DarkCrisis
Let her cook.
No hate on Matt but he lifts a fair amount of stuff from other sources for his campaign world. His Dark Elves are straight from Mystra. Reincarnation crystals and all.
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D&D (2024) How did I miss this about the Half races/ancestries
- Thread starter DarkCrisis
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UngeheuerLich
Legend
LevelUP rules are also not that thought out.
You have the base traits of one parent and a very specialized trait of the other one. Take the halfling gift twilight touched and you gain darkvision and telepathy... not something that screams halfling at all...
Ok. Halfway balanced, but also not that great.
Frozen_Heart
Hero
I'm going to copy and paste my response to an identical thread on DnD Beyond forums. As people over there can't behave and get their thread locked as a result. It's a potential idea for how hybrid-species could be handled:
--copy and paste starts here--
So assuming a slight rework of the playtest species, where species features are sorted into 'Feature A' and 'Feature B'. (Please don't throw balance issues at me just yet, as this is just using the playtest species as examples). I'm also only using one elven lineage as an example because it's a proof of concept, not a full writeup.
Basically as everything is separated into two columns, you pick one of each to represent a hybrid species. There are two combinations for how each can be mixed, by picking feature A of one and feature B of the other.
Human
Feature A - Resourceful: You gain inspiration whenever you finish a long rest.
Feature B - Skilful: You gain proficiency in one skill of your choice. In addition, you gain one 1st-level feat of your choice.
Elf
Feature A - Fey Ancestry: You have advantage of saving throws you make to avoid or end the charmed condition on yourself. In addition you can finish a long rest in 4 hours, and cannot be put to sleep by magical means.
Feature B - Elven Lineage: Drow - You gain a darkvision range of 60ft. Additionally you know the dancing lights cantrip. At 3rd level you gain the Faerie Fire spell. At 5th level you gain the Darkness spell.
Half Elf Example A
Feature A - Resourceful: You gain inspiration whenever you finish a long rest.
Feature B - Elven Lineage: Drow - You gain a darkvision range of 60ft. Additionally you know the dancing lights cantrip. At 3rd level you gain the Faerie Fire spell. At 5th level you gain the Darkness spell.
Half Elf Example B
Feature A - Fey Ancestry: You have advantage of saving throws you make to avoid or end the charmed condition on yourself. In addition you can finish a long rest in 4 hours, and cannot be put to sleep by magical means.
Feature B - Skilful: You gain proficiency in one skill of your choice. In addition, you gain one 1st-level feat of your choice.
--copy and paste starts here--
So assuming a slight rework of the playtest species, where species features are sorted into 'Feature A' and 'Feature B'. (Please don't throw balance issues at me just yet, as this is just using the playtest species as examples). I'm also only using one elven lineage as an example because it's a proof of concept, not a full writeup.
Basically as everything is separated into two columns, you pick one of each to represent a hybrid species. There are two combinations for how each can be mixed, by picking feature A of one and feature B of the other.
Human
Feature A - Resourceful: You gain inspiration whenever you finish a long rest.
Feature B - Skilful: You gain proficiency in one skill of your choice. In addition, you gain one 1st-level feat of your choice.
Elf
Feature A - Fey Ancestry: You have advantage of saving throws you make to avoid or end the charmed condition on yourself. In addition you can finish a long rest in 4 hours, and cannot be put to sleep by magical means.
Feature B - Elven Lineage: Drow - You gain a darkvision range of 60ft. Additionally you know the dancing lights cantrip. At 3rd level you gain the Faerie Fire spell. At 5th level you gain the Darkness spell.
Half Elf Example A
Feature A - Resourceful: You gain inspiration whenever you finish a long rest.
Feature B - Elven Lineage: Drow - You gain a darkvision range of 60ft. Additionally you know the dancing lights cantrip. At 3rd level you gain the Faerie Fire spell. At 5th level you gain the Darkness spell.
Half Elf Example B
Feature A - Fey Ancestry: You have advantage of saving throws you make to avoid or end the charmed condition on yourself. In addition you can finish a long rest in 4 hours, and cannot be put to sleep by magical means.
Feature B - Skilful: You gain proficiency in one skill of your choice. In addition, you gain one 1st-level feat of your choice.
CreamCloud0
Hero
similar to what has been said earlier in the thread previously i'd probably assign every trait a species gets with either the 'primary' or 'secondary' tag, then put in each species description how many of each tagged traits being a half-blood of that species would get (half-elf: get 1 primary trait and 4 secondary traits, half-dwarf: get 2 primary traits and 3 secondary traits, half-human: 1 primary trait, a second primary trait from either of your species and 4 secondary traits from either species), there might even be exclusive traits that you can only have as a full or half blood of a species, or species that only exist as half-blooded character options like assimar or undead or dragon(not dragonborn, dragon).
then your culture and background are entirely separate selections.
then your culture and background are entirely separate selections.
Micah Sweet
Level Up & OSR Enthusiast
I'm not saying he took it from Level Up, I'm saying it amounts to the same rules for mixed heritage that Level Up, only without the codification. I'm not talking about the lore at all.
I respect your opinion, but I think it works just fine. The player chooses which gift and traits they want, so they can match mechanically the flavor they're looking for.
UngeheuerLich
Legend
Double post...
UngeheuerLich
Legend
I am happy that it works out for you. And it is a simple band aid that is a definite improvement over the current and the 2024 UA rules. Add culture on top and it should be sufficiently useful for most cases.
Corinnguard
Hero
It all depends on which heritage you want to pair this Halfling gift with.
Corinnguard
Hero
Btw, the Halfling gift Twilight Touched is for Kithbain Halflings. Kithbáin Halfling | Level Up
In a forgotten corner of the Dreaming lies a territory called the Twilight, a silent world perpetually under the dim light of the setting sun. This place is home to the kithbáin, or the twilight-touched, halflings who’ve lived for generations in half-light, filling up its silence with the voices of ken. There is no sound in the Twilight but one’s own thoughts, and after long enough, the thoughts of others.
In a forgotten corner of the Dreaming lies a territory called the Twilight, a silent world perpetually under the dim light of the setting sun. This place is home to the kithbáin, or the twilight-touched, halflings who’ve lived for generations in half-light, filling up its silence with the voices of ken. There is no sound in the Twilight but one’s own thoughts, and after long enough, the thoughts of others.
MonsterEnvy
Legend
I prefer the playtest rules of you pick your mechanics from one parent, and mix appearance as you like.
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