# Gandalf being unwizardly?



## RindsayRohan (Oct 11, 2015)

I always wondered why Gandalf endorsed the Dwarves' quest to reclaim the Misty Mountain. Thoughts?


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## Erestor Arcamen (Oct 11, 2015)

The mountain that Gandalf endorsed the dwarves to reclaim was the Lonely Mountain. The reason was to get rid of Smaug since Gandalf knew that Sauron could use him whenSauron came back into power.

Edit: Btw, welcome to TTF!


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## Gothmog (Oct 11, 2015)

There are two ways of looking at this question. When The Hobbit was written The war against Sauron was not even thought of. It was only as The Lord of the Rings progressed and grew that we have the issue of what Sauron could do with a Dragon in the North. Now Erestor has covered well the reason looking back from the time of the War of the Ring so what about just looking from a point before The Hobbit begins. 

Gandalf is a powerful Wizard so why would he endorse this rather Greedy quest? Well, Smaug of himself was something that was causing problems for the North lands. While the Dwarves quest was made from Dwarvish Greed it was also a quest that would have benefit for many others, not least for Laketown, by the removal of a great danger. So all in all there was good reason for helping the Dwarves from both points of view.


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## Erestor Arcamen (Oct 11, 2015)

Thanks, I didn't think about before Sauron was thought up!


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## RindsayRohan (Oct 11, 2015)

Erestor Arcamen said:


> The mountain that Gandalf endorsed the dwarves to reclaim was the Lonely Mountain. The reason was to get rid of Smaug since Gandalf knew that Sauron could use him whenSauron came back into power.
> 
> Edit: Btw, welcome to TTF!


Whoops, I misspoke. Too much wine. 

It always seemed so...weird to me, especially since the gold sickness is a known thing, and the Dwarves are doomed to fail. Kind of a fool's errand.


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## RindsayRohan (Oct 11, 2015)

Gothmog said:


> There are two ways of looking at this question. When The Hobbit was written The war against Sauron was not even thought of. It was only as The Lord of the Rings progressed and grew that we have the issue of what Sauron could do with a Dragon in the North. Now Erestor has covered well the reason looking back from the time of the War of the Ring so what about just looking from a point before The Hobbit begins.
> 
> Gandalf is a powerful Wizard so why would he endorse this rather Greedy quest? Well, Smaug of himself was something that was causing problems for the North lands. While the Dwarves quest was made from Dwarvish Greed it was also a quest that would have benefit for many others, not least for Laketown, by the removal of a great danger. So all in all there was good reason for helping the Dwarves from both points of view.


This is exactly my quandary! I go back and forth on this.


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## Erestor Arcamen (Oct 11, 2015)

I agree it seems like a fool's errand if it wasn't for the war with Sauron. Highly unlikely a group of dwarves could take down Smaug with or without Gandalf...then again a few years later, Gandalf took out Durin's Bane too. I've called the Lonely Mountain the Misty Mountain before too


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## RindsayRohan (Oct 11, 2015)

Thank god - I felt like a damn idiot lol


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## Alcuin (Oct 11, 2015)

From the point of view of the “completed” story – at the end of the _Lord of the Rings_, and in context of all we know when we finish the tale – Sauron’s original plan was probably to use both the Dragon _and_ the Balrog to attack first Lórien, eliminating Galadriel, his biggest single threat, then Rivendell, and finally Lindon. Logic suggests a two-front war: Orcs and Dragon and Balrog in the North against the Elves (the Elf-kingdom of Mirkwood would be destroyed, too), Nazgûl, Orcs, and Men who worshipped Sauron in the South against Gondor. End of the Elves, end of the Númenóreans, total victory for Sauron with or without the Ring. 

Gandalf knew only about Smaug. He helped Thorin set in motion a wild, seemingly hopeless scheme to deal with the Dragon. Tolkien wrote a short piece, “The Quest of Erebor” (found in _Unfinished Tales_), in which Gandalf recounts to Frodo and the Hobbits, Gimli, and Legolas what he thought of the whole adventure. He apparently took a long time to think before he told them anything, and he told them nothing when they first asked. 

BTW, you bear no resemblance to an idiot. Welcome!


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## RindsayRohan (Oct 12, 2015)

You're exceedingly kind! Well, I MUST read the Unfinished Tales - sounds like much of my confusion will be addressed at last. Thanks for taking the time!


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## RindsayRohan (Oct 12, 2015)

Lol - will it also tell me why they packed a map that none of them could read? Who does that?


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## PaigeSinclaire88 (Dec 15, 2016)

RindsayRohan said:


> I always wondered why Gandalf endorsed the Dwarves' quest to reclaim the Misty Mountain. Thoughts?




I think he endorsed the help of the dwarfs so that they would reclaim or at least try to reclaim their home. Perhaps he enlisted their help so that they might find the courage they needed. Also, he knew of the ring and of the bigger picture. And in my opinion that had a lot to do with it.


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