibility that someone suggests Durin the younger did something nasty to keep the rings for himself.

Also the fall of Eregion and the war between Sauron and the Elves puts a lot of pressure on Khazad-dum as well. They’ve lost an important ally and potential buffer between themselves and the ravaging Uruks. They need all the forces they can muster to protect themselves especially if Lindon falls (and it depends on how dire the writers will make that situation) and there’s probably a lot of angry feelings that Celebrimbor trusted Khazad-dum with the rings and no one else. And then Durin immediately went to Celebrimbor and Elronds aid as the same time Durin the elder die. *suuuuuuuuuspiiiiiiiicious* there will probably be ugly rumors about Durin the younger being an elven puppet.

It also depends on the relationship between Durin and his brother. From what we can tell it’s not a great relationship and we don’t know why the brother isn’t in Khazad-dum. It may be a boromir/faramir situation except this time the brothers despise each other instead of love and support each other.

Disa’s role will also be interesting because as much as I love her they’ve shown her to be far more invested and interested in keeping the throne and protecting the kingdom as a ruler than Durin. In season one she told him his brother wouldn’t rule in his place and in season two she was willing to accept the rings if it meant her people would be safe (and quickly regretted that decision but still) and she’s the first to tell Durin to protect their own borders before helping the Elves. Now that kind of makes sense but it’ll be interesting to see how that side of her is developed when Durin’s (and by extension her children’s) right to the throne is challenged. She may end up using the rings to keep the throne instead of Durin (which would be super devastating, especially if Durin also loses Elrond in the process). I’m also really curious about the role their children will play if they’re being officially cast. I foresee some child based manipulation in season 3.

I’m so worried about the friendship between Durin and Elrond. :( I really want their friendship to pull through despite everything but it’s going to be hard once the elves find out about the rings/whoever in Khazad-dum uses them/the choices Durin/Disa/Elrond have to make to protect their people. Especially if Elrond tells Durin to destroy his rings but the dwarves find out the elves are keeping theirs. They’re not going to understand the difference (and there’s probably going to be nasty words said about poor Celebrimbor if they do understand the difference and maybe even believe the Elves worked with Sauron on purpose to undermine the Dwarves) and even if Elrond understands why Durin needs to keep the rings, he’s still going to be stubborn and tell him to destroy them. It’s going to be such a mess. I just want my poly couple be happy, damn it! 😭

I'm just going to bring this up now: Who controls, distributes, and is willing to use the Seven Dwarven Rings is going to play a big part in the Khazad-dum succession issue in the next season of The Rings of Power.

The other Dwarf lords know that the Seven exist, so if Durin does refuse to use his father's Ring like he promised Disa and/or tries to keep the other Rings away from the other Dwarves, they will certainly ally with his brother, who didn't see what Durin III was like at the end and may be less scrupulous.

Will Durin be able to keep both his promise to Disa and his kingdom? If he doesn't keep the promise, will he be able to keep Disa?

Do the Elves even know about the Seven? If they know Dwarven Rings were made, do they know how many? Did any of the smiths survive the fall of Eregion to tell Gil-Galad et al.? If the Elves do know, what does it take to keep the Rings in Dwarven hands? If they don't, how/why do the Dwarves conceal them?

Does Elrond know that Durin has seven Rings of Power in his possession? And what will it mean for Elrond and Durin's relationship if keeping his kingdom means Durin has to use and/or distribute Rings of Power that are certainly corrupted by Sauron? That he may have kept secret?

It seems like Durin, despite having done nothing wrong, is now backed into a situation where he can't win, with seemingly no way out. And that's before bringing the Balrog into the equation.

[kiis1k]

—

A Braid even Dwarves could be jealous of.

—

Thanks to @iknowwhyulikeoscarwilde for recommending this one! Legolas with a Rapunzel braid is just fun, and Gimli not knowing whether to die or jump him is even funnier.

In my head this is a spring solstice celebration shared between Mirkwood and Erebor, it’s just a competition to see who can show up and show out between the two kingdoms lmao.

[mrkida-art]

A redesign of Thorin Oakenshield

[skydaemon]

so we (and by we, i mean the very specific overlap of jews and nerds among whom i make my home) talk a lot about how tolkien's dwarves, in both the books and movies, were likely influenced by certain jewish stereotypes. obsessed with gold/wealth, secretive (especially about their language and religion), refugees from their ancestral home, portrayed with big, sometimes hooked, noses and interesting facial hair, and most specifically: the favourite little meow meows of one particular god, causing them to be shunned and persecuted by other races and creeds. this is likely unintentional, coming from the subconscious of tolkien in the same way orcs were "based on mongols" (ew colonialism) and activating subconscious biases/stereotypes in the people who designed the dwarves for the movies. it's subtext, albeit subtext that influenced the next eighty years of fantasy.

but what i don't see much discussion of is the fact that in terry pratchett's discworld, it's intentional. terry pratchett's dwarves are, more or less, jews.

