D&D 5E Ability Score Increases (I've changed my mind.)

[Maxperson]

Oh, and this is a misrepresentation of my position. I've repeatedly said you can use and enjoy Tasha's. Multiple times in this thread.

I think everyone in this thread in favor of racial ASIs has also come out in favor of floating ASIs being available to people via Tasha's.

 

[Jfdlsjfd]

The rules are explicitly just guidelines. Did some play that way? Yep. Did others not play that way? Yep. I saw more elves and dwarves not have an issue with each other than I saw have such an issue. Parties tended to be mixed races and if you were roleplaying that way, it was disruptive. And if you didn't roleplay that way with your party, then it didn't make sense to do it with other members of the race outside of your party.

While I see your points, even proving that players were free to play their characters as they wanted won't be enough. The complaint was about having to play in a setting where prejudice, racism and so on exist, so proving that having structurally prejudiced elves, dwarves... but nothing forcing this on the players will not be enough to counter the original argument:

Similarly, the way that different races (or, tbh, human cultures within fantasy settings) are defined model aspects of the real world racist world view. Having to fictionally inhabit such a world is upsetting, uncomfortable, or annoying for some.

The only way forward for WotC in this context is to remove any mention of racism, and much like the chainmail bikini, excise it from its books.

Actually, humans (and other races of courses) in D&D are a truly alien fantasy races. Their level of social enlightenment (no sexism, no racism, no prejudice...), far higher than ours, is so high that they have very little in common with human history. It's surprising they don't seem to eschew war and violence and tolerate non-representative government structures and corrupt/ineffective police forces.

 

[Yaarel]

I think everyone in this thread in favor of racial ASIs has also come out in favor of floating ASIs being available to people via Tasha's.

There is a qualitative difference between core and optional.

Exiling the floating ability score improvement into the noncore periphery remains intolerant, and the problematics of reallife racism and ethnocentrism remain default and objectionable.

 

[Maxperson]

There is a qualitative difference between core and optional.

Exiling the floating ability score improvement into the noncore periphery remains intolerant,

No. No it doesn't. There is no racism involved with racial bonuses. Nor is there even an ounce of intolerance. You may prefer floating bonuses, but your preferences don't create racism or intolerance where there isn't any.

and the problematics of reallife racism and ethnocentrism remain default and objectionable.

Real life has nothing to do with any racial bonus.

 

[Scribe]

There is a qualitative difference between core and optional.

Exiling the floating ability score improvement into the noncore periphery remains intolerant, and the problematics of reallife racism and ethnocentrism remain default and objectionable.

Make Floating the default, and provide the text for ASI as it stands now, as an option.

Problem solved.

 

[Maxperson]

Make Floating the default, and provide the text for ASI as it stands now, as an option.

Problem solved.

There's no problem to solve. You can do it that way, but nothing is actually solved by the change. It only puts his preference in front is all.

 

[Scribe]

There's no problem to solve. You can do it that way, but nothing is actually solved by the change. It only puts his preference in front is all.

I agree, but I want to make it perfectly clear, Tasha's isnt the problem.

Removing the fixed ASI, is the problem.

 

[Yaarel]

No. No it doesn't. There is no racism involved with racial bonuses.
Real life has nothing to do with any racial bonus.

The 5e designers disagree with you.

Rather D&D does include concerningly racist origins and traditions.

The UA races apprear to be designed with floating ASIs moving forward.

 

[Scribe]

That's not a path I'll discuss. So good luck with that.

 

[Yaarel]

That's not a path I'll discuss. So good luck with that.

That is fine.

I know from your other posts, you are aware that many D&D gamers, including designers and business owners giving warning labels, consider the D&D tradition to include problematic elements, especially regarding racism and sexism.