#feanorian minions

[feanorianethicsdepartment]

#I can believe that it was the lowest death toll of any kinslaying#that they went in with a specific purpose and that purpose was the silmaril#and while they were much more skilled at killing than they were at Alqualondë#they were similarly much more skilled at deliberately disabling then shoving aside#AND I don’t think it would’ve taken much to prompt the iathrim to flee at that point#ESPECIALLY once dior was dead#I think the spiders & other monstrous creatures were already moving in; with the girdle gone#THAT SAID I do not buy that interpretation of the oath#I think it’s just that by Sirion the Fëanorians had concluded that hitting people until they got the jewel then running wasn’t an option#(bc it didn’t work in Doriath; and threats alone didn’t work in Alqualondë!)#the only way was to kill and then take it from dead hands#so—fine#fine. we kill everyone in our way. and then we take the jewel. (via @tanoraqui)

Doriath vaguely hot take : very few people were actually killed during the second kinslaying (unlike the third)

I've been rereading stuff, and I've come to the conclusion that, contrary to popular opinion, the second kinslaying was not a massacre of epic proportions, with many civilian victims, but an episode on a much smaller scale, unlike the massacre in Sirion.

For the following reasons :

I. Any description/allusion to Doriath in the text focuses on Dior as the (almost) only victim of the third kinslaying :

"But Dior returned no answer to the sons of Fëanor ; and Celegorm stirred up his brothers to prepare an assault upon Doriath. They came at unawares in the middle of winter, and fought with Dior in the Thousand Caves ; and so befell the second slaying of Elf by Elf. There fell Celegorm by Dior's hand, and there fell Curufin, and dark Caranthir ; but Dior was slain also, and Nimloth his wife, and the cruel servants of Celegorm seized his young sons and left them to starve in the forest."

That's the main description of the second kinslaying we have, and Dior and his wife are the only direct victims mentioned (on the non-Fëanorian side).

Later on we read this about the Silmaril in Sirion : "Then Elwig and the people of Sirion would not yield the jewel which Beren had worn and Lúthien had worn, and for which Dior the fair was slain (...)"

Again, no mention is made of any victim but Dior (Nimloth is completely forgotten there).

And finally, in the third mention we have of the second kinslaying : "But Eonwë answered that the right to the work of their father, which the sons of Fëanor formerly possessed, had now perished, because of their many and merciless deeds, being blinded by their oath, and most of all because of their slaying of Dior and the assault upon the Havens."

Again, the only mentioned victim is Dior, and there is no indication of further victims. Now, it could be a bias of our sources, who do favour the famous and high-born (and ignore for example armed guards that could have been there), and also Melian/Elwing's line.

BUT :

II. That would make sense if we consider that Doriath was at the time of the second kinslaying recovering from an episode of violence on a, I would argue, much bigger scale :

After Thingol was killed, many people were killed in the fighting between the Dwarves and Elves in the caves of Menegroth ("For there was battle in the Thousand Caves, and many Elves and Dwarves were slain (...). But the Dwarves were victorious, and the halls of Thingol were ransacked and plundered").

Probably, crucially, the majority of these victims were the few warriors that they had. Others were probably killed as well fighting the dwarves later on with Beren and Dior, to avenge Thingol and recover his treasure.

So at the time of the second kinslaying, Dior might have had a few armed guards around him, but the impression we get is that he fights the Sons of Fëanor alone, and I would venture that his wife is killed when she tries to come and defend him.

The rest of the population of Doriath would be non-combatants who just flee, probably like they just fled the first time.

And that's why the text says that "a remnant of the people fled" from Doriath : it's not "a remnant" because the Fëanorians killed them all, it's "a remnant" because they were already what was left of Doriath at the time of their attack.

III.It would also explain why during the third kinslaying some of the people of the sons of Fëanor turn against them, but not during Doriath.

"For the sons of Fëanor that yet lived came down suddenly upon the exiles of Gondolin and the remnant of Doriath, and destroyed them. In that battle some of their people stood aside, and some few rebelled and were slain upon the other part aiding Elwing against their own lords (...)"

We are told that Sirion is : "the last and cruellest of the slayings of Elf by Elf ; and that was the third of the great wrongs achieved by the accursed oath". Sirion is a massacre on a large scale, unlike Doriath.

It would also explain why the third kinslaying is referred to in collective terms, not by singling out one individual. Eonwë talks about "the assault upon the Havens."

IV.I think the reason for the difference in terms of scale of violence between Doriath and Sirion is a strict reading of the Oath :

As a reminder, that's the text of the oath in the Silm : "They swore an oath which none shall break, and none should take (...) vowing to pursue with vengeance and hatred to the ends of the World Vala, Demon, Elf or Man as yet unborn, or any creature, great or small, good or evil, that time should bring forth unto the end of days, whoso should hold or take or keep a Silmaril from their possession."

In Doriath, the Sons of Fëanor ask Dior to return the Silmaril. Dior refuses, Dior is slain.

In Sirion however, it's not just Elwing that refuses to return the Silmaril : it's Elwing "and the people of Sirion". The people of Sirion, collectively, therefore fall under the "vengeance and hatred" of the Sons of Fëanor. And that's why the massacre is on a bigger scale, and some of the Sons of Fëanor's people chose to turn against their lords.

V.It would finally make sense in terms of the gradual descent into violence of the Sons of Fëanor

Time and again, we see them (or at least Maedhros) try and keep the violence to a minimum. He (they) try diplomatic solutions, try and ignore the oath, but "the oath of the sons of Fëanor was waked again from sleep. (...)".

There is a graduation in the violence : first the massacre at Alqualondë, which is not premeditated, then the slaying of Dior and his wife over the Silmaril, then finally the attack over the population of Sirion and, later on, the attack against the guards of the host of the Valar.

[silvantransthranduiltrash]

You know what i think is an interesting concept?

The elves know war, but like specifically one 1 kind of war with the occasional stray into another kind.

And that is, elves (from what we’ve read) know war against 1 evil enemy. Like, a war where they are indisputably the good guys.

But continues war where there are 2 sides that simply disagree with each other? They don’t know how to go about that!

The closest they’ve come is the feanorian massacres, but even then it’s more like a few very direct instances of battle rather than a full scale war.

Furthermore, the war they are used to is against a god, essentially, and it’s deformed, damned minions. Not against a different government with normal elves or anything.

There also hasn’t (really) been an instance of civil war or violence breaking out due to discrimination. Cause there’s lowkey discrimination amongst elves in tolkein, but it’s not erupted in an actual war, yk?

Idk, i just find it fascinating how these successful elven generals and war heroes know about counter strategies and army manuevering, but at the same time wouldn’t really understand the use of say suicide pills/espionage/assassination. Things that you can use to get inside the enemy’s domain and turn the tide against them there.

I’m not saying that elves are bad at combat or war, but it’s more limited to direct confrontation than anything else. And they probably have dipped their toes in on the other ways to do it, but, like i said, it’s rather limited as (other than the feanorian bs) from what we’ve seen (i’m only refering to what’s written and not what we might believe the silvan and avari and other elves have done) the elves are, generally, a pretty united front and they aren’t inclined to turn on one another.

It’s not that the elves are naive or don’t know how the world works, but there’s definitely an area of how war works that they’ve barely discovered.

