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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mercule" data-source="post: 5112179" data-attributes="member: 5100">I wonder if fields of study and viewpoints on the cantina are related.  I did political science and philosophy, darn near pulling a minor in history, too.  I tend to prefer a humanocentric game.I'm not really a fan of a human-only game, but I like seeing humanity as the baseline.  First, because it's the best way (IMO) to compare non-humans and see why I'd care.  Second, because if you can't tell it's not human, why bother?I'll compare my current campaign to my prior campaign.  Currently, I'm running an anything goes, 4e, Eberron campaign without any human PCs.  Besides some stat bonuses and special abilities, there's really nothing that shows the PCs aren't human.  They all have very human motivations -- even the warforged wants to visit the taverns.  Bleh.  Just make 'em human and be done.For my last campaign, which closed out my 25 year old homebrew, I stipulated that there had to be at least two humans and no more than one of any other race was allowed.  With the same players, the elf and the gnome were constantly acting non-human.  There were some very interesting conversations as the elf learned more and more about the origins of the elves and dealt with some of the baggage that came with it.  Yes, some of the same things could have been done with an odd lineage of humans or exotic civilization, but having it be racial and visible really helped.I guess my attitude toward the cantina is that it's fine, so long as the races aren't just humans with a new paint job.  If you're playing the dragonborn for something different, then I'd like it to be played different, stand out against the backdrop, and be notable.  If it blends in, it's really no different than playing a human, anyway.It does work for certain settings, though, like Planescape.  With Planescape, you know you're one step beyond and the races highlight that, even if they really don't mean much.  The default assumptions I make in fantasy, though, are based around races meaning something.  I have absolutely no problem with Planescape, and people playing it (or another cantina) aren't having badwrongfun.  Just not my thing and I'd prefer it to not be baked into the core rules assumptions.To follow Jon Snow's lead, I'd say humans are the only tier A race I have IMC.  Eladrin (which, IMO, is what elves have always been), dwarves, and hobgoblins make up tier B.  Gnomes, half-orcs, elves (aka wood elves), half-elves, and now dragonborn are tier C.  Tier D are goblins, elan, full orcs, tieflings, deva, and a handful of others.Tier A is what I assume unless specifically told otherwise and is ubiquitous.  Tier B are fairly common and not overly noteworthy.  They walk the line between foreign and familiar, but I expect some representation in most groups.  Tier C are a bit alien and should expect to stand out and experience some prejudice.  They are rare as NPCs, but not so much that a PC would need special consideration (half-orcs make this tier mainly for tradition's sake).  Tier D are freakishly rare as NPCs -- at least as functioning members of normal society -- or have something else special about them that requires some justification, but is still something I consider well within the realm of an appropriate PC.  Anything else requires justification and could be unique in its role.</blockquote>

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