Grainger
Explorer
If I asked friends to play a game of D&D, and then wanted a game with no dwarves or no elves, I might make the pitch, but I can't in any meaningful way enforce it. If they want me to GM D&D, but playing dwarves and elves, that sounds more fun to me than having the gaming group break up!
I think the players should give the DM a chance, if they have any faith in his/her ability to run a good game. That said, the DM should have a decent reason for banning major fantasy staples like Dwarves and Elves - in other words, the setting should be properly thought through.
An example I gave upthread was the old Hollow World setting for BECMI, which royally messed with the available character classes and races. PCs (and NPCs) were severely restricted in the equipment they could use and the classes they could take. Spellcasters had their spell lists severely nerfed. I'd argue there was a good reason; the radical changes (there were also big changes to the monster list, terrain, and even the nature of the world) provided a refreshing take on BECMI; it wouldn't be to everyone's tastes, but the sum of these changes gave a unique feel. A somewhat similar example that springs to mind is 2e's Dark Sun - lots of "can't do thats" in that setting, but for a good reason.
To repeat the example I gave about my campaign, chain mail is the only allowed metal armour in my current 5e game (note that there is "better" chain available to replace the missing plate armour etc., so mechanically there's no change). It is part of the flavour of the setting, which wouldn't work if Knights were riding around in suits of plate armour. If a player insisted they were only happy if their fighter could wear a suit of plate armour, I would think he/she was being highly unreasonable, as it would dilute the setting just to suit their whim (it would not be possible to present any sort of alternative setting if we always bent to such demands); in my opinion players should go with the flow, as much as DMs should ensure they have good reasons before they restrict player options.
Last edited: