A little later today, at 5pm ET, Hall of Fire will be talking about the great Istari Saruman.
“And here you will stay, Gandalf the Grey, and rest from journeys. For I am Saruman the Wise, Saruman the Ring-maker, Saruman of Many Colours!”
At different points of The Lord of the Rings, Frodo, Aragorn and Gandalf each pay tribute to Saruman’s wisdom, acknowledging his position among the Wise, and his nobility of spirit. But are they mistaken? What is Saruman’s nature? How does it change over the long millennia of his sojourn in Middle-earth, and what is it that ultimately brings about his fall?
Join us today at 5pm ET (New York time) in #thehalloffire on the TORn chat server for what’s sure to be a lively and interesting discussion!
Suggested reading:
Saruman biography on TolkienGateway
When exactly did Saruman fall? by Tedoras
Saruman biography on TORn
Saruman is Overtaken. Illustration by Ted Nasmith.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 EDT (New York)
4.00pm CDT (Chicago)
3.00pm MDT (Denver)
2.00pm PDT (Los Angeles)
Europe:
10.00pm BST (London)
11.00pm CST (Paris)
Midnight EEST (Helsinki)
Asia-Pacific
8.00am AEST (Sunday) Brisbane
9.00am AEDT (Sunday) Sydney, Melbourne
11.00am NZST (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. It is based on internet relay chat technology (that means it’s hella old skool). It’s a text-only, moderated chat room full of eccentric Tolkien fans. We’re open 24/7 (although some times are busier and more active than others).
There are many ways to connect to the chat server. However, the easiest is generally to use a browser-based client. We usually direct folks to Mibbit:
* TORn Mibbit Widget
* Mibbit direct (as opposed to the widget above, this allows you to see others joining and leaving)
If you’re more oldschool or technically adept, you can install one of the scores of standalone chat clients that available for desktop and mobile devices. Just plug in our server details (see bottom) into the client and connect.
* Xchat: http://xchat.org/ (Windoze PC and Linux. Free)
* mIRC: http://www.mirc.com/ (Windoze PC. 30-day trial)
* AndChat: http://www.andchat.net/ (Android app for mobile. Free)
* Colloquy: http://colloquy.info/ (Mac OS and Apple mobile devices. Free)
Our server details:
IRC server name: irc.theonering.net
Channel/room name: #theonering.net
Port: 6667 (6697 for SSL connections)
