D&D 5E How did you handle the Aarakocra?

[Barolo]

My DM came up with a simple solution to make this race fun, afd flavour to a campaign and add fairness, while forcing the player to be inginuitive. The race is similar to the original Aarkrocra in the first or second edition of ttheb monster manual. And these rules apply
-nothing in hands while flying (obviously you can try but the dm then requires a flying check to be made based on str)
-wings include hands at the end. This increaes the PC's reach to 10ft but means the hands sre tied up and cannot be used during flight. If the player wants to fly 100 ft away and kite an enemy from a tree they can, but they will be at disadvantage because you cant dodge well while perched on a tree
-factor in wind speed when considering a flying check
-your going tonbe playing a bird. Not knowing how to roleplay this character and just wanting a powerful combat PC is great. And great xp penalties will follow.
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Did i leave anything out?

While I do favor the older design, specially the drawings from the second Dark Sun box, with only four limbs instead of six, I should point out that, originally, the Aarakocra could use their feet as hands while flying, at least as far as I can remember.

 

[Gardens & Goblins]

Well.. we're in a sky-campaign that focuses heavily on airships, flying machines and is comprised entirely of floating islands, where the risk of plummeting to your doom is ever-present. Flying PCs, before personal flight becomes readily available, would detract from key aspects of the campaign.

As such, they exist as a race. Just not a player race, at least not until they are met during play. We had a player slated to play one but he changed his mind, instead favouring a bad-ass half-orc monk. The party did acquire a pedal-powered ornithopter around level 3, but that thing is attackable, runs on human exertion and too valuable to expend recklessly, so takes care of itself.

 

[jgsugden]

As a suggestion *if* you think the flight is a problem: Have the Aaracockra be too young (or injured) to fly at level 1. Instead, treat them as if they have the jump and feather fall spell active at all times. Then allow them to jump and hover at 3rd and then finally fly at 5th.

 

[Warmaster Horus]

A garlic/butter rub on the skin and my grandma's sage dressing does the trick.

 

[the Jester]

What are the reasons? I'm not asking as a challenge. Ban away. That's cool. I just like hearing about unique and interesting campaign settings.

A couple of reasons. First, on new races in general- as my setting is long- and well-established, adding new pc races is a tricky proposition under the best of circumstances. I'm a huge fan of setting continuity and consistency, and that means that new races can't just appear out of nowhere with whole civilizations, as is sometimes suggested for new race options. 3e and 4e were especially crazy for new pc race options, and I didn't generally allow them in as regular options.

Now, that doesn't apply to aarakocra (aargh, spelling). They exist in my game, and they have since day 1. But their established lore makes them very unsuited to being a pc race. They are racially terrified of being indoors or underground. That's enough right there for me to bring the "pc race" contemplation to a screeching halt. I strongly dislike pc options that basically screw the party by forcing the pc to abandon the party if they take certain very common actions. And "I won't go in that cave/building/ruin!" leaves the aaracokra pc out of about half of all potential adventures.

There's another thing, too, though- there just aren't any aaracokra especially near the city that my game is based around. You see, my campaign has a sort of post-fall of civilization setup; only one city remains, and it's an unsustainable situation. But that means that the local inhabitants (or at least the local organized inhabitants) are well-established. And aaracokra aren't them. There's a tribe of them a few rows of mountains to the north, but a big red dragon is in between them and the city, so they don't interact.

All that said, that doesn't mean that I'll never allow an aaracokra pc. They pretty much go into my "one-off" policy, alongside so many other options that I don't feel fit as regular options due to campaign reasons but I don't feel a need to ban for any reason. Basically, one time, I'll allow an aaracokra pc. Once, for one player. Maybe. If the circumstances are right. A lot of the 4e races were like that (shardmind, I'm looking at you).

 

[plisnithus8]

If an 8' (vertical reach?) bugbear (+5 reach) mystic using Giant Growth focus (+5 reach), Giant Form (+10 reach), attacks with a pike (reach), how high would an aarokocra need to be flying so that he'd be out of its reach?

If the bugbear is 8' tall, it's already in the 2nd 5' cube above the ground; how does that effect its reach?

 

[doctorbadwolf]

If an 8' (vertical reach?) bugbear (+5 reach) mystic using Giant Growth focus (+5 reach), Giant Form (+10 reach), attacks with a pike (reach), how high would an aarokocra need to be flying so that he'd be out of its reach?

If the bugbear is 8' tall, it's already in the 2nd 5' cube above the ground; how does that effect its reach?

Why mix squares and feet? Also why assume that squares are cubes rather than rectangles, or just not a 3D thing?

Either the bugbear has

 

[plisnithus8]

Why mix squares and feet? Also why assume that squares are cubes rather than rectangles, or just not a 3D thing?

Either the bugbear has

I'm not assuming anything. I'm asking for help because I don't know how this would work in verical space instead of a 2d grid.

On a similar note, what a about a knight mounted atop a warhorse (size large) aiming his lance at a small creature.
Might a halfling adjacent to the front of the horse be more than 5' (thus no lance disadvantage) if the vertical distance is figured in with the horizontal?

 

[doctorbadwolf]

I'm not assuming anything. I'm asking for help because I don't know how this would work in verical space instead of a 2d grid.

On a similar note, what a about a knight mounted atop a warhorse (size large) aiming his lance at a small creature.
Might a halfling adjacent to the front of the horse be more than 5' (thus no lance disadvantage) if the vertical distance is figured in with the horizontal?

I assume that is the intention of that situation.

But I think it ends up being up to the DM, which isn't a satisfying answer, but it's what we get.

Anyway, I think just add the number of feet together and go from there, for that bugbear. For the warhorse, I'm not sure there is a definately answer in the rules for how tall the horse is, so I'd just use real world measurements to make that call.

 

[Havelok]

Ye gods, yes. Folks are too skittish by and large. Running your game in fear of the OP bogeyman is kind of limiting...

I agree wholeheartedly. Embrace the unexpected. Experienced GMs know that improv is central to the game. This includes "balance".