D&D General Old School DND talks if DND is racist.

[Justice and Rule]

I 100% have players who will RP any race they play as a Human, the only difference being accent. Whether or not this is a problem with how the races are portrayed or some of my players, well, flip a coin I guess.

I guess here is a good litmus test: If someone never saw your character sheet and was somehow blind to seeing your physical appearance but could still see your mannerisms/actions, could they tell you werent playing a human?

Yeah, but that doesn't really address what I'm talking about. What I'm saying is that there are already non-human races which have subcultures that are different. Do people think that having subcultures more like humans? Have your players ever commented on that? Because mine have never.

And honestly, without some really telling, unique actions, it might be difficult to tell anything from a human because humans have an incredibly broad set of habits and mannerisms to them. But I don't see why not adhering to a monoculture would matter much in this regard.

 

[Zardnaar]

Yeah, but that doesn't really address what I'm talking about. What I'm saying is that there are already non-human races which have subcultures that are different. Do people think that having subcultures more like humans? Have your players ever commented on that? Because mine have never.

And honestly, without some really telling, unique actions, it might be difficult to tell anything from a human because humans have an incredibly broad set of habits and mannerisms to them. But I don't see why not adhering to a monoculture would matter much in this regard.

Each subculture in effect is a new monoculture.

And every terrain type gets a new type of Elf. Damn they mutate fast.

Imagine the poo storm if they did that with humans. This culture gets these mechanics.....

 

[HJFudge]

Each subculture in effect is a new monoculture.

And every terrain type gets a new type of Elf. Damn they mutate fast.

Oh man there is an elf for EVERY occasion. This is definitely an occasion where there is far too much granulation for the health of a setting!

 

[Justice and Rule]

Yeah, just some fine lads here off for a drink. I wonder what the Humans of such a world feel looking at them rolling on in.

https://cdn.wallpapersafari.com/16/26/NpLAgq.jpg

You obviously have not looked at Blood Bowl.

Plus it doesn't address my point: talking about "familiarity" doesn't work when this version of an Orc doesn't match what the two biggest versions of an Orc are in popular media today.

 

[Zardnaar]

Oh man there is an elf for EVERY occasion. This is definitely an occasion where there is far too much granulation for the health of a setting!

Yeah see genocide can be justified in game. To many Elves.......

 

[Voadam]

D&D doesn't conventionally feature that kind of foresight - nor time travel, contrary to your bizarre claim that it does).

Maybe not conventionally but 3.5 had a Dragonlance hardcover on trime travel and alternate realities, 2e had a campaign neutral sourcebook on time travel magic, and the core 1e Dragonlance Adventures hardcover included the setting's time travel magic and a discussion about it. Plus it wouldn't be surprising if Dragonlance is another of the hinted 5e classic settings for 2021, which would coincide with the new novels, and included at least a reference to time travel again. I am not familiar enough with Immortals set stuff to say if they had any time travel shenanigans adventures to go along with their time sphere.

 

[Justice and Rule]

Each subculture in effect is a new monoculture.

This dilutes the meaning of "monoculture" to basically be meaningless.

Imagine the poo storm if they did that with humans. This culture gets these mechanics.....

I mean, PF2 already does this with ancestry feats.

 

[Zardnaar]

This dilutes the meaning of "monoculture" to basically be meaningless.



I mean, PF2 already does this with ancestry feats.

And look how well it's doing. Online it's competing with PF1.

Reason 5E took off was because of its relative simplicity.

 

[Scribe]

And honestly, without some really telling, unique actions, it might be difficult to tell anything from a human because humans have an incredibly broad set of habits and mannerisms to them. But I don't see why not adhering to a monoculture would matter much in this regard.

Are you asking why we do not have multiple 'mono culture' portrayals of Humans where some are better than others at different things?

You obviously have not looked at Blood Bowl.

You mean the tongue in cheek alternative 'Else World' for Warhammer? Of course I am aware of it. I grew up on GW.

Plus it doesn't address my point: talking about "familiarity" doesn't work when this version of an Orc doesn't match what the two biggest versions of an Orc are in popular media today.

Warhammer Orcs and Orks are absolutely savage, 'force of nature' type entities that exist to fight. I'm not sure what your argument is here. They are extremely 'monoculture' would be seen as Chaotic Neutral at best, and honestly are CE by any reasonable measure, and they live to fight, and butcher, for their Gods. They have low level gear, are brutish, and have zero interest in again, anything but fighting.

That's somehow different from 'Savage Orcs of the Forgotten Realms'? How??

WoW Orcs are better (now), certainly, but they didnt start that way. Granted, Daemonic influence and all that, like say Gruumsh perhaps on FR Orcs.

 

[HJFudge]

Yeah, but that doesn't really address what I'm talking about. What I'm saying is that there are already non-human races which have subcultures that are different. Do people think that having subcultures more like humans? Have your players ever commented on that? Because mine have never.

And honestly, without some really telling, unique actions, it might be difficult to tell anything from a human because humans have an incredibly broad set of habits and mannerisms to them. But I don't see why not adhering to a monoculture would matter much in this regard.

I have not played the default faerun setting in so long I cannot honestly tell you what my players think. Though most of them think the Forgotten Realms is 'dumb'. So I cannot tell you either way. Just how they react to the races I present them. And I struggle to get some of them to do it in any way but 'Im a human, but with powers!'

Total Anecdote: The only people I have personally ever met that really like forgotten realms and the setting are people who are really, really into elves. Like...REALLY into elves.