Adar was a mysterious individual of the Second Age who was referred to as Lord-father by Orcs presumably because of his status as one of the Moriondor, the first Elves to be captured and tortured by Morgoth. Adar is portrayed by Joseph Mawle, first appearing in the episode "Adar". For the second season, Adar was portrayed by Sam Hazeldine.
Adar was once Sauron's lieutenant, but he grew disillusioned with his master's cruelty towards the Orcs and killed him. Believing himself free from Sauron's grasp, Adar sought to fashion a home where the Orcs could thrive. With the use of The Hilt and his "children", he claimed the Southlands and turned them into Mordor. Word of Sauron's return, however, spurred Adar into action. Hoping to destroy his former master once and for all, Adar assembled an army and laid siege to Eregion. In the end, he was betrayed and slain by a group of his own children, who embraced Sauron as the new Dark Lord.
Official Description[]
Adar is the name Second-Age orcs use for their leader. It is also an Elvish word meaning “Father” – though why the orcs call him this remains unknown to outsiders… along with the enigmatic figure’s origins and motivations.
Biography[]
Corruption[]
In the Elder Days, the Elf who would became known as Adar was selected with twelve others to receive a blessing from Morgoth's own hand. They were promised power and a rebirth. Led to a nameless peak, Adar and the others were chained and left. Time passed, and hunger and thirst seemed unending until Morgoth's servant, Sauron, arrived and offered Adar wine, red as a blood moon. Adar drank all of it.[1]
In the First Age, Adar allegedly once walked alongside a great river in Beleriand, which had banks covered by miles of sage blossoms.[2]
Lord-father of the Orcs[]
At the dawn of the Second Age, Adar and a host of Orcs, or Uruk, assembled at the fortress Dúrnost in Forodwaith, where Sauron declared himself their new master in the wake of Morgoth's defeat. Sauron's goal was to create a new perfect order, ruling over all the peoples of Middle-earth. He killed many of those who followed him, in experiments with the Unseen World. Adar, in order to protect them, killed Sauron during his coronation. Taking the Dark Lord's Crown, Adar drove the spikes into Sauron's back, then stood back to watch as the Orcs vented their rage and stabbed Sauron to death. As Sauron's physical form died, an explosion of light burst from the body, knocking down Adar and the assembled Orcs and turning the surrounding Forodwaith into an icy wasteland. Of Sauron's body there was no sign, save for his clothes. Adar addressed the Orcs, telling them that they were now free. As he did so, the Orcs proclaimed Adar as their new leader.[1]
Building a Homeland[]
Arondir was brought to an Orc encampment where they kept slaves to do their bidding. He overheard several Orcs refer to "Adar" and recognized it as the Elvish word for "father". Revion believed it was just another name for Sauron, whom the dark creatures worshipped. After a failed escape attempt, Arondir was brought into the tents to see Adar. The Orcs chanted his name as he approached in darkness.[2] Upon emerging, he gently tended to the dying Magrot and gave him a mercy killing with a dagger. He dismissed the other Orcs to speak privately with Arondir, learning that the Silvan Elf was born in Beleriand. Adar then reminisced about his days along a great river there, evading Arondir's own questions about his loyalty to the Orcs. Adar claimed Arondir was told many lies and that the world would need to be remade to right the wrongs committed. He freed Arondir to deliver a message to the Men taking refuge in Ostirith - they can forsake their land and swear fealty to him, or perish when he comes for the watchtower. Later, as he watched one of the caged Wargs devouring fresh flesh, Adar was informed by Grugzûk that The Hilt that they sought was in the watchtower.[3]
