Grey Pilgrim is a true wanderer, spreading her counsel to all in Middle Earth. No beard does this wizard have, and her staff is carved into the wood of mallorn. Her real name is Cotume for she is an enemy of the darkness of Sauron, though very few know this and she goes by the name that was given to her. She arrived in Middle Earth after the first five Istari, sent by the Vala Irmo after his vision of the blue wizards' departure, to aid and advise the peoples in the forthcoming strife. Grey Pilgrim is an Istar of fire, her fascination of lights stemming from watching Olorin in Valinor long ago. She has been known to dare the terrors of Mordor on a rescue mission that none others would take. Long ago, the heir of the Steward of Gondor was grieved to discover one morning that his love had been kidnapped by an evil minion of Sauron and taken to Mordor. The young man took upon himself the quest to save her without seeking counsel, and soon found himself tied with her to the heights of Ered Lithui. It was Grey Pilgrim who rode with the swiftness of the Mearas upon hearing the news from a messenger of Gondor. Although closely pursued by a vast army of orcs, the Pilgrim reached the captives and managed to free them using the magic she had learned from her mentor. To her distress, the power of the beast was greater than she had anticipated, and her magic was not greatly effective. As the young Gondorians fled aboard her steed the Grey Pilgrim's gaze was held by the balrog and she became helpless to his will. But as she prepared for the worst, the creature released her and guarded her passage out of the dark recesses of Mordor. For thousands of years she was bound to him by his spell, wishing to spend her immortal life with him. As she started to fade into despair Gandalf came to her rescue, destroying the dark magic and allowing Grey Pilgrim to become a free Maia once more.
Now she focuses her strength on keeping peace and order, and her concerns lie often in assisting the young ones of the realms. She is slow to anger but may sometimes take words to heart, for she values the opinions of her friends and the wise. As the age has passed by she has begun to spend more of her time in her home, the Tower of Orthanc, but Grey Pilgrim continues to travel to other lands, mostly seeking peace. She dislikes fighting but when need arrives her favourite weapon is her staff, although she also carries her sword Mage Doom. The only steed she will now accept is her donkey Sharkey, a willing companion on the long roads she takes.

I have chosen a pale violet material for your robes, rather like the sky at dawn, when it is light enough to be day but the sun has not yet risen. This preference indicates that you are optimistic about the future, but that you are somewhat insecure about the present. The violet is lined with the almost customary pale pink, indicative of your caring nature - though you are clearly more healthy than many others! The flare of the robes is a mint green, for you are obviously one who holds dear her home, and things that are familiar. I have included with these robes a darker purple belt set with crystal stars, to indicate that Valinor is your home, and your guiding light.

The Vala Irmo sent me to Middle Earth from Valinor; it was him that gave me my first staff. A beautiful piece of craftsmanship it was; carved by himself from the wood of Mallorn with the grain creating an intricate woven pattern on the surface. It was about 5 feet high and adorned by neither gem nor stone, though the end swelled out and bore the tengwar letters “anga” and “parma” carved deep into the wood. I was pretty pleased with my staff, though the letters borne represent the name that Irmo, during one of his afternoon naps (he really spent too much time snoozing!), dreamt would be given to me by the people I met. Personally, I think it is because he couldn’t be bothered to carve “Cotumë” onto it, but you don’t argue with the one who wants to send you to bring peace to the world, do you? (Actually I tried, but he threatened to cut off my magic allowance… then how would I save the world?) ”Mr Stick”, as I called him, served me well. He never failed me when I needed him most (except my unfortunate capture by that balrog… thank you Gandalf for saving me!) and he never left my sight. My magic was channelled perfectly; I have never known such a reliable twig. However, an unfortunate incident with an elf (you may know Galadriel, she’s been on the palantïr a lot) resulted in poor Mr Stick being broken in two pieces. I don’t really want to talk about it, it was a devastating time for me, but let it suffice to say that a certain elf paid for it with her pretty frock, and Irmo was kind enough to repair it for me. However, he used Mallorn from the party tree in the Shire when they weren’t looking, so Mr Stick now has a tendency to create mini umbrellas for party drinks. This arrangement works out pretty well for both of us, and together we make a worthy foe to all who serve the enemy Sauron.