Bio-warfare In Middle-earth

[alatar]

Originally Posted by Inziladun

Why didn't Sauron attempt to set another plague on the West after his return to Mordor?

Good question. It may have been simply ROI - return on investment. We don't know what it took for Sauron to cook these things up. He may have thought that, with the poisoning of Denethor's mind and the alliance with Saruman the traitor that there was no need to send another plague. He may also have been 'employing' more human types, and so his losses may have been greater than in the past. Think about the new creatures that didn't blanche at the sunlight.

And take it from me, you can only spend so much time in the lab.

[Ibrîniðilpathânezel]

I think it's also possible that he didn't do it again because he had achieved one of the goals of sending out a plague: he had diminished the numbers of his foes to the point that the various groups were effectively isolated from one another. Such separation tends to keep people thinking more about themselves and less about others, so that when the time comes to band together against a common enemy, they don't want to, either because they've grown suspicious of outsiders, or because they feel that they barely have the numbers to defend themselves, and not enough to send help elsewhere. Had Gandalf not intervened in Rohan, that end would have been achieved.

[alatar]

The other goal may have been to taint/dilute/counteract the Númenórean blood. Think of the plague as an anti-elven marriage. Instead of living hundreds of years, being healthy, going on strong until the very last, being far sighted, the plague brought us all down to where we are today.

[Bêthberry]

Another thing to consider: plagues are not specifically designed weapons. They target everyone. And that would possibly include the Ring Bearer. It it had been buried with the Bearer, the Ring could have been lost in a grave with a little quick lime or, if he fell far away from civilization, in some unknown clime, blanketed by leaves and earth and perhaps prey to carrion-seeking carnivores. Like the River, the earth would give the Ring a quiet bearth where none would find it. Until upheaval, of course. And that possibility may be a little too long term even for someone with eons of time at his disposal.

[alatar]

Originally Posted by Bêthberry

Another thing to consider: plagues are not specifically designed weapons.

But they could be...

It it had been buried with the Bearer, the Ring could have been lost in a grave with a little quick lime or, if he fell far away from civilization, in some unknown clime, blanketed by leaves and earth and perhaps prey to carrion-seeking carnivores. Like the River, the earth would give the Ring a quiet bearth where none would find it. Until upheaval, of course. And that possibility may be a little too long term even for someone with eons of time at his disposal.

Nice exegesis (for lack of a better word as my 'common tongue' thesaurus in my head in on the fritz). I think Sauron was getting tired of waiting - he'd spent more than a few years waiting up at his summer home - and so was looking for a more decisive end. As stated, he already had a plan for Rohan, and Minas Tirith was being neutralized, and so there wasn't that much more to do...

..except to pick out his victory wardrobe.

[Tuor in Gondolin]

Another point, a ruler (dictator or no) needs subjects to govern
and to improve his realms. Kill too many and who's he got to
boss around? And given Sauron's ego, how could he not smugly
have already assumed he'd win Middle-earth?

[Rumil]

Hi all,

Agree that Sauron had no particular need for a plague during the War of the Ring. Although maybe he could have engineered it to infect humans, not orcs, he probably outnumbered the West in human troops alone. Therefore it could have been counter-productive to unleash such a thing, as chem/bio-warfare tends to be unpredictable to say the least.

As has been mentioned, his 17th century plague might have been a smart move - he had no great strength of numbers, the West would lose heavily, and presumably orcs would re-populate faster.

One possible biological warfare technique was the catapulting of the severed heads into Minas Tirith, that could have spread disease, contaminated water etc, though it was likely more of a morale-degrading measure. Another was the 'poisoning' of orc blades, could be a chemical poison, or contamination with, er... infectious or toxic biological materials of various unpleasant natures!

I've had a theory that the 'broils and smokes from the East' that periodically affected Gondor might have contained endocrine-disruptive chemicals that might reduce fertility, as we know Minas Tirith only had half the population that it could hold. If so, was Sauron's biological warfare rather more subtle than it seems? Its really unusual for a medieval-style city to lose population unless there's a high mortality from disease (common enough in history but MT seems a fairly healthy place), lack of food, or very high losses in warfare/political disorder.

[Bêthberry]

Originally Posted by alatar

But they could be...

Originally Posted by Rumil

we know Minas Tirith only had half the population that it could hold.

I see a thread in the future. It is called, "A Plague of Plasmids: viral reproduction in Middle earth, or, Orcs and Oxytocin: Do they mix?"