The New Hobbit Hole

[HairOfTheDog]

Welcome to The New Hobbit Hole
Concerning Hobbits
The New Hobbit Chronicles

This is a continuation of the infamous thread New Zealander Builds Hobbit Hole originally posted on January 26, 2001 by John Farson, who at the time undoubtedly thought he had found a rather obscure article that would elicit a few replies and die out. Without knowing it, he became the founder of the Hobbit Hole. For reasons incomprehensible to some, the thread grew to over 4100 replies. It became the place for hobbits and friends of hobbits to chit chat and share LoTR news and views, hang out, and talk amongst ourselves in the comfort of familiar surroundings.

In keeping with the new posting guidelines, the thread idea is continuing here, as will the Green Dragon Inn, our more structured spin-off thread, as soon as we figure out how to move all the good discussion that has been had there. As for the Hobbit Hole, we will just start fresh, bringing only a few mathoms such as the picture above with us to make it feel like home, and perhaps a walk down memory lane:

Our discussion has been light:

It very well may be that a thread named "New Zealander builds Hobbit hole" will end up being the longest Tolkien thread of them all, with some of the best heartfelt content... Sorry John, but I would have rather it had been one with a more distinguished title!… post 252 - HairOfTheDog

However, I can still celebrate, with quiet dignity, the fact that what started as a laugh about some wacko in New Zealand has mutated and grown into a multifaceted discussion of the art, literature, and philosophy that is Tolkien. And now that I've managed to write the most pompous sentence of my entire life, I agree, Rosie… post 506 - JenB

Hah! I was number 1000!! (Elvish victory dance... wait, no; that would be too flitty) … post 1001 - BibChr

Real men don't have to be afraid of being flitty! Go for it. – post 1011 – HairOfTheDog

Seventeen years to research one mystical object seems a bit excessive… post 1007 - JenB

Okay...who's the wise guy who didn't renew Gandalf's research grant?… post 1024 – Overtaxed

To the very philosophical:

…Judas Iscariot obviously was a good man, or he wouldn't have been chosen to be one of the Apostles. He loved Jesus, like all of the Apostles, but he betrayed him. Yet without his betrayal, the Passion and Crucifixion would never have occurred, and mankind would not have been redeemed. So without his self-destruction infinite good would not have been accomplished. I certainly do not mean this to be irreverant but it seems to me that this describes the character of Gollum, in the scenes so movingly portrayed above… Lucius Cornelius Sulla

To fun but heartfelt debates about the integrity and worth of some of the characters…

…Anyone else notice how Boromir treats the hobbits? He's very fond of them but he seems to think of them as children - ruffling Frodo's hair, calls them all 'little ones'. He likes them, but I don't think he really respects them… post 1536 - JenB

Yes... Tolkien told us not to trust Boromir right off the bat when he began to laugh at Bilbo, until he realized that the Council obviously held this hobbit in high esteem. What a pompous dolt… post 1538 - HairOfTheDog

…I think almost every fault of his can be traced directly back to his blindness to anything spiritual or unseen. He considers the halflings as children, because that is what they look like. He considers the only hope of the ring to be in taking it and using it for a victory in the physical realm. He cannot see what the hobbits are truly made of, he cannot see the unseen hope of what the destruction of the ring might mean--the destruction of Sauron himself, and he cannot see the unseen danger that lies in the use of the ring itself… I just feel sorry for Boromir--he is like a blind but honorable man, trying to take the right path on the road but missing the right path entirely because he simply cannot see it… post 1548 - Penny1

Boromir isn't a jerk, he's a jock… post 2401 – Overtaxed

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Oh, I think by the time Frodo reaches the Cracks, he's not even himself anymore! I think he's not only on the brink of a dangerous place physically, he's on the brink of losing himself completely during the exchange with Gollum. But for some reason, the take-over isn't complete till he actually has to throw the Ring in. The person speaking to Gollum is not Frodo, but the "Wheel of Fire" that Sam sees. After the Ring is destroyed, Frodo not only comes back to himself, but comes back with the unbearable (to him) knowledge of what it's like to be completely without compassion. I think that's why it's so important to him to be compassionate in the Shire… post 2506 - 2Jedismom

…Regarding Frodo's compassion... it's a little too much at the end. Even Merry tells him that he's going to have to quit being so darn nice. But you're right. He's learned a lesson about evil that very few ever learn since it wasn't an external lesson but an internal one. (Those kinds of lessons have the greatest impact) Not only did he totally succumb to it, but he was rather ruthless to my little Smeagol… post 2516 - carton253

Well that Frodo was a big mean bully! (to Smeagol)… post 2519 – Overtaxed

So as you can see, everything JRR Tolkien (and Peter Jackson) is welcome here in our New Row, our soon-to-be familiar New Hobbit Hole…; philosophy, opinion, good talk and frequent silliness.

[HairOfTheDog]

What video games do you play?

I just downloaded the DEMO version of the Fellowship of the Ring Game... and have tried it out just a few minutes.

I started out in Bag End.. where am Frodo and I have to figure out how to sell Bag End to Lobelia SB... I got lost in the Shire and never found her yet.

