What if a demon of shadow and flame were to obtain the greatest weapon in the history
of Middle-earth? What power could such a being wield? And with whom would it ally?
Today on Nerd of the Rings, we put our regular research into
determining… what would happen if the Balrog got the One Ring!
As always, we pick up our tale at the most likely point of deviation. Unquestionably, today’s
scenario is when the Fellowship is making their way through the now decrepit realm of Khazad-dum.
Moria, the Black Pit, it is now called, and it is home to bands of orcs and a great dark menace.
The date is January 15, 3019. The Fellowship discovers the Chamber of Mazarbul, where they
are attacked by a group of orcs before making their escape. As the other 8 members flee through
the Eastern Doorway, Gandalf stands to hold the passage. There, through the closed door,
he senses a great power - a counterspell working against his own. As the door bursts asunder,
he sees the room enveloped in shadow. The wall and the chamber collapse,
and Gandalf returns to the Fellowship, leading them to the Bridge of Khazad-dum.
It came to the edge of the fire and the light faded as if a cloud had bent over it. Then with
a rush it leaped across the fissure. The flames roared up to greet it, and wreathed about it; and
a black smoke swirled in the air. Its streaming mane kindled, and blazed behind it. In its
right hand was a blade like a stabbing tongue of fire; in its left it held a whip of many thongs.
Here, Gandalf and the Balrog known as Durin’s Bane face off upon the bridge. But what if,
rather than falling together, the balrog is victorious? With a snap,
the balrog lashes his whip and the grey wizard, binding his arms to his side. With a great tug,
Gandalf is flung forward, impaled upon the fiery blade.
In this, his final moment, Gandalf knows he has failed. The balrog lifts the wizard
and with a casual flick, drops him into the abyss below. Before they know it,
the fellowship is attacked by the great demon - and no horn, nor bow,
nor sword can withstand its coming. With great swipes of his sword and whip, the balrog kills
the fellowship. Last of all stands a small creature, with drawn sword glowing blue.
For reasons not fully known to himself, the balrog grabs the creature in his hands - and
it is enveloped in flame. The creature is reduced to ash, and it’s blade is but a melted pool of
metal…and yet. Something remains…a gold band with a glowing red script…a mysterious object that
withstood the great fire of Durin’s Bane. The One Ring rests in the hand of the Balrog of Morgoth.
But what would the Balrog do with such a Ring of Power? To better inform his next moves,
we must debunk a common misconception about balrogs - they are no mindless beasts. While
their depiction is often gigantic monsters of brute strength, their power was more
magical and their presence more human. Moments before his faceoff with Gandalf,
the balrog is described as a dark form of somewhat man-shape, yet greater. Given its counterspell
against Gandalf, it clearly has more than just size and strength at its disposal - though,
their stature was certainly great and their fire and power wrought great destruction.
Standing in Moria, his enemies vanquished, this being of the same order as Gandalf and Sauron
looks upon the One Ring in his hand. It perceives the great power contained within as the ring seems
to grow in size - just as both Isildur and Bilbo had observed during their time possessing it.
The balrog places the ring upon his finger, feeling his own power amplified. He finds the
orcs of Moria flocking to his side, drawn to the leadership of the balrog. Just as Gothmog
the lord of the balrogs of old, Durin’s Bane now captains a great force of orcs. And with his now
greater power, he seeks to resume his glorious purpose from the days of Morgoth - bring wanton
destruction and darkness. For it was the balrogs - not Sauron who were most like Morgoth himself.
As we find in The Silmarillion: in Utumno Melkor gathered his demons about him, those spirits who
first adhered to him in the days of his splendour, and became most like him in his corruption.
The balrog and his orcs exit the nearby East gate of Moria, and looking out upon the lands
of Middle-earth for the first time in over 6000 years, he espies the nearby forest of Lorien.
Over the coming week, the realm of Lorien is consumed in fire and death. Ultimately the
power of Galadriel and her ring are no match for the power of the One and its wielder.
