The Book of Knives

Deed Lore

The first four pages of this book can be found on enemies scattered across Angmar, Eregion, and Moria. The last four pages of this book can be found on enemies scattered across Forochel, Moria, and the Misty Mountains.

The Book of Knives was written by a burglar of great renown -- she is even said to have retrieved the choicest gem of a hoard from beneath the grasping claw of a sleeping dragon -- but her true name remains unknown and many doubt the veracity of her most outlandish exploits. Nevertheless, she was acknowledged as one of the finest knife-fighters in Middle-earth during her time.

Sadly, The Book of Knives is incomplete; little can be gleaned from its cryptic writings. The famous burglar Bilbo Baggins is known for his love of riddles and mysteries -- perhaps he might be able to shed some light on this text.

To complete this deed perform the following objective(s)

• The Book of Knives, Page 3

  A section of the introduction, this page suggests that the author was neither modest nor the type to shy from a fight. She was apparently overly fond of causing trouble at inns throughout Eriador. Sometimes going so far as to cheat openly at dice in order to provoke a fight.

• The Book of Knives, Page 5

  This page describes some of the author's favourite knives. It seems that she had an Elf-smith make blades for her as custom pieces which she particularly preferred for their speed and edge. She must have treated them rather roughly, given the sheer number of knives she describes in loving detail.

• The Book of Knives, Page 12

  The author appears to have preferred combat with an unusual level of intensity compared to what one might expect of a burglar. The style she describes emphasizes a degree of closure and commitment to finishing a fight quickly rather than the furtive hit-and-run tactics that one commonly associates with the profession.

• The Book of Knives, Page 17

  It is clear from the context of this page that the author preferred to work alone, without companions. This perhaps explains her dedication to the art of in-fighting and an emphasis on finishing fights up close and as quickly as possible. She likely had few friends or companions to fall back on in times of danger.

• The Book of Knives, Page 18

  This page is difficult to follow as it is covered with sketchy diagrams as well as scrawled text. It seems to be trying to describe some complex movement of the body, but the author was not much of an artist.
  Nevertheless, it does hint at some intriguing ideas you would like to try out....

• The Book of Knives, Page 23

  This page does not seem to have much to do with knife fighting.
  The author seems to have wandered into a rambling recollection of one of her more hair-raising exploits, the details of which are both quite bawdy, and rather too dramatic and unlikely to be an entirely honest account....

• The Book of Knives, Page 26

  A page of painstakingly inked lines and diagrams. It must be describing a particular set of motions.
  Unfortunately, the notes in the margins of the page are impossible to make out, leaving you to do a great deal of guesswork as to what motions this complex web of lines might actually be trying to depict.

• The Book of Knives, Page 31

  This page is a recap of much of what has been described before, but it is surprisingly concise and clear compared to most of what came before, drawing a number of important lines between the stylistic points that she has made previously. Either the author received some editorial assistance with this section, or perhaps she was just sober during its writing.
  In any case, it is an invaluable guide to sorting out the mismatched notes throughout the rest of the book.

Rewards

10 LOTRO Points

Additional Information

• This deed is available for Burglars at level 39.This deed starts by acquiring the legendary book The Book of Knives, then pages need to be collected, see the Legendary Book Pages for more information on page locations.