Unpopular opinions go here

[Hussar]

Easily. You roll, I roll. Highest wins.

Its a resolution mechanic. Thats all it ever has been.



Because its not just used for combat. And frankly that should be self-evident given DND isn't just combat.

I must have missed something there.

At what point has this been a core mechanic in DnD?

 

[Hussar]

On races - I dunno. Why not focus on the stuff that should actually matter? Society, history, culture. The stuff that actually makes a difference between an elf and a halfling?

All those mechanics? Meh. They don’t differentiate anything. Most of them - like seeing in the dark for example - are shared by various races.

Like was said, let’s make the races actually interesting instead of pretending that not sleeping is something that actually matters.

 

[Emberashh]

I must have missed something there.

At what point has this been a core mechanic in DnD?

It always has been, and in 5e it is detailed explicitly in the PHB.

Page 7, section "The D20".

 

[Hussar]

It always has been, and in 5e it is detailed explicitly in the PHB.

Page 7, section "The D20".

Nope.

I honestly have no idea where you are getting this. At no point in DnD can you resolve combat with a single contested die roll.

Never minding the huge number of elements that are not resolved using d20+mods in DnD.

 

[Emberashh]

I honestly have no idea where you are getting this.

Then you should go back and reread the conversation so you understand what we're talking about in context before responding again.

 

[Hussar]

Then you should go back and reread the conversation so you understand what we're talking about in context before responding again.

Fair enough.

 

[Fenris-77]

TMNT was never actually a good game. Nostalgia has clouded people's minds.

 

[Autumnal]

As far as I can tell, the main impact race has on the game is being able to better see in the dark and of course in the player's mind.

Yup. By contrast, I remember the early years of World of Warcraft, where species did matter. There were a few species-specific spells, particularly for priests, and there were some species-specific immunities and party/raid buffs, along with various stat bonuses and penalties. The outcome was that even before beta testing was done, there were essentially obligatory lists of species/class combos for many party and raid roles. And the memory of them being so helpful as to make or break a group’s performance persisted long after they were removed from play. In many cases.

I do not wish to see that in D&D. And when people talk about making the species “interesting” without significant mechanical effects, I genuinely don’t know what they mean. I have yet to see any clear examples. Fortunately for me, I like the combo of appearance and freedom to bring stat significance as I choose it as an individual.

 

[Fenris-77]

Easily. You roll, I roll. Highest wins.

Its a resolution mechanic. Thats all it ever has been.

This isn't a mechanic in D&D that is used to resolve combat. It sounds like you're describing an opposed roll, but that doesn't appear on page 7 of PHB.

Because its not just used for combat. And frankly that should be self-evident given DND isn't just combat.

Combat is very much it's own mechanical thing in D&D. The fact that it uses a d20 doesn't make it not manifestly different from, say, skill rolls.

 

[Bedrockgames]

On races - I dunno. Why not focus on the stuff that should actually matter? Society, history, culture. The stuff that actually makes a difference between an elf and a halfling?

Because that turns everyone into humans. If it is just cultural, just about history and society, well that is all that separates human groups from one another. Demihumans have different physiology than humans, different lifespans, differences big enough that they warrant physical effects. Again, I like infra vision, but fair enough if you don't. That is at least an attempt to establish distinctions that flow from physiological differences and can lead to cultural differences. I certainly don't object to them doing a better job of that. If they can come up with more mechanical differences between humans and demi humans that tie into the social and cultural differences, then I think that would be great.

All those mechanics? Meh. They don’t differentiate anything. Most of them - like seeing in the dark for example - are shared by various races.

Like was said, let’s make the races actually interesting instead of pretending that not sleeping is something that actually matters.

Sure, but there are different kinds of night vision and they still vary. Like I said it is at least an attempt.

I think they are interesting but YMMV