Which PHB race doesn't fit into YOUR fantasy campaign?

JoeGKushner · Dec 23, 2003

I voted three ways. I allow all races in my game, but gnomes and halflings have yet to make a signifiant contribution to almost any of my games. One time I gave a player a modified Halfling Guardian from an old dragon magazine and used him to springboard osme other halfling elements into the campaign but outside of that, players in my games have shown zero interest in those two races.

Arnwyn · Dec 23, 2003

I allow all the PHB races into my game.

Like what Joe says above, though, gnomes and halflings (hobbits IMC) have never played a significant role.

In fact, my players have pretty much stuck with humans for the last 10 years.

Davelozzi · Dec 23, 2003

I voted gnome, half-elf, and half-orc because none of these are player races in my campaign. Half breeds are extraordinarly rare and not likely to be accepted in most places. Elves and humans don't generally get along too well so this applies to half-elves almost as much as half-orcs. I haven't decided whether or not gnomes exist but if they do then they're rare and would be smaller and more fey than standard D&D gnomes, probably closer to brownies in D&D terms.

I actually haven't had any halflings or elves make direct appearances in my campaign yet either, but they both exist. We've been playing for a little more than a year and a half, with most PCs currently at 6th level, but the campaign has been fairly grounded in a human dominanted kingdom so far. We do have a dwarf in the party and have met a few others, and have had encounters with orcs, goblins, and the like.

Wombat · Dec 23, 2003

In my current campaign, we have no gnomes, no halflings, and no half-orcs.

For that matter the elves, dwarves, and half-elves (along with the new half-dwarves) are also altered, for the purposes of this campaign.

In the previous campaign, I had all races.

For the next campaign, I will be using the Arcana Unearthed races instead of the PHB races.

All depends on the needs of the campaign

S'mon · Dec 23, 2003

Doc_Klueless said:
In my campaign and all the others I've run over the last 20+ years, gnomes have never played a part. Just don't like the little buggers! I can't seem to figure out what niche they fill.

How about you?

IMC a gnome may occasionally appear as 'fey' - certainly not as a PC, though. I voted halfling since they appear neither as PC nor NPC. Other nonhumans - elf, dwarf, half-elf, half-orc - can be PCs but are rare and I discourage having too many of them.

d4 · Dec 23, 2003

my last homebrew world had only humans, dwarves, and goblinoids.

i can't recall the last time i've used gnomes. never really liked them, i guess.

if i ever use elves again, i'll probably boost them up to a +2/+3 ECL race, and try to make them more like Tolkien's elves.

Holy Bovine · Dec 23, 2003

Jeez, thread necromancy!

This thing is nearly 2 years old - I don't even know if the thread starter is still around or not!

Gothmog · Dec 23, 2003

Well, my hombrew world has only humans as a PC race. However, there are 13 distinct cultural groups, each with their own racial abilities, advantages, disadvantages, cultural feats, magical traditions, etc. There are no gnomes or halflings, and while there are dwarves a elves, they are more akin to mythological creatures than the races in the PHB (more sinister and less friendly). There are no half-elves- humans and elves NEVER mate- they are mortal enemies. Half orcs do exist, but nobody has ever opted to play one, especially considering the kind of predjudice they would face from humans. Orcs, goblins, beastmen, and most of the humanoid races are demon-worshippers, and are used as pawns by the netherworld to destroy human civilization and corrupt souls.

Nifft · Dec 23, 2003

Here are my Gnomes, since the standard ones didn't fit:

Gnome 2.0

Tiny size (+2 Attack & AC, +8 Hide checks, 50% carrying capacity)
Base Speed 20 ft.
Str -4, Cha +2
Weapon Familiarity: Gnomes may treat gnome hooked hammers as Martial rather then Exotic weapons.
+2 racial bonus on saving throws against illusions
Add +1 to the Difficulty Class for all saving throws against illusion spells cast by gnomes
+1 racial bonus on attack rolls against kobolds and goblinoids (including goblins, hobgoblins, and bugbears)
+4 dodge bonus to Armor Class against monsters of the giant type (such as ogres, trolls, and hill giants)
+2 racial bonus on Listen and Craft (alchemy) checks
Low-light Vision: Gnomes can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. They retain the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
Automatic Language: Common.
Bonus Languages: Sylvan, Draconic, Dwarven, Elven, Giant, Goblin, Orc and Terran. In addition, a gnome can speak with animals once per day. This ability is innate to gnomes. See the speak with animals spell description.
Spell-Like Abilities: 1/day -- Speak with Animals (duration 1 minute). A gnome with a Charisma score of at least 10 also has the following spell-like abilities: 3/day -- Prestidigitation. Caster level 1st or Gnome's character level, whichever is higher; save DC 10 + gnome's Cha modifier.
Favored Class: Bard.

Special: Gnomes may take a 4-level Racial Prestige Class. (As a PrC, these levels cannot cause an XP penalty.)

Gnome PrC
HD: d6
BAB: Half (as Sorcerer)
Good Saves: Reflex, Will / Bad Save: Fortitude
Skill Points: 6 + Int bonus
Class Skills: Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Hide (Dex), Jump (Str), Knowlege (any) (Int), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Search (Int), Spellcraft (Int), Spot (Wis) and Swim (Str).

Code:

[u]Level   BAB   Fort	Ref	Will	Spellcasting 	Special Abilities[/u]
1	+0	+0	+2	+2	-- 		[i]Faerie Fire[/i], [i]Speak with Animals[/i] 3/day
2	+1	+0	+3	+3	+1 Level Bard	Improved Illusion
3	+1	+1	+3	+3	-- 		Fey Sight
4	+2	+1	+4	+4	+1 Level Bard	Fey Wings, +2 Charisma

Special Abilities:

Faerie Fire (Special): The Gnome gains the spell Faerie Fire as an extra known 1st level Bard spell. If the Gnome cannot yet cast 1st-level Bard spells, he gains Faerie Fire as a spell-like ability usable once per day until he can cast 1st-level Bard spells.
Speak with Animals (Sp): The Gnome can use his Speak with Animals spell-like ability thrice per day, and his caster level increases
Improved Illusion (Ex): The Gnome's racial bonus to Illusion spell DCs increases to +2.
Fey Sight (Su): The Gnome perceives the world as though under a constant See Invisibility spell, which cannot be dispelled. Due to his improved visual acuity, he gains a +2 racial bonus to Spot and Search checks.
Fey Wings (Ex): The Gnome gains faerie wings, which give him a fly speed of 40 ft., with Good maneuverability. He may choose dragonfly, butterfly or bird wings.
Charisma Increase (Ex): This bonus is gained as though through level advancement.

-- N

Jeremy Crawford · Dec 23, 2003

Psion said:
Feh. Gnomes have a niche. It's just intruded upon by halflings. I say boot the halflings; gnomes actually have some distinctiveness that the halflings don't.

I agree. The gnome has analogs in folklore and mythology, whereas the quasi-kender halfling has none. It isn't even related to the hobbit. I look at the 3e halfling and I think, "If I wanted kender in my game, I'd go all the way." (Mind you, I don't dislike kender.)