Thriving under King Thror, the Dwarves of Erebor prospered greatly from their mining operations and
friendly trade relations with neighbouring powers. Yet as was often the case for their people,
excessive wealth brought about their doom, attracting the attention of the
northern Dragon Smaug the terrible, who attacked the Lonely Mountain in 2770 TA,
claiming their treasure as his own. Fleeing for their lives some of Durin’s folk joined their
kin in the Iron Hills, while others followed King Thror to the Dunland Hills, where they
lived in poverty and struggled to survive. By 2790, King Thror grew disheartened by the
state of his people and so gifted his son Thrain the last of the Seven Dwarven Rings of Power and
a map of the Lonely Mountain, before departing on a quest to their ancestral homeland of Khazad-dum,
now called Moria. Despite the danger from orcs and durin’s bane, Thror proudly marched through
the eastern gate alone, while his friend Nar waited for his return. A few days later,
Nar learned Thror was captured by the orcs, tortured and beheaded, with the name Azog carved
into his forehead. Naming himself the new King of Moria, Azog the Defiler furthered this insult
by giving Nar a small bag of coins to serve as a messenger, warning of death for any who ventured
onto his lands. As he departed, Nar saw Thror’s body hacked into pieces and fed to the crows.
Informing Thrain of all that occurred, the new King sat in silence for 7 days before
rising furiously to proclaim "This cannot be borne!" Not only did Thrain send for
the armies of Durin’s folk, but he also called upon the other Dwarven Clans scattered across
middle-earth, each of whome responded by sending armies to avenge the fallen king.
A proud and determined people, they spent the next 3 years gathering their forces
before finally invading the Misty Mountains through Mount Gundabad in the North, purging
the Northern half of the mountains down to the Gladden river. Excelling in underground combat,
the Dwarves inflicted massive casualties upon the Orcs of the misty mountains,
but paid a heavy price for their victories, losing over half their army in the fighting.
The six year campaign ultimately culminated in the Battle of Azanulbizar in 2799, when Lord Nain
and his son Dain secured victory for the dwarves by bringing reinforcements from the Iron Hills.
Among the many casualties, the king’s second son Frerin and kinsmen Fundin were killed,
while Thrain lost an eye and his first son Thorin was wounded. In the midst of battle Thorin lost
his shield and so used an oaken tree branch to defend himself, earning the nickname Oakenshield.
In their final push against enemy forces, Azog the Defiler fought and killed the Lord of the Iron
hills, only to then be confronted and beheaded by Nain’s son Dain Ironfoot. The battle won, the
dwarves completed their victory by stuffing the same bag of coins they received from Azog directly
into his mouth before fixing his head on a stake. King Thrain, seeing the orc armies destroyed,
wanted to continue the war by marching into Moria to reclaim the ancient homeland of Durin’s Folk.
But the Dwarves of other clans refused, stating their mission to avenge King Thror was complete,
and would not risk more men for a homeland that was not their own. Even Durin’s Folk refused to
continue, after Dain Ironfoot reported that he’d seen the Balrog of Moria, waiting for them in the
Mountain. The war concluded, the grand dwarven Army disbanded, and the other clans returned
to their own lands, while many of Durin’s folk followed Lord Dain Ironfoot to the Ironhills.
The rest settled in the Blue Mountains under King Thrain and his son Thorin Oakenshield.
In the aftermath of the war, the surviving orcs of the misty mountains fled and took refuge in
the White mountains of the south, where they survived by raiding settlements in the nearby
realm of Rohan. Oppositely, the defeat of the orcs in the north, gave the lands of Eriador many years
of peace, though it also led to Azog the Defiler’s son Bolg taking the leadership of Gundabad,
where he spent years rebuilding their forces. For 40 years, King Thrain II reigned in the Blue
Mountians, growing increasingly desperate to reclaim the riches left behind in their former
kingdom. In 2841, Thrain left his son Thorin as leader of their people to embark upon a quest
with a small company, including his friends Dwalin and Balin, to explore the lonely mountain and see
if the danger was still present. Learning of their mission, the Dark Lord Sauron laid a trap, sending
beasts and bad weather to eventually force them to take shelter in the forest of Mirkwood, where he
sent his agents to capture Thrain in the night. Bringing him to Dol Guldur, they took his ring
of power, inflicted torture and left him to die. Meanwhile, the wizard Gandalf the Grey embarked on
a quest to find the vanished king, making his way in secret through moria to no avail. Eventually,
his investigations brought him once again to Dol Guldur, where he found Thrain in a sorry state,
half mad and unable to remember his own name. Nevertheless, Gandalf gathered useful information,
learning that Sauron was back and seeking the remaining rings of power while posing
as the Necromancer of Dol Guldur. Summoning the last of his strength, Thrain gave Gandalf
the key and map to Erebor before passing away. Gathering the White Council to report his finding,
Gandalf urged an immediate attack to destroy Sauron and his forces while still relatively weak.
But Saruman disagreed, claiming the dark lord posed no threat without the One Ring of Power,
which long ago was carried into the sea. Swaying the Council, they chose to take no action,
trusting Saruman to watch over the situation and prevent it from escalating further.
Despite this decision, both Gandalf and Elrond of Rivendell continued to believe Sauron and the one
ring posed a significant threat. Yet what none of them realized, was that corrupt ambition already
took the heart of Saruman, who’d grown jealous of Sauron, and wanted to replace him as ruler
of Middle-earth. To this end, he used his position to keep the White Council from interfering, while
he sent his agents to search for the One Ring in the Anduin river, hoping to claim it for himself.
Having fled from the war in the Misty Mountains, a new Orc faction emerged in the White Mountains
of the south, causing trouble for the lands of Rohan. Taking up the fight, King Brytta led
his forces to battle and inflicted a punishing defeat, before returning to the capital in the
mistaken belief the threat was eliminated. Yet by 2851, the Orcs once again began their raids,
killing Brytta’s son King Walda of Rohan. Inheriting the throne and war, Walda’s son Folca
gathered his armies and at last eliminated the Orc presence in the White Mountains. Folca then
died during a boar hunt in 2864, leaving his son Folcwine as king. Two decades later in 2885, King
Folcwine sent his sons Folcred and Fastred with an army to help support their allies in Gondor.
Suffering an invasion by the Haradrim, Southern Gondor was under occupation, with intense fighting
along the poros river. Though the allied forces won the critical Battle at the Crossings of Poros,
it was a bitter victory for Rohan, as both Folcred and Fastred were killed.