D&D General What is the purpose of race/heritage?

[Crimson Longinus]

I could not get past the rebirthing thing. It came out around the time of (and was likely inspired by) the CSI episode that featured it.

I am afraid to ask. But: what?

 

[payn]

I could not get past the rebirthing thing. It came out around the time of (and was likely inspired by) the CSI episode that featured it.

I never watched CSI. Did they really feature D&D Dragonkin?

 

[Vaalingrade]

I never watched CSI. Did they really feature D&D Dragonkin?

am afraid to ask. But: what?

I'm going to save your sanity* and say yes. Yes they featured dragonkin.

They in no way featured a thing entailed by the phrase 'rebirthing' that in no way involved magic or dragons.

It isn't as graphic as all that, it is basically a therapeutic (and fatal in the show) blanket beating, but the symbolism and weird sexualization of... birth... is the issue.

*I lied.

 

[Mind of tempest]

So especially in 3e, but probably earlier and absolutely going forward, WotC would respond to heavily requested options that the designers didn't actually want in the game by producing a drastically nerfed or otherwise undesirable version. I call these 'now shut up' options because they essentially tell the players 'we did what you asked, now shut up', but someone trying to be fair to them would call them compromises (because they are completely compromised like the hull of the Titanic.)

Raptorians were where I first realized it, but other notables include Savage Species where Level Adjustment was introduced, making 'undesirable' playable monsters both a thing, but awful, the original dragonborn, and a response to people not liking the restrictive level adjustment of half dragons where you go trough a rebirthing (see what I mean about all the fetishes flying around back then?) to be come not quite as good as a half dragon.

yeah, I heard about the old DoB which seemed odd.
why would they care about whether they liked it or not they still get paid and doing a good job brings pride in your work, now shut up options seems so odd as why would they care it is not like they are forced to play with their own product?

I am afraid to ask. But: what?

like being literally reborn in a gross way like how we arrive in this world but you're doing it a second time.

 

[Bill Zebub]

Sometimes it seems like the upside is the ability to exclude people from conversations. In general though, I think most folks who use jargon believe that it makes the conversation smoother.

Put me in the latter category in this case. I think the first time I read "ribbon" it was the context of the storm sorcerer in Unearthed Arcana: https://media.wizards.com/2015/downloads/dnd/UA_Waterborne_v3.pdf

Ribbons
On the R&D team, any ability meant to convey flavor rather than a mechanical advantage is referred to as a ribbon—a thing that’s mostly for show. Thieves’ Cant is a great example of a ribbon ability, and Storm Guide also falls into this category. We don’t weigh ribbons when balancing one class or option against another. For example, Heart of the Storm carries the power load at 6th level for the storm sorcerer, while Storm Guide is here only to show how these sorcerers can excel as sailors. It isn’t meant to help in combat, but it’s potentially very useful in maneuvering a ship.

I distinctly remember thinking that this was a really good word to describe that idea. I'm honestly kind of perplexed that anybody thinks this is insidious 'jargon'.

 

[Li Shenron]

Is it having vibrant diversity among the player characters?

For me, it is for having vibrant diversity among the people in the fantasy world, playable or not.

 

[Vaalingrade]

yeah, I heard about the old DoB which seemed odd.
why would they care about whether they liked it or not they still get paid and doing a good job brings pride in your work, now shut up options seems so odd as why would they care it is not like they are forced to play with their own product?

Just how the game creator-verse works.

For example, there's a video game 7 Days to Die. The gist is that you're trying to survive in a zombie apocalypse where a huge horse attacks every 7 days.

The thing is, it's one of the best survival/crafting/base building games ou there, so it also attracted a lot of people who had no real interest in fighting the horde. These people figured out that you could avoid the horde by digging out a bunker undergrounds where the zombies can't follow.

The designers had no liked that. So they spent time and development making it so the zombies dig at super speed in order to bust those bunkers and for the players to stand and fight the horde.

A lot of game designers have a lot of... ownership issues... with their creations and it's more important for players to 'do it right', then go get paid and make a good game.

 

[Jefe Bergenstein]

So especially in 3e, but probably earlier and absolutely going forward, WotC would respond to heavily requested options that the designers didn't actually want in the game by producing a drastically nerfed or otherwise undesirable version. I call these 'now shut up' options because they essentially tell the players 'we did what you asked, now shut up', but someone trying to be fair to them would call them compromises (because they are completely compromised like the hull of the Titanic.)

Raptorians were where I first realized it, but other notables include Savage Species where Level Adjustment was introduced, making 'undesirable' playable monsters both a thing, but awful, the original dragonborn, and a response to people not liking the restrictive level adjustment of half dragons where you go trough a rebirthing (see what I mean about all the fetishes flying around back then?) to be come not quite as good as a half dragon.

I hated Savage Species so much. A book intentionally designed to be crappy to discourage it's own use.

 

[Vaalingrade]

I hated Savage Species so much. A book intentionally designed to be crappy to discourage it's own use.

Now imagine me, a recent convert from M:tG, having read Tapestries and Weatherlight and really excited to make a minotaur warrior just like Tahngarth (sp?) buying this thing as their very first independent RPG purchase. Oh, and looking in the MM and finding out D&D minotaurs are some sort of horned gorilla.

 

[Mind of tempest]

Just how the game creator-verse works.

For example, there's a video game 7 Days to Die. The gist is that you're trying to survive in a zombie apocalypse where a huge horse attacks every 7 days.

The thing is, it's one of the best survival/crafting/base building games ou there, so it also attracted a lot of people who had no real interest in fighting the horde. These people figured out that you could avoid the horde by digging out a bunker undergrounds where the zombies can't follow.

The designers had no liked that. So they spent time and development making it so the zombies dig at super speed in order to bust those bunkers and for the players to stand and fight the horde.

A lot of game designers have a lot of... ownership issues... with their creations and it's more important for players to 'do it right', then go get paid and make a good game.

look I get people have owner-ship things but when you get an opportunity dropped in your lap why not use it to gain even more, in the zombie game thing making a spin-off which is the same thing but no zombie would not be too hard and gains your more money, hell a different mode would work, killing a community who can give you more money is the least sound business decision I have heard in years.

for say savage species, simply make it work properly as a reasonable product then never touch it again as a well-working product does not need much help and it funds the stuff you do want.

did no one take level 1 business?

Now imagine me, a recent convert from M:tG, having read Tapestries and Weatherlight and really excited to make a minotaur warrior just like Tahngarth (sp?) buying this thing as their very first independent RPG purchase. Oh, and looking in the MM and finding out D&D minotaurs are some sort of horned gorilla.

was there not a lot of designer crossover back then? as surely at least one of them liked the idea of making stranger PC?
do they hate having a job or something?