Glorfindel

ResRef

glorfindel002

Tag

Glorfindel

Race

Elf

Appearance

Elf

Class(es)

Fighter 60/Cleric 20

HP

6,400

CR

497.0

Faction

Evil (id 6)

Conversation

glorfind

Where to find

Placed directly

Abilities

Classes

Glorfindel first appears in Tolkien's fantasy in The Fall of Gondolin about the conquest of the Elven city Gondolin by the Dark Lord Morgoth. It was the first part of "The Book of Lost Tales" to be written, in 1916–17. As his ideas evolved, Tolkien wrote about this event various times, and it appears in compressed form in The Silmarillion, when much of Tolkien's original ideas had been superseded or abandoned. From the beginning, Glorfindel appears as a noble lord, known as one of King Turgon's chief lieutenants. In the original Fall of Gondolin, he is called the chief of the House of the Golden Flower. After fighting in the city's defence, Glorfindel escapes together with Tuor, Idril, Eärendil and many others. The survivors pass through the Encircling Mountains above Gondolin. However, they are ambushed by enemies, including a Balrog demon. Glorfindel duels and kills the Balrog, but is himself killed. His body is buried under a mound of stones. The Fall of Gondolin relates that "Glorfindel and the Balrog" became an Elven proverb to describe great skill and courage in battle. In The Fall of Gondolin Tolkien writes that his name "meaneth Goldtress for his hair was golden". Editor Christopher Tolkien comments that "this was from the beginning the meaning of his name", as the character is called "yellow-haired Glorfindel" in The Silmarillion. In The Silmarillion Glorfindel appears as one of Turgon's captains who oversaw his retreat during the Battle of Unnumbered Tears. [ The Lord of the Rings An Elf of the same name appears in The Lord of the Rings, written many years after The Fall of Gondolin and usually published in three volumes. He figures in the main story of The Lord of the Rings, about the hobbit Frodo Baggins and the One Ring of the Dark Lord Sauron (himself a servant of Morgoth). One of the Appendices usually published with the third volume, The Return of the King, relates that during the Third Age, Glorfindel leads the Elvish forces of Rivendell, the Grey Havens, and Lothlórien against Angmar in the Battle of Fornost. There he fights alongside King Eärnur of Gondor, along with the remnants of Gondor's sister kingdom Arnor. When the Witch-king of Angmar, Lord of the Ringwraiths (Nazgûl) and chief servant of Sauron, rides out to defend his ruling seat at the captured Fornost, his presence spooks Eärnur's horse and sends the prince backwards, and the Witch-king mocks him for this. Glorfindel confronts the Witch-king, who flees into the night. Eärnur wishes to pursue him, but Glorfindel bids him not to and prophesies the Witch-king will fall in the far future, but not by "the hand of man". Many years later, Éowyn (a woman) kills the Witch-king during the Battle of Pelennor Fields, assisted by Meriadoc Brandybuck (a hobbit. Prior to this event, the prophecy had been interpreted to mean mankind in general, not a man in the sense of gender. As told in the first volume, The Fellowship of the Ring, Glorfindel is sent by Elrond of Rivendell many years later to help the hobbit Frodo reach Rivendell as he is pursued by the Nazgûl. He sets Frodo on his horse, Asfaloth, and Frodo rides ahead to the other side of the Ford of Bruinen, where he defies his pursuers. He is nearly captured, but Glorfindel, Strider and Frodo's hobbit companions come from behind and drive the Nazgûl into the water, where they are swept away by a wave of water resembling charging horses (an enchantment of Elrond and Gandalf's). Strider and the hobbits bear torches, but Glorfindel reveals himself as a mighty Elf-lord terrible in his wrath; Frodo sees him as a shining figure. Later, when Frodo asks about the safety of Imladris from Sauron's forces, Gandalf explains: In Rivendell there live still some of his chief foes: the Elven-wise, lords of the Eldar from beyond the furthest seas. They do not fear the Ringwraiths, for those who have dwelt in the Blessed Realm live at once in both worlds, and against both the Seen and the Unseen they have great power. Gandalf points to Glorfindel as one of these, saying he is "one of the mighty of the Firstborn," "an Elf-lord of a house of princes." While enjoying the hospitality of the Elves, Frodo finds that his Wizard friend spoke true: Frodo looked at them in wonder, for he had never before seen Elrond, of whom so many tales spoke; and as they sat upon his right hand and his left, Glorfindel, and even Gandalf, whom he thought he knew so well, were revealed as lords of dignity and power... Glorfindel was tall and straight; his hair was of shining gold, his face fair and young and fearless and full of joy; his eyes were bright and keen, and his voice like music; on his brow sat wisdom, and in his hand was strength. In the very first draft of the Council of Elrond of what was to become The Fellowship of the Ring, there was a crucial difference in the members of the Fellowship. The Nine Walkers were to comprise Frodo, Gandalf, Trotter (later Strider/Aragorn), Glorfindel, Durin son of Balin (who became Gimli son of Glóin), Sam, Merry, and earlier versions of Pippin and Fatty. Boromir and Legolas did not come in till much later. Legolas replaced Glorfindel as the representation of the Elven people in later drafts, but this did not take away from the power that Tolkien attributed to Glorfindel. He sits in honour next to Elrond and Gandalf in the Hall of Fire in Rivendell,[8] and is one of the few Elves of Imladris who was known to be strong enough to stand against the Ringwraiths and be sent out to guide Frodo to safety from them. Glorfindel is the strongest of these few, as he is sent in the direction that the Nazgûl are most likely to come from, and even holds the Bridge of Mitheithel against some of the Nazgûl single-handedly. Glorfindel is noted for his great power and strength, so much so that Gandalf refers to him in relation to the difficulty of the task of destroying the Ring, though in a rather unusual way. When Elrond seeks to fill the last two spots in the Fellowship with folk of his own house, Gandalf supports Merry Brandybuck and Pippin Took by saying: "I think, Elrond, that in this matter it would be well to trust rather to their friendship than to great wisdom. Even if you chose for us an elf-lord, such as Glorfindel, he could not storm the Dark Tower, nor open the road to the Fire by the power that is in him."

