D&D 5E Companion thread to 5E Survivor: Species

[overgeeked]

You clearly took out the most. Its impressive really.

For me the game was taking out species. After the first few days I didn’t bother to vote unless it took someone out.

 

[AnotherGuy]

Wouldn't something like this be more appropriate (sort of)?

Gimli 13
Legolas 8
Aragorn 12
Frodo 10

Alas, poor Boromir...

Well Frodo has quite the support. I'm imagining all the gnome supporters are +1 voting halfling out of spite

 

[EzekielRaiden]

Precisely!

What I believe Scribe meant was that offering a toolkit that inherently has no flavor--where you must port in all of the flavor yourself--feels cold and sterile, aggressively mechanical.

It would be like throwing a spreadsheet at someone and telling them it's exactly equivalent to being in a spaceship, they just need to imagine harder.

 

[DND_Reborn]

Well Frodo has quite the support. I'm imagining all the gnome supporters are +1 voting halfling out of spite

Not spite, just helping out the little guys.

 

[Tonguez]

Not spite, just helping out the little guys.

No I’d rather our Dwarfish brethren win than those shaggy footed imposters

 

[DND_Reborn]

No I’d rather our Dwarfish brethren win than those shaggy footed imposters

Whatever...

I like both the races and play Dwarves probably more than any other race. But since I am the High Aldwin, had to make my last vote for the Halfling.

 

[Tonguez]

What I believe Scribe meant was that offering a toolkit that inherently has no flavor--where you must port in all of the flavor yourself--feels cold and sterile, aggressively mechanical.

It would be like throwing a spreadsheet at someone and telling them it's exactly equivalent to being in a spaceship, they just need to imagine harder.

But thats a great part of RPGs design - getting a list of parts that we can then add to a hull to make a cooler spaceship

Flavor is an act of imagination, so asking a player to get creative with backgrounds and feats and create their own race is more fun Imho.
yrmv

 

[EzekielRaiden]

But thats a great part of RPGs design - getting a list of parts that we can then add to a hull to make a cooler spaceship

Flavor is an act of imagination, so asking a player to get creative with backgrounds and feats and create their own race is more fun Imho.
yrmv

Sure. But there is a difference, I should think, between something that is already designed, described, and illustrated, and something that is exclusively "pick an option from list 1, a feat, an option from list 3, and your size." Would you not agree?

The latter has nothing whatsoever until you pour something into the vessel. The former is already half-full.

 

[AnotherGuy]

Good grief, its looking like Willow Ufgood for the win.
I hope you all know that your votes were for Peks, Hobbits, Halflings, Hin and "Kender". Yes you read that right, if Tiamat is Takhisis, Halfling are Kender. It is known.

 

[CleverNickName]

What I believe Scribe meant was that offering a toolkit that inherently has no flavor--where you must port in all of the flavor yourself--feels cold and sterile, aggressively mechanical.

It would be like throwing a spreadsheet at someone and telling them it's exactly equivalent to being in a spaceship, they just need to imagine harder.

The flavor is already in the Monster Manual, or Volo's, or in your favorite mythology book, or your favorite novel... whatever inspired you to play that particular character in the first place. It's as difficult as you want it to be, really.

Or you can create it yourself from whole cloth and pure imagination, as you describe. Which would be the most challenging part for me, because it requires me to first decide why I need a different species in the first place. But I've seen it done... my players love doing it that way.