Arthedain, Cardolan and Rhudaur

[Celebril]

I am getting close to finishing up my current campaign in Middle Earth and I was thinking I would base my next campaign around 1350 of the Third Age in around the Kingdoms of Arthedain, Cardolan and Rhudaur. That would be 6 years before Argeleb I dies in battle with Rhudaur. Has anyone ran in this time period yet? I would be interested in hearing how things like Hobbits and Dunedain were handled. Their Cultural Virtues are more geared toward The Shire and Ranger period. I was thinking that the Hobbits would be more like their wild cousins in this time period. What makes this time period exciting for me is that Eriador is a lot more populated, Angmar has just came onto the scene 50 years ago, Moria is still open and a thriving Kingdom of Dwarves and things that are just ruins in the time of The Hobbit are fully thriving, working communities. There is a lot of political intrigue going on and everything is leading to war in 1356. Across the Misty Mountains Gondor is still very powerful, The Kingdom of Rhovanion still exists and The Old Forest Road is still in use but raided by things out of Dol Guldur. I think this would be a fun and different time for my players.

[Enevhar Aldarion]

Since you are using the same time period that all the old MERP books are set in, you may want to try and track down the ones for that region to use for ideas.

[Otaku-sempai]

Yes, you would need to run the Dúnedain of Eriador as one or more Cultural Variants as they will not exist as the Rangers until after the fall of Arthedain. Physically they would remain much the same, but culturally they might more resemble the Men of Minas Tirith in a number of ways. Rhudaur, where the Dúnedain were always few in number, is already controlled by Hill-men and is in league with Angmar. As you say, Gondor is still mighty and at this time still controls Umbar.

The Hobbits in Bree are learning and adopting the ways of the local Bree-landers except for those customs that they maintain from their days in Rhovanion. The Stoors have settled for now in Dunland and the Angle (the land between the River Hoarwell and the Loudwater).

Durin's Folk are in Khazad-dûm, joined by most of the Dwarves formerly of Belegost and Nogrod. The remaining Dwarves of the Blue Mountains should be concentrated in the southern range where they still have working mines. Of the Dwarves dwelling far in the East, little is known.

Elrond, Celebrían and their children dwell in Rivendell with the remnants of the High Elves of Eregion. Círdan the Shipwright rules the Gray Havens as he has done since the beginning of the Second Age; the rise of Angmar has caused the Elves to abandon the lands between the Blue Mountains and the River Lhûn and retreat to the Havens and Lindon. The history of Celeborn and Galadriel is a bit confusing and conflicted and it's difficult to say with much certainty where they dwell at this time. The increasing danger from Dol Guldur as forced Thranduil and his Wood-elves to retreat to the north of the Greenwood, increasingly known now as Mirkwood, where they have established the Woodland Realm and constructed the Elvenking's Halls patterned after Thingol's underground fortress of Menegroth in Doriath.

[Majestic]

Interesting timing! I've been reading through all of my C7 Middle-earth books, and yesterday and today I was reading all about the battles between Angmar and Arthedain (plus lots about Cardolan and Rhudaur) from the TOR book Rivendell.

It should be quite an exciting time to set a game!

[Tolwen]

Elrond, Celebrían and their children dwell in Lindon with Gil-galad. Rivendell will not be founded until the destruction of Eregion in TA 1697.

Wasn't Eregion's fall in SA1697 rather than TA? IIRC Elrond and his family lived in Rivendell from ca. SA1700 onward and thus by TA1350 they reside there for ca. 3,000 years.
[/scholar mode]

@Celebril:
For OM18, a contribution about the history and rulers of Cardolan and Rhudaur is planned, so you might get some inspiration and info from there

Best
Tolwen

[Otaku-sempai]

Wasn't Eregion's fall in SA1697 rather than TA? IIRC Elrond and his family lived in Rivendell from ca. SA1700 onward and thus by TA1350 they reside there for ca. 3,000 years.
[/scholar mode]

Crap! You're right. Thanks, Tolwen; so corrected!

[Tolwen]

Crap! You're right. Thanks, Tolwen; so corrected!

And being very pedantic , Elrond's family lived with him only after the early Third Age as the wedding of Elrond and Celebrían took place in TA 109. His children were born in TA 130 and 241. So interestingly, Elrond lived as a bachelor in Rivendell for ca. 1,800 years (mostly in the Second Age). Celebrían might have stayed there in this era for some time as well, but not as his wife

Best
Tolwen

[Otaku-sempai]

And being very pedantic , Elrond's family lived with him only after the early Third Age as the wedding of Elrond and Celebrían took place in TA 109. His children were born in TA 130 and 241. So interestingly, Elrond lived as a bachelor in Rivendell for ca. 1,800 years (mostly in the Second Age). Celebrían might have stayed there in this era for some time as well, but not as his wife

Best
Tolwen

True, but I was not intentionally trying to imply that Elrond had wed in the Second Age.

[Tolwen]

True, but I was not intentionally trying to imply that Elrond had wed in the Second Age.

I did not inhtend my last post to be too deadly serious (thus the twinkling), and of course I wasn't suggesting anything regarding your post
[bows]

Best
Tolwen

[Halbarad]

@Tolwen

Hi Thomas, who is writing the article on the Kings and Queens of Cardolan and Rhudaur? It sounds very interesting indeed.