Rangers of the North, and South

[Mirimaran]

Hi all,

Not wanting to piggyback on another's thread, just wanting to give my two cents on what Tolkien's Rangers mean to me. I always thought that "Ranger of the North" carried with it a certain mystique, that the knowledge that so few did so much to keep the North free of evil things, I am proud to be known as such. I very much love that we are seeing so many interpretations of the Rangers, both North and South, cousins, but I think we all have a common goal. Those of the North, reduced to a wandering people, cling fiercely to their homeland, willing to defend it and its people to the death, despite the cost.

Anyone need a mission statement?

"If Gondor, Boromir, has been a stalwart tower, we have played another part. Many evil things there are that your strong walls and bright swords do not stay. You know little of lands beyond your bounds. Peace and freedom do you say? The North would have known them little but for us. Fear would have destroyed them. But when dark things come from the houseless hills, or creep from sunless woods, they fly from us. What roads would any dare to tread, what safety would there be in quiet lands, or in the homes of simple men at night, if the Dunedain were asleep, or were all gone into the grave?

'And yet less thanks have we than you. Travellers scowl at us, and countrymen give us scornful names. "Strider" I am to one fat man who lives within a day's march of foes that would freeze his heart, or lay his little town to ruin, if he were not guarded ceaselessly. Yet we would not have it otherwise. If simple folk are free from care and fear, simple they will be, and we must be secret to keep them so. That has been the task of my kindred, while the years have lengthened and the grass has grown.'

And those of the South, so beautifully embodied by Faramir,

“‘War must be, while we defend our lives against a destroyer who would devour all; but I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend.’

Such men, who walked the green earth in the light of day, are now our legends.

Ken

Mirimaran Dunadan, Ranger of the North

[Stormraven]

Thanks Mirimaran. As always, your wisdom shows through. I am glad that this forum can support a number of different Ranger persona views. Within Tolkien's world, Rangers of the North were always held with a sense of awe and mystery. I believe even the Rangers of Ithilien held them to be so. In many ways, I liken the Rangers of the North to Hawkeye in Last of the Mohicans. I was an extra in that movie and I'm reminded how Nathanial, his Native father and brother would be Rangers. But they were not military and even displayed a friction to the regular military. Roger's Rangers were, however, both Rangers and military, not unlike the Rangers of Ithilien. Both had to follow some system of military structure but had Hawkeye somehow ended up as a Roger's Ranger, he would have champed at the bit and probably deserted. I've known re-enactors who portrayed Roger's Rangers. I never have but I was part of a 1740's period group called the Georgia Highland Rangers. Both groups had a sense of distinctiveness from the regular military yet still retained a military bearing, followed a rank structure and saw themselves as part of a larger group (in these particular cases - the English Colonial Empire and Army). I've never seen a re-enactor who did Roger's Rangers or Georgia Highland Rangers that saw themselves as completely independent. To do that, one would have to be (1) Separated from their unit, (2) Captured by the enemy or (3) a deserter, which in effect, would not make them a Roger's Ranger anymore. Gondor in the Third Age was feudal and even more so into the Fourth Age. We're told that the Rangers of the North were somehow integrated into the army of the Reunited Kingdom, probably either as a personal guard to the King for as a separate unit in conjunction with the Rangers of Ithilien. I will continue this in another posting as I'm running out of room.

[Stormraven]

To continue. It's interesting that Tolkien began another story but did not finish it concerning Bergil, Beregond's son. Bergil would go on to function as a commander of the Rangers of Ithilien in further securing Minas Morgul (Ithil) from the lingering servants of the Enemy. He proposed that a new cult was forming around another charismatic figure and that this figure may have been calling the Barrow Wights to his aid. In this regard, Tolkien seems to have kept the distinctiveness of the Rangers of the North (they would later fight in battles along side the King) and the Rangers of Ithilien. Some have speculated that they may have joined forces but I don't believe this to be the case. The Rangers of the North were just held in so much awe that they were on a higher plane than most Rangers of Ithilien could hope to obtain. For one, the Southern Rangers had "weaker blood" and this caste system probably would have been enforced to a certain extent. Both were considered nobility, especially when the Reunited Kingdom came into being, but Rangers of the North might have been likened to Royal nobility whilst Rangers of Ithilien might be seen as "Colonial nobility".
Personally, I have no interests in military ranks. I see them simply as an organizational tool. I use Social media for one purpose - to connect with Rangering and topics concerning Middle Earth. I like Gondor - that's my thing. Why? I'm not sure. I guess because it represents something that could be made better and is. It is a stabilizing force in Middle Earth. Most all my "friends" in Social Media have something to do with this topic. Call me a stick in the mud, stuck in a rut. And while I like Gondor as a whole, it it their Rangers that hold the most interest for me. I simply wish to portray them as best I can.

[Tomcat1066]

To me, the best thing about the term "Ranger" is that it can mean many different things to many different people, and none of them be wrong.

While this forum is called Middle Earth Rangers, it's not actually exclusive to just that. This means that one man's version of Ranger isn't beholden to Tolkien, George R.R. Martin, or anyone else vision of what a Ranger is.

While Stormraven, myself, and a few other forum members are part of one group that is structured a certain way, it makes us no more or less a Ranger than the person who merely ventures out on lone outings with their spear, bow, and bedroll. We are all Rangers, just different flavor of Rangers. We're kind of like ice cream that way. Some may prefer chocolate, while some may prefer strawberry. Neither is "wrong", but they might be wrong for a particular individual.

