PHB - Human only?

[Kae'Yoss]

Wild idea: All characters begin without a race

I say everyone is human until he gets the right card. With the right card, you even get to get up to two races. Similar thing for classes, you need the Super Munchkin card for that.

 

[CleverNickName]

I answered "Don't think so," but it wouldn't ruin my gaming experience if the only race in the PHB is Human. A lot of history-themed campaigns are human-only, and they can be quite fun. Not my thing, and probably not D&D anymore, but still fun.

 

[GreatLemur]

Wild idea: All characters begin without a race but with two extra feats. Then you must declare a race: If you want to be human, you spend one of those feats on the "+1 skill pt/level" ability and save the second feat to use later. If you want to be a non-human (elf, dwarf, ect.), you spend your two feats on various other racial ability packages. ... Halvsies, like those with an elf parent and a human parent, can pick and choose to represent an appropriate mix.

There ya go. The new 4th edition race mechanic. (takes a bow) You may throw roses now.

Hell, it'd work for me. Or instead, have you seen the Iron Heroes make-your-own-race/background method, where you just pick a couple traits? I could definitely see something like that being expanded into a complete race construction system.

 

[Aloïsius]

D&D = race + class + level.

Don't change that, this is the very basis of the game, and it should be in the PHB.

 

[Kahuna Burger]

With this kind of setup, you wouldn't come to a new game expecting to be able to play an elf any more than you expect to be able to play a goblin.

Honest question - why should you come to a new game expecting to be able to play a human?

(Seriously, the idea that it's in any way unreasonable to want to play a race that has been core to every version of D&D I'm aware of is a little weird - if the game is labeled D&D, of course I'm going to assume I can play an elf, right up until you say "I'm running a homebrew with no elves".)

 

[Angel Tarragon]

I expect there to be more than humans in my Player's Handbook.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

A lot of history-themed campaigns are human-only

Of course. It's probably the fact that our history consists of humans and their deeds, not fantasy races like elves or orcs.

History-themed campaigns aren't really D&D's focus, though. Those tend not to have wizards or miracle healers.

 

[Arkhandus]

Patently absurd.

Even the "One True Game" (tm) of OD&D has playable non-humans right there, yes? To not include the most common allies of humans in the PHB would be absurd. They aren't Tolkien's elves, frex, so they aren't uber.

 

[MoogleEmpMog]

Since the default PHB racial suite is highly unlikely to suit most of the settings I'm interested in (pulp sword and sorcery or JRPG-inspired), I'd be happy with this - under 3e.

Under 4e, with the new, non-playable-sounding monster rules, I don't think it would work.

 

[jeffh]

Humans are already the most overused and boring race. I can't even remember the last time someone other than me ran a non-human in our group. I've never run a human just because everyone else does; that and they seem so boring. A bonus feat and skills and nothing else? Why don't I just play half-orc? At least they get Darkvision.

I would die of boredom for the first 2 months until we got new races. Terrible idea.

Right. Because there's absolutely no such thing as an interesting human.

Either you lead a very emotionally impoverished life, or you're talking nonsense. (That's an inclusive "or".)

(Or you're being sarcastic and I've just been trolled.)