The Erosion of Racial Differentiation in RPGs/Homogenization of Races

[Tweed]

The more accessible something needs to be, the more dull it becomes. Everquest is a great example. At the start, race and class were both important because that would decide where you could bind and shop. It also determined if you were completely blind at night (human races) and there were loads of people who chose to play dark elves for no other reason than ultravision. Larger races had trouble fitting into smaller areas and there were a few locations where ogres and trolls couldn't squeeze in without a shrink spell. A lot of the first sets of armors had sizes, some spells were only sold in evil/good cities, and all kinds of other things like that.

Once Luclin came out, that started falling apart and PoP killed it completely. Race no longer mattered in the slightest except for a few specific benefits.

[J1M]

The real solution is to add more difference beyond attributes through racial perks and feats that support multiple playstyles in unique ways. An orc sorcerer should ideally find a way to make use of their extra strength, or use magic differently in general.

I think this is why archetypes like "magic knight" exist which on paper are weaker than full warriors and less powerful than full wizards, but depending on who uses them, it could add variety to a race that usually shines in only one front.

Like let's compare elves and orcs for example. An elf warrior would be physically weaker and less sturdy than an orc warrior obviously, so this elf could instead dabble as a magic knight by taking advantage of his natural affinity with magic to supplement with warrior skills and have a good chance of defeating an opponent stronger than him.

And likewise, an orc wizard would be nowhere near as good as an elf wizard, so an orc can also become a magic knight to use his relatively weaker magic to supplement his superior natural strength and perhaps some resistance against the elf's attack spells, and now the fight isn't so one-sided.

If an elf magic knight and an orc magic knight fight each other then the result could go either way depending on how their builds were made.

When the power curve is geometric/exponential there will always be a hybrid underclass and the need to add special perks to try and level the playing field.

If the power curve is logarithmic (going from level 4 to 5 has a bigger power boost than going from level 14 to 15) or linear then the value of having a wider skillset is higher. I imagine a lot of games today try to align with what WoW has stated publicly about how each tier of progression should feel like a ~12% improvement for players to feel good about it. This quickly allows someone who focuses in something to be so powerful that they are able to solve every problem with one approach or opponents that are so strong that a narrow focus is required to overcome defenses.

[Val the Moofia Boss]

I would like to see hated races/nationalities/classes better represented. IIRC in one of the Elder Scrolls games, if you became a vampire then nobody would talk to you, which completely changed how you played. Likewise if you play as an infamous criminal or a Death Knight or an orc in human lands, you shouldn't be able to walk up to random people and just get different flavored dialogue. You should be persona non grata.