Elric of Melnibone vs. The Witch King or other scenarios

[Captain Smith]

Taken off from the Witch King vs. Mulan thread.

1. Elric is wandering the Multiverse and pops into the Battle of the Pelennor as the Witch King lands. The Witch King says: Get of my way, you pale, skinny elf (mistake identity). No man (which I assume includes males of the humanoid configuration) can blah, blah. Elric pulls out Stormbringer.

2. Elric pops into the Council planning meeting for the Fellowship. He volunteers to go along. Gandalf either goes too or bails out. Does the Ring pull Elric into its grasp. If he takes it - what happens.

How do the LOTR magicians rank compared to him? Assume his power and summonings do work in Middle Earth. Does Arioch showing up, excite the good 'deities' over the sea?

What if Frodo gets to ride in an B-2 bomber to .... NEVER MIND.

[Sharpandpointies]

Taken off from the Witch King vs. Mulan thread.

1. Elric is wandering the Multiverse and pops into the Battle of the Pelennor as the Witch King lands. The Witch King says: Get of my way, you pale, skinny elf (mistake identity). No man (which I assume includes males of the humanoid configuration) can blah, blah. Elric pulls out Stormbringer.

He kills the Witch-King? And there's nothing the Witch-King can do to stop him?

Why make a curbstomp on this level?

Or are you mistaking a prophecy for some kind of magical protection? That happens a lot.

2. Elric pops into the Council planning meeting for the Fellowship. He volunteers to go along. Gandalf either goes too or bails out. Does the Ring pull Elric into its grasp. If he takes it - what happens.

The Ring messes Elric up? He kills Sauron with Stormbringer, then becomes a tyrant on a terrifying level? Pretty easy to guess what happens.

How do the LOTR magicians rank compared to him? Assume his power and summonings do work in Middle Earth. Does Arioch showing up, excite the good 'deities' over the sea?

If we assume his powers and summoning abilities do work in Middle Earth, then one of two things happen -

1. Arioch shows up, the Valar don't like this, Arioch decides it's too much of a bother and leaves (because he's like that);
2. Arioch shows up, the Valar don't like this, Arioch decides he's going to take issue with them (because he's like that) and Ilúvatar says 'No' and kicks him out.

As a straight-up 'I blow stuff up' mage, Elric is no great shucks. He doesn't throw around magical energies or power or whathaveyou - that's not how things work in his world. But his capacity to summon stuff - which is kind of how sorcery and so forth does work in his world - is really fantastic. Assuming he can do so in Middle-Earth, he's perfectly capable of summoning all kinds of elemental lords and so forth.

[Captain Smith]

Good point about prophecy being magical protection. I guess I fell for it. Reminds me of a Buffy episode where some middle ages monster said that no weapon forged by man or used by man could hurt him. Buffy said, that was then, this is now. Blew him up with an antitank rocket.

I guess I have a thing for Elric. I met Moorcock at a book signing and knew a young lady who babysat his cat so to speak. Ask him if he regretted killing Elric off early on. Said a bit and that's why we see all the stories that happened before Elric's death, coming after.

[Sharpandpointies]

Good point about prophecy being magical protection. I guess I fell for it. Reminds me of a Buffy episode where some middle ages monster said that no weapon forged by man or used by man could hurt him. Buffy said, that was then, this is now. Blew him up with an antitank rocket.

It's a little different in this case, in that it's an actual prophecy stated regarding how the Witch-King would perish. It's something that people have for years confused with the idea that the Witch-King had some kind of 'man cannot hurt me' power that got subverted by Éowyn. It wasn't that at all; it's just people just know that one part of the prophecy, and not the greater context surrounding it.

"Do not pursue him! He will not return to these lands. Far off yet is his doom, and not by the hand of man shall he fall." - Glorfindel, Third Age 1975 (over a thousand years before the events of LotR).

I did enjoy Elric when I first read it. Congratulations on getting the signed books.