Balrog vs Smaug - Who wins?

[Chronos]

When oliphaunts battle, it is the grass that suffers.

[DSYoungEsq]

@Chronos

[Moderating]

I was initially reluctant to mar such a sublime pun as the one in the title of this thread, even if it was accidental. But it hasn’t provided nearly as much fodder for jokes as I’d expected, and the OP did request that we change it, so I’ve fixed the title.

Tried to wing it, did you?

[DSYoungEsq]

@Chisquirrel

From what I’ve gathered, Smaug’s scale was broken off by a black arrow in the first attack on Dale, from the movie. I don’t believe The Hobbit ever actually explained it.

First of all, please don’t EVER reference the movies for explanations of anything Tolkien. Especially not the Hobbit movies; they were abominations with lots of things made up in them.

If you read The Hobbit carefully, you see that Smaug’s bare patch isn’t some sort of lost scale. It’s not completely clear, but parsing what Smaug says (and what Bilbo thinks to himself upon seeing it), Smaug has heavy iron scales over large swathes of his body. But his belly (like most reptiles) is not so tough. To preclude that being used against him, Smaug has used his weight while lying on a pile of gems and gold and such to encrust his belly with a dazzling coat of armor. But he probably just can’t see the bit behind the left front leg, the “hollow of the breast” where there are no gems.

[DSYoungEsq]

@Chronos

I’m pretty sure that Smaug’s belly has tough armored scales, too. Just not quite tough enough to stop an arrow.

I think that Smaug is much like modern reptiles like lizards: the belly has “scales”, but they aren’t tough at all.

[Filbert]

It’s really not very clear- I have not seen the third Hobbit [del]abomination[/del] movie, but my interpretation from the book, as someone who kept reptiles for years, was always of an old damaged bit on Smaug, as there isn’t a ‘hollow’ on a lizard belly.

[casdave]

IIRC Smaug was the last of the dragons, and he wasn’t anything like the most powerful of his breed.

[Baal_Houtham]

@Chronos

[Moderating]

I was initially reluctant to mar such a sublime pun as the one in the title of this thread, even if it was accidental. But it hasn’t provided nearly as much fodder for jokes as I’d expected, and the OP did request that we change it, so I’ve fixed the title.

Damn. Can’t say you did the wrong thing, but the OP’s change request was misguided. :smack: The thread title was the best I’d seen in months. Maybe years. Funny, attention-grabbing, and instantly understandable.

Sublime, indeed.

[eschereal]

I am not sure that pet lizards are an appropriate model for ME dragons. Lizards are cold-blooded, which is an unimaginable physiology for a massive, fire-breathing, flying creature. Dragons merely bear something of a resemblance to reptiles, but surely their overall taxonomy must be different. That Smaug had a hollow between his forelimb and breast could easily be understood.

[Hari_Seldon]

AFAIK, the balrog was magical and Smaug just a garden variety dragon. I’ll go with the balrog. Of course, a dragon can just fly away and I don’t think the balrog can do much then.

[Elendil_s_Heir]

@Baron_Greenback

Of the four named Children of Iluvatar that are known to have slain a dragon, three were mortal men and one was half-elven.

Of the three named Children of Iluvatar that are known to have slain a Balrog, two were High Elves and the other was Gandalf the Grey. None of these “survived” the encounter, either.

I suggest Balrog > Dragon, with the evidence we have.

Well said, and I agree.

@snfaulkner

Glamdring, the foe hammer.

Here’s how Gandalf got his sword in the recent Hobbit movies (not the worst scene, by far): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cqwup9nNVw0

And here’s more on the blade: Glamdring | The One Wiki to Rule Them All | Fandom

@Baal_Houtham

Damn. Can’t say you did the wrong thing, but the OP’s change request was misguided. :smack: The thread title was the best I’d seen in months. Maybe years. Funny, attention-grabbing, and instantly understandable.

Sublime, indeed.

What was it? I came too late to the thread to see the original title.

[burpo_the_wonder_mutt]

Balrog vs Smaug - Who wings?

[snfaulkner]

@Elendil_s_Heir

…
What was it? I came too late to the thread to see the original title.

Originally it was “Balrog vs Smaug - Who wings?”

[Chronos]

The original title was “Balrog vs Smaug - Who wings?”

[Elendil_s_Heir]

Thanks, all. Seems like a minor flap.

D&R

[eschereal]

Why is everyone getting so inflamed about the thread title?

[burpo_the_wonder_mutt]

This just keeps dragon on and on and… .

[MrDibble]

@Hari_Seldon

Smaug just a garden variety dragon.

i.e. a magical flying lizard.

[simster]

@burpo_the_wonder_mutt

This just keeps dragon on and on and… .

Wyvern did you have to go there?

[burpo_the_wonder_mutt]

@simster

Wyvern did you have to go there?

“Ernest Saves Hobbiton”? KnowWhatIMean?

[well_he_s_back]

Let’s not make a flame war out of this