Lord of the Rings: How do the Rings of Power actually work?

THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER

August 15, 2024 at 09:40

“The Lord of the Rings” is basically all about the Rings of Power. Sauron wants to use them to conquer Middle Earth, but how does the magic behind them work?

• In Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” there are a total of 20 Rings of Power.
• How exactly these work is not yet explained in the films or the series.
• We therefore asked the makers themselves.

In Tolkien’s legendarium, the 20 Rings of Power play a major role. Sauron (Charlie Vickers) forges 19 magic rings together with the elven smith Celebrimbor (Charles Edwards), 3 of which are for the elven rulers, 7 for the dwarf kings and 9 for the kings of men. He then forges the One Ring for himself in order to control the others and thus subjugate all of Middle Earth.

While the three Elven Rings are still untouched by Sauron’s corrupting hand, the Dark Lord has a much greater hand in the creation of the other rings, as we learn in “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” Season 2. Celebrimbor himself helps Sauron, but knows nothing of the deceitful villain’s deception and thinks he is creating good rings with well-intentioned magic.

We ask Sauron and Celebrimbor themselves: How does the magic of the rings work?

How exactly the magic of the rings works and how the One Ring is supposed to help Sauron control the ring bearers is not explained in either the “Lord of the Rings” films or in “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power”. We have now asked the ring makers themselves.

In an exclusive Netzwelt interview, Sauron star Charlie Vickers and Celebrimbor star Charles Edwards tell us how the magical rings of power work.

I think what they’re doing is amplifying the qualities that the Ringbearers already bring with them. I think that’s a step in the right direction. It’s a little hard to categorize.

Charles Edwards

“I think it’s important,” notes Sauron actor Charlie Vickers, “that Tolkien never really described a scientific mechanism for how these rings work.”

Edwards adds: “There is no recipe. When we made them, we didn’t say ‘a spoonful of this and a spoonful of that’ – there is no such thing and we didn’t try to show it, I think. That would destroy the mystery.”

“But then I think, in the case of the Elves, for example, they amplify their life energy. For other races, it has different effects,” Edwards continues, and Vickers adds: “I think the way the series conveys this story, and this is book canon, is that Sauron’s influence on the rings is growing.”

The three Elven rings are not corrupted, because even though I was there, I had no part in their creation. I had already left Eregion by the time they were forged. And as the series progresses, we will see that I have a very active part in the creation of the Dwarven rings and then, as the series continues, the Human rings!

Charlie Vickers

The more rings are forged, the more Sauron would bring parts of his personality into it: “The corruption becomes more and more with each ring. It is a mix of the typical characteristics of the races and the influence of the Dark Lord in the creation of the rings.”

Edwards: “It’s a mix of the magic that exists in each individual [die Ringträger sowie Sauron und Celebrimbor] My magic is to tease out the good in people. And then he over there [zeigt auf Charlie Vickers] still a little bit of insidious stuff in the mix.”

How does the power of the rings affect the wearers?

What Edwards and Vickers describe suggests that the rings have an effect on the wearers that doesn’t necessarily create superpowers, but rather enhances what is already there. However, if someone has magical powers, such as Gandalf, then those would be enhanced too.

If an elf has a magical bond with animals, this ability would be enhanced. If someone is power-hungry, this would be enhanced. And the more influence Sauron has in creating the rings, the faster these traits turn bad, making the wearer more easily manipulated and vulnerable to Sauron.

By forging the One Ring, Sauron creates a kind of link between the different rings. By wearing his ring, he can influence the rings of the others and thus also their wearers.

On August 29, 2024, “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” Season 2 will start on Amazon Prime Video. The new season consists of a total of 8 episodes, which will then be released at weekly intervals. Work is already underway on Season 3 of the “The Lord of the Rings” series.