Quote:
Originally Posted by David Johnston2
It's boring because everything cool is going or gone. No elves. No wizards. No magic. Hobbits and dwarves retreat from contact. Orcs disappear.
|
I'm not aware of anything that indicates that magic is gone, orcs disappear, or the Hobbits and Dwarves 'retreat from contact.'
The Shire retains its autonomy and the Hobbits have a decree from the King of Gondor and Arnor to the effect that Men can't enter without permission. But that doesn’tt mean that Hobbits cannot leave. And the Shire is not the only place where Hobbits dwell.
There are magicians and magic sources besides Sauron and the Istari. Or did Sauron make the talking purse for a certain troll? ;)
As for war and conflict-- I looked in Appendix A of LotR. It explains that "though Sauron had passed, the hatreds and evils he had bred had not died, and the King of the West had many enemies to subdue before the White Tree could grow in peace."
I imagine that by the late 4th Age the fading of magic and the removal or retreat of non-humans had advanced much further, but I don't see any reason why an early or middle 4th Age game couldn't feature magic and non-humans. It would probably have less of both than in the 3rd Age, I suppose.