Deus ex Glorfindel

While we don't have an Elven princess rolling in on a white horse to save the day, we have an immensely powerful Elf-lord from the 1st Age who finds the party and guides them back towards Rivendell. Similar concept, but more believable in Tolkien's words, I feel. I mean, the Nine are pretty much the most badass things outside of Sauron and Saruman in terms of wicked things (not counting Durin's Bane), but yet Elrond sends his daughter - and only child - to find Aragorn and the Hobbits?

Come on.

Anyway, I'm over that because Glorfindel is just too cool.

Glorfindel is a character who also appears in the Silmarillion where he is a lord of Gondolin, the last great Elven kingdom in the First Age, and the site of one of the Silmarillion's most famous scenes. The Fall of Gondolin is the story of how Morgoth found the location of the last Elven kingdom that defied him and sent his hordes of dragons, balrogs, and orcs to take it. The Fall of Gondolin is also the earliest story that Tolkien wrote. The earliest part is from 1916, when he wrote while in the trenches of World War 1. This is a full forty years before LOTR is published. Crazy.

Glorfindel was a powerful lord of the city and fought fiercely, including 1-1 combat with dragons to buy time for his House to escape. It was during this battle that Ecthelion, Captain of the Gondolin Guard, faced the chief of the Balrogs - Gothmog - in single combat AND WON!

But while Ecthelion is being a mad boss, he also died during the fight and won on the technicality that he just pushed Gothmog into the central fountain which extinguished his flame, killing Gothmog. Technicality.

Glorfindel and the Balrog by Ted Nasmith

Glorfindel is continuing to leading the people of the city out through secret ways and they are ambushed by an army of orcs lead by another Balrog! This time, Glorfindel faces him 1-1 and after a long and tiring combat, defeated the Balrog fairly and decisively. As the Balrog fell from the mountain, he reached up and grabbed Glorfindel, pulling him to his death. 

This action allowed the human hero Tuor to survive. Tuor is the most famous man of the First Age (outside of his cousin Turin) and is the only human to ever earn the honor of sailing to Valinor and becoming immortal. What a boss.

Glorfindel and the Balrog by HectorBetancur

Because of Glorfindel's bravery and pure dedication to saving his people, his spirit was revived by Manwe so he could live again. LITERALLY, DEATH CANNOT BEAT THIS DUDE.

So Glorfindel spends the next several hundred years in Valinor where he is now nearly as powerful as the Maiar (Gandalf, Saruman, Sauron, etc). He spends a lot of time with Olorin (Gandalf's name before he came across the sea) and they became good friends. Sometime around the forging of the Ring, Glorfindel returns to Middle-Earth to aid Gil Galad and Elrond in their fight against Sauron.

So this bad-ass is the one that Elrond sends to find Frodo.

I'm a huge fan of Glorfindel and he is one of my favorite characters in the entire legendarium.