Minor Races

[Osvir]

No wonder the Elephants hates us, we seem to hate them (Elephants are known to be very very aggressive against humans and it would be best to stay away from them). We've abused them so much as a human race

 

EDIT: ^Trying to get some sympathy for the Elephants in a serious-minded joke.

Edited November 17, 2012 by Osvir

[kabaliero]

i'd like to have no furries in my game, if possible, thx

[Agelastos]

i'd like to have no furries in my game, if possible, thx

 

No werebeasts or -taur creatures, then.

Edited November 17, 2012 by Agelastos

[NerdBoner]

 

Think outside the box. What exists to the East, beyond the border of the world map picture of P:E?

 

its already been said by Sawyer (iirc) in an interview or update that the world map of P:E is roughly the size of Spain and that there are larger empires that border and have vested interests in this region... it is obviously part of a far larger world.

 

The lore update even says that the current cultures of the world map are just newly emancipated territories and cultural off shoots of other nations.

[necromate]

Is this better?

 

Holy mother of... orcs are more handsome xD no offense...

 

What about souls? If the whole magic system is about them, why not create a race that exists only as bare souls ( no flesh ), living creatures, not ghosts. Would be fun as a playable race :D Whisp warrior: armor floating and glowing at intersections, whisp mage: bandages and magical runed textils floating around the soul core :D Thief: a black whisp - in stealth it shapes into a shadow on the ground, etc :D

[Osvir]

@NerdBoner: as Josh says it then Minor races in this Spain Country of P:E will just have more room to exist (also I knew that the map is going to be bigger, this isn't the issue or the topic, but if there will be cultures from outside the borders of the map).

 

@necromate: .... that was about the elephant cus people don't have any imagination...

Edited November 18, 2012 by Osvir

[JFSOCC]

I love my pig friend and the world he came from, a small mining planet in system 4

[Pipyui]

Good going necromate! I think you just inadvertantly stumbled upon what could well be a religion of PE. Perhaps Forton is a monk who rejects the filithiness of his own corpus, and yearns to become an existance beyond physical limitations - a soul without a form.

 

Maybe we can have a humanoid elephant race that lives a life of solitude because the people of PE find his countenance too ridiculous.

Anyway, pulling that into the realm of seriousness, the physique of a foreign race shouldn't be too bothersome so long as it is decidedly appropriate (no furries in my RPGs, please / same style, no mix-and-match (leave the bug-eyed green aliens to fallout)). It's more important that they have a rich culture and history - that they enhance the world of PE.

[Mandragore]

That elephant guy just looks silly. I think minor races that are too obviously descended from or related to real world animals are a horrible idea. How is the elephant samurai going to feel if I decide to moonlight as an ivory poacher? Is the Pig-man going to try to jihad me for eating bacon? The whole thing just gets absurd.

[Agelastos]

That elephant guy just looks silly. I think minor races that are too obviously descended from or related to real world animals are a horrible idea. How is the elephant samurai going to feel if I decide to moonlight as an ivory poacher? Is the Pig-man going to try to jihad me for eating bacon? The whole thing just gets absurd.

 

Gods, demons and monsters who look like anthropomorphized animals are pretty common in real-life mythology, and real-life mythology is by far the biggest influence on the fantasy genre. I can think of a number of gods who are commonly depicted as elephant-men, yet I can't remember any myths that mentioned... say, Ganesha, having to fight off ivory poachers.

Minotaurs, centaurs, fauns, manticores, etc. are all pretty common in fantasy, so I don't really see what the problem is, as long as we're talking about rare supernatural beings rather than playable races.

[Osvir]

That elephant guy just looks silly. I think minor races that are too obviously descended from or related to real world animals are a horrible idea. How is the elephant samurai going to feel if I decide to moonlight as an ivory poacher? Is the Pig-man going to try to jihad me for eating bacon? The whole thing just gets absurd.

 

What if our real life animals could be an intelligent species in P:E? Maybe there are no [Elephant]* Animals at all, or Birds, Pigs etc. etc. but other new fantasy animals take their place *shrug* <- not important but for argument's sake that's one way to do it

 

*[insert creature]

[Mandragore]

I don't really see what the problem is, as long as we're talking about rare supernatural beings rather than playable races.

 

I was under the impression that we were talking about a race of mortal humanoids that the PC would interact and trade with, not rare or unique supernatural beings. All I'm saying if you have civilizations of elephant and pig men running around the PC is going to have to watch what he eats and rides...

 

What if our real life animals could be an intelligent species in P:E? Maybe there are no [Elephant]* Animals at all, or Birds, Pigs etc. etc. but other new fantasy animals take their place *shrug* <- not important but for argument's sake that's one way to do it

 

*[insert creature]

 

No offense but that sounds pretty lame, I want to be able to swat forest critters for xp without worrying about some vigilante moose shanking me in my sleep. No sentient animals please.

Edited November 18, 2012 by Mandragore

[Osvir]

^For argument's sake, if it is a Killer Moose with some deep legit jawdropping story I think you would sit with your jaw dropped thinking "Damn Osvir he was right!!"

 

Jokes aside, I mean no ill either. We could go way too far (stretching it). Let's try to stay on topic: We are talking about cultures from a region outside of what will be shown to us in P:E and if anything of it will be presented, yes this culture can be human, but perhaps even Aumaua, Orlan, Elf, Dwarf, with another cultural heritage or traditions from far away. It's not like all dwarves follow the same God at the same place and only inhabit one place of the world.

