D&D 5E D&D Peoples/Species change ideas

[DND_Reborn]

And it is kinda sad that everyone basically just has to have the same score there to be considered effective.

To a point, maybe, but I think how you play your character is a much bigger factor to how effective you are. I mean, honestly, the racial modifiers are only giving a +1 bump to the ability score modifier. That is nice, but not having it hardly makes a build non-effective.

 

[ZeshinX]

Point buy is never going to be universally accepted, just a popular option. Getting rid of rolled stats entirely, which I think you'd have to in order to make that work, is possibly too big an ask.

I detest point buy and never use it, nor allow it in (D&D) games I run, so certainly eliminates universal acceptance.

I prefer the general randomness of rolled stats. Oh sure, I'll let players fudge a roll here and there to better support the character idea they want to play ("Huh?...sorry I didn't see you roll, so please roll again"), so it's a wee bit less random. I just find it more fun to roll some dice, and so do my players. I have other reasons for despising point buy, but that's the main one.

As to the OP's point though, I find the simplest way to go about it would be to offer a flat +3 point pool to any character race and allow them to decide how it's divided with a max of +2 to any single stat. So that allows for a +2 and +1 split, or +1 to any three ability scores.

 

[Xeviat]

But if you want to tweak 5e and not start a whole new edition - just give everyone a floating +2 and a +1 to use at character creation. This gives all of the benefits that OP wants with no downsides (beyond objections to OP's goals).

I could be down for floating +2 and +1 bonuses. I prefer it to be linked to class. Maybe +2 to class, +1 to background? But I like the +2 to class because it helps protect against characters that don't work as intended and also to guide players in building better characters. But, if attacks/save DCs became a function of class, then it wouldn't be a problem and people could make their smart fighters or slacker wizards.

 

[DND_Reborn]

I could be down for floating +2 and +1 bonuses. I prefer it to be linked to class. Maybe +2 to class, +1 to background? But I like the +2 to class because it helps protect against characters that don't work as intended and also to guide players in building better characters. But, if attacks/save DCs became a function of class, then it wouldn't be a problem and people could make their smart fighters or slacker wizards.

But why link them? If they are already floating, and you are going to play a barbarian, for example, won't you just put them in STR/CON if you want to. I could certainly see a "quick-build" suggestion like for other features in a class, though, since you sort of are implying that.

 

[jgsugden]

I'd wipe the slate clean, and then give each humanoid type a combination of abilities tied to the physical form (like flight for an aarakocra) plus points to use on point buy abilities. Then ask the players to explain why the PC has those abilities.

Each PC could add +1 to two different abilities, and might buy another +1 to one of those abilities (or even both!) using those points, but might buy skill proficiencies, feat, cantrips, etc... Whatever tells a good story for that PC.

 

[Li Shenron]

I don't understand why racial ability bonuses are a problem. It takes a very strong "half-empty glass" mentality to see another race's bonus offensive because yours doesn't get it, when you can still reach the same score if you're lucky or patient.

But I acknowledge that this is now identified as a problem that will be fixed.

So the easiest fix appears to be to just pick any ability and get a +2/+1. Except that this makes it even better for that race, but since it will be the same for every race then nobody can complain, right? Well maybe non-variant humans now have a small reason to complain since all other races get a +2 somewhere: allow them to combine two of their +1 together and they'll be fine.

But is this enough to end the discussion on races? Or should it involve also all the other racial abilities? Why should only Halfling be lucky, or Elves good with bows?

Well the ultimate solution is then just making all races identical.

Bring together all racial features in the PHB, including +1 ASI, into a list. Merge together the weakest features into small bundles of 2 or 3. Pick any 6, with the only limitation that you can't put more than two +1 ASI to the same ability.

Then present the original sets of PHB races features as "suggested picks", so that those original races are still valid in the new system. A DM with a traditional stance on races can decide the suggested picks are mandatory.

 

[Micah Sweet]

I detest point buy and never use it, nor allow it in (D&D) games I run, so certainly eliminates universal acceptance.

I prefer the general randomness of rolled stats. Oh sure, I'll let players fudge a roll here and there to better support the character idea they want to play ("Huh?...sorry I didn't see you roll, so please roll again"), so it's a wee bit less random. I just find it more fun to roll some dice, and so do my players. I have other reasons for despising point buy, but that's the main one.

As to the OP's point though, I find the simplest way to go about it would be to offer a flat +3 point pool to any character race and allow them to decide how it's divided with a max of +2 to any single stat. So that allows for a +2 and +1 split, or +1 to any three ability scores.

Also, many people (my wife for example) just really like rolling dice. It allows for roleplaying opportunities which you might not have considered. On many occasions just for fun I've rolled stats down the line and used the results to determine my class.

 

[DND_Reborn]

Bring together all racial features in the PHB, including +1 ASI, into a list. Merge together the weakest features into small bundles of 2 or 3. Pick any 6, with the only limitation that you can't put more than two +1 ASI to the same ability.

Then present the original sets of PHB races features as "suggested picks", so that those original races are still valid in the new system. A DM with a traditional stance on races can decide the suggested picks are mandatory.

Sounds good to me. It is like with backgrounds. How many people don't realize the backgrounds listed in the PHB are suggestions to help people build their own if they want to???

But, with this, 95+% of people would probably take darkvision and other features typically considered "the better options".

 

[Crimson Longinus]

While we are it should we also break up the class features in the same way and allow them to be bought with some sort of points thus getting rid of classes?

 

[DND_Reborn]

While we are it should we also break up the class features in the same way and allow them to be bought with some sort of points thus getting rid of classes?

Oh, heck, let's just get rid of D&D and go play something else. Huh? Huh?