Sauron

## Biographical information

### Other names

Thû the Necromancer, Mairon, Annatar, Artano, Gorthaur the Cruel, the Enemy, the Dark Power, the Great Eye (TA only), the Necromancer, the Lord of the Rings, the Sorcerer, the Black Hand, the Nameless Enemy, Thauron, Thû, Sauron the Great, Sauron the Deceiver, Sauron the Dark, the Shadow in the East, the Shadow, the Dark Lord, the Great Enemy, the Enemy of the Free Peoples of Middle-earth, the One, Servant of Morgoth , The God-King

### Titles

Abhorred, Sauron the Great, Necromancer, Dark Lord, Lord of Mordor, Lord of Gifts, Lord of Barad-dûr, Lord of the Earth, Lord of the Rings, Lord of Wolves, Lord of Angband, God-King, King of Men, King of the World, Lord of the Dark, Lord of Angband (Before FA only), Father of All

### Weapon

One Ring, Mace, Sword, Sorcery, Powers of the Maiar

## Physical description

### Height

Various, 9 feet 2.1 inches (2.78 metres) (film)

### Culture

Ainur (formerly), Maiar of Aulë (formerly), Dark Servants of Morgoth

## Peter Jackson's films or other media

### Actor

Sala Baker (The Lord of the Rings Film Trilogy)Benedict Cumberbatch (The Hobbit Film Trilogy)

### Voice

Alan Howard (The Lord of the Rings Film Trilogy)Benedict Cumberbatch (The Hobbit Film Trilogy)Steve Blum (Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, Middle-earth: Shadow of War)

> "*Build me an army, worthy of Mordor!*"
> ― Sauron to Saruman - *The Fellowship of the Ring* film
>
>

**Sauron** (or **Þauron**(**Thauron**); Quenya; IPA: [ˈsaʊron] or Vanyarin; IPA: [ˈθaʊron] - "The Abhorred"), the eponymous **Lord of the Rings**, also known as the **Dark Lord**, the **Shadow** or the **Enemy**, was a fallen Maia, the creator of the One Ring, the most skilled of Aulë's smiths and the greatest servant of Morgoth. After the latter's defeat in the First Age, Sauron became the second Dark Lord seeking to once again conquer Arda by creating the Rings of Power. In the Second Age, he was defeated in the War of the Last Alliance by the last line of defense: Elves and Men under kings Gil-galad and Elendil.

During the battle, Isildur managed to cut off Sauron's finger with the Ring on it, causing the destruction of his corporeal form and scattering his armies. After spending hundreds of years lying dormant and slowly regaining his strength, Sauron returned to power in the Third Age, but was finally defeated in the War of the Ring through the destruction of the One Ring by Frodo Baggins.

## History

### Before the Creation of Arda

#### One of the Ainur

Sauron was originally a Maia of Aulë the Smith; his name then was **Mairon**, meaning "the admirable." He learned much from Aulë in the ways of forging and crafting, becoming a great craftsman, and mighty in the lore of Aulë's people. Although he was a Maia spirit, and not as mighty as the Valar, Mairon was one of the strongest Maiar, if not the strongest, being far stronger than others such as Olorin and Curumo (who was also a servant of Aulë) and the equal of Eönwë.

During this time, Mairon was as Eru had created him: good and incorrupt. His greatest virtue was his love of order and perfection - his dislike of anything wasteful. However, this would also prove to be the cause of his downfall, for in Melkor, Mairon saw the will and power that would help him achieve his own goals and desires faster than if he had pursued them on his own. During his stay in Numenor, Sauron coerced Men to worship Morgoth even after the latter's fall, though Tolkien later said that it was not out of devotion or admiration, but because the Maia was weaker now after his capture and could hardly propound himself as a god, though in his time as Dark Lord, Sauron demanded that his servants recognize his lordship and worship him as the one true god (but this was only after he became certain of Morgoth's permanent defeat).

