i think my favorite single fantasy trope is when the ancient and primal civilizations and elements of the world that are traditionally depicted as "the fading glorious old world", instead move with the world, keep up with the times, and grow and change along the rest
this in itself is an inversion of a LOT of classic fantasy tropes, but i adore it when the dragons are in parliment, when the elves apply their silver-filigreed craftsmanship to equip their forest rangers with masterwork firearms, when these Old And Storied And Mythical things are as part of a changing and ever-evolving world
it's a big theme in the Archipelago.
I think this is the third time I've gotten on my "we should give elves guns" soapbox on this website
I'm right though like come on do you not want the wood elves to hide in the canopy for hours before taking a single perfect rifle shot or the high elves to have disciplined regiments of elite arquebusiers and shining silver light cannon towed behind their graceful steeds