But it seems extreme that one player would choose gnome and nothing else even though he or she knows there are no gnomes.
It could effect the other players as well. I can't run games I don't have fun running, I just can't. I've tried and I just end up bored out of my mind which then causes the game to fall apart.
Sure, a player can be selfish in their requests. But I was asking about what a DM can do besides say no. We can also discuss how it can be bad for players to insist on their character design. But my comment was to examine things from a DM perspective.
It's just for discussion. I'm curious.
Why would I have to allow it? They don't exist. Even if they existed, officially, why can't I say "No!"? they don't exist when I run. Genasi exist in 4e Darksun, I can still say, "No" to them. The only time that I cannot say, "No" is if they are established in organized play, but I avoid organized play like the plague and, therefore, would never run anything in organized play.
Just asking what you would do if you couldn't say no. How would you work around it?
Just pretend for a minute you can't or won't say no to the request.
JUST for the sake of discussion (because really, my answer would be no), let's imagine that Chris Hardwick, Wil Wheaton, Nathan Fillion, and Felicia Day called me and said they REALLY wanted me to DM a Dark Sun game for them, but Felicia REALLY wants to play a gnome.
OK, fine. She can play a gnome. How would I work it in? Well, either she's actually a delusional halfling that fully believes that she is a gnome, or she's some random gnome that got sucked into a time vortex from the time when there were gnomes and got spit out in our current campaign...which will then make everyone think she is a delusional halfling that fully believes that she is a gnome. So, in short, she's a halfling.
Hah nice. So would you use the gnome mechanics? Would you allow it to come up in any way over the course of the campaign? Or would you simply go with the delusional halfling take and never examine it any further?
A player who shows up for a Dark Sun campaign that everyone has agreed to, but who insists on playing a Gnome cleric of Garl Glittergold has literally nothing to offer the table, and the rest of the group would be better off without them.
That would be potentially very awkward and painful, but I can't imagine any other resolution. The player is stamping their foot about how important their concept is compared to everyone else's desire to play Dark Sun, and basically saying that they intend to steal spot light from before play even begins. I can't imagine any friend I've had ever doing that over something as lame as a Gnome Cleric in Dark Sun, but if they did I'd be very disappointed in them.
Well, no, it doesn't have to be that way. Maybe they didn't know it would be Dark Sun. Let's just assume for the sake of argument that their intentions were perfectly benign. They show up with their gnome character and oops it's Dark Sun, and there's limited time, so you just decide to run with it. How do you go about it?
How does it matter to Dark Sun one way or another if there are Gnomes or not? Does having a lost tribe of Gnomes suddenly turn Dark Sun into a verdant Green paradise? Most likely not.
Probably the biggest thing to consider for a Gnome player is how they fit into the struggle for survival that is Dark Sun.
Sure, I agree. I personally wouldn't have a problem with it, and I'd work with the player to come up with a reason for the gnome. A lost tribe, a planar visitor, time travel, a new breed of gnome....plenty of possibilities depending on the campaign.
Traditionally, the setting does not allow for gnomes because they are extinct on Athas.
Why couldn't I say no?
If I'm dealing with a violent sociopath, a gnome would appear through a fleeting wormhole. Heck, he'd pretty much get whatever he wanted until I was in position to turn him in/incapacitate him.
If I owe the player too much to refuse then I'd roll my eyes and a gnome would appear as above.
Pretty much any other situation would get, "Sorry, how about a <insert appropriate race> instead?"
You can of course say no if this were to happen. But I was just asking for the sake of discussion.
I'll put you down as "planar visitor".
Right, and instead of futzing around with details that no one else cares about, why not futze around figuring out why there were no Gnomes and now there are. I can guarantee that there will be at least one other person that will care about those details.
Exactly what I am trying to point out, thank you. Almost everyone just jumped to "NO!" immediately, even though I was just asking for discussion's sake. I've found that when you just decide not to automatically say no just based on the expectation you already have, and actually consider the request, and work with the player to come up with a viable resolution...well, that right there is world building.
A gnome on Athas just opens up all kinds of possibilities...maybe some that are interesting enough to examine over the course of a campaign. Maybe not...in which case the one gnome has little impact on things anyway. Especially if viewed as a delusional halfling.
I used to be a real control freak when it came to this stuff. I've made a conscious decision to stop it though, because I've found that my most creative stuff usually comes from unexpected places.
