Fantasy Creatures in Games: Where Dragons, Goblins and Elves Come From

Why familiar creatures keep appearing in games

Fantasy games often use creatures that seem instantly recognisable: a dragon guarding treasure, a goblin hiding in a cave or an elf moving through an ancient forest. These images are not the product of a single tradition. They developed through centuries of mythology, folklore, literature, art and, later, tabletop and video games.

Understanding these origins makes fictional worlds easier to read. It also helps players notice when a game follows a traditional pattern and when it deliberately changes it. A dragon may be a monster, a wise guardian, a natural force or a playable character. An elf may be a supernatural being, a skilled archer, a small household spirit or a morally ambiguous figure. The same name can carry different meanings in different periods.

For families, players and curious readers, this history offers a useful way to approach fantasy without treating every game version as a historical fact. The goal is not to identify one official definition, but to recognise the main layers that games have combined.

Dragons: from serpent-like powers to game bosses

The dragon is one of the oldest and most widely distributed fantasy creatures. Similar beings appear in traditions that developed far apart, although they do not all describe the same creature. Some are giant serpents linked to water or the underworld. Others have wings, multiple heads, poisonous breath or a role as guardians of sacred places.

In ancient Mesopotamian stories, large serpent-like beings and other powerful creatures appear in myths about gods, disorder and creation. In Greek mythology, the drakōn was often a large serpent, sometimes connected with guarding a place, object or person. The dragon of the Golden Fleece and the serpent Ladon illustrate this guardian role. These early dragons were not necessarily the winged, fire-breathing animals familiar from modern games.

Northern European traditions added other important elements. The Old English poem Beowulf presents a treasure-hoarding dragon whose encounter with the hero becomes a final test. In the Norse tradition, Fáfnir is a human transformed into a dragon after greed and violence. This association between dragons, treasure and destructive desire became highly influential in later fantasy.

Medieval European art and religious writing often used dragons as symbols of danger, evil or the forces opposed to a saint or hero. The story of Saint George and the dragon helped spread the image of a heroic figure confronting a threatening beast. Medieval bestiaries also collected descriptions of fabulous animals, though these texts mixed observation, symbolism and inherited stories rather than offering modern zoology.

Games combine several of these strands. A dragon can function as:

• a powerful opponent that tests a player's preparation;
• a guardian whose location signals that an important reward lies nearby;
• a source of flight, fire or magical knowledge;
• a civilisation with its own language, politics and history;
• a companion or playable character in games that allow a different perspective.

Practical reading clue: when a game places a dragon beside treasure, a ruined kingdom or a mountain lair, it is using older narrative associations. When it gives the dragon a personal history, moral choices or a society, it is moving beyond the traditional monster role.

Goblins and related small people of folklore

The word goblin has a medieval European history, but the modern game creature is a mixture of several traditions. The English word is generally connected with French forms such as gobelin, which referred to a troublesome or supernatural being. Related household and underground spirits appear under different names across Germanic and European folklore, including the kobold of German tradition.

Folklore does not provide one consistent appearance for goblins. They may be described as small, ugly, mischievous, dangerous or associated with mines, caves and household disturbances. Their behaviour can range from petty theft and practical jokes to serious violence. Some stories treat them as independent spirits, while others place them among wider groups of fairies or supernatural beings.

Later literature helped turn the goblin into a more recognisable fantasy population. The writings of J. R. R. Tolkien were especially influential on modern fantasy vocabulary and imagery. Tolkien used goblins and orcs in ways connected to his invented languages and mythology, while also drawing on older terms and literary traditions. His work did not simply reproduce folklore, but it helped establish the idea that hostile, numerous humanoids might inhabit the margins of a fantasy world.

Games often use goblins as early opponents because their role is easy to understand and flexible in play. They can be numerous without being individually overwhelming, and their settlements create opportunities for exploration, stealth, negotiation or combat. However, this design can become repetitive if every goblin is presented as foolish and violent.

