If you don't want the species to impact the rules, I don't understand why you would need dedicated species rules at all. Why not just use rules of goliath and refluff it as halfling?That’s the problem though. You can absolutely have your weaker halflings. That’s 100% supported by the rules.
But I can’t have my strong halflings? Why not?
Because the entire point of rules is to enforce limitations, i.e. things you can't do, and some of those limitations are going to go toward supporting a sense of verisimilitude insofar as making choices appear to have meaningful impacts.That’s the problem though. You can absolutely have your weaker halflings. That’s 100% supported by the rules.
But I can’t have my strong halflings? Why not?
So you're okay with halflings overpowering goliaths on the occasional strength endeavor, so long as on the character sheet it is written down that the halfling has lower strength?What is "true" verisimilitude? Verisimilitude is simply the appearance of realism without necessarily being realistic which is generally what I'm looking for in a game like D&D.
If it is pointless, why we have different bonuses for different characters and creatures at all? Why wizard has a higher int bonus than the barbarian, why giant has a higher strength bonus than an orc? If these differences in ability modifier are pointless and do not represent anything, why they exist? Get rid of them. You can replace them with proficiency bonus, if you don't want to completely redo the game maths and it would be close enough.So you're okay with halflings overpowering goliaths on the occasional strength endeavor, so long as on the character sheet it is written down that the halfling has lower strength?
Yeah... I don't see why anyone in design would ever see that as doing much of anything. "The number is lower, so it gives the appearance of halflings having much worse strength... even though there are going to be plenty of times where that is patently false."
That appears to me to be absolutely pointless, and I can certainly understand why the designers wouldn't go out of the way to put in those kind of restrictions onto the races if they don't actually accomplish what they are meant to do.
We don't need them. You are absolutely correct. The Race section of the book could write down and give us all the fluff of what these races are, and have no mechanical benefits or changes to them whatsoever.If you don't want the species to impact the rules, I don't understand why you would need dedicated species rules at all. Why not just use rules of goliath and refluff it as halfling?
like in Warhammer 1st Ed where all weapons did 1d6 dmgWe don't need them. You are absolutely correct. The Race section of the book could write down and give us all the fluff of what these races are, and have no mechanical benefits or changes to them whatsoever.
But they don't want to do that. They want to give very minor mechanical benefits and changes to each of them. Now if you think those changes are too minor... that mechanically they each look too similar to each other... that's your right and your opinion. But hey... at least there's SOME difference for you... as we said, they could have given us no mechanical differentiation at all.
Heh... even in olden-days D&D all weapons did the same amount of damage.like in Warhammer 1st Ed where all weapons did 1d6 dmg![]()