>>96076380>Like I said, Fantasy has spent enough time trying to "subvert" instead of learning.NTA, but I agree. The first rule of fantasy should be, "Don't explain everything." No more naturalistic/scientific taxonomies. It doesn't have to make sense to the characters, from their perspective. Only the gods (and maybe a few powerful magicians) understand the mysteries of the supernatural.
The histories of the fantastic should be eldritch and enshrouded in mystery. The origins of Evil agents are lies and superstition. A 'common' mythos should change from region to region - due to the idiosyncrasies of the people.
Magic shouldn't be a substitute way of doing the mundane. It should always be a strange kind of miraculous phenomena. It would always distort reality when used.
Powerful magical artifacts exist to manipulate the characters who use them. The mysterious agendas of the Gods are put into motion by such machinations.
Cultures/races should be a reflection of their synergistic relationships to the rest of the world. If the culture/race has a mythical counterpart in earthly folklore, then it should at least resonate somewhat with that folklore.
If your players only know what they know from popular culture, movies, video games, etc., then perhaps they would enjoy seeing a revitalized take on the old (hate this word) tropes?