D&D (2024) Thoughts on the revised Ardling?

[tetrasodium]

That feels needlessly hostile to a player who's excited about playing in your game.

It's usually more a player who is excited about making my game their novel with any "well there is x that has some similarities that you could adapt that thing you are describing to fit" followed by "great so we should replace x with this totally revised thing and add y because it will need that to fit the whole story"
Playing my game is a distant second to playing their novel.

 

[NaturalZero]

I really like shifters. I like Tabaxi. I like Tortles. I like the concept of Lizardfolk (the execution sucks). I like Tritons. I like Aarocokra. I like Kenku. I like Yuan-ti.

I really, really feel like we don't need Ardlings. Stop trying to take everyone else's lunch.

 

[MechaTarrasque]

Wish? It’s 9th level. What about the Cleric equivalent?

Divine intervention. 11th level.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Equally possible with similarly powerful non-divine entities. We should be comparing like to like; wizards to clerics, gods to Archfey.

Idk about your settings but I’ve seen no evidence that such beings are comparably powerful to gods. Maybe demigods.

 

[Corinnguard]

It's usually more a player who is excited about making my game their novel with any "well there is x that has some similarities that you could adapt that thing you are describing to fit" followed by "great so we should replace x with this totally revised thing and add y because it will need that to fit the whole story"
Playing my game is a distant second to playing their novel.

The best way to handle such a person in your games is to remind them that you and the other players, not just them, are writing the "story". D&D and other RPGs are complex 'Choose Your Own Story' adventures where you as DM present your players with several options on how to approach a given situation. They pick one of those options or come up with a reasonably well-thought option of their own, and then you take the party down that path to the next situation.

Novels for what they are worth are linear. RPGs otoh resemble a tree with numerous branching off points.

At any rate, as DM, you have final say on what species (WoTC really needs to change that name. )you are going to allow into your game. If you don't want Ardlings in your game, cast Banishment. Or Banish Species.

 

[ART!]

I think if they're trying to appeal to players who want to play anime-influenced, furry, anthropomorphic characters, then the ardling needs more options.

 

[Gorck]

I would prefer a Primal cantrip to a Divine one, but I can live with this.

For beast-headed creatures, I'd have thought a Primal cantrip would be a no-brainer. I'm still not sure why they are insisting on keeping this Celestial link.

 

[Corinnguard]

For beast-headed creatures, I'd have thought a Primal cantrip would be a no-brainer. I'm still not sure why they are insisting on keeping this Celestial link.

They're probably keeping it to help us distinguish them from the anthropomorphic animal species already existing on the Material Plane. Even though the Ardlings moved to the Material Plane worlds sometime ago. In previous D&D editions, the Ardlings would have been seen as Outsider (Native).

 

[Vaalingrade]

Oh. They thought it was slime girls, didn't they. Oh internet.

It's always been slime girls, Incenjucar.

 

[Frozen_Heart]

Still got no clue why we need taxabi AND leonin AND cat shifters, AND cat head aardlings.

We now have four ways for people to play as a cat-like schmorp.

Just having a cat beast race (with taxabi and leonin as subspecies options), and shifters would be enough.