#### Joining with Melkor

After joining with Melkor, Mairon maintained his appearance of being faithful to the Valar, but secretly fed information about their dealings to the fallen Ainu. It was only when Melkor established his strongholds in Middle-earth that Sauron left the Blessed Realms and openly declared himself, and ever after remained a foe of the Valar and the Free Peoples of Middle-earth.

The Sindar in Beleriand called him **Gorthaur**, meaning "dread abomination",[4] and to the Ñoldor, he was named **Sauron**, meaning "the abhorred" or "the abominable" (a mockery of his original name).

### First Age

> "*Thou base, thou cringing worm! Stand up, and hear me! And now drink the cup that I have sweetly blent for thee! Thou fool: a phantom thou didst see that I, I Sauron, made to snare thy lovesick wits. Naught else was there. Cold'tis with Sauron's wraiths to wed! Thy Eiliniel! She is long since dead, dead, food of worms less low than thou. And yet thy boon I grant thee now: to Eiliniel thou soon shalt fo, and lie in her bed, no more to know of war - or manhood. Have thy pay!*"
> ― Sauron to Gorlim, before the latter's death
>
>

During the First Age, the Ñoldorin Elves left the Blessed Realm of Valinor in the Utter West (against the counsel of the Valar) in order to wage war on Morgoth, who had stolen the Silmarils of Fëanor, enchanted gems that glowed with light from the now-destroyed Trees of Valinor. In that war, Sauron was counted as the "greatest of Morgoth's servants that have names". He was soon feared as a lord of terrible phantoms and dreadful beasts--a shape shifter, sorcerer, and a cunning servant of his dark master.

Before Melkor's captivity, Sauron controlled the fortress of Angband and commanded all of the Dark Lord's followers. When the Vala Tulkas came and captured Melkor, Sauron had already fled and was not found. He led the forces within and under him the servants of Morgoth multiplied until the Black Foe returned.
When Melkor left Angband to corrupt the newly awakened Atani (Men), Sauron directed the war against the Elves.[6] He conquered the Elvish isle of Tol Sirion, so that it became known as *Tol-in-Gaurhoth*, the Isle of Werewolves. He was the Lord of the Werewolves there, and Draugluin was the sire of the Werewolves. Sauron's herald was the vampire Thuringwethil.

After Dagor Bragollach, Sauron's hunters brought Gorlim and questioned him of Barahir's, father of Beren, location. Gorlim told them none, until Sauron himself came forth and bartered with the man. Gorlim asked for his wife Eilinel, whom he thought captured. Thus, the Lord of Angband agreed and Gorlim yielded the information. However, Sauron revealed that Eilinel was dead, and he put Gorlim to death afterward. During the Quest for the Silmaril, Beren and Finrod King of Nargothrond were captured by Gorthaur. There Finrod and Sauron fought songs of power. He stripped them off their Orc disguises and cast them into the dark pits where werewolves devoured their companions. When a werewolf came to attack Beren, Finrod wrestled with it and passed away from his injuries.

Soon afterward, Lúthien and Huan the wolf-hound arrived at the bridge of Tol-in-Gaurhoth. Sauron sent wolves to capture Lúthien, but all were slain by Huan. One of them was Draugluin, but he fled and told his master that Huan was there. Therefore, the fallen Maia disguised himself as a werewolf and leaped to attack Lúthien. Huan sprang and subdued Sauron. He yielded the tower to Lúthien and escaped in a form of a vampire.

After his defeat by Lúthien, Sauron played little part in the events of the First Age (possibly hiding from his master's wrath or fearing the Host of Valinor's might), but after the fallen Vala was defeated and cast into the Void, Sauron seemed to repent and plead to Eönwë and the victorious Host of the West for mercy. Although his plea possibly even genuine (or at least out of being dismayed by Morgoth's fall), Sauron was unwilling to return to the Utter West for judgment (due to fearing a similar fate to that of the Dark Enemy or out of pride) and so he fled and hid somewhere in Middle-earth.

