D&D General I think the choice of Species / Race / Ancestry has more to do with Story than Rules...

[CreamCloud0]

Sort of like Pathfinder 2nd edition with it's ancestral feats, but better?

no idea, i've never looked at PF2, but just, your species has a level progression for new boosts and abilities and at some levels you get to pick a 'species feat' for customisation.

edit: these levels would be tied to character level, you don't need to debate if you're going to take your 'dragonborn 3rd' or 'paladin 6th' level

 

[Corinnguard]

no idea, i've never looked at PF2, but just, your species has a level progression for new boosts and abilities and at some levels you get to pick a 'species feat' for customisation.

Okay. There was the racial paragon classes from 3e's Unearthed Arcana. 3e also had racial substitution levels for a couple of the classes in the various races books (Races of Stone, Races of the Wild). I can imagine both being combined for 5e.

 

[LesserThan]

What species would you play?

Fighter or dwarf, since dwarf is a class anyway.

How would that house rule impact the choice you make?

Choice, none. How I had to change playstyle would be unknown.

This is because, in my opinion, the choice of species has more to do with the story a player wants to tell (or experience), and less to do with mechanical benefits.

Yes, someone in a video just mentioned this about Skyrim. The character choice has less to do with the game being played, but more the story or narrative hoped for for that character.

What do you think?

You are correct.

Do you think players are more motivated by the mechanical benefits of a species, or by the story potential?

That depends on the game and player. Story now or story first, are terms I recently heard, and think they are driving a change in hiw ALL games are played whether everyone likes it or not. Would be nice if someone made that "storygame" so everyone can try it, or steal it like was done with D&D to make all its clones.

Would be more interesting than the fixed CYOA books.

What kind of choice would you make in the given scenario?

I already answered that, fighter or dwarf.