Variags

The Variags were Men from the land of Khand in southeastern Middle-earth.
J.R.R. Tolkien does not describe the Variags closely in any published work.
== History ==
Little about the Variags is told apart from that they fought for Sauron and his allies. In the year TA 1944, the Easterling war band known as the Wainriders came to the south of Mordor and recruited Variags and Haradrim, using their numbers to carry out an assault on Gondor during the Wars of the Wainriders.The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, Annals of the Kings and Rulers, I. "The Númenorean Kings", iv. "Gondor and the Heirs of Anárion"
Hundreds of years later on March 14 - 15 of TA 3019, the Variags fought in the Morgul-host against Gondor at the Battle of the Pelennor Fields.Matthew Ward, A Shadow in the East, 2005, ISBN 1 84154 695 X, p 48
== In adaptations ==
No Variags appear in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, likely due to their Variags' scant appearance and description in the books.
They are featured in The Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game, based mostly on Jackson's films. More often called the Khandish, they are depicted in an oriental, East Asian theme, much like the Easterlings, their close allies. They are portrayed as axe-wielders as well as using bows. They are skilled horsemen in the game, using chariots in battle. They have banners attached to their backs, similarly to the Japanese samurai of the Medieval period.Ibid p 18Ibid pp 4–5
In Standing Stone Games' The Lord of the Rings Online, Variags are first encountered as enemies in Anórien, guarding the road to Minas Tirith against the passage of Rohirrim. Another group of Variags is found in North Ithilien after the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, attempting to retreat home into Khand. Unlike the Easterlings and the Haradrim, the Variags are mercenaries, following Sauron not out of fear or worship but because of the riches promised to them. As such, they hold no real hatred against the Men of the West and at several points players have the option to simply pay them to defuse an armed situation.
==Gallery==
Variags of Khand card art.jpg|Artwork of the Variags of Khand card from the Middle-earth Collectible Card Game.
Khandish horseman artwork.png|Artwork of a Variag horseman from the The Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game
Screen shot 2010-03-22 at 7.31.48 PM.png|thumb|A Variag, by John Howe
VariagsByMcBride.jpg|thumb|Variags as imagined by Angus McBride, in the Middle-earth Collectible Card Game
The Lord of the Rings Online - Variags.jpg|thumb|left|A group of Variags in The Lord of the Rings Online
Variags of Khand Miniatures.png|Variags of Khand The Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game miniatures
==Translations==
Foreign Language 	Translated name
Amharic 	ቫሪኣግስ
Arabic 	فارياجس
Armenian 	Վարիագս
Belarusian Cyrillic 	Варіагс
Bengali 	ভারিয়াগস
Bulgarian Cyrillic 	Варяги
Chinese (Simplified)	了維瑞亞人
Georgian 	ვარიაგები
Greek 	Βάριαγγς
Gujarati 	વેરિઅગ્સ
Hebrew 	ואריאגים
Hindi 	वरिअग्स
Japanese 	ヴァリアグ
Kannada 	ವರಿಅಗ್ಸ್
Kazakh 	Варіагс (Cyrillic) Variags (Latin)
Korean 	바리악
Kyrgyz Cyrillic 	Вариагс
Macedonian Cyrillic 	Вариагс
Marathi 	व्हेरियॅग्ज
Mongolian Cyrillic 	Вариагс
Nepalese 	भेरियाग्स
Pashto 	واریاګس
Persian 	واریاگس ?
Punjabi 	ਵਰਾਇਗੇਟਸ
Sanskrit 	वरिअग्स्
Serbian 	Вариагс (Cyrillic) Variags (Latin)
Sinhalese 	වරිඅග්ස්
Tajik Cyrillic 	Вариагс
Tamil 	வரிஅக்ஸ்
Telugu 	వరిఅగ్స
Ukrainian Cyrillic 	варягів
Urdu 	واریاگس
Uzbek 	Вариагс (Cyrillic) Variags (Latin)
Yiddish 	וואַריאַגס
== References ==
Category:Men
Category:Servants of Sauron
Category:Khand
de:Variags
es:Variags
it:Variaghi di Khand
pl:Variagowie
ru:Вариаги