LotR -- Book 3 - Chapter 05 - The White Rider

[Lalwendë]

Originally Posted by davem

It does make me wonder whether the regular use of 'magical' technology could cause one's innate abilities to atrophy. Perhaps this applies across the board - maybe constant use of a 'magical' sword would lead to the user to lose some of their skill with normal blades, as such skills would be less necessary if the sword carried extra power in & of itself.

I think that in the case of the palantiri for example, when they were used for good intent then they can only have enhanced the user's abilities, but it is entirely possible that excessive use would damage innate abilities. This seems to be what has indeed happened with Saruman, he sought further knowledge and eventually was 'caught'. Though I'm not so sure his innate abilities disappeared entirely. As seen in the Voice of Saruman chapter, he was still dangerous. It might also have been in the interests of Sauron not to have Saruman lose his mind entirely.

About swords - they often seem to possess some kind of 'magical' quality both in Tolkien's works and in other literature. Swords are usually invested with names and a great heritage; even their maker is usually remembered. Yet I wonder whether these swords really do all have magical qualities. A sword is a more complex weapon that it at first might appear, and they were often crafted with their user in mind, as length of blade and weight of hilt needed to be 'tailored' for most effective use. So perhaps Tolkien is echoing this sense that a sword would indeed be 'special' to its bearer. To lose such a personally tailored weapon would mean having to use something not suited to the bearer, and thus it would be less effective. And of course, to have no sword at all would make a person highly vulnerable, so it would be invested with yet more meaning and significance.