Do you want to play a non-PHB character?

[Nighthawk]

As long as I have been gaming, I prefer more choices as opposed to less.

 

[Jolly Giant]

Always nice to try something new, so I'd at least try it once.

 

[Alzrius]

I think this poll has the wrong focus. It's class, not race, that really defines a character IMHO. Race is an accident of birth, but a class is what the character is choosing to make of him/herself. That requires a lot more thought, planning, and growth for the character.

 

[Oni]

Maybe.

Depends on the sort of campaign it would be. What sort of character ideas happened to be floating around in my head. What the other players were doing. et c.

 

[Nightfall]

Maybe.

Depends on the sort of campaign it would be. What sort of character ideas happened to be floating around in my head. What the other players were doing. et c.

Like being a human in an all gnoll warband eh?

 

[Kichwas]

I wouldn't want to play in a game limited to the core rules, so I guess my answer on this is no.

 

[Gnarlo]

Voted might play a non standard character at some point. Like others have said, it depends on the flavor of the campaign if I'd be in it at all; limited to the humanoid races, I'd readily jump at the chance. I personally would have a difficult time being able to "believe in" a campaign that was just like pseudo-medieval Europe except that there are these adventuring bands of trolls, half-dragons, intelligent oozes, and minotaurs wandering about and no one gives them a second glance.

If it was a Planescape/Fey type of world where everyone including the shopkeeper, king, and street urchins were strange and bizarre races I might be interested, depending on how well it was done.

 

[s/LaSH]

Might at some point.

But only if it were interesting, insofar as I'd only do something if it were interesting. Of course, I'm quite happy just making stuff up if it's cool - if you've read my webcomic you'll see what I did to the party just with one PHB and a 2nd ed Monster Manual, and that's nothing compared to what's going down the line later...

 

[jmucchiello]

I chose the miffed response even though my emotion is more disappointment. We did this in the game we play now and both of the sorcerers (7 players total) and the tank are ECLed characters. So our 11th party has one 5th level arcane spells (wall of stone) because only one of the sorcerers is ECL+1, the other is ECL+2. Our supposed-to-be-tank (a minotaur) has so few hit points he drops in most combats. ECLs suck big time and I always recommend against them. Unless a class has +1 caster level and is ECL +1, don't play a spellcaster. And hit dice being d8s for most humanoids/giants/mon hums makes most "fighter" monsters weak compared to d10/d12 hit dice attained from fighter/barbarian levels.

ECLs are not balanced in my experience.

 

[ph34r]

I voted for "I might play a non-standard race some time during the campaign." Sometimes I just want to play something totally different.