Middle-Earth is a vast and magnificent place, filled with as much beauty as there is horror This wonderous variety is what will makeThe Lord of the Ringsfranchise economically viable until the end of time. The Amazon seriesRings Of Poweronly covers the material Tolkien wrote in the appendices, and there are plenty of tales to tell, enough to keep the coffers flowing until the return of Melkor.
Tolkien’sThe Lord of the Ringstrilogy was only a smaller part of a much larger story.Rings Of Powertakes the viewer beyond what they already know about Middle-Earth, but there are still plenty of locations that both movie and book fans can recognize.
6Gorgoroth
In episode two ofRings of Power, Ardondir is taken prisoner by a group of orcs and taken to a barren, dry place that could be a desert, a dry river, or the foothills of an active volcano. All three could describe the plains of Gorgoroth. The orcs seem to be looking for something as they dig through the dead soil, which viewers find out later is the sword hilt possessed by Theo.
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Unlike the region of Núrn to the south, Gorgoroth is too close tothe slopes of Mount Doomto be hospitable to humans and elves, which is one of the reasons orcs and goblins tend to congregate there instead. Frodo and Sam have to traverse across the northwestern corner of Gorgoroth to reach Mount Doom, and it would have been close to where Arondir was taken.
5The Valley Of Udûn
When Sauron was amassing his forces in the Third Age, this is the region where most of the smithing was done and the raw materials and resources were stored. And when the armies were ready to march west, this is where they gathered. When Sam and Frodo were in disguise and making their last run to Mount Doom, they had to cross the valley of Udûn.
Gorgoroth is a big place, and the area viewers saw while Arondir and the other Wood Elves were held captive could have been the same area among the ditches of Udûn hundreds of years later. It’s a dark, dusty valley that lies between the Isenmouth and Mount Doom in the western part of the plateau with the Dark Tower further to the east.
4Dagorlad
This was the name of the open plain between the Mountains of Shadow and the Ash Mountains. To the southeast, it leads into the pass of Isenmouth, which leads into Mordor. The southern plains of Dagorlad weren’t just the site of The Battle of the Morannon, the decisive clash between the armies of Sauronand the future King Ellesar. This was also where various fights, skirmishes, and all-out wars involving the Easterlings took place. It’s also possible the migration of the Harfoots will lead them from Rhovanian to Dagorlad depending on how far south they go.
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The Black Gate as it appears in the Peter Jackson movies was built much later. In the Second Age, before the return of Sauron and during the time ofRings of Power, it was a natural pass with a few watchtowers and fortresses watching over it. The Tower of Ostirith, although it doesn’t appear in Tolkien’s lore, is an ideal example of the kinds of places that both Elves and Men built to contain and watch the former allies of Sauron.
3Núrn
The most fertile area of the Southlands, which isn’t saying much even for the Second Age, was still in some limited use during Sauron’s reign as a way to feed his armies. Parts of the show that take place in the Southlands that show any greenery take place in the verdant region of Núrn. However, a mysterious blight is about to change all of that.
It was not free people that worked the land at that time, but slave. The local geography made attempts at escape almost impossible. After the reign of Sauron ended, many did escape to places like Gondor or Harad, but after that time they were freed and could stay as masters of their own land and property.
2The Mountains Of Shadow
Also known as the Ephel Dúath, these are the mountains that guard the lower half of Mordor. They stretch all the way south from the Black Gate past the Sea of Núrnen before turning east and stretching well into southern Gondor as well as the eastern lands of Harad and Khand. They’re always part of the settingin the non-canonical locations createdfor the show, including those jagged, rocky peaks that line the village of Tirharad.
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These mountains were a boon to the tyrants that ruled the Southlands, but were more of a burden for the civilian population during wartime. The struggle of the Easterlings as they have to choose between fighting while pinned against the mountains in an old fortress, or pledging their loyalty to a villain, is what makes up part of the storyline in theRings of Powerseries.
1Orodruin
This infamous location, known inThe Lord of the Ringsas Mount Doom, is even further north than Gorgoroth, but some clever set designers snuck an image of it in as an Easter egg. The impressive vista from the top of the Tower of Ostirith, which is a location created for the Amazon show, includes a distant view of the mountain.
The Tower of Ostirith seems to be located at the meeting of two mountain ranges, in this case, the Mountains of Shadow and the Ash Mountains. This would be a view to the east with Mount Doom slightly to the north, which also makes this location convenient to the fertile area of Núrn.
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