Racial Utilities

[GameDoc]

Dungeons & Dragons Roleplaying Game Official Home Page - Article (Making Race Count)

I like the concept. I have actually been thinking about a way to do this for some time. Race should matter throughout your character's career and I always felt the racial feats were a sort of "feat tax" that forced you to sacrifice practical choices for your class in order to make your character's race remain a prominent aspect of your character.

 

[Scribble]

I remember waaaay back when 4e was released and they talked about how originally they wanted race to matter more over the course of your campaign, but then backed off at the end... I always wondered why- it seemed like an awesome idea.

 

[Klaus]

LOVE these! Kudos to Schwalb! The half-elf ones are great, and the "stubborn" power of dwarves is kickass!

 

[twilsemail]

Stubborn made my week. The rest are spiffy too. But Stubborn...

 

[Infiniti2000]

Race should matter throughout your character's career and I always felt the racial feats were a sort of "feat tax" that forced you to sacrifice practical choices for your class in order to make your character's race remain a prominent aspect of your character.

Well, in the same vein this becomes a power tax. You have to choose a racial utility power over your class utility power. However, I still like it and don't see it as a tax.

The one power I really dislike is Extra Effort. That -2 on the following save shouldn't be there.

 

[GameDoc]

Well, in the same vein this becomes a power tax. You have to choose a racial utility power over your class utility power. However, I still like it and don't see it as a tax.

The one power I really dislike is Extra Effort. That -2 on the following save shouldn't be there.

Yeah, I would rather it just be a seperate, additional source of powers. At set levels EVERY character get's a racial boon that does not replace anything from their class, theme, or regularly-gained feats.

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

Yeah, but we have so darn many powers and features and whatnot now. I could see a revised game where 'utility' powers could exist for several elements, but they would have to be done a bit differently. It would be nice, but there are only so many things one character can have all at once before it is too much.

Anyway: I think these are pretty good. Some of them are fairly strong, like Human Effort, or the half-elf AA one, which definitely makes you a DUDE in a skill challenge.

 

[Mummolus]

I'm still mildly resentful that this is basically more support for the races that already get basically all the support, but that being said there are some pretty cool powers in there and I like the idea. Hopefully they keep releasing these.

 

[Pour]

Yeah, but we have so darn many powers and features and whatnot now. I could see a revised game where 'utility' powers could exist for several elements, but they would have to be done a bit differently. It would be nice, but there are only so many things one character can have all at once before it is too much.

Anyway: I think these are pretty good. Some of them are fairly strong, like Human Effort, or the half-elf AA one, which definitely makes you a DUDE in a skill challenge.

I think a paring down of character elements would be the only way to do a Paragon or Epic Encounters season like they were flirting with at some previous seminar. And I wonder how many people would adopt it for their home games...

I guess that is the bitch of offering racial utilities, which I like, and power tax, which I don't, simultaneously offering us more but allowing us less. What has it gotten to now, if someone were allowed every character option at say level 21? Background, Theme, Race, Class, Feats, Skills, Powers (from items, from race, from class, from skill), Magic Items, Paragon Path, Epic Destiny?

How would you streamline, avoid tax, but still keep things manageable?

EDIT: As a DM, I think I'd be willing to allow Racial utility powers to be swapped with normal utility powers between extended rests.

 

[Nemesis Destiny]

I like these, however, one thing stuck out - the note about Wizards with the Spellbook feature.

Wizards have to give up getting their two utilities, which as a Wizard are already pretty strong, even if you only get one. I think there will be very, very few wizards ever using these.

Since I don't know of any source pointing out anything contrary, I always interpreted it as Wizards being able to sacrifice one of their two utilties to get other things like skill utilities, feat powers, and power swaps.