It was a long time ago in, literally, a land far away when my first and most treasured magic weapon came into my possession. Glamdring, the Foe-Hammer. The story of how it was presented to me is one of my most cherished memories, but like many things that happened in the distant past I can’t dismiss the possibility that my telling of it will be colored by my perceptions and the passage of time.
It was my first time in Middle Earth, a land that had been adventured to by the heroes of the Realms for many years. In those years for which I was not present there are many and varied accounts of what had occurred and I would not be so presumptuous to try to explain the totality of that history. My impression at the time, however, was that the evil lord Sauron had all but completely wiped out the heroic armies that opposed him and that some of the most powerful adventurers of the Realms had decided to join him.
For those of you who are not as aged as myself, this might be hard to understand, but it really is the crux of this tale. In those days, magic items were incredibly rare and valuable to the point that they often caused conflict. The lord Sauron had convinced several adventures to turn to his side by presenting them with the gift of a very powerful items. Rings that granted their wearers armor, and sometimes powers even greater than that. The bearers of these rings were often called Wraiths. They caused you to have to be servile to Sauron in the deal but, again, items were rare so it was a forgone conclusion that acquiring one was always worth the cost.
There were, of course, adventurers who had never given in to Sauron’s temptation and chief among them were Baba and Ranger, largely my inspirations for traveling to Middle Earth myself to aid the cause of Good. There were many other heroes that were caught in between the two sides. And the conflict and muddled loyalties and friends standing opposed to one another had caused years of hurt feelings and an effective stalemate in many respects.
And so into that situation I arrived along with some of my fellow Chimeronians who had agreed to take up this quest together. Bright, Rel, and Theus. I’m not sure I knew exactly what to expect when I teleported into those lands but there was no way I would have predicted what actually transpired. Almost immediately after arriving, I was set upon by several Wraiths and, struck dead, was teleported to the throne room of Sauron.
There Sauron spoke directly into my deceased mind, keeping my spirit awake and bound. He offered me the same choice he had offered to so many other heroes before me. A magic ring in exchange for servitude. I remember very clearly how shocked he was by my immediate refusal. In punishment for my unwillingness to capitulate, he declared that I was to remain dead and in his possession for all time. Several times afterward he reattempted his temptations, through different tacks and different deals, none of which were the least bit appealing. So it was my fate to lie dead and defeated while my compatriots did all they could throughout the day to win a losing battle and also somehow find their way to rescue me. In the end, however, they did not need to.
As evening set upon the land and little hope remained, all of a sudden my spirit was surrounded by the brightest and warmest light I had ever experienced. My body was restored to life and I had found myself, teleported and made whole, to the side of my friends. There before my kneeling form was an elf. Beautiful beyond my ability to describe, powerful beyond my ability to comprehend. When she spoke her words were pure like the very white light that had enveloped the both of us and I understood that fate had deemed there a purpose to everything I had endured that day.
Her name was Galadriel, and in her outstretched arms she held a sword, glowing blue with white ruins. She told me it was named Glamdring, the Foe-Hammer and that it was my duty to wield it in defense of Middle Earth and its people. With that gesture and that gift I resolved to spend the following years fulfilling my given task. I was a young adventurer and I hadn’t truly found my way in the world yet, but with Glamdring in hand I learned how to lead and army, I came to understand the joy and the heartbreak that follows you along on every quest you undertake, I learned the prices that you have to pay to live the life of a hero. And though we were eventually and overwhelmingly successful in ridding Middle Earth of the scourge of lord Sauron, it was not without cost.
Glamdring, however, was my faithful companion all those years and afterward. To this day, in fact. It’s long been disconnected from the lands of Middle Earth, no longer accessible to us through normal means, and it’s power has faded. Nonetheless there is no other sword that I would rather carry and it will remain at my side for the rest of my career.
