With The Rings of Power Season 1 officially in the books, Lord of the Rings fans can finally pass full judgment on Amazon's new series. The show was entertaining, action-packed and maintained a thoroughly-Tolkien tone. With that said, there were a number of changes that it made to canon, and not everyone was pleased with the changes. For example, the inclusion of two Durins and the altered origin for the three Elven rings touched a nerve for some fans.
However, the biggest change that The Rings of Power made to the LOTR story was the creation of Halbrand's character. While Halbrand being Sauron was a tactful and entertaining story, it was still a major departure from the series' source material. So, here's how the Second Age of Middle-earth actually went down, how Sauron rose to power and how he indirectly destroyed the most powerful kingdom in Middle-earth.
How Lord of the Rings' Sauron Rose To Power in the Second Age
During the War of Wrath, a combined force of Valar, Elves and Men fought against Morgoth and his evil minions. The fighting was brutal and bloody, but in the end, the Valar prevailed and vanquished the Dark Lord of Middle-earth. When everything was said and done, the Valar took Morgoth away in chains and banished him to the Void. However, their efforts to dethrone him were too focused, and they didn't root out the other evils in the world.
At least one Balrog escaped from the pits of Angband, along with other Nameless Things. Most importantly, though, Sauron escaped unscathed. For centuries, he remained hidden. Maybe he feigned repentance, and maybe not -- but when he emerged, he did so with an evil plan. Taking the guise of Annatar, he made nice with the Elves, forged the Rings of Power and tried to take over Middle-earth with his wiles. When the Elves discovered him and resisted, he threw caution to the wind and attacked. Thus, Sauron destroyed Eregion and began his long-awaited rule as a Dark Lord.
How Sauron Destroyed the Island of Númenor Before Lord of the Rings
That was the beginning of the War of the Elves and Sauron, which lasted a few years. It only ended when a large force of Númenóreans came to the Elves' aid. After that, Sauron retreated to Mordor and rebuilt his power. However, it wasn't long before Sauron started attacking the Númenórean cities in the South of Middle-earth. When King Ar-Pharazôn heard that Sauron was oppressing his people, he set out with an even greater force, hoping to destroy Sauron for good.
Ar-Pharazôn's army was so large that Sauron didn't even resist. He knew he would never rule over Middle-earth while the Númenóreans still existed. So, he decided to play the long game. He allowed himself to be captured and falsely begged for mercy, and the Númenóreans took him back to Númenor. But he didn't stay a prisoner for long. Using his skills, Sauron quickly became an advisor for Ar-Pharazôn, and the Dark Lord began to poison his mind.
Ar-Pharazôn was already power-hungry, but Sauron exploited that trait. With old age approaching, Sauron convinced the king to make war on the Valar. So, he built a massive armada and sailed West. As the ships approached Aman, the Valar begged Ilúvatar to intervene because they weren’t allowed to harm the Children of Ilúvatar. So, the god figure opened a massive chasm in the sea, and Ar-Pharazôn and his armada were drowned. It didn't stop there, though. Ilúvatar also sent a massive wave to destroy the island of Númenor. That killed all the Númenóreans (except for Elendil's fleeing remnant), including Sauron's physical body. From there, it was roughly 300 years before Sauron attacked again in the War of the Last Alliance. During that war, Sauron was defeated, but he did have a remote chance at success because he had destroyed Númenor.