Inspiration comes from many places, but sometimes you don't have to look far. Let's talk about where Warhammer's elves came from.
When the threat of Chaos was new, and the tribes of men in the north had never even imagined the name Heldenhammer, the elves of Asur fought to protect the world from daemonic apocalypse. Led by the might hero Aenarion, they turned back the dark tide, creating a magical vortex that drained the inherent magical energy Chaos daemons needed to thrive in the mortal realm and banishing the incursion back into the warp.
But, unfortunately, with the death of their greatest hero and the thought of warfare behind them, the elves were divided on how their kingdom should proceed. Over time, this caused a schism that saw the elves split into three distinct factions: the High Elves of Asur, who became self-appointed stewards of the other mortal races, the sinister Dark Elves of Naggaroth, raiders and slavers of the frozen western wastes, and the enigmatic Wood Elves of Athel Loren, who retreated from the world and took guardianship of the forests.
Regardless of their faction, though, the inspiration for the elves is pretty clearly Tolkein. While each of the forces...