Continuing the old school character class post theme (with a particular emphasis on the Moldvay era of D&D B/X) is the Elf. There is a large divergence of views on Elves in Old School D&D including what they are and how common they should be, and a common perception of the Elf Class in B/X as the most powerful of all the Moldvay-Mentzer era D&D character classes.
As usual with these old school class posts I like to start with Daniel from Bandit’s Keep and his thoughts, this time firstly on a “Humancentric” fantasy (D&D) world and the rarity of demi-humans (like Elves & Dwarves); and then in the second video on Elves specifically, both as a race and the Elf class in B/X:
I’m not a great fan of the Elves as ‘fairies’ or ‘fey’ creatures – I will admit I’m very much in the ‘Tolkienesque Camp’ when it comes to how I imagine, see and implement (i.e. play) elves. I do agree they should be relatively rare, and hence why I do not see the need for so many varieties or sub-races (digression ramble below):
I don’t much like all the additional elf races that have been added to D&D over the years since the times when AD&D 1e and D&D B/X came out (such as the Sun Elves, Moon Elves, Gold Elves, Sea or Aquatic Elves, etc, etc, etc) – for me all elves should be to some degree or another within the 4 classic sub-races Grey, Wood, Drow (or Dark), and High (the AD&D term for the most common of the 4 types, although I’d have used something else). They are rare to start with and things like Grey or Wood Elves & Drow should be especially rare – hence that rarity means there should not be a plethora of different sub-races or tribes, especially given how ‘long-lived’ they are.
I will add more on this subject in future, but for now primarily wanted to share Daniel’s 2 videos above as a primer on the subject. See also my similar post on the Magic-User (link below) which includes some thoughts around spell books and spells, some of which also apply to the Elf Class in B/X (and BECMI).