### Second Age

> "*Men called him Thû, and as a god in days after bewildered bowed to him, and made his ghastly temples in the shade*"
> ― On Men worshipping Sauron in Numenor
>
>

#### The Rings of Power

After lying hidden and dormant for 500 years, he began revealing himself once more, and by SA 1000 he gathered his power and established himself in the land of Mordor in eastern Middle-earth and began building the dreaded Dark Tower of Barad-dûr near Mount Doom. Sauron, like Morgoth, soon began raising massive armies of Orcs, Trolls, and other creatures, as well as corrupting the hearts of Men with delusions of power and wealth, chiefly Easterlings and Southrons (the Haradrim).

Although Sauron knew that men were easier to sway, he sought to bring the Elves into his service, as they were far more powerful. By about SA 1500, Sauron put on a fair visage in the Second Age, and calling himself Annatar, the "Lord of Gifts", he befriended the Elvish smiths of Eregion, including Celebrimbor, greatest of craftsman as he was descended from Fëanor, and counseled them in arts and magic. Not all the Elves trusted him, particularly Lady Galadriel, Elrond, and Gil-galad, High King of the Ñoldor.

To the elves who listened, Sauron gave knowledge and encouragement in forging the Rings of Power, though in secret Sauron forged his own, the One Ring, to rule the Elvish rings. Upon that ring Sauron left the black speech inscription, *Ash nazg durbatulûk, ash nazg gimbatul, ash nazg thrakatulûk, agh burzum-ishi krimpatul.* In Westron the inscription translated into: *One Ring to Rule Them All, One Ring to Find Them, One Ring to Bring Them All, and in the Darkness Bind Them.*

However, as soon as Sauron put the Ring on his finger the Elves sensed his treachery, and removed their rings and hid them. Enraged, the Dark Lord came against them in open war and demanded that all the Rings of Power be given to him. The Elves managed to hide the three greatest of the Rings from him, but the other sixteen Rings of Power were either captured by Sauron, destroyed, or lost. To the Dwarves he had given Seven, but to Men he had given Nine, knowing that they would be the easiest to enslave. The Dwarf Lords who received the Rings proved to be very resistant to their power, and neither "faded" nor became enslaved to Sauron's will. The Rings, however, created in them an insatiable lust for gold, which ultimately caused a great deal of grief for the Dwarves.

As Sauron predicted, the nine Men were all corrupted by their Rings and became the Nazgûl, Sauron's deadliest and most cruel servants. Had the Elves not recognized the Dark Lord's treachery and forsaken the power of their rings, the results would have been catastrophic for the Free Peoples of Middle-earth. It seems that most if not all of the native Men of Middle-earth succumbed to the power of the Ring once the Nazgûl were created; the Númenóreans were spared because of their distance. The Elves, had they been captured in this fashion, would have become the slaves of Sauron, and thus Celebrimbor's resistance was of immense importance in the history of Middle-earth.

In this era, during which he marshalled and commanded great armies, Sauron became known as the Dark Lord of Mordorand his fortress of Barad-dûr was completed. He was very powerful even without control of the Elves, and he conquered nearly all of Middle-earth during the War of the Elves and Sauron. However, the armies of Númenór's King Tar-Minastirwere finally able to defeat him at a last battle near Gwathló or the Greyflood in SA 1700. Defeated but not vanquished, Sauron retreated back to Mordor and began recouping his strength over the many centuries.

Towards the end of the Second Age, Sauron was once again powerful enough to raise again large armies to attempt to rule Middle-earth. By this time, he assumed the titles of "**Lord of the Earth**" and "**King of Men**". Sauron's rise in power and apparent intention to crown himself the King of all Men offended the Númenóreans; the powerful Men descended from those who had fought against Melkor in the War of Wrath. Some were the descendants, through Elros, of Beren and Lúthien.

