D&D 5E PC races that a DM has specifically excluded from their campaign and why

[Hussar]

Firstly, Find Familiar is a spell so you spend something to have them and losing them costs you an hour to recast. It's rarely something cast to do recon, because most want to keep their spell powder dry, in particular if they're low on slots. It rarely becomes a problem.

As for your comments regarding Aarokocra, I'll save time and refer to this page and add that they've only just recently been added to 5e as a playable race, at least with DnD Beyond.

Still not seeing anything about how they talk like Kenku (no speech, can only imitate), and the "only landing to lay eggs" is not for aarocokra that live on the Material, so, again, I'm not seeing what you're seeing.

You don't use familiars for recon? Good grief, every group I've ever played with automatically assumed that's what familiars are for. What do you use them for otherwise? And, again, why are they being killed so easily? Tiny animal or invisible creature - it's not exactly hard to keep your familiar alive.

I think I'll just chalk this up to different playstyles. I have had none of the problems that you are having.

 

[Mecheon]

I never said recon isn't fine, I said it's rarely worth wasting a spell slot for in most cases, especially if you're low. It costs something. That's the point.

You're not wasting the spellslot? You've got your raven just, with you. You spent that spell slot weeks, months ago and you've just had your famillier around the entire time. They don't go away unless they're killed from doing something really risky.

And when I say Aarokocra's have not been available to play, I mean as a choosable race in DND Beyond which is what everyone is using these days. More to the point which is clearly getting lost, is that they tend to attract a certain kind of player in my experience who is damage-shy and power-gamey.

Err, I don't have the numbers but I'm pretty sure Roll20 is the big thing most people use, my issues with the platform aside. Mind I don't have the numbers for how many games use Roll20 and how many just grab stuff from D&D Beyond as needed, but there's other sources widely publically available for years

Players being shy to damage, given this is 5-Certain 1 CR creatures can and will ruin your group-E, isn't exactly an invalid way of playing? Same reason stealth archery is the go-to way to play Skyrim, due to how scaling works in that game magic quickly becomes weak, enemies become spounges, and defences don't keep up with output. So, you go sneak, you go thief, and you snip-snap-snipe

now on the other hand I understand why people say no Yuan Ti or Satyr given their whole magic resistance cheese, but flying is nowhere near that level.

 

[Hussar]

I never said recon isn't fine, I said it's rarely worth wasting a spell slot for in most cases, especially if you're low. It costs something. That's the point.

And when I say Aarokocra's have not been available to play, I mean as a choosable race in DND Beyond which is what everyone is using these days. More to the point which is clearly getting lost, is that they tend to attract a certain kind of player in my experience who is damage-shy and power-gamey.

Why are you using a slot? Your familiar never runs out right? Unless it dies. So, you cast it when you're at home and, again, unless it dies, you never have to worry about it again.

Also, again, totally not seeing this issue. I'll admit, I haven't seen Aarokocra (how in the hell DO you spell that?) played that often, but, like I said, the ones that I saw were a ton of fun in the game.

 

[Norton]

To save quoting, I'll just hit points and then I think I'll thank everyone for your comments and try and not be a bore with this any longer.

– Most players in my games don't have familiars running around with them. They tend to cast Find Familiar when they think they'll need one or if it really suits the moment. Familiars are cool but they can become something extra to keep tabs on when there's already a lot going on.

– Yes, Aarokockra's are described as talking funny. You have to read down a bit on that link under mannerisms. It says:

Many aarakocra punctuate their speech with chirps, sounds they use to convey emphasis and to shade meaning, much as a human might through facial expressions and gestures. An aarakocra might become frustrated with people who fail to pick up on the nuances; an aarakocra’s threat might be taken as a jest and vice versa.

Before it becomes another point of contention, I never expect anyone to perform their characters. My point in mentioning it is that in my experience players pick the race for the jetpack and completely ignore the quirks of it. Fine, make it talk like Tommy Chong and chew rat bacon for all I care, but it makes me suspicious of you and the game kind of bland when it could be otherwise if you're simply planning on strapping on wings and acting like some kind of human variant.

– Roll20 is used with DND Beyond. You literally connect them with Beyond20.

– It's fine to not want to take damage. Hell, Rug of Smothering is fairly OP. It's less than fine when you're literally trying to dig out exploits to avoid the encounter altogether. Play the game and stop trying to show how clever you think you are all the time while everyone else is checking their texts.

In closing, this wasn't about playing an Aarokocra like an actual bird or running a game with one that works. Anyone willing with a little group sense can do that, and there are plenty of ways to make an argument for this and that and we could go around all darn day. This was about the kind of player I find they attract who just wants wings and a boring advantage to breaking encounters and grandstanding, which is why I posted in the arguing for advantage thread and the races you would ban thread.

Ps. Thanks to all for refraining from making a "this argument is for the birds" joke.

