Trolls

The trolls were a race of giant, monstrous, and mostly unintelligent humanoids that inhabit the Middle-earth. They usually can be found in Trollshaws, Mordor, Angband, Angmar, Moria, and in the Ettenmoors. The first trolls were created by the first Dark Lord during the First Age. The trolls have been fighting in the side of evil ever since. In Norse mythology, the trolls are creatures that have unique and magical skills. In Tolkien's work, trolls are evil creatures with bloodthirsty and crude habits, and they come in different species. Each species has its strengths and weaknesses as well.

The first trolls were created in the twilight of the Elder Days. Melkor, the first dark lord, created them. However, Tolkien did not specify how they were created in the books. It should be noted that Morgoth and Sauron could not get their hands on the Secret of Fire, so they can't create a new species. These Dark Lords can only alter the creatures that are already existing in Middle-earth. Treebeard, the ent, mentioned that the trolls were a mockery of the ents just as the orcs were a mockery of the elves. The trolls had incredible strength, but some species had a significant weakness: they turned into stone when exposed to direct sunlight. These trolls usually only come out at night and had to hide in caves or go underground before dawn.

The first trolls fought by Melkor's side during the War of Wrath, and many of them perished. The remaining troll survivors joined the forces of Sauron, the next Dark Lord. When the Wars of Beleriand took place, the Lord of Balrogs, Gothmog, was known to have a bodyguard of trolls surrounding him in battle. During this time, the great warrior Húrin led the men in the final stand to protect the Kingdom of Gondolin.

He made sure that the retreat of Turgon, the elf king of Gondolin, is done safely. Morgoth gave directives to seize Húrin alive, so Húrin was able to kill a lot of trolls. However, the blood of the trolls was corrosive, and the more he killed them, the more his ax melted with every blow. This allowed the orcs to swarm around him and capture him. The capture of Húrin ended the Nirnaeth Arnoediad. With the war over, Morgoth was able to claim victory over the armies of men, elves, and dwarves. In “The Hobbit,” where Bilbo Baggins joined the quest to the Lonely Mountain, he and Thorin's Company encountered three hill trolls who spoke with thick Cockney accents. These trolls were named Bert, Tom, and William Huggins.

It could be noted that they were insulting, often disgusting, and they argued and fought among themselves most of the time. They came from the Ettenmoors and were now living in the Trollshaws. The trolls they encountered enjoyed eating anything as they were tired of eating sheep. When the trolls captured the dwarves, they decided to eat Thorin's company. They were defeated when they were able to stall the trolls long enough for sunrise. As Gandalf got rid of the shade, the trolls turned into stone once exposed to sunlight. This scene was revisited many years later when the Fellowship of the Ring traveled towards Rivendell. They came upon the three trolls that Bilbo and the Dwarves encountered set in stone and frozen in place.

In the War of the Ring, Frodo and the Fellowship of the Ring were also able to encounter a large cave troll in a chamber within Moria's halls. They were outnumbered by the troll and various species of orcs. However, the creatures fled when they sensed the Balrog, Durin's Bane, awakening, and approach. Sauron created the Olog-hai, a smarter and more dangerous breed of trolls. As mentioned in The Return of the King, this new breed of trolls can withstand sunlight exposure, making them a more formidable creature than the earlier races of trolls. Sauron used this new breed of trolls during the Siege of Gondor and the Battle at the Black Gate. In the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, there was mention of troll-men, who were like half-trolls and half-men. It was not specified if these are men that had some trollish ancestry or men that were just being compared to the trolls.

Trolls are known to be vicious and intense creatures, but they are also known to be stupid, disgusting, and irrational. Their skin often comes in earth colors like shades of gray, brown, and green. Their skin was as thick as stone (and some had scales). This gives rolls an advantage when it comes to defending themselves from physical attacks. In case a weapon can penetrate the hard skin of a troll, their black blood is so hot and corrosive that it sizzles when it drops to the floor. The blood spatters can quickly burn their enemies and melt weapons. In the movie adaptation of Peter Jackson, the trolls are colored like a stone - mostly gray. They mostly had blue or gray eyes. Their fingernails are long and strong, and they use these to dig holes in rocks. There are numerous types of trolls, and each one is unique. Here is a list of the types of trolls you can find in Middle-earth:

• Stone Trolls.
  Stone Trolls - The stone trolls are one of the earliest species created by the dark lord, Melkor. These were the trolls who turned into stone when exposed to sunlight. A famous example is the three trolls in The Hobbit, who captured Thorin's company. The stone trolls can speak using a debased Westron language similar to Cockney English.
• Hill Trolls - It is unclear where the hill trolls came from. It was assumed that they occupied the hilly part of the Misty Mountains, Dunland, or the Trollshaws. The hill trolls can be a subclass or an alternative name for stone trolls. They are in some way linked and comparable. The grandfather of Aragorn, Arador, was killed by a hill troll at the Coldfells. However, hill trolls can stand exposure in the sunlight. It was recorded that the Army of the West battled against hill trolls from Gorgoroth at the Battle of the Black Gate.
• Cave Trolls - The cave trolls are usually huge, standing at about 17 feet tall. They are often seen wearing leather that they get from the orcs or loincloths. The cave trolls are typically incapable of speaking and are usually found with a group of orcs. The cave trolls can be encountered in the Ettenmoors and Moria. They were described to have dark green scales, and their blood is black. The Fellowship of the Ring was able to encounter one cave troll. The troll's skin was so thick that when Boromir stabbed a cave troll on the arm with his sword, the sword got damaged, and the troll did not have any wound. The troll was impaled when Frodo stabbed the toeless foot of the troll using the enchanted sword, Sting, and Legolas was able to drive a fatal arrow through the cave troll's head.
• A snow troll in rage.
  Mountain Trolls - The trolls that wielded Grond, the great battering ram, at the gates of Minas Tirith were mountain trolls. As the name implies, these trolls usually reside in the mountains. In Middle-earth, they can be found in the Misty Mountains wherein they roamed around the significant summits. The fact that they were chosen to wield Grond indicated that these breeds of trolls were more reliable than most of the other breeds. They go to war equipped with round shields and clubs.
• Snow Troll - The snow trolls are a mysterious breed that was said to live in Forodwaith. Although a real encounter with a snow troll is not mentioned in Tolkien's work, a snow troll was suggested to describe how Helm Hammerhand looked during the Long Winter. He went out to stalk and slay his enemies dressed in white and was described to look like a snow troll. Because of this description, it can be assumed that snow trolls had white skin and lived in cold climates with snow. Nothing else has been established about them in Tolkien's work.
• Two-headed Trolls - This type of troll was mentioned in The Hobbit, and they said that this breed is more ferocious. However, it is unknown if the name "two-headed" is literal in which a troll has two heads or if it is just a term for the trolls that are under Sauron's control (one head is the troll, the other is Sauron).
• Half-Trolls - This breed refers to the troll-like humanoids who fought for Sauron in The Battle of the Pelennor Fields. Fans believe that it is unlikely that these humanoids had troll blood or ancestry in them. Still, it is possible to consider them as a superior breed of men or trolls.
• Olog-hai Trolls - The olog-hai trolls were created and controlled by Sauron during the Third Age. These trolls were fierce, cunning, agile, strong, and can withstand sunlight. The word "olog-hai" means "troll-folk" and was said to be bred from the mountain trolls. The olog-hai in the movies had forward-facing eyes, and they also had body hair. This suggests that they are more advanced in the evolution process than the other trolls. They are even larger and more intelligent, and the fact that they can resist sunlight makes them the most superior troll breed. They know the Black Speech of Barad-dûr, but they seldom spoke. They can be found in the mountains around Mordor and Dol Guldur.

Troll in Sindarin is "torog." The Black Speech word for "troll" is "olog." In an early chart made about the different creatures in Middle-earth, a Qenya name was assigned for trolls, which was "maulir." This was probably derived from the Qenya word "maule" which means weeping or crying. This could refer to the cries the trolls made or to the victims' weeping.