#### Master of Puppets

These Men lived on the island of Númenor in the sea between Middle-earth and Valinor. The Númenóreans, who were then proud, came to Middle-earth with astounding force of arms. King Ar-Pharazôn, who desired no less than the kingship of Middle-earth, marched his troops all the way to Mordor without a single battle, and demanded that Sauron abase himself before the King. Sauron could see clearly that even the most powerful of his servants could not stand against the Númenóreans, and so came from Barad-dûr without any offer of battle. He assumed a fair form and flattered Ar-Pharazôn, but the King demanded that Sauron come back to Númenor as a hostage. Sauron feigned unhappiness at this development but secretly was delighted, for this presented him with an opportunity to destroy the Númenóreans from within. After only a few short years in Númenor he grew from captive to the King's most trusted adviser, and nearly all the King's court fawned upon him. Drawing on their fear of death, he converted many Númenóreans to the worship of Morgoth, lying that the First Dark Lord had the power to control life and death. As his power and influence reached its peak, he raised a great Temple in which he performed human sacrifices to Melkor, though eventually he demanded that he himself be worshipped as the one true god (but this was only when he became certain of Morgoth's permanent defeat and that the Valar had ceased any action on Arda). Finally, he convinced Ar-Pharazôn to rebel against the Valar and attack Valinor itself and claim it for himself.

But here, Sauron's cunning and self-loathing overreached itself, for Eru then directly intervened - Númenor was drowned under the sea, and the great navy of Númenor was destroyed and the army that reached Aman was buried under mountains of falling rock and imprisoned in the Caves of the Forgotten. The world was bent, so that thereafter, only Elven-Ships could sail into the Utter West. Sauron's body was destroyed, but his spirit was not diminished, and he fled back to Mordor bearing the Ring, where he slowly rebuilt a new body and his strength during the time known as the Dark Years. From this point on, he lost the ability to assume a fair shape, and ruled now through terror and force. A few faithful Númenóreans led by Elendilwere saved from the flood, and they founded Gondor and Arnor in Middle-earth.

#### Loss of the One Ring

After learning that Elendil, whom he had most hated, had survived and was ordering a realm on his borders, Sauron, after a while, made war with them. He struck too soon, however, and had not restored most of his strength, whereas the Elven-king, Gil-galadhad increased his power on Middle-earth in his absence. Therefore, when Gil-Galad allied with Elendil to create the Last Alliance and together fought Sauron, they finally defeated his armies at the Battle of Dagorlad, and laid siege to Barad-dûr for seven years. Finally, Sauron himself came forth and dueled both Elendil and Gil-galad, slaying them both singlehandedly. Then Isildur, son of Elendil, took up his father's broken sword, Narsil and cut the One Ring from Sauron's finger. Sauron's physical body was destroyed. With nearly all of his power stored in the ring, he was vanquished when it was cut from his finger. Without their leader's dark will driving them on, Sauron's armies were routed and fled, and thus, his campaign to defeat the free peoples was seemingly ended, and his greatest weapon taken from him.

But while Isildur had taken the ring, he could not bring himself to destroy it in the fires of Mount Doom where it was forged, instead he became corrupted by the One Ring and kept it for himself. He was eventually betrayed by it a few years later, and slain by Orcs at Gladden Fields. The Ring fell into the river Anduin, and was lost for centuries before being found by the two Stoorish friends Sméagoland Déagol.

### Third Age

Despite his defeat, Sauron was not vanquished permanently. Though greatly weakened, and in non-corporeal form, he still existed, due to pouring most of his native power, strength, and will into the One Ring. Thus, as long as it existed, he could never be truly defeated, and during the first thousand years of the Third Age, he lay in hiding, slowly recovering his strength until he was once again able to create a body for himself.

#### The Necromancer of Dol Guldur

In the year TA 1000, Sauron at last began to rise again, taking the stronghold of Dol Guldur, the Hill of Sorcery, in southern Mirkwood in TA 1050. There, he was disguised as a dark sorcerer known as "**the** **Necromancer**", and the Elves did not realize at first that he was actually Sauron returned.