In the early days of this struggle, Sauron becomes aware of the balrog wielding his ring
and is forced to act even earlier than the canon story by nearly two months. However,
rather than dealing with a mere mortal claiming his ring, he knows the danger the balrog poses
to his very existence. His only option is to come forth from Mordor personally with a show of force
to meet the balrog in hopes it will ultimately choose to serve him - Morgoth’s chief lieutenant.
Orcs are summoned from throughout Mordor, along with the Nazgul. After two weeks of preparation,
the dark lord leads what forces he can out from the Black Gate.
All the while, there are others who have learned of what has transpired. Saruman and Denethor,
both possessing palantiri and having similar - though different - connections to the dark lord,
are also aware of the great threat in Lorien. Sauron orders Saruman to send
his forces to join his own in the eastmark of Rohan - a realm still
under Saruman’s sway as there is no visit from Gandalf to healTheoden.
But Saruman sees this move for what it is - further manipulation by the dark lord.
Should the balrog fall in line under Sauron, the wizard would be at best, third greatest in the
new power structure of the world. Saruman instead forms plans of his own - through
his servant Wormtongue, he manipulates Theoden into contacting Denethor for aid.
For Denethor’s part, he is aware that there is a great danger approaching north of Rohan,
though unlike Saruman he does not have a full picture of what that danger is. Thus,
when the call for aid comes from Theoden, Gondor will answer.
Now, we don’t know the exact number of soldiers that Minas Tirith has at
their disposal at this moment. We know that they will eventually receive 3,000 soldiers
from the southern fiefs, but that will not have happened at this point. Thus,
Gondor will send a more conservative 1500 soldiers from Minas Tirith, while simultaneously putting
out the call to the southern fiefs earlier than the canon tale for reinforcements.
Meanwhile, the Rohirrim muster their riders - not under Theoden, who remains ill,
but his son Theodred - who was never killed as Saruman had not yet made his first attack upon
Rohan to do so. With a Rohan that has not suffered the losses of two battles at the Fords of Isen and
the Battle of Helm’s Deep, they have more soldiers than they would have otherwise. Instead of the
6,000 they take in the canon tale to Minas Tirith, they assemble at least 8,000 Rohirrim - possibly
closer to 10,000. Bolstered by the fighters of Gondor, they now amass a 10,000 strong army.
As these armies of Isengard, Rohan, and Mordor assemble,
the Balrog is likewise unexpectedly bolstered. For in nearby Dol Guldur,
Sauron had a secondary force of orcs - the ones that in the canon tale lead attacks on Lorien
and Thranduil’s Realm in March 3019. Viewing the destruction of Lorien across the river,
the orcs of Dol Guldur join those of Moria in their destruction of Lorien.
We will see the ring have an effect on the balrog. It begins to feel a pull toward the south,
the home of the ring’s creator. And as with any creature, the ring enhances the natural abilities
of its wearer. For hobbits and other mortals, it makes them invisible. For great commanders,
it would lead soldiers to flock to their banner. And for powerful beings of an angelic
order - demons of shadow and flame - it would increase this power. Thus the balrog would,
like Sauron, send forth a darkening cloud of foreboding - concealing the sunlight in
the lands to which it moved. Thus, fire consumes the forest of Fangorn, and the ents are no more.
Due to proximity, and being most prepared for action, Saruman’s army of orcs, Uruks,
Goblin-men, and half-orcs meet the forces of the balrog south of Fangorn Forest. There,
the white wizard makes his move. His orcs deliver Saruman’s message - warning that even now Sauron
himself was approaching with an army, made of as many as 30,000 to take the ring by
force. Due to the earlier time frame, Sauron’s forces are not yet bolstered by the Haradrim
and Easterlings. As a token of his loyalty, Saruman’s orcs align with those of the balrog.
Should the balrog prove victorious, Saruman will be on the winning side and perhaps through
later treachery, will take the ring from his fellow maia. Should Sauron prove victorious,
he will claim that his orc army betrayed him after encountering the balrog,
wielding the One Ring. Yet, his insurance is the Rohirrim - a 10,000 strong cavalry
which will wreak havoc upon whatever force remains and weaken the force of
Sauron or the balrog - enough perhaps for Saruman to betray the victor.