Some time afterwards, Adar was told by Grugzûk that the tunnel was complete and their forces were ready. Adar then asked him to hold his arm in the sunlight to emphasize, by burning the Orc's skin, his claim that the sun's light would soon be overshadowed. He then released Grugzûk, ordering him to summon the legions. Later, temporarily encamped in Tirharad, Adar was approached by a group of Southlanders led by Waldreg, who sought to swear fealty in exchange for their lives and better status. Waldreg proclaimed his long wait for the Orcs' return to lift them from the muck and filth. Following Waldreg's suggestion that his new master was, in fact, Sauron - whom he had long awaited to pledge his undying service to - Adar expressed his frustration with the mistaken belief by throwing the man to the ground. Waldreg swore to serve whomever he was. Adar forced him to murder Rowan with a dagger in order to seal his oath of loyalty, claiming that only blood could bind. Afterward, Adar and his army marched on Ostirith.[4]
Adar and his army arrived at Ostirith to destroy those who refused to obey him, only to find the watchtower empty. He was then surprised by Arondir, who waited until the Orcs were within the towers walls before picking them off, sealing them inside, and triggering a mechanism rigged to destroy the tower. The attack killed a number of Orcs, forcing Adar's army to regroup for the remainder of the following day.[5]
Adar's attack on Tirharad came after nightfall; he put the defected Southlanders in Orc garb and sent them as part of the first wave of the attack against his foes. This forced the Southlanders to kill their own people. Only then did Adar's main force attack, eventually pinning the Southlanders inside a tavern. Adar entered to request the hilt from Arondir. The Elf refused and tried to bargain, so Adar commanded his Orcs to kill villagers until Arondir cooperated. After two deaths, he targeted Bronwyn next, having seen Arondir's fondness for the human. Theo broke and gave Adar the hilt to spare his mother's life. He in turn gave it to Waldreg with a special task.[5]
As they prepared to leave the village, a company of Númenórean cavalry commanded by Queen Regent Míriel arrived and a second round of battle ensued with the Númenóreans easily taking the upper-hand. Adar fought alongside his children when it became clear the fight wasn't going his way. Galadriel asked Arondir to identify the enemy leader, and he pointed to Adar with the instruction to not let him escape with the artifact. Adar mounted a brown horse and galloped away with Galadriel in pursuit. He was ultimately tripped by Halbrand, who was offended when Adar did not recognize him. Galadriel convinced Halbrand to spare Adar since she needed him alive for questioning.[5]
Galadriel interrogation brought to light Adar's nature as one of the Moriondor, thirteen[1] Elves twisted into something dark by Morgoth. Adar admitted to killing Sauron after the Dark Lord murdered several of Adar's children in pursuit of a power over the flesh. His children now serve no master as they each have a name, a heart, and were creations of the Master of the Secret Fire, just as she was. He believed they were worthy of life and a home. She called him a mistake made in mockery. She vowed to keep him alive until she eradicated every last one of them, so she could whisper in his ear that all of his offspring are dead and the scourge of his kind ends with him. He mused over not being the only Elf alive who has been transformed by darkness. He suggested her search for Morgoth's successor should have ended with her reflection. Halbrand intervened before she could lash out, and she stormed away. Adar asked Halbrand who he was, but Halbrand gave no answer.[5]
Adar waited with satisfaction as Waldreg brought the hilt to Ostirith and caused the eruption of Orodruin, which desolated the Southlands. Adar's prison was destroyed by the volcano's eruption, though through unknown means he had escaped just before.[5]
Adar took over the village as a home for the Orcs because the newly formed ash clouds shielded the country against the sunlight. Adar was proclaimed by Waldreg and the Orcs as "Lord of the Southlands", though he changed the name of the country to Mordor.[6]
Return of the Enemy[]
