Ultimate Half-Elf

[pukunui]

Hi all,

I realize houseruling the half-elf has been done to death already, but my first 4e campaign starts on Friday and I really need to get my alternate take on the half-elf settled by then.

Half-elves have always been my favorite race conceptually, but so far I haven't been at all impressed with WotC's versions (3e and 4e). I want my half-elves to be more like Tanis than Barney. I would also like to make them the most "customizable" race out there.

Ultimate Half-elf
Abilities: +2 Con, +2 Cha
Dilettante: Choose any 1st-level at-will power from a class other than your own and use it as an encounter power. Or choose your fey parent's racial encounter power and use it as a daily.
Dual Heritage: At character creation, choose either elf or eladrin (or drow) for your non-human parentage. Depending on your choice, you gain access to that race's racial feats and paragon paths (should any ever exist). This choice cannot be changed. You can also gain access to your fey parent's racial encounter power (see above).

And either:

Skill bonuses: +2 to any two skills

or

Half-Elf Versatility: You can choose any one racial feature from either your human or your fey parent. For example, a half-eladrin could choose to have a bonus feat, a bonus trained class skill, or +1 to Will/Ref/Fort from their human parent or a bonus trained skill, proficiency in the longsword, trance, or one of the eladrin's +2 skill bonuses as an additional bonus.



Please let me know what you think!


Thanks in advance.

Cheers,
Jonathan

 

[Raunalyn]

This is a good idea, though it makes Half-elves a little too good. Why not, instead, allow them the dillitante, but then allow them access to the racial feats of their parents?

 

[pukunui]

This is a good idea, though it makes Half-elves a little too good. Why not, instead, allow them the dillitante, but then allow them access to the racial feats of their parents?

I have done that.

I'm not too concerned about making half-elves "a little too good", since WotC persists in making them "not good enough". Plus, no one in my group likes half-elves that much, so I'm trying to make them more appealing.

I really want to emphasize the idea that "no two half-elves are alike". While there are some things each half-elf has (such as their mule-like hardiness [+2 Con] and their "otherworldly" allure [+2 Cha]), they also are extremely disparate as they inherit different traits from their parents and grow up in different environments and cultures. This is why I want them to be customizable.

 

[pukunui]

Another idea I've had is to give the half-elf a racial encounter power that's essentially the same as the elf's except that it allows you to reroll a Diplomacy check instead of an attack roll. The only name I've come up with so far is Lay on the Charm, but that's a bit silly, I know.