D&D 5E Unearthed Arcana: Gothic Lineages & New Race/Culture Distinction

The latest Unearthed Arcana contains the Dhampir, Reborn, and Hexblood races. The Dhampir is a half-vampire; the Hexblood is a character which has made a pact with a hag; and the Reborn is somebody brought back to life.

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Perhaps the bigger news is this declaration on how race is to be handled in future D&D books as it joins other games by stating that:

"...the race options in this article and in future D&D books lack the Ability Score Increase trait, the Language trait, the Alignment trait, and any other trait that is purely cultural. Racial traits henceforth reflect only the physical or magical realities of being a player character who’s a member of a particular lineage. Such traits include things like darkvision, a breath weapon (as in the dragonborn), or innate magical ability (as in the forest gnome). Such traits don’t include cultural characteristics, like language or training with a weapon or a tool, and the traits also don’t include an alignment suggestion, since alignment is a choice for each individual, not a characteristic shared by a lineage."
 

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The 88 gave me pause as well, but to equate Hurin to some sort of ubermensch concept is just nonsense, yeah. Tolkien was opposed to violent ethno-supremecist expansionism. Doesn’t mean a LoTR fan can’t be a Nazi, just look at every fandom ever, but yeah that part is a super big leap.

Still, 88 in your handle is gonna raise eyebrows, no matter what it’s there for in actuality. Its used by Nazis enough that its reasonable to be suspicious of it.
Hurin was literally the Bestest of men, the ur-example of Men above all other men. An, if you will, ubermensch.
 





But I won't, and I don't, so I'd ask that you please stop accusing me of being a racist.

It is well known that Tolkien was not a racist, and actually stood up to racism. I've specifically denounced it now as well, as soon as I was informed of the significance of the numbers. I hope we can move on.
I didn't. I expressed some skepticism, that you just happened on that combination of username elements and a racial essentialist viewpoint. It's entirely within your capacity to remedy any of those individual issues.

ETA: It is, in fact, not well known that Tolkien was not a racist and that, in fact, he was somewhat less racist than the (highly racist) median of his time and place. For reference, I live in line of sight of one of the two towers and in spitting distance of the Shire. The local history is well evidenced.
 




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