YOU HAVE:

1 TGS Cruiser with Sensor, Containment Bay, Labs, and Weapons upgrades, The Oncoming Storm.
1 Victory-II Star Destroyer, the Relentless
1 Defiant-class Starship, the Indefatigable.
1 Overlord-class Dropship.
2 Leopard-class Dropship.
1 Al'Kesh Bomber/Transport. (Asgard Teleporters)

Aboard the Victory-II you have 1 squadron of VF-25s, and 1 squadon of TIE-Defenders, as well as 1 Gunstar, Char in Hyaku Shiki, and Crowe in Brasta.

Aboard the Overlord you have a team of six Tomahawk Destroids, 4 Hellstar Battlemechs, 2 Mad Cat Battlemechs, and 4 M270 MLRSes.

You have enlisted the services of BLU team, Spike Spiegal, Egon Spengler, Carl “Mouse” Sampson, Star-Lord, and Gabriel Tosh. All have been given Phaser Rifles for a non-lethal option.

Fuck yeah! Get that metal blob analysed, stat.

the nerdiest paragraph of my life

>>16887973
Additional query: Can the aurors use transiguration to change the orb to the shape of a ring?
Like I imagine just changing the shape of an object is easier than changing its composition/mass.
Also attempt as powerful a repair spell as they can muster.

You have the following troops, all with kinetic barriers, Shadowrun gear, and reality emitters.
1 squad (12/12) of UNIT troops with Power Armor, Fallout energy weapons, and A280 Blaster Rifles.
1 squad (12/12) of SCP troopers with Tiberium enhanced lasers, Phaser Rifles, and Advanced Power Armor mk 2
1 squad (12/12) of Sandmen with Mass Rifles.
1 squad (12/12) of Delta Greens with Chinese Stealth Armor, Mass Rifles, and A280 Blaster Rifles
3 Mobile Infantry in Marauders equipped with Panther Assault Cannons and Phaser Rifles.
1 Emergency Medical Hologram with mobile emitter.
1 Auror team with prototype NOD armor and AK-47 backup weapons
2 (24/24) Reasonable Marines Tactical Squads
1 X-COM Veteran Squad. (12/12)
20 X-COM scientists.

You have 1 NOD ICBM attached to a hardpoint on the Storm, 20 nannybags, 12 reconstruction tanks, 6 shots of RED-2, 15 nuclear warheads, The Big One dud, 6 Fat Mans with 30 mininukes,12 assault rifles, 12 10mm pulse rifles, and 12 Marsec MA-11 laser rifles in reserve.

Your Science Team is currently researching Defensive Reality Fields.

Alrighty then. Make sure you remember that 93 you rolled last time, OP.

Oh goody!

Let's find out if Ahriman finds our ball of enchanted gold worth his time.

>>16888013
As far as HP abilities go, they should be able to. It depends on whether the sphere has enchantments of it's own that may interfere.

ANON: We need a status update on Ahriman, the Chaos Gate, and the Council of Elrond.

Debrief the Knights Inductor.
Do they believe Ahriman to be a man of his word?

This quest sounds like a piece of fanfiction written by children

I thought /tg/ was better than this shit

>>16888068
>thatsthejoke.jpg

>>16888068
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/16511386/
and I would like to disagree.

>>16887973

>Mfw Kharne the betrayer rolls through Ahriman's portal and fucks up middle earth's shit.

>>16888086
I personally expect Doomrider to show up.

I still say we need to extract a vow from Ahri to say he won't come back here looking for the Ring.

>>16888086
There are heros who could fight, wait. Kharne's weapon Gorechild, it can rip through almost anything with that mecca dragon teeth blades.

P.S. We need an Elvish blade worthy of Eregion craft.

>>16888002
>>16888013
The Aurors manage to repair/shape the blob of metal back into a ring, but analysis of it indicates it has lost much of its potency thanks to the damage it has suffered. The Aurors are incapable of changing this.

>>16888045
ANON: "The Council is proceeding on schedule. Ahriman is reading the lore you gave him by the Gate."

>>16888160
We could always swipe Orcrist from Thorin's tomb. And the Arkenstone as well.

>>16888197
Ach! Well, we can present Ahriman with what we have now. If he finds it not worth his time, we can tell him that this is the most accessible sample and that we'll just find a more potent and intact sample, but it'll take a bit more time. In the meantime, he'll have something to work on.

>>16888197
Well, if he doesn't accept it, we could add some amount of knowledge to sweeten the pot.
Hopefully it will be enough, I actually feel better about recovering a damaged ring that doesn't bother the canon at all than most of the alternatives.

Please tell me we have a crew working on taking all of Smaug's loot from his corpse.

Also, just to make sure, we're making this trade with Ahriman under what conditions? Reading the last thread I'm a bit muddled on that.
He leaves and tells us what he knows of the Event?
He just leaves? (Bad deal)
He leaves, with the promise not to share this information with anyone else, and gives us info on the Event?
He leaves, shares information on the Event, and see if we can get him to agree to leave canons alone and perhaps we can make similar trades in the future. Do we have a way to be contacted that we'd trust Ahriman with?

>>16888239
>>16888243
"What's this? Hm... No. This will not do. It was powerful once, but it is a shadow of its former self. You will have to do better if you want to uphold our bargain," Ahriman says. He pauses. "Hm...Hmhmhm. It is amusing though. According to what I've read here, I believe this ring is the one that belonged to the dwarf-lord Sindri... The name seems cursed wherever it is found."

With that, he hands the ring back.

>>16888269
> not to mention the countless gems that were Smaug's waistcoat.
I think we can tell you that.

>>16888275
So far, you have extracted a promise to leave, and he will tell you what he knows about the Event.

Can we do a fly-by mount doom and throw the ring in just to get it over with quickly. If the ring is around, so is Sauron. So let's take care of that fucker right away and free middle-earth of his evil.

Also we can tell Ahriman where many relics lie, like Lothlorien. I think Ahriman would be intrigued by the Mallorn trees there.

>>16888275
I think we bargained for his knowledge of the Event, but we should also get his word that he won't disrupt canon. Maybe a subtle threat might discourage him from
any further treasure hunting? What have we got in our arsenal that would impress him? Anything?

>>16888291
You will find the names of anyone that possessed these rings to be cursed, as we tried to tell you before, they are a corrupting force. The more powerful they are, the more terrible the corruption.
Perhaps studying a weakened form of one would actually be safer for you.

>>16888307
That's SUE talk and we won't have that.
The canons are to be preserved, that is our purpose and our mission.

>>16888342
In addition to this, tell him about the Nine Kings. And how they became immortal unkillable slaves to Sauron. But, this might intrigue him into getting the one ring even more.

I wonder if he'd accept a Palantir- we could conceivably locate the stone of Osgiliath on the bottom of the river Anduin, somewhere downriver from the city. It's out of the cannon at this point, and was supposed to the the largest and most powerful of all the seeing stones.

>>16888325
When you've lived as long as he has? I sincerely doubt it.

>Show Sauron our nuclear weapons
>offer to trade for one of his rings
>give ring to ahriman
>beam nukes up from orbit
>fuck you sauron

>>16888325
Hell, I'm fairly confident we could drive him from here by force, we're just choosing to be reasonable with him.
Though I'm not sure he realizes that we are simply trying to be diplomatic rather than fearful.

Is there some, very subtle, way to give him an inkling of how friendly we are being?

Welp. Time to shake down Sauron.

>>16888342
>>16888376
"You think I wish to USE these items. I am not that stupid. I am going to study them, and you insult me to think I am not capable of doing so safely. Your other offers are intriguing, but I will have a ring before I leave this planet, one way or another. KINDLY see to your part of the deal."

>>16888428
We need a grisly trophy to demonstrate our power. Then next big bad we kill, take its head.

>>16888291
"Hmm... You wish to study the Rings of Power, and yet we are unable to procure any that are powerful enough for worthy research... We might be able to arrange a short meeting with the forge-master of the One Ring of Power, if you like."
>>16888436
Get out of here, Fixer plane-trash. We're here to send everybody home, not save the day like it's ours to save in the first place.

