Sauron

Sauron
Home(s)	The Void; formerly Mordor, Barad-Dur; Realm of the Necromancer, Dol Guldur; much earlier Beleriand, Tol-in-Gaurhoth, Angband, and Utumno
Language(s)	Valarin, Melkian, Black Speech, Quenya, Westron
People	Ainur, Maiar
time period	Elder Days- late Third Age
Gender	Male

Sauron (S."The Abhorred"), known predominantly as the Dark Lord of Mordor, The Enemy and the Lord of the Rings, was perhaps the greatest (and certainly the most infamous) Umaia, as well as the second Dark Lord of the Fell powers and the Sorcerer-ruler of Mordor.

A chief of the Maiar and the mightiest of the fire-spirits of Aule, Mairon was second only to Eonwë, the herald of Manwë. More potent than his peers, he had a love of order and coordination and came to believe the Valar as not wise enough to ensure the prosperity of Arda. Fuelled by these initially honourable intentions, he came to lust for the mastery that would advance his agenda. Drawn to the rebel Vala Melkor's ability to affect his own designs quickly, he resolved to ally with him so that he could achieve his goals faster. Mairon took part in the Ainulindalë, during which his theme intertwined with that of Melkor - both of them craved power and lordship of Eä.

When the wars of the First Age broke out, Sauron left Aulë's employ and entered service to Morgoth. Learning dark arts and bringing other lesser Maiar under his sway, he came to be dreaded as a sorcerer, necromancer and the greatest servant of Morgoth. When his master was first defeated, Sauron hid himself within Angband and rebuilt the fortress years later. By the time Morgoth escaped captivity, Orcs, Trolls, Wolves, Wargs and other monsters had multiplied under his lieutenant to twice the numbers they had been before.

At the time Morgoth left to try recruit Men to his side, Sauron waged war against the Elves and stroke a decisive blow by conquering the island of Tol Sirion. Wanting to leave his master's side so he could prepare his own plots, Sauron claimed the tower as his new dwelling and summoned Werewolves, Orcs and Vampires to him to carry out his wishes. Disrupted by the meddling of Barahir and his folk, the Sorcerer sent his trusted servants to find his lair. So it was that Gorlim the Unhappy was captured and brought before the dark seat of Sauron himself. Daunted by the promise of seeing his wife, the man gave up the secret only to be put to slow death afterwards, to join her. Not long after, Barahir was slain and the Quest for the Silmaril began, during which he captured the Orc-disguised company of Finrod Felagund and Beren Ercharmion, whom he imprisoned and cruelly tortured, having his wolves devour them one by one while the others watched in horror. Upon the arrival of Luthien Tinuviel, Sauron caught wind of her song and in his twisted mind sought to either take the beautiful maiden for himself or hand her over to Morgoth. The servants he sent to fetch her were all slain by Huan the Hound of Valinor and he himself came forth as the greatest wolf yet. Despite his might, Sauron was defeated and yielded the keys to the tower. Set free, he took the shape of a vampire and fled to Dorthonion. It was here he settled and called his remainder of underlings, hiding to avoid the scorn of Morgoth or perhaps the wrath of the Valar.

Following Morgoth's defeat, Sauron came before Eonwë and asked forgiveness. His plea, whether genuine or not, convinced the herald, who was unable to do so given that they had once held similar ranks and were of the same order. Unwilling to heed Eonwë's advice and return for judging before his former lords Manwë and Aulë, Sauron left in great haste and returned to his devious devices, for the bonds he had laid upon himself and his former ties to Morgoth were stronger still. Having coming to believed that neither the Aratar nor the rebel Vala cared for the needs of Endor, Sauron claimed the titles of Dark Lord, King of the World and Lord of the Earth, supplanting both Manwë and Morgoth and setting himself as the rightful ruler of Middle-Earth.

Denied the lordship and worship he so coveted, Sauron fashioned himself servants and bought the allegiance of once honorable folk from among Men and Dwarves. He bred Orcs, Wolves, Wargs and Trolls anew, delving into experiments for stronger varieties, and made Fellbeasts and other monsters, though his were lesser than those of the First Age. The Dark Worship began anew, with devout Sauronites. Using their hatred for the Elves and Men as well as their need for a master, the Dark Lord brought even the Orc tribes of the Misty Mountains at his back and call. The chieftains of Gundabad made rituals and sacrifices in his name, while the confederations of Easterlings paid him tribute. In the shadowy land of Mordor, Sauron had the tower of Barad-dûr built as his personal bastion and fortress from where he amassed massive armies through his chief agents.