Around this time, the Valar sent the five Wizards, or Istari, including Gandalf the Grey, who later became Gandalf the White, to oppose Sauron and rally the free peoples of Middle-earth against him.

While Sauron continued to gather his strength, the Ringwraiths reappeared in the year TA 1300, and began steadily assaulting the Numenorian kingdoms in exile until, one by one, they fell. Whether the Witch King was acting on his own, or was being guided by Sauron, is not known.

Suspecting that the mysterious "Necromancer of Dol Guldur" was a Nazgûl, the wizard Gandalf infiltrated the fortress in TA 2063 to confirm his theory, but Sauron fled into the East to conceal his identity. This marked the beginning of the Watchful Peace, which ended with Sauron's return to Dol Guldur in TA 2460. During the same year, the One Ring was finally discovered by the stoor Sméagol and his friend Déagol.

Gandalf the Grey made a second intrusion into Dol Guldur in TA 2850, and finally discovered that the Necromancer was indeed Sauron. Eventually, the White Council put forth their might and drove Sauron from Dol Guldur permanently in TA 2941. Without the Ring in his possession, Sauron could draw on only the smallest fraction of its strength, so that his enemies were able to drive him from Dol Guldur with relative ease. However, the Dark Lord, having had ample time to prepare, was willing to abandon Dol Guldur, and returned to Mordor, where he openly declared himself in TA 2951, and began preparations for his final war against the free peoples of Middle-earth.

#### War of the Ring

Sauron bred immense armies of Orcs and allied with and enslaved Men from the east and south. He gathered his most terrifying servants, the Nazgûl (*airi* in Quenyan), or Ringwraiths, each wearing one of the nine rings designed for mortal men. He adopted the symbol of a lidless eye, and was able to exert his will over Middle-earth, so that the Eye of Sauron became a symbol of power and fear.

After the creature Gollum, originally the stoor-hobbit Sméagol who had originally found the ring, was captured, Sauron had him tortured and learned that he once had a magic ring, and from him he heard the words *Shire* and *Baggins*. He deduced that Gollum's ring was the One Ring, and sent his servants, the dreaded Nazgûl, to find *Shire* and search for *Baggins,* so that the One Ring might be found and returned to him.

Meanwhile, Sauron had allied with Saruman the White (another fallen Maia, or Istari), whom he had ensnared into his service, expecting the wizard to move against Rohan and thus remove one of the major threats Sauron faced in his planned conquest of Gondor and the remaining Elves. Saruman failed however, and Sauron lost his most potent ally as well as Saruman's massive orc army of Uruk-hai.

Shortly after Saruman's defeat, Peregrin Took looked into the Palantír that Saruman had possessed and accidentally communicated with Sauron, who believed that Saruman had captured either the Halflings bearing the Ring, or some who might know of it. However, shortly thereafter Aragorn took the Palantir and revealed himself to Sauron with the intent of causing him unease. Upon seeing Aragorn, Sauron realized that Saruman had fallen and concluded that the heir of Isildur carried the One Ring. Fearful that his enemies would use the Ring against him, Sauron sped up his plans and attacked the city of Minas Tirith in Gondor sooner than he had planned, seeking to raze the city and crush last true human resistance to his rule before his enemies could fortify it.

Fortunately, due to the combined efforts of Gondor, Rohan, and the Dúnedain of Arnor, Sauron's army was defeated. Despite still possessing more than enough armies to destroy Minas Tirith and enough military strength to easily conquer Middle-earth once Gondor fell, doubt began to grow on Sauron. As such, he watched and waited, hoping for a period of strife between Aragorn and other potential Ringlords in which he could move out and take the Ring for himself.

