Hey, something I just realized about races!

[Wik]

So, races in 4e will scale alongside classes, and have new talent options and what not, right?

So, really, races are similar to a new class that a character takes (more or less).

Which means...

it's one more thing for wotc to market. So, those race splatbooks can actually have more crunch in them, to allow for racial "classes".

Just thinking aloud.

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

it's one more thing for wotc to market. So, those race splatbooks can actually have more crunch in them, to allow for racial "classes".

Just thinking aloud.

If you think about it, they did do that already in the "Races of ..." splatbooks with racial substitution levels, paragon PrCs, etc ... but this gives them the opportunity to do it in a much larger, better unified, and far more exciting manner.

 

[Nahat Anoj]

I like it because it's a throwback to basic D&D, where Elf, Dwarf, and Hafling are classes instead of races. These racial abilities that are acquired with level are a happy medium between racial abilities and racial classes IMO.

 

[Alan Shutko]

I like it because it's a throwback to basic D&D, where Elf, Dwarf, and Hafling are classes instead of races. These racial abilities that are acquired with level are a happy medium between racial abilities and racial classes IMO.

That's the same thing I like about it. I really liked how, esp with the Gazetteer series, basic D&D had real differences between races. Since they've got such completely different cultures and backgrounds, the idea that a fighter is a fighter is a fighter no matter what race always disappointed me.

 

[Wik]

Yeah, I'm kinda interested by the approach, too. The "races of..." books weren't particularly great, in my opinion. They were too fluff-oriented at times, and a lot of that fluff was hard to put into a campaign (Races of Stone, for example, would not work well in an Eberron game).

A more crunch-oriented book (like Complete Warrior, for example) aimed at races would be great, especially if races worked in a manner similar to classes.

If I'm playing a dwarven fighter, I don't just buy the fighter book now, I buy the dwarf book as well. And I think that's pretty cool.

And it makes sense from a marketing point of view, which is good for them.

 

[Glyfair]

If you think about it, they did do that already in the "Races of ..." splatbooks with racial substitution levels, paragon PrCs, etc ... but this gives them the opportunity to do it in a much larger, better unified, and far more exciting manner.

To tell the truth, I expect that 4E races are going to be the evolution of Racial Substitution levels, from everything I heard.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

White Wolf has really mastered the art of the narrowly focused splatbook, with (I think) 10 possible main splats for each of their nWoD games before moving into NPC groups. (Even Vampire has only gone through one set of splats so far, and hasn't started on the second.)

If we could get a high-quality 96 page paperback about each race -- no Clanbook: Malkavian here, please, not even for the gnomes -- I think we'd have a winner.

That's right, folks, if you thought that WotC was soaking you in 3E with all the splatbooks, they were actually taking it pretty easy on you, compared with the competition.

 

[variant]

They need to make halfies into multi-race (like multi-class) instead of races unto themselves.

 

[Wik]

To tell the truth, I expect that 4E races are going to be the evolution of Racial Substitution levels, from everything I heard.

I think we'll be seeing:

1) A few racial abilities + modifiers
2) Scalable racial abilities that progress with character level.
3) Racial Talents & Feats (ie, "must be a 7th level elf"), allowing a character to choose between focusing on his class, or his race.
4) Racial Substitution Levels.

 

[Glyfair]

I think we'll be seeing:

1) A few racial abilities + modifiers
2) Scalable racial abilities that progress with character level.
3) Racial Talents & Feats (ie, "must be a 7th level elf"), allowing a character to choose between focusing on his class, or his race.
4) Racial Substitution Levels.

I can't quote it, but I remember things that definitely seemed to be tying things together. For example, dwarf barbarians having things other dwarves wouldn't have and things other barbarians wouldn't have.