A Drunk History Of Middle-earth

Socials: https://linktr.ee/lotradhomeEpisode three. The Siege of Angband finally breaks and it all goes up in smoke (ha ha). Morgoth has spent 400 years building dragons and lava behind his gates while the elves got comfy, and one midwinter night he lets it all out at once. Ard-galen goes up in flames and a fully mature Glaurung comes out to play.I go through the battle bit by bit, and it is frigging big. Barahir drags Finrod out of the Fen of Serech and gets a ring for his trouble, which ends up as an engagement ring thousands of years later. Then Fingolfin completely loses it and rides to Angband on his own to fight Morgoth and it is amazing.After that Sauron takes the original Minas Tirith and fills it with werewolves, and I try to squeeze Beren and Lúthien into a fraction of the time it deserves. We cover so much of the First Age now that I am struggling to fit it all here.

Socials: https://linktr.ee/lotradhomePart 2 of "Feanor ruins everything"We start with the greatest craftsman Middle-earth will ever see, the Silmarils he makes, and the lies Morgoth plants in his ear. When the Trees die and the jewels are stolen, Fëanor and his sons swear an oath that can’t be kept or broken. What follows is the Kinslaying at Alqualondë, the Doom of Mandos, and a very expensive bonfire at Losgar.Then the Noldor reach Middle-earth and win the Battle-under-Stars, until Fëanor charges off alone towards Angband and finds out what a Balrog is.From there, the Sun and Moon rise for the first time, Fingon rescues Maedhros from Thangorodrim, and the elves settle into a four-hundred-year siege of Morgoth’s front door. Glaurung turns up before he’s fully baked, and Men arrive in Beleriand to be serenaded by Finrod. It all holds together nicely until one midwinter night when the plains of Ard-galen catch fire.

Socials: https://linktr.ee/lotradhomeBefore the Noldor, before Fëanor’s oath (idiot), before the sun even existed, there was war in Beleriand. In the first of this new series on the Wars of Beleriand, Chris is solo and sets the stage: where Beleriand got its name, how the elves woke under the stars, and how Thingol lost himself in a forest and found Melian (yeah right). We visit the Thousand Caves, meet the dwarves, and learn who really invented runes. Then Morgoth sends his orcs into a land that thinks it’s safe, and the Green Elves find out that bravery doesn't make up for bad equipment. Everything is gonna get horrible.

PLEASE DONATE: Chris Hikes 26 miles dressed as a Hobbit for charity: https://shorturl.at/6AbHfYoutube: https://youtu.be/2JZI0gT7JQMSocials: https://linktr.ee/lotradhomeChris is joined by Nathan from Think Tankards and they have a play through the recently released War in the North. It's a relaxed, fun time as they romp through the kingdom of Arnor.

PLEASE DONATE: Chris Hikes 26 miles dressed as a Hobbit for charity: https://shorturl.at/6AbHfSocials: https://linktr.ee/lotradhomeThis episode, Chris goes solo, and down a huge rabbit hole. Seriously, it's got more depth than Khazad-dûm.The ENTIRE history of Gondor. From its founding by Isildur and Anarion, to Eldarion, Aragorn's son. We cover the geography, the etymology, the population centres, the kings, the stewards, the wars, the enemies, the plagues, etc. EVERYTHING.This is the most taxing episode to date, and Chris regrets nothing.

Chris Hikes 26 miles dressed as a Hobbit for charity: https://shorturl.at/6AbHfSocials: https://linktr.ee/lotradhomeOh boy. This is a big one. Join Chris and Becca as they cover the entire history of the kingdom of Arnor. The north kingdom of middle-earth. This mega-episode traces from Elendil to Aragorn, from Elendil landing like Noah after the flood, to its slow, humiliating collapse into three squabbling successor states, and the nine hundred years of decline after that. We cover the Witch-king of Angmar's centuries-long campaign to grind the North-kingdom into dust, the fall of Fornost, and how a nearly-extinct royal line spent a millennium as rangers before producing the King of Gondor. I recommend you do this one in chunks, fam.

Chris Hikes 26 miles dressed as a Hobbit for charity: https://shorturl.at/6AbHfChris pops in to discuss the nature of evil in Middle-earth. He looks at whether Morgoth was really as chaotic as he seemed. Maybe he was a tool used by Eru to further his ultimate plan.The ancient Japanese art of Kintsugi is discussed. The art of making something more beautiful because of its flaws.Ain't no sunshine without rain, is what he's saying.Come discuss fate, free will, paradise and whether humans 'earned' Numenor.

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Chris' Charity Bike Ride: https://tinyurl.com/ChrisC2CAfter a long break, Chris and Becca are back to discuss the enigma wrapped in a riddle wrapped in a blue coat and yellow boots, Tom Bombadil. They discuss the jolly fella, as well as a LOT of other stuff, including the history of Buckland, the origin of the name Tom, life in general, charity work, Tom as Eru's playable character in Middle-earth and uncountable other things. We reach levels of philology we didn't think possible.This is a new format for the show. Much deeper and much more conversational. Expect longer episodes going forward.

Note: The podcast is going on extended break as life is hectic.As 2025 comes to a close, Chris is solo and discusses some of the most famous relics in Middle-earth. He discusses their long history and how Aragorn came to possess many of them during the events of Lord of the Rings. Some of the legendary loot:The Elfstone/ElessarAnduril/NarsilThe Crown of GondorThe Dragon-helm of Dor-lóminAngrist The Sceptre of AnnúminasThe PalantiriThe Ring of Barahir