The Hobbit: 10 Dumbest Character Decisions

How do you kill a dragon? In Middle-earth you need a big black arrow, a ridiculously good archer, and a pre-existing wound to aim for, flawlessly, from an impossible distance.

While in Erebor with Smaug, the Dwarves had none of these things.

Things seemed bad for Thorin and company, as they were trapped with this hulking dragon, with no weapons, and nothing to stop them from being melted. However, Thorin actually had a great idea in that they would trick Smaug into lighting their forges.

Could this have made some impromptu weapons? Sure. It would have been difficult, and would have taken some distraction to keep Smaug from killing them, but it would have at least been worth a shot. The Dwarves were master smiths after all.

However, the Dwarves instead made the decision to burn Smaug to death. They tried to burn a dragon, basically a huge incinerator with wings, to death. All they did in pouring molten gold over the beast was enrage him, and send him on his way to Lake Town with revenge and death on his mind.