I commented on the Troll race, I hoped that helped.
Goblins. This line in Instinctive worker is fine, "If you gain proficiency in a type of artisans tools from a background or class feature you can gain proficiency in a second type at the same time." I think this is perhaps too complicated and the half proficiency in any artisan tools you are not proficient with is perfectly fine. The line "You may not be as familiar with potter’s wheels, glazes and kilns" is unnecessary.
Elfkin. is this a variant for half-elves? Illusion Resistance is too specific, perhaps something similar to Gnome Cunning?
Feegle. All playable races should be humanoids. 5e isn't cutting any corners with that. Consider Hybrid Nature from the Centaur UA. I don't know how much fun it would be to play a Feegle, frankly it looks too weak, with the complicated rules about armor, and a walking speed of 10 ft, the mobility of a most classes is lost.
Zombie might need some thinking, right now it seems convoluted and and little over powered.
I skimmed Witch. The most important thing about witches, and really most of Discworld magic, is belief. The idea that one's belief in magic makes magic real. The flavor in the class is not quite there yet.
Sorry if I've yammered on, I haven't even touched the bestiary yet! Another thing to keep in mind, make sure you're using language from 5e. 5e wasn't written the way it was on accident.
Edit: I took a look at the bestiary, much shorter, loved that. You could publish the new monsters but the NPCs should not be published. Those would be reported and taken down.
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
I was originally trying to write a conversion of Discworld GURPS, and assumed a DM would have that, and refer to it for flavour text.
I may resubmit the troll race with references removed, if I can think of a name for it. Korg from Thor Ragnorak is also one.
I am unclear about your commet on goblins, are these two lines fine, or should they be simpliified?
Discworld elves are very different from D&D elves, I did not intend elfkin to be a variant of the D&D half elf. I could think about rewriting it as one.
I wrote these rules for a feegle on the basis that people who are fans of them from the books might want to play as one, even with the limitations. I would not expect a Discworld campaign to be one where it really matters all the characters are balanced.
Why is it so important that all PCs are humanoid? The only difference I can see is this makes is certain spells such as Charm Person and Hold person work only on humanoids.
I included werewolf for someone who wants to play as a character like Angua, who transforms completely from human to wolf. The shifter might be OK for other DW werewolves like Ludmilla Cake.
Why are zombies overpowered? The rule on healing may need rewriting.
Regarding witches, my target audience for the Google doc was people who know the books. Ideally they would also have access to Discworld GURPS. If I was writing this as a class to share with general D&D players I would include more flavour text. I was trying to compromise between magic as depicted in Discworld books and in D&D, as I expected witches and wizards to be the principle spellcasting classes people would want to play as
Are there any mechanical changes you can suggest that would improve the flavour of the class?
The list of spells for witches is long because I started by looking at all the spells in the game and editing out the ones that did not fit the concept of witches. I need to edit it down further to make it the length of other classes.
I was originally trying to write a conversion of Discworld GURPS, and assumed a DM would have that, and refer to it for flavour text.
I may resubmit the troll race with references removed, if I can think of a name for it. Korg from Thor Ragnorak is also one.
Just for posterity, here's my comments on the Troll race. I suggest naming it something that is not copyrighted (Korg is probably copyrighted).
Very nice, however, you are calling to light the fact that it is a Discworld property, that's generally frowned upon.
The features are fine, but what do they mechanically do?
The problem with Troll Brain as written as it is very much up to DMs and I worry a player may feel disenfranchised by the fact that they can't make any checks and are under the effects of a 3rd level spell in 90 degree heat. Players prefer benefits to drawbacks. Perhaps begin with a -1 or 2 to intelligence as a racial ability then give advantage on intelligence checks in conditions of 32 degrees or lower, or one round after they take cold damage.
Mineral Metabolism sounds like Dwarven Resilience with more words, just rename Dwarven Resilience. Cold resistance and poison resistance might be too good. I suggest something similar to the goliath Mountain-born trait than cold resistance.
Edit: Earth Elemental is WAY too powerful. Consider something similar to Hybrid Nature presented in the Centaur and Minotaur UA.
I am unclear about your commet on goblins, are these two lines fine, or should they be simpliified?
"If you gain proficiency in a type of artisans tools from a background or class feature you can gain proficiency in a second type at the same time," and "You may not be as familiar with potter’s wheels, glazes and kilns" should be scrapped.
