I've always known there was some demand among players for half-man, half-beast hybrid characters. I've seen it done in other games, both as single-animal races (like the purely catfolk Brinche of Talan or the Sarr of Nero) and generic "insert your own beast"-type beastfolk (like Scavengers in Nero, Wilders in Solar, or Denali in Avalon). And with the introduction of the Sendran, we've opened the door.
Now, I'm not generally one to ignore player demand. If a lot of folks want to play a certain type of character, I'll generally create the option for them. That's how fairies and urdek came to exist, after all. However, I'm a bit stumped as to how we ought to approach the issue.
The question is, do we lump or do we split? Do we create a single race of beastfolk, give it generic beast-like affinities and actions, then let folks come up with their own varieties as they see fit? Or do we allow many different races of beastfolk, one for each animal species folks want to play, each with tailor-made abilities all its own?
If the recent druid revamp is any indication, I'm a fan of lumping on this one. Otherwise, the race list will quickly become overburdened with too many options. Granted, we'll face some different hurdles that way (e.g., folks coming in and insisting on playing outlandish combinations like pandafolk or slothfolk, people wanting unique special abilities for their variety, etc.), but I think it simplifies things nicely otherwise.
What does everyone else think? Do we lump or split? And, if we lump all beastfolk under one race, what do we want to call them?
I personally think it is either going to be a logistical nightmare or a way of hindering creativity in the game. Snakes can trip a monster and slow it's movement, does that mean that the were-mole can do it also? The mole can tunnel (teleport) does that mean the were-dolphin can do it? I think it is better to decide on the "beast" races you want and go with that. If there is a player that is attending events and they come up with material, or if there is enough want in the playing community to warrant the creation it would be better to make them as demands sees.
I think you mean Hengeyokai
I think half races should have a magical element to them like an accidental change to half and half not born that way. POed a powerful wizard, environmental influence, or by admiration of the creature i.e. Ixifar or have a Totem warrior with a choice of beasty. Maybe have a general limited choice of types of beasties like Mer, Feline, Lupin, Reptilian, Avian, Insect, Rodent, Equine, Primate, Orcish. Each with a minimal costuming requirement and skill bonus.
After giving it some (i.e., a few weeks of) thought, I agree with both sides of the debate. On the one hand, lumping all beastfolk under one race would be much simpler. On the other hand, separating them out into individual races does them more justice. I'd like to propose an old, as-of-yet-unused idea as a compromise, then: Bloodlines.
Bloodlines have been an idea in my notes since I started writing the system. A bloodline is sort of like a subrace, culturally and/or physically distinctive from the core race, that has a few additional perks but also imposes additional costuming and/or roleplaying requirements. For example, gypsy was originally planned as a human bloodline, and urdek with bat ears were written right into their racial description. Nobody but Nick and I have seen the article yet, but Arie and Jenn have also done a great job of defining a slew of possible fairy bloodlines.
In this case, we could lump all beastfolk under a single, common race, but then allow that race to be extended by bloodlines. Sendran, kitsune, etc. would then become legal variants of the core race that impose a few unique requirements and gain a few unique benefits, while at the same time sharing most traits in common. People who came in off the street wanting to play molefolk would then still have the opportunity without having to define a brand new race, while those who put a lot of work into their bloodline could still be flavorful and distinctive.
I like the idea, and implementing it would be fairly easy, but I'm curious to hear what everyone else thinks. Let's resurrect the debate and see where it takes us.
I think that the bloodlines concept is solid. It leaves the option out there to grow if characters decide they want something different, while also not forcing everyone to reinvent the wheel. If a player comes in and wants to use this type of character, it would give them a good template to start with, while also being able to customize the specific "tribe" or subrace that they would be representing. It could also be used with existing races to give them extra charater options as well, while not overloading with a hundred different races for players to sift through. It just seems to me that it is a good compromise on this issue, and would make it pretty easy to add things down the road. It also seems that it could be used for different cultures as well, which i think just makes it all the more flexible than some of the other options that have been brought up. As it is not really a character option I would gravitate towards, perhaps someone who is wanting to play a character of this type would like to chime in.......
Commenting on this debate is a double edged sword for me. On one hand, it gives me a chance to voice my opinion. On the other, I have never enjoyed debating in the least and really don't feel the compulsion to argue with someone who has already made up their mind.
The pure and simple notion is that like with D&D, I feel that playing an extraordinary race should be something that requires someone to put forth the effort to map out what they see for the race and define it for others. Writing the Sendran race was something that required effort. I have never seen them as a fairy sub-race nor do I wish to play a fairy sub-race. I have never seen them as Urdek or Human or anything other than what they are, Kinderesque cat people. I wrote appropriately to that standard.
A Kitsune is not a Sendran. A Were is not a Sendran. And vice verse. They are also not beastfolk or cursed.. they simply are. But I put the work in it to play one, the same as the rangers put the work in to play their classes, the alchemists, the paladins. Lumping it in with others is akin to just lumping special classes into a category called "The Elite" and having them pick one path or another.
I will not argue this any further and don't feel the need to add any other "Deep thoughts" but.. as someone who wrote a race, bought make-up to play the race, spends 30 minutes to an hour to prepare to play said race and get NO special racial abilities, I felt that I should give my two cents.
I don't disagree with you, Mrs. Humburg (just had to add that :P). The part I'm having trouble understanding is where grouping several similar races together is the same as pigeonholing them. In my mind, there's nothing about this change that would at all diminish the Sendran. They'd remain as kinderesque cat people one way or another. And they'd share several traits in common with other beastfolk, as one might expect. For example, regardless of the beast, one expects a beast-person to have some sort of natural attack, and indeed I plan on the scaling racial ability of all beastfolk to be a Wild Form action. At the same time, defining them as a bloodline allows them to retain their own distinctiveness, both from a roleplaying standpoint as well as a mechanical one.
To share some concerns on the other side of the fence, as the game designer, I have to keep in mind how playable the game is for new folks. If we go down the path of creating a brand new race for every different type of beastfolk, we risk overwhelming new players with too many choices. Restricting content can help with this to a certain degree, but it doesn't solve my second concern, which is the amount of work involved. Making a new race, as you've pointed out, is an involving process even in this system. And in the case of Sendran, the work isn't even done yet; they don't have racial actions. If we are to fulfill the game's promise of customizability for an every-growing player base, we have to find a way to make it scale gracefully. Bloodlines do this in a nice way, allowing players to take an existing race that approximates their intent and creating a modified version that fits it perfectly.
I guess the point I'm really getting at is that defining Sendran as a beastfolk bloodline does nothing to diminish them from either a roleplaying or a mechanical standpoint, and serves the larger goal of allowing the game to expand gracefully. You're right; a Sendran is not the same as a kitsune or a wolfman. They are all, however, human/animal hybrids, and I don't think grouping them together as such does anything to make them less distinct, flavorful, or fun to play.
lumping souds easyer