Angmar

Founded in the Third Age of 1300 by the evil Lord Witch-King, Angmar was a kingdom situated towards the north of the Misty Mountains. The sole purpose of this realm was to weaken the northern lands of Arnor. It was famous for its cold, snowy weather and the capital was Carn Dum.​

A long time before the Witch-King arrived in Angmar, the dwarves had flourishing mines in the area and there existed secure and prosperous halls. Not long after it was founded, it waged war against the divided realms of Rhudaur [1], Arthedain, and Cardolan of which Rhudaur was the first to fall. The Dunedain were growing few in Rhudaur and an evil Hillman had taken over. It allied with Angmar and together they destroyed the few left in Rhudaur. The allied forces of Angmar and Rhudaur, under the power of Witch-King, invaded Arthedain though it could manage to create a defense along the Weather Hills with the help of Cardolan forces. Then, Angmar also destroyed Cardolan and slew and buried the last prince. Angmar, in 1974 TA, gathered armies and assaulted Arthedain for the last time, destroying its last kingdom. Prince of Gondor later arrived at Arthedain’s rescue but was late. His armies defeated Angmar in the battle but the King fled to Mordor and the realm was destroyed.​

Angmar is a Sindarin name that translates to ‘Iron Home’ from the words ang meaning iron and mar meaning dwelling. Tolkien explains that the pure word in Sindarin should be Angbar while its pure Quenya form should be Angmar.​

The history and territory of Angmar are portrayed in The Lord of the Rings Online, offering a good amount of land to the east and south of Carn Dum for adventures and exploration. The game depicts that a big portion of the land was occupied by friendly tribes and was primarily a place for resting and shopping. It was also home to evil creatures like spiders, drakes, wargs, and more. Apart from this, four tribes of orcs also originate from Angmar. To the southwest lie a range of tall canyons called the Ram Duath. A player who doesn’t quest properly will cower and lose morale here. Angmar is, however, not free to play and requires purchasing quest packs. It is quite cheaper than Isengard or Moria and VIP players and subscribers can access it. Other playable areas in the game include Carn Dum and Dourhands, Mordor, and Uruks.​

After the destruction of the kingdom, some of the servants of Witch King came together in the land with some descendants of those who gathered in the old fortresses. They kept waiting for their master to return but let the hillmen that they had been ruling over settle in the Rhudar. When the Ring called for the master, Sauron sent the Nazgul to Eriador where the Witch-King asks his men to declare war again. The Witch-King chose a new overlord to unite the lands of Rhudaur and create a great force to destroy the Free Peoples and conquer the land in Sauron’s name. He knew that Gondor will not support the North as they were busy on Mordor. He wanted the Iron Crown to dominate Eriador so that the Angmar realm could rise from the ashes and shine in the full glory it had lost centuries ago.​