Nan Cúrunir

Like Saruman himself, the land around Isengard went by many names: Nan Curunír, the Vale of Angrenost, the Valley of Saruman, or the Wizard’s Vale. Long ages had passed like shadows across this once- fertile stretch  at  the  southern  terminus  of  the  Misty  Mountains. Many Men,  Elves,  and  Dwarves—and  other  creatures  of  more  fell nature—had laid eyes upon the valley as they crossed from Dunland to Rohan and back again, for the Vale lay just north of the well-travelled Gap of Rohan.

Over the  eons,  the  Wizard’s  Vale had served as a resting point, a natural shelter, a  Gondorian  outpost,  and  a hidden  shrine  of  high  and  nefarious wizardry. In many ways, Nan Curunír rested at the very heart of Middle-earth. As the  War  of  the  Ring  grew nigh, the  Valley  of  Saruman  darkened, becoming a  place  of  gathering  power, and that of degenerate evil: The White Wizard  had   forsaken   his   vocation, joining instead  with  the  Great  Enemy in Mordor. Orcs, Uruks,  Half-orcs, Wargs, and lesser Men defiled the place with their  very  presence,  and  other unnatural beings  roved  the  brambled plain, spying for the Master of Orthanc and destroying  any  who  dare  to  trespass  in  the  land  of  Curunír. In short, the Vale had become a dangerous place for the  Free  Peoples,  a  natural  well- spring turned into a poisoned trough.