[eri-pl]

Silm reread 19: Game of Thrones the Children of Hurin

Also maybe this time I will remember to put it in the queue instead of posting immadiately.

TW: you all know which ones apply here. (No details, even less than in the book.)

So, Rían. What's with her??? Postpartum depression?

Anyway, we leave her at her enigmatic death and go to Túrin. He is born in the same year when B&L meet. I guess the bad/good luck is budgeted per year…

Morwen is cool, and it comes to her head to send Túrin to Dorriath in secret. So, we know where we're headed.

Thingol is now a fan of Men (good for him, but in this case— no, wait. It does not bite him personally in the rear. Húrin does later, but maybe he would anyway.

Morwen doesn't want to leave her house where she lived with Húrin, which is more understandable than the version in (poetic text? I don't remember) where she just says that she doesn't want to be given alms by elves. She sounds proud in that one, and in a bad sense.

Saeros. He is a Nando… which ones were those, Green Elves? Riven Elves? anyway he's a jerk. He is jealous because the king likes Túrin. also, his insult (Mannish women running naked in forests) seems kind of prophetic or at least foreshadowy. (Nienor) Also, I only now realized that Túrin's revenge is simply "now you do the thing you've just said my people do". Which is… not nice but stylish in a way.

He dies on bad luck, Turin feels guilty and is afraid that Thingol will put him into prison. So he runs away. Which isn't fair to Thingol, I would say. Or the right thing to do.

He joins a band, they attack everyone from either side of the war.

Thingol forgives Túrin without talking to him, which is very kind of him. also he sends Beleg to go find Túrin because he misses the guy. Which is very lovely.

In the meantime Túrin calls himself "the Wronged". By whom? saeros maybe, but he's already dead. Thingol??? Maybe go and check your assumptions with reality, my guy? Go talk with your elven foster-dad?

Beleg gets beaten, Túrin is sorry and promises to only attack Morgoth's minions from now on. This will be important later.

Morgoth (or something in his hierarchy? Easterlings?) is poetically referred to as "the Black Hand" which is quite unique.

Beleg tells Túrin that Thingol forgave him… and Túrin is too proud to accept it. Seriously, my guy, come on. why. why are you so stubborn to be upset?

Thingol is sad (very relateable, very sweet, in this story he is the good guy in general, very lovely of him).

Beleg gets Anglachel, ignoring Melian's advice. Also, Anguirel is mentioned.

Túrin and his men attack some Dwarves. So…. remember when he promised to only attach Morgoth's minions? Yea. He doesn't keep to it. As we will see, Túrin is one of the worst at keeping his word. And the characters that are on par with him about this are clear bad guys, namely Morgoth and Ulfang.

So of course it goes wrong. But this is not a summary, this is a "things I did not remember and my thoughts" post, so I won't recap all the Mîm story.

Also, we see Mîm complaining on "Elves gave new names to everything" which sounds like a Tolkien's in-joke. Because he loves giving names to stuff.

Túrin is sorry for the death of Mîm's son. As we will see, his "learning from having killed someone and becoming better" skill is on par with Maglor "apology videos songs" Feanorian.

Also, he promises Mîm that if he ever becomes rich, he will pay a weregild in gold. Another promise that later goes nowhere. Also, funnily, the place where Túrin will become rich is Nargothrond. And who years later gets the treasures of Nargothrond? Mîm. So, fate makes this promise fulfilled (more or less), even though Túrin does not.

Túrin gets vibes from Brethil, I'm not sure why.

Mîm forgives him, more or less, convinced by his sadness and/or promise of recompense. they talk a lot and Túrin learns things. also, we get the story of the "Petty" Dwarves and how the Sindar hunted them out of ignorance and how that hate the Noldor for living in Nargothrond which was initially their. (I am certain Finrod did not know this and is not at fault here, this doesn't seem to me like his kind of bad decision. Not talking about things: yes. But chasing other race out of their homes? No.)

Also, weather note. Morgoth becoming more powerful = winters are worse. (Cut to CSL chuckling in the background ;D …but no this is an older trope I think.)

Beleg again, Túrin doesn't want to return to Doriath again. we arent told whether Beleg asked "how is the 'not attacking non-evil peoples' thing going?" but part of me wishes he did)

Anthropology… well, Eldarology: the Noldor have more skill and lore, but the Sindar are wiser. Or are they just wiser than Men? Translation unclear.

Anyway, Mîm hates Beleg, because racial prejudice, and because the bandits respect him.

Morgoth gets a paragraph he totally does not deserve the poetics of, even if technically it is true. Also, we are told that he knows a lot and knows more about his opponent's plans than anyone suspects, even Melian. whom BTW he thinks a lot about.

Also, this paragraph is in present tense which means that either a) the text was written pre-War-of-Wrath b) the translation is messed up again.

Anyway Morgoth hears about the Dragon Helm, realizes it's Húrin's son and sends spies to the area. And orcs.

So, betrayal and capture. Beleg is powerful! Also, Gwindor.

Orcs are afraid of the storm! They think it's the work of the Valar. do they react to every lightning like this? But…. Morgoth can shoot lightnings too (see: B&L)? Maybe they are afraid only of lightning strikes accompanied by rain. (Rainless storms are a thing and they are creepy, make the air feel exhausting, give people headaches and look quite Morgoth-coded)

Beleg dies and from now on Túrin is in mourning, and it never fully goes away. even though he is healed by Ulmo's magic spring.

Also, Anglachel is a heavy sword! Two-handed? At least one and a half probably. I will need to pay more attention to details of the fights. I would love to know what type of sword is it.

Finduilas and the love triangle. Poor girl tbh. Poor Gwindor too,. And Túrin isn't at fault in this particular situation either.

Túrin changes his name again. Plus we get a description: pale, grey-eyed, dark-haired, more beautiful than most Men then (unclear how this compares to modern people). Also, he's got Elven manners and …seems like a Noldo? Does it mean he can speak Quenya? Maybe not.

Anglachel gets a makeover.

Also, túrin gets a dwarven armor, and finds a golden dwarven mask and … I think he is pretty wealthy at this point. And, despite the fact that Mîm had betrayed him (which I'm not sure he knows? Maaaybe from Beleg via Gwindor?) he could at least try to fulfill his promise. Because, you know, promises.

Seriously, if Túrin and the Feanorians averaged with one another on their attitudes to "keeping your word" everyone would be much happier.

But no, he fights in a precious Dwarf-made armor and doesn't care about the poor Dwarf whom he promised to pay for the death of his son.

Finduilas falls in love, it is "stronger than her will". OK, feelings happen. And can't be controlled. I love how they all behave about it, all three are civil and respectful and don't make much drama about the romantic stuff.

Gwindor is like "I love you, but if you don't love me, don't try to force it, follow your heart. But maybe don't marry this guy because he's got a bad vibe." Plus some talk about how such relationships Should Not Be Unless Fate. (I'm not a fan of this. But then, Gwindor had spent a lot of time in angband so I can dismiss some of his opinions as "warped by Morgoth's influence".)

Also, he tells her who Túrin is, which I'm not sure what I think about. I believe that he doesn't try to get her back, just to make sure he's safe. But also, this is betraying of a frnd's secret. But also, this secret was stupid and Gwindor did not, I think, promise to keep it, just was asked to. Anyway I don't think it changes much.

