Halflings?

[Hermod]

Perhaps the reason they didn't include small weapons this time was to simplify the system. If Milo the Halfling Fighter for some reason needs to trade off his Longsword off to Tordek then Tordek immedately knows what he can do with the weapon. But if instead he handed him a Small sized Greatsword then there's extra rules explain that it can be used as a versitle weapon by medium sized characters, explainations as to why a small sized longsword can only be weilded in one hand by medium sized characters, etc.

Just makes for a smoother system this way.

 

[Skyscraper]

The halfling doesn't appear to be the weakest race of the lot.

Humans can pick an additional at-will in their class. To me, that's pretty useless. It means you already picked the two you most wanted, now you get to pick #3. Plus, you only get a single +2 ability bonus. Sure, you can put it where you want, but when you pick another race, most people pick it according to the class they'll play anyway so they get +2 in their major ability and another +2 to boot. The additional feat and trained skill are interesting, but then again you already get plenty of feats (over time) and trained skills anyway, so there's not much there. I don't feel the human gets anything interesting, the feat probably being the best out of the lot.

The halfling reroll however is pretty cool. Not only against crits, but against strong powers you recognize (you saw it at work on your ally three rounds back before it recharged) or against a hit that might get you to 0 hit points in a tough battle. It's a survival insurance policy. It might not be used often, but when it is, you like it.

The dragonborn breath weapon is pretty weak BTW. 1d6 + a few HP damage is not a big deal. Flashy and cool, but not a game changer by any means.

SKy

 

[cmbarona]

The dragonborn breath weapon is pretty weak BTW. 1d6 + a few HP damage is not a big deal. Flashy and cool, but not a game changer by any means.

I have to respectfully disagree. A couple of night ago, my Dragonborn Warlord with Enlarged Dragon Breath took out five minions (out of the eight there were) in a single minor action at the beginning of a battle. With only three people on our team, and no defender, this made for an awesome move. The fact that the damage occurs on a minor action makes it all the better.

 

[Draz]

Humans can pick an additional at-will in their class. To me, that's pretty useless. It means you already picked the two you most wanted, now you get to pick #3.

You don't play Wizards, do you?

 

[lukelightning]

Humans can pick an additional at-will in their class. To me, that's pretty useless.

I totally disagree. Getting an extra at-will is a huge draw for me. This is the only way to get an extra at-will, and most of the time you are using your at-wills. By getting another one, you've effectively increased your versatility by 50%.

 

[sukael]

Honestly, I really don't think Fire damage will come up often enough to make their one decent ability balance out well.

The tiefling in my group gets lots of use out of it, but we also have a fire-spell-obsessed wizard.

A friend of mine proposed replacing halflings with ducks. Change nothing mechanics-wise or even in the fluff, just replace the entire race with donaldesque ducks.

I like this idea.

 

[Skyscraper]

You don't play Wizards, do you?

Agreed, wizards excepted.

 

[Skyscraper]

I have to respectfully disagree. A couple of night ago, my Dragonborn Warlord with Enlarged Dragon Breath took out five minions (out of the eight there were) in a single minor action at the beginning of a battle. With only three people on our team, and no defender, this made for an awesome move. The fact that the damage occurs on a minor action makes it all the better.

Nice move.

 

[Milambus]

The dragonborn breath weapon is pretty weak BTW. 1d6 + a few HP damage is not a big deal. Flashy and cool, but not a game changer by any means.

Fighters mark everything they attack, regardless if the attack hits or not. So once per encounter, the fighter just marked everyone in a 3x3 square for a minor action.

 

[Aran Thule]

The Halfing Ranger in my group has used his racial power twice in five sessions, but both times have really saved his bacon! I think this racial power should really not be underestimated - it certainly makes him a little braver!

And you got your revenge by having a halfling slinger do it to me when i got a crit.

Personally i am finding my Halfling great fun the play and that is the important thing.
The only disadvantage of being small is not being able to use weapons that are bigger then they are, which sounds reasonable.
The other thing that the original poster has not seemed to mention is the roleplay versitility that being small gives: small spaces, hiding, witty one-liners, the whole underdog factor and best of all not fat or with hairy feet.
I definately think that halflings in 4th Ed are an improvement over previous versions and no longer a joke like some people treated them (along with gnomes)