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The Sauron Strategies: One War to Win Them All, Except... - Page 5

© Michael Martinez

The 20th century of the Third Age proved to be a tumultuous period for both Sauron and his allies. The loss of Arthedain and Khazad-dum must have alarmed the Eldar and the Istari. Gondor's losses to the Easterlings and the final retreat of the Eotheod to the Vales of Anduin ensured that the West no longer possessed the manpower to stem the flow of peoples and resources to southern Mirkwood and Mordor. And the emergence of the Nazgul in 2002, when they laid siege to Minas Ithil, which fell after only two years, was a sign that the evil defeated in the north had only suffered a minor setback. Nonetheless, Dol Guldur, though evil by reputation, seems to have displayed little ambition through this period. The kings of Arnor and Gondor had concluded in the mid-20th century that a single will was orchestrating their declines for an undisclosed purpose. By the mid-21st century, the Wise (the Istari and the lords of the Eldar) must have concluded that the power in Dol Guldur was the most likely candidate for the role of Master Enemy. But just who was the Necromancer? The Wise suspected it may have been a Nazgul. After all, the Lord of the Nazgul had been the Witch-king of Angmar. The Nazgul had just taken Minas Ithil. Nazgul were obviously active in Middle-earth. But some, probably including Galadriel and Gandalf, feared the Necromancer was Sauron himself. Hence, in 2063 Gandalf investigated Dol Guldur and Sauron retreated eastward. Over the next 400 years, which the Wise referred to as the Watchful Peace, Sauron prepared new forces. The Balchoth, related to the Wainriders, rose to prominence in the east. The Uruks were bred in Mordor. Umbar, destroyed by Gondor in the 19th century, was reinvested by forces undoubtedly loyal to Sauron, and he finally began to challenge Numenorean control over the seas. Sauron's influence among the Haradrim increased. When he deemed the time right, in 2460 Sauron returned to Dol Guldur with new forces, and Minas Ithil unleashed the Uruks upon Ithilien. Sauron sent Orcs and Trolls to colonize the Misty Mountains. And the Corsairs of Umbar began to attack Gondor. The return to Dol Guldur, however, implies that Sauron still feared the union of his enemies. The Longbeard Dwarves were growing strong again. The Eotheod were becoming more numerous, and there were other Edainic peoples in the Vales of Anduin who might ally themselves with Gondor. Lothlorien remained as a bulwark of Elven power, and Thranduil controlled northern Mirkwood. Sauron must have wanted to keep his northern enemies off balance while the Nazgul, Balchoth, and Corsairs whittled away at Gondor's resources.

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