OK, I take it back. It does change something. Just not in the love triangle. Orodreth starts to favor Túrin. which has good effects (the people of Nargathrond stop being trechearous cowards) and bad effects (the bridge, nor enough caution).

Gwindor is against Túrin's ideas, but is ignored, because he's not a good warrior. (there will be a similar situation near the end).

Another good consequence of it is Morwen and Niennor getting to Doriath.

Ulmo sends a warning to Orodreth, but Túrin is too proud to listen and loves his big bridge. and Orodreth seems to be bad at having his own opinions tbh.

We are told that Túrin is proud and wants everything to go according to his will, which reminds me of similar line about Maeglin. Those two parallel each other very much in this moment. The main difference is their romantic situations. Maeglin is in unrequited love, Túrin is loved and … when did he even learn about Finduilas' love for him? Oh, wait, she told him her conversation with Gwindor, so I guess then. It must have been somewhat awkward. anyway he doesn't seem to care much about her.

Nargothrond falls, Gwindor curses the day when he saved Túrin (they all love cursing things) and tells him that only Finduilas is between Túrin and his doom. which seems like one of those I-am-dying-so-have-a-prophecy things (which Brandon Sanderson totally did not borrow from the Silm, along with an assortment of various visuals, but not so much to look unoriginal)

The bridge. And the dragon, who is, like werewolves, inhabited by an evil spirit. It enchants Túrin and gives him a warped self-image and toxic sense of guilt. Also, an obsession about finding his mother and sister.

So, Gwindor's advice was too late. Ulmo's advice was not too late, but has been ignored. and here we are.

Some madness and stuff.

Turin comes to his senses, but decides to go looking for his mother and sister, because he would bring doom upon them. This doesn't sound like a good idea to me, also, he changes his mind all the time. If he kept doing one thing and went to Doriath, maybe he would not land in the incest situation? But I don't know the timeline this well. anyway, it rings wrong, like a bad decision.

He finds Finduilas' grave. And names himself Turambar, which … is Quenya? So he is fluent in Quenya too. huh. I guess Orodreth taught him. Or Finduilas.

Poor Anglachel is put away, but I guess it is a good sign.

Morwen and Niennor leave Doriath…. So yes, this checks out, he probably should have gone to Doriath back then. Also, their motivarions are "despair" and "an unlucky hour of hope" so… this can't go well.

Glaurung has to use 100% of his power to be able to do anything to Nienor, which is extremely cool of her. She's more strong willed than many elves, i think.

But she gets enchanted and runs and runs naked through the forest, which was foreshadowed by Saeros.

Brandir is another instance of "I love you, I won't try to get you but please don't matty Túrin". And he is, just like Gwindor, not great at fighting, because disability.

Anyway, Túrin and Niniel get married. Yay.

Also, we learn that Glaurung sent orcs to Brethil. So, he commands orcs. Dragons are in the chain of command. this is an interesting tidbit for fics.

people ignore Brandir's reasonable opinions (just like Gwindor's), he is upset and stops loving his people.

Túrin ills the dragon and it might have ended better, but he wants to a) get Anglachel back, and b) the satisfaction of seeing his enemy dead. Bad reasons, bad results.And since it's Túrin, the results are unproportionally bad.

Glaurong dies and his magic disappears instantly. It is how this works in the Legendarium, I suppose.

Turin and his sister/wife get a Romeo&Juliet scene.

Brandir kills Dorlas. WHY??? For his cowardice?

Túrin realizes that fate is upon him, curses Brandir and kills him (a rare combo), then goes to sit on the grave and be sad about what he did. Maglor vibes intensify, but he seems to be reaching a little bit of progress here? He asks Finduilas for advice (for her own good, I hope she's in Mandos and not listening to him) because he's got no idea what to do and what would be good for others. Hey, he is willing to take advice! This is a new thing.

But instead, Mablung comes. BTW Mablung is a kind of guy that is in the background of many important events, but surprisingly survives (until he does not).

So, now Túrin sends him to bring his curse to Doriath. (And curses Mablung's mission too)

Yes, definitely Maglor's approach to "learning from your regrets" :Þ

Seriously.

My guy.

Mallory would— You know what? Túrin just landed above the Feanorians on my list of "take them from Tolkien and give the custody of them to sir Thomas Mallory".

Yes, I know the gerne and stuff. but still. I am upset. I keep being upset on reading those even though I know what happens.

…but we're gonna sing it anyway.

[shrikeseams]

Considering more faithless first age elves.

I've written before about the idea of deeply disillusioned and slowly deserting Iathrim. But also, finwian minions who are over it! Who are deeply disillusioned with finwian bullshit and unjustified ainur high-handedness and unwinnable battles, who dissappear off across the mountains or into the woods, or into some distant falathrim settlements.

Just. The idea that the only elves who betrayed or deserted their lords were either 1) under evil feanorian influence or 2) turning on their evil feanorian lords feels like elvish propaganda.

More Iathrim who watch Thingol & family's obsession with noldoran trinkets and say fuck it, this isn't why I chose him as king.

More foolish young calaquendi who get one good look at war and fucking high-tail it outta there.

[feanorianethicsdepartment]

fëanorian folk song genres

unnecessarily bloodthirsty campfire singalong

song about how awesome the high king is, censored to the point it could conceivably be about fingolfin

i love you but you were killed by orcs and now i will not rest until every last spawn of the pits of angband writhes in agony beneath my feet

our somewhat abstruse academic disagreement has led to three deaths and multiple riots, this is a perfectly logical progression of events and also you’re still wrong (an old noldorin classic)

friendly ribbing about those cold-bloods in himring/lunatics in the gap/megalomaniacs in himlad/bean-counters in thargelion/psychopaths in ossiriand (delete as appropriate)

significantly less friendly ribbing about those pansy-ass followers of fingolfin

unmasked hostility towards thingol and his stupid girdle

fuck the valar in general and morgoth in particular

i like you, you like me, let’s set something on fire

extremely cheerful ditty about what happens to those who betray the cause

my fëanorian could totally beat up your fëanorian

i killed more orcs than you in that battle, prove me wrong

the old boss was an awesome guy (citation not needed)

attempt to adapt sound of entire valinorean chamber orchestra to three beaten-up lutes and a whole lot of gumption

calling morgoth a whiny little bitch for seven hundred stanzas

when the silmarils are reclaaaimed~

[tolkien-feels]

Feanorian Week Day 1: Maedhros

If you haven't seen me mention it - I'm not even tagging these because they will be extremely casual posts, but here's a headcanon for each prompt:

Kingship

Childhood

Maedhros is an unusually tactile elfling. He wants to take in his hands everything he finds interesting, and he's got favorite blankets before it should even be possible for him to differentiate between materials. As he grows up, this makes him a touchy-feely child in a way elves usually aren't. He mostly outgrows this, but in his childhood this is actually very useful for his parents. Even very young, Maedhros has a strong tendency to not speak up when he something is upsetting him, but Feanor and Nerdanel are both very aware that when Maedhros suddenly gets very cuddly for no apparent reason, something is Wrong.