 

On furry comment: No furries? So no Gnolls or equivalent either then?

[jezz555]

On furry comment: No furries? So no Gnolls or equivalent either then?

 

I mean look, it's not like there aren't some good animal-headed-guy races, they're in a lot of cultures mythologies, and I've used them in D&D adventures over the years and all in all I don't hate them. But nowadays they are so common in games and fantasy that it just seems lazy. Like whenever a fantasy universe wants to make a new race they just slap a new kind of animal head on a human body and call it a day. I mean how would something like that reproduce? Would it be bestiality? What do they think about their animal brethren? It just seems a little stupid after awhile.

 

And of course once you've discovered furries seeing any kind of humanoid animal just sort of makes you nauseous.

Edited November 18, 2012 by jezz555

[Umberlin]

Anyone remember the Elephant race from 2000's Wizards & Warriors PC RPG? I haven't played that old thing in forever.

 

Weirdly enough, everyone seems to be talking about the elephant in the room.

 

Heh. Ah, I'm smiling, thank you.

 

Is this better?

 

Holy mother of... orcs are more handsome xD no offense...

 

What about souls? If the whole magic system is about them, why not create a race that exists only as bare souls ( no flesh ), living creatures, not ghosts. Would be fun as a playable race :D Whisp warrior: armor floating and glowing at intersections, whisp mage: bandages and magical runed textils floating around the soul core :D Thief: a black whisp - in stealth it shapes into a shadow on the ground, etc :D

 

I believe I've played a few RPGs, and read more than a few books that used things around that general idea. Actually your idea sounds like the energy beings from the Burning Crusade, somewhat.

 

-

 

Personally I'm not a fan of simple Human+Animal=Our New Race brands of races, but that's me. I'm if the writing is there to support it, it'd be fine. I think I've said it in other threads, what's there is less important than 'the quality' of what is there. My own tastes be damned.

 

It's interesting to see some of the issue here isn't with it being an Elephant, just with the eastern elements. I think I recommend people play Quest for Glory often enough that now, I wonder, should I stop? I think the old Quest for Glory games are spectacular, but the hero experiences everything from germanic to middle-eastern to african to slavic and even greek/roman inspired creatures and situations, a truly mixed and wonderful world full of the bizarre and strange. Heck, one of the creatures from the first game, an Antwerp, is a bouncy blue creatue that spends its time . . . well . . . bouncing, which is all very funny until the first time one comes rocketing down from a high bounce on top of your head - killing you instantly. Nevermind that they reproduce by exploding, usually after being poked by something sharp, into countless little blue, very bouncy, baby Antwerps.

 

. . .

 

Also Antwerps like Avacados.

 

. . .

 

Shut up.

[Nomine Vacans]

Oh, I thought this thread is about jews and blacks...

 

*this joke was as irresistible for me, as it inappropriate for you*

[Mandragore]

And of course once you've discovered furries seeing any kind of humanoid animal just sort of makes you nauseous.

 

Took the words right out of my mouth.

[Osvir]

I'd expect "animal" humanoids to be more humanoid, if we are looking at a new way of doing it. Their faces human but baring traits from animals (Think Tiefling, tail and horns, an elephant equivalent could very well simply be a human with a longer nose and facial structure, anatomy in a humanish way with Elephant anatomy taken into consideration, think bones with another skin. Kind of like Humans > Monkeys).

 

Evolution took humanity one path, and evolution took Elephanity one path.

 

How much would you care if the [Elephantoid] is killing monkeys and feasting on their roasted hands? (you can order it in parts of Africa, yes, really. You can get soup served in a real monkey skull too, if you want to)

 

I see where you are coming from, and I agree to some extent. Too many variables spinning in my head about "What ifs" that could make it work and be appealing, it'd just require a lot of work.

Edited November 18, 2012 by Osvir

[NerdBoner]

gotta tell you i'd really like to see a nomadic tribal society of chimeric humans.

 

for examble: they are born as normal men and women, but upon reaching puberty they must go on some kind of rite of passage "spirit quest" to find their totemic animal or monster, the one they will bond with for life through some esoteric or alchemical means.

 

Thereafter the tribals become chimera and fully accepted members of their society, an amalgam of their totemic animal and a human...kind of like Lycanthropes but with full cognitive ability.

 

in this way you could have wolfmen, hawkwomen, minotaurs etc etc all part of a distinct culture without actually being monsters you need to kill....(unless you deem them in need of killing of course)

[jezz555]

You can get soup served in a real monkey skull too, if you want to)

 

 

I think we've all seen Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

[Osvir]

^I meant real life. Which Indiana Jones draws inspiration from.

[necromate]

And of course once you've discovered furries seeing any kind of humanoid animal just sort of makes you nauseous.

 

Took the words right out of my mouth.

 

Hm, folowing the same logic, I would ban all leather armors because they remind me of a BDSM video I once saw. Hell, after discovering porn, I would ban all humanoids from the game, because they all remind of a some perverted pictures I saw. If something exists there's porn of it. What I'm trying to say is, this is a veeeery personal problem and I don't see why this is relevant to have humanoid races with animal traits.

 

Ever since I read Homestuck, I find it hard to look at a bucket and not think of sex. O.o