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Angelalex242 wrote:Just because it's a first adventure doesn't mean it's a first kill.

Anyone with the Slayer calling has surely killed before the game started. Anyone with weapon 3 probably has too. I'd also bet all elves, of either Mirkwood or High have personally killed someone before simply due to lifespan.

I disagree somewhat. Killing, say, wolves, spiders, or even Orcs, is not the same as killing other Men. A slayer might easily never have killed another human being, focusing on other targets. Likewise, weapon skill 3 could simply result from being an excellent hunter (for bows) or having been extensively trained by the best instructors (for just about anything). And a long life does not necessarily equate to a violent one. Indeed, given High Elves reaction to Shadow and their lack of any to begin with, I'd be shocked if their lives haven't been mostly peaceful thus far.

I'd argue it's purely a backstory consideration. Soldiers and guards probably have, as have those who wander dangerous lands. Cooks and gardeners? Not so much.

I suddenly got an image of Gimli walking around the ramparts of Helm's Deep, performing coup de grace on two score unconscious orcs.

Tolkien must have deleted that part to keep the word count down.

Well...if Gimli had Old Hatred backing up his Axe (and he probably did), then yeah, he probably would do that.

And if he got Shadow from it, well...he had Stiff Neck too.

Angelalex242 wrote:Well...if Gimli had Old Hatred backing up his Axe (and he probably did), then yeah, he probably would do that.

And if he got Shadow from it, well...he had Stiff Neck too.

I was being facetious.

He didn't have to kill the ones he hit in combat because they were already dead, because that's how Tolkien wrote it. The great thing about fiction...whether written in a book or played at a table...is that you don't have to worry about messy details like injured enemies. Unless you need them for the story, of course.