Design & Development: Halflings [merged]

[Wolfspider]

Didn't Greyhawk have an entire race/culture of river humans? It didn't work then and it doesn't work now.

Yes, Greyhawk has the Rhennee folk, which are actually from another world.

What do you mean by "it didn't work"?

 

[Wolfspider]

Not for the last 7 years and counting.

Well, 23 or so years ain't a bad run.

 

[Wormwood]

Well, 23 or so years ain't a bad run.

Yep.

Say good night, Fatty Bolger.

 

[Kwalish Kid]

Didn't Greyhawk have an entire race/culture of river humans?

Yep. One of the many gypsy knock-off cultures in D&D history.

It didn't work then and it doesn't work now.

Hunh? How did it not work?

I suppose that they weren't especially interesting, but I doubt that the majority of games at the height of the original Greyhawk boxed set had a lot of river encounters, let alone play centred on rivers.

There are entire cultures of boat humans on Earth, but I'm not sure if there are any on rivers. The concept seems workable.

 

[Wolfspider]

So you play one hobbit like that. Nally Nimbletoes or Dran Muffinhider or whatever. Congratulations. You've now played the only hobbit that ever needs to be played. Its done. You've made the progression from copying Batman or Wolverine or whatever to copying Frodo. You've certainly progressed as a roleplayer, because you chose to be a weak character. Panties drop in your wake because you took skill focus: cooking. You've won D&D!

Now put a fork in the race. Its done. For everyone IMO, since that boring cliche character can be filed alongside AxeBeard MacAleHammer, the scottish dwarf. They're on moratorium for this edition now.

Anyway....

 

[The Ubbergeek]

Didn't Greyhawk have an entire race/culture of river humans? It didn't work then and it doesn't work now.

i'm sorry, but is that really a problem?

In the real world, such cultures exist already. From bengladis tribesmen, to cajuns and creoles, to marsh arabs of Irak, etc..

Why not? It can be fun - they know the secrets of water and earth, guarding maybe against ancient evils hidden..

 

[Wolfspider]

Yep.

Say good night, Fatty Bolger.

I don't know half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.

 

[Wolfspider]

I will admit that halflings have never been a terribly popular race for adventurers, whether thay are in their hobbit-clone incarnation or otherwise.

I wonder why the designers of 4e even bother having them in the game.

I suspect they will probably be the least popular race in the new edition.

Do we really need halflings at all? If we remove Lord of the Rings from the picture (and its many clones, like Willow), what archetypal role do halflings have to play in a fantasy world?

Why even bother with halflings?

 

[Wormwood]

I don't know half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.

*hats off*

 

[Wormwood]

Why even bother with halflings?

Indeed.