Password

[Galadriel55]

Brilliant, Pervinca!

... which points to the obvious mystery: 4. TOM BOMBADIL: tom(-tom) + bomb + "a" + dil(l)

2.... YEARS OF THE TREES?

[Pervinca Took]

I was thinking MITHRANDIR when I made the wild password guess, but I have no idea where the elements would come from. Is there another word for nectar?

G55, I'm much more impressed with your work than mine!

[Huinesoron]

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

Brilliant, Pervinca!

... which points to the obvious mystery: 4. TOM BOMBADIL: tom(-tom) + bomb + "a" + dil(l)

2.... YEARS OF THE TREES?

Both correct. The mystery in the latter case is: are they ten years (of the sun) or not? Tolkien's timelines are a mess.

Originally Posted by Pervinca Took

I was thinking MITHRANDIR when I made the wild password guess, but I have no idea where the elements would come from. Is there another word for nectar?

G55, I'm much more impressed with your work than mine!

#1 is not Mithrandir, and you don't need a synonym for nectar.

1. M - Wizard, more nectar? Shift that silence to me and stop to aspirate!
YEARS OF THE TREES - Much longer than twig days - but how long? (Yes, how long?)
SMEAGOL - Sounds like the bosun rides on the back of a log, rides on the back of a log (His origins - solved by Gandalf)
TOM BOMBADIL - Half a drum explodes a (cut) herb, but it's still better than the poetry. (Just... everything.)
5. E - On the tip of... not my tongue, I'm a little sick. Like Ulysses, but brighter.
6. R - Serious party-going lady swaps to the second half of Elvish exclamation, and sends her daughter out gathering.
IMLADRIS - Look back at the hidden valley: yes, Spaniard, it's a spotted dog with no prepositions. (Secret location)
ERIOL - Shipwrecked, he calls, "Er, I..." "Lo!" the elves call back. (Tolkien undecided on his story)
9. S - Her(?) bed was made by a really, really irritated oyster.

hS

[Pervinca Took]

Morinehtar.

MORE NECTAR

Remove the silent E, add I for 'me,' H is an aspirate - is C is a 'stop' that changes, here, to an aspirate?

[Huinesoron]

Originally Posted by Pervinca Took

Morinehtar.

MORE NECTAR

Remove the silent E, add I for 'me,' H is an aspirate - is C is a 'stop' that changes, here, to an aspirate?

Exactly! I think C is a stop, right? I went with 'stop' rather than 'plosive' to try and hide the phonetic clues a bit.

MORINEHTAR - Wizard, more nectar? Shift that silence to me and stop to aspirate! (Mysterious Blue Wizard)
YEARS OF THE TREES - Much longer than twig days - but how long? (Yes, how long?)
SMEAGOL - Sounds like the bosun rides on the back of a log, rides on the back of a log (His origins - solved by Gandalf)
TOM BOMBADIL - Half a drum explodes a (cut) herb, but it's still better than the poetry. (Just... everything.)
5. E - On the tip of... not my tongue, I'm a little sick. Like Ulysses, but brighter.
6. R - Serious party-going lady swaps to the second half of Elvish exclamation, and sends her daughter out gathering.
IMLADRIS - Look back at the hidden valley: yes, Spaniard, it's a spotted dog with no prepositions. (Secret location)
ERIOL - Shipwrecked, he calls, "Er, I..." "Lo!" the elves call back. (Tolkien undecided on his story)
9. S - Her(?) bed was made by a really, really irritated oyster.

hS

[Galadriel55]

5. At the END of an EAR, with IL(L), makes EARENDIL, who I suppose is a mariner like Odysseus, but is also a star. Why is he mysterious? Maybe to Third Age hobbits a flying Silmaril ship star counts as a mystery.

[Huinesoron]

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

5. At the END of an EAR, with IL(L), makes EARENDIL, who I suppose is a mariner like Odysseus, but is also a star. Why is he mysterious? Maybe to Third Age hobbits a flying Silmaril ship star counts as a mystery.

Exactly all of that, except that the mystery is his voyages, which Tolkien never got round to writing. Did he kill Ungoliant? Did he even meet her? Did he somehow go to the southern hemisphere of a flat planet? So many questions!

