Morgoth

Morgoth, also called the Dark Lord or the Great Enemy was the mighty rebel Vala and the first representative of Darkness, the primeval tyrant in the elder days of the First Age. From his stronghold of Utumno and later the fortress of Angband in the North near Forodwaith, he plotted to destroy most of Arda, chiefly Middle-earth.

Originally the most powerful of the Ainur, Morgoth - as Fëanor son of Finwë would name him - desired to make things of his own, wishing for abilities akin to those of the demiurge Ilúvatar, but failing in this, he sought to mock and undo the great works of others that he envied. He sowed discordance in the Ainulindalë ("Music of the Ainur"), allowing Darkness to enter the world of Arda and mar it, while also recruiting some of the Maiar to be his allies and servant. With the cunning Sauron as his seeming most devoted lieutenant by his side, Morgoth defied the Valar and made the lives of Elves and Men as miserable as he could, for unable to make himself master over the Children of Ilúvatar he instead wanted to break them. He destroyed the Two Trees of Valinor, murdered Finwë, the High King of the Noldor Elves, and stole the precious Silmarils of Fëanor, inciting the great War of the Jewels that dominated the First Age. Not few were Morgoth's base minions: Orcs, Trolls, Wolves, Shades, Dragons, Belryg and other evils; even some Men, such as peoples of Easterlings, were also in league with him. Mainly through vast hordes, the Dark Lord attempted to spell doom for Free Folk - but the Powers intervened and ensured his final defeat in the cataclysmic War of Wrath that flooded Beleriand: his weakened spirit, bereft of much of his former strength, was banished to the outer void, where he remains to this day. Sauron, of old Morgoth's principal Lieutenant, has since become his successor and has carried on his fell work although for his own ambitions, establishing himself as the second Dark Lord in a bid to claim dominion over Middle-earth and Númenor.

The name Morgoth is Sindarin and means "Dark Enemy", "Black Foe", or "Black Foe of the World". Fëanor actually named him in Quenya, Moriñgotto or Moriñgotho, and this was later translated into Sindarin as Morgoth.

In the context of LoTRO Morgoth's foremost leftover is Sauron, his successor. But there are other, pettier servants who also outlasted Morgoth's utter downfall: the now-autonomous Dragon Hrímil for one, as well as the Belryg Thaurlach and Askâdurs (Durin's Bane).

For more information, see the following link:

• Wikipedia: Morgoth