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Author Topic: WOTC Making Racial Stat Attributes All the Same is Weak and Effing Bland!  (Read 9951 times)

BoxCrayonTales

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Why does D&D even still have separate ability scores and ability modifiers? Why doesn't it go the True20 route of just using ability modifiers? Ability scores just seem like a needless overcomplication at present.

Because:
  • Random ability score generation is still the default assumption.
  • Using just the modifier doesn't solve anything when ASIs from multiple sources can be in half increments of the modifier.
Then rebuild the system

kosmos1214

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So what take the dnd out of dnd? ::)
sjw social just-us warriors

now for a few quotes from my fathers generation
"kill a commie for mommy"

"hey thee i walk through the valley of the shadow of death but i fear no evil because im the meanest son of a bitch in the valley"

Brad

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You don’t get all 18’s because the idea is that you’re not good at everything.

Stop triggering me.
And here we have the biggest problem with text-based communication in the present age...



I'm contacting my lawyer for this persistent harassment. My PTSD caused me to miss the entire day of work due to your comments.
It takes considerable knowledge just to realize the extent of your own ignorance.

Mishihari

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Why does D&D even still have separate ability scores and ability modifiers? Why doesn't it go the True20 route of just using ability modifiers? Ability scores just seem like a needless overcomplication at present.

Batman

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Greetings!

Yeah, the whole "+2 and +1" to whatever racial stats you want, rearrange as desired, is just total BS and I think when you draw back and really think about different, distinctive *races*--that doing such a policy is just fucking bland and weak. WTF? I can understand to a point saying, "All Gnomes have whatever stats, rearrange as you desire" can be attractive, but when you then apply the same precise attributes to every race, it just seems to make them all so bland and colourless to my way of thinking. Halflings are just as strong as Half Ogres? Half Ogres are just as swift and agile as Halflings? Same thing goes for Elves, and a dozen other races. The entire rationale and motivation behind such a rule as presented by WOTC is so much nonsense.

Semper Fidelis,

SHARK

You could...like NOT use them? I have Tasha's Cauldron and I don't allow that. Thing is, more options and variants aren't BAD, per-se, but not one is being forced to use them all the time. Same with no more elven-focused Bladesingers. In my Realms game, they're still only allowed to be Elves and grudgingly half-elves.

It's the motivations that matter to me. They are motivated by things other than what makes the best game.

The motivations are:

1) not everyone uses the same settings or even uses the same concepts for the rules to be placed. Books like TCoE 'gives' (and I use that terms in a sense of - this is OK - on paper) the DM free-reign in doing whatever they want with their setting.

2) 5e, like the past three editions that can before it (2E Skills and Powers, 3/3.5/PF, and 4E) are heavily player-centric in terms of books application and usage. They are created for Players to comb through and find fun things to do. With that said, supplements like Tasha's gives players even more room to be creative with the rules for their enjoyment, with the creator's assumption that the DM is fine with using those rules or allowing those options.

Here's the thing that will always confuse me about this issue: Where are the DMs with backbones? These must be a fabled people or enmeshed with their older versions as to not even bother looking at later stuff. That has to be the only explanation, otherwise these new products would be looked at and either assimilated into the group's campaigns OR just thoroughly ignored and banned. Its like some people rested HARD on the Core assumptions of nearly non-existent rare/exotic races and Lawful-Good only paladins being written into the rules. Yet, when those restrictions were removed they legitimately had zero answer for why these were prevalent in their own games - "because the book says so..." - I guess was good enough.

What makes the "best" game is the story and concept the DM/GM creates that their players have fun running though. More options won't hamper that in anyway SO LONG as the DM has reasons for those options not being prevalent. It's not exactly a difficult concept to run with either.   
" I'm Batman "

BoxCrayonTales

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Yeah. Like, if I wanted to enforce a setting where all the PC races looked like humans in makeup to replicate the aesthetic of LotR, then I'd... do that.

If my players wanted to play dragonborns, tieflings, warforged, or whatever, then they'll either have to do with people running away in terror at the sight of them... or tone down the standard appearances to something that can easily pass for human.

HappyDaze

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Yeah. Like, if I wanted to enforce a setting where all the PC races looked like humans in makeup to replicate the aesthetic of LotR, then I'd... do that.

If my players wanted to play dragonborns, tieflings, warforged, or whatever, then they'll either have to do with people running away in terror at the sight of them... or tone down the standard appearances to something that can easily pass for human.
You seem to be ignoring that there are settings where those races do not look human yet are accepted for what they are. In Eberron,  warforged are seen as reminders of the last great war...probably similar to how the clones were viewed in Star Wars after the Clone Wars ended. Other settings may do something similar with other races.

tenbones

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Why would we ever want to make Warforged good at prosecuting warfare by making their stats good at actual warfare? That would be racist.

Why shouldn't there be heavy magical-practicing race that invented all the systems that codify magic that rely heavily upon having intellectual/spiritual stats *because* their race happened to be strong in those stats, hence evolved (presumably) towards those ends have mechanical stats that reflect this?

Because it's racist if another species doesn't. We're all the same! Warforged <> Elves <> Mindflayers <> Humans.

At least mindflayers are more progressive in that they reproduce via cannibal egg-laying. Very progressive in dispensing with sexual dimorphism outside of hentai fan-art.

BoxCrayonTales

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Yeah. Like, if I wanted to enforce a setting where all the PC races looked like humans in makeup to replicate the aesthetic of LotR, then I'd... do that.

If my players wanted to play dragonborns, tieflings, warforged, or whatever, then they'll either have to do with people running away in terror at the sight of them... or tone down the standard appearances to something that can easily pass for human.
You seem to be ignoring that there are settings where those races do not look human yet are accepted for what they are. In Eberron,  warforged are seen as reminders of the last great war...probably similar to how the clones were viewed in Star Wars after the Clone Wars ended. Other settings may do something similar with other races.
I wrote my post as a response to those worlds. They're the worlds of freakshow parties, as opposed to the good old days of parties who look like humans in cosplay.

GeekyBugle

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LOL just you wait till the wokeist take a gander to what I'm cooking... Tons of free advertisement for the people that want to play and not be offended by everything.
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