The Lord of the Rings: Weapons and Warfare
Published November 5th 2003 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (first published September 2003), Paperback 218 pages
Lavishly illustrated with 1,000 photos, paintings, maps, sculptures and sketches, most appearing here for the first time, Weapons and Warfare is an indispensable chronicle of The Lord of the Rings' many creatures, warriors, armies and battlegrounds. From the graceful and proficient Elves to the horrendous war machines of the Dark Lord, each culture's approach to warfare is explained - how they fought, why they were fighting, what armor they wore and what weapons they used against their enemies. Now you can get as close to a marauding Orc as you could ever wish, without suffering the consequences!
Treating the filmmakers' notes, designs and props as a true archive, Weapons and Warfare describes in detail every major conflict depicted in the film trilogy - from The Last Alliance of Elves and Men to the climactic Battle of the Pelennor Fields - each accompanied by a battle diagram from the films' chief designers.
Armed with a wealth of fascinating facts and unique imagery, and with an exclusive foreword by Christopher Lee and an introduction by the Academy Award winner Richard Taylor, Weapons and Warfare promises to be the most striking companion to The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy published to date.
User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
A wonderful resource for those in love with the books and movies. You get to see the weaponry up close and personal and find a greater understanding of the choices made as far as battle and defense mechanisms throughout the movie. As a huge fan of LOTR this is an invaluable guide for those wanting a more in-depth look at the components that made the film so spectacular.
Rating: really liked it
Any book with LTR & weapons in the title has got to be cool, and it was! This may be a little bit of geek overload but after falling (nearly) more deeply in love with these movies than I am with my wife I'm proud to be geekified through and through.
Rating: really liked it
I really enjoyed this... visual encylopaedia, I guess? It was really interesting: providing details on the armour and weapons used by the various races across Middle-Earth, the battles that took places across the film trilogy, whilst accompanied by incredibly detailed visual material. This is a great read for a Tolkien fan!
Rating: really liked it
*more slobbering* Ugh, these books are SO beautiful!!!!!! *hisses* My Preeeecious!!!
Rating: really liked it
I own quite a few books like this, scaled a bit bigger than printer paper, full-color, lavishly illustrated. Many of them are Star Wars books, but the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies went down a similar path and released books detailing the production of the films - props, costumes, and so on - and detailing races or cultures or the like based on what they carried or how they dressed. Some of them focus on geography (as this one too peaks in to), but most are about people and things.
So, in comparison to all of the others like it, how does
Weapons and Warfare rate? The pictures are beautiful and the essays contain information that even the most diehard Tolkien fan will learn something from.
But this particular book is a bit stilted in its presentation because it tries to be a work of history, the conceit being that the events of the LOTR happened in the past and the book shows various artifacts and reconstructs various societal and political structures based on archeological evidence. So, for example when they show the rings of power they are "replicas" of the rings. When a prop is shown it is sometimes described as a re-creation, as if someone had studied the past and this was the best they could come up with. All of this is sort of layered on, as if someone had the thought that some of these models look like models, some props like props, and maybe this is the reason why. It's all a bit unnecessary and the book lost a star from me because of it.
Overall though a fan of the books or movies will find a lot to like here.
Recommended, with some reservations.
Rating: really liked it
(More pictures at parkablogs.com)
This is the movie visual companion that looks specifically at the weapons and history of warfare in The Lord of the Rings.
There are lots of photos of the weapons and armor featured in the movie, with occasional concept sketches. The writeup is incredibly detailed. There are lengthy discussions on the major battles, war zones, warriors, and other forms of weapon from Frodo's Sting sword to the scary Grond battling ram or the gigantic elephant-like Mumakil. There's even a range chart on how far different type of arrows can fly.
This isn't really a making-of book so you're won't read anything like how uncomfortable the actors felt while in suit. You'll know what type of wood Legolas' bow is made of, but not of the movie prop bow.
This is the book for all LOTR fans fascinated with weaponry and warfare.
Rating: really liked it
I got this mostly because:
A. I'm a Tolkien fan (and)
B. I'm a gamer (Dungeons and Dragons table top) and try to make the weapons as "fantasy realistic" as I can.
This book mostly leans heavily on the movie but still is a pretty good book. If you are big time into the movies you may enjoy it more, but any fantasy fan will probably enjoy it at least somewhat.
Rating: really liked it
here's why this book only gets three stars: it focuses way too much on just the movies. here's why it doesn't get two stars: there is still some pretty amazing information going on here, as well as some great original illustrations.
Rating: really liked it
Thanks for letting me borrow it for so long, Ted!
Rating: really liked it
goodbook i want to see the movie
Rating: really liked it
This just popped up in my GR feed. I had this book back in the day when the movies were all the rage and I was thoroughly obsessed. Probably perfect for young fans in the same way all those Star Wars ship cross section books are. Even back then I remember being disappointed with this book, though. The one part I remember thinking was awesome was the close up of the gear of The Mouth of Sauron, still one of my favorite parts of the films.
Rating: really liked it
I own quite a few books like this, scaled a bit bigger than printer paper, full-color, lavishly illustrated. Many of them are Star Wars books, but the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies went down a similar path and released books detailing the production of the films - props, costumes, and so on - and detailing races or cultures or the like based on what they carried or how they dressed. Some of them focus on geography (as this one too peaks in to), but most are about people and things.
Rating: really liked it
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Rating: really liked it
Obviously slapped together to take advantage of the success of the films. The art work is nice, but it is rather apparent that the authors did not read the books or even pay too much attention to the films.
Rating: really liked it
It's a very interesting compendium of the LotR knowledge, focused on weapons used in wars throughout the trilogy. The most fascinating aspect is definitely the great visualization of each major battle. The 2nd best part of it is definitely the foreword written by Christopher Lee.
