The Fellowship

Overview

In The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship is the name given to the nine companions who set out to destroy the One Ring. On this wiki, the term is adopted to refer to the ideal small, complementary team assembled for a significant build.

Composition

A working Fellowship, in any medium, usually contains:

• The Veteran — knows how it's been done, knows when that matters. (Gandalf.)
• The Protagonist — the one who has to carry the thing. Often unassuming. (Frodo.)
• The Steady — the one who never flinches. Often the reason the Fellowship survives. (Sam.)
• The Specialist — the one with a specific, deep skill. (Legolas, with bows.)
• The Fighter — the one who handles conflict, physical or otherwise. (Gimli; also, the tech lead in a PR review.)
• The Wild Card — the unexpected contributor. Sometimes needs redemption. (Boromir.)
• The Comic Relief — prevents the team from imploding under pressure. (Merry and Pippin.)
• The Ranger — knows the territory. Knows when to take the short path. (Aragorn.)

A team missing too many of these roles is not a Fellowship. It is a list of people.

Burbridge on Fellowships

"The nine of them beat an army. You could get more done with three of the right people than thirty of the wrong ones." — Burbridge, at a whiteboard