D&D 5E (2024) 2024 UA species and Body Horror

[Incenjucar]

We've had "mongrelmen" for decades. Driders have a lot of appeal from a variety of angles. Illithids have been popular since they were added to the game and BG3 happened. Fish people have a bunch of fans from different angles, including Lovecraft, World of Warcraft (Murlocs), and maybe even Spongebob - personally I prefer the sahuagin (2E Sea Devil book was great!).

Plenty of people also do enjoy actual body horror in their fiction.

 

[Kobold Stew]

For the majority of 5e (including and especially 5.5) ?

"You are good people doing good things for good purposes because good is good."

That feels, well, reductive. And nothing to do with species options. It may be we're just speaking past each other.

 

[Kobold Stew]

Plenty of people also do enjoy actual body horror in their fiction.

Yup -- not denying that. It's the focus on that to the exclusion of other options that I find surprising.

 

[Incenjucar]

Yup -- not denying that. It's the focus on that to the exclusion of other options that I find surprising.

They appear to be doing a quick "here are the people often considered the baddies" collection to coincide with the "adult" stuff they're trying to do. There are already plenty of halflings and gnomes and fluffy kitties.

 

[Scribe]

That feels, well, reductive. And nothing to do with species options. It may be we're just speaking past each other.

I mean you were talking about how its weird to have options that are not heroic. I see it as 'finally we get options that are not default heroic'.

Different sides of the same coin I would say.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Yup -- not denying that. It's the focus on that to the exclusion of other options that I find surprising.

It’s the Underdark, which is, metaphorically, an underworld*. It’s not a place for cute fluffy bunnies (although it does have sexy drow in bondage gear). If it’s not the flavour of D&D you like you are not required to buy the book.

*Read The Silver Chair (C S Lewis).

 

[MGibster]

None of these are species that I have ever heard players wanting to play, and certainly not as part of a campaign. The final option, myconid, I get: bipedal fungal folk are not inherently icky, and the chance to play a plant creature (this, or a vegepygmy, or Bulbasoar) will appeal to some.

My sneaking suspicion is hobbits halflings, elves, dwarves, and many other species are old hat and boring to a lot of players. Thus there is the need to give players more and more options as the years roll by.

So, tell me about your dreams of playing a koa-toa or an Imaskari. Is this something that appeals to you? Why do you think this is being pushed rather than more traditional D&D/fantasy options? Is finding heroism through body horror an aesthetic that’s just passed me by?

I can't explain it though I admit I was quite happy to play BG3 as someone mutating into something resembling a Mind Flayer. I think it's being pushed through because a lot of players are bored with the basic PHB species. Why body horror stuff? I don't really know. If I wanted to play a fish man I'd probably create a Call of Cthulhu investigator with the Innsmouth look.

Sometimes trends come and go. Was it 4th edition where shadows/darkness became prominent as a force to be reckoned with? I remember disliking it thinking to myself, "Heroes aren't afraid of the dark." This one will pass at some point too.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

If I wanted to play a fish man I'd probably create a Call of Cthulhu investigator with the Innsmouth look

That’s pretty much my concept for my next PC.

 

[Horwath]

What are the low-hanging fruit? First, species from mythology: centaur, satyr, fairy, triton. We have seen digital versions of dhampir and shifter (vampire- and werewolf adjacent), which I’d put in this category too. Second, long-established dnd species: goblinoids, kobold, lizardfolk. I think we could add the half-animal species too (tabaxi, harengon, and of course a dog species). Granted, these are all in earlier 2014-era books, and updating them is relatively straightforward. That’s precisely why I think they should do so: these are the appropriate targets for a system with minimal impact. Give the resources for kids play their cat-people if that’s what they want, and not need to look for a book that predates their PHB.

I would rather have a book with completely new stuff and new ideas(well mostly new), that a reprint of a book less that 10 years old that will have a change of half a sentence, that honestly I can do in 2 minutes and adapt something from 2014 to 2024 standard.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Yup -- not denying that. It's the focus on that to the exclusion of other options that I find surprising.

Nothing is being "excluded", this is testing material for an Underdark book, so it focuses on species who live in the Underdark (along with the three already in the PHB). Humans and Halflings are the weird aliens in the Underdark, these are the normal guys.

They would be doing fauns and centaurs if they were doing a Greek myth themed book. They may do that further down the line, with the popularity of the Odyssey, but they did one fairly recently.