The strangest of all Tolkien's creatures?

[Siggles]

I think they have to be the stone giants in the Hobbit. How come we never hear about them anywhere else. Who would they have fought for in the war of the ring? Where did they go? What were they doing up there?

[Ñólendil]

They needn't have fought in the War of the Ring at all, and perhaps did not. Not everyone was on one side or the other.

[Comic Book Guy]

No mention of the Knee-Walking Turkeys as the strangest creature, eh Inoldonil?

P.S It's my Hundredth post hurrah!!

[Ñólendil]

Congrats!

I was actually going to mention Tom as one of the Knee-walking Turkeys, but forgot. No good now, unless you don't mind me editing my post and deleting yours :)

[Comic Book Guy]

I’m intrigued by these Knee Walking Turkeys, all I know is the information Inoldonil gave us. Is it worth buying HoME XIII just to find out about these fascinating creatures alone or does it have any other information that a curious young person such as myself might enjoy reading?

Also I believe the Men to be the strangest of all Tolkien’s creatures, even if it was based on some other beings from other tales. Mainly because every other creature has mortal advantages other them, but this isn’t the thread to discuss that.

[Gothmog35]

I think that the siege dragons of iron(like the ones created for the destruction of Gondolin)are weird. I can't tell, but it seems they are dragons made of metal.

[ringbearer]

May seem a little surprising...Elves! Because they are far different than Elves in other literature!

BTW...Welcome to Entmoot, Gothmog35! :D

[Ñólendil]

Welcome Gothmog!

Comic Book Guy, you should definitely buy Vol. XIII of HoMe, there's a lot of other great information in there: Paper Maché Mountains, the history of Minas Troney, the entire food inventory of the Goode Eates, and much more.

[Finmandos12]

I remember those metal dragon thingees, Gothmog! Are they from Tuor and the Fall of Gondolin in BLT?
Nice to have new person Gothmog.

[Darkhalcyon]

Tom Bombadil. i haven't the faintest idea of what he is, except that he's a really woerd (in a good way) fellow.

[galadriel]

The Druedain were strange and cool. Ghan-buri-ghan is great! He's so awkward in comparison with the lofty men and elves of LOTR, and yet he somehow fits into Middle-earth perfectly.

Tom Bombadil is definitely up there on the strangest list. The Ents were bizarre as well.

[Selwythe]

Definitely the Ents. The others like Elves, Hobbits, Men etc extended my imagination but Ent was too far.

Not surprising that in later fantasy novels/themes/games etc., very little have an Ent-like creature.

Hey wait, I'm an Ent on Entmoot, damn.

[Bregalad]

Now, I don't want to be too hasty, but I have to agree with Ents being some strange characters. Esecially those who have gotten "tree-ish". I've always wondered if Old Man Willow was a tree-ish Ent, or an Ent-ish tree?

[Ñólendil]

An Entish tree, if you ask me.

[Kirinki54]

Ungoliant was a pretty weird creature when you think about it.
How did she ever manage to gobble all the juice from the Trees (AND still be hungry)?
What happened to that energy; was it corrupted, spread out, what?
And where did she go herself?
Are the spiders in The Hobbit and LotR her children? Shelob and the creatures of the Mirkwood? Are they then Maiar or what? How could they then be so easily defeated by Hobbits and other Mortals.

[afro-elf]

i think those who post on entmoot are the strangest of tolkien's creatures :)

[Sister Golden Hair]

Originally posted by Kirinki54
Ungoliant was a pretty weird creature when you think about it.
How did she ever manage to gobble all the juice from the Trees (AND still be hungry)?
What happened to that energy; was it corrupted, spread out, what?
And where did she go herself?
Are the spiders in The Hobbit and LotR her children? Shelob and the creatures of the Mirkwood? Are they then Maiar or what? How could they then be so easily defeated by Hobbits and other Mortals. I don't think any of the spiders in the books were Maiar. The Silmarillion says that Ungoliant appears in no other tale and in her great hunger, she devoured herself. Yes, Shelob and her children were offspring of Ungoliant. After Ungoliant drained the Two trees, it says that she became an enormous size, so I would think that is what became of the energy if it was that.

[Kirinki54]

Originally posted by afro-elf
i think those who post on entmoot are the strangest of tolkien's creatures :)

Good point, Afro-elf!

Though I think the good Prof. had no idea what he really started...

[Kirinki54]

Originally posted by Sister Golden Hair
I don't think any of the spiders in the books were Maiar. The Silmarillion says that Ungoliant appears in no other tale and in her great hunger, she devoured herself. Yes, Shelob and her children were offspring of Ungoliant. After Ungoliant drained the Two trees, it says that she became an enormous size, so I would think that is what became of the energy if it was that.

She became enormous, and then ate herself, and then she was gone and all that Tree-sap with her? Sort of like an arachnid black hole... ;)

But she was a Maiar, wasn´t she? So it´s funny if her offspring were not too. (And who was Mr Ungol BTW?)