Discworld elves are very different from D&D elves, I did not intend elfkin to be a variant of the D&D half elf. I could think about rewriting it as one.
As you don't include size, alignment, age, speed, ect. I presumed it was a half-elf variant.
I wrote these rules for a feegle on the basis that people who are fans of them from the books might want to play as one, even with the limitations. I would not expect a Discworld campaign to be one where it really matters all the characters are balanced.
I suggest playtesting it, but I think people will find it underpowered.
Why is it so important that all PCs are humanoid? The only difference I can see is this makes is certain spells such as Charm Person and Hold person work only on humanoids.
I believe Jeremy Crawford gave a reason for it, I think it may be for simplicity. Fey are effected by hallow, protection from evil and good, detect evil and good and similar spells.
Why are zombies overpowered? The rule on healing may need rewriting.
Undead creatures are simply more powerful than humanoids.
Regarding witches, my target audience for the Google doc was people who know the books. Ideally they would also have access to Discworld GURPS. If I was writing this as a class to share with general D&D players I would include more flavour text. I was trying to compromise between magic as depicted in Discworld books and in D&D, as I expected witches and wizards to be the principle spellcasting classes people would want to play as
Are there any mechanical changes you can suggest that would improve the flavour of the class?
Charisma based casting is a good start. Perhaps limiting some of the abilities to intelligent creatures (Int higher than 6)?
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
On the subject of Feegles (now that I've had a proper read)...
The Wee Free Men was the first Discworld novel I ever read, and to this day, the Tiffany Aching arch remains my favorite. So much so, that I made and played Feegles in a few games.
Nac Mac Feegle (aka the Wee Free Men, the Pictsies, the Little Men, and ocasionally the 'Person or Persons Unknown, Believed to be Armed')
Ability Score Increase:
Feegles are at least as strong if not notably stronger than humans, despite their size. In the books, Nanny Ogg claims that 4 Feegles, one under each hoof, can overhead lift, carry, and run with a full-grown cow. The fact they can overhead carry their portion of that weight indicates that they need four because dragging a cow off by one leg would be messy; that the bulk is awkward, not that it's too heavy for a single Feegle. Thus:
+2 Strength
Feegle are tough. They have fallen from soaring buzzards and been stomped into the ground and been none the worse for wear. They prefer fighting things much larger than themselves, and hold their own blow for blow. They can drink copious amounts of alcohol, or things they think could be alcohol (lamp oil, rat poison, and soap... though that was technically eaten). They run about mostly naked save for kilts, be it midsummer or dead of winter, and are unphased by the extreme temperatures. They do not bathe and live in filthy holes in the ground, and yet never get sick. Thus:
+2 Constitution
Feegles are elusive. People often don't know they're there. They have the ability to blend into their surroundings, despite their loud coloration and boisterous natures. They are deft and expert thieves, that can get into or out of anything. Literally: anything. They can even break into your thoughts. They are small and agile, making it easy for them to dodge the blows of the slow and heavy bigjobs they're so fond of contending with. Thus:
+2 Dexterity
A Feegle's head is a weapon in its own right; but rather than rapier wit, it's more akin to a cudgel. In other words, to a Feegle, heads is for headbutting (called 'nutting'); and nothing else. They do not plan, do not strategize, and are painfully slow to learn. They are also almost universally illiterate. They usually cannot count past however many fingers and toes they have, which given their violent lifestyle, may vary from Feegle to Feegle. They are superstitious and frightful of the written word. Thus:
-2 Intelligence
In addition to not being able to count, read, or learn how to count or read short of dire and often magical intervention, Feegles are not known for their practicality. They are utterly lacking in common sense. Despite having a few unique senses most humanoids do not possess, they are not particularly proficient in their use... nor in the use of those that most humanoids do possess. They are obtuse, unobservant, faithless (religiously speaking), fools to whom no idea is a bad idea unless that idea is to NOT drink, fight, or steal. Thus:
-2 Wisdom
Feegles speak crassly, dress crudely, bathe infrequently, and have neither the desire nor the patience to learn the intricacies of interpersonal social skills. Their solutions to all problems are drinking, fighting and stealing, alone or in various combinations. Their are habitual liars, but are not smart or smooth enough to be good at it. They are too crude and rude to be charming. Standing 6 or seven inches high, they are not very intimidating at first glance: you need to have some experience with them before you learn to fear them. Thus:
-2 Charisma
Alignment:
Feegles are inherently rebels, though often without an actual cause. They are always chaotic, and usually good. They are beings of extremes, however, and any non-good Feegle is sure to be a chaotic evil engine of destruction.