Despite their successful repulsion of Sauron's armies at Minas Tirith, Gandalf and Aragorn knew that the bulk of Sauron's forces remained in Mordor, readying themselves for another, deadlier strike against the city. Filled as Mordor was with Sauron's troops, Frodo stood almost no chance of reaching Mt. Doom undetected. In light of the situation, Aragorn called for a council consisting of the major commanders of all the forces present in Minas Tirith, and appointed Gandalf to be their overlord until the crisis had passed. Gandalf made it clear to all those present that, despite their great victory, they ultimately could not hope to defeat Sauron's armies by force. Therefore, they had two options available. They could station their remaining force, considerably greater than it had been before the battle due to the reinforcements from Rohan and southern Gondor, at Minas Tirith and hope to endure Sauron's next attack. Or, they could take a force to the Black Gate and attempt to challenge Sauron directly. This force, as Gandalf suggested, would only need to be great enough to challenge battle, and the rest of their forces could remain behind to garrison Minas Tirith. This option, though suicidal for all those involved, would serve to distract Sauron from gazing into his own land, through which the Ringbearer would be trekking. Furthermore, Gandalf theorized that once Sauron learned that a force too small to pose any real threat to him was on its way to the Black Gate to directly assault Mordor, that he would likely believe that whomever was leading the attacking force would have the One Ring in their possession. Gandalf believed that Sauron would assume that the Ring itself would influence its wielder, and that in the wielder's pride in his newfound power, he might be foolish enough to challenge Sauron's might with a force too small to assault Mordor in earnest.

Their ploy worked, as Sauron marshaled most of his remaining forces and marched them towards Udun to crush the Men of the West and regain his prize. This action left the Plains of Gorgoroth largely deserted and allowing Frodo and Sam to reach Mt. Doom with far less difficulty than they would have otherwise had. However, once Frodo reached the Crack of Doom, he finally succumbed to the power of the Ring. As he put it on and prepared to leave Mt. Doom, Sauron suddenly became aware of him, immediately drawing his gaze towards the mountain. Though enraged, Sauron was suddenly gripped with terror having realized his own folly, and he frantically sent the Ringwraiths towards the mountain to retrieve the Ring. He was too late however, and Gollum, after taking the Ring from Frodo, slipped and plunged into the Cracks of Doom, and the Ring was unmade. The earth shook as a great shockwave rippled across Mordor, and the foundations of Barad-dûr were finally destroyed, causing the great fortress to fall into ruin once and for all. Mt. Doom was completely destroyed in a cataclysmic eruption that consumed the eight remaining Nazgul, who had left their combat with the Great Eagles to race to Mount Doom, in its fiery ruin.

With his source of power gone, Sauron was utterly defeated and his armies were destroyed or scattered, bereft of the driving will behind their conquest. With the Ring's destruction, Sauron was permanently robbed of his physical form, reducing him to a malevolent spirit that hovered above Mordor as a "huge shape of shadow, impenetrable, lightning-crowned, ...terrible but impotent," only to be blown away by a great wind.

With the destruction of the Ring, the vast majority of Sauron's being and his power was forever lost. With that, Sauron's power was forever crippled, and the threat of his dominion was forever removed.

## Portrayal in adaptations

### The Hobbit Film Trilogy

> "*It has begun. The East will fall. So shall the Kingdom of Angmar rise. The time of the Elves is over. The Age of the Orc has come.*"
> ― Sauron to Galadriel in Black Speech - *The Battle of the Five Armies*
>
>

Sauron's role from *The Hobbit* is greatly expanded in Jackson's *Hobbit* film trilogy. He is voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch.

Sauron appears in *An Unexpected Journey* in the form of a black, humanoid ghost, alluding to Tolkien's description of the Necromancer as a man with blackened skin. He is briefly witnessed in this form by Radagast.

In the *The Desolation of Smaug*, Sauron reveals a greater extent of his powers. He is first seen speaking with Azog, ordering him to break off pursuit of Thorin II Oakenshield, whose head he had promised the Orc, in order to lead his armies. When Gandalf arrives in Dol Guldur to investigate tales of an evil there, Sauron first confronts him as a mass of black smoke. After killing Thráin II and initiating a brief duel with the Grey Wizard, Sauron is able to overpower the wizard and reveals himself as an armored figure within the shape of an enormous, flaming eye.

