nobbis writes:
"From 'A Tolkienist's Perspective Blog' : a two part article part 1 part 2 about the military structure in Mordor. There is a hierarchy chart if you want a summary.
Was the rapid collapse of the military following the destruction of the ring indicative of the fragility of this structure , and its susceptibility to a decapitation strike ? Would a flatter hierarchy or something similar to the Imperial Military or Starfleet have been more resilient?"
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday March 10 2014, @11:05PM
A total orc collapse is completely believable.
First. Sauron had just sensed Frodo using his ring. He sent all of the Nagzul and probably some of his generals
to the Mount of Doom to stop Frodo. So a lot of the chain of command was falling apart.
Second The Shadow was lifting, sunlight was flooding the battlefield and orcs hate the sunlight.
Third. Orcs make great cannon fodder, but not the ideal soldier. Sauron uses sorcery to suppress their fears. no doubt the mind control he exerted, he also used to organize them. No doubt when Sauron panicked and thought all is lost some of that got sent to the orcs. Once Sauron was gone, the mind control vanished. At first the orcs were dazed then they said "what am I doing here sticking my neck out, I'm outta here". In fact Tolkien says once Saurons mind control was broken, most orcs fled, with only the most staunchest Sauron supporteers still fighting.
(Score: 2) by melikamp on Monday March 10 2014, @11:27PM
I was about to write just this. The command structure wasn't the problem. The necessity of mind control provided by the rings of power was the problem. Orcs really are awful soldiers, with no sense of loyalty and no ambition beyond extending the influence of their little tribes. The army of orcs, who are by nature quite disorganized, could only function well under his direct stare, or in the presence of a ring of power.
(Score: 1) by Boronx on Tuesday March 11 2014, @05:39AM
This is backed up by the bit where it's the humans that fight to the bitter end, not any orcs.