Am I the only one who doesn't like these fantastical races with spectral wings and animal heads being basic PHB races instead of supplement material? We already have Dragonborn and Tieflings, now ... Ardlings. It's a bit much. D&D or Forgotten Realms is becoming more and more high fantasy. Humans, Halflings, Dwarves and Elves are starting to feel bland because they don't have fire breath, eagle heads or magic wings. How does an Ardling with a toad's head even speak unless it's a Disney cartoon for children?
The classic D&D races have become more interesting because, with them, you have to place greater emphasis on roleplaying; the spectacle of visual features that lend these newer races their distinctiveness (e.g., wings, horns, scales, tails, glowing appendages, et cetera) quickly becomes stale.
Originally Posted by Kendaric
You're definitely not alone, I feel pretty much the same about the freakshow D&D is becoming with it's overly fantastical core races.
Originally Posted by Kendaric
freak races
Originally Posted by Kendaric
On a sidenote: One funny thing I noticed is how the "humans are boring, cause I'm a human in RL" crowd play their freak race characters exactly as a human, just with beast heads/scales/whatever. There is rarely a hint in the way they RP to make the characters feel different from a human. At least in my experience.
Tieflings in 2e (Planescape) and even 3e/3.5e are fine due to their comparative rarity; Tieflings from 4e onward are seemingly omnipresent and, consequently, boring. By the way, I consider the use of Tieflings as analogous stand-ins for real-life ethnic minorities to be stupid, because fiends (i.e., Demons and Devils) DO exist in the various Dungeons & Dragons settings; if you bear a resemblance to evil incarnate, don't be surprised when people don't want you around.
P.S. I wish there had been more pushback against the "furry" intrusion.