>>16888382
This sounds like a worthy plan if we've got some crew or squads laying about we could put onto the task. I'd send Delta Green after it, personally.

>>16888438
Ahriman think about this for a moment. The rings, in any capicity, corrupt. The one ring, even in this safe place, is corrupting it. It has to leave or soon this haven of the elves will be lost. It calls to it's master. Moreover, you don't belong here. Return to your own realm and focus on the study of knowledge there. This world is on a set path, and the more we meddle the more chance we have of fucking this place up. But you don't care about that do you?

>>16888485
Yeah let's not say that.

>>16888438
He's starting to irritate me.

Do the rings have a unique energy sugnature we can scan for? They were all made the same way, after all, and the One Ring certainly is connected to the others. Can we use the ring that we have to track down the other rings? Ask Egon.

>>16888438
Alright guys. I think it's time to ambush a Nazgul and steal it's ring. This is actually the perfect time for it- they're weakened and dispersed by the river outside Rivendell.

So- how do we capture a Nazgul?

>>16888461
I don't think a Sauron-Ahriman tete-a-tete is a good idea, even if it were in our power to arrange.

Think about it guys. We go to talk to Sauron we have to speak to this fucker.

>>16888508
...Excellent idea. Let's attempt SCIENCE!

>>16888539
In retrospect, yeah. Nix that idea.
>>16888522
You don't, broski. Simple as that. However, if we had to obtain a ring by force, I'd recommend... uh... Heading into Barad-Dur is a bad idea, so we may have to Ghostbust a Nazgul if it comes down to it.
>>16888508
Seconding this.

>>16888564
Not if we have the conversation via Palantir.

>>16888438
"And we shall do so. I apologize for fretting, but time is, as always, short and matters ever so delicate. Theirs is an insidious corruption and evil that seeks only enslavement and destruction. Frankly, you are far too powerful and intelligent for us to not fear the possibility of your corruption to evil. But I still trust your word and your willpower. I will not betray this deal. Still, keep this sample, however diminished it is. It should, once we deliver an intact one, provide an interesting example of how their enchantments can be degraded or destroyed."

We find an intact dwarven ring and we give it. We keep our word. Palantirs and other artifacts can the subjects of other deals with him.

>>16888589
>Speaking to Sauron
>via Palantir
>in any way shape or form a good idea
Didn't Merry teach you anything? Sauron'll want our stuff. It'll get even more messy.

>>16888589
We don't have a single member of staff who can converse with Sauron safely.

>>16888601
Don't give the broken ring. We can use it, and he doesn't want it. Also, suck his dick more, I don't think he noticed.

>>16888508
...Even if we can do that, just watch and have OP say that we need to examine the One Ring to complete the trace.

>>16888589
>>Talking to Sauron at all

>>16888625
Welcome to diplomacy. It involves everyone leaving feeling screwed, but still thinking they got the best deal. That and a whole lot of bootlicking.

We can't actually use the broken ring. At least I don't think we can.

>>16888625
You're just mad and frustrated that we can't walk all over him, and because he has the power, willingness, and capability to fuck up shit if this deal falls through.
Welcome to high-stakes diplomacy.

>>16888601
The only intact Dwarven rings are presumably in Barad-dur. I don't believe any of the ones eaten by dragons has survived.
First thing we should do is take the magic ring we recovered and have the X-COM scientists and Egon attempt to modify the Storm's sensors to scan specifically for those energy signatures.

>>16888694
>planet-scanning for the Rings of Power
My life is now a little more complete. DO IT.

>>16888601
"No. I have no use for it, and I don't want you holding it over my head as some form of unspoken deal."

ANON: "The remaining Dwarven rings are all within Bara-dur."

"It may be possible to lock onto Bara-dur or the One Ring's unique signature and try to trace the tendrils of itself used to manipulate the Nazgul... but I must warn you, such an attempt has a risk of alerting Sauron," Egon states.

>>16888694
Diplomacy mind.

I also agree and second with your idea to scan for similar energy signature to the broken ring.

I'd say stealing a Dwarven Ring from Sauron is more likely to be fruitful than attempting to kidnap a Nazgul.
Maybe we can just beam down a communications device commanding Sauron to give us a Ring, then open fire on an especially devastated region of Mordor as a show of force, and then bluff our willingness to do the same to his Ring unless he obeys our commands.

>>16888718
Well, we're going to have to find 'em somehow. If we get Sauron mad, so be it. We have orbital supremacy, and Nazgul can only fly so high. Let's try to lock onto the One Ring since it's right in Rivendell at the moment and then see if we can trace the ring-ness back to see where the others are for pick-up.

rolled 23 = 23

>>16888694
>>16888720
"Hmmm. Using the broken ring instead has far less risk, but isn't guaranteed to work. It may take a while, but we will attempt it," Egon states.

...Is there any way we can incite the Nazgul to attack Ahriman?
We said we'd give him a Ring, we didn't say there wouldn't be a crazed ghost-king attached to it.
The Nazgul wear their Rings don't they?

>>16888720
You mean the idea somebody already had?

>>16888751
>backstabbing Ahriman
I really don't see how that could -possibly- end well, to be honest. Might as well get Sauron mad, since there isn't quite as much he can do about it as an angry Ahriman.

>>16888722
Why not simply lock on the signature(s) of the dwarven rings and teleport them? Unless that would break the enchantments... Then we can send... The Delta Green guys in with their Stealth Armour. Teleport them next to the rings we can locate and then they exfiltrate on foot until we can get them by shuttle.

>>16888718
>It may be possible to lock onto Bara-dur or the One Ring's unique signature
"Egon, instead, would it be possible to scan Barad-dur to see where the Dwarven Rings of Power are located in it?
"ANON, do our sensors detect any form of interdiction field or anti-teleportation wards around Barad-dur? We maybe to able to do a high-speed drive-by transport, especially if we set of a couple high-yield photon torpedoes beyond Mount Doom to get Sauron's attention. The Fellowship isn't there yet, so they will be unaffected by the torpedoes going off."

>>16888751
I think thats the sort of thing we're supposed to prevent...

>>16888746
A half hour later, Egon reports.

"The energy signature of the ring was too weakened to use, but we gained some information that may help in the attempt if we try the other method," Egon states. "Also while we cannot fully identify the properties of this or the other item, we believe they retain some magical functions, and would recommend hiring someone more versed in magical identification to have a look at them."


>Failure rate reduced for next attempt.

>>16888763
I wouldn't consider it backstabbing, since we would warn him beforehand. If anything I would consider it a bonus, seeing as Ahriman now has a new subject to interrogate as well as a demonstration of the corruptive properties of the Rings of Power. Hell he might even be able to figure out a way to bend the Wraith to his will.

>>16888767
ANON: "I would advise against detonation of any high yield ordinance unless absolutely necessary."

"Yes, we can scan for either the Nine or the Seven," Egon states.

>>16888778
Let's see if we can do a remote scan of the One Ring while it's in Rivendell in Frodo's Possession or something like that, and use that energy signature to conduct the scan.

>>16888778
Identification of specifics can wait until we're back at base.
Right now, we need a way to get into Barad-dur, and find the Dwarven Rings.

What about these two questions: >>16888767

>>16888778
Alright, let's find Radagast the Brown. Even if he's pretty useless as a wizard, he should be able to do that much I hope.
Maybe play it off almost as a way of redeeming himself from a very powerful threat?

>>16888778
I think we have little choice but to try and scan for the rings, but we need a plan first for the likely scenarios.

a. scan for the rings, undetected, beam one up and give it to ahriman
b. scan for the rings, undetected, can't beam it up, away team?
c scan for the rings, detected by sauron

>>16888718
Stealth mission into Barad-dur to grab a ring: Go!

Remember that goal A is to preserve the Canon. That means: No talking to Sauron, No nuking Mordor, No telling Boromir he's a dick. We go in, loot the loot, and gtfo before anyone knows we're there.