In *The Battle of the Five Armies*, Galadriel, Elrond, and Saruman (the White Council) travel to Dol Goldur to free Gandalf. There, Sauron releases the *Nazgûl* upon them, but the Ringwraiths are defeated by the Council. It is then that Sauron appears as a spectral armored form within a flaming eye, accompanied within the fire by the Ringwraiths' ghostly forms. Sauron threatens the Council with the fall of the East and the rise of Angmar, but is engaged by Galadriel (in her spectral form) in a magical duel of minds. Sauron cannot overcome Galadriel, and he flees as a ball of fire into the East. Afterward, Saruman promises the Council that he will handle Sauron personally (suggesting his eventual fall).

The extended edition confirms Gandalf's fears of Smaug and Sauron working together for Thrain tells him that "they are in league". Thrain himself is show to be killed by the "Necromancer".

### The Lord of the Rings Film Trilogy

> "*There is no life in the void, only death.*"
> ― Sauron to Frodo Baggins - *The Fellowship of the Ring* film
>
>

Sauron's primary appearance in Peter Jackson's trilogy is as the Eye of Sauron, a titanic, flaming eye atop Barad-dûr; many characters refer to it as "the Eye" or "the Great Eye." His prior physical form was as a massive being clad in nine-foot-tall black armor, seen only in two contexts: in flashbacks to the War of the Last Alliance throughout the trilogy, and very briefly in the center of the Eye in an extended scene with Aragorn and the *palantír* in *The Return of the King*. When Sauron speaks, it is telepathically through the One Ring or the *Palantír*; he is voiced by Alan Howard. Sala Baker portrays his physical form.

As in the books, Sauron is the primary antagonist throughout the films. He is depicted as an almost god-like entity whose mere presence, even when mediated by a medium like the *Palantír*, causes immense pain and injury. Most of his bidding is achieved through his various servants such as the *Nazgûl* and Saruman, who calls him "the Lord of the Earth." Sauron is most extensively depicted in the prologue to *The Fellowship of the Ring*, shown forging the One Ring and leading his armies at the Battle of Dagorlad in the War of the Last Alliance. He wears black armor and a mask based on Tolkien's description of Morgoth in *The Silmarillion*, and wields a giant mace capable of killing scores of men in one hit.

Sauron was originally intended to appear in physical form at the climax of *The Return of the King*, appearing at the Battle of the Morannon to fight Aragorn. However, this was ultimately scrapped from the film due to the fact it was not in the book and the developers believed it would take the main focus away from Sam and Frodo. Furthermore, Jackson believed it would take away from Aragorn's act of sacrifice.

The Eye of Sauron's feline appearance is a reference to the character of "Tevildo" in the first drafts, who took the form of a cat.

### Video games

* In the 2014 *Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor* video game, Sauron appears before Celebrimbor as Annatar, the Lord of Gifts, and deceives him into creating the Rings of Power. After the secret forging of the One Ring, Sauron's Orcs attack Eregion and bring Celebrimbor to Mordor to perfect the One Ring. The Elf lord later escapes Mordor with the Ring and uses its power to challenge Sauron into battle. At the last moment, the Ring slips from Celebrimbor's finger and onto the Dark Lord's. As vengeance, Sauron transforms back into Annatar and proceeds to kill Celebrimbor's family before murdering the Elf smith as well.
* In the 2017 sequel to the above, *Middle-earth: Shadow of War*, he ends up fighting Celebrimbor despite still being weakened by the loss of the One Ring. Despite putting up a good fight, he is overwhelmed by Celebrimbor and his new host Eltariel planning on dominating him with the power of their own New Ring. Before succumbing, he cuts off Eltariel's ring finger like Isildur had done to him years earlier, and consumed Celebrimbor's wraith. While he survives, this forces him into a new form; a burning eye at the top of Barad-dûr, locked in a battle of wills with the elf until the One Ring is destroyed decades later.

