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I suppose that you could argue that elf eco-specialisation represents a hint that not only are individual elves long-lived, but that their species is also extremely venerable. If individual elves live a few thousand years, there is still sufficient time for eco-specialisation if elves have been...

Perhaps. But, that is neither fantasy literature nor Tolkien specifically.

After all, the literary sources tend to also have quite low lethality, so I don't think you can argue high lethality is part of imitating literature models. The subtitle of The Hobbit is "There and Back Again", not "How Numerous Dwarves Came To A Bloody End".

Even if you believe that high lethality really creates an adventuring party with an internal power-imbalance composition like the party in The Hobbit, it still seems really unlikely that this was the intention of high lethality. High lethality is more likely a consequence of a design intention...

In practice, in my experience, because of the way that the XP tables work, you either caught up to be within a level or so very quickly, or you got so frustrated with repeatedly dying that you quit and did something else until the DM reset the campaign with all new characters. Also, I don't...

I think it is much the same "mini-game" when you use random roll (especially when you use random roll in order). It is just the starting point that is different. In one you begin with a concept and the game is to devise Ability scores etc., that match. In the other game, you begin with Ability...

Not really. "Parties of adventurers" from literature are quite different from a D&D party. Ensemble groups of characters from literature tend to: Have wildly divergent level of capabilities. Usually, one or two "hero" "party members" are a whole lot more capable than all the others, who may as...

I think that a lot of the idea of a party is do with the more practical fact that every player needs a character, rather than some specific literary influence. It seems as easy to think of D&D's idea of a party arising from "everyone needs a PC, so, what would it be like if Conan had some...

As DM I let my players each pick their own method. Most go for standard array. As player, when given the option, I love "roll 3D6 for each ability in order".

I'm speaking from experience too. Also, I'm not suggesting that the CEO or someone like that is involved. Decisions are made at an appropriate level, but still recorded, and there is always a "streamlined" approval process to follow. Also, I'm not talking about the US, so maybe that makes a...

Well, in Norse / Germanic myth (which Tolkien was an expert in) Dwarves are usually portrayed as skilled craftsmen who live underground. Whereas as elves are more portrayed as enchanters. Although admittedly Norse myth is ambiguous as to whether dwarves are a type of elf or something different...

I think that D&D's original popularity is definitely because of its synergy with Tolkien. Tolkien was incredibly popular in the 60s and 70s. As you say, it is not for nothing that Led Zeppelin has songs that name-check Tolkien's work. We also get the spectacle of Leonard Nimoy singing a song...

Dwarves and elves have a very strong lineage in fantasy that predates Tolkien. They feature strongly in Norse and Anglo-Saxon mythology. Which, as Tolkien's day job was a Professor of Anglo-Saxon literature, he would obviously know very well. The conflation of elves and fae dates from...

I think that there are two concepts here, neither related to Tolkien. One is the idea from Wargaming that different hero/leader/general characters can be of different capability (have a different number of hit dice). The other is just the idea from literature that protagonist characters have a...

Which is presumably based on Stoker's Dracula (perhaps as received via movies), where crucifixes cause fear/fury in vampires. Stoker's idea, in turn, is based on medieval/folk/church myth. There is plenty of medieval/folk/church mythology in which church symbols offer some sort of protection...

Hasbro's a big corporation though, so likely has its own rules that dictate that, unless it is an internal redeployment, the position has to be advertised, that at least three candidates have to be interviewed, etc., etc. Hasbro will certainly have a lot of internal paperwork related to a new...

Yes, children are perfectly capable of understanding and accepting that Wizards are different in D&D. In fact, in my experience, children seem much more capable of coping with this idea than adults. I don't see children wanting to either "re-fluff" or change the mechanics to pretend they...

Yes, I agree. The main thing to do is to not introduce any adult scenarios. But hopefully no one allowed near children would be thinking that was a good idea. In my experience, no reason to change any rules. Start them at level 1 and let them develop their PCs and understanding as they go...

You literally said exactly that...

Sure, depending on the party composition, and the exact in-game circumstances, it might be more effective in any given round for a cleric PC to do something other than cast a healing spell. That's normally considered a good thing.