Because Elrond cut the the budget of Revendell NASA to spend more money on some project to make elves self-deport.
this post was submitted on 27 Feb 2026
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Really it was a time issue. Even if you assume the hobbits of the Shire had both the technological capacity to create a functional guided rocket and the industrial capacity to manufacture it ready to go, it takes around about a decade to bring a rocket development program from conception through to completion, even optimistically. Factor in the fact that there's a single unique and irreplaceable payload and if you fail to hit the target you've basically delivered the ring to Sauron, given it's apparent indestructibility, the reliability requirements would push the development time back a lot. It might take 20 or 30 years for the rocket to truly be ready for that mission. They were only able to confirm that what they've found actually is the one ring less than a couple years from when Sauron would have invaded everyone, so even with the most optimistic possible appraisal of the military industrial complex of the free peoples of Middle Earth there simply wasn't time. It's one of those projects where throwing more bodies at it just slows things down.
Yeah, but what if you're working with dwarves? And using elvish technology for a guidance system?
Perhaps need more lore information before we can understand how well the Elvish guidance systems would work under the full effects of Sauron's eye, which, considering the perceived threat and opportunity (in case destabilisation of the rocket is successful), on top of the ease of application (it would be in-air, easier to pick, as compared to little ground targets moving among other landscape objects), I'd say Sauron would put full attention onto the missile.
Much easier to just find a way to build a better furnace.
Easy solution, send a rocket or two to take out the Eye of Sauron before launching the one with the ring. Perhaps launch a flurry of them to overwhelm any remaining air defenses, which won't know which one has it.
Much easier to just find a way to build a better furnace.
Nope. It's not about the heat at mount doom, but the magic bound in the ring.
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This is what I was waiting for. You know the theory of the eagles and Tom bombadil having the power to save everyone and not using it? What if the reason they didn't is because they can't. As in when they enter mordor they lose their power. Whereas the hobbits were removed from the magical doings of the world and therefore somewhat immune. Even galaxriel was temtpted by the ring. Bobmbadil probably only has power in his forest and the eagles only showed up after sauron's defeat but the eagles were on the spot right quick. Meaning they had to be close by. Which means they probably intended to be there and were waiting for wards to drop so they could help. Maybe.
My theory about Bombadil is that he was Tolkien's avatar in Middle Earth. Like, "I'm the one writing this story, I created this world, I'm more powerful than the gods of this realm, but if I solve all your problems right now then there wouldn't be a story so I'm not going to do that."
There's also the issue of anti-air defense in general. You can see those eagles from miles away.
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Hobbit rockets never leave the ground. They use pipe-weed as fuel and, by T plus 60 of any launch, the engineers are all giggling on the launch pad eating funions as a quick post-elevenses snack.
That would explain why Gandalf likes visiting the Shire so much
There was a gif or a video montage of Boromir trying to catapult the ring to Mordor. Im on the move and cant search properly. But would be ideal for this discussion.
Edit: as per rule of the universe, found it after posting.
The ring is still embedded on the mountainside
And my Δv!
when Gandalf said "Fly! You Fools!" This is what he meant
Silly me! I thought he miscasted a levitation spell.
Counterpoint.
What if they buried it, like real deep, like 50m+ deep.
It was at the bottom of a river for 2500 years, it’s honestly more effective than taking the ring right into enemy land.
If you read the books, a lot of people thought Sauron wasn't ever getting the One back because they were convinced it must've been swept out to sea.
I wouldn't put it past the ring to manipulate some octopus to carry it back to land.
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"I mean it's not rocket science, guys." - Boromir on using a catapult to launch the ring into Mt. Doom
one does not simply ICBM into Mordor.
Also. we can easily create temperatures far exiding mount Doom's lava.
I think it's not about the temperature of mount doom, but the magical effects of the ring being forged there. But I could be way off...
it's more about a plot device, so any attempt at destroying it anywhere else is bound to fail. alternative, launch it into space like the Voyager,
Do you want space nazis? Cause that's how you get space nazis.
Maybe even ye olde thermite could do something
since the ring posesses magical powers, maybe you can trigger it to release a "magical explosion" some how. but MAGIC is very nebelous in lotr, very little spellcasting, or magical attacks, or effects magic.
Well for one, if they missed then they would basically be express shipping the ring back to Sauron...
Legit question. Can the ring influence targeting computers over long distances? Or modern LLMs?
No but I'm sure it lt would literally (read: narratively) affect any mortal programming the computer, or setting the LLM out with such a purpose.
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This is more of an orbital nuclear defense question since Mordor has a pretty in depth strategy against this sort of threat. Frodo probably didn’t consider this option because of the Pan-Middle Earth nuclear deescalation agreement of the second age, sub section 2, page five, which if violated could have big international downstream effects.
Question, if I have an unbreakable ring, what cool things could an engineer do with that?
Well it's interesting that it makes regular ringing/metallic sounds when it's dropped(at least in the movies), so it is not inelastic. Which means it could be deformed if placed under extreme force but it would always spring back into shape. So I think it might be the world's most powerful spring.
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I mean, it all looks so simple.
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