* Sauron appears in both *LEGO The Lord of the Rings: The Video Game* and *LEGO The Hobbit: The Video Game*; in the first he is a boss and playable character while he is featured as a playable character in the latter. His boss form appears as a massive CCBS figure-similar to something from LEGO's *Knights Kingdom* line, while as a playable character he appears as a minifigure. In *The Hobbit* game he appears in both Necromancer and fiery armored forms. The first game also features an Annatar minifigure as a downloadable character.

* Sauron also appears in *LEGO Dimensions*, where he has allied himself with the villainous Lord Vortech, though only to use the latter for his own ends. He invades DC Comics' Metropolis and later engages the player in a battle atop a *Doctor Who* Dalek flying saucer; upon defeat he is banished back to the domain of primary game antagonist Lord Vortech, who mocks him for his defeat.

* In *The Lord of the Rings: Conquest*, Sauron is a playable character.
* In *The Lord of the Rings Online*, Annatar was depicted in a mural in the ruins of Tham Mírdain. He was called Antheron (Gift Lord), because Turbine doesn't have the rights to the name Annatar. In the session play quest 'Daughter of Strife' from Volume I: Book XV, where the player takes on the character of Narmaleth, Sauron is also encountered in his disguise of Annatar (Antheron), at the time he taught the elves of Eregion the secrets of the Rings.
* In the strategy game *The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II,*Sauron is one of the Ring Heroes, the other beng Galadriel, which can be summoned when a player successfully finds Gollum and take the One Ring by killing him. He can only be summoned by the evil factions Mordor, Isengard and Goblins. Sauron is one of the strongest, if not, the strongest unit in the game, as he is very hard to kill and able to instantly kill most infantry and cavalry units with his mace. More powerful units, such as Trolls and Ents are still no match for him in small amounts, being easily killed by a few blows of his mace. Sauron is also able to summon fiery rocks from the skies and demoralize enemy units, causing them to run around in panic. When Sauron is killed, he explodes violently, heavily damaging any enemy units in the vicinity. Upon his death, he drops the One Ring, which may be picked up to summon another Ring Hero.

## Servants

* Draugluin (Sire of Werewolves)
* Thuringwethil (Sauron's mistress)
* The Rider (Sauron's hunter)
* Tevildo (Prince of Cats)
* Maeglin (Prince of Gondolin)
* Storlaga (High Priest of Sauronites)
* Scatha (King of Long-worms)
* Miaulë (Sauron's chef)
* Talagand (Sauron's court jester)
* Gorgol (Captain of Sauron's Orcs)
* Smaug (King Under the Mountain)
* Azog (Chieftain of Moria)
* Bolg (Castellan of Gundabad)
* Ogrod (Goblin-King of Goblin-town and paid-mercenary of Sauron)
* Durin's Bane (Balrog of Morgoth)
* Saruman (Lord of Isengard)
* Witch-king of Angmar (Lord of Morgul)
* Ar-Pharazôn (King of Men)
* Gollum (Former Ring-bearer)
* Grishnákh (Captain of Barad-dûr)
* Mouth of Sauron (Sauron's herald)

## "Children" (creatures)

* Orcs
* Orc-demons/Boldogs
* Uruk-hai
* Half-orcs
* Trolls
* Ogres
* Olog-hai
* Half-trolls
* Dragons
* Worms
* Fellbeasts
* Were-worms
* Wolves
* Werewolves
* Wargs
* Watchers
* Riders
* Wraiths
* Stone-giants

## Appearances

* *The Silmarilion*
* *The Hobbit*
* *The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey*
* *The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug*
* *The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies*
* *The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring*
* *The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring* (film)
* *The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers*
* *The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers* (film)
* *The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King*
* *The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King* (film)
* *Unfinished Tales*
* *Beren and Luthien* (2017)