MORINEHTAR - Wizard, more nectar? Shift that silence to me and stop to aspirate! (Mysterious Blue Wizard)
YEARS OF THE TREES - Much longer than twig days - but how long? (Yes, how long?)
SMEAGOL - Sounds like the bosun rides on the back of a log, rides on the back of a log (His origins - solved by Gandalf)
TOM BOMBADIL - Half a drum explodes a (cut) herb, but it's still better than the poetry. (Just... everything.)
EARENDIL - On the tip of... not my tongue, I'm a little sick. Like Ulysses, but brighter. (His unknown voyages)
6. R - Serious party-going lady swaps to the second half of Elvish exclamation, and sends her daughter out gathering.
IMLADRIS - Look back at the hidden valley: yes, Spaniard, it's a spotted dog with no prepositions. (Secret location)
ERIOL - Shipwrecked, he calls, "Er, I..." "Lo!" the elves call back. (Tolkien undecided on his story)
9. S - Her(?) bed was made by a really, really irritated oyster.

Two to go. #6 is named in LotR but the clue references a different book, while #9 is pretty much a BoLT character.

hS

[Pervinca Took]

R isn't (WIDOW) RUMBLE, is it? The mystery lady of the Gaffer's twilight years ....

'Party-going' might mean went to Bilbo's 111th/Frodo's 33rd birthday party, but I'm not sure RUBY BOLGER is the one, because it says that Dora Baggins was the eldest surviving female relative of Bilbo and Frodo, and Ruby Bolger was her mother.

...

Oh! It's RIVER-WOMAN, isn't it?

(With RAVER for serious party-goer turning to the 'AI' sound, which is an elvish exclamation used by Legolas when he fears the heat from the Balrog will make his mascara run?)

[Huinesoron]

Originally Posted by Pervinca Took

Oh! It's RIVER-WOMAN, isn't it?

(With RAVER for serious party-goer turning to the 'AI' sound, which is an elvish exclamation used by Legolas when he fears the heat from the Balrog will make his mascara run?)

Specifically, she swaps the A for the I. Correct!

MORINEHTAR - Wizard, more nectar? Shift that silence to me and stop to aspirate! (Mysterious Blue Wizard)
YEARS OF THE TREES - Much longer than twig days - but how long? (Yes, how long?)
SMEAGOL - Sounds like the bosun rides on the back of a log, rides on the back of a log (His origins - solved by Gandalf)
TOM BOMBADIL - Half a drum explodes a (cut) herb, but it's still better than the poetry. (Just... everything.)
EARENDIL - On the tip of... not my tongue, I'm a little sick. Like Ulysses, but brighter. (His unknown voyages)
RIVER-WOMAN - Serious party-going lady swaps to the second half of Elvish exclamation, and sends her daughter out gathering. (Who and what is she?)
IMLADRIS - Look back at the hidden valley: yes, Spaniard, it's a spotted dog with no prepositions. (Secret location)
ERIOL - Shipwrecked, he calls, "Er, I..." "Lo!" the elves call back. (Tolkien undecided on his story)
9. S - Her(?) bed was made by a really, really irritated oyster.

Okay, #9... in all probability, this one doesn't involve a giant pearl - just a lot of them.

hS

[Pervinca Took]

Is the final clue Solosimpi/Solosimpe?

[Huinesoron]

Originally Posted by Pervinca Took

Is the final clue Solosimpi/Solosimpe?

It is not. Try connecting pearls to (what you do in) beds.

hS

[Huinesoron]

Okay, it's been a few days, so:

The mystery in #9 is 'who is this person?', with one possibility Tolkien considered being a woman of Gondolin.

hS

[Galadriel55]

Originally Posted by Huinesoron

Okay, it's been a few days, so:

The mystery in #9 is 'who is this person?', with one possibility Tolkien considered being a woman of Gondolin.

hS

Given my extensive knowledge of BOLT, I would suggest Shepearl, Shelob's prettier sister. It's all in the Hofstetter.

Seriously, I have no clue. Someone who presumably fell asleep or lay down on some pearls - but if she's not mentioned in the main texts, I am unlikely to be familiar with the name.

[Huinesoron]

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

Given my extensive knowledge of BOLT, I would suggest Shepearl, Shelob's prettier sister. It's all in the Hofstetter.

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

Seriously, I have no clue. Someone who presumably fell asleep or lay down on some pearls - but if she's not mentioned in the main texts, I am unlikely to be familiar with the name.

