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

[Cadence]

I could see water breathing as a cultural thing under the right circumstances, but normally yes, heritage gifts are the way to go.

I picture the culture ones as things you learn, so water breathing that way sounds risky.

But as a possible Heritage Gift, any elf might start breathing water if they were forced to as a baby?

 

[Scribe]

I could see water breathing as a cultural thing under the right circumstances, but normally yes, heritage gifts are the way to go.

And to be clear, Heritage is LevelUps "race/species" if I remember correctly.

 

[Frozen_Heart]

So for example:

Genus: Elf
Species: Sea Elf

Genus: Elf
Species: High Elf

Genus: Homo
Species: Homo Sapien (Human)

Genus: Dwarf
Species: Mountain Dwarf

Genus Dwarf
Species: Hill Dwarf

Thing is, that raises the question about why can elves and humans or humans and orcs reproduce and make fertile offspring if they're not even in the same genus? Generally, interbreeding in the same genus is often doable, but sometimes with catches and caveats. Interbreeding outside of that is almost non-existent (but not unheard of), and as far as I know always sterile.

Then there is equines which can't even interbreed between subspecies to make fertile offspring, because equine chromosomes are a disaster.

So for example 'Elf' would be: Homo dryadalis

 

[Micah Sweet]

Improper use of words, (culture, species, race, innate) absolute is a driver in how this topic is flawed.

True, but it's not a fixable problem either, at least in any reasonable amount of time. People don't suddenly start using different words for things unless there's a really big movement involved, and I just don't see that coming about from the "half-elf" problem, or even the "some people think D&D is racist" problem.

 

[Micah Sweet]

And to be clear, Heritage is LevelUps "race/species" if I remember correctly.

Correct. Heritage/culture/background/destiny.

 

[Scribe]

True, but it's not a fixable problem either, at least in any reasonable amount of time

No, I'm a very much a pessimist I admit, but its not fixable at all with the current tools, views, and mindsets, of western society.

 

[Yaarel]

While there are racism issues at play, the recommendation you're making isn't really solving that topic, but you're claiming it is.

Nobody is accusing the concept of sea elves having innate water-breathing, rather than cantrip-based water breathing, of itself being racist.

Your solution doesn't meaningfully address this problem. It just complicates it while breaking with traditions which are not about racism, though there are some traditions which do have racism issues. Sea-Elves being meaningfully different than High Elves in this respect while still all being called types of elves was not the racism issue people were bothered by. You're working hard to solve for the wrong problem, in a manner nobody seems to like to begin with except yourself.

There is nothing racist about breathing water.

There is something racist about having "subraces".

 

[Micah Sweet]

There is nothing racist about breathing water.

There is something racist about having "subraces".

What about "subspecies"? Basically, can we call them something different, or is that also bad?

 

[Cadence]

What about "subspecies"? Basically, can we call them something different, or is that also bad?

Subspecies feels a lot like breed and race even if the later too aren't formally taxonomic.

 

[Scribe]

There is something racist about having "subraces".

No there isn't.

There is no 'ELF'.

There are many types of Elf, these various categorizations, are subtypes, or subspecies, or 'Lineages' of Elf. Some are faster, some breath water, some fly, and some see better in the dark.

They terms all reference the same thing and could easily be defined as 'they are related, but different', and not a one of them is 'racist'.