The destruction of the ancient Dwarven state by Durin's Bane in T.A. 1980-81 was as shocking a blow to Eriador as the fall of Arthedain some six years earlier. A flood of Dwarven refugees wandered the country for a few years loaded with portable treasure, then there was nothing; trade collapsed, the Gate-towns burned and crumbled, and half the economy of southern Eriador vanished forever. The recurring nightmare of nearby leaders, for centuries to come, was that Durin's Bane, believed—but, not actually known— to be a Balrog, might emerge with its army of Orcs and Trolls to attack Lorien or invade the lands of lost Arnor. Expeditions of investigation proved little; it was soon realized that Durin's Bane was trapped in its lair—either by the spells it laid to hide itself in the First Age; or