Size:
A fully grown Feegle stands between 5 and 7 inches tall, and weighs about a pound. Your size is Tiny.
Speed:
Despite your size, you are more than capable of keeping up. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Darkvision:
You are accustomed to living underground and traveling above ground by night. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light.
Hybrid Nature:
You have two creature types: fey and humanoid. You can be affected by a game effect if it works on either of your creature types.
DRINKING!:
You are immune to the poisoned condition and have resistance to poison damage. You are immune to any negative effect that would be inflicted by drinking a liquid, and are resistant to any damage a liquid may cause upon being consumed.
FIGHTING!:
Your head, fists, feet, teeth... your whole body, really, is a natural weapon. When you hit with your unarmed strike, you deal bludgeoning damage equal to 1d4 + your Strength modifier, instead of the 1 bludgeoning damage normal for an unarmed strike.
"Nae king! Nae quin! Nae laird! Nae master! We willnae be fooled again!":
You are immune to the charmed condition and cannot become frightened by magical means.
Aggressive Negotiations:
Whenever you would be required to make a Charisma-based skill check, you may instead roll for initiative. You do not succeed in the skill check, but may take the first turn in the newly-initiated combat as though all other creatures were surprised.
Ancestral Foe:
You deal double damage against evil-aligned fey creatures... and lawyers.
Blue Blur:
You can move faster than the eye can follow. When you take the Dash, you can double your speed during both your normal movement and your extra movement provided by the Dash action during that turn.
** How this differs from a Tabaxi's Feline Agility: Feline agility doubles your movement for one turn, requiring you to not move the following turn should you want to use it again. However, using feline agility is not an action, allowing a tabaxi character to take any action they so choose. A Feegle's blue blur essentially quadruples their speed (normal movement x 2 + dash action extra movement x 2 = base speed x 4), but at the cost of an action. While a tabaxi's speed isn't indefinite, it is still capable of engaging in meaningful combat in tandem with its movement. A feegle's blue blur could theoretically be indefinite, but while it continues moving at such a pace, it is not contributing in any meaningful way to combat.
Crawstep:
You can inherently travel between planes, and can cast plane shift requiring no components. Starting at 1st level, you can cast the spell once per day, after you finish a long rest, but can only transport yourself and anything you are wearing: you leave anything you are carrying or touching behind. Once you reach 5th level, you can transport objects, but not creatures, you are carrying. At 9th level, you can transport anything you can physically carry. At 13th level, you can cast plane shift twice with this trait before needing to take a long rest. Regardless of your level, are unable to banish a creature with a plane shift spell cast using this trait.
Matriarchal Clan:
You hold women, especially ones capable of casting spells, in reverent regard. You have disadvantage on any skill check against female humanoids.
Illiterate:
You cannot read or write. You are also superstitious in regards to the written word, and are convinced that should your name ever be written down, you will suffer dire and immediate consequences. Whether or not you can overcome these flaws is up to your DM.
Great Big World
Due to your size, the world is full of unique challenges, especially in a city built for Medium-sized creatures. Every crack in the pavement is a ditch, and every ditch a canyon. Every horse is a trampling siege engine; every person a thoughtless giant. Good luck opening doors, drawers, or taking a seat at the local bar. You have disadvantage on most rolls to deal with your environment in an urban setting; what rolls these may be is up to your DM.
Languages:
You can speak Common and Sylvan, but your speech is heavily accented, making you difficult to understand in both languages for anyone not acclimated to how you speak.
Favored Classes:
Barbarian, Rogue, Bard (called a Gonnagle, quite rare), Druid (females only, and even then only the clan matriarch, called the Kelda)
I love everything about this thread. I just wish I had friends quite as fanatical about Discworld as I am so we could play in it. I tend to add an Ankh Morporkian flavor to Waterdeep when I play there, and I kinda want to do a Watch inspired Waterdeep Guards campaign sometime.
Again you seem to be assuming I had intended to write an anthology of Discworld inspired classes and races that could be incorporated in any D&D campaign. I did not
I tried to write a list of characters from Discworld converted to D&D so people could play as their favourites in a Discworld campaign, so I tried to represent them as described in the books, even if that makes them imbalanced in a non discworld campaign. Trolls are unable to function in hot weather. They are immune to most poisons that affect humans, not just resistant to poison.
