| ! | Non-canon alert The subject of this article originates from non-canonical sources. To learn about what is considered "canon", see LOTR:Canon. |
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Carnán was a spirit of nature residing in the forests of Núrn in Mordor, who had dwelt there since before any could remember. Little is known of her history, though she long protected her forest from outsiders, particularly Orcs.
Her mortality was said to be bound to the "Great Tree" of her forest, which was the only place she could take human-like form. She was also known to the take the forms of caragors, graugs, and drakes.
This character was not invented by J.R.R. Tolkien; Carnán only appears in the video game Middle-earth: Shadow of War.
Biography[]
Carnán's origins are unclear, though she resided in Middle-earth by at least the Second Age, when the Balrog Tar Goroth attacked her forest, destroying much of the wildlife. She defeated Tar Goroth, resulting in the creature's imprisonment in the pits beneath Gorgoroth.
According to developer Michael de Plater, "She is a spirit of nature. She could be a Maiar. I don’t think she is an Ent-wife, but I think she probably knows what happened to them. She definitely would be able to speak Entish, but she is definitely a representation of the spirit of nature and what would happen to that if it was in somewhere oppressed by darkness, industry and horror as Mordor is." He also noted that she was a contemporary of Morgoth.
In the Third Age, following Sauron's return to Mordor, she encountered the ranger Talion and the wraith of Celebrimbor, who ventured into her forest in search of answers relating to their quest to defeat the Dark Lord. Carnán initially attempted to kill the intruders, but relented after their unexpectedly firm resistance, and informed them that their actions in Mordor had re-awoken Tar Goroth, and that he must be defeated.
A short time afterwards, Carnán traveled to Gorgoroth, and aided Talion in battling the newly awakened Balrog, though Tar Goroth managed to escape. Carnán and Talion tracked Tar Goroth to Seregost, where they again engaged in battle with the Balrog on a frozen lake. Carnán took the form of a drake, and with Talion's help overwhelmed Tar Goroth, casting him into the depths of the lake below.
The necromancer Zog, who along with his acolytes had worked to awake Tar Goroth, soon attacked Carnán's forest and began cutting down trees as revenge. Talion and Celebrimbor managed to stop Zog‘s followers, and Carnán, having been injured, entered a deep slumber to heal. Zog then traveled to Seregost, where he began an attempt to revive Tar Goroth from the frozen lake. Talion tracked him there, and was able to kill the necromancer. Later Zog’s followers resurrected him in Minas Morgul, but Talion managed to slay him once more. It was then that Carnán arrived in the form of a drake, and burned the necromancer's remains to ash, ensuring his permanent death.