A more developed game may ask useful questions:

1. What does the group need in order to survive?
2. Does it have families, leaders, craftspeople or religious practices?
3. How does it understand the larger society that labels it a threat?
4. Can players communicate with its members or solve a conflict without fighting?
5. Does the game distinguish between an individual and a stereotype?

These questions turn goblins from disposable targets into part of a setting. They also give players more types of activity, including investigation, trading, escorting, diplomacy and problem-solving.

Elves before modern fantasy

The modern fantasy elf owes much to older Germanic and Norse traditions, but the historical meanings are varied. In Old English, the word ælf referred to a supernatural being. In Old Norse sources, the álfar appear as a group of otherworldly beings, although the surviving texts do not give a single simple description of their appearance or behaviour.

Elves in folklore were not always the graceful, long-lived forest people common in games today. They could be beautiful, dangerous, helpful or connected with illness and enchantment. Folklore about fairies and other supernatural neighbours often focused on rules of hospitality, boundaries between worlds and the risks of accepting an apparently harmless invitation.

Medieval and early modern writers gradually combined different ideas about elves, fairies, spirits and nature beings. In English literature, Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream presents a fairy world with its own hierarchy, conflicts and magic. Later writers of fantasy added new features, including ancient cultures, archery, refined craftsmanship, long lifespans and a close relationship with forests or stars.

Tolkien's elves were a major influence on games. His legendarium presented them as ancient peoples with languages, arts, histories and internal differences. Many later games adapted selected features rather than reproducing the full literary model. As a result, the word elf in a game may suggest agility and magic, but it can also imply memory, cultural tension, isolation or an uneasy relationship with the passage of time.

When playing an elf character, it can be useful to ask whether the game treats elven identity as an ability package or as a culture with choices and disagreements. A character with keen senses and a long lifespan is mechanically different from a character whose story explores inherited memories, changing traditions or contact with younger societies.

How modern games turned folklore into systems

Tabletop role-playing games made fantasy creatures part of a shared rules vocabulary. Early fantasy role-playing drew from pulp fiction, mythology, medieval romance and works such as those by Tolkien and Robert E. Howard. It then reorganised these influences into playable categories: character ancestries, monsters, allies, bosses and non-player communities.

This change matters because games need creatures to do more than appear in a story. A rule system may define a creature's movement, senses, attacks, resistances, social role or experience value. A dragon becomes not only a symbolic being but also an encounter with specific tactical problems. An elf becomes not only a figure from folklore but also a choice involving abilities, background and narrative identity.

Video games extended this process by using visual design, sound, animation and level structure. The shape of a creature communicates information quickly. Wings can suggest flight, armour can suggest endurance, glowing eyes can indicate magic and a small group of goblins can signal a lower-level challenge. These conventions are useful, but they can also lead players to assume that appearance automatically reveals morality or danger.

The following table shows common game functions without treating them as universal rules:

Creature	Traditional associations often reused by games	Possible game functions
Dragon	Power, treasure, transformation, guardianship, destruction	Boss encounter, mentor, faction leader, mount, world-building force
Goblin	Mischief, caves, disorder, marginal communities, craft or mining	Early enemy, negotiable faction, scavenger society, comic or tragic character
Elf	Otherworldliness, beauty, magic, nature, long memory	Playable ancestry, ancient civilisation, rival culture, guide or hidden threat

A practical method for analysing a fantasy creature

Whether a player is starting a new game, choosing a character or designing a family activity, five questions can reveal how a creature works in that setting.

1. What is inherited from older stories? Look for recurring features such as dragon treasure, goblin caves or elven forests. These details may be deliberate references to folklore and literature.

2. What has been changed? A game may make dragons social rather than solitary, goblins technologically skilled rather than primitive, or elves short-lived rather than immortal. The change often reveals the game's main theme.

