Editing Ainur (section)

==Valar==
The strongest and most powerful Ainur to come to Arda and depending on how you look at them are either archangels or gods with a lower case g. There are thirteen in total, each one roughly corresponding to a particular "domain" analogous to Greek gods, though the Valar themselves do not claim to be deities of any sort (except for Melkor; more on him later). All the same, they're still highly respected by the [[Elves]] and [[Human|Men]] of Dúnedain descent, and will oftentimes invoke their names in times of need.

The Valar ruled Arda from Valinor, aka the Undying Lands, from the beginning of time until the Second Age, when they relinquished control of [[Middle Earth]] to their creator Eru Ilúvatar, and Valinor became permanently separated from the rest of Arda.

They are:

* '''Manwë''', King of the Valar and ruler over air and wind. Married to Varda, also Melkor's brother. The Great Eagles are Manwë's eyes and ears in Middle Earth. He is a very divisive character given the shit Morgoth (see below) gets up to to which his responses are either because of restrictions placed on him or because he is a lazy useless moron, apparently being so good that he literally doesn't comprehend things like deception. [[Skub|Debate continues]].
* '''Varda''', Queen of the Valar and creator of the stars. Married to Manwë. Varda is more commonly known by her Sindarin name, ''Elbereth'', and is revered among the elves as the bringer of Light, and by extension, the defeat of Darkness. Out of all the Valar, Morgoth hates her the most because she was the first to realize his own innate evil and the fact that he is her complete opposite in every way. Elves (and hobbits like Frodo) invoke her name when confronted with evil, which can unsettle their opponents.
* '''Aulë''', The Smith. Married to Yavanna, and creator of the [[Dwarves]] (though he could only create their form, [[Skub|Ilúvatar later gave]] them life and free will of their own). Both of his best disciples went traitor (Sauron and Saruman). The Noldor elves also considered themselves students of Aulë, though like Sauron and Saruman, Fëanor fell to evil as a result of Morgoth turning the Noldor elves against the Valar. Aulë and his student's power to create makes them the most powerful of the Ainur, but that power can lead to evil if they're consumed by pride and a desire to control, which is why some of them turned traitor in the first place.
* '''Yavanna''', Giver of Fruits. Married to Aulë. Besides her domain being nature, she also created the Ents to protect the trees from over-foresting dwarves.  If the Valar were depicted as Dilbert characters, [[gets shit done|Yavanna would definitely be Alice]].  
* '''Mandos''', Ruler of the Dead, and the Doomsman. All dead elves and men arrive in his halls, whereafter they go to their separate fates. He is also the judge of the Valar, presiding over Melkor's trial and pronouncing the Doom of those who transgress the Valar. Married to Vairë. His real name is actually Námo.  Cryptic, in a "not sure if grimdark or troll" kind of way.  
* '''Vairë''', the Weaver. Married to Mandos, and records all of history on her ever-growing tapestry.
* '''Oromë''', the Huntsman and Lord of the Forests. He was the first to discover the elves and invite them to live with the Valar in Valinor. Married to Vana.
* '''Vana''', the Queen of Flowers, married to Oromë.  Vana is Yavanna's sister but of the two Yavanna is unquestionably the senior in ability and power.  
* '''Irmo''', Master of Dreams, married to Estë. He would give prophetic dreams and visions to mortals in need. Together with his brother Mandos he is one of the Masters of the Souls.
* '''Estë''', Lady of Rest & Healing. Elves who visit her and her husband's domain can recover from their weariness.
* '''Tulkas''', Champion of the Valar, married to Nessa. He was the last to arrive in Arda, and was one of the few powerful enough to challenge Melkor at the height of his power, wrestling and imprisoning him with his own hands.  Total gym-bro.   
* '''Nessa''', the Dancer, married to Tulkas.  She's Orome's sister and shares his love of the wilds, but doesn't really do anything and is regarded (even by the Valar) as the least of the Valar.  
* '''Ulmo''', Lord of the seas, and the most proactive ally to the free peoples. One of the few to not trust Melkor in the beginning. As his home is not in Valinor but in the seas, he's the one who interacts the most with mortals.  Comes off as [[Rage|really intense.]]
* '''Nienna''', Lady of Mercy, Grief and Compassion. She had been Gandalf's instructor, which allowed him to empathise with the free peoples, in particular the hobbits. Alongside Irmo and Ulmo, she's definitely among the most competent of the bunch ''(the rest being either useless swanabouts or [[Minecraft|obsessive compulsives]])'', given she was Gandalf's master and Gandalf basically carried the entire fight against Sauron on his back.

Of similar power but opposed to the Valar, is '''Melkor''', aka '''Morgoth''', the first [[Big Bad Evil Guy|Dark Lord]] and enemy of the Valar. Originally he was the most powerful of all the Ainur, but back during the music of the Ainur, he had become bitter and jealous that he could not create life on his own, and began rebelling against Eru Ilúvatar. Thereafter, he kept trying to dominate Arda to his will, corrupting it with his power and making war with the Children of Ilúvatar. Eventually, he'd spent enough of his power that he was captured and imprisoned by the Valar, only to be released when they thought he had been reformed. This was a ruse, and he continued to conquer [[Middle Earth]] throughout the first age, even causing the Noldor elves to rebel against the Valar just to get revenge on him. Melkor was finally defeated when the elves pleaded with the Valar to rescue them, causing him to be imprisoned beyond the boundaries of Arda until the end of time. Despite this, Morgoth's influence lingers as Sauron had set up cults to Morgoth, which had been especially prevalent at the end of the Second Age. Supposedly Morgoth will re-emerge at the end of the world when the Door of Night is destroyed, leading to the Dagor Dagorath, ending in his final defeat.  Supposedly Eru will give Turin Turambar the honor of finishing him off as reward for putting up with all the shit Morgoth put him through.