<font face="Verdana"><table><TR><TD><FONT SIZE="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Wight
Posts: 135</TD><TD></TD></TR></TABLE>
<img src="http://www.barrowdowns.com/images/posticons/bluepal.jpg" align=absmiddle> Re: The Bridge of Khazad-dum
I'd bet the dwarves stoked their forges with coal mined from the earth rather than wood. And planning to defend forty miles worth of tunnels and complex cavern systems (no doubt built with traps, secret ways, and other bottlenecks) seems more likely than the dwarves planning for a mass exodus. And historically, the dwarves have shown themselves to be a proud and stubborn people determined to defend what's theirs even in the face of overwhelming odds. Look at Thorin & Co. holding out against the combined armies of Elves and Men. I'd bet the dwarves who built the place designed it on the principle of defending it to the last dwarf against attackers.
Khazad-dum is like a big castle -- you don't build too many doorways in your castle or else you defeat the purpose of having a castle. Though I think it's likely that there were at least a few hidden and/or difficult to reach auxiliary entrances along the eastern side.
I agree with HerenIstarion's analysis that a combined attack from West and East seems impractical both from a logistical and a strategic point of view.
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