D&D 4E Call a kender a kender? What should 4E "halflings" be called?

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

So, Races & Classes makes it clear that 4E halflings are, essentially, kender with a fondness for rivers and other waterways.

If that's the case -- dumping the we-don't-license-it hobbit flavor in favor of Tasslehoff-is-super-popular-despite-the-haters kender flavor -- why not just go all the way and make the race name match the race write-up?

In other words, should WotC call a kender a kender, and drop the "halfling" name entirely?

 

[Aldarc]

So, Races & Classes makes it clear that 4E halflings are, essentially, kender with a fondness for rivers and other waterways.

If that's the case -- dumping the we-don't-license-it hobbit flavor in favor of Tasslehoff-is-super-popular-despite-the-haters kender flavor -- why not just go all the way and make the race name match the race write-up?

In other words, should WotC call a kender a kender, and drop the "halfling" name entirely?

I wish, because I do not like the name halflings to begin with, but then again dwarf is also kind of insulting, unless you take the WoW approach and have dwarves call themselves the Earthen.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

That's not the WoW approach, actually. The Earthen are constructs created by the Titans. The dwarves are one of two things they mutated into. (And I'm guessing gnomes are a third, although it's never been stated, to my knowledge.)

 

[boolean]

2/3lings, because they're no longer 1/2 the height of a human.

 

[Aldarc]

That's not the WoW approach, actually. The Earthen are constructs created by the Titans. The dwarves are one of two things they mutated into. (And I'm guessing gnomes are a third, although it's never been stated, to my knowledge.)

That is the WoW approach, actually. Yes the Earthen are constructs of the Titans, and the Earthen mutated into Dwarves, but Dwarves still refer to themselves as the Earthen as their preferred racial name. The name of dwarves are believed to have come about after their first encounters with humans and it stuck, much like halflings in D&D.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

That is the WoW, actually. Yes the Earthen are constructs of the Titans, and the Earthen mutated into Dwarves, but Dwarves still refer to themselves as the Earthen as their preferred racial name.

I'm sorry, but this simply isn't true.

I've been playing a dwarf since alpha (the first day dwarves were available in alpha, in fact), and Earthen is reserved for the constructs themselves.

Now, someone not with Blizzard may have written something contradictory in the pen and paper World of Warcraft game, or in one of the wackier novels (shades of multiple gods of the same name running around due to the novels), but in the game itself, the race name is dwarves. It's what the dwarves of Ironforge, Aerie Peak, Blackrock Mountain and all the rest call themselves.

 

[Aldarc]

I'm sorry, but this simply isn't true.

I've been playing a dwarf since alpha (the first day dwarves were available in alpha, in fact), and Earthen is reserved for the constructs themselves.

Now, someone not with Blizzard may have written something contradictory in the pen and paper World of Warcraft game, or in one of the wackier novels (shades of multiple gods of the same name running around due to the novels), but in the game itself, the race name is dwarves. It's what the dwarves of Ironforge, Aerie Peak, Blackrock Mountain and all the rest call themselves.

You are right, but by the same extent, my own statement that dwarves calling themselves earthen is still legitimate.

From the WoW Wiki:

Although the present earthen of Ironforge, etc. call themselves the dwarves, a small snippet in the third War of the Ancients book states that during the time of War of the Ancients the term dwarf was actually a derogatory term used by the night elves of that time to belittle what they considered an inferior race. However it's unclear why the Earthen eventually decided to adopt this rude terminology to name themselves.

Brann Bronzebeard suggests in one of his books that when the humans first met the dwarves they just simply called them dwarves. Since then the dwarves have kept this name, although some dwarves insist being named earthen.

 

[ZombieRoboNinja]

Kender belong to Dragonlance, and as much as I like the books, I'd prefer they stay out of the core rules. Halflings can be mischievous tricksters without turning into ADHD-ridden delusional kleptomaniacs, which is what anyone who's ever read the books (probably a darn significant chunk of D&D players) would default to if the 4e PHB entry said "Kender."

 

[Arkhandus]

If they sound like Kender, act like Kender, and look like Kender......then they're Kender. Not Halflings. I don't care that they live in marshes, and had a little growth spurt, that's not enough to change the fact that the new Halflings are, in fact, Kender.



......Though, I gotta admit, I kinda like Kender.

But I prefer standard D&D halflings to not be kender. The 3E version was much more flexible in its use and not so heavily kenderized or hobbitzed.

 

[GrinningBuddha]

Kender are immune to fear (mostly) and adept at taunting. 4E halflings have not been given these traits according to any information we've been given. Why would we call halflings kender when they share one measly trait between them?