Sauron (Sala Baker) directly made only one of the 20 rings, the famed "one ring to rule them all," although he assisted in the creation of the nine rings for mortal men and the seven rings for the
Thus, 20 rings of power were created: three for the elves, seven for the dwarves, nine for the race of men, and one for the Dark Lord to “rule them all." The creation of these rings has an interesting history.
The Nazgûl (Black Speech for "Ringwraiths") or Úlairi (Quenya), also known as the Black Riders or simply The Nine, were the dreaded ring-servants of the Dark Lord Sauron in Middle-earth throughout the Second and Third Ages, who in the later years of the Third Age dwelt in Minas Morgul and Dol Guldur.
This means that the three Elven Rings weren't imbued with Sauron's malice, making them the most powerful among the Rings of Power — and the most coveted by the Dark Lord. They were still subject to the One Ring's power, however, and, as soon as it is destroyed in Return of the King, they lose their magic.
Celebrimbor immediately sent his three rings away for safekeeping: he gave Nenya to Galadriel in Lothlórien, who advised him to send the other two to Lindon, away from Sauron, so he gave Vilya to High King Gil-galad and Narya to Círdan. Sauron succeeded in claiming the Rings of Power.
In the Third Age, Círdan gave the ring to Gandalf for his labours. According to the Unfinished Tales, at the start of the War of the Elves and Sauron Celebrimbor gave Narya together with the Ring Vilya to Gil-galad, High King of the Noldor.
The Three were untouched by Sauron in their making and were made for preservation so they didn't negatively affect their bearers. The biggest problem with the Three was their connection with the One and the Elves' reliance on them.
Following the successful destruction of the One Ring and the fall of Sauron, the power of the rings faded. While the Nine were destroyed, the Three were rendered powerless; their bearers left Middle-earth for Valinor at the end of the Third Age, inaugurating the Dominion of Men.
The Keepers of the Three Rings, or Three Keepers, included Gandalf, Galadriel, Elrond (and formerly Círdan and Gil-galad). They were the bearers of the three Elvish Rings of Power.
Sauron very intentionally made rings (had them made under his direction) and gave them to men and dwarves for the sole purpose of corrupting them to his control.
Allegedly, Tolkien originally toyed with the idea of making the Nazgûl afraid of the river as a result of being barred from crossing running water, which is an idea borrowed from classic folklore where evil things are unable to go across running water.
Sauron revived Isildur with one of the nine rings, and then tortured him until his spirit was broken and he became a Nazgûl. The specific power of his ring allowed him to raise the dead and have them fight by his side as mindless minions.
As one of the Ringwraiths, Isildur was forced to serve the Dark Lord for all time, until he was defeated and freed by "Talion". Later, the Ranger claimed his ring to survive after Celebrimbor abandoned him, and eventually took Isildur's place among the Nazgûl after holding back Sauron's forces for decades.
Galadriel has very strong magical powers, and she is said to be the greatest of the Ñoldor after Fëanor. The majority of her powers come from her Ring of Power, Nenya, the Ring of Water.
As soon as the Mystics realize the Stranger isn't Sauron, they label him an "Istar." With this label, and several other hints throughout the episode and the season, The Rings of Power has all but confirmed that the Stranger is everyone's favorite wizard: Gandalf the Grey.
The rings were: 1) Vilya: Given to Gil-galad, the last of the High-elven kings of Middle-earth. He in turn gave the ring to Elrond who kept it at Rivendell until the end of the Third Age ; 2) Nenya: The only ring to have stayed with its original owner. Given to Galadriel, one of the most royal princesses of the Noldar.
Therefore, it is quite plausible that Saruman didn't take the ring when he had Gandalf captive, simply because he didn't know it was there. Another explanation could be that Saruma knew Gandalf could possess the ring, but he didn't feel that it was worth taking.
Nenya, the Ring of Adamant, one of the Three Rings of the Elves, was entrusted to Galadriel. By the power of the Ring's enchantments and its lady's arts are the woods of Lothlórien kept safe from the forces of darkness. Crafted from finest mithril and set with a white stone it possesses radiance the equal of the stars.
Did you know: The Ring that Aragorn wears through-out all the movies is known as the ring of Barahir. The Ring of Barahir was an ornate silver ring given to Barahir by the Elven King Finrod Felagund (Galadriel's brother), in reward for saving his life in Dagor Bragollach.
According to Tolkien's writing, Gandalf and Saruman didn't arrive in Middle-earth until the Third Age. Since The Rings of Power is set in the Second Age, this would suggest that the Stranger is definitively not either of those wizards.
The Rings, in this case, would have lost their powers eventually due to the lack of the One Ring and possibly because they were designed to defeat evil, and evil, in the form of Sauron, had been defeated. The Three Elven Rings served their purpose for a long time. Two out of three of them had several different bearers.
So many people are thinking that they couldn't use Annatar because the name is not mentioned in LOTR and saying the show is a mess because of it, and blaming the estate for this rights issue. But from reading the showrunners' interview, it looks like more of a creative decision to drop Annatar.
Elrond Didn't Have the Strength to Stop Isildur
He knew that the Ring needed to be destroyed, but actually doing it would have been different. A passage in Unfinished Tales says that Gil-galad, Círdan and Galadriel "failed to find the strength" to destroy their uncorrupted Rings of Power.
The Ring's effects
Inversely, the hobbits' good-naturedness and lack of ambition makes them less susceptible to the Ring's promises of power, as in Frodo and Samwise Gamgee, who are able to handle the Ring for extended periods of time.
Aragorn was tempted by the ring, but he was able to resist it, partly because he was more alike to Elendil than any before him - Elendil was wise and friendly with the Elves. If Isildur and Elendil's positions had changed, Elendil would likely have foreseen the evil of the Ring and destroyed it.