Combat

AC extras: +8 AC Bonus, +6 AC Bonus

Saves shown = stored bonus + ability mod + item bonuses (Saving Throw Bonus: Specific); class-table progression and feat bonuses (Great Fortitude, etc.) are applied at runtime.

Abilities & combat properties

Dodge AC and save bonuses are factored into the main combat stats above. Dodge AC stacks (cap +20); haste adds +4 more (separate). All other same-type bonuses do not stack — only the highest is shown. Regeneration stacks without limit. Immunities marked (racial) are granted by the creature's racial type by the engine, not by its equipment.

Weapons

Spells

Special abilities

Equipment

Inventory (13)

Feats (73)

• Alertness
• Ambidexterity
• Armor Proficiency (heavy)
• Armor Proficiency (light)
• Armor Proficiency (medium)
• Armor Skin
• Artist
• Aura of Courage
• Bard Song
• Bard Song
• Bard Song
• Bard Song
• Bard Song
• Bard Song
• Bardic Knowledge
• Battle Training vs. Giants
• Battle Training vs. Goblins
• Battle Training vs. Orcs
• Blind-Fight
• Called Shot
• Cleave
• Damage Reduction 3
• Deflect Arrows
• Disarm
• Dodge
• Epic Weapon Focus (bastard sword)
• Epic Weapon Focus (rapier)
• Epic Weapon Specialization (bastard sword)
• Epic Weapon Specialization (rapier)
• Great Cleave
• Great Fortitude
• Improved Critical (bastard sword)
• Improved Critical (greatsword)
• Improved Critical (longbow)
• Improved Critical (longsword)
• Improved Critical (rapier)
• Improved Disarm
• Improved Knockdown
• Improved Parry
• Improved Power Attack
• Improved Two-Weapon Fighting
• Improved Unarmed Strike
• Iron Will
• Knockdown
• Lightning Reflexes
• Lingering Song
• Mobility
• Nature Sense
• Overwhelming Critical (bastard sword)
• Overwhelming Critical (rapier)
• Power Attack
• Rapid Shot
• Resist Nature's Lure
• Sap
• Shield Proficiency
• Snake Blood
• Stunning Fist
• Toughness
• Two-Weapon Fighting
• Weapon Focus (bastard sword)
• Weapon Focus (longbow)
• Weapon Focus (longsword)
• Weapon Focus (rapier)
• Weapon Proficiency (druid)
• Weapon Proficiency (exotic)
• Weapon Proficiency (martial)
• Weapon Proficiency (simple)
• Weapon Specialization (bastard sword)
• Weapon Specialization (longbow)
• Weapon Specialization (longsword)
• Weapon Specialization (rapier)
• Wholeness of Body
• Woodland Stride

Skills

Scripts