Gandalf's Staff

[Roa_Aoife]

I can see where you're coming from, Glirdan, but I think you have it a bit backwards. The staff's breaking doesn't make the power dissapate; it just becomes less accessable. Gandalf wasn't killed by the Balrog right away, either in the books or in the movies. Even after his staff was broken, he continued to put up a good fight, and he won before he died. I would say that the effort of focusing his magic with out his staff, especially after the massive surge that broke the bridge, took it's toll on his physical body.

Originally Posted by Glirdan

The staff represented his way of controlling that magic.

Exactly, it's the method of control, not the magic itself. The staff just makes it easier to direct the power into something viable. Staff is to power as OS is to Computer, so to speak.