It hasn't been mentioned yet, but: Send Tosh, Mouse, the Sandmen, and the MIs down to the vessel of the Shipper we captured. MIs on point in case the vessel can defend itself. We're going to get Mouse to find out what this bitch knows and (possibly) collect evidence of her crimes. The ship itself doesn't belong in this Canon so it needs to get the fuck out of here one way or another, and looting it is more productive than destroying it.

>>16888778
>Also while we cannot fully identify the properties of this or the other item, we believe they retain some magical functions, and would recommend hiring someone more versed in magical identification to have a look at them.
Black arrow of dragon slaying +10, the one used to kill Smaug. Is this the item you're talking about?

rolled 88 = 88

>>16888847
You send Tosh, Mouse, the MIs, and the Sandmen off to locate the ship...

rolled 10 = 10

>>16888860
"That item and the repaired ring."

>>16888864
Mouse and the Sandmen take point, handily disarming a number of traps and security devices set around and in the ship while the Mobile Infantry stand guard. After only twenty minutes, the ship is declared clean. Tosh activates the ship's cloak and flies it up to join the Storm.

>Vessel acquired: Shipper Ship.

>>16888847
Can we ask Gandalf why he didn't just get the eagles to take the ring to Mordor? It's a once in a lifetime opportunity

I keed, I keed.

>>16888864
I know something doesn't add up here.
Ahriman doesn't belong here, neither does the Shipper, but the two seem completely unrelated. There could well be other crossover events occurring. After the business with Ahriman is concluded, it might benefit us to do more investigation of Rivendell to verify that the main lore characters are okay.

First things first, though: Grab a ring, hand it to Ahriman.

>>16888893

We must do this!

>>16888893

Seconded.

>>16888831
Now, assuming that we're able to use the readings off of the One Ring that's in Rivendell as a base for the magical energy signature we need to look for:
>a. scan for the rings, undetected, beam one up and give it to ahriman
Best scenario. Nothing further needs to be done, we GTFO.
>b. scan for the rings, undetected, can't beam it up, away team?
Possible. I'm thinking Tosh to sneak in after being beamed in close, then either putting a transporter beacon on the rings or swiping them and running out/breaking through a window and getting picked up by the Al'Kesh.
I'd consider the Aurors for magic backup, but there's their recent antics to consider.
Delta Greens would be nice, but the more people go along, the higher the risk of detection. Also, while they're fairly strong-willed, Sauron has a history of easily bending the minds of Men.

>c scan for the rings, detected by sauron
We may need to use a modification of the above plan.

>>16888879
Mouse should check any computer devices on the Shipper's vessel as evidence of the Shipper's crimes, and also possibly collect info on the Event.
I'm worried that with a roll of 10, he's going to try the "download everything DIRECTLY INTO MY BRAIN ALL AT ONCE" route without noticing the 2 Gigabyte folder containing the shipper's bad masturbation fiction, leaving him traumatised for life.

>>16888893

My god, are we truly neckbeards if we do not take this opportunity?

>>16888893
Because the Eagles are strongly allergic to Evil and won't go anywhere near the ring, as it is made of Evil.

rolled 70 = 70

>>16888810
The Oncoming Storm attempts to use its magical sensors to remotely analyze the Ring...

Immediately the monitors of the ship begin to light up with a single image, an immense eye, wreathed in flame. Several of the Comm/Scan crew fall out of their chairs, screaming. A few clutch at their ears or eyes. You feel whispers hissing in your mind as the eye seems to bore into your brain...

>>16888954
Best Case Scenario: Lols are had as Gandalf gets trolled a bit.
Worst Case Scenario: Gandalf has an Eagle fly the ring into Mordor, completely fucking the Canon.

Suggest: Don't follow this plan of action, as the potential fuckups greatly outweigh the potential amusement.

>>16888879
Have Mouse check out the Shipper's computers, see where she was, where she was headed to, and if she had any other targets on this world.

>>16888893
I always thought it was because Sauron has great anti-air and magic radar, so any fliers coming anywhere near Mordor would automatically get jumped by Nazgul.

Wait, fuck. If we start firing rifles and black hole generators at orcs, won't that impact the canon? Can we disguise our weapons, or cloud our enemies minds in some way so that they think we're magic elves or something? Or failing that, use magic and melee only, backed up with stealthed snipers?

>>16888990
"ANON! Emergency purge sequence! Get that fucker out of our computers!

>>16888990
SHOW HIM THE SHIPPER, QUICKLY.
LET HIM PEER INTO THE SHIPPER'S MIND.
That'll scare him right the fuck away.

>>16888993

Wouldn't this ultimately be better for the canon though? Countless lives would be saved.

>>16888990
Close comms immediately.

rolled 85 = 85

>>16889004
>>16888990
One of the bridge crew manages to summon the willpower to hit a kill-switch. The scan terminates, the image fades. One of the Comm/Scan officers shakes his head.

"What the hell was that?!?!"

Meanwhile, Mouse begins investigating the computer systems of the ship, as suggested.

>>16889011
No! You're starting to sound like a Fixer; stop that!
The Canon must be preserved! It doesn't matter how many die in the course of the Canon; they were already dead.

>>16889011
Son, you don't seem to quite understand what a "Canon" is.

>>16889011
That's not what canon means, you dirty Fixer

>>16888990
Yeah that happens. Let's focus on the utterly retarded world we were last at, and with special detail given to just what we did with it.

>>16889011
No. Canon is canon. If it is canon that 47 babies die in a fire, then we make damn sure that they do. Thats whats good for canon. You mean it would be good for Middle Earth.

>>16889011
We're here to uphold the canon, not make it better.

>>16889029
Will we still be able to run a trace on the seven? Or did we just fuck that up?

>>16889029
"That, everyone, was Sauron, also known as Gorthaur the Cruel, The Enemy, The Dark Power, The Great Eye, and quite a few other names.
"ANON, I want a full diagnostic scan to make sure he hasn't left us with any surprises in our own computers. Also check to see what files and information he accessed, if any."

>>16889029
That was... probably a fluke. Let's try again.

"I pulled the ship's logs," Mouse reports. "According to this, when the Event hit, it got jolted off course into some sort of roiling maelstrom of space and energy. Things started appearing within the ship, the pilot used some sort of etheric bomb that killed them, but caused the ship to flare like a magic beacon. A few more appeared, she jettisoned her cargo in an attempt to eject them, then made an emergency jump to... random coordinates. Ship pops out in nowheresville, but free of boarders, she breathes a sigh of relief and resumes course here."

>>16889029
Aw shit.
Get the X-com veteran squad in the Bridge, have them talk to the Comms officers and everyone nearby. No doubt X-com veterans are survivors of serial mind rape, and will know how to calm the people down after such an ordeal.

We need to scan Barad-dur, see if anythings changed, troop formations, patrols, energy signatures.
We need to know how much Sauron was able to see, and what he's doing to use that knowledge against us.

>>16889084
>>16889104
Systems report clean as the X-COM squad goes about the business of calming people down and making sure no one's mind was accessed enough to gain vital information.

>>16889102
Ah fuck, she was in the Warp. Best get the ship checked out for and lingering Chaos corruption.

Schedule everyone in for some counselling with the EMH when we get some downtime.

>Things started appearing within the ship, the pilot used some sort of etheric bomb that killed them,
Research that weapon.
She was boarded by Daemons of the warp and the weapon she used was able to destroy them. I want to know what that weapon is, since having an Anti-Daemon weapon will SERIOUSLY help us out if we ever end up against Chaos.

>she jettisoned her cargo in an attempt to eject them
What was she carrying at this time? It's one thing if you're carrying a crate of guns and you drop it in the warp, entirely another if you're carrying one of SHODAN's memory cores.

>>16889133
>and
Any, even.

This canon may be fucked now, depending on how much Sauron was able to understand by examining our ships.

>>16889155
I don't know, I'd say our technology is beyond his comprehension, and even if it isn't, it's definitely beyond his ability to reproduce, especially in his diminished state. Worst comes to worst, his Eye will be focused on understanding and crafting our technology, instead of occupied on his campaign of domination.

