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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Westgate Polks" data-source="post: 2312119" data-attributes="member: 13524">Iconoclastic Characters and A Plethora of ChoicesLi - I know where you are coming from.  What I find very interesting with the demi-human characters is that the severity of the shift from iconoclastic varies from race to race.  For example, most dwarven PCs that I have seen are fighters, clerics, or a mix; not too different from before.  Almost all halflings are rogues - again not too different.  Elves, however, are all over the map.  I think that demonstrates the popularity of elves more than anything else.When I first read the 3.0 PHB, the big thing that lept out at me was the elimination of the racial limitations to class level.  I thought that was the best thing since movable type, and I still feel that way.  The current system allows for 77 different race/class combinations (including ONLY PHB material).  Throw in the new core classes from the complete series and you get over 150; let's not even BEGIN to examine the Prestige Classes, the monster races, etc.  IN the midst of all those choices the elven wizard we all know and love is lost in the mix.However, that does not represent a problem with the system.  As Turanil points out (and many others concur) the DM has the ability to identify what's appropriate.  As an example, I was designed a first-level campaign taking place is the Calimshan region of the Forgotten Realms.  I went through the material and decided what races could and couldn't be selected and also limited what classes were available, what classes were limited, and what ones were unavailable.Just as DMs select monsters based on many things (including geography), so too should the DM select player options.  If something does not fit the particular flavor, it gets set aside for the particular campaign.  Of course, this has serious effects on players and highlights why communication before the beginning of a new campaign is particularly important.  If the DM does not bother to ascertain what a group of players is looking for before the campaign then she will be hard-pressed to design a winning environment.  Conversly, if the DM and the players are on the same page, then these "restrictions" likely will be accepted in stride and contribute to the environment.  If a particular region does not allow PC wizards, then the wizard they run across becomes that much more intriguing.Sometimes I take it a step further.  I play with several different groups of gamers, but there is one player (one of my best friends) who I have been playing with for almost 18 years.  He goes through phases were character class x is his favorite.  From time to time I will create individual restrictions, i.e. Pete, you can NOT play an elf in this campaign.  I use it sparingly, but there are instances where people need to be "encouraged" to try new things.</blockquote>

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