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Message: <blockquote data-quote="FormerlyHemlock" data-source="post: 6727350" data-attributes="member: 6787650">I like the approach you're using of messing with racial ability score maximums. Now just add in a minimum (you must have at least Str 18 to play a half-giant) and you're back in 2E. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />I also like your benefit RE: two-handed weapons and such. (Also, "medium-sized heavy weapons are not heavy for you.") Don't forget the extra costs for clothing, extra food/water needed, etc. In 5E it might be appropriate to say they take Exhaustion for not drinking/eating several times a day instead of just one. Usually won't be an issue but it's there as a distinct vulnerability.I'd let Half-giants and other Large creatures use Large weapons like the ones in the MM. Double-sized weapons get double damage dice, so a Half-Giant's Halberd would be both Heavy for him and would do 2d10 instead of 1d10, just like an Oni's Halberd.I'd balance this out partly with another old 2E favorite: decreased ability maximums. "You cannot be a half-giant with a starting Wis or Cha over 12 or a starting Dex over 15, and you cannot take the Resilient (Wis) feat." (Not that your typical munchkin was going to do so anyway.) Also, "You have disadvantage on saves against charm effects" to replace the old wishy-washy alignment/impressionable thing, although keep the wishy-washy fluff.This still adds up to kind of an overpowered race by 5E standards, so don't forget about the limitations of Size and social status. Just as the Mounted Combatant can't necessarily bring his horse everywhere, even so the horse-sized Half Giant is not allowed everywhere. (It might be good to use character trees so the player still has someone to play at events where half-giants are not allowed.)Honestly, the crucial balancing factor for half-giants is going to be the opportunity cost anyway. A half-giant will be killer overpowered in melee, but melee is pretty weak in 5E already so what you're really doing is ensuring that half-giant gladiators will be the "best kind of melee fighter," possibly squeezing out other melee fighters--but you won't squeeze out elven archers (fighters or rangers), halfling psionicists, or human defilers, or half-elf bards because they're simply not competing for the same design space. In a Dark Sun setting, Str-based classes are already at a disadvantage w/rt AC because full plate won't be available, whereas Dex-based elves can wear light armor and still rock AC 20.In short, I think the half-giant as you've painted it would work out well in Dark Sun due to the nature of the setting. It probably won't be appropriate elsewhere.</blockquote>

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