This Saturday at 6pm ET, we return to our chapter chats, focusing on the battle of the Pelennor Fields — the greatest battle of the Third Age. Theoden and his household knights engage and destroy the cavalry of the Haradrim, while others of his host overwhelm those orcs closest to the walls of Minas Tirith.
But it was no orc-chieftain or brigand that led the assault upon Gondor. The darkness was breaking too soon, before the date that his Master had set for it: fortune had betrayed him for the moment, and the world had turned against him; victory was slipping from his grasp even as he stretched out his hand to seize it.
But his arm was long. He was still in command, wielding great powers. King, Ringwraith, Lord of the Nazgûl, he had many weapons. He left the Gate and vanished.
Return of the King: Book V, Chapter V: The Ride of the Rohirrim
As the fighting grows furious, Theoden’s horse is mortally wounded by a dart of the enemy and falls, trapping the king underneath. His housecarles scattered, only Merry and Dernhelm — Eowyn in disguise — remain to confront Mordor’s Black Captain as the Witch-king of Angmar closes to claim his kill.
What forms of heroism do we see at work here? How does it contrast against the manic, beserk drive of Eomer?
Did you lose hope when the black-sailed fleet came floating up the Anduin? What brings Aragorn up the river in time … luck, providence or something else? And, of course, there’s that eternal question, who exactly strikes the telling blow against the Witch-king?
These are just a few of the questions we’ll ponder this weekend as we explore The Battle of the Pelennor Fields in the Hall of Fire.
Upcoming discussions:
April 5: Exactly who were the Druedain? (Pukel men)
April 12: The Pyre of Denethor
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:
6.00pm EDT (New York)
5.00pm CDT (Chicago)
4.00pm MDT (Denver)
3.00pm PDT (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
