D&D 5E Clickbait we didn't fall for: "Wizards is copying Critical Role"

[Micah Sweet]

Tieflings have been normal for well over a decade.

In your corner of the gaming world, perhaps.

 

[BookTenTiger]

In your corner of the gaming world, perhaps.

I don't know if you are meaning to, but you are giving a lot of badwrongfun vibes in this thread.

 

[Micah Sweet]

I’ve always found this a weird accusation. Like, what’s the alternative to having an agenda? Doing stuff at random? If there’s a specific agenda you object to, then specify it.

To be as blandingly inoffensive and risk-averse as possible, so no one on social media can possibly complain about their game and encourage others not to give them money for it. Not a great path for creativity.

I would have been more clear above, but I thought everything knew how I feel about WotC already, and people complain about hearing the same complaints repeated.

 

[Micah Sweet]

They've been in the Player's Handbook since 2008, so 15 years or close to 1/3 of D&D's lifespan!

2008 is long after my preferences and what I want out of D&D coalesced.

 

[Zardnaar]

They were a lot more than just niche. WotC were quite conservative and slow to add them to the PHB, but they were common at table from the late 90s, even when other Planescape races did not catch on. There are, for example, Tiefling party members in Planescape: Torment (1999), Baldur's Gate 2 (2000) and Neverwinter Nights 2 (2008).

They've been around but we have figures for planescape sales. It was niche relative to overall D&D players.

Those games were 15-20 years ago and not every D&D player played them.

5E normalized them en masse maybe 4E.

Semi obscure splat book stuff vs popular race in biggest selling D&D ever. They were about as popular as gnomes pre 5E anecdotally and that's because they were in the 3.0 frcs.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Good point. So tieflings have been a playable race for 60% of D&D's lifespan and in the PHB for 30% of D&D's lifespan. So hardly a need to "normalize" them now.

The tieflings of 2e are hardly the same species as WotC's designed-for-copyright version.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Where are you going with this? Tieflings have prominent roles in BG3 and HAT. You're making this sound like there is a plot afoot. A plot whose goal is what exactly?

See above.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Well, no. There's more than two archetypes in play with Tiefling.

What are they?

 

[Micah Sweet]

Honestly I am glad they went with full on 'dragon men'. Half Dragon would have leaned almost for sure into various lines of design/tropes already covered.

As to the lack of culture, society, and mechanical (dragon breath isnt?) niche, thats just 5e being 5e. There is no culture or society design worth mention, and anything that was there, has been either quietly errata deleted, or denied and replaced for reasons.

It took playing with the AI Art tool for me to come around on Dragonborn really, I was indifferent to them before, but I'm glad they are more than just Half Dragons.

I'm still indifferent to them. I prefer lizardfolk.

 

[MGibster]

In your corner of the gaming world, perhaps.

Tieflings are more popular than dwarves, half-orcs, gnomes, and halflings in Baldur's Gate 3. Tieflings have been around since the 1990s, they've been in the PHB since 4th edition, and they seem to be race well liked. At this point I'm more likely to see a tiefling at my table than I am a dwarf.