I was influenced by Adventures in Middle Earth Adventures, which has classes designed to fit Middle Earth, which no one would want to play in a standard D&D campaign. For example the Warden is essentially a spell less bard.
I am happy for others to copy what I have done and adapt it to their purposes. As long as they credit me and share it with me so i can decide what I think works
Anyone who thinks the troll brain was too much of a limitation, would not need to play as a troll. When I did a one shot, one of the players was happy to play as a troll with the limitations because it had the flavour of trolls in the books.
This a first draft, it obviously needs playtesting and editing.
Some of the witch features can be given an intelligence minimum, although witches can affect animals (see Granny's borrowing, or turning Greebo into a human). In editing the witch spell list I can bear this in mind.
Again you seem to be assuming I had intended to write an anthology of Discworld inspired classes and races that could be incorporated in any D&D campaign. I did not
I'm not balancing in case a troll walks into the Forgotten Realms, just as I wouldn't do that for any Eberron or Ravnica races. I'm balancing in case a human cleric of the Blind Io plays with a troll witch. Have you ever felt in D&D like you made the wrong choice? Like there was a right answer and you didn't choose it, now you feel inferior to your companions? This is why we balance things, not because it's the right thing to do or because it's fair, it's because it makes your stuff more fun to play.
If you don't decide to balance your races against existing races, I would suggest giving every official race a free feat at first level.
I tried to write a list of characters from Discworld converted to D&D so people could play as their favourites in a Discworld campaign, so I tried to represent them as described in the books, even if that makes them imbalanced in a non discworld campaign. Trolls are unable to function in hot weather. They are immune to most poisons that affect humans, not just resistant to poison.
I'm looking at it from a fun perspective and a simplicity perspective. One of D&D 5's major game design pillars is simplicity. Especially in combat, the more complex something is, the less people like it. You also said "For what humans consider hot." This is very subjective and could become too penalizing very quickly.
Anyone who thinks the troll brain was too much of a limitation, would not need to play as a troll. When I did a one shot, one of the players was happy to play as a troll with the limitations because it had the flavour of trolls in the books.
If someone wants to play a troll but the mechanics are too difficult for them to get, I consider that a problem.
I want to be clear, I'm not trying to be mean, I'm not trying to impose my will on you, I'm trying to provide relevant knowledge and experience that could help make this feel as if D&D officially made a Discworld setting.
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
I'd think the way to get the Feegles (PICTSIES!) around the armor thing is to give them something like Barbarian's unarmored defense. Their DEX should be fairly high, since they're tiny.
I could see giving them a few classes, either make them monk-brawlers with an improvised weapon proficiency that boosts the damage die as they level (like a monk) or ranged attacks like Wee Mad Arthur. Spellcasters could work too (see the Kelda).
Also, I am completely unsurprised that the primary concern when discussing a Discworld homebrew is to get the Feegles and trolls taken care of. Can someone bash together a homebrew Piecemaker?
Och weel looksy here ye scunner. Ah dunnae any ken whots a Piecemaker, but Ah ken weel D&D5e. Ah'm gon' ta gie ye me homebrew fra yon wee fairy folk races. Jes' so ye ken, it's in-con-pleet an' no'-at-all balanced, as Ah was a-tryin' fra accuracy ta lore an' suchlike an' no' on game balance. Do wi' it as ye will.
i think that trying to pin character archetypes from terry's books to certain classes in 5e is a mistake, a witch can certainly be a druid, for example granny weatherwax, but nanny ogg is probably a bard, and the closest thing i can find to miss tick is a wizard. another example is the monks of time, who certainly can be monks, but are also fitting explorers guide to wildemount's chonourgist wizard.
my views on trolls are that they can certainly have a plus 2 or 3 to strength and constitution but have a minus 2 to wisdom and intelligence and have disadvantage on dexterity checks while in a hot environment. to make feegles balanced you might want to give them disadvantage on attacks with weapons that don't have the "light" trait and cannot use heavy or two handed weapons, or even outright not let them use certain weapons. also feegles definitely won't have immunity to the poisoned condition, seeing that they certainly can get drunk
The problem with GURPS is that the cost of buying the book isn't really worth the time reduction between converting to 5e as opposed to fully homebrewing. GURPS also isn't nearly as common and a lot of players don't want to learn a new rule system, even if it might be simpler than learning new races and subclasses (it feels like it should be harder, so it is. Headology). If there was a free pdf version or something I'd probably consult it though
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I've done the Troll as a homebrewed race, https://www.dndbeyond.com/characters/races/58852-troll-discworld.
