Quote from: HappyDaze on June 07, 2021, 10:22:18 AMWhat works for an author doesn't necessarily work for a GM (and even more rarely for a player).

I agree that playing plorgo the Wasp man might be kinda un-fun for a player. There is just also a case to be made by preserving uniqueness by making elements standout in place of expected.

Quote from: Shrieking Banshee on June 07, 2021, 12:48:13 PM

Quote from: HappyDaze on June 07, 2021, 10:22:18 AMWhat works for an author doesn't necessarily work for a GM (and even more rarely for a player).

I agree that playing plorgo the Wasp man might be kinda un-fun for a player. There is just also a case to be made by preserving uniqueness by making elements standout in place of expected.

It really doesn't matter what Happyderp thinks.

Unless the GM is forcing you to play plorgo the wasp man, though, I would hope a player would take that 'alienness' into account. I've played thri-kreen on a few occasions and yes, it requires a little more work -- but it can be fun.

Well, it is not as if this was strictly a question of Player A gets deep into the unique alien mindset while Player B is always playing a human with a rubber mask.  Like most things that require effort, some of it varies from time to time with a given player.  Heck, I don't get to play much, and as someone who is usually on the other side of the screen, I'm usually up for playing something with effort and teeth.  Every now and then, I'm tired, and just want to go the easy route and have fun that way.

Most players are somewhere in the middle, most of the time.

So back to the original question...

In the setting I'm going to run very soon, elves' long lifetime means they struggle with problem-solving; their typical response to problems is to outlive them.

Quote from: Shrieking Banshee on June 07, 2021, 12:48:13 PM

Quote from: HappyDaze on June 07, 2021, 10:22:18 AMWhat works for an author doesn't necessarily work for a GM (and even more rarely for a player).

I agree that playing plorgo the Wasp man might be kinda un-fun for a player. There is just also a case to be made by preserving uniqueness by making elements standout in place of expected.

Better than Todd the WASP-Man: "Hurry, Ethnic-Stereotype-Sidekick, fetch my largest squash raquet!"

Quote from: Fergurg on June 07, 2021, 01:28:37 PM
So back to the original question...

In the setting I'm going to run very soon, elves' long lifetime means they struggle with problem-solving; their typical response to problems is to outlive them.

Much like dragons, elves tend to take their time with problems and don't handle fast-shifting situations well (always looking for the perfect solution rather than a good one right away). The elven word for 'hurry' is actually a loan word from old gnomish.

Despite a lifespan 2-3 times that of a human's, dwarves don't seem to have this problem, because serious engineering issues have to be addressed immediately, not 'when we come up with a perfect fix'. That won't stop dwarves from tinkering with an issue looking for a long-term better solution, but then, humans do that too.

My orcs have thick skins, spit venom, sometimes replace bits of themselves with those of other creatures and have the culture of the Clans from Batletech.

Basically, the military faction of the elves split off, moved themselves to a remote location to contain a threat there and went all bio-punk to improve their fighting capacity.
Functionaly, this typically means an AC16 rhino like skin, the ability to spit blinding venom like a spitting cobra. Some of them have even more.

Their shaper caste are warlocks who specialise in modification surgery, they can get really weird and usually wear scorpion quills on their heads as armour and a badge of office.

The leaders of the clans that like modifying themselves a lot will have their top half joined to a giant scorpion. 8 legs, armour, 2 arms, big weapons. Scary to go up against.

Their cavalry ride wooly rhinos.