“ | Eriador was of old the name of all the lands between the Misty Mountains and the Blue; in the South it was bounded by the Greyflood and the Glanduin that flows into it above Tharbad. | ” |
–The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A |
Eriador (Sindarin for Lonely Land/Wilderness) is a huge land of rolling grass plains. It is similar to the vanilla plains biome, other than the fact that it is even flatter and has the occasional oak, birch, spruce, or beech tree. Tall grass and flowers are widespread here, and Rangers of the North protect it against Gundabad Orcs. Eriador used to be mostly part of the North Kingdom of Arnor before this realm was destroyed by Angmar.
Upon entering the region of Eriador, you will get the achievement "The Kindly West".
Sub-biomes
Eriador Downs
The Eriador Downs are similar to the Eriador Biome, except they contain rock boulders and are hillier than the normal Eriador biome. The biome variants found here are only Mountains, Forested Mountains and Lightly Forested Mountains.
The Eriador Downs bear resemblance to the Lone-Lands. Eriador Downs spawn in four areas and most bear witness to the fallen Arnorian kingdom of Arthedain:
- In the west, west of the Shire, the Far Downs connected Arnor with the elven lands. The most western downs, also know as the Tower Hills, or 'Emyn Beraid', support Elostirion and the other white towers and are in fact part of Lindon.
- In the center north along Lake Evendim, the Hills of Evendim or 'Emyn Uial' are located. This is where both Arnor, and later Arthedain, had its royal seat, in the now ruined city of Annúminas.
- In the northeast, the North Downs were once dominated by the now ruined stronghold city of Fornost.
- In the south-east, bordering the Lone-Lands south of the Midgewater Marshes, the South Downs are located.
White Downs
The White Downs are a sub-biome of the Downs and border the west of the Shire. These rolling hills are marked by very noticeable white boulders and barren patches of white rock on the surface, composed of Chalk stone. Neither rangers nor orcs spawn here, and also bandits are less common.
Eryn Vorn
The Eryn Vorn is a remnant of the ancient woods that covered most of Beleriand and Middle-Earth. The name is used for a peninsula south of Eriador, connected with and enclosed by the south-west of Minhiriath. The river Baranduin (or 'Brandywine') separates the peninsula from Eriador.
The area consist of forests with occasional clearings and flowery and hilly variants. In the common speech it is also known as the Blackwood. This region was part of the fallen Arnorian kingdom of Cardolan, like the rest of Minhiriath. Few clans of men still live here, hunting and fishing for their living.
Variants
Eriador is defined as a 'normal oak' biome with additional 'mountaineous' variants. This implies the following variants can be found there:
- Standard - Normal Eriador biome.
- Flowers - The fields and the undergrowth of tree clusters teem with flowers in this biome. Flowery vegetation from both vanilla Minecraft (poppies, dandelions) and the LOTR mod (thistles and wheat grass) is abundantly present here.
- Forest - Forest covered lands.
- Light Forest - Lightly forested lands.
- Steppe - A flat landscape of grassy plains.
- Barren Steppe - These barren plains stretch over vast area's and have even less vegetation.
- Hills - A hilly landscape with a higher average elevation.
- Forested Hills - A landscape with forest covered hills.
- Dense Oak Forest - Dense forestes with many large oak trees. Also huge oaks, measuring 3 m in diameter and reaching up to 30 m, are common here. Patches of podzol cover the forest floor.
- Dead Oak Forest - Lands covered in forests whose glory is passing away. The forest density is comparable to the light forest variant, but there are many stems of dead, leafless trees. This variant is very helpful for acquiring large quantities of wood, as the dead trees provide a lot of easy accessible lumber.
- Oak Shrublands - Forest covered lands with a lower tree density than regular forests, but with a very thick undergrowth of shrubs.
- Mountain - Mountaneous rolling hills.
- Forested Mountains - Forest covered Mountaneous rolling hills.
- Lightly Forested Mountains - Lightly forested Mountaneous rolling hills.
Obviously, Eraidor offers very varied landscapes.
Structures
The Eriador Biome contains five structures total, among the piles of Arnor and Stone Bricks.
- Gundabad Orc Camp - Camps for Gundabad Orcs that spawn randomly in Eriador. As with most camps, they contain tents, forge tents, crafting tables, skulls, orc torches, chests, small farms, and Gundabad Orc Chieftains.
- Ranger Camp - Camps for Rangers of the North that randomly spawn in Eriador. They contain 2-4 tents, a Ranger crafting table, Rangers, a wheat farm, and a Ranger Captain of the North.
- Ranger Watchtower - Guard towers that spawn randomly in Eriador. They contain a Ranger crafting table, a chest, Rangers of the North and Ranger Banners.
- Ruined House - Burnt down houses that contain chests, furnaces, and crafting tables.
- Ruined Dúnedain Tower - Ruined stone brick towers that contain one chest with very valuable loot at the top.
Mobs
Eriador is a barren land, but farm animals, boars, and a few other mobs spawn.
- Gundabad Orc - Orcs from Mount Gundabad in the Misty Mountains allied only with themselves.
- Gundabad Orc Archer - Deadly Gundabad Orcs with bows or crossbows.
- Gundabad Orc Chieftain - NPCs from which the forces of Gundabad can be hired - for a price.
- Ranger of the North - Rangers that protect Eriador and the surrounding lands. Rangers can use Gondor Bows at range, iron daggers in close combat, and, when needed, can use their ability to vanish from sight.
- Ranger Captain of the North - NPCs from which Rangers of the North can be hired. They spawn in Ranger camps.
Vegetation
The vast plains of Eriador were once covered in great forests, but the lumber-hungry Númenoreans cut most of them down. This explains the vast stretches of steppe that characterize Eriador for the weary traveller. However, Eriador is in fact a very varied biome, with a rich temperate vegetation. Occasionally, one can find patches of Athelas, another sign of former Númenorean occupation. Though most forests are felled, some remain. They generally consist of oak trees, but others grow quite commonly as well. The only conifer to take root in Eriador is the spruce tree, and the other broadleaf trees consist of birch, beech, apple, pear, and willow. There is average flower and grass growth here.
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Eriador
Angle •
Bree-land •
Chetwood •
Downs •
Lone-lands •
Midgewater •
Minhiriath •
Trollshaws
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