I commented on the Troll race, I hoped that helped.
Goblins. This line in Instinctive worker is fine, "If you gain proficiency in a type of artisans tools from a background or class feature you can gain proficiency in a second type at the same time." I think this is perhaps too complicated and the half proficiency in any artisan tools you are not proficient with is perfectly fine. The line "You may not be as familiar with potter’s wheels, glazes and kilns" is unnecessary.
Elfkin. is this a variant for half-elves? Illusion Resistance is too specific, perhaps something similar to Gnome Cunning?
Feegle. All playable races should be humanoids. 5e isn't cutting any corners with that. Consider Hybrid Nature from the Centaur UA. I don't know how much fun it would be to play a Feegle, frankly it looks too weak, with the complicated rules about armor, and a walking speed of 10 ft, the mobility of a most classes is lost.
Self-controlled Werewolf. Would Shifter work?
Zombie might need some thinking, right now it seems convoluted and and little over powered.
I skimmed Witch. The most important thing about witches, and really most of Discworld magic, is belief. The idea that one's belief in magic makes magic real. The flavor in the class is not quite there yet.
Sorry if I've yammered on, I haven't even touched the bestiary yet! Another thing to keep in mind, make sure you're using language from 5e. 5e wasn't written the way it was on accident.
Edit: I took a look at the bestiary, much shorter, loved that. You could publish the new monsters but the NPCs should not be published. Those would be reported and taken down.
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Astromancer's Homebrew Assembly
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
Thnks for reading and your comments.
I was originally trying to write a conversion of Discworld GURPS, and assumed a DM would have that, and refer to it for flavour text.
I may resubmit the troll race with references removed, if I can think of a name for it. Korg from Thor Ragnorak is also one.
I am unclear about your commet on goblins, are these two lines fine, or should they be simpliified?
Discworld elves are very different from D&D elves, I did not intend elfkin to be a variant of the D&D half elf. I could think about rewriting it as one.
I wrote these rules for a feegle on the basis that people who are fans of them from the books might want to play as one, even with the limitations. I would not expect a Discworld campaign to be one where it really matters all the characters are balanced.
Why is it so important that all PCs are humanoid? The only difference I can see is this makes is certain spells such as Charm Person and Hold person work only on humanoids.
I included werewolf for someone who wants to play as a character like Angua, who transforms completely from human to wolf. The shifter might be OK for other DW werewolves like Ludmilla Cake.
Why are zombies overpowered? The rule on healing may need rewriting.
Regarding witches, my target audience for the Google doc was people who know the books. Ideally they would also have access to Discworld GURPS. If I was writing this as a class to share with general D&D players I would include more flavour text. I was trying to compromise between magic as depicted in Discworld books and in D&D, as I expected witches and wizards to be the principle spellcasting classes people would want to play as
Are there any mechanical changes you can suggest that would improve the flavour of the class?
The list of spells for witches is long because I started by looking at all the spells in the game and editing out the ones that did not fit the concept of witches. I need to edit it down further to make it the length of other classes.
Just for posterity, here's my comments on the Troll race. I suggest naming it something that is not copyrighted (Korg is probably copyrighted).
Very nice, however, you are calling to light the fact that it is a Discworld property, that's generally frowned upon.
The features are fine, but what do they mechanically do?
The problem with Troll Brain as written as it is very much up to DMs and I worry a player may feel disenfranchised by the fact that they can't make any checks and are under the effects of a 3rd level spell in 90 degree heat. Players prefer benefits to drawbacks. Perhaps begin with a -1 or 2 to intelligence as a racial ability then give advantage on intelligence checks in conditions of 32 degrees or lower, or one round after they take cold damage.
Mineral Metabolism sounds like Dwarven Resilience with more words, just rename Dwarven Resilience. Cold resistance and poison resistance might be too good. I suggest something similar to the goliath Mountain-born trait than cold resistance.
Edit: Earth Elemental is WAY too powerful. Consider something similar to Hybrid Nature presented in the Centaur and Minotaur UA.