3. What does the rules system reward? If a creature gives bonuses to stealth, strength or magic, the game is presenting one interpretation of its identity. Mechanical benefits are design choices, not historical evidence.

4. Who controls the point of view? A creature seen only through an enemy catalogue will seem different from one available as a player character. Compare descriptions, dialogue and the consequences of encounters.

5. What choices does the game permit? A setting becomes richer when players can investigate, trade, cooperate, avoid conflict or challenge a stereotype. Variety in available actions is often more meaningful than a long list of creature names.

This method also works for younger players. After a session, ask which creature seemed dangerous, why it seemed dangerous and whether the game provided evidence beyond its appearance. That conversation encourages source awareness and critical reading without requiring specialist knowledge.

Using creature origins in a game night or creative activity

The history of fantasy creatures can become a practical activity rather than a lecture. A group can choose one dragon, goblin or elf from a game and create a three-column comparison: older folklore association, game adaptation and personal reinterpretation.

For example, a dragon might begin as a serpent guardian in an ancient story, become a treasure-hoarding boss in a role-playing game and then be redesigned as a creature protecting a community from exploitation. A goblin might begin as a troublesome household spirit, become an underground enemy and then be developed into a skilled repairer whose settlement is threatened by mining. An elf might begin as an unpredictable supernatural being, become an elegant archer and then be imagined as a young person questioning an isolated tradition.

Another activity is to design a creature encounter with three non-combat solutions. Players might gather information, offer a fair exchange, repair a damaged object, solve a boundary dispute or help two groups communicate. This encourages attention to motivation and setting while giving participants more ways to play.

For a short writing exercise, use these prompts:

• What does the creature fear losing?
• What human misunderstanding surrounds it?
• Which feature comes from folklore and which feature was invented for this game?
• What would the creature consider a fair bargain?
• What evidence would change the players' first impression?

These activities are suitable for tabletop role-playing, game design workshops, creative writing or a discussion after playing a fantasy video game.

Respecting folklore while enjoying fictional adaptations

Fantasy games are adaptations, not museum displays. A game can borrow a name, motif or creature type and give it a new role. The important distinction is between saying that a game is inspired by a tradition and claiming that its version represents the original tradition accurately.

Some beings associated with folklore, religion or living cultural traditions require particular care. A brief internet-style label may hide differences between regions, historical periods and communities. Players should avoid treating every supernatural figure as interchangeable. When accuracy matters, consult recognised translations of primary texts, reputable academic reference works or publications from cultural institutions. For entertainment, it is still useful to read the game's own notes and identify where creative adaptation begins.

It is also worth separating creature design from moral judgement. A character may have monstrous features without being evil, while a beautiful or familiar character may cause harm. Games that challenge these assumptions can create stronger stories and more interesting decisions.

The most productive question is often not, “What is this creature really?” but, “Which tradition is this game drawing on, what has it changed and what does that change allow players to do?” That approach respects history while leaving room for imagination.

Frequently asked questions

Are dragons, goblins and elves from one single mythology?

No. Similar creature types developed across different traditions, periods and regions. Modern games combine elements from ancient myths, medieval folklore, literature and earlier games.

Did Tolkien invent modern fantasy creatures?

No. Tolkien drew on older languages, myths and literature. His work was highly influential in shaping modern fantasy, especially ideas about elves, orcs, invented languages and deep fictional history.

Why are goblins often used as beginner enemies?

They are visually distinct, usually humanoid and easy to place in groups or settlements. This makes them flexible for early encounters, although games can also use them as complex communities or allies.

Were elves always beautiful and immortal?

No. Older traditions describe supernatural beings with varied appearances, powers and moral qualities. The graceful, long-lived elf is mainly a later literary and fantasy-game development.

How can players tell whether a game is using folklore responsibly?

Check whether the game distinguishes its fictional adaptation from historical tradition, avoids presenting stereotypes as facts and gives creatures motivations or identities beyond their visual appearance.