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Alfirin · 05-30-2012, 03:22 PM

I like some of the theories about the lesser rings. The one peril I see is that, once you start thinking that way, you start seeing rings at the root of all thing. Say the idea of a ring that helps make enchanted weapons. I can imagine such a ring winding up amoung the men of Cardolan; perhaps being the key to their ability to make weapons unusually good at dealing with things like the Nazgul. Or say, a ring that puts you in tune with the plants, handy for conversing with any Ents who might be around in thier native tounge and getting on thier good sides (I suddenly have an image of a young elf wandering through the woods with such a ring, (in Sindarin) "I Talk to the Trees".
Finally we get to the animal talking ring theorized. If such a ring did exist, I can imagine somewhere it might have been, and, regrettably, the damage it might have done. It is based on a theory I have, just follow me. Gandalf describes the rings as perilous. I think it possible that thier peril may run a bit deeper than that proposed by the people above. I'm not 100% sure of this, but I think that even the lesser rings may have had a touch of Sauron's taint. I don't think the elves considered making rings of power until Sauron proposed the idea. So while it is true that only the major rings were directly under his control, it is possible that even the first attemps had a little of him in them, and so had a dark side. Therefore I think that it is possible that, while a lesser ring would not put someone in Sauron's thrall, it might corrupt them no matter who they were. Specifically, I am thinking of Radagast, and his fall from his mission. Suppose at some point, Radagast had gotten his hands on a "talk to the animals" ring, for some reason or other (maybe he though being able to talk to the animals would help his mission) The ring does indeed let him talk to and understand the animals. However, the more he uses it, the more he loves the animals, until finally, they are more important to him than his stated mission, and he strays from his intended path. One problem with this idea is of course the fact that Saruman would presumably take such a ring from Radagast, given his interest in ringlore. On the other hand, Saruman, if he was already well learned in the lore, might consider such a ring too weak to trifle with, or of no practical use to himself (Saruman after all, really does not love nature (in fact, he basically hates it) and so the abiklity to get closer to it woul likey not appeal to him much.
The only proposed power I do not really think a ring would be made for is increasing ambient light. Such a ring would likey be considered of little use to the elves. Remember that all of these rings are being made by Noldorians, and the Noldorians already have the Feanorian Lamps, and (from the description) those seem like almost mass produced everyday articles. I'm not all that sure the Noldor would even use candles when they had those (after all, the lamps never go out) Plus, elves have very good night vision (to see in the days before the sunlight, they'd have to) so even the light of one candle is probably enough for thier needs.

05-30-2012, 03:22 PM	#15
Alfirin Shade of Carn Dûm Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 435	I like some of the theories about the lesser rings. The one peril I see is that, once you start thinking that way, you start seeing rings at the root of all thing. Say the idea of a ring that helps make enchanted weapons. I can imagine such a ring winding up amoung the men of Cardolan; perhaps being the key to their ability to make weapons unusually good at dealing with things like the Nazgul. Or say, a ring that puts you in tune with the plants, handy for conversing with any Ents who might be around in thier native tounge and getting on thier good sides (I suddenly have an image of a young elf wandering through the woods with such a ring, (in Sindarin) "I Talk to the Trees". Finally we get to the animal talking ring theorized. If such a ring did exist, I can imagine somewhere it might have been, and, regrettably, the damage it might have done. It is based on a theory I have, just follow me. Gandalf describes the rings as perilous. I think it possible that thier peril may run a bit deeper than that proposed by the people above. I'm not 100% sure of this, but I think that even the lesser rings may have had a touch of Sauron's taint. I don't think the elves considered making rings of power until Sauron proposed the idea. So while it is true that only the major rings were directly under his control, it is possible that even the first attemps had a little of him in them, and so had a dark side. Therefore I think that it is possible that, while a lesser ring would not put someone in Sauron's thrall, it might corrupt them no matter who they were. Specifically, I am thinking of Radagast, and his fall from his mission. Suppose at some point, Radagast had gotten his hands on a "talk to the animals" ring, for some reason or other (maybe he though being able to talk to the animals would help his mission) The ring does indeed let him talk to and understand the animals. However, the more he uses it, the more he loves the animals, until finally, they are more important to him than his stated mission, and he strays from his intended path. One problem with this idea is of course the fact that Saruman would presumably take such a ring from Radagast, given his interest in ringlore. On the other hand, Saruman, if he was already well learned in the lore, might consider such a ring too weak to trifle with, or of no practical use to himself (Saruman after all, really does not love nature (in fact, he basically hates it) and so the abiklity to get closer to it woul likey not appeal to him much. The only proposed power I do not really think a ring would be made for is increasing ambient light. Such a ring would likey be considered of little use to the elves. Remember that all of these rings are being made by Noldorians, and the Noldorians already have the Feanorian Lamps, and (from the description) those seem like almost mass produced everyday articles. I'm not all that sure the Noldor would even use candles when they had those (after all, the lamps never go out) Plus, elves have very good night vision (to see in the days before the sunlight, they'd have to) so even the light of one candle is probably enough for thier needs.