415 – Saruman’s OPSEC Problem: Unfinished Tales with Dr. Bret Devereaux

About this episode

The episode features Dr. Bret Devereaux discussing various aspects of military history and Tolkien's works, including naval power and logistics.

Short cuts lead to long delays… or perhaps just slaughter and death. Join The Man of the West and The Obscure Lord of the Rings Facts Guy as we welcome back the always-insightful, often-hilarious Dr. Bret Devereaux to the Common Room! Our favorite ancient and military historian (the conjunction is important) joins us to answer questions ranging from Númenórean naval power to the practicality, or lack thereof, of steel bows. You’ll learn more about ship-building than you thought you’d ever need to know, find out that donut armies are (sadly) not covered in sprinkles, and hear about centuries-old food that is still edible — alcohol is a good plan. We ask why a navy might take five years to arrive for their “friends”, wonder how Saruman thought he could actually win this thing, and find ourselves educated about riverine transport. Also: “they’re the same flaw”. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

People in this episode

Hosts: The Man of the West, The Obscure Lord of the Rings Facts Guy

Guest: Dr. Bret Devereaux

Topics covered

• military history
• Tolkien analysis
• naval power
• historical food
• transport logistics
• fantasy literature

Keywords

• Saruman
• navy
• steel bows
• ship-building
• donut armies
• riverine transport
• alcohol
• Númenórean

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Unfinished Tales

Places: Númenórean

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• 412 – Far Fallen · May 10, 2026 · 1h 55m
• 411 – Saruman Won’t Back Down · May 3, 2026 · 1h 55m
• 410 – You Got Lucky, Gollum · April 26, 2026 · 1h 52m