Quote Originally Posted by Anonymouswizard View Post
I actually find two of those references to be cringey (the Paladin/Bard one works, just). Especially the entire Wizard/Sorcerer/Warlock divide, it still doesn't make sense to me for those to be in-setting terms. At least not in the way D&D uses them (something like The Dark Eye's Mage/Witch distinction makes sense to me, which you are depends on your training).

Then again that's one of the reasons I've done off modern D&D, I'd much rather run something like Basic Fantasy with it's more generic classes these days.

Or to put it simply, references to classes should be references to actual logical in-world terms. Like the Mages in the first film, an order of Paladins, Warlock as in a 'deals with demons' term, necromancer because they use death magic, and so on. The Sorcerer/Wizard disctinction, while great in the tabletop game where they let us separate two sets of mechanics, makes less sense in a film where making such a distinction can slow the pace down if the film isn't specifically about magic users.

Unless the big bad is an evil Sorcerer and the party Wizard insists on making the distinction to the mild confusion of her party members they should probably be used relatively interchangeably. Because as far as the non-D&D playing section of the audience is concerned one throws fireballs and the other throws fireballs.
Assuming they go Forgotten Realms, one of the only reasons I can see them seriously going into it would be if they are dealing with Thay. Wizards are the rulers, not Sorcerers, and that is relevant to their whole outlook. Having said that, the Haunted Lands trilogy of books seemed to throw around the term Warlock an awful lot when referring to Red Wizards for some reason. I really wouldn't expect them to delve into it beyond some of the examples people have mentioned (a Wizard and a Sorcerer debating, some plot relevant distinction between divine and arcane magic or possibly psionics, etc.).