Taking fair shape once more as Annatar the Bringer of Gifts, Sauron taught the Elven smiths of Celebrimbor the secrets of Ring-making. Under his mentorship, the Noldor crafted the Rings of Power, but in secret he forged the Ruling Ring. Were it not for the Numenorians, the Enemy would have succeeded in bringing the Quendi under his sway as well, for his servants were many and his power had grown immensely (therefore the name of the Dark Power).Sauron surrendered, having formed a plan in his mind, and left with the "victors" to Numenor. In time, he was able to become King Ar-Pharazôn's trusted aide and initially coerced Men to worship Morgoth (but only due to his state as an apparent prisoner not out of loyalty). He further convinced the King to assault Valinor, leading to Iluvatar sinking Numenor. He survived however, though he lost the ability to take fair form again. King Elendil of the Men of Númenor faithful to Eru alongside High-King Gil-Galad of the Noldor Elves warred against the Dark Lord, managing to push back the Orcs to Mordor and the Misty Mountains, while the Dwarves battled Dragons in the Grey Mountains and Withered Heath, some of whom served the Enemy. During the Battle of the Last Alliance, Sauron himself came to lead his servants against the allied forces of Men and Elves, killing Elendil and Gil-Galad, at the cost of being severely weakened. Prince Isildur cut the One Ring from his hand in a desperate act to protect himself, resulting in the destruction of the Dark Lord's physical form.

Taking the guise of "the Necromancer", Sauron recovered and began too manipulate events into his favour. Many of the Orcs of the Misty Mountains, descendants of those who had fought for him in the War of the Last Alliance, gathered back under his banner and it was said that even Azog the Defiler and his line paid homage to him. It is also said that Sauron furthered the hatred between Dwarves and Dragons by spreading false rumors that the former race had slain kin of the latter from the Grey Mountains.This resulted in numerous attacks against the Dwarves by the Drakes and them being more susceptible to becoming servants to the Evil One. He further struggled to bring Smaug, the last of the great Dragons, under his employ, and Gandalf the Grey feared that the Dark Lord may succeed if he had not already. His fears were confirmed by the dying Thrain II in Dol Guldur, which convinced him that the Dragon needed to be dealt with. Ultimately, the Quest for the Lonely Mountain resulted in Smaug the Terrible's end and the defeat of Bolg and the Gundabad Orcs, a significant loss for the Enemy altogether. Sauron was "forced" to leave Dol Guldur by the White Council, though it was only later that they realized that he was aware of their imminent attack and that his preparations in Mordor had already begun.

Settling back into his Tower of Barad-dûr he began once more to rally his underlings and turn others to his side. Using the Palantir recovered from Minas Ithil, he established contact with Saruman, who swore his allegiance to him and betrayed the Valar. The Dark Lord was pleased by the latter's service to him, yet felt a bit uneasy, for he suspected that Saruman had considered acquiring the Ring for himself. Nonetheless, he taught him much lore. He had learned that the Ring was no longer in the Anduin and had captured Gollum, whom he tortured into revealing two vital informations: "Shire" and "Baggins". He released the creature, thinking he could trace it back to the "thief", but Gollum was captured by Aragorn and was now imprisoned in Mirkwood. To find his lost possession, he sent the Ringwraiths to look for the Shire. The Orcs of the Misty Mountains attacked the Elves and though they captured Gollum, the creature ultimately escaped. The Ringwraiths reached Eriador, where their agents had been mostly thined up by those of Saruman, who also lied about not being aware of Hobbiton. The Witch-king managed to capture Bill Ferny and Doeth, who happened to be in the wizard's employ and who revealed Saruman's knowledge of Eriador and that he was not as genuine of a servant to the Lidless Eye as he seemed. Sauron's deadly agents reached the Shire and followed Frodo Baggins and his companions to Bree, where they were aided by the two ruffians, now in league with the Dark Lord. They failed yet again to gain the One Ring at Weathertop and were later forced to return to Mordor, empty-handed. Sauron had the Witch-king direct the war against Gondor, while Saruman, who had abandoned hopes of gaining the Ring, sought to prove his allegiance by weakening Rohan and expanding Sauron's influence in Eriador, wanting now merely to be his highest servant.

Saruman was soon defeated in the Battle of Helm's Deep and Siege of Isengard, resulting in Sauron losing one of his most potent servants as well as the army of Orcs, Half-orcs, Uruk-hai and Hill-men. He had the Witch-king and his forces move against Gondor, resulting in a serious defeat and another loss. Believing Aragorn or Gandalf to have the Ring and thinking that the hobbits were a ruse, the Dark Lord sent forth much of his army in the Battle at the Morannon, during which the One Ring was cast into the fires from whence it came. Crippled, Sauron fell with his tower. His spirit was rendered impotent, much like Morgoth's own, and imprisoned into the Void, never to return till the Last Battle.

