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4 years ago ::
Jun 02, 2009 - 3:05PM
#1
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Date Joined:
Oct 20, 2008
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Introduced on June 15th, and presumably LFR legal in July, we'll be able to play undead. [INDENT] "...but it will be totally official and ready to use if you're a D&D Insider subscriber. We start out with the revenant, a new player character race that I predict is going to be all the rage. The revenant is an undead creature who could have been of any other race in life but returns after death as a revenant with a new life and a new purpose."[/INDENT] Makes those " Welcome to our town, undead stranger -- I'd like to hire you" situations all that much more interesting  I sort of feel that LFR is losing much of its actual "setting". We now have Gnolls (demonic worshipers) and Minotaurs walking freely around. That might work in some bigger cities (Waterdeep is very "open"), but no way that's gonna fly in rural villages. But since they're playable races, as a DM I don't have a lot of choice -- I have to just sort of shrug and ignore the fact that the guy hiring them would (in all likelihood) run away and get the authorities. Here's the immediate feedback from our yahoo forum:
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4 years ago ::
Jun 02, 2009 - 3:51PM
#2
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Date Joined:
Aug 11, 2006
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I think its totally within the DME to emphasize social roadblocks for characters of "non norm" nature, heck even a elf or a human should be glared apon in some locations.
If i play a gnoll I would expect 1- not to do teh talking 2- expect to be feared 3- wear a long covering cloakto hide my features. and bring a bard with a HIGH Diplomacy in case i am found out.
just because a race is PLAYABLE doesnt mean you have to treat it the same in a game. my group i run for at the shop here has one gnoll, and alot of times he ends up staying outside with the horses to reduce bad reactions. The player of the gnoll made it a good role playing point that even if the human was too scared of him to ask for his help, he would hide in the corner and listen to what job the human offered other adventurer's and then go do it out of spite to show this human that not all gnolls are the same. this not only puts the gnoll character in perspective it allso supplies an excellent character hook into getting him motivated into saving the day.
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4 years ago ::
Jun 02, 2009 - 3:54PM
#3
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Date Joined:
Aug 11, 2006
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whith the above said, All i can say is that who ever plays a revenant at a table run by me, better hope that they dont choose to play in a mod where a cleric of kelemvor is a NPC. unless there is specific dhampyre type rules for teh revanant (something that states kelemvore likes revenants and doesnt command his followers to destroy that KIND of undead)
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4 years ago ::
Jun 02, 2009 - 4:09PM
#4
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Date Joined:
Jun 10, 2004
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The way I understood it part of the "points of light" theme was the characters themselves. Many of the races available to players allow players to make characters that are "points of light" amongst the villains and monsters that usually make up their species/culture/whatever. This was started with the PHB races such as dragonborn who appear monstrous but are actually honorable and noble and tieflings, born from a legacy of darkness but with the will to choose their own destiny.
It may be cliche at this point but I find the story of the drow/minotaur/free willed undead seeking redemption and a place to call home very cool and worth exploring. Drizzt, one of the poster boys of FR lore, set the precedent, the new designers are just taking that start and running with it.
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4 years ago ::
Jun 02, 2009 - 4:20PM
#5
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Date Joined:
Dec 16, 2005
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FR lost its setting feel (if it had any to begin with--see Ferrol's post referring to Drizzt) when they decided to allow warforged and dragonborn. Everything after that--gnolls, minotaurs, shadar kai, and now apparently revenants is just chipping away the few paint chips that still cling to the ruins of the gaping hole. Really, half encounters in LFR look more like the communities that characters are supposedly saving than the PCs do. "You see a group of two humans, three halflings and a werewolf, desperately fending off a group of monsters consisting of two minotaurs, a drow, a gnoll, and some kind of man-sized golem led by a tiefling." Yeah, you got it, that group of "monsters" is the typical LFR party of adventurers.
The only workable solution is probably just to ignore it. PCs have a big flashing PC sign over their heads that means that they are trustworthy and should be able to take the adventure hook.
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4 years ago ::
Jun 02, 2009 - 4:21PM
#6
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Date Joined:
Oct 20, 2008
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It may be cliche at this point but I find the story of the drow/minotaur/free willed undead seeking redemption and place to call home very cool and worth exploring. Drizzt, one of the poster boys of FR lore, set the precedent, the new designers are just taking that start and running with it.
Drizzt faced a lot of harassment (and still does). From what I've noticed, many players are *not* willing to face that. They don't expect any adverse reaction -- certainly not in skill challenges when doing Diplomacy, etc...
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4 years ago ::
Jun 02, 2009 - 4:26PM
#7
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Date Joined:
Jan 22, 2005
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whith the above said, All i can say is that who ever plays a revenant at a table run by me, better hope that they dont choose to play in a mod where a cleric of kelemvor is a NPC.
Not a problem! My revenant is planning to be a cleric of Kel too. Or Sune, haven't decided yet.
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4 years ago ::
Jun 02, 2009 - 5:12PM
#8
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Date Joined:
Sep 21, 2006
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Drizzt faced a lot of harassment (and still does). From what I've noticed, many players are *not* willing to face that. They don't expect any adverse reaction -- certainly not in skill challenges when doing Diplomacy, etc...
I've played two Gnolls in LFR. The first uses a mediocre disguise to lead people to assume he is a dragonborn and has his guard drake companion do all the talking for him (via Butcher's Lure). The second uses wild shape at all times out of combat and just accompanies the party as their companion. He can speak in that form, but normally won't in front of NPCs. Neither will rub their nature in NPCs faces, and their efforts to remain discreet are a major RP hook.
That said, I've seen a local who plays a blatantly open minotaur who clearly relies on the party to vouch for him, and another plays a blatantly open minotaur who seems to not expect NPCs to react to him differently.
I won't necessarily insist that players who want to play a monsterous race need to take the RP baggage that goes with it, but I certainly prefer playing with those that do. (and in many cases they can end up with far more distinctive and interesting characters than many of the human and humanesque PCs.)
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4 years ago ::
Jun 02, 2009 - 6:28PM
#9
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Date Joined:
May 15, 2003
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I think that the lines are a lot more blurred than they used to be. I think this is why the Realms were advanced 100 years. I don't even know what the Realms "feel" is anymore.
It would be nice to see some more consideration in skill challenges and social situation to take monsters into account.
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4 years ago ::
Jun 02, 2009 - 8:59PM
#10
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Date Joined:
Oct 20, 2008
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I think that the lines are a lot more blurred than they used to be. I think this is why the Realms were advanced 100 years. I don't even know what the Realms "feel" is anymore.
We're told it's darker. That it's supposed to be a "points of light in a world of darkness" campaign. That it's dangerous to go into the wilds. That's it's an "us versus them" setting. Which is not really surprising, considering that Faerun has had a near-apocalyptic event. Usually those do NOT herald an age of enlightenment, leniency, and understanding -- or so all the post-apocalyptic movies have told me
FRCG, pg 4: "Away from the main roads and the great cities, the countryside is wild and fearsome, hiding roaming gangs of vicious goblins, spying shades from reborn Netheril, and outriders of necromantic Thay, as well as deadly remnants of magical plague."
That's right, even the undead were mentioned in that quote 
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