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Message: <blockquote data-quote="mmadsen" data-source="post: 3556849" data-attributes="member: 1645">I don't want to get political, so please don't read too much into the analogy, but if we give our elves fairly modern sensibilities, then that means that the top of their society is not an aristocratic class of warriors -- which puts them far apart from all other societies around them -- and their military is either a small subset of elf society that reveres the elves' martial past, or an underclass, or some outside group (of quasi-barbarians or Mamelukes), or something besides the high-status leadership of elf society.To outsiders dealing with the elves, they would seem a nation of poets and philosophers, with no fight in 'em -- but our own history has shown that a nation of shopkeepers can spawn a global empire (and after its fall, its former colony can become a global hegemon).  To a pre-modern enemy, it may not be obvious how the elves might harness their peaceful magic for war (as the US harnessed its peaceful industry for WWII); they'll have to find out the hard way.At any rate, SHARK, I suspect you (a) like elves, and (b) have strong opinions about what the elves should do to maintain their place in the world.  If you want comedy, you have the elves do the right thing.  If you want tragedy, you have them see the light too late.</blockquote>