There are ten thousand reasons why he gives up his crown. It is repayment of a debt he can't possibly ever settle, it is atonement, it is what he believes is right. But it's also the lesser of three evils. He can retain kingship as he recovers, and endanger his people because he's quite aware he's not in the headspace to be fighting Morgoth. He can allow Maglor to keep kingship, and just about advertise to the world he's unfit for leadership, as well as leave Maglor open for accusations of taking up power he should not have. Or he can yield to Fingolfin, and leave the door open for the union of the factions of the Noldor, which might help them in the long term, if not get the Silmarils, at least get revenge by defeating Morgoth. He's extremely aware he is betraying his father, and he's rule lawyering the hell out of Feanor's dying words, and no accusation by his brothers is worse than the things he's accusing himself of even as he speaks to Fingolfin.

Torture

Maedhros has a very, very hard time remembering what exactly he has and hasn't told Morgoth and his minions. (Not that Morgoth was after information, but two birds with a stone, right? If you're going to torture Feanor's son anyway you might as well see if he says anything useful.) After his rescue, wondering what exactly Morgoth knows and whether he will act on any of this intel is a major source of anxiety for Maedhros. In time this becomes an obsession with attempting to read Morgoth's mind, not too different from Denethor's obsession with Sauron's plans in LotR. Occasionally Maedhros even attributes to Morgoth knowledge he can't possibly have learned from Maedhros because Maedhros himself didn't have said information at the time, and nobody can tell whether this is just Maedhros acting on trauma or if Morgoth did something to his mind or spirit.

Adjusting/Coping

Maedhros never learns coping strategies as much as he sort of... doesn't allow himself to do anything but keep going. He basically represses as much as he can, and what he can't, he turns into rage on the battlefield. He doesn't give this too much thought, until Elrond and Elros enter his life. To be honest, he isn't sure if in this situation he's Fingon or Morgoth, savior or captor, but the boys are clearly terrified. Elrond at least accepts Maglor's comfort (though boy does it have Stockholm syndrome undertones), but Elros responds well to nothing until Maedhros takes him under his wing and begins to teach him how to rage his way out of fear, which is sure A Choice. Elros can barely lift a sword, but he already sleeps with a knife under his pillow, and Maedhros is in a downwards spiral of self-loathing for teaching Elros all the things he wishes he didn't know himself.

Unity

Growing up, Maedhros assumes his role as an adult will be to be his father's second-in-command, and that his father will never attain kingship. He also assumes he will be more useful as a generalist than specializing in anything, and he further assumes he will cover for the few things his father isn't good at, chief of which is building consensus even after persuasion fails. Obviously this isn't how it pans out, but after the Nolofinweans get the crown, this turns out to be a very valuable skillset. As a politician, Maedhros shines when the king requires him to figure out how to bring quarreling groups together, be it in large scale or just stubborn infighting. He knows exactly how to offer as little as possible to get back as much as possible. This particular skill is one of the reasons why when Fingon becomes high king, Maedhros functionally becomes his chief advisor, though they never make it an official role.

Beauty

Throughout the peaceful days in Valinor before Formenos, Maedhros considers his beauty to be almost akin to a craft. If he has been blessed with beauty which brings joy to Aman, he will hone it like any other of his gifts. It's not a matter of vanity, he needs no attention or compliments, but he does enjoy delighting people with his looks, so for events where he knows people will be looking at him, he carefully considers every element of his appearance. He's not striving to outshine anyone, but he does want to be pleasant to look at, much like a minstrel strives to be pleasant to listen to in performance. You could accurately say he subcreates his own appearance, seeing his own body and demeanor much in the same way his parents look at metal and gemstone, as quality raw materials to be transformed through talent and effort into something that increases the bliss of Valinor, even as subcreating is also a form of self-expression for them. (That gets so sad so fast once you get to Angband, so let's not.)

[tanoraqui]

reverse fic rec: everyone who writes or enjoys return-to-Aman fic where the Feanorian Noldor are still slightly insane in support of their lord(s) should read the webcomic Girl Genius. You WILL enjoy the mad scientist–minion dynamics. Also it’s a sprawling tale of adventure, family drama turned bloody, morally grey characters only, inadvisable (but glorious) creations, inheriting legacies, metanarrative, so-close-to-canon-polyamory-I-can-taste-it, and, I neither kid nor exaggerate, at one point a pirates vs. ninjas vs. werewolves fight on a flying ship.

[shrikeseams]

#fingon climbing up to thangorodrim all ‘i’m not letting you die until i have an EXPLANATION for all the shit you’ve pulled’#walks up to where mae is a-swinging all ‘RUSSANDOL YOU DICKHEAD’#he will Scream At This Elf and if he has to snatch him out of the jaws of satan to do it that is what he will do#(not a totally dissimilar reason to why i think elrond might eventually track down maglor come to think of it)#(his ex-feanorian minions decide it must be a nolofinwean thing) - @feanorianethicsdepartment

“Long before, in the bliss of Valinor, before Melkor was unchained, or lies came between them, Fingon had been close in friendship with Maedhros.” 

Okay honestly I am fascinated by this line and I feel like it doesn’t get touched on much in fanon. The implication here (”lies came between them”) seems to be that whatever friendship Maedhros and Fingon had was already deteriorated to some degree by the time of the Flight of the Noldor, that they had begun to mistrust and be in opposition to each other which in a way, makes Maedhros’ apparent betrayal in Alqualonde/Losgar worse for Fingon–it may feel like the nail in the coffin to a friendship that was already on ice. It also makes it potentially more powerful for Maedhros that Fingon comes for him anyway, in spite of everything that had broken between them.

It also sets up a more awkward dynamic going forward in Beleriand. These are not necessarily two bosom friends reunited after a single misunderstanding. Clearly this relationship had issues before the Exile and while Fingon’s rescue of Maedhros was a grand gesture (although far from lacking in political considerations) recovering trust from someone you’ve lost it with is not easy, especially if they don’t yet realize the hand Melkor played in what went down in Aman.

It would also be fascinating to examine a more contentious and possibly even competitive dynamic between Fingon and Maedhros in Tirion, as their friendship goes downhill and they begin to mistrust each other as Melkor works the knife in between Feanor and Fingolfin. Which makes Fingon’s kingship in Beleriand even more interesting, particularly in light of the fact that by the Maedhros Rule (rule by the oldest/most experienced of the royal family), he could make a second bid for the crown, and Fingon has to be aware of that.

There just seems to be a lot of room for exploring a more complicated friendship between these two and how that affects them going forward.

[the-tater]

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE NEW DARK LORD

Do you have any friends or family who have gone missing recently? Been feeling hostile eyes staring at you while alone frolicking in the woods? 

Well, good news! 

We here at The ‘Tater understand your fears and have come up with a handy-dandy list of everything you need to know to keep you and your loved ones safe(r) from the returned Dark Lord Morgoth! 

(Oh, and all those symptoms? Definitely due to Morgoth’s interference. Not our fault, I promise!) 

1. DO NOT GO ALONE AND UNARMED INTO THE WOODS

It’s Spring, the flowers are finally blooming now that the Sun is here, and birds are chirping in the woods. We get it. You want to frolic. So does your significant other or one night stand. But is getting a helping hand worth the eternity of pain and suffering you both will feel after Morgoth captures you? We think not. 

2. IT’S NOT A KINSLAYING IF THEY’RE ORCS!

Look, we understand. “Orcs were once Elves!” “They didn’t have a choice!” “Maybe they aren’t fully corrupted!” “Aunty Mindi, is that you?” and so on and so on. 

