D&D 5E What is the appeal of the weird fantasy races?

[Hussar]

I hear you. I just really do not like the word "chained." It has such a negative connotation. But there are so many other races in D&D and so many other cultures. The two worlds look nothing alike outside. Seems to me if there was any apt word to describe its relation to Tolkien, it would be "holding hands."

I'd agree except for the fact that we have a 4000+ post thread, that we're both posting in right now, talking about how anything that isn't straight from Tolkien is "weird". Dwarves and elves are perfectly acceptable in human taverns, but a tabaxi would be killed on sight.

For no other reason than the fact that the game is chained to the corpse of the Professor. The negative connotations are entirely intentional. If we weren't chained to it, then this thread wouldn't exist.

 

[Jack Daniel]

I'd agree except for the fact that we have a 4000+ post thread, that we're both posting in right now, talking about how anything that isn't straight from Tolkien is "weird". Dwarves and elves are perfectly acceptable in human taverns, but a tabaxi would be killed on sight.

For no other reason than the fact that the game is chained to the corpse of the Professor. The negative connotations are entirely intentional. If we weren't chained to it, then this thread wouldn't exist.

Well what's the alternative? To make the non-Tolkien races not weird? The moment they're perceived as mundane, people who want to play spiffy-new-unique-interesting won't want to play them anymore.

 

[MGibster]

For no other reason than the fact that the game is chained to the corpse of the Professor. The negative connotations are entirely intentional. If we weren't chained to it, then this thread wouldn't exist.

That's a fair point. When it comes to "strange" it really depends on the context. If there are no elves in my setting, or if my elves closely resemble the Keebler elves, then a Tolkien style elf would be strange.

 

[Maxperson]

I'd agree except for the fact that we have a 4000+ post thread, that we're both posting in right now, talking about how anything that isn't straight from Tolkien is "weird".

Actually, that was a mischaracterization by someone on your side that nobody bothered to correct. Gnomes are not Tolkien and people accept those just fine.

Dwarves and elves are perfectly acceptable in human taverns, but a tabaxi would be killed on sight.

And nobody has said anything close to that.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

Well what's the alternative? To make the non-Tolkien races not weird? The moment they're perceived as mundane, people who want to play spiffy-new-unique-interesting won't want to play them anymore.

. . . Yes. You can make races not "weird" and "typical", but not take away the draw to play them. Why do people play Dwarves or Half-Orcs? Others would play Lizardfolk and Tieflings for similar reasons. It just fits the character they want to play.

 

[Scribe]

. . . Yes. You can make races not "weird" and "typical", but not take away the draw to play them. Why do people play Dwarves or Half-Orcs? Others would play Lizardfolk and Tieflings for similar reasons. It just fits the character they want to play.

What is the overwhelming trope for Lizards or Teifling? Pre-4th, Teifling had a much better thing going imo, but neither of them at this point (Dragonkin/Teifling) have anything that screams unique to me, they just dont have enough history or weight in the world.

Which is weird for me to type, because I love playing as Teiflings, but I dont like what 4th did to them at all.

So what is the draw to Dragonkin or Teifling, beyond "I want to be a Dragon/Fiend"?

 

[MGibster]

So what is the draw to Dragonkin or Teifling, beyond "I want to be a Dragon/Fiend"?

I honestly don't know if you need a stronger draw.

 

[Scribe]

I honestly don't know if you need a stronger draw.

Right? I mean I'm all about the Blood War, cultists, Outer Planes, all that jazz.

That's the only hook I need.

But they decided that Teiflings needed to all be under Asmodeus and that Asmodeus was a god now and blah blah I hate all that.

Ahem...point being, if that's the draw, fine I guess. Just seems extremely unappealing to me, to have these shallow races main draw be they just look so wildly divergent, without a depth of history to them.

 

[MGibster]

Right? I mean I'm all about the Blood War, cultists, Outer Planes, all that jazz.

I don't believe most people who select Tieflings as their character's race care about all that jazz. I suspect the majority of them just like the image and the mechanical benefits which is totally fine in my book.

 

[Dire Bare]

What is the overwhelming trope for Lizards or Teifling? Pre-4th, Teifling had a much better thing going imo, but neither of them at this point (Dragonkin/Teifling) have anything that screams unique to me, they just dont have enough history or weight in the world.

Which is weird for me to type, because I love playing as Teiflings, but I dont like what 4th did to them at all.

So what is the draw to Dragonkin or Teifling, beyond "I want to be a Dragon/Fiend"?

Why would someone want to play a dragonborn? Because they love dragons! Because they love the idea of a powerful, majestic, legendary being who can breathe fire (or lightning, or . . .)!

Why would someone want to play a tiefling? Because they want to play a dark, demonic character! Perhaps they want to play a character who rebels against dark instincts, or against society's discrimination . . . or maybe they love the idea of leaning into dark heroism . . .

Neither of these character archetypes require a "history" or have "weight" in the campaign setting. When dragonborn were first introduced in 3E, they were heroic servants of Bahamut transformed in a ritual, and assumed to be rather rare in the world. You don't need a "race" of dragonborn in your world, to have a player play one in your game.

Likewise, tieflings don't need to be a "race" with history or weight in the world to be playable. They can be one-off types, perhaps cursed by the gods (Caliban from Shakespeare's Tempest, or Calibos from "Clash of the Titans") or perhaps an escapee from Baator (Hell).

Why do we need a reason at all other than, "That looks like fun to play!"