Well then. I wasn’t expecting this one to be quite so cute. Hnnnngh and such.

Draconic nail polish does make a certain amount of sense if you stop to think about it. I mean sure, the old 3.5 Draconomicon is the definitive resource for decorating your wyrm. But I always liked the idea of “talon sheaths” from the Temeraire books. And if you follow that concept to its natural conclusion, it’s just a hop, skip, and flap from there to 60-Foot Cone Red and Smaug Hoard Gold. 

I digress though. We’re not here to talk draco-fashion. We’re here to talk about iconoclasts. You see, Pug is our poster girl for playing against type. In the immortal words of The Bard, “Though she be but little she is fierce.” And I think that impulse towards weirdness lives in all of us. We want our PCs to be special. We’re heroes because we’re unique. That special quality is what defines us. So who wants to be yet another pyromaniac goblin or tinkerer gnome or half-orc rage monster? You might as well be a boring vanilla humie at that point!

Here’s the thing though. Characters are complex beasts. You can have a unique-gimmick-that-makes-my-guy-special without repudiating every other element of the racial description. Your dwarf can love beer AND follow an elven deity. Your kobolds can dote on dragons AND be deadly little melee monster. Even your dull-as-dirt human can be a stereotypical small-town orphan AND show some unique character traits. The conventional elements help them to feel like part of the setting, while the unique traits set them apart.

So for today’s discussion, why don’t we do the opposite of our usual “my guy is interesting because” conversation? Tell us how you favorite PC follows the tropes for their race. Do those tropes help them to fit into the game world, or do you feel constrained by them? Whatever you take, we’ll see you down in the comments!

 

MINI-DUNGEON TOME II: This sequel to the best-selling Mini-Dungeon Tome by AAW Games is live right freakin’ now on Kickstarter. And the Handbook’s own Claire Stricklin has a fistful of dungeons in the mix! These bad boys are designed to be grab-and-go, easy to run adventures with minimum prep. So what are you waiting for? Get in here and get delving!

 

ARE YOU A ROLL20 ADDICT? Are you tired of googling endlessly for the perfect tokens? Then have we got a Patreon tier for you! As a card-carrying Familiar, you’ll receive a weekly downloadable Roll20 Token to use in your own online games, as well as access to all of our previously posted Tokens. It’s like your own personal NPC codex!