The Rings of Power: What Are The Moriundur Or Uruk And Where Do They Come From
The Rings of Power Episode 6 pretty much confirms that Adar isn’t Sauron, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t a key character who is completely necessary for the plans of Morgoth and his successor to come to fruition. It all starts with the humans of the Southlands facing the Orc legion and just when they think that all is lost, Galadriel and the Númenoreans appear on horseback and help defeat the enemy, but not without Adar managing to get the broken hilt, forcing Galadriel to get on her horse to pursue him.
Eventually, Galadriel and Halbrand manage to stop the “father” of the Orcs, take him back to the village, lock him in a barn and begin to question him about the plans they have prepared. It is then that the commander of the elves reveals that Adar is a Moriundur, who is also known as Uruk, which is a name that will sound very familiar to fans of the Lord of the Rings movies.
The Rings of Power: What are The Uruk or Moriundur?
As Galadriel explains, in a similar way to Saruman in the Peter Jackson movies, the Uruk are elves from Cuiviénen (which is the place where the first elves were born) who were captured, tortured, and corrupted during the first battle with Morgoth, which leads them to surrender to darkness and become monsters. Adar is called father, and he tells Galadriel that the orcs are his children, which leads us to think that he might be the first of the elves captured and that he may have led many others to give in to the darkness to be able to survive. According to some theories, these Moriundur are created after they consume the flesh of other elves, leading them to lose their immortality and the iconic flawless appearance that identifies them.
These first orcs had to live underground because the sun burns their skin, and they are the ones who appear digging tunnels and looking for the broken sword in The Rings of Power. Then there is the Uruk-Hai, who is a bit different, they are created from the earth, using magic to bring them to life and make them the toughest warriors in Sauron’s army. These characters are created by Saurman in Isengard, but they are created using magic and not tortured and corrupted elves. Although it is said that the Uruk-hai may be a kind of cross between the original humans and orcs (and it makes sense if we take into account that many men follow Sauron and who must “pay a price” to be part of the army).
According to Saruman, the orcs are a terrible and inferior life form, while the Uruk-hai are the perfected version, stronger, tougher, and more violent than their ancestors. Why is Adar called father? In Tolkien‘s stories, orcs are mentioned to reproduce while underground, so it’s also possible that these orcs are his children in the literal sense, and this is important because it means that any elf who allows himself to be corrupted (and experiencing a certain amount of pain, abuse, and mistreatment), may end up as an orc. Adar further says that he killed Sauron when he found out that he had caused him to lose many of his children, but we know that this character is also a manipulator and a liar (deceives them with the sword), so he likely said that to hide the truth about Morgoth’s heir and where he is now.