"If you gain proficiency in a type of artisans tools from a background or class feature you can gain proficiency in a second type at the same time," and "You may not be as familiar with potter’s wheels, glazes and kilns" should be scrapped.
As you don't include size, alignment, age, speed, ect. I presumed it was a half-elf variant.
I suggest playtesting it, but I think people will find it underpowered.
I believe Jeremy Crawford gave a reason for it, I think it may be for simplicity. Fey are effected by hallow, protection from evil and good, detect evil and good and similar spells.
Undead creatures are simply more powerful than humanoids.
Charisma based casting is a good start. Perhaps limiting some of the abilities to intelligent creatures (Int higher than 6)?
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Astromancer's Homebrew Assembly
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
On the subject of Feegles (now that I've had a proper read)...
The Wee Free Men was the first Discworld novel I ever read, and to this day, the Tiffany Aching arch remains my favorite. So much so, that I made and played Feegles in a few games.
Nac Mac Feegle
(aka the Wee Free Men, the Pictsies, the Little Men, and ocasionally the 'Person or Persons Unknown, Believed to be Armed')
Ability Score Increase:
Feegles are at least as strong if not notably stronger than humans, despite their size. In the books, Nanny Ogg claims that 4 Feegles, one under each hoof, can overhead lift, carry, and run with a full-grown cow. The fact they can overhead carry their portion of that weight indicates that they need four because dragging a cow off by one leg would be messy; that the bulk is awkward, not that it's too heavy for a single Feegle. Thus:
+2 Strength
Feegle are tough. They have fallen from soaring buzzards and been stomped into the ground and been none the worse for wear. They prefer fighting things much larger than themselves, and hold their own blow for blow. They can drink copious amounts of alcohol, or things they think could be alcohol (lamp oil, rat poison, and soap... though that was technically eaten). They run about mostly naked save for kilts, be it midsummer or dead of winter, and are unphased by the extreme temperatures. They do not bathe and live in filthy holes in the ground, and yet never get sick. Thus:
+2 Constitution
Feegles are elusive. People often don't know they're there. They have the ability to blend into their surroundings, despite their loud coloration and boisterous natures. They are deft and expert thieves, that can get into or out of anything. Literally: anything. They can even break into your thoughts. They are small and agile, making it easy for them to dodge the blows of the slow and heavy bigjobs they're so fond of contending with. Thus:
+2 Dexterity
A Feegle's head is a weapon in its own right; but rather than rapier wit, it's more akin to a cudgel. In other words, to a Feegle, heads is for headbutting (called 'nutting'); and nothing else. They do not plan, do not strategize, and are painfully slow to learn. They are also almost universally illiterate. They usually cannot count past however many fingers and toes they have, which given their violent lifestyle, may vary from Feegle to Feegle. They are superstitious and frightful of the written word. Thus:
-2 Intelligence
In addition to not being able to count, read, or learn how to count or read short of dire and often magical intervention, Feegles are not known for their practicality. They are utterly lacking in common sense. Despite having a few unique senses most humanoids do not possess, they are not particularly proficient in their use... nor in the use of those that most humanoids do possess. They are obtuse, unobservant, faithless (religiously speaking), fools to whom no idea is a bad idea unless that idea is to NOT drink, fight, or steal. Thus:
-2 Wisdom
Feegles speak crassly, dress crudely, bathe infrequently, and have neither the desire nor the patience to learn the intricacies of interpersonal social skills. Their solutions to all problems are drinking, fighting and stealing, alone or in various combinations. Their are habitual liars, but are not smart or smooth enough to be good at it. They are too crude and rude to be charming. Standing 6 or seven inches high, they are not very intimidating at first glance: you need to have some experience with them before you learn to fear them. Thus:
-2 Charisma
Alignment:
Feegles are inherently rebels, though often without an actual cause. They are always chaotic, and usually good. They are beings of extremes, however, and any non-good Feegle is sure to be a chaotic evil engine of destruction.
Size:
A fully grown Feegle stands between 5 and 7 inches tall, and weighs about a pound. Your size is Tiny.
Speed:
Despite your size, you are more than capable of keeping up. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Darkvision:
You are accustomed to living underground and traveling above ground by night. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light.
Hybrid Nature:
You have two creature types: fey and humanoid. You can be affected by a game effect if it works on either of your creature types.
