D&D 4E 4E Halflings unrecognizable from Tolkien hobbits

[Imaro]

And yet, people are picking this out as if it's a new thing. Apparently some people just skim the PHB or MM, since dwarves in D&D have almost always been 'of color' (usually various earth tones), yet most D&D artists for book covers and game boxes portray them as short white people/Vikings.

No, that's not it, I never said darker skin tones for certain races were new. I said diversity was...you know creating a "diverse" range of skin tones for the demihumans. By giving Elves, and hopefully the other demi-humans the full range of skin tones that humans have...they are still more diversified in 4e than how they (as a whole) were presented in the PHB 3e.


Side Note: Anyone who doesn't like the halflings new hair really needs to look on page 20 of the 3.5 PHB...isn't this the exact same style?

 

[Tewligan]

I'll note that this change is the biggest objection my wife has to the new edition. She hates both 3e and 4e halflings with a doughty passion.

I salute your wife, good sir. I much prefer the old fatty halflings to the sleek new ones. Of course, that's like saying I prefer a kick in the crotch over a stick in the eye...

Tewligan
Not a halfling fan

 

[Piratecat]

Gully "DWARVES".

Gnomes were "Tinker".

Whoops. Of course! I stand corrected.

 

[The Ubbergeek]

I salute your wife, good sir. I much prefer the old fatty halflings to the sleek new ones. Of course, that's like saying I prefer a kick in the crotch over a stick in the eye...

Tewligan
Not a halfling fan

And prefer the newer ones, in the same way...


Ubbie
Not a fan also

 

[Cam Banks]

I liked Tas. I just didn't like a race that was pretty much all like him.

That's good, because they're not.

In fact, in many ways, Tasslehoff is atypical of a kender. For another classic kender example, I would refer you to the freedom fighter Kronn Thistleknot, introduced in Dragonlance module DL12 way back in 1985 as a pregenerated hero.

Kender are not all Tas-clones. We've made every effort to provide, in our 3e products for DL, sufficient evidence to that end, and I can only assume that the people who are playing their kender just like Tas (or just like they think Tas is) are choosing to do so on their own, not because the rules make them.

Cheers,
Cam

 

[Mercule]

Heh. Great. In fairness, I homebrew. So, while I've read a bit of Dragonlance source material hear and there (one of my friends was a big DL fan, back in college), I'm not a scholar.

Also, Raistlin annoyed me, so I never read much of the novels past the original three. I know things have moved on quite a bit since then, but I just didn't have the traction.

 

[The Little Raven]

In fact, in many ways, Tasslehoff is atypical of a kender.

Tasslehoff was a kender who felt fear and was able to overcome it. He is definitely atypical.

 

[adembroski]

Third edition took many elements of kender and mixed it with the traditional hobbit. Even as a Dragonlance fan who prefers kender to hobbits, I don't think Kender should ever nor will ever replace Halflings... but clearly, some change was needed to make the Hobbit a more interesting PC race.

And yes, many DL authors have stupidly cloned Tas over and over to the detriment of the kender race as a whole. As a small but striking example, the traditional kender Top Knot was supposed to be something distinctive about Tas.

 

[Wormwood]

I wish we could call them 'Kender'.

So do I, for two reasons:
1. It is a superior, more evocative name than 'halfling'.
2. It would cause a cataclysm of nerd rage, which would be amusing to watch.

 

[Wolfspider]

I, too, wouldn't mind them called kender. I have never had any problems with kender before. I think they are a rather cool race. They certainly have flavor (although my minotaur friend says they give him cavities).