 

[steeldragons]

Drow. Flat out. No go. The evil elves of the Underdark belong in the Underdark, not traipsing around the surface world in hordes of upstanding redeemed individuals or "shadow enclaves" lamenting their culture, "But we're not really like that." or, even, "Yep. That's exactly what my people are. But not me. So I left." Never will Drow be a playable species in a game I run.

Same for Duergers. Deep Gnomes, too.

Pretty much, if you're an "Underdark" species and we're not playing an Underdark campaign (or reason to think large chunks of a campaign might/are expected to take you there), no one has any business being one of those species. You are also not likely to encounter them as NPC or adversary anywhere unless you are doing some serious serious, deep, deep, DEEP [unduhcovuh] subterranean exploring.

Dragonborn. My campaign setting was created before they existed. A draconic character could be worked out if someone really wants to play it, I guess. [Hasn't happened yet.] But they will be a curiosity, a notable unique individual and face reactions/interactions as such.

Tieflings. See Dragonborn.

 

[Oofta]

...
Ps. Thanks to all for refraining from making a "this argument is for the birds" joke.

Yeah, I just assumed most people chickened out.

 

[Oofta]

To save quoting, I'll just hit points and then I think I'll thank everyone for your comments and try and not be a bore with this any longer.

– Most players in my games don't have familiars running around with them. They tend to cast Find Familiar when they think they'll need one or if it really suits the moment. Familiars are cool but they can become something extra to keep tabs on when there's already a lot going on.

– Yes, Aarokockra's are described as talking funny. You have to read down a bit on that link under mannerisms. It says:

Before it becomes another point of contention, I never expect anyone to perform their characters. My point in mentioning it is that in my experience players pick the race for the jetpack and completely ignore the quirks of it. Fine, make it talk like Tommy Chong and chew rat bacon for all I care, but it makes me suspicious of you and the game kind of bland when it could be otherwise if you're simply planning on strapping on wings and acting like some kind of human variant.

– Roll20 is used with DND Beyond. You literally connect them with Beyond20.

– It's fine to not want to take damage. Hell, Rug of Smothering is fairly OP. It's less than fine when you're literally trying to dig out exploits to avoid the encounter altogether. Play the game and stop trying to show how clever you think you are all the time while everyone else is checking their texts.

In closing, this wasn't about playing an Aarokocra like an actual bird or running a game with one that works. Anyone willing with a little group sense can do that, and there are plenty of ways to make an argument for this and that and we could go around all darn day. This was about the kind of player I find they attract who just wants wings and a boring advantage to breaking encounters and grandstanding, which is why I posted in the arguing for advantage thread and the races you would ban thread.

Ps. Thanks to all for refraining from making a "this argument is for the birds" joke.

I really limit flying in my games until high levels of play. It's simply overpowered depending on build. Not just scouting ahead, but the guy that can avoid 80% of combat (especially at lower levels) because precious few monsters fly or have effective ranged attacks. The worst part is that it's boring for the rest of the party most of the time.

If you do a dungeon crawl game or most encounters are indoors it may not matter as much.

 

[Norton]

I really limit flying in my games until high levels of play. It's simply overpowered depending on build. Not just scouting ahead, but the guy that can avoid 80% of combat (especially at lower levels) because precious few monsters fly or have effective ranged attacks. The worst part is that it's boring for the rest of the party most of the time.

If you do a dungeon crawl game or most encounters are indoors it may not matter as much.

Thanks for you reply. It seems to match my experience, as well.

I was considering some kind of resource spend with flying to at least make players think tactically before they take off. A point of exhaustion if misused is one idea, but I haven't yet figured out how to define misuse. A cool down period every other round due to the rigors of flying in combat? A 5% chance of getting winged while in the air which will require a long rest to heal? Perhaps the right player doesn't need these things, but the temptation to avoid combat and focus on exploits I'm learning is pretty great.

 

[Norton]

Yeah, I just assumed most people chickened out.

Fair. I asked for that.

 

[Micah Sweet]

I never said recon isn't fine, I said it's rarely worth wasting a spell slot for in most cases, especially if you're low. It costs something. That's the point.

And when I say Aarokocra's have not been available to play, I mean as a choosable race in DND Beyond which is what everyone is using these days. More to the point which is clearly getting lost, is that they tend to attract a certain kind of player in my experience who is damage-shy and power-gamey.

I had to respond to this. D&D Beyond is just as essential and core to the D&D experience as the Adventurer's League is; that is, not really. It's a tool that some people use: that's it. It does not represent D&D. Several of my players use it, and every one of them has run into some technical problem or confusing bit with the UI at one time or another. Overstating its importance to the game is a mistake IMO.

 

[Norton]

I had to respond to this. D&D Beyond is just as essential and core to the D&D experience as the Adventurer's League is; that is, not really. It's a tool that some people use: that's it. It does not represent D&D. Several of my players use it, and every one of them has run into some technical problem or confusing bit with the UI at one time or another. Overstating its importance to the game is a mistake IMO.

