Under-deeps

The Pûkel-deeps by Rob Alexander
Under-deeps
General Information
Location	Underneath Middle-earth
People and History
Created	Spring of Arda
Gallery	Images of the Under-deeps

”

We fought far under the living earth … till at last he fled into dark tunnels. They were not made by Durin’s folk, Gimli son of Glóin. Far, far below the deepest delvings of the Dwarves, the world is gnawed by nameless things.

Gandalf in The Two Towers, "The White Rider"

The Under-deeps were a vast subterranean network invented by Iron Crown Enterprises for Middle-earth Role Playing, stretching throughout Middle-earth but being particularly associated with Moria. Spelled as Underdeeps, they reappear in Decipher's Roleplaying Game, though seemingly limited to Moria.

They were introduced to the Middle-earth Collectible Card Game in the Dark Minions expansion, and are also referred to in Decipher's card game.

History in Middle-earth Role Playing

The Under-deeps were formed by Morgoth during the Spring of Arda, by joining various volcanic caverns into a vast network. They spread from Utumno to the Iron Mountains and from Misty Mountains to the Orocarni. Morgoth's servants used them as hidden passages to avoid the Valar. The core of the Under-deeps survived the War of Wrath, and so do some of Morgoth's servants and creatures, though many of the passages are blocked or hidden.

• The Iron Road, leading from East to West, connected Uax, Utumno, and Thangorodrim
• The Oldest Road, leading from North to South, connected Carn Dûm, Gundabad, Moria, and the Glittering Caves
• The Red Road, leading from North to South, connected Uax and Sammath Helcar
• The Black Road, leading from East to West, connected Moria, Dol Guldur and Barad-dûr
• The White Road, leading from East to West, connected the Glittering Caves and Dunharrow
• The Grey Road, leading from East to West, connected Gundabad and Sammath Maeglom (in the Grey Mountains)
• The Gold Road, leading from North to South, connected Ôlbamarl (in Khand) and Laurafelya
• The Yellow Road, leading from East to West, connected Sammath Fhûl (in the Yellow Mountains) and Sambi Mornya

Of these, the Oldest Road (named so despite being younger than the Iron Road) was the most intact. Moria lay on a junction of this road with the Black Road, and Dwarves believe Mahal chose this on purpose to contest Morgoth's dominance.

When the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm transformed Hwáin's Well into a mineshaft, hoping to find mithril, they inadvertently broke into the Under-deeps. This allowed Durin's Bane to enter Khazad-dûm. Soon after the Dwarves managed to construct a Stone of Sealing to seal off the Under-deeps for good, but it was captured by the Balrog before it could be used. The recovery of this Stone was what finally allowed the Dwarves to retake Khazad-dûm in the Fourth Age.

Lay-out in Middle-earth Collectible Card Game

Expanding upon the Moria supplement, the card game adds specifics sites, and routes to travel between them.

Double-lined routes could only be traveled by the Balrog.

Under-forges (Northern Waste)	━━	Iron-deeps (Carn Dûm)	━━	Under-leas (Mount Gundabad)	══	Wind-deeps (Grey Mountains)	══	Rusted-deeps (Iron Hills)
		┃	⟋	┃	⟍
		Under-Vaults (Mount Gram)		┃		Under-grottos
		║		┃	⟋
		Drowning-deeps (Blue Mountains)		Under-gates (Moria)	━━	Sulfur-deeps (Dol Guldur)	━━	Under-courts (Barad-dûr)
		║		┃		┃	⟍	┃
		Remains of Thangorodrim		Gem-deeps (Glittering Caves)	━━	Pûkel-deeps (Dunharrow)		Under-Galleries (Udûn)

History in The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying Game

While further excavated by the Dwarves in search of mithril, most of the tunnels and caverns long predated the Dwarves. They also housed many strange creatures awakened by the rise of the Balrog. Old Dwarven outposts meant to defend Khazad-dûm against attacks from the Underdeeps were taken over by Orcs.