>>16889155
Fortunately Sauron suffers Canon-death. So long as he didn't pull files specifically about the LotR trilogy, this world will run its course and kill him along with his knowledge.

>>16889155
It depends on if he was able to access any information regarding the LotR and the events therein.

Now, we need to scan Barad-dur to see if there are any changes and if there's an interdiction ward that prevents us from beaming in.
We also need to see if we were able to get a working scan of the One Ring's energy signature that we can use to track down the remaining Seven Rings.

>>16889196
I'm getting increasingly worried that we'll need to land in Barad-Dur without knowing what the fuck we're doing, and go on a stealthy dungeon crawl to find a ring, with both the threat of Sauron Mindrape -and- of interfering with this world's canon.

Dude, TG MetaQuest, first thing in the morning yeeeaaah!

Anyway, how about that ring? Can we nab just one?
I think it was bad idea to reforge the molten ring...

If we're going to actually have to storm Barad-Dur, I might recommend we make a couple stops.
Like for instance, the cairn of Fingolfin which was said to be on a mountain overlooking Gondolin.
There we should find the sword known as Ringil, whose icy blade wounded the mighty Morgoth seven times, and made the Vala walk with a limp until his defeat.

Sauron might fear that blade even more than he would fear Narsil.

>>16889253
Is it wrong that I still find that preferable to fighting Ahriman?

>>16889260
I know something Sauron would fear.

TG: "Sauron."
Sauron: "Sup."
TG: "You can read minds, right?"
Sauron: "Yep."
TG: "Here, read this one."
Shipper: "Ima shipper tee hee."
Sauron: "Gah wtf get it away!"
TG: "Feel like reading any more minds today?"
Sauron: "Omg no."
TG: "kk fucking around in Barad-dur for a while, brb"

>>16889308
The Barad-dur mission is certainly easier. Ahriman is one powerful motherfucker.
On the flip side, because he's such a powerful motherfucker, leaving him alive may bite us in the ass later.

I bet $10 that Kane, Starscream, and Ahriman will show up at some point in the future and they'll all be surfing on an Orz Nemesis painted to look like the G-man.

>>16889348
Personally, I'm hoping that he becomes an ally against Chaos later.

>>16889367
I like the idea of recruiting Ahriman by bating him with the prospect of travelling between different canons and gaining their knowledge. Sure, that sounds like a bad idea. But keep your enemies close. It's better then just letting him go to fuck knows and to who fuckings knows.

>>16889384
We gave him a lead to a necron overlord with some neat stuff, so hopefully that will keep him occupied for a while.

>>16889384
>But keep your enemies close
You know that saying doesn't refer to keeping your enemies physically closer to you, right? Or letting them see important and sensitive information, such as where our Sector HQ is located, or its defenses.

>>16889401
He might even lose, which would really tie up loose ends.
But knowing our luck, he and Trazyn will bro it up.

Alright ANON, any progress on those scans of Barad-dur?
Can we shunt the sensor data into a buffer in order to prevent what happened with our last scan of the One Ring?

>>16889140
>>16889133
The ship appears clean, and the Storm CAN detect Chaos taint in vessels. The cargo appears to be crates of supplies, chemicals, and a few tradeables. You are not sure what the bomb was, but a more in depth analysis of the ship and the information aboard it may yield more. Mouse gets started on this.

>>16889512
>chemicals
Is the T.G.R.I. Ooze amongst those chemicals?
It'd explain how the furries in the fallout world were able to get their hands on it.

>>16889493
Continue the scans of Barad-dur for locations of any rings, but ensure that a few X-com psi operatives are ready to hit the "No." button in case the big red eye pops up again.

>>16889308
No, not at all. They're both terrible, horrible options I wouldn't wish on even my most hated enemies. But here we are. I believe that, given our technological advantage over the Uruk-Hai in Barad-Dur, a dungeon crawl supported by what little data we can get.
>>16889260
I also support grabbing Ringil if we can afford the time. Having it would work wonders for our 'hey look over here look at us' squads while our stealth units go grab us a Ring-O-Powah.

rolled 78 = 78

>>16889493
The ship attempts to scan Barad-dur with what little information you managed to scrounge from the rings...

>>16889571
Though it cannot fully lock on, the Storm is able to locate the general area within Barad-dur in which the three remaining dwarf-rings are kept.

>>16889587
>cracks knuckles IRL
Alrighty then. Let's send down the same retrieval team as we did for the Shipper Ship, replacing the MI with our UNIT troops. If anybody has any decent ideas for a relatively quiet diversion, fire away.

>>16889570
Wait, you mean...use Ringil and a squad of heavies like we did with Mechagodzilla and Kyoto?
Waving our dicks in Sauron's face in order to keep his attention while a separate team sneaks in, snags the objective, and gets out, before Sauron can do anything?

This sounds like the beginning of a plan.

>>16889570
To be honest, I'd like to steal as many legendary weapons as possible, seeing as this probably won't be the last high fantasy world we encounter.

>>16889571
>>16889570
Could work. If we're going with a distraction squad we'll need people resistant to mindfuckery - the Reasonable Marines and/or the Xcommies, since that's likely where Sauron is going to stare.
For Stealth, we've got the DGs, Tosh, and the Aurors.

When this is over, I suggest spending our funding on Magic and Psi protection if nothing else.
Also, any Maximum™-grade information gathering equipment would be handy, since a majority of our time is spent finding information. Whether it's updated scanners, magical scrying, psionic clairvoyance/telepathy, or good old fashioned Savvy Plot-o-vision, any more information gathering will be a great plus.
Finally, SCIENCE!. The more SCIENCE! the better.

>>16889616
Exactly.
>>16889610
Belay this order.

Maybe we can get Ringil, the MI's, the X-Commies, and the Reasonable Marines to serve as distractions, and the insertion squad I suggested to go grab it/them. This, of course, means we have to go grab the swords itself at the cairn of Fingolfin. I say let's do it.
>our faces when

>>16889616
Yep. If we get mindfuck-resistant troops to wave Ringril and a bunch of weapons in Sauron's face (we have Xcom dudes and Reasonable marines), that'll provide a distraction.
Then the Stealth team (Tosh, the 11 Aurors that aren't clumsy, possibly Delta greens in stealth armor) teleports in, finds the ring, the Aurors apparate it to them, and they teleport the fuck out.

>>16889616
>>16889659
>>16889681
>>16889691
Right lads, we've got a plan. Let's get moving.

Also, OP, can you tell me if the chemicals on the Shipper's vessel included T.G.R.I. ooze?

Here's a question.
I mean obviously we take the first Ring we find and then leave, but what if Sauron is arrogant enough to have all three in the same location?

>>16889610
Alright, here's the plan:
1. We scan for Fingolfin's Cairn from orbit.
2. Finding the tomb, we have the Aurors, Spike, the SCP, the Delta Greens, and Egon with his proton pack (in case of wraiths, wights, and ghosts), beam down and recover Ringil.
3. We start raising a ruckus in Mordor, near the borders, and make sure that some of the orcs escape with tales of the Return of Ringil to Sauron's ears.
4. Once Sauron's attention is focused on the Ringil Team, the Stealth Team goes in the Al'Kesh to Barad-dur.
5. Stealth Team: Aurors, Tosh. Beam down, sneak in, nab the rings, beam out.

The Ringil Team and their operation will need to be expanded on, but this is the basic outline.

>>16889716
We have no use for any of the other rings. The things are cursed to fuck and back. We take one, give it to Ahriman and gtfo.

>>16889722
Ringil is in Beleriand, which is underwater. Like, deep underwater. Middle-earth is only one half of a very large continent, the other half is Beleriand which is, like I said, submerged underwater.

>>16889722
What should BLU team be doing in all of this? Chilling out on the ship, blowing each-other up as they like to do for fun, and erecting dispensers?

Good point, I forgot how useless those things were.
...Also, didn't the three elven rings lose power after Sauron's defeat?
We probably shouldn't tell Ahriman that.

>>16889769
We're going for the Dwarven rings since they have the least plot relevance.

