Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics most important article ever written about the poem. Scholars of Anglo-Saxon agree that the work was influential, transforming the study of "Beowulf". J. R. R. Tolkien's essay ""Beowulf": The Monsters and the Critics", initially delivered as a lecture in 1936, is regarded as a formative work in modern "Beowulf" studies. In it, Tolkien speaks against critics who play down the monsters in the poem, namely Grendel, Grendel's mother, and the dragon, in favour of using "Beowulf" solely as a source for Anglo-Saxon history. Tolkien argues that rather than being merely extraneous, these elements are key to the narrative and should
Saga of the Shadow Lord does what it sets out to do perfectly adequately, and if an action-packed blood-and-thunder adventure without too much emphasis on plot and justification is your kind of thing, "Saga of the Shadow Lords" is worth looking at". Saga of the Shadow Lord Saga of the Shadow Lord is a 1986 adventure module for the Basic Rules of the "Dungeons & Dragons" fantasy role-playing game. "Saga of the Shadow Lord" consists of two linked adventures as a mini-campaign: In the first adventure called "Elvenstar", player characters try to steal a magic item from the Shadow Lord to thwart his planned invasion