I jumped ahead to Weathertop, where my role changes from Frodo to Strider... Strider was eaten by Wargs. I can't figure out his weapons. I am afraid all the hobbits were eaten too. [shrugs]

I am gonna try it again without skipping ahead. Have to find Lobelia.

If you want to download the game, it is here:

http://www.fileshack.com/ (free demo version - 131 MB)

[ItsOurTimeNow]

131 MB? That'll take me some time to download on a dial-up, but I'll give it a shot.

Right now, I'm cycling through Age of Empires II, Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds (I LOVE strategy games), and Jedi Knight II - Jedi Outcast.

Next on my plate is Neverwinter Nights, Lord of the Rings, and possibly Elder Scrolls III.

I think someone ought to look into creating a LOTR strategy game - players could choose between building a kingdom of Orcs, Hobbits, Elves, Men, Dwarves, or Goblins. Each race would have its own strengths and weaknesses...its own special set of weaponry, etc.

I mainly use my PC for gaming...the new Dell I bought came with a GForce IV MX 420. I've still only got 128 RAM...I desperately need to bump that up in the near future.

In terms of other gaming, I haven't left the arms of PS1 yet...I'm having way too much fun with "The Legend of Dragoon" and "Driver".

Et tu?

[HairOfTheDog]

I have played a lot of Unreal Tournament and before that Quake III Arena... Player versus player games.

I still haven't found Lobelia yet in the Shire, and I am afraid Aragorn got eaten again. The game plays OK! - I have mostly been wandering around. It is a lot less intense and bloody than Unreal Tournament! You can kinda just walk around and get the feel of it.

[HairOfTheDog]

I have GForce too... and 128.

[Corin Stormhands]

Afternoon all. Just checking in between church and rehearsals. I want a nap, but am I afraid I wouldn't wake up in time. Plus, I need to get some things done here...

Maybe I'll see you tonite.

[Overtaxed]

Rain delay at the races so I'm torturing the kitty with the whistle.

[ItsOurTimeNow]

After waiting in a half-hour queue, it started the Demo download...and clocked it at over 6 hours.

Looks like this'll be a "download through the night" type of thing...lol

[HairOfTheDog]

Dude.... You need cable. :~D

[ItsOurTimeNow]

I live in the sticks...it just (two months ago) became available out here. At $50 a month, plus a $200 cable modem purchase...it'll have to wait a while.

DSL is still a pipe-dream (no pun intended)...any of the state's DSL carriers aren't in my area yet.

[Bear_in_RoseBear]

I still haven't found Lobelia yet in the Shire, and I am afraid Aragorn got eaten again.

Have you had a chance to fondle much pork, yet? ;-D

[HairOfTheDog]

I am in the sticks too... Mine is $45 I think... and I used the cable modem provided by the cable company for free. You may not have to buy a modem.

I know that can barely live without it now that I have it. (Especially for online gaming) but also for downloads of stuff and just even visiting FR threads with a lot of pictures. I still carry my old dial-up account, but my lines are so bad I get about a 22K connection... It is an emergency measure only!

[HairOfTheDog]

I avoided the pigs... I didn't know I was supposed to fondle them! Is that what you do bear? ;~D

[Bear_in_RoseBear]

Is that what you do bear?

LOL! No, I was thinking of the game review I posted to the HH about a week ago... the reviewer said she kept accidentally picking up pigs! "Fondling pork" was the way she described it. ;)

[HairOfTheDog]

Well, I searched everywhere and still couldn't find Lobelia.

And on the way to Weathertop, I have managed to figure out how to kill the Wargs... but then orcs came! The music is good on it. When things are bad, you can tell by the music ;~D

I got to Weathertop, but I got killed before I could look around much.

[HairOfTheDog]

Uh huh... sure. I did not fondle any pork!

[Bear_in_RoseBear]

Here is my proof! (Do you have any idea how difficult it is to find a specific post here in the Hole?)

Anyway, I'm sorry you keep getting killed!

[HairOfTheDog]

Yes, I have tried to search the Hobbit Hole. It isn't a great filing system! Best I have done is the "find on page" feature in IE, where I would guess you searched for the word "fondling" in each of the sections! ;~D

I have run into a couple of flaws in the Demo.... The sound went tweaky on me twice now, where I have to restart the game... not a big deal because you can save the game at any point and not have to re-do the whole thing...

And the graphics are not as sophisticated as Unreal Tournament, but they are adequate, and it is cool to see and explore things that are Tolkienish... like the various rooms of Bag End.

On the way to Weathertop, the Hobbits do run around and help me kill wargs... and if I leave them alone, they do a pretty good job without me. I don't think they can die, which helps!

[ItsOurTimeNow]

My state only has one cable provider, so you have to purchase the modem from them. Free Market Capitalism at its best!

It's insanely frustrating going from my PC at work, which is on a T-3, to a 50k dial-up at home. A 5,000kb song will take around 20 seconds to download at work, but almost 20 minutes to download at home...lol

[ItsOurTimeNow]

LOL...I remember that. She said that she couldn't find her way out of Bilbo's house, so she just started attacking the hearth with her walking stick...LOL

Man, I'm just going to have to bite the bullet and download the demo

[HairOfTheDog]

Well - she is exaggerating a bit... Nothing breaks when you whack it, (you can't kill the children either - (don't ask!)) and you can't pick up the pigs...