>>16889716
Well, if all three are in the same location...waaaait a minute.
Those damn things might bring great wealth, but they greatly magnify greed. Not to mention, they're still contaminated by Sauron's control magic.
I suppose we could grab all three, give Ahriman the one he wants, and then throw the other two into the Sun as a final 'FUCK YOU' to Sauron.

>>16889776
Grabbing the other two carries a risk with it. I say just leave them alone.

>>16889722
I like this plan most verily.
>>16889766
Hmm. I'm sure we will be able to find it if we have access to the records and maps leading to the 'Cliff over Gondolin'.
>>16889767
They should be part of the diversion team. They're loud as fuck and pretty good at fighting back, so they can help. However, Spy should go with the ring-retrieval team due to the fact that invisibility has no place on the battlefield.

>>16889788
If the people we send to nab the rings take all three. Their minds will be filled with thoughts of, "I can just take these for myself. I don't need X because I can control Y myself. All power is mine. They don't respect me, they don't think I can have Y." So on and so forth. Also it will try to get them to wear the ring, which will alert Sauron of their presence.

>>16889766
...Well now I know why no one took it sooner, but with our technology, we should still be able to find it.

>>16889767
...Do any of them know how to wield a sword?

>>16889796
Well, we've got a plan set up. Now we just wait for Op to give the approval of us getting the +1 pointy stick of dick waving and distraction.

>>16889841
>Demoman wielding Ringil like the Eyelander
And gentlemen, we have the angry, Scottish face to our intimidation group. I love this Quest so much.

>>16889841
They have a few melee weapons, the Pyro has an axe, the Demo a sword, the scout a bat(club), and the Heavy his fists.

>>16889807
Maybe we should take the EMH with the Stealth Team?
Cut down the number of people, in order to maximize stealth, and once the rings are located, have the EMH handle them.
The EMH is a machine, it will be unaffected by Sauron's corrupting magic.

We also need to warn the Stealth Team of Sauron's influence so they're prepared for it.

We've really got to get those will save-improving items from SW:KotOR.

>>16889871
Also, the EMH can keep its mobile emitter turned off until it needs to activate and take possession of a Ring.

>>16889871
>>16889890
Sound suggestions. I had forgotten all about the EMH. I say let's put him to good use.

>>16889807
>>16889788

With these in consideration, perhaps we should get a stealth team to locate the location of the rings, then beam down a psionically-resistant team to actually recover the rings.

If we can transport personnel down there, perhaps we can send a Sandman team or maybe even an automated drone to pick one up. Then we transport the person/robot with said ring to Ahriman.

>The EMH is a machine, it will be unaffected by Sauron's corrupting magic.
I'm not so sure about that. Sauron appeared on our computer monitors, so the EMH may still be vulnerable.

>>16889871

Seconding the EMH deployment.

He's going on a ton of crazy adventures today.

>>16889711
>>16889536
No, no Ooze on the Shipper Ship.

The Storm begins scanning. After fifteen minutes it locates a low-set island in the middle of the sea with what appears to be a structure built over it.

"In that vast shadow once of yore
Fingolfin stood: his shield he bore
with field of heaven’s blue and star
of crystal shining pale afar.
In overmastering wrath and hate
desperate he smote upon that gate,
the Elvish king, there standing lone,
while endless fortresses of stone
engulfed the thin clear ringing keen
of silver horn and baldric green."

Taking Ringil to scare the shit out of Sauron. My god this quest is amazing.

>LORD OF ALL NOLDOR!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Oaa-wnfo90

>>16889913
You've got a point.

>>16889907
That's a sound consideration.
Once the Stealth Team finds where the Rings are, we can use their emergency transporter armbands to lock onto their location and beam down the X-COM Psi Veterans, or some Knights Inductor, whichever is available at the moment. They'll grab a Ring, and we beam them all out.

Sound good?

>>16889924
Ah. I guess we can't pin THAT crime on the Shipper, but it was worth a shot.

If we loot Ringil, do we have to put it back when we're done (i.e. is it important to Canon), or can we take it with us?

>>16889960
It doesn't show up after the Silmarillion.
-Maybe-. Most likely yes, but we should think about it.

>>16889924
Excellent.
I believe the Aurors might be most useful at this juncture for removing the sword in a stealthy manner.

>>16889921
>He's going on a ton of crazy adventures today.
We should upgrade the EMH to an Emergency Command Hologram.
Or what about upgrading into an Emergency Combat Hologram? The combined martial arts capability of Bruce Lee, Jet Li, and Jackie Chan. He can even be holding a holographic baby in one hand, and a bottle of alcohol in the other, while saying that he's a Doctor and doesn't want any trouble.

>>16889960
It will never be found by another soul. So no I don't think so. Unless keeping canon together involves when the story says, "And was there forever and it was never moved from that spot." The story itself will progress without interruption if we take Ringil.

>>16889924
Okay, away team for the recovery of Ringil:
Egon with proton pack (team leader), Aurors (magic), SCP (used to dealing with artifacts and containment), Delta Green (also used to dealing with artifacts and containment).

>>16889946
Right lads, we've got a plan.
Find Ringil, give it to BLU team's demoman. Have BLU and a bunch of psi-resistant troops wave it in Sauron's face.
Meanwhile, our stealthy troops (Tosh, Aurors) find one of the rings in Barad-dur. When they find it, they record its position, so one of the Knights Inductor can beam in and pick it up.

Then we hop over, and give the ring to Ahriman.
What preparations should we take, in case Ahriman decides to backstab us at that point?

>>16890077
...Stab him with Ringil?

>>16890077
Should the BLU Spy accompany the stealth forces?

>>16890093
I like this plan, it's a plan I can follow.

So. In the event of the plan to steal a ring not working / failing catastrophically, I think we should still try and find a palantir, so we can get a psi-resistant X-COM soldier to tell him that we've got weapons trained on the Ring that could easily unmake it - then DEMAND a dwarf-ring.

>>16890111
No. The BLU spy should not.
The reason for this is: If the BLU spy gets near a corrupting ring, there is a very high chance of him saying "I never really was on your side" and planting a knife in the back of our forces.

Just a thought, but can we get egon and the other SCIENCE! boys to whip up a few extra sets of ghostbuster gear? egon and the other ghostbusters managed to build them in 90s earth with hardly any funding, so chances are we can make some more for our ground troops to use against paranormal foes, maybe even making the things more portable or putting them on a suit of power armour or shuttlecraft for easier deployment? maybe also get another oversized trap ready, maybe car sized insted of alkesh sized?

>>16890077
We could give whoever hands the ring to Ahriman a dose of RED-2. As long as he's not vaporised, it'll act like an extra life.

You know, in addition to pre-fab defense structures, we should also get some UAV's and other modern-Earth robots and drones.

>>16890124
..That is a very good point you are making.

>>16890120
Sauron would be wise enough to know," So you have the power to unmake my super weapon. You know it's location. Yet, you want a vastly inferiorer ring for it. Reason?" And if we tell him our reason(I.E. Preserving canon) then he will know it's a bluff.

>>16890120
>Demand
>Sauron
I think that won't work.
Psi resistant troops are only resistant. I bet Sauron is even more powerful than an Ethereal Commander, so we can't threaten Sauron like that.

>>16890130
We probably could, during the down-time back at base.
Unless we find wraiths and other undead protecting Ringil, we probably won't need them for this recovery operation.

Though they might be useful if Sauron sends Ringwraiths after our Ringil Team.

>>16890130
Good plan, but they're already busy analysing:
The Black Arrowhead
Defensive applications of Reality Emitters
the Bomb used in the Shipper's vessel

Our SCIENCE! Team is gonna be busy for a while.

So what exactly is our plan at this point?

>>16890175
Goes like this:
>>16890077
>>16889722

Question:
What exactly are the limits of what we can produce via Replicator?

>>16890175
Get Sword
Wave Sword at Sauron
While Sauron distracted, steal Ring
Gtfo
Give Ring to Ahriman

>>16890190
And why do we think getting his attention and waving the sword at him is better than just stealthing in?