Okey dokey, let's go for an alternate clue (same answer):

9b. S - Upon her(?) lies a railway; in high place she(?) lies long; her(?) place's gems are oyster-wrought; Happy Mariners her(?) song.

hS

[Galadriel55]

Okay. From that I might propose SLEEPER, as the thing on which rails go, and also related to beds. Not sure about the rest of it.

[Huinesoron]

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

Okay. From that I might propose SLEEPER, as the thing on which rails go, and also related to beds. Not sure about the rest of it.

Y'know what, between you you've got two of the three key words, and I don't want to drag the thread down further, I'm going to give you this one. The full answer is SLEEPER IN THE TOWER OF PEARL, a figure from the unwritten Earendil tales who Tolkien at one point considered making Idril. The poem The Happy Mariners is said by CT to be 'the song of the Sleeper in the Tower of Pearl'.

(Said tower is on one of the Twilight Isles.)

MORINEHTAR - Wizard, more nectar? Shift that silence to me and stop to aspirate! (Mysterious Blue Wizard)
YEARS OF THE TREES - Much longer than twig days - but how long? (Yes, how long?)
SMEAGOL - Sounds like the bosun rides on the back of a log, rides on the back of a log (His origins - solved by Gandalf)
TOM BOMBADIL - Half a drum explodes a (cut) herb, but it's still better than the poetry. (Just... everything.)
EARENDIL - On the tip of... not my tongue, I'm a little sick. Like Ulysses, but brighter. (His unknown voyages)
RIVER-WOMAN - Serious party-going lady swaps to the second half of Elvish exclamation, and sends her daughter out gathering. (Who and what is she?)
IMLADRIS - Look back at the hidden valley: yes, Spaniard, it's a spotted dog with no prepositions. (Secret location)
ERIOL - Shipwrecked, he calls, "Er, I..." "Lo!" the elves call back. (Tolkien undecided on his story)
SLEEPER IN THE TOWER OF PEARL - Her(?) bed was made by a really, really irritated oyster. // Upon her(?) lies a railway; in high place she(?) lies long; her(?) place's gems are oyster-wrought; Happy Mariners her(?) song. (Unknown identity)

Well done all! I didn't expect it to be this hard... I think I'm out of practice with these things.

I think it's Pervinca up next?

hS

[Galadriel55]

I liked it! I thought the clues were very reasonable. And when Pervinca guessed the password, by what I still think a stroke of magnificent inspiration, a bunch more clues fell down. I think it was just the last clue that gave trouble - and considering "pearl" was one of the earliest elements to be guessed, the problem was clearly not with the clue itself, but that the answer didn't occur to us. Speaking for myself, that is ever my struggle with HOME clues, which only means that one of these days I will have to read BOLT. I liked the password, and the theme. It is so creative and off the beaten path, and I am still amazed with Pervinca nailing it with just a couple letters and non-standard answers (no Tom Bom yet!).

[Pervinca Took]

Well, there were three letters guessed at the time, and the I and the E were together, and clue one was a wizard (I had forgotten the name Morinehtar but thought it was Mithrandir), so it wasn't too hard to guess.

Will have one up shortly. Just a small one this time.

Excellent work, Huinesoron, to still be coming up with new themes!

[Urwen]

Password, please?

[Pervinca Took]

Sorry. Can do this tea time tomorrow but not before. If that's too late someone else could do one, perhaps?

[Urwen]

Should someone else do one then, or do we wait?

[Pervinca Took]

1. Coveted by one on a lunatic quest.
2. Time when Norse thinking is applied to a level water meadow.
3. Here, see a Dark Lord lose his extremities, but find directions in their place.
4. Country of cruel public executions?
5. Worships this place, in a roundabout way.
6. Harpers’ performances, adverbially.

[Galadriel55]

1. Beer? Or alternatively, Arien?

3. RAUROS, from Sauron.

6. SADLY?... Of him the harpers sadly sing?

[Pervinca Took]

1. Coveted by one on a lunatic quest.
2. Time when Norse thinking is applied to a level water meadow.
RAUROS: Here, see a Dark Lord lose his extremities, but find directions in their place.
4. Country of cruel public executions?
5. Worships this place, in a roundabout way.
SADLY: Harpers’ performances, adverbially.

Two right.

One wrong.

