What Creatures "Break" A Fantasy Game World For You?

[Griffith Dragonlake]

I"m ok with a druid summoning a dinosaur in the middle of a Lost World. I'm not ok with being in the middle of a Mediæval European village and the druid summons a dinosaur. Likewise, I expect to encounter totally weird creatures in a dungeon and I'm ok with a wizard summoning abberations or fiendish creatures. But when the weird or anachronistic becomes the norm, it just breaks my suspension of disbelief.

The one time I did quit a campaign for similar reasons was when the DM decided to throw cartoon characters at us. He thought it was hillarious to have us get killed by the likes of bugs bunny and daffy duck both of whom are apparently immortal. But frankly it was really the last straw rather than the only reason I left.

I think it just boils down to setting and managing expectations. Some people are OK with dinosaur animal companions and others are not. Some like Eberron and others (like me) hate it. And that's OK. Different strokes for different folks. But we should be upfront with our players and our DMs.

Life's too short to play in campaigns that are not fun for all.

 

[Griffith Dragonlake]

Duplicate post.

 

[Mallus]

Bubbly 16-year-old girls with pink hair and silly names in Ravenloft?

Sailor Ravenloft?! Color me intrigued.

Illithids in Middle-Earth?

Doesn't that describe Greyhawk and Forgotten Realms, though? In a manner of speaking, don't mind flayers + Tolkien = D&D?

And to answer the original question: anything done badly can break a fantasy world for me, while I approve of everything done well...

 

[Brother MacLaren]

Sailor Ravenloft?! Color me intrigued.

Just trying to think of the most "this doesn't fit" thing for Ravenloft. I'm sure there's worse possible.

Doesn't that describe Greyhawk and Forgotten Realms, though?

Right. Which is why Greyhawk is not Middle-Earth. It's a different setting. So if I thought I was playing Middle-Earth, and now we're dealing with illithid and drow and color-coded dragons and elemental-themed giants, I'd turn to the DM and say "Why didn't we just play Greyhawk from the start?"

 

[HeavenShallBurn]

So bring on the dinosaurs, the platypi, land octopi, and exotic birds. Let's stat some isopods.

NO WHAT HERETIC HAS REVEALED MY GIANT LAND ATTACK SQUID CULT!!!!!

EDIT: Cookie if you get the reference

 

[Woas]

Dinosaurs, robots or other mechanical creatures, and most outsiders and aberrations. Those do not fit my fantasy world(s).

 

[Mallus]

So if I thought I was playing Middle-Earth, and now we're dealing with illithid and drow and color-coded dragons and elemental-themed giants, I'd turn to the DM and say "Why didn't we just play Greyhawk from the start?"

OK. But if you were playing Middle Earth, why would you use D&D? You'd have to edit out %75 of the rule set.

 

[Brother MacLaren]

OK. But if you were playing Middle Earth, why would you use D&D? You'd have to edit out %75 of the rule set.

I wasn't speaking about D&D in particular, but about gaming in general.
Whether I'm playing the Conan d20 in Hyborea, 2E D&D in a "green-book Celtic setting," 3.5 D&D in Ravenloft, or what have you, I expect a certain amount of consistency with the setting. (Although as I noted, some settings are very forgiving of the weirdness).

If I'm playing in what I think is Middle-Earth -- using ANY system, I didn't say it had to be D&D -- I'm going to have my immersion disturbed by the appearance of mind flayers.

 

[DreadPirateMurphy]

However, if (medieval) Klingons or Vulcans were introduced into the game world, I wouldn't care if they had reasonable stats and only medieval levels of technology. They belong in a different time and place: Star Trek.

Yes, thank goodness Dungeons and Dragons is free of races of violent warriors and pointy-eared intellectuals with whom humans can interbreed.

 

[Aus_Snow]

Yes, thank goodness Dungeons and Dragons is free of races of violent warriors and pointy-haired intellectuals with whom humans can interbreed.

ftw.

Pretty much nothing, creature-wise, would break the whole fantasy thing. Just depends on the kind of fantasy it's meant to be. Happily, I like many types. Maybe even all types.