[Mithalwen]

However, the orcs who attacked at Parth Galen were Saruman's orcs. Although the breaking of the fellowship seemed catastrophic at the time it was vital for the success of the Quest.

The ring would not have been destroyed without the intervention of Gollum at the last moment. If there had not been the attack at Parth Galen it would have been a different and larger group going to Mordor. My guess is that they would not have got so far as the 2 hobbits alone guided by the duplicitous Gollum.

The other key to the success ofthe quest was the emptying of Mordor of troops at the vital time. While Helms' Deep weakened the Rohirrim it did put them in a state of readiness that by the time the red arrow arrived they were already on their way. Also without the pursuit of the Hobbits into Rohan, Aragorn would surely not have been taking the paths of the Dead as his route into Gondor. The two fortuitous arrivals of the armies of Rohan and the Dead enabled the Captains of the West to hold off the enemy at Minas Tirith and create the diversion at the Black gates.

A good Saruman would not have hadTheoden under a malign influence and without that Eowyn might not have been desperate enough to ride to war and fulfil the Prophecy of Gloprfindel regarding the Witch King (especially since she would nothave met Aragorn).

If Boromir had survived (no orc attack remember!), I can't see Denethor killing himself regardless of what happened of Faramir, This would have shifted the dynamic of the Lords of the West. Denethor would still be influenced by the gloomy visions of hte Palantir and it is not hard to imagine that he would have not supported the attack on the Black Gate as the more positive Imrahil did.


In short ... tom bomabariffic is right it would be a very different book!