[Huinesoron]

#4: taken literally, this could be NUMENOR (or more precisely ARANDOR, the central region), noted for its fairly spectacular support of the principle that great works require sacrifices.

hS

[Pervinca Took]

Originally Posted by Huinesoron

#4: taken literally, this could be NUMENOR (or more precisely ARANDOR, the central region), noted for its fairly spectacular support of the principle that great works require sacrifices.

hS

'Cruel public executions' is the cryptic part of the clue.

[Huinesoron]

#1: G55 pointed the way towards the Man in the Moon ('lunatic', right?), and checking the poems:

He coveted SONG, and laughter long,
and viands hot, and wine,

#2 is making me think of Isildur: he has the 'Norse thinking' in "This I will have as weregild for my father, and my brother", and 'water meadow' in Middle-earth points strongly at the Gladden Fields. But that doesn't give me an answer, so I'll just leave it as possible inspiration.

#4: still scouring the maps for the land of Meanbeheadings...!

hS

[Urwen]

I think Huinesoron has the right idea, but that the answer isn't 'song', but rather 'viands hot' and the password is VERSES

[Huinesoron]

Originally Posted by Urwen

I think Huinesoron has the right idea, but that the answer isn't 'song', but rather 'viands hot' and the password is VERSES

Ooh, I like the way you think. In which case #4, another S, could be STONINGLAND.

Steeds went striding to the Stoningland
as wind in the morning. War was kindled.

(Via Encyclopedia of Arda's 'Lands, Realms, and Regions' filter, not from memory.)

Which leaves us looking for a pair of Es...

hS

[Pervinca Took]

VIANDS (HOT): Coveted by one on a lunatic quest. (The Man In The Moon Came Down Too Soon)
E: Time when Norse thinking is applied to a level water meadow.
RAUROS: Here, see a Dark Lord lose his extremities, but find directions in their place. (Lament For Boromir)
STONINGLAND: Country of cruel public executions? (We Heard Of The Horns In The Hills Ringing)
E: Worships this place, in a roundabout way.
SADLY: Harpers’ performances, adverbially. (Gil-Galad Was An Elven- King)

Good work, team!

The Norse element is more linguistic than cultural (insofar as two such aspects can be separated).

[Galadriel55]

Hurray for teamwork!

For 2, I don't have any thoughts regarding the Norse element, but if the straight clue is "time", I would hazard a guess of EVE or EVENING.

[Pervinca Took]

VIANDS (HOT): Coveted by one on a lunatic quest. (The Man In The Moon Came Down Too Soon)
EVENING: Time when Norse thinking is applied to a level water meadow. (When Evening In The Shire Was Grey)
RAUROS: Here, see a Dark Lord lose his extremities, but find directions in their place. (Lament For Boromir)
STONINGLAND: Country of cruel public executions? (We Heard Of The Horns In The Hills Ringing)
E: Worships this place, in a roundabout way.
SADLY: Harpers’ performances, adverbially. (Gil-Galad Was An Elven- King)

EVEN= level.

ING is the Norse word for a water meadow.

One to go!

[Urwen]

The last one could be Evereven (from REVERE + ???)

[Pervinca Took]

Originally Posted by Urwen

The last one could be Evereven (from REVERE + ???)

Afraid not.

I'll give you a hint, though.

The answer is from the third line of a song.

[Urwen]

Which song, though?

[Urwen]

Edoras (from 'adores')?

[Pervinca Took]

VIANDS (HOT): Coveted by one on a lunatic quest. (The Man In The Moon Came Down Too Soon)
EVENING: Time when Norse thinking is applied to a level water meadow. (When Evening In The Shire Was Grey)
RAUROS: Here, see a Dark Lord lose his extremities, but find directions in their place. (Lament For Boromir)
STONINGLAND: Country of cruel public executions? (We Heard Of The Horns In The Hills Ringing)
EDORAS: Worships this place, in a roundabout way. (From Dark Dunharrow In The Dim Morning)
SADLY: Harpers’ performances, adverbially. (Gil-Galad Was An Elven- King)

Game, Set and Match!

Over to you.

[Huinesoron]

Originally Posted by Pervinca Took

Game, Set and Match!

Thanks Pervinca; that was a fun mix of different styles of clues. And well done Urwen on getting the last one; I was stumped!

hS

[Galadriel55]

Seconded! Neat password, and I also enjoyed the variety in the clues!

Looking forward to Urwen's!

[Urwen]

I'll come up with something shortly.

In the meantime, amuse yourself with Riddles in the Downs thread. It needs revitalization too.