>>16890036
Your team beams down to the structure. It is a modestly sized building, about the size of a small house. Large portions of its exterior are covered in once-detailed carvings that the passage of time and the elements have defaced. Larger portions are overgrown with vines and foliage. A door carved of ivory is inlaid with silvery runes, with a flowing Elvish inscription prominent on the arch above.

>>16890187
>Replicating Ringil

>>16890199
Can ANON provide translation?

>>16890199
ANON: Do you know enough of Elven language (see: Finnish) to translate those inscriptions?

>>16890196
So he's casting his gaze/armies at the distraction team instead of at the stealth team. If the stealth team is caught while they're inside, they're fucked. However, if we can draw away forces and THE EYE, they should have a chance at success.
>>16890199
I smell an Elvish Warding Riddle, boys. Be ready.

>>16890199
Alright, safety first.
Scan for defensive wards, wandering PKE entities, and mundane traps.
I suppose we should record everything; this is still a great archaeological treasure.

>>16890187
I doubt it can replicate magical effects, if that's what you're asking. Magic is weird like that.

>>16890199
<insert elven word for friend here>

>>16890199
I doubt people on /tg/ know the importance of this place. It causes some man tears for me, but I'm a massive Tolkienfag so whatevs.

Not OP describing it, I mean the place in general.

>>16890242
Damn captacha, ate my image. Also
>mfw

>>16890242
I can scarcely imagine. The burial site of one of the, if not the greatest champion in the history of Middle-Earth. A holier ground will be hard to come by in the multiverse.

Ensure that the ground team does everything they can to respect the site and its memory.

>>16890242
We might be relying on you then, most of us are fuzzy on the deeper lore. I used to know some, but I've forgotten more than I remember.

>>16890266
Fingolfin is a pretty cool guy; eh confronts Morgoth in single combat and doesn't afraid of anything.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fingolfin
His body was buried by his son and marked with the Cairn we are now exploring. It's like the small, pious, stone-marker version of the Taj Mahal.

>>16890242
Well son, glad to have you in the quest.
With knowledge and planning we can do pretty goddamn well.
In fact, in the last world, we surprised OP with how well we did.

>>16890266
I'm flattered. Guess I'll namefag for the sake of it then. I'll keep the name while we stay in middle-earth only though.

>>16890077
Note: while in Sauron's presence, Demoman should get drunk. That would (perhaps) lessen Sauron's influence.
Because if he's already more than half influenced by alcohol, how could Sauron influence the rest of him?

>>16890294
Thanks.
Proper meta-knowledge is the cornerstone of TG's success.

>>16890213
>>16890233
The Aurors are able to detect extremely powerful wards around the structure. They seem almost... honored to be in the presence of such ancient magic.

ANON: "Working... Complete. Translation is as follows."

"Seven Gates have I, and Seven Names.

Eternally guarded, forever warded, protected for eternity from the foes I face.

Yet above those Seven is an Eighth that watches too.

Speak that Name, and remember the price of glory."

>>16890322
There are only seven gates of Gondolin. But there are Nine houses of elves. The leader of the eight house is Glorfindel.

Glorfindel. The answer is Glorfindel. Least I think. Anyone else have any suggestions?

>>16890367
No no that's totally wrong. Forget that.

>>16890367
>>16890378
Ach.

It's like that other riddle: "Delivered by breath, scares the brawler to death. What am I? A riddle."

See if the Aurors can do anything in their power to 'code-read' the warding magic and try to reverse-engineer us a little closer to the answer.

>>16890309
Suggesting the Demoman gets drunk is like suggesting the Sea remains wet. It's pretty much a given.

>>16890322
I have no goddamn idea. Tolkienfag, you're up son.

>>16890378
Were the Valar not 7 in number? Then, the name to speak would be either Eru or Illuvatar, no?

>>16890367
It couldn't be as simple as Fingolfin, could it?
Fingolfin, the 8th Gate to protect Gondolin?

><insert elven word for friend here>
Someone said this earlier in the thread. Not sure if it's a valid solution but it might work.
Remember to give all answers in Elvish, not English.

>>16890397
Already tried man. I'm thinking about it. And we do have the internet. But that just feels like cheating.

>>16890392
Well duh it's a riddle.

>>16890399
>>16890408
>>16890367
Alrighty. Let's try speaking 'Glorfindel', 'Eru', 'Illuvatar', and 'Fingolin'. I'm leaning towards the last one, because only those who knew him would be able to understand and access the cairn. Makes enough sense practically.

>>16890431
Rectification: Fingolfin. Forgot an 'f' there, might have made all the difference.

>>16890399
Nope, fourteen valar.

Have we checked if we could just beam the ring out (preferably to somewhere unimportant so that no-one wises up to our presence).
also if that's out of the question, what about beaming out the soil and rocks or whatever is surrounding it to make a hole, and then sending in someone or a droid/drone/probe to snatch it a half a second after we make the hole?

If we cant teleport, can we use a tractor beam to do the digging? maybe we can send the indefatigueable on a flyover to yand the ring with a tractor beam.

Can our scanners tell what sorts of things are guarding the ring we want?
Copious amounts of nerve gas or teleported grenades might help soften up any opposition if we run into trouble, and we should have munitions put on our teleport capable craft incase we need to support a ground team

>>16890419
I've looked and confirmed, there were 7 Valar "Lords" (not counting the "Queens") that rule over Middle-Earth. It is possible that Eru could be the word to speak.

However... Gondolin might be the right way to look. It wasn't by the seven gates that Gondolin fell, but by Turin, no? An eighth "gate" by which Gondolin fell? The price of glory... Hurin?

>>16890446
We want to be as stealthy as possible though.
Ideally, Sauron's eye won't be on the Rings, but instead on Ringil

>>16890431
I agree. Let's try it. I mean Gandalf spent hours wasting his breath, so we should get multiple tries.

>>16890446
This isn't a Blow up and go mission, it's a stealth mission.
The ring is in Barad-dur, Sauron's tower, and we have not yet located exactly where it is. Unless you intend to teleport out Barad-dur, we'll have to settle for infiltration and looting.

Could it be ...

The Gates of Morning?

>>16890446
We haven't been able to get a transporter lock on the any of the 3 Rings, so we can't beam them out.

We also can't tractor beam any of them because they're currently inside of Barad-dur.

Even if the scanners could give us an accurate number and composition of the forces in Barad-dur, they're constantly changing due to the preparations for war.
All considerations for supporting an away team via transported support have already been made part of our standard operating procedure.

>>16889871
>>16890408

I know next to nothing about Tolkien lore. I may also be reading too deeply into the riddle as well, but here's an alternative translation. See if it rings any bells for you guys who are more familiar with the stuff.

>Seven Gates have I, and Seven Names.

>Eternally guarded, forever warded, protected for eternity from the foes I face.


Seven gates that are guarded. Perhaps it refers to the seven scions of a royal house or hierarchy of some sort who are sworn to protect or uphold something that they're a part of.

>Yet above those Seven is an Eighth that watches too.

>Speak that Name, and remember the price of glory.

Maybe an eighth member of those seven that was a bit of a black sheep or illegitimate was responsible for something world-shaking. The last line implies something very serious happened because of that person.

>>16890550
Unlikely.
Considering that this is the tomb of Fingolfin who was the father of the lord of Gondolin. Turgon placed the Cairn of Fingolfin on the high point overlooking where he would build Gondolin, and it acted as a deterrent, as no enemy dared to pass by it.

>>16890431
Egon starts rattling off names, but only when he gets to Fingolfin does the gate suddenly shine with brilliance and begin to rumble open. Beyond the door of ivory is a hall of white stone and gold inlay, well lit by skylights that let in the sun's rays. Designs of trees, jewels, and vines wrap around the walls. At the end of the hall is another, smaller door, also set with silvery Elvish letters.

ANON: "I rest, I sleep, and yet still I watch, looking over the land I loved dear. Though never again may I trod its streets or linger in its gardens, here I may remember for as long as it stands against time. Remember then, its Secret name."

>>16890408
...I'm placing my bets on it being Filgolfin, but I'd like to add that he seems to have been known under a different name in Valinor, that name being: Ñolofinwë.

