This video shows you how to rip off… um I mean “take inspiration” from Tolkien when designing races for a fantasy setting.

My Honest Thoughts on Fantasy Races

Fantasy is probably my preferred genre when it comes to books. I don’t know why, though I guess it has something to do with fantasy translating better to the written form rather than the silver screen. The human imagination remains unrivaled. The theater of the mind will always be better than the actual theater. Fantasy itself is a genre without limitations. Even the wildest science fiction at least has to pretend its super technology is somewhat plausible. So what do authors do when given the infinite possibilities of a fantasy world? Mostly they just rip off grandaddy Tolkien. Admittedly this is less of a problem with books now. Fantasy is moving on from Tolkien and has been steadily making progress with that since Wheel of Time. But video games are still stuck using Tolkien’s fantasy races. I do wish I could see some more imaginative fantasy races from video games. I know everyone loves Dungeon and Dragons, but come on. Let’s see some bug races! How about a race made of elemental magic? Anything other than yet more Mary Sue elves.