All 7 Types of Ring in The Lord of the Rings, Ranked by Power
CBR, bSterling Ulrich
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J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings and Peter Jackson's trilogy of film adaptations revolved around the One Ring, a small, golden artifact that decided the fate of all Middle-earth. Yet, as Gandalf told Bilbo Baggins in Jackson's The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, "There are many magic rings in this world… and none of them are to be used lightly."
In the Second Age of Middle-earth, the Dark Lord Sauron assumed the fair guise of Annatar to guide Celebrimbor and the other Elven smiths of Eregion in the creation of several Rings of Power. Tolkien's legendarium also included a few noteworthy rings that were not created by Sauron or Celebrimbor. The abilities of these rings were sometimes vague, but Tolkien's quotes made clear which were the most powerful.
The Ring of Barahir United Two of Middle-earth's Most Important Families
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Though Tolkien enjoyed writing about pieces of jewelry with magical properties, one of Middle-earth's most significant rings possessed no such abilities: the Ring of Barahir. Though it was not a Ring of Power, it played a key role in the First Age of Middle-earth, as explained in the section "Of the Ruin of Beleriand and the Fall of Fingolfin" from The Silmarillion. The Ring of Barahir once belonged to Galadriel's brother, Finrod Felagund. During the Dagor Bragollach, or Battle of the Sudden Flame, a Man named Barahir saved Finrod's life.
Finrod gave his ring to Barahir as a token of thanks and "swore an oath of abiding friendship and aid in every need to Barahir and all his kin." Barahir's son, Beren, later presented his father's ring to Finrod to enlist his aid in the quest to steal a Silmaril from the Dark Lord Morgoth, which resulted in the Elf's brutal death. Aragorn, a descendant of Barahir, eventually inherited the ring. He wore it throughout Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy, but in the novel, he instead gave it to his beloved Arwen as a betrothal gift a few decades before the War of the Ring began.
Saruman Attempted to Recreate the One Ring in The Lord of the Rings
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Jackson excluded one of The Lord of the Rings' magic rings from his trilogy. In the novel, Saruman the White -- or Saruman of Many Colors, as he preferred to be called after his fall to evil -- forged a Ring of Power for himself in imitation of the One Ring. Though Saruman was a skilled craftsman, having once studied under the godlike smith Aulë, he was unable to replicate the work of Sauron or Celebrimbor.
According to The Lord of the Rings' foreword, there were "missing links in [Saruman's] researches into Ring-lore" that he could only have found in Mordor. Tolkien did not indicate what abilities, if any, Saruman's ring granted him, though some fans have theorized that it helped him manipulate characters like Gríma Wormtongue. Saruman's ring must not have been too powerful, because Gandalf's only concern regarding it was that it showcased his old friend's obsession with Sauron's creations.
Middle-earth Was Home to Countless Rings of Minor Power
In addition to the twenty Great Rings of Power with which most The Lord of the Rings fans are familiar, Sauron and the Elves of Eregion created many "lesser rings" while perfecting their skills. In the chapter "The Shadow of the Past" from The Fellowship of the Ring, Gandalf told Frodo Baggins, "The lesser rings were only essays in the craft before it was full-grown, and to the Elven-smiths they were but trifles."
Like the One Ring, these lesser rings were plain in appearance, and at least some of them could bestow invisibility by causing their wearers to shift into the Unseen World. Gandalf initially believed that the ring Bilbo discovered in Gollum's cave was one of these lesser rings, hence his lack of immediate worry. Despite that, the lesser rings could still be dangerous, especially in the hands of mortals who did not comprehend their power.
The Seven Rings Multiplied the Dwarves' Riches Before The Lord of the Rings
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Contrary to what was shown in Prime Video's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, the Seven Rings given to the Dwarf-lords were no different from the Nine Rings given to mortal Men. However, their effects varied depending on the race of their wearers. Dwarves were naturally hardy and resistant to evil, so both the benefits and the drawbacks of the Seven Rings were lessened.
The Dwarf-lords who wielded the Seven Rings did not have extended lifespans and could not turn invisible, but they also did not become thralls to Sauron like the wearers of the Nine Rings. According to the section "Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age" from The Silmarillion, the Dwarves "used their rings only for the getting of wealth; but wrath and an overmastering greed of gold were kindled in their hearts."
The Nine Rings Created Sauron's Deadliest Servants
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Men were able to put their Rings of Power to greater use than the Dwarves. In the same section, Tolkien wrote, "Those who used the Nine Rings became mighty in their day, kings, sorcerers, and warriors of old. They obtained glory and great wealth... They had, as it seemed, unending life… They could walk, if they would, unseen by all eyes in this world beneath the sun, and they could see things in worlds invisible to mortal men."
However, the power of the Nine Rings came at a terrible price. Over time, these Men transformed into the Nazgûl, or Ringwraiths. Their physical forms faded away, leaving them permanently invisible, and they lost all free will. They were cursed to carry out Sauron's bidding for thousands of years until the source of his power, the One Ring, was destroyed.
The Three Rings Repelled Sauron's Armies in The Lord of the Rings
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The Three Rings -- Narya, Nenya, and Vilya -- were unique among the Rings of Power in that Sauron had no hand in their creation. They were crafted by Celebrimbor alone as gifts to his fellow Elves. Though they were still subject to the One Ring as a result of Celebrimbor using Sauron's techniques, they were not inherently evil like the others. By the time of The Lord of the Rings, the Three Rings belonged to Gandalf, Galadriel, and Elrond.
The effects of the Three Rings were not as flashy as those of the Seven or the Nine, but they were even more powerful. They were tools of healing and preservation, allowing the Elven realms to remain safe and splendorous even as the rest of Middle-earth decayed. Appendix B of The Lord of the Rings claimed, "The power that dwelt [in Lothlórien] was too great for any to overcome, unless Sauron had come there himself."
The One Ring Was The Lord of the Rings' Most Dangerous Artifact
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Sauron was a divine Maia spirit akin to a fallen angel, and he had poured most of his own strength into the One Ring, making it a weapon without equal in the Third Age. The One Ring bestowed the same abilities as the Nine, but to a far greater degree, and it allowed its user to read and control the minds of those who wore the other Rings of Power. Further, while most Rings of Power could be melted by the fiery breath of a great dragon, the One Ring was indestructible except in the lava of Mount Doom.
The One Ring multiplied the inherent power of the Ring-bearer, so Gollum was no great threat when he possessed it, but on the finger of a Maia or a powerful Elf, the One Ring could conquer the world. The very words inscribed upon the One Ring were proof of its superiority over all others: "One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them." Not counting the metaphorical Morgoth's Ring, the One Ring was easily The Lord of the Rings' strongest.
Sterling Ulrich is a Senior Staff Writer for CBR. He was a summa cum laude graduate of Aquinas College with a Bachelor of Arts in English with a Literature Emphasis and a minor in History. He has in-depth academic and pop-cultural knowledge of J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium.
