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**One difference between branding and the ring is that Talion doesn't have to be physically present to command his orcs. This is probably both its strength and weakness. This mode of commanding gives Talion more flexibility but it also makes him more hands off. While when all he could do was brand orcs he redominated them every time he gave a command.
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** Tar-Goroth was killed in the fight that left him under the ice. Zog wanted to reanimate him as a thrall, which would have given him complete control over an undead major demon!
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** That might not be necessary as the land may be in a permafrost location.
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*** Alternatively, they don't SEE anything besides one of theirs suddenly falling over dead as a stone, making it look like Talion is some sort of hellish magician who can fly, turn blades, and kill you dead with nothing but his mind.
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** He likely knew he couldn't fight his Ring's influence forever, and didn't want his former allies anywhere near him once he finally succumbed.
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* By the end of Act 2, Talion has control of four fully stocked fortresses, and their defense is a frequent issue... Yet at no point does he decide to go and offer the Idril, Baranor, and their forces sanctuary in exchange for helping defend his position. Not even in Act 4, where he could even offer them their city back ''and'' is in dire need of help to defend all of Sauron's attacks on his holdings.
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* By the end of Act 2, Talion has control of four fully stocked fortresses, and their defense is a frequent issue... Yet at no point does he decide to go and offer the Idril, Baranor, and their forces sanctuary in exchange for helping defend his position. Not even in Act 4, where he could even offer them their city back ''and'' is in dire need of help to defend all of Sauron's attacks on his holdings.
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* By the end of Act 2, Talion has control of four fully stocked fortresses, and their defense is a frequent issue... Yet at no point does he decide to go and offer the Idril, Baranor, and their forces sanctuary in exchange for helping defend his position. Not even in Act 4, where he could even offer them their city back ''and'' is in dire need of help to defend all of Sauron's attacks on his holdings.
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* By the end of Act 2, Talion has control of four fully stocked fortresses, and their defense is a frequent issue... Yet at no point does he decide to go and offer the Idril, Baranor, and their forces sanctuary in exchange for helping defend his position. Not even in Act 4, where he could even offer them their city back ''and'' is in dire need of help to defend all of Sauron's attacks on his holdings.holdings.
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[[folder: The Gondorians and the Forts]]
* By the end of Act 2, Talion has control of four fully stocked fortresses, and their defense is a frequent issue... Yet at no point does he decide to go and offer the Idril, Baranor, and their forces sanctuary in exchange for helping defend his position. Not even in Act 4, where he could even offer them their city back ''and'' is in dire need of help to defend all of Sauron's attacks on his holdings.
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** I think it could've been explained better, but if you review the cutscene, you notice that a) Bruz followed Talion into the keep and b) he declared ''himself'' overlord, rather than waiting for Talion to officially appoint him. Bruz was getting too uppity for Talion's liking, and Talion decided to punish him by denying him the position.
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*** Just a factual note: Sauron actually did have the One Ring during his time in Númenor (which says a ''lot'' about Ar-Pharazôn's army that they were able to overawe Sauron's troops while he was wearing the thing). As for how his disembodied spirit was able to take the physical Ring back to Middle-earth after he drowned during the Downfall, Tolkien made a (rather weak, IMO) statement that we should expect that spirits are capable of doing this sort of thing in universes like Arda.
** I always interpreted the scene (and the situation) as a sort of {{Realpolitik}}, a kind of high-stakes game of chicken not unlike what real-world nations do to each other all the time (Nation A pokes Nation B in the eye and threatens retribution if Nation B retaliates, hoping that the threat will protect it from any repercussions from Nation B). It helps to remember that the original plan was to kill Helm, and it looks like it would've worked perfectly had "Annatar" not intervened, so Siric didn't have a Plan B and was grasping at straws when Helm showed up at his doorstep. BTW, not sure where all this talk of Siric being a Dunlending came from, but it's not actually mentioned in the game proper, not even in the Appendices.
** I always interpreted the scene (and the situation) as a sort of {{Realpolitik}}, a kind of high-stakes game of chicken not unlike what real-world nations do to each other all the time (Nation A pokes Nation B in the eye and threatens retribution if Nation B retaliates, hoping that the threat will protect it from any repercussions from Nation B). It helps to remember that the original plan was to kill Helm, and it looks like it would've worked perfectly had "Annatar" not intervened, so Siric didn't have a Plan B and was grasping at straws when Helm showed up at his doorstep. BTW, not sure where all this talk of Siric being a Dunlending came from, but it's not actually mentioned in the game proper, not even in the Appendices.
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*** There is actually a throwaway line (I believe it plays after recovering one of the Shelob memories) where Celebrimbor mentions that Ungoliant is Shelob's mother.
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** It wasn't just a hug, it was a vision of the future. And not just a vision, but an ''accurate'' one (during the first quest, Talion remarks, "This is just like in Shelob's vision!"). Shelob's precognitive abilities were a ''huge'' reason for Talion to overlook any misgivings he might've had about her previous actions (at least for the time being), particularly since there was a war going on and Talion needed every ally(-ish) he could get his hands on. This second point also hit a nerve for Talion, since he was desperate to not have the Minas Ithil situation turn into a repeat of the Black Gate, so he was that much more keen to exploit any advantage that presented itself. It's also worth noting that Talion seems to have been completely clueless about the assault on Minas Ithil until Shelob pointed him in that direction (otherwise he almost certainly would've halted creation of the New Ring and rushed off to help them earlier, before they were on their last legs), and that probably shook him deeply.
