Magic rings

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"The lesser rings were only essays of the craft before it was full-grown, and to the Elven-smiths they were but trifles..."

—Gandalf in The Fellowship of the Ring, "The Shadow of the Past"

Magic rings are only mentioned a handful of times in The Lord of the Rings. They were made around the same time as the Rings of Power and were, presumably, many in number since "In Eregion long ago many Elven-rings were made". Gandalf states that though the Elves who forged them thought little of them, they were dangerous for mortals.

They are known as the lesser rings of the Rings of Power, or simply magic rings when referring to the rings forged by the Elves as "essays in the craft"- they are said to bear no gem (similar to the One Ring). For the longest time, Gandalf believed the ring Bilbo found in Gollum's cave to be one of these rings, until he discovered otherwise decades later, when Sauron regained much of the strength he had lost.

History

In the ancient days of the Second Age, before the Fall of Númenor, Sauron came to the elven smiths of Eregion, declaring he was sent by the Valar to bring gifts and knowledge to them. Using a fair guise, he deceived the Elves in helping him forge magic rings, especially Celebrimbor. With the help of these greatest Elf craftsman, Sauron was able to continue with his plans for Middle-earth by making of magic rings. before the Rings of Power were forged, only lesser magic rings were made by the craft taught by Sauron as magic ring-forging was just in its infancy. Though the lesser rings were quite useful, they did not have the strength, abilities, or influence of power as the yet-to-be-forged Rings of Power. Despite the current limitations, the Elves used these rings to aid them in the use of spells and magical craft and were thus widely popular. Sauron, then known as "Lord of the Gifts" claimed he wished to make Middle-earth as fair as Valinor, and it seemed he convinced the Elves to think these rings could do so. As time passed, Sauron's and Celebrimbor's experimentations with the rings led to the forging of rings with far greater power and abilities. Sauron soon felt confident that he could make his own superior work, the One Ring.

After the forging of the One Ring, Sauron began drawing the lesser rings to himself. This was not difficult, for the One Ring gave him the strength to subdue their wielders. It was primarily over the nine Men who would become the Ringwraiths that Sauron attained power, through their rings, corrupting them.

At the time of the War of the Ring, Sauron gathered again the lesser rings to himself. But this time, he was unable to retrieve all of them as many of them were lost and his attention was more focused on claiming the Rings of Power and his One Ring. The few he did find were used to advance his own abilities. Though not stated in the books or movies, it seems reasonable to believe that some were given again to his commanders as well.

Their ultimate fates are unknown, nor is it known whether or not their powers were bound to the power of the One Ring. If they were, then their power would have failed with the destruction of the One.

The full extent of these rings' powers is unknown, but Gandalf has said when speaking of them that "none are to be used lightly."