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<blockquote data-quote="Aurumvorax" data-source="post: 5352874" data-attributes="member: 87266">It wasn't just the names they were using but the artistic and descriptive representation as well.&nbsp; Hobbits were short, hairy people with bare feet and good at throwing and hiding.&nbsp; Elves were long-lived warriors with magical aptitude who could become invisible with their &quot;elven cloaks&quot; and, instead of dying, simply sailed away to some far off land.&nbsp; The balrog was a large, fiery creature with bat-like wings with a flaming whip and sword.&nbsp; Even Chainmail specifically referenced Tolkien's work saying the Fantasy Supplement was designed to recreate your favorite fantasy battles.&nbsp; I won't bring up Barsoom because I'm pretty sure TSR had official rights to use Burrough's work as they had a miniatures product line based on Mars.&nbsp;It's not that D&amp;D used the names, but they directly ripped the creatures art and design as well.&nbsp; If I draw a black haired teenager with a lightning bolt scar who happens to be a wizard and call him Harry Potter, I'm going to get my butt handed to me.&nbsp; Change his appearance, remove his distinguishing features, and I could probably get away with calling a boy wizard Harry Potter.&nbsp; D&amp;D continued to use things like orcs but they were pig-like humanoids, not the savage men of Tolkien's world.&nbsp; The post OD&amp;D orc, treant, balrog, etc. are their own unique creature totally different than what Tolkien presented.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Aurumvorax, post: 5352874, member: 87266"] It wasn't just the names they were using but the artistic and descriptive representation as well. Hobbits were short, hairy people with bare feet and good at throwing and hiding. Elves were long-lived warriors with magical aptitude who could become invisible with their "elven cloaks" and, instead of dying, simply sailed away to some far off land. The balrog was a large, fiery creature with bat-like wings with a flaming whip and sword. Even Chainmail specifically referenced Tolkien's work saying the Fantasy Supplement was designed to recreate your favorite fantasy battles. I won't bring up Barsoom because I'm pretty sure TSR had official rights to use Burrough's work as they had a miniatures product line based on Mars. It's not that D&D used the names, but they directly ripped the creatures art and design as well. If I draw a black haired teenager with a lightning bolt scar who happens to be a wizard and call him Harry Potter, I'm going to get my butt handed to me. Change his appearance, remove his distinguishing features, and I could probably get away with calling a boy wizard Harry Potter. D&D continued to use things like orcs but they were pig-like humanoids, not the savage men of Tolkien's world. The post OD&D orc, treant, balrog, etc. are their own unique creature totally different than what Tolkien presented. [/QUOTE]

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