The question here is, do you think that the chance of you maybe being the one exception for redeeming an Orc* is comparable to the chances of you dying a horrible death or worse? No? Then stab those Orcs like there’s no tomorrow! Otherwise, for you, there won’t be. 

3. TRUST YOUR NEW NOLDORIN NEIGHBORS

They have centuries of experience fighting with Morgoth! And if most of them happen to be over minor civic infractions, at least it’s better than ten thousand years of absence! 

So go out, find your friendly neighborhood Feanorian warrior, and trust in them to guide you to a new and better tomorrow! It’s either them or the Orcs

4. DO NOT GO NORTH

We’re not saying you can never head in any direction that is vaguely North, just that you are more likely to run into Orc patrols or other assorted nastiness the further North you go. You’re better off leaving the Northern defence to your friendly new Noldorin neighbors! 

Recruits can sign up at the fortress of Himring. Armor and survival not included. 

5. SHUN STRANGERS

...or old friends suddenly showing up, or strange malformed humanoids claiming to be from the Southeast. You never know who has been influenced by the Dark Lord! Do not trust “escapees,” no matter how trustworthy or traumatized they seem, and definitely do take everything with a grain of salt!

(protip: if it’s ugly, it’s probably the Enemy!) 

6. RESIST THE ENEMY

Sometimes, despite your best efforts, you can’t help being captured, kidnapped, or otherwise inconvenienced. When that happens, you should do your best to defend your friends and family who are still free. Lie to your captors and sabotage their best efforts. If you can, pretend to be an Orc until you can escape. Definitely do warn the local populace about these unfriendly invaders encroaching upon their territory and make sure you have not been secretly suborned by the Dark Lord or his many minions. 

And remember, an honorable death fighting against the Dark Lord’s hordes is a much preferable fate to the shame of living under his shriveled, burnt fist! 

“I can guarantee that these are completely factual and useful pieces of advice,” local scientist and shapeshifting demigod Gorthaur the Cruel said when asked for comment. “The Dark Lord is never going to see through any of this, and neither are his Orcs. So definitely do follow this advice!” 

Orcs, escapees, and the Dark Lord Morgoth were not asked for comment. 

-

*It is not you, unless you’ve previously shown exemplary persuasive skills or the favor of the Valar. 

[lidoshka]

There's an AU headcanon that @inkstranger  wrote about Maedhros being a baker, and I think about that more often than it's probably healty...

Because I love to imagine Maedhros actually owning a bakery (after having worked many years on someone else's cake shop, he eventually got enough money to have one for himself) and finally, finally having tables and chairs adecuate to his height... which means of course that when he actually has minions employees he probably has a bunch of stools, crates and small laders to help them!

I also added Elros to this image because for some reason I imagine he's more attached to Maedhros than anyone else and he probably wants to be a baker when he grows up.

  (So as I said, @inkstranger wrote this headcanon, and she has more ideas from that particular universe, but I cannot find the link to that particular post and I am too lazy to look in her archive...)

(and now I'm thinking it might not be her so...help?)

  Also, remember that from March 20th, 2017 to March 26th, 2017 we will be celebrating Feanorian Week in tumblr! We will celebrate and appreciate the Fëanorians, and their parents, Nerdanel and Fëanor! feel free to add your own fanworks with the tag #feanorianweek

More info HERE!

[eri-pl]

Silm reread 15: Sudden Flame

The 15 is a good number for it, as Melkor was 15-th Vala (before Feanor's curse kicked him out from being a Vala, somehow) so I hc this as an unlucky number.

So, Fingolfin has a lot of army and plans a war. And with the language of it, I'd bet that if he managed to convince everyone and attack Morgoth, the result would be exactly the same (he would lose terribly).

Why? First: "he saw how numerous the Noldor were and how strong his allies were" makes my Bible-sense ring with "oh, he will lose this so hard" (the whole "betting on your power" vs "betting on God" thing. sorry, I forgot the proper word, so "betting" it is today). Second: "the plan seemed wise". seemed. Which very much feels like "but was not".

Oh wait, it's even explicitely said later that the war was hopeless.

Anyway we don't get to see it, because most Noldor disagree with Fingolfin anyway, they think the siege works perfectly well and why would we go to a battle, which is inconvenient and somebody may even die.

Especially the sons of Feanor don't like this idea. Sorry, what? The "we swore vegnence on Morgoth" guys? the "we must reclaim our Silmarils" guys? they don't want to fight? I don't get it at all.

Only Angrod and Aegnor agree with Nolo, which, of course, has the added irony of "Aegnor will die on this battlefield" (I don't remeber what happens to Angrod, probably dies too.)

Morgoth gathered army and grew even more evil, somehow. And kind of dumb, because he was too inpatient and that's why any Eldar survived that battle. Yea, he's the worst, but anyway.

Iron Mountains "spew fire in various poisonous colors" is such a cool description. I imagine itt as Disney-villain-green + magenta, mostly.

Glaurung debuts as an adult + volcano + Balrogs, generally it is bad and many die.

the Noldor get split and lose communication, Thingol grows in power. dfw is sad ;)

Yep, Angrod the angry dies too. But Finrod does not die and we have the Barahir situation. C&C go to Nargothrond, the narration comments on this.

Maedhros is ultra cool and the orcs fear his face and generally he is awesome. The Feanorians generally have to regroup (run away).

Fingolfin decides that this is the end of the Noldor and gets so upset that he goes to get killed by Morgoth. I don't think it's an overstatement.

"Nobody listened to me, so now we are destroyed. I'll get killed and they'll understand that they should have listened to me. Then we would surely win the war!" — that's how I imagine his decision-making process here.

But he is cool nonetheless, looks like Orome, is so angry, disses Morgoth enough to get him out of his castle. Morgoth is still the most powerful being (says the book) but regardless the only reason he agrees to fight Nolo is that otherwise he would lose face in front of all his minions. This is so… he's so cowardly that it's cringe.

Also, Nolo has a gem-incrusted shield. Peak Noldorin style.

He hits Morgoth 7 times, and each time Morgoth screams like a baby and his soldiers are so scared that they fall down. And the foot is the eight hit. Wow.

Everyone is sad. Maybe Turgon is a bit less sad because he gets to build his dad a grave.

Especially Morgoth, who has permanent pain in all those places + Thorondor messes up his face.

Another scary forest is made.

Beren's mom is really cool!!!! Her name is Emeldir and she is brave and fights with the reast of her family, only later she leaves with the other women (many plot-relevant ones)

Sauron makes the Werewolf Island, also gets a description. He is the mightiest and scariest of all Morgoth's servants. And warps everything he touches (that sounds interesting!). Also his skill at torture is explicitely mentioned.

Also, he starts by cursing the island. Which, I guess, makes it more habitable for evil forces?

Doriath is surrounded. Many elves are captured and enslaved and investigated and sometimes send back as sleeper agents.

Also, an explicite mention of Morgoth's spies who shapeshifted and lied and manipulated Elves and Men this way. Spies. Plural. So sauron was maybe like, a chief of the "shapeshifting spies" division, but by far not the only one. (I imagine him making courses on "how to lie more subtly" — especially for that one guy from that one scene. Yes, I will keep making fun of that.)

