D&D (2024) Half Race Appreciation Society: Half Elf most popular race choice in BG3

[Mistwell]

There is a difference between an honest self-description of the Human species (from reallife science) versus psychological projection, scapegoating, and othering.

In any case, it is absurd to describe the Orc as slightly more violent, when the Human species is already horrifically violent. (Humans are carnivorous predators, but also endless wars, criminal violence, violent sports, the extermination of other species for farming, construction, deforestation, and the impact on the planetary ecosystem. Humans are the most dangerous animal on the planet, by far. Heh, even D&D is fantasy violence for entertainment.)

Because humans are so violent, hatespeech is highly irresponsible.

What?

As the only humanoid species on earth, humans are simultaneously the least and most violent humanoid species. You're comparing them to...what?

 

[Yaarel]

Even if we assume the game was describing Humans as they exist in real-life, a racist trope is a racist trope. If the rule for game authors is, "Don't rely upon racist tropes when describing people," authors shouldn't get a free pass to rely upon racist tropes when describing people in their own in-groups. The same goes for racial slurs. If the publisher doesn't permit authors to use racial slurs, authors shouldn't be allowed to use racial slurs to describe themselves.

I disagree. When the game describes any humanlike species (not other humanlike species), it crosses the line into human ethnic diversity. If Humans are just one of several playable, humanlike species in the game and game authors are expected to avoid othering language, Humans can't be given any special treatment not given to any playable non-Human species. This remains true even if the game's author is a real-life human.

As the only humanoid species on earth, humans are simultaneously the least and most violent humanoid species. You're comparing them to...what?

It is probably wiser to avoid assigning a personality to a species description. Even to say that the Human species is "curious and ambitious" (compared to other animals), is less helpful when there are human individuals who dont seem especially so.

The character sheet has a separate Personality section, including Alignment, Ideal, Flaw, Quirk, and Bonds to persons or assets. The player can assign any personality depending on the character concept. A faction or a background might suggest several ideas for a personality.

So is it racist that there are three Elf Lineages, or not? Those Lineages are different because of things impossible to real-life humans (Darkvision and Spells). Per your most recent argument, that helps avoid racist tropes. And I'll add that no Elf is being othered for having a Lineage, since every Elf has a Lineage. There's no stigma or value judgment associated with any Lineage. Just differences with no real-life stereotype as a referent.

"Subspecies" for a humanlike species comes across as racist when mechanically enforcing racial segregation.

If a "lineage" is a magical culture, there is less of a problem, since a character can have parents from different cultures, and even adopt a different culture.

Those are only racist tropes because you are assigning subjective value judgements to species (smartness, aggressiveness, and thievishness, in your examples). We could look at other types of human differences, such as average height, without being even remotely racist. If there were hypothetical Variant Goliaths that were Large but otherwise mechanically identical to Humans, there'd be nothing racist about it. (Unbalanced, yes. Racist, no.)

5e allows players to have any body type for their character. Reallife concerns about body image, ethnic diversity, and individual differences are more important than racist stereotyping, or endomorph/ectomorph stereotyping.

Mechanical size − Large, Medium, Small − seems neutral. Large Human individuals (over 8 feet tall) are rare but known. The playtest acknowledges that some adult Human individuals are Small (under 4 feet tall).

 

[Maxperson]

That said, in the case of the Half Elf specifically, the feats gained from the Human parentage seems roughly redundant with the Background features and feat anyway. So there is no meaningful loss of information.

There is a difference between core rules in the Players Handbook versus something that is true in a specific setting. Explicitly telling players they can play a Human-Dwarf matters.

There are no half-elves and there are no half-dwarves. There are no half anythings with the current playtest rules. There are only humans, elves and dwarves who look different if you want them too. You don't get to mix and match abilities. You must take pure parentage from one or the other parent races.

