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Balancing out Racial Abilities
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<blockquote data-quote="doctorbadwolf" data-source="post: 7541670" data-attributes="member: 6704184"><p>always happy to help.</p><p></p><p> Well, first, the RAW weight of those two races is ludicrous. They aren’t toddlers. There are real life adult humans of those heights, and they weight more than that. Gnomes can be as tall as 4 feet. A four foot tall adult isn’t going to wiegh 50 lbs. </p><p></p><p>Beyond that, 5e is right about simplicity, in this case. Why are you adding this much complexity for something that is basically cosmetic, turning it into a punitive feature? Your gnomes are now simply weaker than the other races, mechanically, on top of being horrifically complicated for no particular gain. </p><p></p><p></p><p> I don’t care about drow Paladins at all. I’ve played Wood Elf Paladins, but the only drow I’ve played have been rogues and 1 Hexblade in 4e. </p><p></p><p>The point isn’t the +1 int. It’s that you made the race a wizard. A wood elf should not have wizard spells, <em>in fiction</em>.</p><p>Wood elves and high elves have been different enough to warrant different stats since Tolkien! It’s not just fluff. </p><p></p><p></p><p> As with the gnome changes, the criticism is not just about whether it makes sense. It isn’t a mechanically good decision. A +1 to AC, or “your AC calculation uses Con rather than Dex” or something would be fine, but you’ve instead changed the fiction to one where Dragonborn don’t tend to wear armor. Why? </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p> Just drop the Advantage on Strength checks. You’ve already done the job with the other part of the feature. IMO the whole feature is unecessary and steps on the toes of the big guy races, which half orcs have never been, but it’s not a big deal. </p><p></p><p></p><p> do you rule a clear starry or moonlit night as dim light rather than darkness? If not, Elves are blind at night. That borks the fiction. Elves should be camping under the stars...it’s...like their whole thing, man. </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Other than maybe the Dwarf and Halflings, none of the subraces are just fluff. For one thing, they allow the races to fill more roles without adding even more complexity to the game. For another, stuff like wood elves and high elves are very different. Wood elves don’t do wizard magic, unless they are an actual wizard, and they do have an affinity for stealth and fleet movement that high elves lack. Even moreso, the three gnomes. I’m fine with all gnomes being able to talk to animals, but all gnomes shouldn’t be tinkerers, Svirfneblin can see in the dark, and rock gnomes are **in fiction** tougher but less nimble than Forest gnomes and deep gnomes. </p><p></p><p>The Halflings as well, are a great example of why subraces are a very good mechanic. They don’t represent a fictional different kind of Halflings (other than the ghostwise) as much as different affinities Halflings can have. There are naturally charismatic Halflings that are good at hiding, and there are tougher, more stout Halflings. People want different things who play each subrace, and the subrace makes it easier for them to get the character they want.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="doctorbadwolf, post: 7541670, member: 6704184"] always happy to help. Well, first, the RAW weight of those two races is ludicrous. They aren’t toddlers. There are real life adult humans of those heights, and they weight more than that. Gnomes can be as tall as 4 feet. A four foot tall adult isn’t going to wiegh 50 lbs. Beyond that, 5e is right about simplicity, in this case. Why are you adding this much complexity for something that is basically cosmetic, turning it into a punitive feature? Your gnomes are now simply weaker than the other races, mechanically, on top of being horrifically complicated for no particular gain. I don’t care about drow Paladins at all. I’ve played Wood Elf Paladins, but the only drow I’ve played have been rogues and 1 Hexblade in 4e. The point isn’t the +1 int. It’s that you made the race a wizard. A wood elf should not have wizard spells, [I]in fiction[/I]. Wood elves and high elves have been different enough to warrant different stats since Tolkien! It’s not just fluff. As with the gnome changes, the criticism is not just about whether it makes sense. It isn’t a mechanically good decision. A +1 to AC, or “your AC calculation uses Con rather than Dex” or something would be fine, but you’ve instead changed the fiction to one where Dragonborn don’t tend to wear armor. Why? Just drop the Advantage on Strength checks. You’ve already done the job with the other part of the feature. IMO the whole feature is unecessary and steps on the toes of the big guy races, which half orcs have never been, but it’s not a big deal. do you rule a clear starry or moonlit night as dim light rather than darkness? If not, Elves are blind at night. That borks the fiction. Elves should be camping under the stars...it’s...like their whole thing, man. Other than maybe the Dwarf and Halflings, none of the subraces are just fluff. For one thing, they allow the races to fill more roles without adding even more complexity to the game. For another, stuff like wood elves and high elves are very different. Wood elves don’t do wizard magic, unless they are an actual wizard, and they do have an affinity for stealth and fleet movement that high elves lack. Even moreso, the three gnomes. I’m fine with all gnomes being able to talk to animals, but all gnomes shouldn’t be tinkerers, Svirfneblin can see in the dark, and rock gnomes are **in fiction** tougher but less nimble than Forest gnomes and deep gnomes. The Halflings as well, are a great example of why subraces are a very good mechanic. They don’t represent a fictional different kind of Halflings (other than the ghostwise) as much as different affinities Halflings can have. There are naturally charismatic Halflings that are good at hiding, and there are tougher, more stout Halflings. People want different things who play each subrace, and the subrace makes it easier for them to get the character they want. [/QUOTE]
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