Origin

Sauron's original name was Mairon, he was chief among Aule's people. Before entering Ea. He took part in the Ainulindalë , But he didn't align himself to Morgoth from the beginning. Sauron was also known to be one of the most powerful Maiar being far more stronger than other maiar like Gandalf and Saruman. His downfall at the end of the Third Age of Middle-earth was described in The Red Book.

Items

• The One Ring
• Gulthauk - Morgul-Knife  
• Heavy, hooded Midnight Blue robe.
• Black Staff of Morgul
• Sorcerous Black Mace
• Morgul Sword
• Black Armor
• Fell-Gauntlet of Death

Names

He is also known as:

• Abhorred Dread
• The Abominable
• The Accursed
• Annatar, Aulendil or Artamo (His Disguise among the Elves in the Second Age)
• Aradain (Angmar, Sauronites)
• Arahoth (Angmar, Sauronites)
• Aþa3uzônôz (Ainur)
• Black Master
• Black Hand
• Black One
• The Burlaugash (Dol Guldur)
• The Corrupter
• The Cruel
• The Dark Lord
• Dark Lord of Mordor
• The Dark One
• The Dark Power
• Dasata (Haradrim)
• The Deceiver
• The Dread-God (Dorwinrim)
• Durbaz-u-Thrûnon Burlauga (Dol Guldur)
• Edainil (Angmar, Sauronites)
• Enemy of the Free Peoples of Middle-earth
• Enemy of the Valar
• The Eye
• The Evil Eye
• The Evil One
• The Faithless
• Giver of Gold and Rings
• The Great Deceiver
• The Great Eye
• The Great King (Sauron´s name among the indigenious tribes of Gondor in the second Age)
• Gorthaur (Sindar)
• God-King (Sauronites)
• Goth
• Kaishnalai (Palisor and Northern Seas)
• Kerkassk (Wainriders)
• Khäz-gramaze (northern Haradrim)
• The King (Sauronites)
• King of Kings
• The King of Men

  

  Sauron returned

• The Lidless Eye
• Lord of Barad-dûr
• The Lord of Darkness
• The Lord of Death (Angmar, Hillmen, Arvandor)
• The Lord of the Earth or Lord of Endor (His Name as Lord of Middle-Earth in the second Age)
• The Lord of Evil
• Lord of Melkorindi
• Lord of the Night (Angmar, Hillmen, Arvandor)
• Lord of Night and Moon (Angmar, Hillmen, Arvandor)
• Lord of Night and Sorcery (Angmar, Hillmen, Arvandor)
• The Lord of the Rings
• Lord of the World (His Name as Lord of Arda in the Second Age)
• Mairon
• Maladûm (Balchoth)
• Marec (Daen)
• Master of All
• Master of Thralls
• Maureb or Maurrhi (Dunmen)
• Mayazônôz (Ainur)
• the Nameless (Gondor, Rohan)
• Nameless Enemy
• the Necromancer or the Shadow of Dol Guldur (Northmen and Silvan Elves)
• Norsus (Q.)
• The One Enemy
• The Prime Dark Lord
• The Red Eye
• Ring-maker
• Ring-lord
• The Ruler
• Sauruk (some orcish tribes)
• The Shadow
• Shakhburz (Black Speech)
• The Second Dark Lord
• Shoglic, Sauron´s disguise when he corrupted the Daen Lintis
• The Sorcerer
• Sûr (farthest East)
• Taimaraud (Greater harad)
• Taninîl (Avari,Wômaw)
• Tar-Mairon or Zigûrun (In Númenór and among the Black Númenóreans)
• The Terrible
• Thu
• Tûmrakhi (Variags of Khand)
• The Unnamed
• Vâtra (Harad)
• Wise-Fool (Called so by Gandalf)
• Zigûr (Numenor)

Cults

• Cult of the Eye
• Cult of Shoglic
• Guldur Sorcerers
• Witches of Angmar
• Cult of Vâtra
• The Dark Worship

Notes

• During the War of the Ring, Sauron did not accept that someone wanted to destroy the Ring. He thought that his enemies were trying to push him out of the throne and rule instead of him. 
• In the early legendarium, his character was represented by the cat Tevildo, and then the necromancer Thû, whose name evolved to Gorthû, Sûr and finally Sauron.

References

• MERP:Lords of Middle-earth Vol I: The Immortals
• MERP:Middle-Earth Adventure Guidebook II