Creating a Melkor (Tolkien Character)/ Bane character

[FalseKing]

I've recently begun a campaign where my DM has sought to have us to create characters that are in design of either famous book characters or D&D characters, and quite nicely we are predicted to go up to level 40 (For epic level stuff we are using the Librim eternia book of complete prestige) and I was wondering if anyone would be able to help me design a character after my two favorite villains of all time. Melkor from The series of Tolkien or Bane, the fiercest deity and most powerful Tyrant I have ever seen!

[Tvtyrant]

List of Melkor/Morgoth's abilities:

Shapeshifting.
Size changing.
Creating mountains.
Impossible strength.
Creating sentient life (but only freaky things like dragons and Octopus monsters, humanoids are beyond him for some reason.)
Causing volcanic eruptions.
Creating magical armor and weaponry?
Immortality.

Morgoth is clearly a level 17+ Druid. Shapechange, Raise Volcano, Shape Earth, Awaken, does not age. Druid.

[EisenKreutzer]

I hate to be "that guy," but Melkor can't actually create intelligent life, he can only twist and pervert life. Thats how he created the Orcs, for example, by twisting and defiling elves.

[Windstorm]

List of Melkor/Morgoth's abilities:

Shapeshifting.
Size changing.
Creating mountains.
Impossible strength.
Creating sentient life (but only freaky things like dragons and Octopus monsters, humanoids are beyond him for some reason.)
Causing volcanic eruptions.
Creating magical armor and weaponry?
Immortality.

Morgoth is clearly a level 17+ Druid. Shapechange, Raise Volcano, Shape Earth, Awaken, does not age. Druid.

what does that make sauron then? since gandalf is either a paladin or bard depending on who you ask.

[Tvtyrant]

I hate to be "that guy," but Melkor can't actually create intelligent life, he can only twist and pervert life. Thats how he created the Orcs, for example, by twisting and defiling elves.

Actually Dragons are created out of nothing by him, that is why it took so long to make the first few. Mostly he cannot create intelligent life, but mostly when those are similar to humans and thus have "souls."


I would depict Sauron as a level 9 Artificer Lich myself. He uses Polymorph in the Silmarillion, he watches his body die repeatedly and comes back because the ring is his phylactery, he makes magical weapons and armor, and almost all of his powers are based on building things (Baradur for instance.)

Making Mount Doom erupt is the problematic one. I am not sure how to account for that, but pushing Sauron up above level 9 makes it improbable that anyone could win eve.

[Alleran]

what does that make sauron then? since gandalf is either a paladin or bard depending on who you ask.
He was called the Necromancer when he was at Dol Guldur, and the One Ring works well enough as a lich's phylactery, I suppose. Artificer levels might also serve, since he was one of the two highest Maia of Aule the Smith before he was corrupted (the other was Curunir, Saruman).

Gandalf was an Astral Deva/Planetar using Change Shape.

[zimmerwald1915]

what does that make sauron then? since gandalf is either a paladin or bard depending on who you ask.
When people say such things they are referring to powers Gandalf gets from Nenya, not those that are native to him.

[Telonius]

D&D does an extremely poor job at modeling Tolkien's world directly. Some of the underlying assumptions of Tolkien's world (not all that much book-wizardry, a creation mechanic somewhere between Truenaming and Words of Creation, limited numbers of monsters, extreme lack of magical items, near-complete absence of things like Clerics or Favored Souls) bear very little resemblance to the sort of campaign most players think of, when they think of D&D.

That said... Morgoth was generally about warping the land itself, infusing the fabric of Middle-Earth with evil. He was a fearsome combatant, and (when he went out to meet Fingolfin in combat at Dagor Bragollach) wielded a great mace and wore black armor. This seems to exclude Druid (which is a pity, as Blighter would be right up his alley).

He seems to have access to the "Eternity of Torture" spell (Pain domain) which he uses against Hurin.

[FalseKing]

D&D does an extremely poor job at modeling Tolkien's world directly. Some of the underlying assumptions of Tolkien's world (not all that much book-wizardry, a creation mechanic somewhere between Truenaming and Words of Creation, limited numbers of monsters, extreme lack of magical items, near-complete absence of things like Clerics or Favored Souls) bear very little resemblance to the sort of campaign most players think of, when they think of D&D.

That said... Morgoth was generally about warping the land itself, infusing the fabric of Middle-Earth with evil. He was a fearsome combatant, and (when he went out to meet Fingolfin in combat at Dagor Bragollach) wielded a great mace and wore black armor. This seems to exclude Druid (which is a pity, as Blighter would be right up his alley).

He seems to have access to the "Eternity of Torture" spell (Pain domain) which he uses against Hurin.

To this I agree greatly. Melkor (Morgoth) in the Silmarils displayed mainly the power o corrupt the land and the creatures around him. In my fashion of conversion into D&D style classes that I understand, is that he most likely would be a combination of a Cleric (Hence his summoning of Demons and such), Blighter (Corruption and destruction of the land), and either Paladin of Tyranny/Fighter/Barbarian, these so far seem to stand out most to me. And as for ALL of his powers, well in D&D, that is where one goes about and gets artifacts, and seeks to become a god, for.

And of course I'm not asking for the most clear cut interpretation of Melkor in the world, that would take a lot of rereadings of the Silmarils for that king od goal. My main goal is to create essentially a Tyrant who has great magical power and of course physical might. (Also hence why I mentioned the Librim eternia post, its on google, its a post on GITP so the epic classes are there to see and experiment with) My main view is that he would probably be a mix of Cleric and barbarian in my mind, any other ideas to add on, or more possible analysis is needed?