Suspend your disbelief

Hmmm... I've been playing some RPGs lately that put no effort into their realism. I mean, sure I'm prepared to suspend my disbelief on some issues like ninjas jumping thirty feet into the air, or the existence of magic or telekinesis. However, there are some problems that don't stem from a suspension of disbelief. They are the little problems that no one really brings up. When they are, the developers sweep them under the rug with a simple statement: "It's magic." Which is bullshit. I mean, seriously magic is a nice enough addition to a game or plotline, but when you start throwing it around like they do you mess up the very basics of it. It ceases to be special, and the books cease to be thought out. So I'm just going to take apart some of these myths of belief suspension and magic.

Lava Men - Seen in Ragnarok Online
Alright, a few facts. Lava flows really slowly, however it only conserves heat because it is in bunches and is rock. Even then, the lava on the top usually solidifies. This happens so much so that you get underground lava tunnels covered in thin, thin ledges made of hardened lava.

Standing with such a barrier between you and the lava, you'd be okay, though it's between 45-60 degrees Celsius.

However, because the ground is so fragile, there have been cases where people have actually fallen through and either gotten trapped in the lava, or a meter or so above it, since lava flow has died down. Regardless, if you are within 1 meter of lava, the intense heat is somewhere between 200-500 degrees Celsius. You get third degree burns in about a second, second degree burns in about a minute, and first degree burns in about two minutes, depending on the heat of the lava. Your clothes burn to ashes either way.

Lava men should thus have the ability to burn anything that comes within 1 meter of them. A problem for those using wooden arrows, or for melee fighters who will get burned attacking them. Also, because the lava men are out in the open, a quick Freeze spell should solidify them, and they will eventually grow lethargic and turn to statues anyways. But it isn't that easy!

Infact these guys are a piece of cake if you're able to survive the rest of the dungeon. Not only that, but they can shoot fireballs, which do not at all make them smaller.

Now the residual heat of striking such a body would kill an average person and melt their weapons. Rock thankfully has a higher melting temperature than metals, so steel swords will not fare well in lavamen. Arrows seem kinda pointless. Infact the only way you could possibly defeat such a monster is with a Frost spell, a fuckload of icecubes, or a nice, cool breeze. Because knocking its head off won't help, it can reconstruct itself.

Windships/Airships - Seen in numerous RPGs and fantasy
For the most part, some fantasy authors (Dart-Thornton for one) have dealt with airships easily. Others (Final Fantasy series for another) seem to skirt around and bring out their 'Magicpunk' (alike to Steampunk, but magic is the excuse for everything) excuses and move on. Yes I am being petty, but if no one points out these they're likely to get more and more insane. Consider the size and bulk of these ships for a second. These are a size from that of a medium sailing ship to a massive Titanic-sized transport that Lord Xenu would be proud of. Sailing on the winds, although Dart-Thornton has some kind of rock that repels the ground. Unlikely I think, but easier to imagine than magic.

Hmmm, I got sidetracked there for a second looking up Scientology stuff, and managed to injure my finger, so I might lay off the typing for tonight.