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The later battle at Helm's Deep was first meant to take place at Helm's Dike. Also the Huorns were meant to come directly to the Dike.

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The differences between the later chapter "The Road to Isengard" and the first drafts of the story told in this chapter are these : Gandalf, Théoden and their companions left Helm's Deep shortly after the end of the battle, they did not see the Ents as they left the mysterious wood and they did not go down to the Fords of Isen but they encountered, and spoke with, Bregalad the Ents, bearing a message from Treebeard, in course of their ride to Isengard, which they reached on the same day.

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Gimli's description of the Glittering Caves existed almost since the first drafts.

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Orthanc was first decribed to look like this : "And in the centre from which all the chained paths ran was a tower, a pinnacle of stones. The base of it, and that two hundred feet in height, was a great cone of rock left by the ancient builders and smoothers of the plain, but now upon it rose a tower of masonry, tier on tier, course on course, each drum smaller than the last. It ended short and flat, so that at the top there was a wide space fifty feet across reached by a stair that came up in the middle."

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The Huorns were first called Galbedirs, later the name changed into Lamorni and Ornómar.

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The men of Rohan who had fallen at the Ford of the Isen were first burried by Ents and not by other men.

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Tolkien first thought of letting Gríma murder Saruman.

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In the first drafts of the chapter "The voice of Saruman" Gandalf didn't break Saruman's staff. Also Saruman's voice was not decribed to be as powerful as it is in the later books.

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The purpose of the Palantír was first not very clear. Tolkien's first idea was that Gandalf uses it to control Saruman in Isengard. At that time of the development of the story, it was not obvious that the palantíri were used to communicate by Orthanc and Barad-dûr.

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Tolkien now turned his attention again to the adventures of Frodo and Sam. From the beginning their way to the Black Gate of Mordor was described like it appears in the published books, with a few changes only, mostly on names.

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In the early drafts Faramir was not the leader of the Gondorians and also not Boromir's brother. His first name was Falborn, son of Anborn, and he was described to be a kinsman of Boromir, both Boromir and Faramir being rangers of Ihtilien. Still, Falborn's conversation with Sam and Frodo at their first meeting proceeds almost exactly as does that with Faramir in The Two Towers.

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Tolkien said about Faramir : "A new character has come to the scene. I am sure I did not invent him, I did not even want him, though I like him, but there he came walking into the woods of Ithilien : Faramir, the brother of Boromir."

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The idea that Faramir takes Sam and Frodo as prisoners, which Peter Jackson had got for his movie, was also an early idea of Tolkien himself. In Tolkien's first drafts of the story Faramir says to Frodo and Sam : "You shall be well treated. But make no doubt of it. Until my father Denethor releases you, you are prisoners of Gondor. Do not try to escape, if you do not wish to be slain." In that draft the story continues with Faramir taking the Hobbits to a secret fenced camp in the wood from where Gollum rescues them.

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Beginning to write the chapter "The Forbidden Pool", Tolkien made this sketch of the story and how it should go on : "They are roused late at night. Moonset over Mindolluin. Sam grumbles at being waked only to see moonlight. They see Gollum fishing in the pool. Faramir says he must shoot to kill or Frodo must help to capture him. Frodo and some men go out. Frodo calls Gollum and Gollums is cought still dutching a fish. Frodo begs for his life." That shows that the chapter was developed completely with almost only one draft, not many changes were made on it.

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Tolkien's first idea was that there would be many spiders in Kirith Ungol and that they would weave their nets over Frodo while Sam sleeps. Then Gollum was supposed to bring some Orcs to the place where Frodo lies, seemingly dead. Sam hides from the Orcs with the help of the One Ring and Frodo it taken by the Orcs to Minas Morgul. The idea that Kirith Ungol might have its own tower arose only later, also Shelob as the only spider living there was invented later.

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One of the sketches Tolkien made for Book Five of The Lord of the Rings describes the story like this :

It is interesting to see that at this point of the writing neither the idea of Éowyn joining the army of Rohan in secret nor the idea that Aragorn enters Gondor by a different route exist. Also the Ents and Elves were meant to join the last battle, while Éowyn was meant to die. Moreover it was not Aragorn who showed himself to Sauron through the Palantír but Gandalf. The Púkel-Men en ter the story later and were first called Hoken-men.

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Not many changes were made on the story of Pippin and Gandalf in Minas Tirith, except on names.

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The sons of Elrond were first called Elboron and Elbereth.