Elvenking's Halls Battle of Five Armies & The Third Age of Middle-Earth The current year for our Middle-Earth campaign is set during the year of 2946 of the Third Age. Inspired By J.R.R. Tolkien

The Elvenking's Halls , also known by the Sindarin name Felegoth, served as the royal residence, treasury, and primary fortress for Thranduil, the King of the Woodland Realm. Carved into a hill in the northeastern region of Mirkwood, the halls were a massive subterranean complex of twisting passages and chambers designed as a secure refuge against the growing darkness in the forest during the Third Age.

Though underground, the halls were described as being less deep and more "wholesome" than the gloomy tunnels of the goblin-cities, lit by the warm glow of red torchlight and filled with cleaner air.

The main entrance to the fortress faced southward onto a large stone bridge that spanned the swift-flowing Forest River. This strategic crossing was protected by huge, magical stone doors that could be sealed instantly with a clang, providing a formidable barrier to any intruders. These gates represented the primary, official point of entry and exit, reinforcing the Elves' isolationist and guarded nature.

Inside the complex, visitors would find a maze of echoing passageways that led to various parts of the domain. The heart of the halls was the great throne room, where King Thranduil sat upon a chair of carven wood. This hall featured pillars hewn from the living rock, designed to imitate the towering trees of the forest above, bringing an element of the natural world into the underground dwelling. The halls also contained gardens, kitchens, dining areas, and other domestic spaces, some even featuring lakes and waterfalls, suggesting a beautiful, carefully crafted environment.

The lowest levels of the Halls contained the king's dungeons, a less hospitable area where prisoners were kept. It was in these cells that Thranduil imprisoned Thorin and Company during the Quest of Erebor. Bilbo Baggins, using the power of the One Ring to become invisible, roamed these lower levels and discovered the secret to their escape.

This escape route was the ingenious water-gate located in the lowest cellars. An underground stream flowed directly beneath the halls and out into the Forest River. Elven workers regularly dropped empty barrels through a trapdoor into this stream, which then floated downstream to Lake-town for trade. Bilbo hid the Dwarves in these barrels, and they made their famous escape through a barred portcullis into the river below.

Thranduil's Halls were notably inspired by the ancient, magnificent city of Menegroth (the Thousand Caves) in Doriath from the First Age, where Thranduil had once lived. While the Mirkwood halls were less grand and expansive than their ancient counterpart, they were the preeminent Elven fortress of their time in the north. Thranduil even enlisted the aid of Dwarves in the initial delving of the caverns, much like Thingol had done in ages past.

Ultimately, the Halls served as a vital stronghold during the dark times of the Third Age and the War of the Ring, successfully defending the northern borders of Thranduil's realm. They were not home to all of Thranduil's people, as most preferred to live in houses among the trees in the open woodlands, but they were the fortified heart of the kingdom and the seat of its power until peace was restored to the forest in the Fourth Age.