DRINKING!:
You are immune to the poisoned condition and have resistance to poison damage. You are immune to any negative effect that would be inflicted by drinking a liquid, and are resistant to any damage a liquid may cause upon being consumed.
FIGHTING!:
Your head, fists, feet, teeth... your whole body, really, is a natural weapon. When you hit with your unarmed strike, you deal bludgeoning damage equal to 1d4 + your Strength modifier, instead of the 1 bludgeoning damage normal for an unarmed strike.
STEALING!:
You have proficiency in the Sleight of Hand and Stealth skills.
"Nae king! Nae quin! Nae laird! Nae master! We willnae be fooled again!":
You are immune to the charmed condition and cannot become frightened by magical means.
Aggressive Negotiations:
Whenever you would be required to make a Charisma-based skill check, you may instead roll for initiative. You do not succeed in the skill check, but may take the first turn in the newly-initiated combat as though all other creatures were surprised.
Ancestral Foe:
You deal double damage against evil-aligned fey creatures... and lawyers.
Blue Blur:
You can move faster than the eye can follow. When you take the Dash, you can double your speed during both your normal movement and your extra movement provided by the Dash action during that turn.
** How this differs from a Tabaxi's Feline Agility: Feline agility doubles your movement for one turn, requiring you to not move the following turn should you want to use it again. However, using feline agility is not an action, allowing a tabaxi character to take any action they so choose. A Feegle's blue blur essentially quadruples their speed (normal movement x 2 + dash action extra movement x 2 = base speed x 4), but at the cost of an action. While a tabaxi's speed isn't indefinite, it is still capable of engaging in meaningful combat in tandem with its movement. A feegle's blue blur could theoretically be indefinite, but while it continues moving at such a pace, it is not contributing in any meaningful way to combat.
Crawstep:
You can inherently travel between planes, and can cast plane shift requiring no components. Starting at 1st level, you can cast the spell once per day, after you finish a long rest, but can only transport yourself and anything you are wearing: you leave anything you are carrying or touching behind. Once you reach 5th level, you can transport objects, but not creatures, you are carrying. At 9th level, you can transport anything you can physically carry. At 13th level, you can cast plane shift twice with this trait before needing to take a long rest. Regardless of your level, are unable to banish a creature with a plane shift spell cast using this trait.
Matriarchal Clan:
You hold women, especially ones capable of casting spells, in reverent regard. You have disadvantage on any skill check against female humanoids.
Illiterate:
You cannot read or write. You are also superstitious in regards to the written word, and are convinced that should your name ever be written down, you will suffer dire and immediate consequences. Whether or not you can overcome these flaws is up to your DM.
Great Big World
Due to your size, the world is full of unique challenges, especially in a city built for Medium-sized creatures. Every crack in the pavement is a ditch, and every ditch a canyon. Every horse is a trampling siege engine; every person a thoughtless giant. Good luck opening doors, drawers, or taking a seat at the local bar. You have disadvantage on most rolls to deal with your environment in an urban setting; what rolls these may be is up to your DM.
Languages:
You can speak Common and Sylvan, but your speech is heavily accented, making you difficult to understand in both languages for anyone not acclimated to how you speak.
Favored Classes:
Barbarian, Rogue, Bard (called a Gonnagle, quite rare), Druid (females only, and even then only the clan matriarch, called the Kelda)
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I love everything about this thread. I just wish I had friends quite as fanatical about Discworld as I am so we could play in it. I tend to add an Ankh Morporkian flavor to Waterdeep when I play there, and I kinda want to do a Watch inspired Waterdeep Guards campaign sometime.
There is always the option of starting an Ankh-Morpork campaign here on dndbeyond and roping people from this thread into it.
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I was considering getting Waterdeep Dragon Heist and seeing if it could be converted to Ankh Morpork
Again you seem to be assuming I had intended to write an anthology of Discworld inspired classes and races that could be incorporated in any D&D campaign. I did not
I tried to write a list of characters from Discworld converted to D&D so people could play as their favourites in a Discworld campaign, so I tried to represent them as described in the books, even if that makes them imbalanced in a non discworld campaign. Trolls are unable to function in hot weather. They are immune to most poisons that affect humans, not just resistant to poison.
I was influenced by Adventures in Middle Earth Adventures, which has classes designed to fit Middle Earth, which no one would want to play in a standard D&D campaign. For example the Warden is essentially a spell less bard.
