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<blockquote data-quote="Malmuria" data-source="post: 8369770" data-attributes="member: 7030755"><p>I think it's best to let players determine the aptitudes they want for their characters, rather than provide a try to provide a mechanic (ASI) that models or simulates biological diversity.&nbsp; Because, that mechanic (like many in dnd) does a very poor job of actually modeling anything, and in the meantime introduces exclusionary language.&nbsp; For example, in 1e female characters had a strength cap.&nbsp; That mechanic quickly went away, wisely, because people wanted to bring badass female fighters to the table and not feel like they were being penalized by the supposed simulation in the rules.&nbsp; Maybe it rankled and broke the immersion for the simulationists, but it was better for the game.&nbsp; Somewhat similarly, maybe in your setting you want to have a high strength, low intelligence species, and you can work that out with your players.&nbsp; But that trope is harmful and affects the way some people are seen even in the current day, and is really just unnecessary to include in the base game.&nbsp; It doesn't have to be there in order for dnd to still be dnd.</p></blockquote><p></p>

[QUOTE="Malmuria, post: 8369770, member: 7030755"] I think it's best to let players determine the aptitudes they want for their characters, rather than provide a try to provide a mechanic (ASI) that models or simulates biological diversity. Because, that mechanic (like many in dnd) does a very poor job of actually modeling anything, and in the meantime introduces exclusionary language. For example, in 1e female characters had a strength cap. That mechanic quickly went away, wisely, because people wanted to bring badass female fighters to the table and not feel like they were being penalized by the supposed simulation in the rules. Maybe it rankled and broke the immersion for the simulationists, but it was better for the game. Somewhat similarly, maybe in your setting you want to have a high strength, low intelligence species, and you can work that out with your players. But that trope is harmful and affects the way some people are seen even in the current day, and is really just unnecessary to include in the base game. It doesn't have to be there in order for dnd to still be dnd. [/QUOTE]

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