Bain of Lake-town

For his grandson, the King of Dale, see King Bain. For the Dunlending in Lhan Rhos, see Bain.

Biography: Bain of Lake-town
Birth - Death	Third Age Circa 2850
Race:	Man
Gender:	Male
Ancestor(s):	Bródda ⁞ Girion ⁞ Brandjarn ⁞
	Bain of Lake-town
Child(ren):	Bard the Bowman
Descendant(s):	⁞ King Bain ⁞ Brand ⁞ Bard II
Info:	Archer of Lake-town

Bain of Lake-town was a descendant of Girion, last Lord of Dale, and grandson of Brandjarn, who had preserved the final Black Arrow after the fall of Dale and Erebor to Smaug. Living in exile among the Men of Lake-town, Bain continued his family's quiet tradition of archery and safeguarded the hidden legacy that would one day restore the kingship of Dale.

After the destruction of Dale in 2770 of the Third Age, Girion's son Brandjarn fled south and concealed his lineage, taking the shortened name "Brand". The Black Arrow, once a public token of alliance between Dale and the Dwarves of Erebor, became a closely guarded family heirloom. From Brand it passed to his son, and from him to his grandson Bain.

In Lake-town, Bain entered the service of the settlement as an archer. Though the glory of Dale had long since faded into memory, the discipline and martial tradition of his house endured in him. The arrow he possessed was no mere relic but the last surviving token of the ancient pledge between the line of Bródda and the Dwarf-king Thrór.

Bain in turn passed the Black Arrow to his son, Bard. When Smaug descended upon Lake-town, Bard stood where Girion once had stood beneath the dragon's shadow. With the arrow preserved through Brandjarn and Bain, Bard struck Smaug in his weak place and slew him. After the dragon's fall, Bard's descent from Girion was revealed, and he was hailed as King of Dale. Thus Bain, though not himself a lord or king, formed a vital link in the survival of his house. Through his stewardship of the arrow and the traditions of his fathers, the long exile of Dale ended and its royal line was restored.