|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Arrrrwen's daughter
Lindon
Sep 19 2009, 8:30pm
Post #1 of 8
(5013 views)
Shortcut
|
|
Corsairs vs. Hobbits
|
Can't Post
|
|
The Corsairs of Umbar inexplicably sail up the Brandywine and begin attacking Hobbit territory. Will the landlubbing Hobbits be able to turn them back?
A Pirate's Life for Me!
|
|
|
Woodyend
Mithlond
Sep 20 2009, 12:37am
Post #2 of 8
(1160 views)
Shortcut
|
|
The alarm rings out, fear, fire, foe!
[In reply to]
|
Can't Post
|
|
And the hobbit archers, decimates the corsairs.
May your beer be laid under an enchantment of surpassing excellence for seven years!
~~~~~~~~Gandalf~~~~~~~
Listen. Strange women lying in ponds, distributing swords, is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony!
|
|
|
Finrod Felagund 5
Lindon
Sep 30 2009, 2:44am
Post #3 of 8
(1147 views)
Shortcut
|
|
Corsairs win a tight battle...
[In reply to]
|
Can't Post
|
|
I am saying a tight battle because I'm going to say it would take place after the rising of the Shire with Merry, Pippin, and Sam leading the Hobbit forces. The problem is that the Corsairs were seen as a threat even by Gondorians, and Gondor, even at the end of the Third Age, is far greater than the Shire in terms of military strength. So while the brave Hobbits would battle them and would never submit, they would indeed lose the battle. I do not think the Shire could really be occupied because it would become a constant, unwinnable war for the Corsairs, BUT in a battle the Corsairs would win. The Corsairs are nowhere near as strong as the USA, and yet the USA could not occupy Vietnam, so I believe the Corsairs, far from home, would not be able to occupy the Shire. However, like the US they would punish the Hobbits and effectively "defeat" them, but they would not be able to stay.
|
|
|
Woodyend
Mithlond
Sep 30 2009, 3:13am
Post #4 of 8
(1135 views)
Shortcut
|
If history has taught us anything it is that, it is easier to conquer a country, than it is to govern it.
May your beer be laid under an enchantment of surpassing excellence for seven years!
~~~~~~~~Gandalf~~~~~~~
Listen. Strange women lying in ponds, distributing swords, is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony!
|
|
|
Pansy
Nevrast
Nov 5 2009, 7:21pm
Post #5 of 8
(1201 views)
Shortcut
|
|
the corsairs think they won but ...
[In reply to]
|
Can't Post
|
|
I think what happens is what happened to the barbarian invaders of China. the barbarians gave up their barbarian ways and became Chinese. So the Corsairs would become Hobbits . this could explain all the Overly tall Hobbits such as myself who are wandering around.
Pansy Bolger
give three cheers for a hobbit hero, Ill lead the way
Hurrah! Hurrah! Hurray!
and the Chorus sings...
And we are his sisters, and his cousins, and his aunts!
And we are his sisters, and his cousins, and his aunts!
His sisters and his cousins,
Whom he reckons up by dozens,
And his aunts! (song pilfered from gilbert & Sullivan)
|
|
|
Idril Celebrindal
Dor-Lomin
Nov 6 2009, 5:31pm
Post #6 of 8
(1141 views)
Shortcut
|
Seriously, though, the Corsairs in this scenario strike me as being like the Vikings -- especially the inland raiding. So I'll look at them in comparison to the historical Vikings.
Some Vikings indeed were sea raiders who plundered and burned along the coasts and inland up the rivers -- as in this scenario, where the Corsairs sail up the Greyflood to the Brandywine. As others have pointed out, the Hobbits wouldn't be good at defending themselves from these kinds of lightning raids, but it's likely that they'd eventually be able to repel any invaders who wanted to conquer the Shire.
However, other Vikings were traders who interacted peacefully with other folk. After all, it's hard to trade your furs and metal goods if you've just burnt down the town where your customers live! If the Corsairs came as traders with goods that the Hobbits were interested in (tea? coffee? cinnamon?), contact with them might be welcomed. For instance, the Hobbits might establish a trading post on the Brandywine where business could be conducted with Corsair merchants. This is a pattern that's been repeated throughout history when different cultures meet and want to trade.
Still other Vikings settled around Europe, not to mention Iceland, Greenland, and for a short time, Vinland (Nova Scotia). The Hobbits would not have welcomed Corsairs who wanted to settle in the Shire (see my first point). But being parochial sorts, they probably would not have cared if the Corsairs settled in unpopulated areas along the coast or the banks of the Greyflood, as long as it wasn't in their backyards.
Of course, the Corsairs seem to be inspired more by the Barbary Coast pirates than by the Vikings. But it's still fun to think about how they might interact with other cultures in Middle-earth when they aren't raiding commerce and fighting with them.
With caffeine, all things are possible.
The pity of Bilbo will screw up the fate of many.
(This post was edited by Idril Celebrindal on Nov 6 2009, 5:36pm)
|
|
|
Cardir
Lindon
Dec 16 2009, 2:43pm
Post #7 of 8
(5024 views)
Shortcut
|
I think what happens is what happened to the barbarian invaders of China. the barbarians gave up their barbarian ways and became Chinese. So the Corsairs would become Hobbits . this could explain all the Overly tall Hobbits such as myself who are wandering around.
...post a response but this one was too good.
|
|
|
|
|