Trolls were very popular in German mythology during Tolkien's time. They were described as a giant, monstrous beings. However, the idea that the trolls should be underground before sunrise comes from Norse mythology. Tolkien scholar Tom Shippey notes that people were already familiar with the trolls when the Hobbit was released in 1937. This is because the collection of fairy tales from Grimm and the folktales from Norway [1] by Asbjørnsen and Moe were very popular before the release of The Hobbit. It was presumed that the English first heard of the trolls through Norske-Eventry, Asbjørnsen and Moe's collection of Norwegian folktales, which was released in 1841. A Scandinavian retelling of the story of these trolls also became famous after that. This made people reimagine the creatures from grim ogre-like monsters to a humanoid that they can sympathize with. The trolls in Norse mythology had impressive physical strength, which made them a force to reckon with on the battlefield. However, the trolls in Norse mythology are also usually female and have strong magic powers. Tolkien scholars believed that Tolkien made a combination between the two when he created his Middle-earth trolls. Tolkien chose to stick with the older portrayal of trolls – grim, ogre-like creatures with little intelligence and lumpish as far as the trolls in The Hobbit were concerned. Tolkien then took it to a darker turn with the Olog-hai – trolls bred by Sauron with more courage and strength and just enough intelligence to be a formidable threat. Christina Fawcett, an English scholar, pointed out that Tolkien loved to get inspiration from different eras when it comes to creating his creatures and characters. He plays with varying qualities, but he also keeps the traditional characteristics of the beasts in mind so they can still be easily reimagined and become relatable.

• Trolls, The Hobbit 1977.
  Animated Film: The Hobbit - This Gene Deitch film was released in 1966 and was the first film adaptation of JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit. In this film, the storyline about the three trolls that capture Thorin's company was altered. Instead of the three trolls, there were two creatures referred to as "groans." And instead of stone-like skin, these groans had wooden and bark-like skin. When exposed to sunlight, the groans turned into dead trees. [2]
• Animated Film: Rankin and Bass - In the animated films of Rankin and Bass, the trolls were portrayed as gigantic humanoids that had a mammalian nature. The trolls were drawn in a way that had tusks, and large noses and their skin were tan. The trolls Tom, William, and Bert are seen in these films, and they are voiced by Jack DeLeon, Paul Frees, and Don Messick. There are also armed trolls seen during the Siege of Gondor where they operate Grond, the battering ram, and the others are melee fighters.
• Animated Film: Bakshi - In 1978, Ralph Bakshi [3] released an animated film version of The Lord of the Rings. Bakshi portrayed the troll as a humanoid with a reptilian nature, and they stand at about nine feet. It was said that Bakshi followed Tolkien's version of the clash against the troll which happened at the Chamber except for one minor difference. The difference that is noted in this portrayal is that it can be seen that the troll has toes. It is noted that in the books, Tolkien described his trolls as flat and toeless. In Bakshi's animated film, only one troll can be seen, and you can see it in the scene where the heroes encounter the troll in a chamber in Moira.
• Film: Peter Jackson Trilogies - The trolls could be seen numerous times in Peter Jackson's film trilogies The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Almost all types of trolls are presented in Peter Jackson's adaptation. In “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” Thorin's company encounters the stone trolls William, Tom, and Bert, on their way to the Misty Mountains. The trolls were discovered by Bilbo Baggins and the dwarves Kili and Fili. They noticed that some of the ponies were missing and followed the trail to where the trolls were planning to cook the ponies. The dwarves assign Bilbo to sneak in and set free the ponies. However, he gets caught accidentally by the trolls. The dwarves charge the trolls, but all of them yielded as the trolls warned to pull apart Bilbo. The dwarves were then tied up in sacks and were divided into two groups. The dwarves in the first group were put on a spit over a fire while they set the second group aside for a later meal. Bilbo noticed Gandalf was lurking around and tried to stall the trolls by recommending the best ways to cook a dwarf. When Gandalf appears, he uses his staff to split down a huge rock blocking the sunlight. The trolls were unaware that the sun was starting to rise already. The exposure to sunlight turned all three trolls into stone.
• In the third movie of The Hobbit trilogy, olog-hai trolls can be seen as part of Azog's orc army. The trolls were in charge of the catapults or other battle machines, while the others are battle trolls and siege beasts. They are equipped with plate armor and are often using clubs, maces, and scythed gauntlets as their weapon. In the movie, Legolas could be seen killing a giant albino olog-hai troll while in battle. In the first installation of The Lord of the Rings, only one cave troll can be seen in the movie. This is the troll that Boromir sees in the Chamber who smashes Balin's tomb. This troll stabbed Frodo amid the chaos, but Frodo managed to survive thanks to the Mithril shirt given to him from Bilbo. (Take note though that in the book, it is an Uruk captain who injures Frodo).
• Cave-troll, The Fellowship of the Ring.
  In “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” and “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King,” you can see a lot of trolls on the battlefield. They are among the primary shock troops that entered Minas Tirith during the Siege of Gondor. It could be noticed that Sauron used the trolls more for moving their battle machineries such as siege towers and catapults. The huge ones were often in chains and had a collar around their necks. The presence of such restraints suggests that some of the trolls are undisciplined enough that they tend to attack anyone - even their allies in battle. Aragorn can be seen fighting against an olog-hai troll in the Battle of the Black Gate. The olog-hai's upper body was armed with black plate armor, and he used a sword and a mace in battle. The menacing olog-hai looked like it would overpower Aragorn at any moment. But Frodo got to destroy the One Ring while the battle was ongoing, which caused the troll and the other forces of Sauron to retreat and run away.

