Holiday Present - The Elf PHB entry

[Sir Sebastian Hardin]

This +2 and another +2 in ability scores made me think about humans... maybe they get only a +2 in one score, but you get to choose wich score!

 

[Amrynn Moonshadow]

sorry to all for contributing to the BMI thread hijack

I'm going to miss elves having some versatility (like others have stated: humans can be barbarians or wizards or whatever, but I guess elves can now only be the grungy forest dwellers, and the magic happy elves are a new species now). additionally, some of the old abilities were things I got a little used to (detecting secret doors...etc).

Not having a -2 Con is good. +2 to Wis is also good. I fail to see how elves make non-elves better at seeing things though. I guess elves have an aura which makes everyone have half-elven skill bounses to what we used to call spot and search . . . funny.

This write up answers some questions, but adds many as well. What's the deal with weapon proficiencies and allignment?

I want to adopt 4e rules, but I think that we're going to have to see the full rule books so we get the bigger picture, instead of disecting this elf entry without seeing how it affects everything else. (maybe elves can take a racial feat to regain some immunity to paralysis or whatever?)

 

[Asmor]

I think it's clear that elves pulled a KHTHS (killed him, took his stuff) on the Kender.

That's why they grant the bonus to their allies. Think about it, it makes perfect sense!

With kleptomaniacal elves running around, whenever you see one you're gonna be extra cautious and pay close attention...

 

[Amphimir Míriel]

The Group Awareness ability seems to follow the trend of valuing teamwork in 4thE. I am willing to bet that all races in the PHB have some ability to help the whole party, I am not talking about an aura, but something that gives the party a nice little bonus. As for the distance in a non combat situation either you are spread out and you don't get it, or you are reasonably grouped so you do (that is assuming the elf is not off scouting, which it looks like they will be very good at).

Agreed

I hear you, but I'll be mollified if there are game mechanics (simple rituals or spells, skill write-ups, etc.) that let you do things like "remove a part of a living tree with magic" or craft bows and arrows from living wood or somesuch.

This reminded me of the "Piggies" in Orson Scott Card's "Speaker of the Dead", which are an alien race that never cut down trees, but all their tools and constructions are made of wood. They do it by "talking" to trees and asking them to provide them with wooden tools... The tree then warps a branch (or its whole trunk) and drops the requested piece of shaped wood on the floor.

I didn't realize this myself until I was reading the later pages of this thread, but there is no mention at all of elves "trancing" in this description, and they have no resistance to sleep effects. It seems the weird effect of elves not sleeping is completely gone, now.

I'd say that "wordly" elves do sleep, and "fey" eladrin keep their trance... I'd also wager eladrin are longer-lived

 

[catsclaw227]

This reminded me of the "Piggies" in Orson Scott Card's "Speaker of the Dead", which are an alien race that never cut down trees, but all their tools and constructions are made of wood. They do it by "talking" to trees and asking them to provide them with wooden tools... The tree then warps a branch (or its whole trunk) and drops the requested piece of shaped wood on the floor.

Oh my! How could I have forgotten about that! Good call. That would be some awesome flavor, but I wonder how that would be abused by powergamers.

 

[Sir Brennen]

Oh my! How could I have forgotten about that! Good call. That would be some awesome flavor, but I wonder how that would be abused by powergamers.

Since what the tree creates is entirely under the DM's control, if the "tree" feels exploited, it simply won't produce any items. Nor will it's neighbors. Word travels fast on the winds in the forest.

 

[Kintara]

I'm going to miss elves having some versatility (like others have stated: humans can be barbarians or wizards or whatever, but I guess elves can now only be the grungy forest dwellers, and the magic happy elves are a new species now). additionally, some of the old abilities were things I got a little used to (detecting secret doors...etc).

I think the stats have plenty of versatility. You can play an Elven Wizard who studied magic in an arboreal city, just as easily as you can play an Eladrin Ranger who creeps around in the forests of the Feywild. You can play an Eladrin in Elven lands, or vice versa (there were many times in history where they lived together in one kingdom); their families might have lived as minority populations for millennia. I see no reason to boil anyone down to stereotypes. As far as I'm concerned, I just consider it an increase in the versatility.