Unless the ice cream has nuts in it. That's just an abomination to mankind.

[Ruusun]

I agree and think everyone here is right. As an Ithilien Ranger, I like the idea of being organized. I think of the unit as a team accomplishing a central purpose. As a medic, it is my job to patch up wounds and to save lives and to teach others to help me do the same. I lived for 8 years in the wilderness, by myself, a woman alone with only my dogs as watchers. I like that mentality to and can see how it is attractive to many. I do see that there are many types of Rangers here, of which we are only a part and maybe the structure that has been proposed has ruffled some feathers cause it strikes at the heart of independence. But in the end, it's all in the persona. Some here portray independent Rangers. Some of us portray Rangers that are part of an organized military. We can all learn from one another and that is the reason I'm here. Many of you hold years and years of experience in this genre and we hope to be students, one and all - even if we hold a fictional rank in a fictional military organization in a fictional world. But in the end, we can all make it our own.

[Gondian]

By Eru! How I love this forum! Thank you Ken, Stormraven, Ruusun, and Tomcat! I am grateful that I get to be counted amongst the ranks of such a fine band of brothers and sisters!

[Ruusun]

Thank you Gondian. One thing I want to say as to "authenticity". I'm female and in Tolkien's works, females are always sort of the idyllic sorcerer - queens / goddess types ( unless we look to Shelob and some of the Sackville-Bagginses). As a woman Ranger, I may be an oddity in Tolkien's world. Yes, I know that Peter Jackson did a lot to put more female roles into the storyline but in truth, that is not accurate. Now I do believe if Tolkien were still around and Jackson went to him and asked if he could tweak the storyline a bit, that Tolkien probably would have agreed. After all, much has changed since the middle of the last century. Today's fantasy genre includes females in all sorts of roles - not only the classic queens but warriors tried and true. I have played in many roleplaying games where the DM introduced a female city watch captain or general. We may not be "historically accurate" in this regard but fantasy is fantasy afterall and outlooks in their world can be different than in our own. I feel honored to represent Gondor. In my mind, Aragorn (King Elessar) would not have minded Eowyn to be a soldier in his army and neither do I feel he would mind me being in it.

[Stormraven]

"Still she did not blench: Maiden of the Rohirrim, child of kings, slender but as a steel blade, fair yet terrible. A swift stroke she dealt, skilled and deadly. The outstretched neck she clove asunder, and the hewn head fell like a stone. Backward she sprang as the huge shape crashed to ruin, vast wings outspread, crumpled to the earth; and with its fall the shadow passed away. A light fell about her and her hair shown in the sunrise."
I don't know. Seems like Tolkien was a pretty good advocate for allowing women their due. And since it was Aragorn who helped heal her after the fight and witnessed her valor, I'm in agreement with you that the wisdom of our King would have shown through and women amongst the regular army of Gondor or the Rangers of Ithilien would not be unheard of.

[Udwin]

Yes! I love Tolkien's more enlightened view regarding women warriors compared to his fellow Inkling Mr. Lewis--"Battles are ugly when women fight", and all that. Blech.

[Tomcat1066]

I suspect that Tolkien's view on women in fantasy warfare shaped much of the direction fantasy fiction has taken in that regard. It's particularly amusing to me that it's not just allowed, but the norm. Even more modern fantasy stories feature strong, capable women engaged in battling the forces of evil.

As a writer myself, I can't begin to fathom writing a story that doesn't have a least one woman capable in a fight. Eowyn holds a special place in my heart, after all.

[Greg]

Ken's initial post, really, shows the key quotes that should be kept in mind at all times when developing your gear/kit/persona for a Tolkien-based ranger. If what you're working on is not capable of living up to the standards outlined in those quotes, it probably isn't really ranger gear. Thankless, yet humble; secret, yet old as the grass is long. True courage, and a willingness to sacrifice. Keep that all in mind, and you'll never regret a project, meetup, or outing.

<3 This forum.

[Ringulf]

Truly Ken you have a Bard's talent in your dextrous tungue and silver wit, to be able to thrust forth a peicing blade that cuts meat from bone.
These quotes and your enlightenment are both poiniant and semenal to our purpose.

[Mirimaran]

Well said, all I am honored to be among those who love the Rangers as much as I do

Ken

[Rifter]

Well said

[Straelbora]

Thank you Gondian. One thing I want to say as to "authenticity". I'm female and in Tolkien's works, females are always sort of the idyllic sorcerer - queens / goddess types ( unless we look to Shelob and some of the Sackville-Bagginses). As a woman Ranger, I may be an oddity in Tolkien's world. Yes, I know that Peter Jackson did a lot to put more female roles into the storyline but in truth, that is not accurate. Now I do believe if Tolkien were still around and Jackson went to him and asked if he could tweak the storyline a bit, that Tolkien probably would have agreed. After all, much has changed since the middle of the last century. Today's fantasy genre includes females in all sorts of roles - not only the classic queens but warriors tried and true. I have played in many roleplaying games where the DM introduced a female city watch captain or general. We may not be "historically accurate" in this regard but fantasy is fantasy afterall and outlooks in their world can be different than in our own. I feel honored to represent Gondor. In my mind, Aragorn (King Elessar) would not have minded Eowyn to be a soldier in his army and neither do I feel he would mind me being in it.

I think for Tolkien, there was an inner tension between his love for pre-Christian northern and western European cultures, in which women could fight in battles if they were so inclined, including being titled 'shield maidens,' and his decidedly Victorian/Edwardian world view which saw women as 'the weaker sex,' incapable of battle.