Barliman's Chat This Saturday at 5pm EST, Hall of Fire resume Two Towers chapter chats with Frodo and Sam still with the Men of Gondor at Henneth Annun. Frodo’s own fate — and that of the Quest — remains undecided, yet he is summoned in the small hours of the morning by Faramir to discover that he must, himself, to decide the fate of another.

`The creature is wretched and hungry,’ said Frodo, `and unaware of his danger. And Gandalf, your Mithrandir, he would have bidden you not to slay him for that reason, and for others. He forbade the Elves to do so. I do not know clearly why, and of what I guess I cannot speak openly out here. But this creature is in some way bound up with my errand. Until you found us and took us, he was my guide.’

The Two Towers. Book 4, Chapter VI: The Forbidden Pool

Fate, chance or providence has lured Gollum back to Frodo’s side. Frodo discovers that, even with an opportunity, he is not easily able to disnown his feelings of obligation toward Gollum. It appears that although Gollum is bound to Frodo by his promise, Frodo is similarly bound to Gollum, something that could prove to the benefit, or the detriment, of the Quest.

Come join us this Saturday at 5pm EST (please note the time change!) in the Hall of Fire for what’s sure to be a lively discussion!

Time zone conversions

Not sure what time the chat will be where you are? Check this little conversion table out for some help. Alternatively, check our handy Event Announcer over on Time and Date for the correct time in your area.

America:
5.00pm EST (New York)
4.00pm CST (Chicago)
3.00pm MST (Denver)
2.00pm PST (Los Angeles)

Europe:
10.00pm GMT (London)
11.00pm CST (Paris)
Midnight EEST (Helsinki)

Asia-Pacific
8.00am AEST (Sunday) Brisbane
9.00am AEDT (Sunday) Sydney, Melbourne
11.00am NZDT (Sunday) Wellington

How long do your topic chats go for?

Our chats usually last from an hour to ninety minutes, and are very newbie friendly. Simply drop in and join the conversation! However, our main room, #theonering.net is open 24 hours a day. We don’t always talk Tolkien there, but if you have a burning question, you’ll usually find one or two of “the regulars” up for a chat!

Where — connection details

Chat happens on #thehalloffire on irc.theonering.net — the TORn IRC server. You can connect instantly via our embedded Mibbit client that works inside your web browser.

Alternatively, you can install a dedicated chat program such as mIRC on your computer and just plug in the following connection details.

Server: irc.theonering.net
Port: 6667
Channel: #thehalloffire