Morgoth is apparently not as dumb as it seemed, because he pretends to pity Men and tells them it's all because they listen to the evil, disobedient Elves, and they should listen to him instead. Unless it is just Sauron doing the PR… Morgoth canonically stayed in Angband. No, wait, it mentions the Men not buying that even when tortured in angband, so he did say that. Maybe Sauron wrote his speeches. Or maybe Morgoth was less dumb at this point than I assume.

Easterlings appear. Excuse me, professor, but this part is pretty racist. Even if you tell me that "not all" of them served Morgoth, you clearly show the three tribes as superior. Anyway, let's move on.

We get Bór!!! My favorite Easterling.

We get many family trees, also edain seem to have a thing with "two sisters amrry two brothers", ok, why not if both pairs are ok with marrying. It was a thing in some cultures, iirc.

Sirion is a very Ulmo-infused river.

And, speaking od Ulmo, he does sent Turgon a lot of messages, telling him that things are getting worse and to treat Hadorians well. Micromanagement continues.

Also, the relationship between Turgon and Ulmo confuses me. Ulmo giveshim detailed manuals for some things (historically relevant, mostly) but no advice about "maybe don't kill all the trespassers?" (unless there were really no legit trespassers there before Eol). Turgon listens to him (mostly), but doesn't go "My lord Ulmo, please protect my siter / can you tell me where my sister is / generally anything about that stuff". And no "My lord Ulmo, I am really angry at this Dark Elf who killed my sister, any advice what to do with him?"

Anyway, Hurin and Huor visit Gondolin, because Eagles. Turgon likes them, but Maeglin does not. Maeglin doesn't like Men in general (Why? Too loud?).

Also Maeglin gets passive-aggressive at Turgon for, idk, forcing him to stay in Gondolin? But he seems to like to be there? OK, I think he gets passive-aggressive at Turgon for putting Eol in a position that resulted in him killing Aredhel, but tbh it's unfair. Turgon wasn't the one who killed Aredhel.

Also, Turgon sends people in secret to try to sail to Valinor and ask for help. And, as with most cases of "secretely", it doesn't help. Also, Turgon, my guy, Ulmo talks to you, coulnd't you at least check this with him??? (Iirc, Voronwe was one of those guys. So don't blame the Valar for his death. Blame Turgon's strange mental process.)

He's starting to get into the "tall as a birch, stupid as a goat" mode. Which we'll see more of later.

At least Morgoth is afraid of him.

Also, Hurin becomes the ruler of Hadorians, and he is short. Yay, finally a short heroic character! (He will end badly but anyway)

[aniseandspearmint]

*laughs hysterically* Okay okay WAIT, I was 100% thinking, Ace is a Feanorian. He’s gotta be. You’re right Curufin’s extra kid would be 100% hilarious. His baby who he quietly despairs of bc he’s /weird/. He loves him but he’s /weird/. And healso has no interest in forge work so there go all of Curufin’s attempts to bond with his youngest, and also Feanor’s attempts to bond with his grandson.

He probably gets on best with Maglor? And Maedhros.

Is this a trans!Curufin with mystery sires for his kids verse? Or is there a wife who is person-not-appearing-ever?

He did NOT swear ANY oaths. He REMEMBERS why OATHS are a VERY BAD IDEA. Dunno if he could keep anyone else from swearing, but he possibly got his hysterically grieving (and a bit mind screwed) grandfather to double check his wording tho?

*squints* Oooooh, Ardyn as a Maia says some INTERESTING things about the origin of the world of Arda tho, given that Maiar are supposed to pre-date creation. Did Ardyn out live his planet and just kinda wander in from wherever he was before when Arda was being sung into being, get caught up in the song and reembodied before he knew it?

I love the idea of him being offended less by Morgoth and Sauron existing and more that they’re just so HEAVY HANDED and GAUCHE with the whole evil thing. Their minions are terribly rude, and smell AWFUL, and aren’t even any fun to kill. Ugh. (He’s booooored. Nyx and Luthien are interesting but something is missing.)

Then-

Ardyn: *gleeful gasp* NEPHEW!!

Feanorians: *angry hissing noises*

Curufin ABSOLUTELY considers stabbing Ardyn. Probably a LOT over however long they’re on the same continent honestly. Something tells me their personalities are gonna CLASH. It’s a good thing Feanor is already dead tbh. He and Ardyn meeting would probably cause an explosion that would sink Beleriand early.

Picture Maglor and Ardyn getting into a cheerful game of giving each other backhanded compliments and veiled insults tho. Do they actually like or hate each other? No one knows.

I think everyone is gonna LOVE Nyx tho! Maybe a bit grudgingly at first bc who is this random sindar following their Raumofinwe around like a besotted fawn, but he’s far better than That Maia. ((Nyx’s new name is possibly Dû (nightfall)  or Môr (night or darkness)? Gender neutral in keeping with his new brother’s name!))

distraction.... AU where Ardyn and Ace and Nyx (because we cannot have Ace SAD and he would be very sad without Nyx) are reborn in lotr (in Aman or in the 1st age, 3rd age is TOO EASY MODE). Who would they be and what family would you inflict them upon?

….oh no

…….OH NO HOW DARE-

-Ardyn gets to be a Maia. Friend of Melian. Thinks Sauron and Morgoth could stand to be a bit more STYLISH

-but being a friend of Melian and Thingol means that he gets to teach bby!Luthien ALLL THE NAUGHTY THINGS

-Thingol would like him to stop

- he does not

-Nyx is Beleg’s brother. They have a lot of fun together but everyone thinks that Nyx seems….off. There is something /old/ about his soul and the way he carries himself. It’s like he’s missing something.

-Ace is a Feanorian.

-No no no just THINK ABOUT IT IT WOULD BE HILARIOUS

-Ace. Son of *rolls dice* fuck it. You’re Curufin’s kid now. I am so sorry Ace bby but this is gonna be hysterical.

-Everyone KNOWS Ace is weird. He gets a something finwe name (going with raumofinwe for reasons. Raumo meaning ‘noise of a storm’ because i like to think I’m funny) and he’s tyelpe’s younger brother but acts like he’s OLDER

-Ace is the one that coaches everyone through grief. As if he’s experienced it before. It does little to help but makes others wonder how he knows so much when he’s so young.

-anyway. Ace and the rest of the Feanor Ian’s arrive on a Boat. The Boats burn. Ace knows this is going to go to shit. Real quick.

-He’s proven right because after the whole Feanor dies, Maedhros gets captured thing and Maedhros is reaching out to Thingol before giving the crown to Fingolfin Ardyn shows up.

-Ardyn. Being Ardyn. Picks a very teenage Ace up and throws him over his shoulder. Swords are drawn. Ardyn is very amused and irked at the other uncles Ace has now.

-I was here first, he thinks.

-“I’ll be taking my nephew and leaving,” Ardyn cheerfully informs the group of elves pointing very sharp objects at him. Ace groans

-“He’s not your nephew,” Celegorm barks. Curufin is ten seconds away from straight up stabbing Ardyn. Curufin might not be the best father but /Ace is his kid and he’s possessive about it/

-“I’m afraid he is,” Ardyn says, “Why don’t you tell them?”

-“Uh,” Ace says, “I would rather not?”

-“are you disowning me?”

“NEVER! But. Consider. It’s pretty unbelievable.”

“don’t care tell them. I was your uncle first.”

-Ace groans.

-“I’ll take you to Nyx,” Ardyn bribes.

-“…Nyx is here?”