It's a tool that every single one of my 20 players uses, so for all intents and purposes it is essential and does represent the D&D experience for us. I'm not sure I could overstate its importance since without it, I probably don't get to run games.

I will say it's less important at the real table, but we haven't been at a real table in yonks and only one of my groups will ever meet in person. So we need something, and since it hooks into Roll20 and there isn't really another available interface, we have little choice.

And all online systems fail. With the disparity of Wifi signals and computer resources it's unlikely things will every be perfect. I have my criticisms of it as well, but it makes managing numerous campaigns, creating characters, and tracking encounters far more easy to do than plugging in a hodgepodge of my own methods. New players have access to a lot of learning tools, as well. Half of them would never purchase the PHB if it weren't available and integrated into their DND Beyond account. It's a lot of things, but unimportant to new players definitely isn't one of them.

If anyone has any suggestions on how to better run several campaigns online, I am wide open to them.

 

[tetrasodium]

It's a tool that every single one of my 20 players uses, so for all intents and purposes it is essential and does represent the D&D experience for us. I'm not sure I could overstate its importance since without it, I probably don't get to run games.

I will say it's less important at the real table, but we haven't been at a real table in yonks and only one of my groups will ever meet in person. So we need something, and since it hooks into Roll20 and there isn't really another available interface, we have little choice.

And all online systems fail. With the disparity of Wifi signals and computer resources it's unlikely things will every be perfect. I have my criticisms of it as well, but it makes managing numerous campaigns, creating characters, and tracking encounters far more easy to do than plugging in a hodgepodge of my own methods. New players have access to a lot of learning tools, as well. Half of them would never purchase the PHB if it weren't available and integrated into their DND Beyond account. It's a lot of things, but unimportant to new players definitely isn't one of them.

If anyone has any suggestions on how to better run several campaigns online, I am wide open to them.

It's a tool that I flatly ban at my table. It's also a tool that the d&d night gms collectively decided to ban in favor of requiring paper sheets that could be handed to the gm to review as needed at the nearby flgs shortly before covid hit.

Spoiler: in short

Anecdotes are not data

 

[iserith]

Re: aarakocra, it was revealed in this other conversation that it's not so much the race that's the problem or D&D Beyond as it is how certain players choose to play relative to the DM and/or group's preferences. It's a player spotlight issue chiefly so far as I can tell, which can be a problem regardless of the race of the character. The solution isn't to ban the race in my view but rather to explain to the player the importance of equitable spotlight sharing and seeking their buy-in on changing their approach at the table.

Having said that, I'm not against curating available character races for a given adventure or campaign and find it to be an important way to reinforce setting themes and flavor. Sometimes aarakocra doesn't make sense given setting lore or whatever. I just don't think banning aarakocra in this case is going to solve what is ultimately the underlying problem of how a player is eating up other players' spotlight time or circumventing the DM's prep (to the extent that is a problem).

 

[Faolyn]

Am I the only DM that has lists of available PC races and don't have players demanding to play things that aren't on that list?

Weird.

 

[Faolyn]

I'll admit, I haven't really paid much attention to Tabaxi, no one's tried to play one, but, isn't that just what rogues do? 30 foot move, bonus action dash, and then either dash or attack? How is this different or am I missing something? I know the scout rogue/monk in my last campaign did something pretty similar to this and it wasn't that big of a deal.

Again, am I missing something here? The stuff you guys find really OP I just don't.

My group has a person who usually plays Tabaxi, and another player who often does. I've never noticed any problems with their movement either. Maybe it's because we usually do Theater of the Mind or use limited battlemats instead of a full VTT or similar?

 

[Faolyn]

Yeah, I just assumed most people chickened out.

Why is there no "facepalm" reaction?

 

[delericho]

Depends on the setting.

My homebrew worlds will no longer feature drow (as PCs or NPCs) - too problematic. Other than that, I'll usually allow any PHB race and maybe a few others. Though I'm increasingly leaning towards humans-only settings.

For most published settings I'll allow any PHB race, plus any race that appears in that setting's 'main' book ("Rising from the Last War", "Van Richtens..."). For a few (notably Spelljammer and Planescape), anything goes, but those are very much the exception.

 

[Thunder Brother]

Am I the only DM that has lists of available PC races and don't have players demanding to play things that aren't on that list?

Weird.

For my current campaign I posted a white list of the playable races a week before session zero. No one seemed to openly mind the restrictions.

Dwarves, Elves, Humans, and Orcs only. Everything else either doesn't exist or is unplayable for any number of reasons (this is a homebrewed setting). By sheer serendipity, my four players each picked a different race, so the party is fully representative of the setting and specific region the campaign is taking place in. Lots of potential for storylines.

 

[Musing Mage]

I would basically keep to core PHB options, and while I wasn't originally enthralled by either Dragonborn or Tieflings, they have grown on me so I keep them. Though anything from expansions (class or race) is an automatic no-go.

 

[Musing Mage]

Why is there no "facepalm" reaction?