With his forces triumphant and in control of the land now known as Mordor,[6] Adar set about securing his rule. He allowed those Southlanders who remained to join him if they pledged fealty to him, and they were branded with the Mark of Adar. Soon, Halbrand, the apparent King of the Southlands, surrendered to Adar's Orcs and was brought before him. Halbrand wanted to exchange the freedom of his people for information he had on the return of Sauron. Despite believing that he had killed Sauron centuries ago, Adar eventually agreed to the arrangement, learning that Sauron had taken a new form and that Galadriel had sought him out as an ally to help the Elves build a weapon that would give them power over flesh, including that of the Orcs. After demanding an oath of allegiance, Adar released Halbrand "to track down" Sauron after he promised to use the trust the Elves had in him to locate the sorcerer so that Adar could bring his legions to bear. As Halbrand left, Adar ordered Glûg to ensure that he was followed every step of the way.[1]
Some time after Halbrand's release, Adar decided to lead his Orc legions out of Mordor toward Eregion, which he had heard was where Sauron had appeared. After eventually arriving in the lands surrounding Celebrimbor's city, his army discovered and captured Galadriel, who had led a team to discover the truth of what was occurring there.[7]
Adar kept Galadriel as a prisoner, but soon hosted her for supper and spoke to her regarding their shared experiences with Sauron, and their mutual desire to destroy him. At length he described to Galadriel a plan to do this, revealing that he still possessed Morgoth's crown, with which he once killed Sauron's bodily form. He expressed the belief that with this and with Galadriel's ring Nenya, they would be able to replicate the feat and destroy the enemy absolutely. However, once Adar discerned the location of Nenya from Galadriel and gets no assurance from her that the High King Gil-galad would not attempt to invade Mordor even if he helped her destroy Sauron, he stated clearly that he would enact his plans alone and besiege the city to get at Sauron. Despite Galadriel's protests that he was playing into Sauron's hands, Adar rallied his legions to war.[8]
Adar, after rallying his legions, commanded his vast army of Orcs to bombard the city by trebuchet at nightfall.[8] Eventually, he turned the siege engines towards the river canyon above the city and caused a landslide, cutting off the river's flow. Adar prepared for a now-possible ground assault, but was forestalled by the arrival of Gil-galad and Elrond, leading a regiment of Elven cavalry. To prevent a costly engagement, Galadriel was revealed to the Elves, forcing Elrond to come to Adar's tent for negotiations. Adar demanded Nenya in exchange for Galadriel's life, and despite Elrond's pleas to prevent mass slaughter, Adar refused to compromise, and Elrond refused the deal, instead discreetly passing Galadriel a means to pick the lock of her manacles.[9]
A great battle then ensued on the exposed riverbed, lasting throughout the night. After much bloodshed, Adar commanded the Hill-Troll Damrod to go forth. Though the Troll was eventually killed, he succeeded in breaching the city's stone wall, and Adar personally led the final assault as the sun rose. The diminished Elven warriors quickly fell before the Orcs, and Arondir was gravely wounded by Adar. When the fighting had ceased, Elrond was forced to kneel before Adar, who took Nenya from him.[9]
As the result of Nenya's healing power, Adar's appearance again became that of an Elf, as before he was deceived by Sauron many centuries prior. It was in this state that Galadriel was brought to him as a prisoner, before Adar sent the Orcs away and revealed his healed self to her. Adar offered to return Nenya to Galadriel, promising that if Sauron was defeated, he would withdraw his armies to Mordor and never again trouble the Free Peoples of Middle-earth. Galadriel accepted the ring, and as Adar returned it, his appearance reverted back to his Uruk nature.[10]
Just then, Glûg arrived with a host of other Orcs, feigning a grave injury. Having encountered Sauron, the Orc had submitted to him and had been instructed to betray Adar. When Adar came close enough, Glûg stabbed him, prompting the group of Orcs to attack Adar while Sauron, who had just arrived, watched, much to Galadriel's horror. Glûg looked to Sauron for approval, then finished off Adar with a strike to the heart as he reached his hand out to his children. As Adar's lifeless hand dropped, Glûg requested orders from Lord Sauron and hailed him as the new Dark Lord.[10]
Appearances[]
- Season One
- "Adar" (First appearance)
- "The Great Wave"
- "Partings"
- "Udûn"
- "The Eye"
- Season Two