Channelknight Fadran

Also r/lotr has gone off on another war trying to decide who the "real hero is"

"The real hero is Sam"

"The real hero is Gollum"

"The real hero is Bill"

The real hero is everyone except the actual villains, by Eru.

• The Three Hunters: They never forsake their friends, coming to the painful decision of leaving all the fate of Middle-Earth to Frodo and Sam and instead pursuing the captors of Merry and Pippin.
• Gandalf: He killed a Balrog! He killed a Balrog! And despite what the memes might tell you, he did not hate Pippin - on many occasions they laughed and smoked together, much as any old friend might.
• Merry and Pippin: They took down Isengard by teaming up with a bunch of trees, and spanned the gap between the kingdoms of Gondor and Rohan. Merry befriended Eowyn, and Pippin befriended Faramir - perhaps it isn't purely by chance that the two children of men would ultimately unify the kingdoms by marriage.
• Boromir and Faramir: Perhaps the most honorable warriors in all Middle-Earth, facing the darkness of Morder head-on with blades in hand. One would die by not one, not two, but three orc-arrows to the chest so as to defend his friends; the other, meanwhile, is a Captain of Gondor - a man of Quality.
• Theoden, Eomer, and Eowyn: They love their people before life and limb, and never once forsake them. Theoden-king died on Pelennor Fields in a battle to honor the old friends of Rohan, and was avenged by Eowyn - dearer than daughter - who, with the help of Merry, defeated the Witch-King of Angmar.
• Honorable Mentions: Bill the Pony and Barliman Butterbur (their deeds need no explanation), Smeagol and Gollum (without them, the quest would have failed), Lord Elrond and Lady Galadriel (the ones who gave the heroes light and hope in their darkest hours), Bilbo Baggins (HRAAAAAH), and - of course - the one and only Farmer Maggot (the one, of course, who won a shouting match with an honest-to-Eru Nazgul and managed to ride it out of his crops, before proceeding to give the hobbits a place to stay and a basket full of mushrooms)
• Frodo: His heart and will were stronger than any other, and his compassion was what carried the Ring to Mordor. Not once did he falter, save for the very end, when all the world came crashing down.
• And Samwise Gamgee was there for him, every step of the way.