#me: okay so annuminas would probably have a lot of timber and they could make BOATS bc the lake is FUCKING HUGE. like RIDICULOUSLY HUGE)

[dunadaneth]

Honestly I love Tolkien's works so much but I think my favorite part about it is playing in the sandbox- more specifically I love developing lore and headcanons that compliment and flesh out things that were there, and add in things that are missing. I love thinking about pre-fall Arnor- what did Evendim export in terms of economy? What crops did they grow, what things did they make, how the geography would inform these things, etc- a lot of these things possibly only be hinted at in old relics and records not destroyed at Fornost or the passage of time. How would reconstruction happen in the Fourth Age? What do you focus on first? How do you preserve ruins of the past and yet build upon their bones in their memory? What alliances in Eriador could you make to help bolster the economy and make trade agreements? (I am not a "hur dur what's Aragorn's tax policy type of person bc this is fantasty first and foremost and there's a balance to be had.) I love thinking about post-fall of Arnor and the Dúnedain- they're mostly nomadic with at least one canon settlement and what that would entail. The horror of your people living through what seems like multiple end of all days. The hardships endured, the harsh lifestyle that would be followed-what does their diet look like? What would they carry in their bags? How often do they go out on patrol before coming back? Is there a system put in place so no one Ranger is too fatigued, and gets time to rest and recuperate? Older generations teaching the younger- and even Dúnadain who choose not to become Rangers, and still support their community in other ways; the weavers, the growers, the metalsmiths, etc... how tight knit everyone would be! My mind just bounces around with so many ideas with little chance to really put them down anywhere! That's just a small taste of what it's like to write with me lol.