carrot is a human adopted by dwarves, based on human standards. but within dwarf culture, he IS a dwarf. specifically, he has undergone specific rituals and memorised certain passages, making him LEGALLY a dwarf. this is basically how conversion works in judaism. indeed, as in judaism, it's considered rude to even mention that carrot is six feet tall and obviously wasn't born into the culture he has adopted.

the dwarves also have internal rifts - there are a group of 'orthodox' dwarves who consider the dwarves in ankh-morpork (who have adopted other customs and don't follow traditional roles) not to be dwarves at all, and don't recognise carrot as a dwarf for the same reason. they believe that the way to be a dwarf is to live in an all-dwarf community and follow their traditional rules, while other dwarves believe they need to change with the times and integrate (at least somewhat) with larger society. jewish as fuck.

there's also the interaction of dwarves with gender. when cherie comes out as female (which isn't a recognised gender by dwarvish society) she is ostracised for taking on the feminine roles common to other discworld races. however, she could never THINK of cutting off her beard, because she is still a dwarf. i see parallels with women in judaism taking on roles traditionally considered 'masculine' (e.g., as rabbis, wearing tallit and kippot) and the acceptance of queer people into jewish communities. there's lots of great discussion about cherie as a trans character on tumblr, btw.

finally, something that particularly strikes me is the line from carrot in tfe, where he says that the biggest dwarf city on the disc is ankh-morpork. obviously all diaspora communities can relate, but it's really something to know that new york is the city with the most jews in the world (960k to jerusalem's 570k. btw, 3rd is LA!).

i just love that, again, consciously or unconsciously, pratchett incorporated more positive elements of jewish culture into his portrayal of the dwarves.

[ninakoll]

6 page (pg-13?) rinniki comic inspired by that one rly cute hajime story in which hajime is invited to eat pizza with rinne at niki's place. did this sort of as rinne's bday comic since niki got one too! sorry if its a little ooc i needed them in the Situation for this comic to work...

that dangling spit over someones face as punishment thing is 100% an older sibling forbidden move . anyway.. always fun to draw a short comic. see you aruound space cowboys

[pilkypills]

pre-raphaelite dwarrowdam studies including a young fem!thorin

[frolickinginstrawberryfields]

i think Bofur can play multiple instruments

in the book he plays clarinet and in the movie he plays flute, I like to think he can also play violin (he can also sing obvi)

[steamclouds]

The Legend of Drizzt portraits continue, now it's Bruenor Battlehammer, King of Mithral Hall's turn!

[silme-lorien]

jewelry in the cultures of middle earth

hi so a little disclaimer these are all my personal headcanons! if canon conflicts with it i kind of don’t really care. also this is going to be based around the third age and the depictions of culture that are shown in lotr/the hobbit

elves

so. i feel like we all could agree that elves are probably the ones that are most into jewelry.

i mean, necklaces, earrings, bracelets, circlets, rings (no pun intended)- you name it, they are wearing it.

i feel like they definitely pierce their ears, probably multiple piercings in each ear (they have a lot of real estate to work with so why not). i am debating if they do facial piercings but im leaning towards no. maybe they do but it’s not very common

they would also utilize bigger pieces of jewelry, as in draping chains around their waists like belts or wearing arm cuffs as well as hair jewelry and whatnot

i don’t think there is a lot of differentiation between “higher” and “lower” class elven jewelry, not that they really have a class system anyway, but like you could see a random elf wearing jewelry similar to that of a king or queen, perhaps a bit more toned down though. same for differentiation based on gender- there is none. male and female elves wear generally the same style and amount

their jewelry is often silver with natural elements, such as swirling or drooping patterns, earth-toned stones or jewels, and generally very free-flowing

dwarves

they are totally second place in jewelry loving. actually, maybe first place in jewelry loving- elves possibly wear more, but the dwarves have a very deep connection to the creation and wearing of it.

i imagine elves wearing jewelry as kind of a casual thing, something everyone does, whereas with dwarves it is most definitely a very personal and intimate action.

they often either make the jewelry themselves or are given it as a gift from a close family member, friend, or romantic partner, which is why they likely don’t wear as much.

their style can range, though it is always very sturdy, with geometric shapes, and reminiscent of the comfort and stability of caves and strong rock. this is both because of their lifestyle and their general demeanor. sometimes they have runes carved into their jewelry. they wear gold or silver, depending on the dwarf.

they pierce their ears and noses and possibly eyebrows as well, but their jewelry is small so as to not get caught in anything. (i don’t think they pierce their lips because you wouldn’t be able to see the piercing anyway and it would get caught in their beards. lol)

like elves, there is less of a differentiation based on gender, but since they have a more established class system i think that royalty would 100% wear more (see thorin and his jewelry disease)

humans

firstly i’m going to mainly be talking about gondor and rohan here

probably very similar to our “traditional” culture- women wear more and men wear barely any.

for women, they likely pierce their ears and wear bracelets, necklaces and earrings.

for men, they lean more towards rings (again no pun intended) and necklaces.