• Video Game: The Hobbit - The three trolls from the book are also featured in this 2003 video game by Vivendi and Sierra entertainment. There was a cave troll boss that was supposed to appear in the "Over Hill and Under Hill" part of the game. This concept was cut off in the final version of the game. However, you can still encounter it through third-party trainer programs for the PC version of the game. If you defeat the cave troll boss, you will get the troll key. In the final version released, the troll key was simply on the floor, waiting for Bilbo to pick it up without killing any enemies.
• Video Game: LOTR The Two Towers - In this video game, EA invented a new species for the Middle-earth setting: the forest trolls. These trolls had impenetrable gray skin, and they are immune to arrow fire. The trolls often carried with them a large quiver and a mace. The quiver contains wood logs, which the forest trolls use for projectiles and firewood. This new breed of levels can be encountered in several levels of the game. When you reach the Balin's tomb level, you will encounter a cave troll as its boss. The Hornburg courtyard level also has two cave trolls as its bosses.
• Video Game: LOTR The Return of the King - In this video game, [4] the trolls are an enemy unit. They may be slow enemies, but the challenge comes in the fact that their attacks could not be blocked, and they were very strong. This makes them difficult to kill despite their slowness.
• Video Game: LOTR The Third Age - The troll units are still slow in this video game, but it takes a lot of damage to bring them down. The trolls that you encounter later in the game, such as the attack troll, are using a more massive pair of swords. You will also encounter a stronger troll that uses huge war hammers.
• Video Game: LOTR The Battle for Middle-earth - In this video game, [5] a mountain troll can upgrade to an attacking troll. All it has to do is destroy a certain number of enemy units and other tasks. Once a mountain troll becomes an assault troll, the troll gains a bonus in its armor and will have the ability to heal itself. It is the only non-hero unit that can heal itself in the game.
• Video Game: LOTR The Battle for Middle-earth Expansion and The Rise of the Witch-King - A notable troll character in this expansion game is a smart hill troll named Rogash. Rogash is the key for the Witch-king to control all trolls. His authority over his fellow trolls is so great that he can easily convert enemy trolls to the player's side. Rogash himself is a strong fighter and stands out from the rest of the trolls as he wears a finely crafted armor and uses a colossal sword.
• Video Game: LOTR Online - In this MMO video game, the wood trolls look similar to ents. This is because they seem to be made out of wood instead of stone. You can encounter the wood trolls in the Evendim and Trollshaws. They deal with a lot of damage as enemy units, and they are also slightly difficult to kill.
• Video Game: Middle Earth: Shadow of War - In this role-playing game, the olog-hai trolls are known as "olog graugs" and are presented as a potential enemy. They could be found occupying the Udûn and Sea of Nûrne areas in Mordor. Here, the olog graugs can talk, although some can only do so in broken sentences. These olog graugs also have their ranks, such as overlords, war chiefs, and captains. In this storyline, Sauron wanted to utilize the Graug and cross them with common trolls to build a new kind that can fight under direct sunlight. One of the main characters is Brûz, the Chopper, an olog graug leader. You will be able to follow his story as a major character leading to events that made him the main antagonist of the game. However, there are instances in the game where the trolls are mislabeled as orcs.
• Video Game: LOTR War in the North - This is an RPG video game from Snowblind Studios and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. The game is based on the books, taking place during the War of the Ring. However, the game does not revolve around the main characters of the Lord of the Rings. A new and original tale of three different heroes is created for the game. The trolls in this game are one of the strongest enemies that you will encounter. The trolls will appear in the Fornost level, where the main heroes will get trapped. You will not be able to enter the citadel until you kill the Troll boss.

1. ^Know Them by Their Tail: Trolls in Norwegian Culture
2. ^The Hobbit (1977).
3. ^The Lord of the Rings (1978).
4. ^The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King.
5. ^The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth™.