D&D General Race Has No Mechanics. What do you play?

[Corinnguard]

The more interesting ones are the ones which do a lot of heavy lifting for the definition of the race. We've already discussed changeling disguise, but other features like dragonborn breath weapon, eladrin fey step, and pixie flight would fall into here.

If a Dragonborn's breath weapon was removed as a racial mechanic, where would it be moved to if the RPG still had it? Would it become a skill that only a Dragonborn can learn? Or would it be treated as a ranged weapon that only a Dragonborn can wield?

 

[CreamCloud0]

Those abilities could be moved elsewhere from race, but those races would still be what they are.

This whole thing has been about you asserting that races must have robust mechanics to gamify what makes them what they are, and me saying that I don't think that is necessary. Here are examples of games that have the absolute minimum of dwarfiness in mechanical form to refute the notion that races must have a bunch of mechanical elements to be viable.

you want to convince us species mechanics dont matter by showing us other system's species with mechanics?

 

[TwoSix]

If a Dragonborn's breath weapon was removed as a racial mechanic, where would it be moved to if the RPG still had it? Would it become a skill that only a Dragonborn can learn? Or would it be treated as a ranged weapon that only a Dragonborn can wield?

No idea! Maybe you'd have to become a sorcerer and use a reskinned cantrip or the dragon's breath spell?

 

[CreamCloud0]

If a Dragonborn's breath weapon was removed as a racial mechanic, where would it be moved to if the RPG still had it? Would it become a skill that only a Dragonborn can learn? Or would it be treated as a ranged weapon that only a Dragonborn can wield?

and wouldn't they still technically be species mechanics, just pushed down the road of character creation?

 

[Reynard]

okay...but those races still have mechanical elements to differentiate each other. how does this support your point?

The whole point is to show that they were extremely limited mechanics that could be eliminated. I'm not sure where the disconnect is.

 

[Corinnguard]

No idea! Maybe you'd have to become a sorcerer and use a reskinned cantrip or the dragon's breath spell?

Like this homebrewed trait?

Arcane Dragonborn (5e Race Variant) - D&D Wiki

www.dandwiki.com

 

[CreamCloud0]

The whole point is to show that they were extremely limited mechanics that could be eliminated. I'm not sure where the disconnect is.

evidence that the amount of mechanics can reduced is not evidence they can be eliminated entirely.

 

[Reynard]

you want to convince us species mechanics dont matter by showing us other system's species with mechanics?

Once more for the cheap seats: I was showing games that have extremely limited mechanics as a counterpoint to the notion that races need a robust set of mechanics to gamify all the things that make them dwarfy or whatever.

The thread was only ever about preferences. But some folks are adamant that it is impossible to play a dwarf unless they can detect sloping passages and get a bonus to fight goblins and have darkvission and a +1 con. Those things aren't what makes playing a dwarf playing a dwarf.

Let's look at it a different way: instead of a race coming with mechanical elements, what if you have to have those mechanical elements in order to be that race? IE in order to play a dwarf, you must be proficient in Craft and have the feat Stable (from your background or whatever) and have a minimum of a 13 con (from rolling or point buy). Being a dwarf confers no further mechanical elements, but it does mean you get to play a dwarf and all that entails from a setting and lore perspective. Would you play a non-human then?

 

[CreamCloud0]

Once more for the cheap seats: I was showing games that have extremely limited mechanics as a counterpoint to the notion that races need a robust set of mechanics to gamify all the things that make them dwarfy or whatever.

The thread was only ever about preferences. But some folks are adamant that it is impossible to play a dwarf unless they can detect sloping passages and get a bonus to fight goblins and have darkvission and a +1 con. Those things aren't what makes playing a dwarf playing a dwarf.

Let's look at it a different way: instead of a race coming with mechanical elements, what if you have to have those mechanical elements in order to be that race? IE in order to play a dwarf, you must be proficient in Craft and have the feat Stable (from your background or whatever) and have a minimum of a 13 con (from rolling or point buy). Being a dwarf confers no further mechanical elements, but it does mean you get to play a dwarf and all that entails from a setting and lore perspective. Would you play a non-human then?

yes, because i can reverse engineer any species i want to be from the traits i give them,

 

[Reynard]

yes, because i can reverse engineer any species i want to be from the traits i give them,

But you can do that anyway, without it being a prerequisite.

I don't understand what you are opposed to in the "cosmetic only" scenario in that case.