Zelem-melek

Description

Zelem-melek is an area in the region of Moria. It holds the central area of the vast dwarven kingdom.

Lore

Once a vault of stately terraces and regal halls, the western half of the heart of Khazad-dûm, called Zelem-melek, now struggles to maintain its majesty against an occupying force of bloodthirsty Orc defilers drawn from the armies of Mordor and Isengard. Snarling Goblin totems gloat before defaced Dwarf statues. Bloody shrines to Sauron stake claims in once-honoured halls for the forces of the Shadow. Brutish Orc camps littered with stripped skulls and broken crystals befoul the air with a gruesome stink.

Yet, despite the woeful work of the Enemy’s vandals, the grandeur of Zelem-melek still endures. The tall passageways of the Terraced Halls defy the reach of Goblins. The glow of ancient, crystalline Dwarf-lamps cuts through the smoke of Orc bonfires. Vast halls and towering columns wrought by the Dwarves of old make the Enemy’s minions seem small and petty—at least from afar.

Zelem-melek, as one of the great works of the Dwarves, endures on its own. But to persist in this time of Shadow, it needs heroes willing to brave the hordes and scratch out victories, big and small, amid the chill and the darkness beneath the earth.

The way into Zelem-melek, from the Great Delving to the west, stands crowded with Goblin camps defiling the once-noble halls of the Dwarves.

Travelers entering Moria through the West-gate, in Hollin, may come to Zelem-melek by way of the direct route. Moving due east through the Great Delving, they find themselves under the gaze of the ever-watching, stone eyes of ancestral Dwarves carved into the walls surrounding the entryway to this place. The way leads over the narrow bridge called the Lonely Span, straight into the Terraced Halls.

These proud passageways, though largely intact, now echo with the stomps of Orc and Goblin feet. Be wary. Make haste to the northernmost edge of Zelem-melek, where a shaft of sunlight falls through the stone to break the gloom. This is the Twenty-first Hall, which you’ll come to know well.

Travelers who circle around, taking the longer road through Durin's Way, enter Zelem-melek from the North. That path lets out at the Twenty-first Hall too. To reach Zelem-melek, as the Dwarves say, all roads pass through the Twenty-first Hall.[1]

Locations

• the Twenty-first hall
• the Great Hall of Durin
• the Orcwatch
• The Lonely Span
• the Terraced Halls

Instances

• Battle of the Twenty-first Hall - skirmishs can be found in the Instance Finder

Quests

See Zelem-melek_Quests

Named Creatures Flake Collectors List

Each of these creatures is the rare, signature, tougher, named version and all have a high change to drop a rare flake used in crafting.

Maps

Zelem-melek

Moria

Points of Interest

• Khufdul-tharâkh
• Budkhul-tharâkh
• The Orc-watch
• Uzbad-bakân
• Gabil-hul
• Hall of Flowing Water
• Gabil-mamach
• Mezel-katub
• Skrithûrz-ulíma
• Baiúrz-mur
• The Lonely Span
• The Broad Ways
• The Wide Halls
• The Great Hall of Durin
• Gazatu-ru
• Bult-kâr
• Mormaudhûl
• Mudmul-charâf
• Zurr-tharûkh
• The Chamber of Leadership
• Chamber of Mazarbul
• The Twenty-first Hall (South Arch)
• The Twenty-first Hall (East Arch)
• The Twenty-first Hall (North Arch)
• The Twenty-first Hall