[Sister Golden Hair]

Originally posted by Kirinki54


She became enormous, and then ate herself, and then she was gone and all that Tree-sap with her? Sort of like an arachnid black hole... ;)

But she was a Maiar, wasn´t she? So it´s funny if her offspring were not too. (And who was Mr Ungol BTW?) I don't know who Mr. Ungol was, maybe it was Mr. Morgoth. Seriously though, I think you are right about Ungoliant being a Maia. It does not say for sure but implies that it is most likely. The Sil says that she may have devoured herself yes.

[samwise of the shire]

Well I know for one thing LOTR says that Shelob was an evil thing in the SHAPE of a spider, so does'nt that mean that her mother might have been an evil maiar in the shape of a spider, and maybe the spiders in Mirkwood were half spiders, you know alot of male arachnids are smaller then their mates. You never know.
I would think that the coolest and the most mystic beings would have to be the Ainur, the spirits who sang to Illúvatar in the begg. Or the Ents.

[Ñólendil]

I cannot imagine what Ungoliant would be, if not a Maia in the shape of a vast spider. She nonetheless bred with what were apparently 'normal' monstrous spiders, those of the Valley of Dreadful Death. Shelob was of that terrible offspring, and she apparently bred with 'normal' monstrous spiders in the Shadowy Mountains, whose offspring removed to Mirkwood. Lovely names.

[Sister Golden Hair]

Originally posted by Inoldonil
I cannot imagine what Ungoliant would be, if not a Maia in the shape of a vast spider. She nonetheless bred with what were apparently 'normal' monstrous spiders, those of the Valley of Dreadful Death. Shelob was of that terrible offspring, and she apparently bred with 'normal' monstrous spiders in the Shadowy Mountains, whose offspring removed to Mirkwood. Lovely names. So, what you are saying is that she bred with lesser beings but evil as she, and of more mortal makeup. Maybe a bad example, but like Thingol and Melian. (Not trying to start anything there, just a question and maybe a bad comparison.) But, you know what I mean.

[Ñólendil]

Yes, exactly like that. The Spiders of Mirkwood would have thin Maian blood in their veins, from one common ancestor. But I think 'Maian' is actually too noble a word for the filthy things. 'Raucon' is better. 'Maiar' means 'the Beautiful'. A rauco was a 'powerful, hostile and terrible creature', translated 'demon' by Tolkien in Valarauco, 'demon of might', the form in Quenya of 'Balrog'.

[Kirinki54]

Originally posted by Inoldonil
But I think 'Maian' is actually too noble a word for the filthy things. 'Raucon' is better. 'Maiar' means 'the Beautiful'. A rauco was a 'powerful, hostile and terrible creature', translated 'demon' by Tolkien in Valarauco, 'demon of might', the form in Quenya of 'Balrog'.

I thought the Balrogs still counted as Maiar, although when becoming a sub-group they were called the Valaraukar. Where there also any sub-groups of the more pleasant Maiar?

[Ñólendil]

All I meant was that 'Maia' is too pure a word to be used for a demon. The Balrogs were indeed Maiar, or fallen Maiar. The only 'good' sub-group of the Maiar I think anyone knows about are the Istari. Essays imply that the five who came to Middle-earth in the Second and Third Ages were not the only ones that existed.

[Kirinki54]

Originally posted by Inoldonil
Essays imply that the five who came to Middle-earth in the Second and Third Ages were not the only ones that existed.

Yes, I think I saw something somewhere about the five Istari being only the most important.
The full history would be something to learn!

[Proudfoots]

Hands down it goes to the "wereworms" of the Last Desert in the Far East, as mentioned in The Hobbit.

Can you even imagine what the heck a "wereworm" looks like?

Devin

[Ñólendil]

Welcome!

One might imagine a wereworm to be eight inchis long, named so by biologists because of it's unique fore-teeth and exceptional fur-like hair. So ... I'd rule the vague wereworms out on the basis of .. vagueness.

Edited: lol! I'm an idiot. Not having seen this topic in a while, I read the title as 'strongest of all Tolkien's creatures'. My description of wereworms to show they might not be too strong made them out to be very strange, didn't it?

[Proudfoots]

Well...the way Bilbo described them, wereworms were something fierce to be feared, as he held them up as an example of something he would face to prove his bravery.

I assume ICE's MERP dealt with wereworms in some fashion. Since I first read The Hobbit, circa 1972, I always pictured them as miniature versions of Dune sandworms with two human arms sticking out of them and a human head...an awfully lot like Leto III the God Emperor of Dune turned out to be.

Devin

[Foul_Dwimmerlaik]

Ungoliant was a physical manifestation of the Void, the opposite of Illuvatar. Probably just about the worst thing that ever existed. Morgoth + a bunch of Blargos were barely able to subdue her. I sort of think of Ungoliant and Shelob = Morgoth and Sauron in terms of their relationships with each other.