I am happy for others to copy what I have done and adapt it to their purposes. As long as they credit me and share it with me so i can decide what I think works
Anyone who thinks the troll brain was too much of a limitation, would not need to play as a troll. When I did a one shot, one of the players was happy to play as a troll with the limitations because it had the flavour of trolls in the books.
This a first draft, it obviously needs playtesting and editing.
Some of the witch features can be given an intelligence minimum, although witches can affect animals (see Granny's borrowing, or turning Greebo into a human). In editing the witch spell list I can bear this in mind.
I'm not balancing in case a troll walks into the Forgotten Realms, just as I wouldn't do that for any Eberron or Ravnica races. I'm balancing in case a human cleric of the Blind Io plays with a troll witch. Have you ever felt in D&D like you made the wrong choice? Like there was a right answer and you didn't choose it, now you feel inferior to your companions? This is why we balance things, not because it's the right thing to do or because it's fair, it's because it makes your stuff more fun to play.
If you don't decide to balance your races against existing races, I would suggest giving every official race a free feat at first level.
I'm looking at it from a fun perspective and a simplicity perspective. One of D&D 5's major game design pillars is simplicity. Especially in combat, the more complex something is, the less people like it. You also said "For what humans consider hot." This is very subjective and could become too penalizing very quickly.
If someone wants to play a troll but the mechanics are too difficult for them to get, I consider that a problem.
I want to be clear, I'm not trying to be mean, I'm not trying to impose my will on you, I'm trying to provide relevant knowledge and experience that could help make this feel as if D&D officially made a Discworld setting.
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Astromancer's Homebrew Assembly
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
https://homebrewery.naturalcrit.com/share/rJb76kNPFZ
This is amazing!
Begone foul troglodytes for if not, I Rorsch the Dwarf will eat you instead.
I'd think the way to get the Feegles (PICTSIES!) around the armor thing is to give them something like Barbarian's unarmored defense. Their DEX should be fairly high, since they're tiny.
I could see giving them a few classes, either make them monk-brawlers with an improvised weapon proficiency that boosts the damage die as they level (like a monk) or ranged attacks like Wee Mad Arthur. Spellcasters could work too (see the Kelda).
Also, I am completely unsurprised that the primary concern when discussing a Discworld homebrew is to get the Feegles and trolls taken care of. Can someone bash together a homebrew Piecemaker?
Och weel looksy here ye scunner. Ah dunnae any ken whots a Piecemaker, but Ah ken weel D&D5e. Ah'm gon' ta gie ye me homebrew fra yon wee fairy folk races. Jes' so ye ken, it's in-con-pleet an' no'-at-all balanced, as Ah was a-tryin' fra accuracy ta lore an' suchlike an' no' on game balance. Do wi' it as ye will.
https://homebrewery.naturalcrit.com/share/SJa6AdYK4
Feegles are towards the end.
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i think that trying to pin character archetypes from terry's books to certain classes in 5e is a mistake, a witch can certainly be a druid, for example granny weatherwax, but nanny ogg is probably a bard, and the closest thing i can find to miss tick is a wizard. another example is the monks of time, who certainly can be monks, but are also fitting explorers guide to wildemount's chonourgist wizard.
my views on trolls are that they can certainly have a plus 2 or 3 to strength and constitution but have a minus 2 to wisdom and intelligence and have disadvantage on dexterity checks while in a hot environment. to make feegles balanced you might want to give them disadvantage on attacks with weapons that don't have the "light" trait and cannot use heavy or two handed weapons, or even outright not let them use certain weapons. also feegles definitely won't have immunity to the poisoned condition, seeing that they certainly can get drunk
They can get drunk, aye. But they can also drink a bottle of rat poison, a lantern's worth of oil, and eat a bar of lye soap with no ill effect.
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So... I sat down and put together a subclass based on Rincewind...
I present: the Wizzard
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Did this ever get off the ground? And did you know there’s a GURPS Discworld supplement book?
The problem with GURPS is that the cost of buying the book isn't really worth the time reduction between converting to 5e as opposed to fully homebrewing. GURPS also isn't nearly as common and a lot of players don't want to learn a new rule system, even if it might be simpler than learning new races and subclasses (it feels like it should be harder, so it is. Headology). If there was a free pdf version or something I'd probably consult it though