What do you think about Monte's new PHB Racial Levels?

[Kestrel]

I like em. Don't like +ECL mechanic, as it makes for wonky characters with reduced hps but powerful in other aspects.

I would love to see racial levels replace half-dragon, half-celestial, and half-fiend templates for pcs.

But that's just me.

 

[The Blue Elf]

Kinders are mostly rogues in a class all there own I guess In stead of a Class give them around a +4 Bonuses on Pickpocket skill on racial ablitys that would be nice to see.

 

[buzz]

It's basic DnD all over again.

Nah. It's better.

 

[Estlor]

It's basic DnD all over again.

Nah, not really. I'll admit that, on the surface, a level of elf seems similar to a level of OD&D elf, but there's a vast conceptual difference between the AU racial levels and OD&D racial levels. In AU taking a level in a race grants you abilities unique to a race. You might even say they're stereotypical racial abilities. The OD&D racial classes are more like amalgams of other OD&D classes meshed together to come up with something not quite the same.

Taking an AU elf level improves the natural talents of an elf. Taking an OD&D elf level makes you a bit of a fighter and a bit of a mage.

The problem, IMHO, is not in the concept, it's in the execution. Racial levels presented in AU actually do focus on unique aspects of the race. The ones presented on www.montecook.com are too vanilla for the most part. They're like, "Extrordinary ability, Skill bonus, Stat Bonus."

 

[tm80401]

The phrase "quintessential member of their race" makes no sense to me. Again, perhaps it's just the training I've received so far in life, but the variance physically between members of a race is covered by abilities.

O.K. Realizing that this is a few days late and that I haven't worked my way thru the entire thread yet, I think the problem is that you are looking at this as biology and it's not. It's more like theology.

The only real way that I see to make racial classes work with the game is by controlling the flavor surrounding them.

For example. For every species there is a mystical archetype, representing the epitome of everything that that species could be. Living beings are flawed copies/echoes of that archetype and by taking racial class levels are 'tuning' themselves to be closer to the 'perfect' elf/human/orc/dwarf/whatever

This type of an idea may not work for your campaign, but you are correct in that there is no way racial levels can be modeled biologically. That only leaves magic.

 

[Lalato]

The problem, IMHO, is not in the concept, it's in the execution. Racial levels presented in AU actually do focus on unique aspects of the race. The ones presented on www.montecook.com are too vanilla for the most part. They're like, "Extrordinary ability, Skill bonus, Stat Bonus."

Yep... in AU, the levels are described as magical. Magic is at work in making the individual more "elf-like" (or in AU more "giant-like")...

These levels are meant to be used with that in mind. That's why they work within the context of AU... and can be made to work in any other campaign as long as one uses that underlying premise.

I agree that the core racial levels posted on monte's website are way too vanilla compared to the AU racial levels. That's why I'll be reworking them. I'll also be working levels for some of the planetouched races that might come into play in the campaign I currently play in.

--sam

 

[Saeviomagy]

Actually, to my mind, that make them ideal for representing an untrained member of a race. It gives them enough talent/skill/ability to put them beyond a standard commoner (i.e. someone with "potential") without showing any particular training.

But the problem is that you're basically never going to have a player who takes one at first level - they may take them later on, but that's just plain wierd...

"First, I learnt to be a wizard, then I learnt to be a man"
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