>>16890462
Perhaps... No, Turgon wouldn't have predicted the fall of his city and done nothing to try to change it. Crissaegrim doesn't work.

The Gates of Summer? The festival that saw the fall of Gondolin?

"remember the price of glory" Sounds like we need to keep an eye out for traps, we should tell our ground teams to be careful.

The price for glory may be death

>>16890550
Could it be?

No no it couldn't be. Meglin didn't betray the Noldor at the time of Fingolfin's death. It couldn't be.

Polite bump.
>>16890446
It might be hard to get something so small/magical as the ring with a targeted teleport. Easier when you're doing larger groups. Keeps the contact-cohesion / surface area smaller, helps the computers. I don't want to hang over Barad-Dur with a ship while we tractor-dig (although if we had TradeStar Midas, that would be an option (note to self: requisitin TradeStar Midas next chance we get)).

A.N.O.N., scan the Barad-Dur site for enemy activity, life-sign density, etc.

I don't want to attack before hand, or else they'll know -something- is up and make some preparations. Better to have the diversion team go in, mess with the monotony, and let the stealth team do their business.

>>16890604
Loth? Lothengriol? If I recall correctly that was one of the seven names of Gondolin, the ones that those who loved it most called it.

>>16890604
Secret name? ...He was born in Tirion, which was on the hill known as Túna, which was in the valley known as Calacirya, in the land of Valinor.
None of that seems very secret though.

>>16890604
>Remember then, its Secret name
Secret name..Ah! The secret name of Gondolin!
Try Ondolinde, the original name of Gondolin.

>>16890635
Fingolfin was the first answer, now there's a second riddle. I guessed Loth.

>>16890635
Lol, wow you guys sure you don't know Tolkien lore? Like, two other people predicted Meglin from that anon's post. Anyways, heres a little something for Fingolfin's memory.

He gleams like a star
And the sound of his horn's
Like a raging storm
Proudly the high lord
Challenges the doom
Lord of slaves he cries

Slowly in fear
The dark lord appears
Welcome to my lands
You shall be damned

The iron crowned
Is getting closer
Swings his hammer
Down on him
Like a thunderstorm
He's crushing
Down the Noldor's
Proudest king
>Blind Guardian: When Time Stands Still at the Iron Hill

>>16890604
What land was Fingolfin from?
Secret name of the land of the Elves.
I don't know it since I cannot into LotR, but someone else may know.

Apparently the name Gar Thurion more or less literally translates to "Secret Place."
Let's give that a shot.

>>16890647
I'm putting my faith in this.

>>16890664
Valinor? Aman? The city of Tirion on Tunà?

Ok let's try:

Aman, Loth, Loth Tunà, Gar Thurion, Ondolinde, and Lothengriol.

Let's see if this works.

>>16890742
Messed up. Not Loth Tunà, I just mean Tunà.

>>16890742
But Loth Tunà is meaningless, since that's a name of Gondolin combined with the name of the hill he was born on.

We're at 250 posts in the thread. Might need a new one soon.

>>16890763
Dude, look at the post above. I was going to type Lothengriol, but then went to copy and paste Tuna. Forgot to backspace out Loth.

>>16890790
Why bother? It's just going to be a bunch of orcs, maybe some wicked men, and perhaps if we're particularly unlucky a Nazgul.

>>16890800
Understood. Also, deleted because I polite-bumped earlier and my 4chan+ wasn't updating because of moot's meddling.

>>16890693
At the mention of the name Gar Thurion, the door swings inward, revealing a spiral staircase going down. Egon leads the others down it. The stairs descend for about a minute before opening up into a small chamber of worked stone. Another door is set into the far wall, with two statues of elvish maidens putting their fingers to their lips in the 'silence' fashion.

Another elven riddle is present. ANON begins translating.

>>16890815
>we actually got it
>mfw
/tg/ proves, once again, that it is the best board.

>>16890800
Yes, orks with a looted Optimus Prime.

Son of a gun. Another riddle? Well, he was an Elven High King.

Let's do this.

>>16890815
Statues requesting silence?
Better be silent. It looks like the tomb is willing to let us move forward if we prove our knowledge.

"Be warned now, you draw close. Speak no words save that which you must to go forward, for the grave of Fingolfin is sacred and still. I struck seven times and touched the earth four times. I bit into Evil, but remain pure as the snow, and flew thereafter. Speak my name and advance to the final challenge."

>>16890845
Kinda sad my guess was wrong. Oh well.

>>16890815
Oh those elves and their riddles.
...Have the aurors cast their silencing/quieting charms, just to be safe.

>>16890875
>Have the aurors cast their silencing/quieting charms, just to be safe
Those spells require them to speak the command words, you know.

>>16890872
Ringil. The answer, is ringil.

At least I pray to Eru it is. Anyone agree? Or has my Tolkien knowledge failed me.

>>16890872
Uh oh. We have to get a 100% consensus on this one.

By struck seven times and touched the earth four times, I'd say Ringil. It wounded Morgoth seven times (not counting the foot), touched the earth the four times when Fingolfin stumbled and finally fell, touched Evil yet pure, flew when the King of Eagles carried Fingolfin's corpse to Gondolin.

>>16890902
Yep, I thought the same.

>>16890872
Only one chance, eh? Better be careful.
I cannot into LotR so I just hope people here know what's happening. Be ready to teleport out of the place if shit starts going haywire.

>>16890872
>I struck seven times and touched the earth four times. I bit into Evil, but remain pure as the snow, and flew thereafter.
Sounds like Ringil.
Ringil wounded Morgoth 7 times, and was beaten down 4 times. Ringil is also an ice sword, which bit into evil (Morgoth), and flew thereafter (was cast from Fingolfin's grasp when Morgoth killed him.

>>16890887
I can't think of anything else that struck seven times and bit into evil, and in his final battle Fingolfin was struck down three times only to rise up again, and the fourth time he fell he met his doom.
And Fingolfin and Ringil were later carried by the Eagle King.
So... yeah, gonna have to second Ringil.

rolled 96 = 96

>>16890887
no its Sindarin

>>16890930
That sarcasm?

>>16890911
>>16890902
>>16890887
You have my faith.

>>16890872
"Ringil"

>>16890930
Sindarin's the name of a language bro.

>>16890950
I know Sindarin is one language of the elves. I thought he was saying, "No, it's Sindarin." Is if that was the answer.

This is thrilling and challenging. I like it. Haven't had a chance to exercise the old Tolkien knowledge in years.

I think we have a consensus on Ringil.

rolled 38 = 38

yes
>>16890981

>>16890887
The door slides open to reveal a large antechamber decorated with many statues of elven soldiers raising their swords in salute. Two small aqueducts separate the floor from the walls, conducting two trickling streams from a pair of fish statues set into the ceiling to a worked stone whirlpool with a hole in the center.

At the other end of the room is a magnificently engraved stone door, set with seven latches. One of stone, one of gold, one of silver, one of wood, one of iron, and one of steel.

Twelve statues hold forth their hands in offering to this door. Each holds some object.

>>16891004
Get everyone to pull out their tricorders and start scanning for traps. Elves of Tolkien are a thorough and intelligent bunch.

>>16891004
The latches are to represent the seven gates of Gondolin. Hope this helps.

>>16891004
Fuck yes there are.
Sure we can probably just use the alohamora spell, but that's not nearly as fun.

>>16891014
Er, to be more specific, have them scan for ANY MECHANISMS WHATSOEVER, whther they be in the walls or the statues.

I'd prefer to loot everything, but not be bitten on the ass.
Maybe we could just tuck a teleportation band on each item and do it all at once?

>>16891004
The seven latches obviously represent the Seven Gates of Gondolin. What are the objects held by the twelve statues?

I do remember each of the Seven Gates having a specific guard, each of which required a specific object to grant passage. Tolkienfag, I hope you remember that part, because I can't find my copy of the Silmarillion.

>>16891004
What objects are they holding?
Do we need to open Latches in the correct order?
The Aurors could just shout "hax" and open the door, but I get the impression the soldiers would come to life and attack us.