-“Yes. He’s waiting for you.”

-“Put me down I have explaining to do.”

[feanorianethicsdepartment]

not much of the former fëanorian host remains in middle-earth past the war of wrath, but there are some survivors. sure, there’s a lot who’ve had enough of this shit and go home, and a lot who want nothing to do with their old allegiance on account of all the murder, but there are still some who keep the old loyalties alive. more than you’d think, really; there was something glorious in east beleriand during the siege, and even those who left when things started turning dark still remember the years when they were heroes

and hey, now their enemy is gone, and the brilliant future they once dreamed of is suddenly tantalisingly possible. once again, the last of the host gathers around the last of the house, quieter than before but still blazingly determined. there is considerable debate as to who exactly the last of the house consists of - the celebrimbor discourse is acrimonious and violent as it ever was - but a few centuries into the second age the host has reached a new status quo, a new division. those who stay because, despite everything, the old hopes and the old ambitions still resonate within them, go to ost-in-edhil. those who stay because they have already given everything they are over to the cause, go to lindon

or, to put it another way, celebrimbor gets the ones who want to actually do something good with their lives, and elrond gets the nutbags

[feanorianethicsdepartment]

So obviously the entire Feanorian Host as a whole is a bit intense about the cause, but I feel like there’s different levels of devotion between their individual followers.

So my question to you is, from least to most intense, which Feanorions followers are the most cult-like and why?

the cultishness absolutely varies by region! i'm being a little facetious when i call them an out-and-out cult, but fëanorian minion culture certainly has... tendencies. the isolationism, the way loyalty to the group supersedes absolutely everything, what they do to those who 'betray the cause,' not to mention how absolutely psyched they get at the opportunity to do murder. still, the precise way that manifests, as well as how intense they are about, does change a lot depending on where you are in east beleriand. surprisingly it doesn't track that much with how tolerant of outsiders each subdivision is, which is most evidenced by:

the gap: maglor and his cronies are easily the most xenophobic part of the host, which is both a cause and a consequence of them having probably the least regular contact with non-fëanorians out of all the armies of east beleriand. paradoxically, this gives them very little incentive to go full cultist; much of the deliberately off-putting stuff the rest of the host does is partially to distinguish them from the outgroup, which isn't something you need to do when everyone you deal with is either part of the gang or an obvious enemy. they still do the elaborate facial deformations, they still have a bit of a Thing about fire, but the thing that's holding them together is much less utter devotion to the cause and much more the organic friendships and kinship bonds between riders

there's a few other reasons why the folk of the gap are relatively less culty. the gap is sparsely populated to begin with, and most of its population is at least semi-nomadic; it's a lot harder to cultivate that kind of obsession when everyone's off doing their own thing most of the time. while the gap doesn't have the highest headcount of mithrim sindar - as stated above, its population is tiny even by east beleriand's low standards - it has more mithrim sindar as a proportion of the population than anywhere else in east beleriand, and the culture of the gap has this big mithrim sindarin focus on community and clan to counteract the noldorin tendency to sacrifice everything for grand ideals. the general lack of new recruits from outside the host only serves to intensify all of this; the riders of the gap fight together because of the spiderweb of social and personal obligations that link them all together, not necessarily because of the cause (though that is still a factor, i want to be clear.) this fairly isolated society held together by individual and familial bonds stands in stark contrast to:

himlad: the thing about celegorm and curufin's people is that they're up against the fuzzy border between east and west beleriand, between maedhros' definitely-not-a-kingdom and the finarfinians' section of fingolfin's defensive line. as such, they're more or less constantly in contact with the outside world, coordinating troop movements, sharing information and resources, recruiting from the same sindarin populations. there's still a clear delineation between the fëanorians and the fingolfinians, partially because there's a lot of mountains between their major centres and partially because this lot actually do have an other to define themselves against and thus a reason to emphasise their own identity, but there's a lot of chatter and petty squabbling and philosophical discussion and a steady regular connection to the outside world counteracting the worst of the cultishness. unlike pretty much any other part of the host, the himlad minions never really lose the sense that they belong to a greater community of elves

which explains what they do in nargothrond. i don't believe that literally every single one of their followers abandoned celegorm and curufin, but i'd buy it was a lot of them, maybe even most of them. it helps that it's specifically the finarfinians their lords are betraying, the people they've - perhaps not fought side by side with, but who definitely always had their backs. even without that, though, the very existence of that relationship means they're used to working with people from outside the host, getting to know them, empathising with them, which is a pretty hefty counterbalance to the specific the-whole-world's-out-to-get-us undercurrent of internal propaganda. by no means was it an instant switch, or an easy one; after finrod got ousted there was a ton of interhost politicking and debate and the occasional brawl as everyone tried to figure out what to do. but the fact that the question was even open says a lot, i think. that probably wouldn't have been the case even in:

thargelion: caranthir’s domain is the most heavily populated part of east beleriand, and the settlement at lake helevorn is the closest thing it has to a city. a significant portion of that population aren’t fëanorians by even the loosest definition; they’re dwarven traders or miscellaneous humans or sindar far enough from the front line of the siege they can just keep on with their lives the way they always have. the fëanorians (and here, more than anywhere else, that’s a fuzzy category; this is the easiest part of the host to join, and the easiest to leave) are mixed in with all these groups, negotiating supplies, managing tribal levies, patrolling the roads, state stuff. out of all the subdivisions of the host, the thargelion minions are the hardest to distinguish from outsiders.

to keep their ingroup coherent, then, they actively mark themselves out. the minions in thargelion are probably the loudest about their collective identity and the cause and the joy of bathing in your enemies’ blood and all that. they have weird midnight rituals and purpose-built meeting halls and elaborate coded language, and while being overly tyrannical about it would be bad for business there’s definitely a sense that they form a tightly knit core which looks after its own above all else. that image is somewhat complicated by the aforementioned blurry edges of the thargelion host - is the sindarin bureaucrat who’s never touched a weapon in her life but plays a vital role in the military administration a fëanorian? is the noldorin freeholder who pays very little attention to the day-to-day minutia of the war but keeps his sword sharp for the hour it is needed? - but the alliance of old soldiers at its heart is a clear and palpable thing, especially when you can feel its eyes. when their hackles aren’t up the minions are perfectly happy to mingle socially with the other peoples of thargelion, though, which sets them apart from:

himring: on the frontlines of the siege of angband, with all the nightmares of the north pressing directly on their spirits, maedhros’ followers stoke the flames of their devotion high. the warriors of the cold fortress are less showy about their fervor than their counterparts in thargelion or even himlad, but the ardour underlying it is markedly more intense; they don’t have much in the way of over-the-top rituals, but they have vast amounts of ironclad unspoken rules they follow unwaveringly. they’re polite to outsiders, sometimes even welcoming, but you never forget that you are, in fact, an outsider, and that himring and its satellite forts form an internal world others can never quite see. even to other fëanorians, they come across as aloof

their fervour also tends to manifest as a deep personal loyalty that borders on reverence towards maedhros himself. all the brothers command respect, of course, they’re all magnetic personalities who draw people in and bind them together, but maedhros’ minions are on a whole other level. they mythologise him, tell stories of his deeds like he personally holds the line against morgoth, treasure the slightest contact with him, hold being called to his direct service as the highest honour of all. most of the new recruits to the himring host are brought in by the vast pull of maedhros’ reputation, from all across beleriand and even from the north. but no matter where they came from, they all understand that they will fight and live and die together beneath the banner of their lord. which is a bit weird, even by fëanorian standards, but they’re nowhere near as bad as:

