I'm not trying to undercut your point at all, but the fact that the pewter warp spiders I bought in middle school are still legal game pieces is significant, I think.
I'm pretty much in this group - I started playing in the mid 90's with second edition, played through 3.5, and left the hobby for personal reasons in the early 00's. Didn't play at all until 2018, when I heard the interns talking about the "cool, underground game that you probably haven't heard...
Hear me out: the muppets sit down to play D&D together. Then, cut to live action of the PCs, but keep the voice actors the same - Miss Piggy voices Jason Momoa as the barbarian.
Edit: “The Muppets Present: Lost Mine of Phandelver”. If only Mr. Henson was alive to portray the DM.
For what it's worth, there seems to be quite a bit of contention on that topic. Lots of people argue it's a queen, others a deacon.
I genuinely had no idea that there was so much contention as to whether 'Aliens' was 'canon'. On the topic though, I did find Cameron's 2k word letter he sent to...
Two that I've DM'ed, that went over really well:
1. Against the Cult of the Reptile God with A Wild Sheep Chase
Why doesn't the sage Ramne not just walk out on his porch and cast dispel magic on everyone every morning? Because his apprentice turned him into a sheep, naturally. Plugged an odd...
I'd never seen the driveway before; pretty neat! Should we all toss in and see if we can come up with the 4.5 mil?
https://www.christiesrealestate.com/sales/detail/170-l-84031-2312221448117512/723-williams-st-lake-geneva-wi-53147/%7Baction%7D
I don't know how I forgot to mention this one:
Snail Knight: In 10 minutes, a knight astride a giant snail rides into view. He is able to answer most questions related to quests and chivalry, and may aid you for INT days if he finds you worthy. The snail cannot move faster than a walk.