D&D 5E Unearthed Arcana: Gothic Lineages & New Race/Culture Distinction

The latest Unearthed Arcana contains the Dhampir, Reborn, and Hexblood races. The Dhampir is a half-vampire; the Hexblood is a character which has made a pact with a hag; and the Reborn is somebody brought back to life.

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Perhaps the bigger news is this declaration on how race is to be handled in future D&D books as it joins other games by stating that:

"...the race options in this article and in future D&D books lack the Ability Score Increase trait, the Language trait, the Alignment trait, and any other trait that is purely cultural. Racial traits henceforth reflect only the physical or magical realities of being a player character who’s a member of a particular lineage. Such traits include things like darkvision, a breath weapon (as in the dragonborn), or innate magical ability (as in the forest gnome). Such traits don’t include cultural characteristics, like language or training with a weapon or a tool, and the traits also don’t include an alignment suggestion, since alignment is a choice for each individual, not a characteristic shared by a lineage."

 

[Tonguez]

I like that they havent just tied them to one ‘ancestry’ and that players have a chance to customise the type of Hungry Dead/Unseelie/Ghostborn they want to be

 

[Micah Sweet]

My hope us when they get to really rewriting character creation rules, they will look to give each race more interesting features to distinguish them and worry less about ability scores

I don't really care about ability scores. That ship has sailed, and I'm fine with the Tasha's changes. What I'm concerned about is the idea of mechanical benefits from culture (like proficiency) being removed altogether, and what they would replace it with going forward. It looks like that's what they're doing.

 

[Weiley31]

At least it's not gonna be like 3.0/3.5 where everything was basically a Mutt with how much you could just pile template after template.

I mean, how many things did your PC/NPCs dad get it on with when creating crap?

 

[Umbran]

From a game-design standpoint, I'm curious how much deviation would be accepted before the target audience believes the game no longer fits their view of a brand name (D&D).

And, before you think about that question, be sure you know who the target audience is.

 

[MGibster]

And, before you think about that question, be sure you know who the target audience is.

Bingo! The target audience isn't made up of old stick-in-the-muds like me.

 

[Minigiant]

I agree with this.

(My thinking is similar in regards to magic items.)

From a game-design standpoint, I'm curious how much deviation would be accepted before the target audience believes the game no longer fits their view of a brand name (D&D).

In regards to D&D, is there a preponderance for a specific style, tone, and direction; or a preponderance for a generic modular base?

It needn't be a binary answer either. My guess would be there is plenty of room to skew more one way or the other. Still, for coherent design, I believe answering some fundamental questions about design intent is important.

Before rushing to how something is done, I believe it is important to establish why it is done.

One thing many people don't think about is that because D&D was the originator of TTRPG design, there was no real RPG design before it in order to mold it to what "good design" is.

So a lot of things were just accepted and became tradition just because there was nothing to really compare it too and no years of analysis to critique it. Acceptance for the +1 and +2 in a game where you roll 1d20 or 3d6 as racial significance is one of them.

 

[Weiley31]

The +2/+1 or +2/+2 handles ability scores. Like I said. At this rate, how many more races could you actually make at this point. 5E has what, 55 or 65 races? Via official books, UAs,and Planeshifts?

I'm surprised we got that many.

 

[Scribe]

Bingo! The target audience isn't made up of old stick-in-the-muds like me.

If only there was some other way, as if there was optional rules...if only.

 

[Umbran]

If only there was some other way, as if there was optional rules...if only.

Well, of course there are optional rules. Now we get to quibble over whose preferred rules get to be "standard" and which are "optional".

 

[Weiley31]

If only there was some other way, as if there was optional rules...if only.

Despite WoTCs opinion/views, I still say that Tasha's Custom Races/Lineages,/Rhoomba Warforged are still optional.