Today we are proud to formally announce a new feature on TheOneRing.net called ‘T.I.M.E.’ – the Today in Middle-earth Calendar! Created as a Google calendar (so you can subscribe, set reminders and share) we hope this calendar will serve as your one-stop reference point for Middle-earth events on any given day of the year. From The Hobbit to The Lord of the Rings and beyond, we’ve got significant events galore. But wait…there’s more! The project does not simply tell you about the event, it also links you to discussion threads on our very own forums, allow you to discuss the history of Middle-earth with over 7500+ of your closest Tolkien fanatic friends. This calendar came together thanks to the extremely hard work of staffers Magpie, Grammaboodawg and Kelvarhin. So dive on it, and make it a habit to check our Today in Middle-earth Calendar! [TIME Calendar]

On March 25, a date designated worldwide as Tolkien Reading Day, The Grey Havens Group will share our love of Tolkien with the community by hosting a Tolkien Open Mic event from 12:00-4:00 p.m. at Barbed Wire Books, 504 Main Street in Longmont, CO. The family-friendly celebration will feature costumed characters, a costume contest and quizzes with prizes, crafts, a silent auction, light refreshments and, most importantly, an opportunity for folks to share their favorite passages from Tolkien’s works or to perform Tolkien-themed songs. This is the second Tolkien Reading Day event for our group but the first to be open to the public. We hope that the event will become an annual tradition in Longmont. See you there!

How’s your Tolkien trivia? Do you know the difference between a Balcoth and a Brandybuck? All the seven names of Gondolin? How many great rings of power there were in total?

Well, if you’re up for the challenge, we’re powering-up our trivia master Elrond for this weekend’s Hall of Fire session. Elrond knows more than 700 questions — some easy, some not so easy! So join us this evening (Saturday March 10) from 6pm EST (that’s New York time) in #thehalloffire on our IRC server (irc.theonering.net) where we’ll be indulging in a fun battle of wits where that will test your Tolkien geekery to the limit!

Plus, as a quick a heads-up, next weekend we’ll be starting a chapter-by-chapter read-through of Fellowship of the Ring. So haul your copy out and brush-up on A Long Expected Party! Continue reading “Hall of Fire Tolkien trivia contest tomorrow!”

News crossed our screens, courtesy of Veldrin, that an international online War of the Ring tournament is currently accepting sign-ups. Sponsored by Ares Games, this is an annual event meant to bring novice and experienced players together and offers prizes for people in each category. The following is some of what they had to say:

“War of the Ring has a dedicated online community and every year they get together to run the largest War of the Ring tournament in the world! It brings together both veterans and novices alike, awarding victory plaques for the overall winner of the double elimination event, as well as the best performing novice player.” For full details, just click right here.

Not quite in time for St Patrick’s Day, but shortly thereafter, fans will at last be able to read an Irish language version of The Hobbit. The book has been translated into Gaelic by Nicholas Williams, and will be published by Evertype on March 25th. More details here. Thanks to ringerspy Riccardo for the news.  Middle Earth go Bragh!

Hitting our inbox today was word that some Hobbit toys are available for preorder. This will happen – a lot – over the next few months but this provides some concrete details about what we can expect in stores in the holiday season while we lead up to the first of the two films based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit in December. Unfortunately, no visuals, but thanks to ringerspies Iain and Stormcrow for the heads up. The listing provides some very broad clues, none of them surprises. Most interesting is the “Beast Pack Series”. The items are likely sold to outlets in packs to be sold individually at retail but that is speculation. It looks like these will be available in October.

The product list is as follows:
The Hobbit 3.75″ Beast Pack Series 01 – Case of 4 – $87.99
The Hobbit 3.75″ Collector Pack – $29.99
The Hobbit 3.75″ Figure Series 01 – Case of 6 – $59.99
The Hobbit 3.75″ Figure Two-Pack Series 01 – Case of 4 – $67.99
The Hobbit 3.75″ Goblin Battle Set – $44.99
The Hobbit 6″ Deluxe Collector Figure 01 – $21.99
The Hobbit 6″ Figure Series 01 – Case of 6 – $99.99
The Hobbit Deluxe Sting Sword – $21.99
The Hobbit Dwarven Battle Axe – $14.99
The Hobbit Role Play Sting Sword – $10.99
You can see the listing right here. This is starting to get fun!