# Smaug



## Gamil Zirak (Apr 15, 2002)

What exactly was Smaug doing in the roughly 171 years between taking over the Lonely Mountains and his death in Dale? Was he hybernating? Do dragons even do that? There really isn't much mention of him, and the people of Dale don't really acknowledge that he is still ransacking their town. Was he asleep from 2770 to 2941 (specifically from the day he ate his last Dwarve to the day Bilbo ventures into his chamber)? Is that what a dragons does? Takes over a mountain full of gold and then sleeps on it forever.


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## Turgon (Apr 15, 2002)

Smaug always reminds of a cat for some reason - there's something very feline about him... I don't suppose he did much after settling into his new lair - he just lay on his golden bed, played with his shiny treasure, coughed up hairballs and maybe popped out for the occasional snack - sheep for the most part, and maidens when he could get them - of course _they_ were becoming more and more scarce as time went by. 
By the way Dale was destroyed soon after Erebor, I think you're confusing it with Esgaroth!?


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## Gamil Zirak (Apr 15, 2002)

You are quite right Turgon. Esgaroth is the town I refer to above.


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## Turgon (Apr 15, 2002)

Just flicked through my copy of The Hobbit the closest I could come to an answer is this...


> After that there were no dwarves left alive inside, and he took all their wealth for himself. Probably, for that is the dragon's way, he has it all piled up in a great heap far inside, and sleeps on it for a bed. Later he used to crawl out of the great gate and come by night to Dale, and carry away people, *especially maidens*, to eat, until Dale was ruined, and all the people were dead or gone. What goes on there now I don't know for certain, but I don't suppose any one lives nearer to the Mountain than the far edge of the Long Lake now-a-days.


So I think the answer to your question is probably yes, Shiloh. Though maybe one of our resident dragon experts could tell you more. Hehe! I was right about the maidens though!


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## Beleg Strongbow (Apr 16, 2002)

What a boring and uneventful life!! It rpoves money isn't everything. Or gold!!


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## Turgon (Apr 16, 2002)

But Beleg - the maidens...think of the maidens!


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## Beleg Strongbow (Apr 16, 2002)

ahh yes the maidens!!


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## Rangerdave (Apr 16, 2002)

Maidens Good
Dragons Bad
Short Stumpy Grey Beards in Mountain Good
Battle of Five Armies Bad

Make up mind already

RD confused


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## Úlairi (Apr 16, 2002)

I read the post RD about my plucked chicken! I had the biggest laugh of my life, you nearly killed me I didn't post back as I was laughing too much. As for Smaug, he got his teeth around some pretty good chicks!


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## Elias (Apr 18, 2002)

Smaug was just sitting on "his" treasor and sleeping. He didn't need food because he ate all those dwarfes, but when his peace was disturbt he get angry and hungry at the same time.

Well like Turgon said he started to sleep after Dale was fully destroied and all the people were gone. (He was too lazy to go any further)


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## Úlairi (Apr 19, 2002)

Smaug had it all, the women, the food, the gold, the fun. Gee, I'm getting pretty jealous of him know!


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## Chymaera (Apr 19, 2002)

> _Originally posted by Ulairi _
> *Smaug had it all, the women, the food, the gold, the fun. Gee, I'm getting pretty jealous of him know! *



Smaug had it all right up till he caught that arrow in his bald spot


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## Ice Man (Apr 19, 2002)

Was Smaug the last dragon to live in Middle Earth?


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## Úlairi (Apr 19, 2002)

Yes Smaug the Golden was the very last of his kind, poor Smaug. As for getting it in his bald spot, I congratulate Bard, as he stopped me getting jealous of Smaug by killing him. Go Bard.


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## chrysophalax (Apr 22, 2002)

RRRRRRRRR, Ulairi! Death to Bard! He may have been the last of the Great Worms, but he was NOT the last dragon!


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## Úlairi (Apr 22, 2002)

Show me the proof chyrosophalax and I'll believe you!


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## Gamil Zirak (Apr 22, 2002)

> In Letter 144 JRRT wrote:
> 
> Dragons. They had not stopped; since they were active in far later times, close to our own. Have I said anything to suggest the final ending of dragons? If so it should be altered. The only passage I can think of is Vol. I p. 70 : 'there is not now any dragon left on earth in which the old fire is hot enough'. But that implies, I think, that there are still dragons, if not of full primeval stature.



That looks like proof to me.


