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Originally Posted by TheSquireof Aragorn
Did anyone notice besides me that the soldiers of Gondor got slapped all up and down Osgiliath and Minas Tirith? I saw very few soldiers besides Faramir actually killing orcs. On the other hand the Rohirrim were incredible, and slayed just about anything in their path.I know the Rohirrim were pretty riled up and they had horses, but my question is, who is better, the average Gondorian soldier or the average soldier of the Mark?
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A tough one. These comments are all quite good, and some have hit near what I am thinking.... the issue of morale. As soldiers, I would say the Gondorians would seem to be the better, having the battle experience of the Ithilien, Osgoliath, and all, and the Rohirrim being as was said, reservists. But the key is, even though things were grim, the Rohirrim were fresh off a victory over Sarumann, and victory does have an effect on raising morale. The soldiers of Gondor have been fighting a long attrition with a slow decline over the years, with all their years of effort seemingly come to naught, hence their morale was rock-bottom. On the other hand, with ones families in danger, I would think it would bring out the fiercest in the Gondorians.
A second issue would be leadership. Compare King Theoden to Steward Denethor. That can have an effect on morale of the men as well as the captains.