D&D 5E What is the appeal of the weird fantasy races?

[prabe]

I have never found any 5e race annoying, except for Kenku (which most people seem to agree with), so I don't really understand the last part. What races do you find annoying?

As PC races?

Drow, goblins, kenku, tabaxi, duergar, tinkerer gnomes (I've written that part out of my world's lore for gnomes); I'm not a huge fan of tortles, lizardfolk, gith (either flavor), warforged, hobgoblins, or bugbears as PC races, either, though in those instances it's either balance or they just don't fit/make sense--not that they're actively annoying.

You did ask.

 

[Oofta]

Sometimes, yes, but most times, no, IMHO. New DMs should definitely take it slow and be simple, but I've allowed every PC race at my table for every single one of my campaigns, and I am 93% sure that I am still sane. Maybe 89% sure.

That's a "no" for you, it obviously is not a preference shared by all DMs. I personally dislike kitchen sink campaign worlds like FR, other people love them.

 

[jasper]

P....

People making the argument that GMs want to created curated worlds are making a non-argument. Tell your players no. If they insist, explain to them why. If they still insist, don't play with them. Its that simple.

T.........

MOM MOM MORRUS MORRUS. Shardstone is being reasonable again. BUST HIM. (In a

Phineas and Ferb big sister voice)​

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

As PC races?

Drow, goblins, kenku, tabaxi, duergar, tinkerer gnomes (I've written that part out of my world's lore for gnomes); I'm not a huge fan of tortles, lizardfolk, gith (either flavor), warforged, hobgoblins, or bugbears as PC races, either, though in those instances it's either balance or they just don't fit/make sense--not that they're actively annoying.

You did ask.

Absolutely no offense, but remind me to never play in your world/at your table. That's literally all of my favorite races (Warforged, Gith, Lizardfolk, Tortles, Hobgoblins, and Gnomes).

I am only annoyed mechanically by two races (Yuan-Ti Purebloods, Dragonborn), and am only thematically annoyed by Kenku. The only races I ban are the base Yuan-Ti Purebloods (I allow them, but take away Magic Resistance) and Kenku (only allowed with players who wouldn't be overly annoying with them). I don't outright ban any of them.

 

[Shardstone]

MOM MOM MORRUS MORRUS. Shardstone is being reasonable again. BUST HIM. (In a

Phineas and Ferb big sister voice)​

On occasion common sense busts through my thick, lowbrow exterior.

 

[prabe]

Absolutely on offense, but remind me to never play in your world/at your table. That's literally all of my favorite races (Warforged, Gith, Lizardfolk, Tortles, Hobgoblins, and Gnomes).

I am only annoyed mechanically by two races (Yuan-Ti Purebloods, Dragonborn), and am only thematically annoyed by Kenku. The only races I ban are the base Yuan-Ti Purebloods (I allow them, but take away Magic Resistance) and Kenku (only allowed with players who wouldn't be overly annoying with them). I don't outright ban any of them.

Yeah. I am so un-used-to Yuan-Ti being a potential PC race that I forgot about them--they would have been on the list if I'd remembered them. And I allow gnomes--I just don't like the tinkerer crap; two of the PCs in my higher-level campaign are forest gnomes.

And I'm completely unoffended that you feel you wouldn't fit at my table. It's not by any means personal.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

As PC races?

Drow, goblins, kenku, tabaxi, duergar, tinkerer gnomes (I've written that part out of my world's lore for gnomes); I'm not a huge fan of tortles, lizardfolk, gith (either flavor), warforged, hobgoblins, or bugbears as PC races, either, though in those instances it's either balance or they just don't fit/make sense--not that they're actively annoying.

You did ask.

I think the better way to do it is to institute an auction system or payment system for the campaign setting.

$5 for a human.

$50 for a core PHB race (except elves, because elves are stupid).

$100 for an elf, except a drow.

$500 for a non-core, but not monstrous race.

$1000 for monstrous races.

That way, you can really see what the preferences are! Making a little money ... that's just a bonus.

 

[Crit]

As PC races?

Drow, goblins, kenku, tabaxi, duergar, tinkerer gnomes (I've written that part out of my world's lore for gnomes); I'm not a huge fan of tortles, lizardfolk, gith (either flavor), warforged, hobgoblins, or bugbears as PC races, either, though in those instances it's either balance or they just don't fit/make sense--not that they're actively annoying.

You did ask.

Here's the thing- out of those races, I don't see why one member from them couldn't have a journey to go on. So why shouldn't they be playable?

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

Here's the thing- out of those races, I don't see why one member from them couldn't have a journey to go on. So why shouldn't they be playable?

The beauty of D&D is that you get to be a DM, and then you can be totally like ...

 

[prabe]

Here's the thing- out of those races, I don't see why one member from them couldn't have a journey to go on. So why shouldn't they be playable?

In principle, I don't disagree with you. In practice, there are some races that I dislike (such as tabaxi, kenku, and drow), so ... asking me to DM something I don't want at my table seems ... kinda uncool-ish; and there are other races (on my world, the goblinoids) that I've complicated the hell out of in the lore, some of which isn't really player-facing (mostly because I know it but haven't written it), so it makes it simpler, and easier to keep the races as I want them, if I don't allow them to be PCs.

ETA: And I've written drow and duergar completely out of my world, so they'd pretty explicitly have to come from somewhere else, which at a minimum complicates the heck out of things.