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## Úlairi (Apr 22, 2002)

> _Originally posted by shiloh53 _
> *
> 
> That looks like proof to me. *



Well, well, well. Thankyou for that shiloh53, I stand corrected! I must gain a copy of the Letters of JRRT.


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## Ice Man (Apr 22, 2002)

How long could Smaug go without eating?
What if he simply decided to fly west to Valinor, would he ever make it?


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## Úlairi (Apr 22, 2002)

If he even tried to go to Valinor, it would be impossible, because it is outside the Circles of the World, Arcanjo. And if Smaug could make it outside the Circles of the World (which is impossible), then the Valar would make fried dragon of him before he even got there.


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## Beleg Strongbow (Apr 25, 2002)

Hahaha Yes they would destroy him with little trouble at all. Who knows how far he would make it.


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## Úlairi (Apr 26, 2002)

He wouldn't get very far as Valinor is outside the Circles of the World.


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## Beleg Strongbow (Apr 28, 2002)

Yes he'd probably just give up.


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## Úlairi (Apr 28, 2002)

> _Originally posted by Beleg Strongbow _
> *Yes he'd probably just give up. *



Or the Valar may have been feeling hungry and decided to have a picnic. Tulkas would catch him, Orome would barbecue him, Manwe would say grace and Mandos would say something cheesy like:

"You are all doomed!"


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## chrysophalax (Apr 29, 2002)

Ulairi, keep this up and things will NOT go well for you in the RPG!
What's with the dragon-bashing? We Dragons are the most cunning, elegant, amd, yes....delightfully evil creatures in all of ME! Why would THEY in the West want to destroy Smaug? Just because he was descended from one of Melkor's creations? Spoil-sports!


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## Úlairi (Apr 30, 2002)

They may be spoil-sports, but if the Valar felt threatened by Smaug, I personally think that they would turn him into dragon-sushi.


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## chrysophalax (Apr 30, 2002)

If they weren't threatened by the likes of Ancalagon and Glaurung, I'm sure Smaug would've been beneath their notice.


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## Úlairi (May 1, 2002)

Oh, so they're just going to let Smaug fly into Valmar and slay their physical forms. Suuuuuurrrrrrre.


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## Gamil Zirak (May 1, 2002)

> _Originally posted by Ulairi _
> *He wouldn't get very far as Valinor is outside the Circles of the World. *



You said it yourself that he could never reach Valinor. He would just fly around the world to the other side. I'm sure he would be quite tired after that long a flight.


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## chrysophalax (May 1, 2002)

Rather a moot point then, wouldn't you say, Ulairi??


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## Úlairi (May 2, 2002)

> _Originally posted by Gamil Zirak _
> *
> 
> 
> You said it yourself that he could never reach Valinor. He would just fly around the world to the other side. I'm sure he would be quite tired after that long a flight. *



I know I said that. Afterwards, Beleg and I were messing around *hypothetically*, chyro and Gamil, you took the hypothesis of Smaug being able to reach Valinor seriously and made deductions from it. 



> _Originally posted by chyrosophalax_
> *Rather a moot point then, wouldn't you say, Ulairi??*



Nope.


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## Eledhwen (Mar 1, 2008)

I am watching David Attenborough's latest excellent series on reptiles and amphibians "Life in Cold Blood". This week was snakes, and the spectacle of a python swallowing an antelope. Attenborough commented that it would not have to eat again for another year.

So, I would speculate that Smaug did actually spend most of the time sleeping on his hoard. Remember that most of the people of Lake Town only half believed that the dragon was there at all. That would take a lot of non-activity over a lengthy period to bring about.


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## PaigeSinclaire88 (Dec 19, 2016)

Gamil Zirak said:


> What exactly was Smaug doing in the roughly 171 years between taking over the Lonely Mountains and his death in Dale? Was he hybernating? Do dragons even do that? There really isn't much mention of him, and the people of Dale don't really acknowledge that he is still ransacking their town. Was he asleep from 2770 to 2941 (specifically from the day he ate his last Dwarve to the day Bilbo ventures into his chamber)? Is that what a dragons does? Takes over a mountain full of gold and then sleeps on it forever.




Personally, and I might be wrong..But it's always been my opinion that Smaug was hybernating. Again, it's been years since I've read all the books.


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## The Old Eregionan (Jan 20, 2017)

Smaug of the Lonely Mountain may be remembered long after Smog of the Big City is forgotten.


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