their jewelry is often passed down through generations, it’s not a common thing to purchase/create new. it is almost always gifted

i don’t think they do facial piercings, at least not commonly.

they wear gold and silver, and the style can change drastically depending on the persons lifestyle and class.

even royals/high status people do not wear much jewelry beyond a ring or a necklace, probably passed down through hundreds of generations and is a symbol of strength and power, or their family.

it is almost spiritual, a way to connect their lives with their ancestors or even with the valar

hobbits

they possibly wear a little, but definitely not very much at all.

their main interaction with the world outside of the shire is with men, so i assume they have picked up on men’s customs around it.

they don’t seem to have the resources to create it, so jewelry is almost a mythic concept to them- any hobbit with jewelry must be very rich or well-traveled indeed, as they must have gotten it from a man or elf, hence why everyone is so intrigued by bilbo’s ring.

on that note, since hobbits have such a defined class structure, hobbits of a lower class probably wear none at all while richer hobbits possibly wear some, though mostly necklaces or rings of great importance.

if a hobbit has the means to, they’ll give jewelry to another they’re romantically interested in, a custom that somebody must have heard the elves/humans do but now it’s far more prominent in hobbit culture than in any other.

they don’t really have a style of jewelry, but i imagine it is practical. no dangling or swaying and swirling shapes- similar to dwarven and human customs combined.

feel free to rb or comment with your own headcanons!! i would love to hear about them!

[gooopy]

Has anybody thought hard about falmer culture.. not the snow elves idgaf, i mean the blind people who domesticated Chaurus bugs and make poisons, the falmer who were coerced into blindness by the dwemer... like, theyre blind. Hows their life? Their culture? They have hairstyles and armor and structures. Do any of the falmer have a favorite chaurus, feeling a notch in their chitin and knowing its their favorite? One falmer whos better at making poison than the others so everyone always hands them the nightshade... break up fights between their tamed frotsbite spiders and their chaurus..... do they do eachothers hair? They have what seem to be shrines or maybe storage containers we cant access, someone had to make those. Someone made the homes and the fences and the chests. Are there baby falmer? Grits my teeth i give a fuck about the falmer. Dwemer when i get you dwemer......

[ryuladrawslove]

Love Pays no Indemnity by Jana Chapter 1 The Queen of Sausages and the Queen of the Mountain page 4

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[mrkida-art]

Day 5: Stars Durin's Folk star lamps inspired by their architecture in the books (did you know that they like to carve their pillars in the shape of trees? )

Prompt list:

[chyarui]

Thorin Oakenshield man. The hobbit trilogy is pretty mid but DAMN. Saying this as a lesbian, Thorin is fineee

And Bilbo is a very lucky Hobbit ;)

[thelittletobsterthatcould]

Gnawing at the bars of my enclosure: FILI WAS NOT THE OTHER BROTHER!!! HE WAD HEIR AND ELDER BROTHER!!! HE DIED THINKING HIS FAMILY WAS ALIVE!!!!!!!!!!! HE DIED THINKING HIS MOTHER WOULDN’T BE LEFT ALONE!!!!!!! HE IS BEAUTIFUL AND FLAWED AND DIED TRAGICALLY YOUNG!!!!!!!

[lelianasbong]

cadash x josephine is so underrated.... not just because cadash/brosca/aeducan x anyone is generally slept on (though that's also true). not just because 'i'm hoping you like bad girls/bad boys' as the dwarf-exclusive pickup line is hilarious. there are Layers.

house cadash - warrior caste, once. something else now, but it still tastes like blood in their mouth, feels like steel in their hands, the carta gets its cut - "surely you can't miss that life."

josephine's hands are soft but for small calluses courtesy of her pen. her pen! her heart is aching for a young man who tried to end her life years ago. meanwhile there isn't enough space in skyhold for the blood cadash has spilled. if they wept for every purposeful death they'd caused, much less accidental ones, all of orlais would be under water.

josephine does her best to keep the rumours of their carta past from spreading like wildfire - or at least spin them in such a way that makes protection rackets and blood feuds sound charmingly roguish - but her faith is plain to see and she's placed it in someone whose name belongs to the past, which pursues them doggedly in the present.

lady montilyet holds her family crest in her hands like a fragile, precious thing. because it is. cadash knows. you live and die according to your family's reputation and whatever piecemeal fortune the ancestors permit. but the ancestors made their minds up about house cadash long ago, didn't they? or so the shaperate says.

casteless, surfacer, sun-touched. 'shall i compare you to the sun?' josephine, josephine - 'i'll handle the subject of your past carefully, herald' - there is blood on my hands, josephine - 'i hope you'll find life more peaceful here' - i've had to fight for every scrap of peace i've ever had, josephine - 'my dearest one, i love you precisely the way you are.'

[pilkypills]

"You don't wish to dance, darling?"

"And risk treading on your toes? I've learned my lesson."

"Lucky for you, I’m graceful enough for the both of us. Let's join the next one."