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** This. Also, it's worth noting that Celebrimbor's body was ''severely'' damaged by Sauron when he killed him as shown in ''Mordor'', and while Sauron wanted the Nazgûl's bodies intact, he very much did ''not'' want Celebrimbor's body intact. On a more general note, you could also chalk this up to meta-physiological differences between Men and Elves.
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** Who said that it ''was'' different? Followers and Nemeses occupy the same Army screen. Sauron and Talion both lead armies that are too scared of (and possibly loyal to) them to rebel. The main difference is that Talion is way weaker than Sauron, which causes (relatively) more orcs to think about betraying him. Even in Sauron's camp, orcs only follow him until they think they stand a chance of breaking away (see Zog the Eternal). As for the original question: a) The New Ring grants Talion (and later Eltariel) ResurrectiveImmortality; in Talion's case, while he can be overthrown, you ''know'' he'll be back like the Terminator, and plenty of orcs know this as well. b) Where do you think all those endless hordes of grunts come from during sieges? Or why, unlike captains, grunts (and beasts) never betray Talion?
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** The light itself is probably derived from the same source as the Phial -- Eärendil's star. If it is a gem, then Galadriel likely imbued it with the Silmaril's light.
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** The light itself is probably derived from the same source as the Phial -- Eärendil's star. If it is a gem, then Galadriel likely imbued it with the Silmaril's light. This also might contain some imbued power from her own Ring, Nenya.
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[[folder: The New Ring does...what, exactly?]]
* Much is made of Celebrimbor's ring, but what good is it, exactly? It has the power to dominate orcs...unless they choose not to be dominated, as is the case with Bruz. Perhaps only an orc of sufficient willpower can overcome the New Ring, but how is that any different from Orc society in general, where the strong dominate until a more powerful or cunning orc overthrows them? If anything, the ring just creates a false sense of security by making Talion put his faith in orcs he would otherwise mistrust and be wary of.
[[folder: The New Ring does...what, exactly?]]
* Much is made of Celebrimbor's ring, but what good is it, exactly? It has the power to dominate orcs...unless they choose not to be dominated, as is the case with Bruz. Perhaps only an orc of sufficient willpower can overcome the New Ring, but how is that any different from Orc society in general, where the strong dominate until a more powerful or cunning orc overthrows them? If anything, the ring just creates a false sense of security by making Talion put his faith in orcs he would otherwise mistrust and be wary of.
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* Why did Talioo go so deep on Shelob's cuddlevisions? I mean, she's a giant spider that was torturing the ghost that was keeping him alive, but as soon as she gives him a hug he's all for her.
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* Why did Talioo Talion go so deep on Shelob's cuddlevisions? I mean, she's a giant spider that was torturing the ghost that was keeping him alive, but as soon as she gives him a hug he's all for her.
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* Why did Talino go so deep on Shelob's cuddlevisions? I mean, she's a giant spider that was torturing the ghost that was keeping him alive, but as soon as she gives him a hug he's all for her.
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* Why did Talino Talioo go so deep on Shelob's cuddlevisions? I mean, she's a giant spider that was torturing the ghost that was keeping him alive, but as soon as she gives him a hug he's all for her.
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** I imagine the difference is this: the Nazgûl, by all indications, still had their physical bodies after being given the Rings. This includes Isildur, who while dead at the time, his body remained intact when Sauron got to him; the Rings simply maintain the bodies they already have, and remakes them upon being dispelled due to Sauron's power. Yet while Celebrimbor's spirit endured, by the time Talion entered the picture, his original body had long since become worm-food... so while he can have a physical presence like the Nazgûl, and concentrate his power in the New Ring, he still needs an outsider's body to do these things in the first place.
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[[folder: Our Wraiths are Different... from each other]]
* I've long wondered why Celebrimbor needed Talion's body to operate in the physical world, while other "wraiths", like the Nazgûl, don't. At first I could justify it by saying the Ringwraiths had their own Rings to give them physical form, but this game seems to confirm that Celebrimbor still needs a human host after he acquires his own ring. What gives?
[[folder: Our Wraiths are Different... from each other]]
* I've long wondered why Celebrimbor needed Talion's body to operate in the physical world, while other "wraiths", like the Nazgûl, don't. At first I could justify it by saying the Ringwraiths had their own Rings to give them physical form, but this game seems to confirm that Celebrimbor still needs a human host after he acquires his own ring. What gives?
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*** I think Talion actually has a decent reason to trust - for lack of a better word - Ratbag: until he saw him alive, he had every reason to believe he'd died carrying out their plot. That's a pretty strong argument for rewarding someone. But yeah, it was kind of stupid to pass over Bruz for no apparent reason.
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** Different user. Realistically, there is no incentive not to give it to Bruz. Talion isn't invested in Ratbag or Ranger, and Bruz has been a valuable asset up until that point. He's capable, competent, smart, and eager to please. And like you said, rewarding Bruz would make it clear to Talion's army that he rewards ability and loyalty. At the end of the day it's just game mechanics getting in the way of writing, which happens a lot in SoW.
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** In addition, Talion was single-minded in his desire to save the Gondorians -- Celebrimbor was dismissive of them, while Shelob showed she was willing to help him in that regard.
