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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Kurotowa" data-source="post: 9344946" data-attributes="member: 27957">If you're going to have a non-human character, it should be part of their story.Visually they should be immediately identifiable as their species, with an emphasis on being both distinctive and easily cast as a compelling character. That might mean being badass, sexy, cute, intimidating, or whatever other attribute the player wants to focus on. Not every species can cover every option equally well, but there should be at least a few that are strong points.Narratively they should have a clear thematic role. The player can decide to lean into that role or play against type, but they are starting in relation to that point so it needs to be well established. Some species like elves and dwarves are well defined in popular culture. Some, like tieflings and dragonborn, are player friendly versions of popular monster types. And some like orcs are undergoing a slow mutation under influence from other media sources. But where ever it comes from, it should be clear.Right now, Aasimar fail both tests. They're not visually identifiable unless it's the very short period where their wings are out, and their narrative starting point is poorly defined. No one knows what to do with "I was born with goodness in my blood, but it's not even really a compulsion because free will is a virtue so it doesn't impair mine" as a character. They're not tied to any specific and popular monster type, and they don't have a clear role to play into or against.While they need a lot of work, I'm honestly not sure how much amateur design work I want to do. That just sets expectations, and it's a near certainty that I'll guess wrong. If I go big, the Revised PHB version will be conservative. If I go small, the Revised PHB will reinvent them as much as 4e did tieflings. So for once, maybe I don't want to speculate. Maybe it's better to just sit back and wait for the official preview.</blockquote>

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