Eastern Outpost of the White Hand

Along  the   eastern   edge   of   the  Wizard’s Vale, near the point where the  south-eastern spur of Methedras came to  an  end,  Saruman  had  established  a  small  garrison. The outpost  consisted  of a barracks, a training ground, and a  short and hastily constructed tower. At any given time, nearly 100 Orcs, Uruks,   Half-orcs,   and   Dunlending  Hill-men  worked  and  trained  at  the  eastern   outpost,   which   was   commanded  by   three   especially   cruel   Uruk-hai  Captains who reported directly to Móg,  Saruman’s  General  of Arms. As each  group  became  more  skilled  in  the  ways  of  hand-to-hand  combat  and  more disciplined in the ways of waging  war, they were rotated out and replaced  by a new group from Isengard. If ever the  Men of Rohan  passed  close  to  the  Eastern  Outpost,  however,  those  of  Orc-ancestry  were  sent  into  their  barracks, for Saruman did wish  for any outside Nan Curunír to discover  his  alliance  with  dark  forces. In addition to the soldiers stationed here,  about  a  dozen  slaves  resided  at  the  outpost,  preparing  rank  food,  fetching water from streams, washing  down  the  hillsides,  and  cleaning  the  barracks. The slaves  fed  the  soldiers  by  cooking  meals  over  large  pits  of  fiery  embers. While the  Uruk  captains  were  served  their  meals  directly,  the   Orcs   and   Half-orcs   had to   line  up  for  their  ration,  a  situation  that  resulted  in  constant  shoving  matches  and, occasionally, outright brawls. The main structure of the outpost, the   three-storied   watchtower,   provided a good view of the surrounding  area, allowing the Isengarders to spot  travellers up to ten miles away on clear  days. The three-story tower was always manned,  as  the  lands  of  Rohan  had ever to be  watched,  for  the  Horse-lords  were swift upon their steeds and deadly  with   their   blades. The  three   interior levels of the tower housed various  supplies,   including   blankets,   torches,  half-rotten  grains,  Orc-draughts,  rope,  weapons  (including  clubs,  Orc-daggers,  spears,  Orc-longswords,  and  whips), armour (mostly leather with  a  few  suits  of  Orc-chainmail  and  a  dozen large shields) and the like. The barracks was a fifty by twenty foot   building   composed   of   a   single  room  crammed  with  uncomfortable pallets used as beds. The Uruks and  their  trainees  slept  here  during the   day,   engaging   in   the   majority  of  their  activities  during  the  night  time hours, when they were spared the  debilitating  light  of  the  sun. Most training  exercised  were  conducted  on  a  large,  open  field,  complete  with  straw  dummies,  tilting  devices,  and  racks  for  holding  various  sorts  of  weaponry and armour. In addition  to  the  outpost’s  functioned  as  a  training  ground  and  watch  post, various Orc-forces from Mordor  and  the  Misty Mountains  also  came  to meet with the Isengarders in order  to  devise  plans,  exchange  reconnaissance, and provision patrols. The mix of  races  and  allegiances—though  all  served the Shadow in the end—created  much  tension. If not  for  the  power  of the Uruk-commanders, skirmishes  between these groups would have undoubtedly  occured  much  more  regularly  and  with far greater casualties.