The balrog and Sauron and their forces meet upon the Wold, where the Mouth of Sauron,
face to face with the great demon, makes the best case for victory - that the balrog should
fall in line, giving the ring back to Sauron himself - the chief lieutenant of Morgoth.
But would the balrog view Sauron as his superior? The case can be made
either way. Sauron was indeed Morgoth’s chief lieutenant, yet the balrogs were no
mere underlings. They were the mightiest of Morgoth’s forces - Gothmog their lord
was the high-captain of Angband. Yet, Sauron was certainly the heir apparent to Morgoth.
The balrog walks past the Mouth of Sauron, approaching the dark lord himself,
submitting to him. Sauron approaches, his prized ring returning at last. But through the ring,
the balrog had perceived the Dark Lord’s mind. Far had he strayed
from their master’s ways. Sauron sought to lord over Middle-earth,
Morgoth would have brought destruction and chaos. No, Sauron was not worthy of this prize.
The balrog grabs Sauron by the neck, the ring is his. Claiming the ring for his own and putting
forth his full power, Sauron is consumed in flame and his body is once again destroyed.
Sauron’s forces are consumed with fear at seeing their great leader defeated before
their eyes. The balrog would be the destroyer his captain once was - yet greater. In awe and fear,
just as they served Sauron, the orcs of Mordor join the balrog.
When the Saruman-influenced army of men arrives, it is to find not a battlefield of two decimated
armies, but a unified force of darkness. The men of the west fight valiantly to defend the lands
of Rohan, and bring great destruction upon the unmounted orcs. Yet, they are no match
for the might of the balrog. Eomer, Theodred, and all save a couple hundred men are slain.
The survivors ride back to Edoras, bringing word to King Theoden. Realizing everything
has gone wrong, Wormtongue abandons Rohan, riding with all speed to Orthanc,
hoping for the protection of Saruman. Eowyn now aids the king, and they lead their people
to Helm’s Deep to prepare for a potential attack by the orc armies of the balrog. In
their care are the wounded from the previous battle, including a young captain of Gondor.
Yet the balrog does not make for Rohan, instead traveling to the stronghold of his unforeseen
ally - Saruman. For his part, Saruman pledges fealty to this new ultimate power in Middle-earth
and seeks to become his chief advisor. Meanwhile, the Nazgul are dispatched to Mordor,
summoning the remainder of Sauron’s armies to make their great war upon the world of men.
Thus the power and might of the balrog wreaks havoc upon the world. And Middle-earth is
engulfed in darkness and flame. The Witch-king leads the southern armies in a successful siege
upon Minas Tirith, crippling the final realm of men standing in their way. Meanwhile,
the balrog and his northern forces travel north from Isengard, heading toward Rivendell and the
last remaining elven ring of power possessed by Elrond. The power of the balrog only grows in
its mastering of the One Ring and it begins to realize that the complete destruction of
Middle-earth is not only within its grasp, but inevitable. And maybe, with its newfound power,
it can destroy the very Door of Night and summon Morgoth himself back from the void.
This is definitely one of the more wild and crazy theories I’ve had - there just simply
isn’t a lot to go off of when it comes to the balrog possessing the ring. Though, it is a
very safe bet that nothing good would come of it. But now, I turn it over to you - how would you
have this scenario play out? And what other “What ifs” would you like to see here on the channel?
*pause*
The fires of the balrog have spread throughout the lands of Gondor and have begun to take the
northlands of Eriador. Saruman is for now, safe in his role as a lieutenant of Durin’s Bane, though
if he wishes for any of Middle-earth to be left for himself to rule, he knows he must act soon.
Meanwhile, word has spread to the few remaining kingdoms left standing - the dwarves of Erebor,
the men of Dale, and the elves of Mirkwood. As they unite and begin debating what to do,
a old figure exits the east gate of Moria. Resurrected, given new power,
and risen from the depths of Moria, Gandalf the White returns to Middle-earth.
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