ossiriand: amrod and amras’ henchelves are considered by the rest of the host to be notably psychotic, which is saying a lot. the minions of ossiriand are utterly terrifying, absolutely fanatical about the cause, the most bloodthirsty murder cult in east beleriand. you’d think the green-elves they share their territory with would act as a calming influence, but in practice the two groups mostly avoid each other, because the green-elves naturally prefer to stay away from these nutbags. you’d think being away from the front lines would lessen the need to solidify their identity through cult nonsense, but in practice it gives them the free time to go full gonzo. most of the horrible rumours you hear about the fëanorians in the rest of beleriand are either specific quirks of the ossiriand minions, or most egregrious in the ossiriand minions. they have an orc pit

or so they’d have you believe. the fëanorians in ossiriand effectively serve as the host’s intelligence division, scouts and spies and saboteurs. a lot of their work is clandestine by its very nature, and they tend to be pretty secretive about what they actually do. half the things you hear about them are probably disinformation, lies they’re deliberately spreading to make themselves sound scarier. hopefully, at least. as anyone who’s chatted with an ossiriand minion knows, they are both eagerly awaiting the fulfilment of the oath, and already preparing for what will come after

(this paradigm does break down after the siege is broken and the union of maedhros fails and the dregs of the armies of east beleriand wind up stuck in the same ever-shrinking territory. still, i think the origins of the survivors are... interesting. the people of the gap were almost completely wiped out in the bragollach, the people of himlad mostly jumped ship with celebrimbor, even the people of thargelion took heavy losses in the nirnaeth. but the people of himring stood firm around their lord, and the people of ossiriand were never really frontline fighters in the first place. minions from the more cultish parts of the host tend to survive longer, and in greater numbers. i feel this could have... consequences)

[feanorianethicsdepartment]

look i appreciate the drama of maglor and/or maedhros personally finding the twins at sirion. elrond and elros cowering together in a closet until they’re dragged out screaming by a pair of blood-soaked nightmares who were loudly threatening their mother and then shrieking curses at the sea... a+, i love it, great setpiece, nice traumatic memory. there’s just other ways it could have gone, and i’m not talking about the cave thing. f’rinstance -

the sun is setting on an awful, awful day. the streets are strewn with corpses, fire rages in the distance, but it sounds like the fighting is mostly over. three fëanorian goons roam the backalleys together, all that’s left of their squad. all of them are tired, all of them are injured, all of them want this horrible day to be over

something rustles in a building they’re passing, and the guy on point ducks inside to handle it. the other two are expecting the brief sounds of a struggle, the sudden sharp death cry. they are not expecting him to emerge with two screeching children under his arms

(the following conversation happens against a backdrop of crying, struggling, and attempted escapes)

goon 1: kids!

goon 2: kids?

goon 3: why do you have kids

goon 2: did trevadrion bring his children to war again

goon 1: no they’re not ours. they’re :almost gets hit in the face: elwing’s. i think

goon 3: you think

goon 1: guy who was defending them was all ‘you shall not lay your hands on another of lúthien’s line!’ before i killed him

goon 2: :kneeling: they do look kind of turgon-y

goon 3: :reflexively spits:

goon 1: so what do we do with them?

goon 3: leave them here, we don’t need the weight

(all three goons abruptly remember what happened to the last guys who tried that)

goon 2: ...or we could take them with us?

goon 3: sounds like a plan

goon 1: where are we going to put them

(maglor is completely unaware of the twins’ existence until he hears sobbing in the baggage train. he half-thinks they’re a hallucination for the first couple of days)

[feanorianethicsdepartment]

celebrimbor has this tendency to come off a lot less fëanorian than he actually is

admittedly that’s partially because of the stereotypes. if all you know about the house of fëanor is the murder, a lot of celebrimbor’s blatantly fëanorian characteristics - the mad science, the conspicuous lack of a braincell - look like personal quirks rather than family traits. it’s also partially because celebrimbor may not be a slavering hellbeast, but he is an unstoppable maniac, and he’s seen enough of the damage unstopped maniacdom can do he’s actively trying to rein it in and not cause too much collateral damage

but it’s also because celebrimbor does a lot of stuff that seems on the surface to go against fëanorian logic, but if you actually dissect why he did the thing the reasoning is extremely fëanorian. certainly he’s working from a fairly different interpretation of fëanorian rules than his uncles used (and even that’s half because he’s not doing a war) but he still thinks in the same way they did

and honestly, the rules he’s working from aren’t as different as they seem at first glance. like, everyone who went anywhere near east beleriand back in the first age knows the fëanorians were xenophobic as hell. how aggressive they were about it varied from region to region - thargelion was better than himring was better than himlad was better than ossiriand was better than the gap - but there was always a tangible barrier between the fëanorian host and the rest of the world. compare that to how welcoming celebrimbor is to folks from all over middle-earth, and the obvious conclusion is that he’s completely ditched that aspect of their culture

but that’s not quite how it works on the inside. some people pinpoint noldorin cultural chauvinism as the root cause of fëanorian isolationism, and while that certainly was a thing, it wasn’t a super critical factor? it was more that they had an enormous us-against-the-world mentality, with solid barriers between ingroup and outgroup that might be permeable on an individual level but definitely not on a societal one. combine that with the incredibly defensive mutual protection networks so key to their functioning, and you wind up with a situation where - okay, it is an exaggeration to say the fëanorians viewed the other free peoples of beleriand with as much hostility as they did the capital-e enemy, but it’s not nearly as big an exaggeration as it should be

here’s the thing: celebrimbor does not disagree with this analysis. he does divide the world into an ‘us’ and a ‘them,’ and does consider ‘them’ to always be a potential threat to ‘us,’ possible to work with but never to be fully trusted. it’s just that he defines ‘us’ as every single non-morgoth-aligned incarnate to ever dwell in arda. he’s so welcoming to people and ideas from the most far-flung places because as far as he’s concerned they’re all on the same side, all seeking to create the same beautiful world. ask anyone who was there at the time: no matter how nasty they were to outsiders, within the fëanorian host there was this great all-encompassing feeling of community. celebrimbor just applies that to absolutely everyone he’s ever met. even craftspeople he’s feuding with, or foreign powers with questionable relationships to ost-in-edhil - he’ll disagree with them, yes, argue his points as hard as he can, but there’s never a hint of the flagrant disrespect that characterised half his uncles’ interactions with their ostensible closest allies

even annatar, a maia and thus technically part of the outgroup, is given a chance. celebrimbor is determined to not automatically see an enemy where there could be an ally, and so while he initially defaults to mild suspicion once annatar has proven himself Cool celebrimbor enthusiastically classes him as part of the team. at first it looks like it’s paying off, he was right and his dad was wrong, they’re going to be best friends forever!

and then annatar betrays him, and fëanorian culture has a thing about traitors. some of the gwaith-i-mírdain inner circle are expecting to have to talk the notoriously conciliatory lord of ost-in-edhil into fixing this problem with swords instead of words, but instead celebrimbor’s putting the old minions back into war mode and gleefully expositing about how he’s going to rend sauron into his component atoms as painfully as possible