Balrog

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Balrogs are a species of powerful demonic monsters in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth. The species first appeared in Tolkien's high-fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings, in which the Company of the Ring encounter a Balrog known as Durin's Bane in the Mines of Moria. Balrogs appear also in Tolkien's The Silmarillion and his legendarium. Balrogs are tall and menacing beings who can shroud themselves in fire, darkness, and shadow. They are armed with fiery whips "of many thongs", and occasionally use long swords. In Tolkien's later conception, Balrogs could not be readily vanquished—a certain stature was required by the would-be hero. Only dragons rivalled their capacity for ferocity and destruction; during the First Age of Middle-earth, they were among the most feared of Morgoth's forces. Their power came from their nature as Maiar, angelic beings like the Valar, though of lesser power. Tolkien invented the name "Balrog", providing an in-universe etymology for it as a word in his invented...

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