Can we agree that OP is god tier for coming up with all this in like two hours or so?
Because god damn this is awesome, he's really making it feel like this is the tomb of the greatest hero this world has ever seen.

>>16891039
I just remembered something. There are twelve royal houses of Gondolin. This should also help.

>>16891004
The objects the statues offer forth are a swan wing, a black statuette of a mole, a purple feather, a small arch, a green branch, a thick icicle, a flower of pure gold, a flute carved from an immense diamond, a silver harp, a black hammer, and a heart carved from a single huge ruby.

>>16891004
7 latches?
If I remember correctly, Gondolin had 7 gates, each made of a different material.
Maybe each latch has to be undone in order?

Also, what objects are gripped by the 12 statues?
Weren't there 12 Houses of Gondolin?

>>16891028
We aren't at 'loot' we are at the final Challenge.

>>16891051
Seconded. The riddles are 100% great, and I wish I was as clever as OP to have made them on the fly.
>>16891062
Can somebody check if these relate to the Houses of Gondolin?

Also, OP, you only named 6 of the 7 latches (stone, gold, silver, wood, iron, steel) Can we have the last one, so we are fully prepared?

>>16891054
Indeed. Seven Gates, Twelve Houses. We need to know what each statue holds.

I suspect we must unlock them in order, with the proper objects in the hands of the proper House.

>>16891066
Oh, sorry.

>>16891039
This sounds right..

>>16891081
I forgot say bronze. Sorry.

280 posts in. Autosage in 19. Ready, lads?

Seven gates of Gondolin = 7 Hatches. Presumably need to be opened in the right order.
12 Objects = 12 Houses of Gondolin. Not sure if we need to manipulate them in this puzzle.

>I do remember each of the Seven Gates having a specific guard, each of which required a specific object to grant passage.
Oh, so we need to open latches in order and provide the right item as we open each latch?

>>16891081
The golden flower represents House of the Golden Flower. Who's leader was Glorfindel. That's all I can remember about the leaders.

And we are keeping this damn sword. It's too awesome and we have spent so much time to get it we are keeping it.

>>16891081
>>16891051
Thanks! Glad to know I'm doing my job right.

>>16891100
>Oh, so we need to open latches in order and provide the right item as we open each latch?
Where would we provide the items?

>>16891127
I think we need to open the latches in the order the gates were opened.

That's my opinion, hope it helps. Like always.

>>16891118
I don't know nearly enough about Tolkien to help so I'm just waiting for someone else to solve the puzzle.
If it doesn't work we could theoretically Alohmora the door, but A. that feels cheap, and B. we're likely to get assraped somehow.

>>16891028
One of the Aurors scans around with his loaned tricorder. He begins to open his mouth to report his findings, then swiftly shuts it, pantomiming as best he can that there are indeed mechanisms behind the walls.

>>16891108
Well, it is never seen again in any canon I'm aware of, I would say we earned it by the time we reach it.
Though I think we'll need to find someone more suitable to wield it eventually. Demoman using it is funny, but doesn't feel right, but I'll have to do for now.

Alright, the relevant story would be 'Of Tuor and his coming to Gondor', which is found in Tolkein's Unfinished Tales, and certain editions of the Silmarillion.
I'm going to see if I can find more information.

>>16891159
Beam down a bunch of whiteboards and dry-erase markers.
That'll make communication easier.

>>16891159
Well, Tolkienfag doesn't know.
Either ANON needs to feed us hints about the 12 houses and 7 gates, or we need to Hax the door open, or we just leave the thread overnight and wait for someone who knows more about the Silmarillion to answer it for us.

So, wood, stone, bronze, iron, silver, gold and steel would be the order.

Just to be sure, can we see any markings? Any inscriptions? Anything that would indicate what we should do?

What do the statues look like, by the way? Any particularities? If the statue of the King doesn't hold the object representing the House of Turgon, we need to know.

On an unrelated note, was the the suggestion for saving the life of elf that Ahriman killed ever acted upon? I know we didn't do anything that would have gotten in the way of that, just a beam-up and time with the EMH.

>>16891173
Would that make to much noise though? Or is it just words that will set off the wards?

So...I'm really thinking here. I'm trying to remember so much right now.

>>16891188
We're making progress. Thank GOD I have a copy of the Silmarillion on hand from my sister. We have the order of the latches, and we just need to make sure the objects match with the Houses the bearing statues represent. If it comes down to that, we can just make the associations (i.e. Thlim Doldrin = Mole, Thlim Galdon = Branch, etc.)

>>16891209
You know what sucks? I HAVE a copy of the Lost Tales and the Silmarillion, but with no idea where to start.

>>16891169
I'm downloading the story in etext form and should have it in a couple minutes.
Try not to kill us all in the mean time.

>>16891229
We won't. We already have a decent logic to follow, we just need the details.

>>16891219
Sold my Similarion and Lost Tales. Regretting this, like I knew I would.

>>16891243
AND YOU CALL YOURSELF TOLKIENFAG?! For shame.

By the way, I think we're in autosage.

Thanks Tolkienfags. My Tolkien-fu is weak, but my Google-fu is strong. Going off keywords from ya'll I got this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gondolin#The_Houses_of_Gondolin

Found confirmation of the 12 Houses and their Emblams in 'The Fall of Gondolin'. The items all line up with the houses of Gondolin. We just need to figure out what to do with the information
>>16891248
Yeah, it's time for archive-friends to do their magic.

We're in autosage. I trust in the rest of you, but cannot offer any help.

>>16891219
This. Check if items match statues. Good use of the actual names for the houses Fireman. And again, hating my rash decision of selling my books.

>>16891191
All of the statues seem to be of ancient elvish nobles. The only peculiar one is the statue holding the ruby heart, who bears a crown on his head and seems to be designed as more regal and richly dressed than the others. He also appears the youngest.

>>16891248
Oh please. Once you've read Tales once it's down. Similarion is slow in the beginning, but gets better. I still have my Hobbit and LOTR books.

>>16891255
I did notice each item did represent each house. Did think it could be important though.

>>16891260
>their emblems the moon and the sun and the scarlet heart [of Finwë Nólemë].
I'm guessing the ruby heart would be that last one.
So along with the crown, I think we can confirm that for the House of the King.

>>16891260
Yep, that's definitely The House Of The King (The house of Fingolfin and King Turgon).
>>16891279
It all matches up. Even the order of the annunciation of the items by OP lines up with the presented order of the Houses. We know the order of the latch-openings, so we just need to figure out what to do with the presented items...

>>16891260
>The only peculiar one is the statue holding the ruby heart, who bears a crown on his head and seems to be designed as more regal and richly dressed than the others
That's probably King Turgon. And he's supposed to be holding that ruby, if I remember correctly. We need to confirm that the other statues are holding the correct items, and we should be ready to start.

>>16891255
Thread's been archived.
I wanted to include 'Mechagodzilla in Kyoto: Middle-Earth edition', but decided it could wait until we actually put the plan into practice.

>>16891289
Oh, Finwe just reminded me of Fingolfin's Quenya name. Nolofinwe. Probably not helpful though.

If all the statues are holding the right items, I say we simply undo the latches in the right order.

I mean, honestly, by this point the mechanisms are probably just the one to open the vault/crypt where Fingolfin is interred, not deathly traps. I suspect that the entire setup and warning is just a way to make intruders panic and/or speak, thereby activating the magic that would doom them. The logic being that real visitors/mourners wouldn't even need to be reminded to stay silent, as their grief and mourning would do it for them.

>>16891353

New thread.

You know this is the first time I've taken part in this quest. And you know, when I saw it going on, I thought it was just a horrible crossover game. Like Narrator didn't understand the universe he was in. Canonical mistakes being made left and right. I didn't look at the thread itself just glanced at it.

I was totally wrong, this quest is AMAZING.

Hm. I'm looking through the story and I'm not getting anything useful.
Like it seems like there isn't any specific item or password for opening the gates, just the order is Wood, Stone, Bronze, Wrought Iron, Silver, Gold, and Steel.
Which is odd since there aren't any keys are there?