Tree-Twisting Riddles

[Túrin]

He fits a good bit of it, but I'm not seeing a connection for the third and fourth lines.

[Androthelm]

is it Melkor? (To whom Aulë was said to be similar of craft?)

[Menolly]

This is a real long shot guess, but maybe Boromir? (I suspect I'm interpreting "lawn" incorrectly.)

[Flame Fried Ent]

Saruman?

[Túrin]

Ahh, sorry, I meant to reply earlier. Melkor is a good guess, but I don't think he really had another thrust upon him. However, Saruman was the individual I was describing, well don @Flame Fried Ent!

[Flame Fried Ent]

Thanks! I only t cause I had to look something up for him for the Isengard Hall of Knowledge.

Second of three I am,
Yet never mentioned am I
By brother or nephews.
Young and hardy,
I fought with my father,
And was honoured by burning.

[Androthelm]

Is it Frerin, Thorin's younger brother (middle of three siblings), who died at the Battle of Azanulbizar and was burned on a pyre?

[Flame Fried Ent]

Yes it is! Your turn.

[Androthelm]

Ooh... I'm the clue-giver in both Riddles and Who/What/Where. Exciting stuff.

Cut off from full power by the year of my birth,
Sundered from my brother over Theories of Earth,
And outdone by my son who proved my brother true,
I blocked all reforms that my brother might do.

[Afird Splitax]

Might the answer be, Gimilkhâd, the father of Ar-Pharazôn?

[Androthelm]

It certainly is.

Cut off from full power by the year of my birth, -- Gimilkhâd was the younger brother of Tar-Palantir, Penultimate King of Numenor.
Sundered from my brother over Theories of Earth, -- Tar-Palantir was faithful to the Valar. Gimilkhâd was not, but...
And outdone by my son who proved my brother true, -- Ar-Pharazôn went further than his father, declaring war on the Gods.
I blocked all reforms that my brother might do. -- Still, Gimilkhâd was instrumental in leading the anti-Valar faction, blocking Tar-Palantir's attempts at reform

Congratulation @drifa, you are up!

[Afird Splitax]

Thank you Androthelm! And thank Arda! *grin*. Here is a riddle. Good luck!

My roots are uncertain
My age a mystery
But ancient I would appear to be
Sent by my master of the shores
On an errand unknown
My history thus written,
My history thus formed.
Who am I?

[Flame Fried Ent]

Cirdan?

[Afird Splitax]

Hi there! No it is not Cirdan.

[Androthelm]

Gandalf? or, Olorin rather, arriving on the shores of Middle-Earth?

[Afird Splitax]

No it is not Gandalf. I believe we know where his roots lie.

[Menolly]

Tom Bombadil?

[Li.]

Osse?

[Afird Splitax]

Hi Menolly and Li.! Good to see you! No it is not Tom or Osse. Here is a hint. This character only appears once in The Lord of The Rings.

[Li.]

The Mouth of Sauron?

[Flame Fried Ent]

Galdor?

[Menolly]

Guess I'll keep guessing on a similar theme. Is it Old Man Willow?

[Afird Splitax]

*grin* The answer is Galdor. You win the stuffed toy, Flame Fried Ent. Well done!

Galdor of the Havens was an Elf who in the Third Age lived in Mithlond under Círdan. He was sent by Círdan on an errand to Rivendell. He was present at the Council of Elrond representing Círdan. Thus he went down in history. There is no mention of his date of birth.

[Flame Fried Ent]

Yay!

Let’s see....trying to make this one tougher!

Last and yet not last,
In an unbroken line am I.
Two languages I spoke,
But one I preferred.
My son preferred that one more,
That he was also first,
Yet still in unbroken Kingly line.

[Androthelm]

My gut instinct, even after a few days of considering it, still comes back to Aragorn and perhaps Eldarion as last king in exile / first king born into the new dynasty of Gondor, but I can't seem to get it to work with the language element. I believe Aragorn spoke Quenya, but... Did Eldarion not? Did he prefer Westron? I'm not sure. I don't think I'm correct.

