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."

 

[Minigiant]

that PC halfling is stronger than all other halflings because they're so exceptional. Why can't for the same reason that half-orc PC to be stronger than all other half-orcs and thus be even stronger?

Well I been been in favor of all orciods being able to go to 22 in Strength or Constitution.

But the mold breaker for orcs is the orc that get +1 to INT.

Professor Bruise Banner the Orc wizard develops the Harden Fists spell because 99.99% of wizards are too scrawny to use diamond knuckles.

 

[Scribe]

SRD: https://media.wizards.com/2016/downloads/DND/SRD-OGL_V5.1.pdf
Sage Advice: https://media.wizards.com/2020/dnd/downloads/SA-Compendium.pdf
Errata for PHB: https://media.wizards.com/2020/dnd/downloads/PH-Errata.pdf

But the most relevant to this discussion is from the PHB



Emphasis added as it has been ignored for 100+ pages

Thanks!

It hasnt been ignored at all. I've addressed that roughly 100 times.

 

[Catulle]

TAnd this is not problematic biological essentialism because..? Also why we have an ability score called 'strength' if it doesn't measure how strong the creature is?

Because the 6 D&D ability scores are ridiculously broad (granular, if you will) in terms of character definition and on their in-play impacts - this was much lower impact back in AD&D when it was just a +/-1 and only the real outliers gleaned any significant benefits, but with the shift to +1/2 ability points, then the expansion of the bonuses to +/-2s... the greater statistical significance of a "racial" bonus on being good at thing the more it constrained excellence behind a veneer of aesthetics, rather than the aesthetic giving a variation on the kind of excellence a player wanted to portray. If it's cool to both roleplay and be effective, it's surely better to expand the range of effective character aesthetics that can be roleplayed, yeah?

 

[Catulle]

Of course, in re the above, amidst the paradigm of "but I want to play an orc wizard who isn't so much with the smarts" the player can still do that... by allocating lower ability scores. The only way to really enable the opposite way around is to take a permissive approach to ASIs so that anyone can play a smart orc wizard (or whatever the mechanical fetish involved is) so that there's less "mother, may I?"

That the point of friction involved with this involves a seeming need to dictate what other people can do with their characters (in a way that invariably makes them less effective) is really telling.

 

[Catulle]

FWIW, I loathe Intelligence as a character ability (again, because of the constraint it seems to allow to thrive in terms of the roleplay). Earthdawn's dropping it was always a winner by my accounting.

 

[Scribe]

FWIW, I loathe Intelligence as a character ability (again, because of the constraint it seems to allow to thrive in terms of the roleplay). Earthdawn's dropping it was always a winner by my accounting.

Wisdom is tough, Charisma is easy, but intelligence is pretty mind boggling that its still a thing. I dont know what I would replace it with, but out of the basic Attributes its easily the worst for me to logic my way through.

Is it Analysis? Maybe? Is it knowledge? Not really, but maybe? Is it education? Nope, but thats part (now define education within the context) ect ect.

I dont like Intelligence as an Ability at all.

 

[Catulle]

Wisdom is tough, Charisma is easy, but intelligence is pretty mind boggling that its still a thing. I dont know what I would replace it with, but out of the basic Attributes its easily the worst for me to logic my way through.

Is it Analysis? Maybe? Is it knowledge? Not really, but maybe? Is it education? Nope, but thats part (now define education within the context) ect ect.

I dont like Intelligence as an Ability at all.

Dexterity / Strength / Toughness / Perception / Willpower / Charisma

(I do prefer Constitution to Toughness, mind you)

 

[Minigiant]

Wisdom is tough, Charisma is easy, but intelligence is pretty mind boggling that its still a thing. I dont know what I would replace it with, but out of the basic Attributes its easily the worst for me to logic my way through.

Is it Analysis? Maybe? Is it knowledge? Not really, but maybe? Is it education? Nope, but thats part (now define education within the context) ect ect.

I dont like Intelligence as an Ability at all.

Intelligence is Processing speed to me and there really isn't a good one word definition for it.

 

[Catulle]

Intelligence is Processing speed to me and there really isn't a good one word definition for it.

Something like "towards grasping" maybe

 

[Scribe]

Intelligence is Processing speed to me and there really isn't a good one word definition for it.

This is where I go to, but 'Analysis' just doesnt roll off the tongue. I also like perception as more of a Wisdom (or Insightfulness, whatever) while Willpower, I put into more of a Charisma, presence, inner strength type thing.

Its tough!

Thats why (to me) I just say ok, let it ride, and explain to others who are new, that its not some deep thing, but at a high enough vantage, it works.