More Dark SUn tidbits by Rich Baker

[Henrix]

Personally, I'd rather have Large sized half-giants too. It'd be nice to take them back to their roots. However, I don't see WotC allowing a Large sized creature any time soon, due to balance issues.

Large races have other problems than balance problems, as well.

How do you fit it into a normal house? Or even a lot of dungeons?
If you put a large guy in front of your party in your average 10' corridor noone else gets to fight.

Should Wizards make all adventures suited for large PCs? Or even all Dark Sun adventures?
No, please.

So I prefer smaller half-giants. Even if it's a break with tradition.

 

[Phaezen]

Any gueses as to what the Dungeon Tile release for June next year will be?

According to Amazon

 

[Silverblade The Ench]

Phaezen
nice catch!!

mmm...cactus tiles of prickliness!

 

[Wik]

*drool*

 

[Hadrian the Builder]

Those were abilities that were added on after Dark Sun in the Expanded Psionics Handbook in 3.5. If you look at a Dark Sun half-giant and the XPH half-giant, they are very different beasts. The XPH version added the stomp power, but shrank the half-giant by 3 feet and put it on a massive weight loss program. If anything defined the Dark Sun half-giant beyond their massive size, it was their axis alignment, an aspect of them that I don't think will work in 4e.

So to me, saying the goliath wouldn't work for the half-giant since they can't "stomp" is a false analogy since the 3.5 half-giant was so different from its 2e inspiration. Now, if you argued about the height difference and the axis alignment, I'd be there with you.

Question is, did the goliath kill the half-giant and take his stuff?

I see your point. The original DS half giant were defined by their large size and great strength and dull wits. They could play a cleric, fighter, gladiator, psionicist, or ranger. Their half-human side made them communicative and cooperative, communal and adaptive. Part of their alignment could change every day. And they got lots of extra hit points.

3.5 altered them to fit the current system, not the setting.

While the goliaths can act as a stand-in for half-giants (in fact one of my players is doing that in my current campaign) they really don't evoke the same feel as the half-giant race.

 

[MaximumHavoc]

They haven't, but an easy way to do it would be to say that in Athas the primordials won...

this is a very good idea. i also think that this could easily facilitate the repurposing of all divine classes to worshipers of primordials. that would be fun to role play. i would like to explore the primordials more than has been done already.

 

[MaximumHavoc]

Well, IMHO they fall short beacuse they... are short (ugh).

HG in the original material were iconically big. I don't think any race smaller than Large can give me the same feel. The same happened with the 3e rendition of HG. They didn't feel right to me.

Goliaths could be nice "quarter-giants", but not HG. Sort of the relationship that existed in 3e between half-fiends and tieflings. Diluted blood, more interbreeding, and such. But no more.

If I can't have a playable, balanced PC race of Large Half-Giants, I'd rather really only have them as a monster race and use them as the sorcerer-kings' bodyguards, like I almost always did.

I'd prefer to save the feeling of the setting than having a PC race more.

"Anthur [a goliath] never quite measured up to his hill giant brethren. He tried to hold his own, but barely managed. Unable to compete at rock throwing, wrestling, or the other sports bored hill giants engage in, Anthur often became the target of their insults … and their boulders. Instead of growing bitter, Anthur resigned himself to being the runt of his clan and spent an increasing amount of time wandering the impassable crags near his tribe’s lands."
(dragon 378 page 52)

this official text suggests that goliaths are closer to the size of giants than you imagine.

 

[catsclaw227]

Hasn't a Gladiator mechanic already been introduced in the early DDI eDragon? They've had Arena fighting feats and Gladiator style mechanics for 4e since close to month 1 or 2 in the 4e lifecycle.

 

[amysrevenge]

the "templar" path gets magic-item dailies reflecting his service to the SK.

That's a new and interesting notion indeed. It goes one step farther than inherent bonuses, in that in addition to making th math work without magic items, you also get those Daily item powers without items. I like it.

 

[SSquirrel]

I forgot to say this before, but did anyone else notice that Mouseferatu is one of the design team? I said this in another DS thread, but that's really good news for me.

Indeed. If it's bad we can direct the lynch mob to ENWorld to find him. Man, that's convenience for ya! *grin*