Nature vs. Nurture

[I'm A Banana]

No images yet...

BUT!

I want wild diversity.

I want fat elves. I want skinny dwarves. I want arctic owlbears. I want the gamut!

The images in the PHB and the MM should not be of THE CREATURE. They should be of a creature. This is an elf. This is an owlbear. This is what they could look like.

For illustrative purposes, the picture next to the first definition of the thing should be kind of stereotypical, but we don't need to cling to that elsewhere.

And if your fat elf starts looking like a human with pointy ears, then I'd say your elves don't have enough visual distinction. That's a problem. A normal elf shouldn't just be a skinny person.

 

[avin]

I want elves in different sizes, with different hair and skin colors. High elves could keep their full colored eyes from 4E's Eladrins.

Elven tendency should be skinny, but fat glutton elves could exist.

 

[Jeff Carlsen]

I want variation, but the variation should be within the context of the race. How does an elf carry extra weight? I don't imagine that elves are prone to beer bellies, but perhaps extra fat tends to collect on the legs and hips.

And what does an starved elf look like? These are great details for roleplaying in general, so why not fully explore them?

Now, this doesn't mean that every race varies as dramatically as humans. And some races might vary even more than humans. I think all of these are good things to explore.

 

[Klaus]

Links now work.

 

[ferratus]

I think you can have fat elves and skinny halflings, as long as you have an idea of what culture they come from.

Elves don't have to be skinny, they have to be fey looking and otherworldly. Halflings have to look like rural Englishmen who "knows me place". Dwarves... well Dwarves have to be short, but you can get away with a lot as long as they look like industrial laborers, Scots, or Vikings.

In each of those examples you can have a variety of body types.

 

[avin]

Halflings have to look like rural Englishmen who "knows me place".

That would be Tolkien Hobbits, D&D halflings have divorced from that for at least two editions...

 

[Grimmjow]

they did bring stout halflings and call them hobbits. First thing that comes to mind is LotR.



I would like to see arctic owlbears and other versions of different monsters as well. i mean we get one owlbear but 20+ dragons?

Note:dragons are way better than owlbears and im glad we have alot of dragons, just seemed like a good example

 

[Chaotic_Goth1431]

Honestly, I have elves, dwarves and humans run the physical gamut all the time, just to add realism. Then there's the added fun of playing with races' builds when they are mixed.

The most fun I ever had in messing with diversity in mixed-race was when I decided it was time I have my half-fiend bartender introduce the group to their contact: a freakishly tall drow. Inevitable jokes about priestesses putting him on the rack ensued, which were silenced by the arrival of the contact's mother.

Having mapped out a random parenting chart, I rolled the dice.

The group then learned why you do not mess with a githyanki mom. Ever.