 

[Maxperson]

regarding the matter of the tiefling's 'nuance',

the description of the tiefling describes them as being as equally affable as most any other given player species: they're pleasant inoffensive folk who get along with most everybody else (how anyone else might get along with them is another matter but that indicates nothing about tieflings themselves), all in all they're a decent lot,

sure there is nothing indicating that any given tiefling couldn't be evil but it's all presented with the undertones that that would generally be the exception rather than the norm, as much as it's true that there'll be a few bad apples in any batch so this indicates nothing about tieflings specifically when the same is true for elves, gnomes, dragonborn, humans and the rest of the species.

there's nothing that says anything like 'as long as tieflings have been persecuted for their lineage there have been those who have retaliated above and beyond reasonable action' or 'there have been those tieflings who take their feindish ancestry as inspiration and take entertainment inflicting suffering on others'

But there is...

"...a pact struck generations ago infused the essence of Asmodeus-overlord of the Nine Hells-into their bloodline. Their appearance and their nature are not their fault but the result of an ancient sin..."

So their nature is hellish due to the pact.

And...

"Tieflings subsist in small minorities found mostly in human cities or towns, often in the roughest quarters of those places, where they grow up to be swindlers, thieves, or crime lords."

Evil occupations.

And...

"The reality, though, is that a tiefling's bloodline doesn't affect his or her personality to any great degree."

So while it doesn't affect them strongly, it does affect them which is why so many do end up becoming swindlers, thieves, or crime lords.

Tieflings can be any alignment, but there is a tendency towards the darker side of things.

 

[Valetudo]

No 5e muls? Didnt 4th edition use goliaths as half giant?

 

[Epic Meepo]

[quotes from PHB 2014]

Tieflings can be any alignment, but there is a tendency towards the darker side of things.

You're referring to 2014 tieflings. I think the post you're responding to was referring to One D&D tieflings as described in the playtest packets. If you're a fan of the dark and edgy 2014 tiefling, you're going to be disappointed if the tiefling lore in PHB 2024 looks anything like the tiefling lore in the playtest packets.

 

[Maxperson]

You're referring to 2014 tieflings. I think the post you're responding to was referring to One D&D tieflings as described in the playtest packets. If you're a fan of the dark and edgy 2014 tiefling, you're going to be disappointed if the tiefling lore in PHB 2024 looks anything like the tiefling lore in the playtest packets.

Is there another packet with tieflings other than the first? Because I see this...

"Abyssal. The heartless entropy of the Abyss, the howling chaos of Pandemonium, and the vast despair of Carceri call to tieflings who have the Abyssal fiendish legacy."

Entropy, chaos and despair call to them, which to me is influence over their outlook, even if minor.

And...

"Chthonic. Tieflings who have the Chthonic fiendish legacy not only feel the tug of Carceri but also the greed of Gehenna and the underworld gloom of Hades."

Influenced by Carceri's theme, greed and gloom.

The infernal only says the blood binds them to Gehenna, Acheron and Hell. That sounds like some amount of influence as well. Again, clearly it's minor influence and PCs can be any alignment, but it does stand to reason given the playtest packet quotes above, that some amount more tieflings have lower planar alignments than upper planar alignments.

 

[Epic Meepo]

Is there another packet with tieflings other than the first? Because I see this...

That's a fair point. I've seen posters dissecting the "Tieflings of Many Worlds" section, which strongly implies that tieflings are descendants of heroes who fought against Fiends. But as you correctly observe, many of the Fiendish Legacy options come with some dark and edgy lore. If the 2024 tiefling leans more into the Fiendish Legacy lore than the bright and triumphant "Tieflings of Many Worlds" narrative, tieflings will get to keep some of their historical flavor.

 

[Warpiglet-7]

Failed my save…

Retracted.

I must have advantage on the roll…

 

[Tony Vargas]

No 5e muls? Didnt 4th edition use goliaths as half giant?

No muls, did have goliaths, but I don't think they were explicitly half-giants... tho, if you wanted one, it'd be the obvious choice. Like dragonborn, that way, not half-dragons, but close enough to reskin easily.