Posted: July 13, 1998 at 10:42:33: by Steve S
Obviously they took great pains about getting the right people into this suicide mission. Think about what Gandalf has seen in his 'trial hobbit run' with Bilbo. One hobbit had a hand in taking out 3 trolls, lots of giant spiders, breaking out of an enchanted elven jail, toasting a DRAGON, and resolving an armed conflict between the dwarves and men & elves! And prior to the arrival at Rivendell the hobbits showed themselves capable of taking out a wight, eluding the black riders, and escaping from willows of evil intent. Now at first glance a lot of this success seems to be 'luck', but Gandalf seemed to understand it as something else. Also remember that stealth was critical, making hobbits a natural. (provided they don't do something stupid like drop rocks into bottomless pits in Moria) So later on I don't think Gandalf was at all surprised to find out that these hobbits had a part in reducing Sauruman to rubble & wasting the witch king - he knew they'd do something big. Even dropping the stone in Moria helped lead to the slaying of Durin's Bane & the elevation of Gandalf. In fact, I'm kinda curious why they bothered setting out with Gimli and Legolas, and why hook Aragorn & Boromir with them since they were two separate missions, unless it was to use the hobbits to protect the two warriors! A few more hobbits & the project would have been all but sewn up! Gandalf didn't know exactly what to expect, but certainly his understanding of hobbits and their 'luck' led him to conclude that by one unusual circumstance or another they would tend to take out the powerful enemies. And I say all this only PARTLY tongue-in-cheek! ;-)
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