D&D General Race Has No Mechanics. What do you play?

[DEFCON 1]

IMO it's the same story for the new background ASIs that will be debuting in the 2024 PHB. WoTC only showed an interest in them after Pathfinder 2nd edition and Level Up came out with them.

Quite possibly. They knew they didn't want to attach ASIs to species anymore, so it probably came down to either doing the Tasha thing of "player choice to put the +2 / +1 where they want", or they found more interest in making Backgrounds more important when it comes to "builds".

 

[DEFCON 1]

I very much don't like characters that stack special things onto special things - like a mermaid that's a vampire that's half-aasimar (with some fey heritage) learning to become a time mage/assassin...

This was always why I was not much of a fan of multiclassing... especially the 3E prestige class type. Double especially when a player would stack multiple prestige classes on top of each other-- at that point the flavor and narrative tied to any of them just become one big bowl of mush.

 

[Voadam]

EDIT FOR CLARITY: The supposition here is that the raves still have lore and in-fiction impacts related to the setting, which you can either define as your preferred setting, or default to whatever bits are to be found in the core books. Dwarves are dour, elves are aloof, etc...

Hypothetical sitation: you are joining a new campaign in which all other factors are positive (you know the GM and group, it's in a setting you like, whatever) but there is one hitch: race/heritage/species is cosmetic only.

So, assuming it is a very open setting in which pretty much any reasonable humanoid species is available, but none of them have any mechanical effects (including size, vision and movement types; everyone, including humans, are basically human mechanically). What species do you pick for your character?

Would race being cosmetic only be a turn off for you?

I was actually in a campaign where this was a thing. I was playing a D&D themed version of Kids on Bikes and I was an elf. Mechanics were mostly based on "class" choice and stats. So no mechanics for being an elf but it became a decently big part of the game for descriptions and roleplaying and plot.

Perfectly fine and did not detract from my fun at all.

 

[Deset Gled]

I think in general, if you're going for no mechanics then some races would be out of bounds, more or less for the reasons you've mentioned. How do you fit an undead or warforged in there if they have the same mechanics as everyone else, hengeyokai would also be right out.

For a hengeyokai, the only way to play that would be to play a druid and re-fluff wildshape a bit. But given the "everything else is positive" clause in the OP I'd try to get a homebrew rule where I get more uses of wildshape but am more restricted n form choice (my options are: cat and bigger cat.)

I could replicate most planetouched thematically with spellcasters, elves might want a feat, etc. Hopefully small is an option or halflings are right out.

Most interesting race features can be replicated with class features, I don't think any concepts are impossible, but I will admit some are tougher and some are easier to do.

I have to admit, as I work out the details from application to theory this sounds less and less appealing to me.

It may be extrapolating a bit, but it sounds like the end result of "races are cosmetic only" basically boils down to "only races that can be handled by cosmetic changes are allowed." Obviously, there's going to be a lot of gray area here (like the elf sleep and Goliath vs. halfling strength that's already been brought up). But if the system can't handle things like hengeyokai alternate forms, or sea elves that can breath underwater, or flying aasimar, then IMNSHO, this system is more limiting than it is empowering. You may be intending to tell a half-orc that they're allowed to be just as good of a sorcerer as a half-elf, but in doing so you're also telling players that everyone is going to be more human. That's not an end game I want to work towards.

Going in another direction, if "races are cosmetic only" pushes the system towards "you should use feats and classes to replicate racial abilities", well, that doesn't really sound that great, either. For starters, that's not really saying that races are cosmetic only; in just means you have to go outside the races/heritage chapter of the PHB to find the details. Which means instead of simply picking your race/heritage, you now need system mastery to build races that were once easily available. Also, any resources (feats, levels, etc) you spend building your racial features are resources you don't spend on your class, background, story, etc.

So, I guess I'm going to land on "If the right DM came I'm with this idea, I'd be in for trying it. But it's not something I appreciate as a game design decision."

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

GNOME FOR LIFE. The cool abilities are just the cherry on top of the delicious sundae that is being a gnome.

 

[Mannahnin]

Human, a lot of the time, because I enjoy humans, and I like being the "straight man"/contrast to my friends playing non-humans, and thus making them look more exotic and special.

Other stuff potentially depending on the setting and whether the cultural concept appeals to me. I've always liked elves and half elves. Dwarves can be really cool in the right setting, etc.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Dwarves can be really cool in the right setting, etc.

You can just say "bars."

 

[Mannahnin]

You can just say "bars."

I played in a "reclaiming the ancient kingdom" all-Dwarven campaign in 3.5. My dwarf was a Book of Nine Swords Crusader and I enjoyed the heck out of him.

 

[CreamCloud0]

You can just say "bars."

took me a moment too long to realise you meant a drinking establishment and not a jailcell, though spending too long in the former can often lead to spending time in the latter.

 

[GrimCo]

Ever since WotC started to move away from traditional racial identity, and the route they have gone since, I just wish WotC would go all the way and just make a long list of linage abilities that cost 1-3 points each. The players have 10 points to pick and choose from the list to make up their character, then decide what their toon looks like. Or something like that. In the current system, halfling, orc or butterfly folk barbarians are basically the same anyway, just different skins.

Well, that's something similar to our last campaign. Custom lineage from Tashas, just pick 2 variable traits from expanded list of traits ( DM just took traits from all the races, dropping some that didn't fit into setting). But in setting, everyone is human.