Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="The Crimson Binome" data-source="post: 6663242" data-attributes="member: 6775031">I'm not arguing against the inclusion of class-based stat bonuses. Those do make sense, for the very reason you suggest. I'm arguing against the removal of race-based stat bonuses, because genetics do matter. Maybe the genetic factor is so small as to be negligible within our real-world human populations, but they've always been significant within fantasy worlds that include orcs and elves and halflings.Tropes are important. You may personally feel that they're overplayed, and would like to seem them die, but they are at the core of the cultural zeitgeist that is traditional fantasy. If you've ever wondered why science fiction is less popular than fantasy, a large part of it is that science fiction lacks a widely-recognized set of tropes that would allow anyone to jump into the world and immediately understand what's going on. Everyone already knows what an elf is, and expects them to have good eyesight and proficiency with the longbow. If you remove the tropes - perhaps creating a unique set of subversions along the way - then you raise the barrier to entry for anyone who isn't already invested in your world.D&D gives you the baseline. It is, for the most part, just generic fantasy. If you're experienced enough to be bored with generic fantasy, then there's always Dark Sun and Eberron and Planescape, etc. Or you could create your own setting, or even your own system if you really felt like it.Actually, Vancian casting is one of the few areas where D&D strays from generic fantasy, and they've been slowly eroding it in every edition.And it is entirely possible for a particular gnome to be stronger than a particular half-orc, but it will be in spite of the genetic disadvantage rather than because of it. This has always been the case, and will continue to be the case for as long as the game rules reflect the reality of the setting.</blockquote>

Verification