[Flame Fried Ent]

You’re right in that you got it wrong.

But you’re on the right track with what group of people you’re focussed on.

[Afird Splitax]

Oh my, I have been obsessed with this puzzle since the 14th, especially the language preference, hahahahaha.

What about Denethor? He was presumed to be the last Stewart, but not so. Aragorn renewed the office and Faramir became Stewart. He also became the first Prince of Ithilien. He preferred the Common tongue but spoke also the tongue of the Nolodor, though he did not commonly use it.

[Flame Fried Ent]

Nope, sorry @drifa.....

Like, Androthelm, you've got the right group/race/whatever, but off in languages, people, location, and so on.

[Afird Splitax]

Gah! Awesome riddle, Flame Fried Ent.

[Flame Fried Ent]

hahaha, @drifa ! First riddle I've had that's been really hard.

Hint: Y'all are in the wrong Age.

[Androthelm]

Mm this is a really good one. Just talking out loud (I don't want to resort to just flipping through my books, but...) my guess is it's someone in Numenor, with the language issue being something in regards to Adunaic vs Quenya as far as Numenorian politics on the Elves and Valar went? Hope that jogs somebody else's memory because I am still struggling with mine.

[Flame Fried Ent]

Good to see that people aren’t giving up on this!

Getting kinda warm there.

[Afird Splitax]

Okay one more try and I shall need another hint, I fear. I am driving my husband around the proverbial bend with this riddle. *grin*
I will guess again, and it shall be, Meneldur?

Last and yet not last - he was the second last King before the first Queen. He was from an unbroken line.
Two languages I spoke,
But one I preferred - Sindarin and Númenórean.
My son preferred that one more, - Aldarion actually preferred the Númenórean speech
That he was also first, ?
Yet still in unbroken Kingly line.

[Flame Fried Ent]

Getting closer @drifa......just getting preferred languages mixed up.

You’ll get it soon!

[Afird Splitax]

Hi, its me again. *grin*

Tar-Ardamin: he was the second last King to have his name spoken in Adûnaic by the King's Men. The other was Tar-Calmacil before him.
Ar-Adûnakhôr (Tar-Herunúmen): he was the first King to take the sceptre with a title in the Adûnaic tongue.
Both King's spoke the Elven-tongue, but obviously preferred the Adûnaic tongue, the latter more so.

Is it Tar-Ardamin?

[Flame Fried Ent]

YAY for @drifa

You're right!

He was the last to really use/have his Quenya name, first to really use his Adunaic name; his son was first to really use the Adunaic name; so first and yet last. Yet they both had an unbroken kingly line down to Aragorn.

You're up!

[Afird Splitax]

I kept coming back to Ar-Adûnakhôr (Tar-Herunúmen) but could not figure out the 'last but not last' connection. And I still didn't get it right in my interpretation of the riddle in my last post, hahaha.
Thanks for the hints, Flamed Fried Ent. Good riddle.

Here is an easy one.

What, in the Common Tongue, does not rhyme with Gandalf and is quite sinuous ?

[Flame Fried Ent]

River Sirion?

[Menolly]

Smaug?

[Afird Splitax]

Hahaha, Smaug. Love that! Hi Menolly! Long time no see.

Nope , both not what I am looking for.

[Menolly]

Hi @drifa! Nice to cross paths with you in both riddle threads. I feel like there are far too many sinuous things that do not rhyme with Gandalf. Perhaps the watcher in the water?

[Afird Splitax]

Nope!

[Kementari]

Mithril?

[Afird Splitax]

Hi ho Kementari! Welcome to the NU Plaza! No it is not mithril. The key is, the common tongue.

[Li.]

Is it actually common tongue? I hear they are quite sinewy.

[Afird Splitax]

Not the tongue, Li..

[Flame Fried Ent]

Grima Wormtongue?

[Androthelm]

Is it muscle? as in, an sinew-y element of the common "tongue"

[Afird Splitax]

Hahaha, nope, nope. I do believe that there are more tongues than the common one.

[Flame Fried Ent]

Olórin?