Quote:
Originally Posted by Alfirin
That does bring up an odd question, though. Powerful as the Nazgul are, wouldn't that make using them to hunt the ring sort of risky. Yes they are Sauron's most loyal servants as long as he is Ring-lord, but if they are truly enslaved to the ring, as opposed to Sauron then there is exactly the risk you mentioned, the moment someone else mastered the ring, the Nazgul would turn on him.
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I doubt that Sauron had ever considered the idea that anyone would have been capable of keeping the Ring from him. Tolkien speculated that Gandalf might have been able to do so, but Sauron's pride was swollen enough that he never thought the West would actually want to destroy the Ring either.
Also, in the
UT chapter
The Hunt for the Ring, it is said if one of the Nazgûl had obtained the Ring, even the Witch-king, he would not have hesitated to return it to Sauron.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alfirin
I think the problem here is how you interpret the word "will". Certainly they no longer have the ability to defy their master or leave them but that doesn't mean they are automata. The fact that Sauron can use them to search and lead means that, at least on some level they can still think for themselves (an individual who cannot act based on actual battlefield conditions is likely to be a poor commander. Plus if the only thing animating them was Saurons own will, there probably would have been no need for the messenger service. If they were merely vessels for Saurons mind, he would KNOW what they were seeing, since he'd be seeing it too) even if all of those thoughts are simply "serve my master". Whether that counts as having no will, or simply having a will that is totally subservient to another will I don't know
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Certainly they did retain their own thoughts, but they were incapable of any action that was against Sauron's command, and more importantly, had no sense of being apart from Sauron. Rather like the Mouth, whose only identity was as a part of Sauron, but more so.