[Arathorn]

I don't know about you guys, but most everyone in middle earth say that the hobbits are the strangest as tales of their origins are hard to come by.

i disagree with my friend mr afro-elf. Entmooters are only strange here in the real world.

Perhaps if we trade places with the hobbits, everyone will be happy. Of course, they'll still find our names confusing...

[Lightice]

Originally posted by Proudfoots
Well...the way Bilbo described them, wereworms were something fierce to be feared, as he held them up as an example of something he would face to prove his bravery.

I assume ICE's MERP dealt with wereworms in some fashion. Since I first read The Hobbit, circa 1972, I always pictured them as miniature versions of Dune sandworms with two human arms sticking out of them and a human head...an awfully lot like Leto III the God Emperor of Dune turned out to be.

Devin

I had always imagined wereworms being simply lesser (but still terrible) dragons...
Dunno why, but idea of half human-half worm is too much for me to imagine (exept perhaps in sick dreams of H.P. Lovecraft, but he would had called them with different name).

I don't know what would be most strange creature of Tolkien...Perhaps the Watcher in the Water, the Kraken, was oddest. Unfortunately it isn't much known...
Only things we know of it was, that it was acient and powerful...

[Ñólendil]

Well...the way Bilbo described them, wereworms were something fierce to be feared, ...

Sure, but we know next to nothing about them. We can't say they're the strongest of Tolkien's creatures based upon the name (or even the context of that name entering into Bilbo's words).

[Mithrandir]

For me, it would have to be the Ents. They are very strange indeed, but great at the same time!! Treebeard is actually one of my favourite characters, but still, their physical form is very unique

[athelas]

It would have to be Gollum. Yessss preciousssss....him. The mutant hobbit. He talks in a weird manner, has split personalities and an addiction to fisssh and the One Ring. And he plays an important part in LotR, and is not just a flat, one-dimensional monster that the fellowship runs into that takes up at the most, a few pages.( think orcs) He bags the award for the strangest creature.:D

[The_Real_Legolas]

how do u delete threads????????????????????????
??????????????????????????????????????????????
?????????????????????????????????????????:confused : :confused:

[Comic Book Guy]

I'm not sure what deleting posts has to do with this thread, but normal Members can't delete posts, only Moderators and Administrators can delete posts and threads.

[emplynx]

I would have to say humans. Who would have thought of that?
J/K
I think that Ents would probably be the strangest. They were a funny crowd.

[FrodoFriend]

Beorn is kinda strange. I always wondered where he came from. Gollum is strange too, in a weird way.

But I think the award for Strangest Creature should go to Tom Bombadil. What a bizarre character! He doesn't quite fit in anywhere.

[Kwijibo]

What about Sauron? One big floating eyeball, red I must add, seems like a pretty weird creation. If he's got a form, then fine, he's a regular guy, but no body except a giant eyeball?!?! ;-)

The Ents are a bit strange too. Oh, by the way, if ne1 knows and Ents, please tell them to destroy our local council because they sent people with chain-saws to de-limb the trees across from my house. :(

[Khadrane]

Tom Bombadil. I mean, no one really knows for sure who he is anyway. He sings to save hobbits from giant trees, and the Ring has no effect on him. That's pretty strange.

[Earenya]

**Goldberry and Ents. I mean, as far as our world goes, they are the most similar-to-but-oddly-different from real world creations.**

[Kwijibo]

Originally posted by Myself
What about Sauron? One big floating eyeball, red I must add, seems like a pretty weird creation. If he's got a form, then fine, he's a regular guy.

REGULAR GUY?!?!?!? What the heck was I thinking!? Sauron is a twisted evil maniac, does ne1 called THAT regular?!

I don't. *smacks herself on her own head for being such a dunce*

[afro-elf]

There is this passage from the FOTR in the Old Forest chapter "...and if they looked up to the pale sky, they caught sight of queer gnarled and knobbly faces that gloomed dark against the twilight, ..." I see these as being like wizened fairy types from folklore.

[Lefty Scaevola]

Sauron is a twisted evil maniac, does ne1 called THAT regular?!Yep, that is rather common and regular in this world, at least.

[ASmileThatExplodes]

I think that the Valar are quite weird.. Sitting in their high chairs, sipping tea and not doing anything, when Middle-Earth is on the edge of losing the war with Sauron. :')
(I know that the Eagles at the end of the war at the Morannon were a sign of Manwë and that they sent the Istari, etc., but still.. I think they're pretty weird. Still love them eventually. :p)

[Olmer]

How you can't love them when they are core of your existence?
They are the forces of nature. The nature could be weird, could be brutal and unforgiving, but can you live without air, water, soil that nurtures greens, fire that warms you?...:rolleyes: