I’m essentially trying to make a variant FOREST gnome sub race, for the Turen family, a family of forest gnomes i made and wrote an entire lore around.
The issue is, they are specifically FOREST gnomes, and so I’m trying to make a variant that basically gives them the elemental adept (fire) feat, and in exchange removes the gnome cunning racial trait. The issue I’m having is Gnome Cunning is a gnome trait as a whole, and the app is only letting me affect the forest gnome specific traits, but if I make a variant gnome then it modifies all gnome sub races instead of specifically a variant for FOREST gnomes. Can anybody help?
Yeah, no. Can’t make a variant of a subrace, a subrace can’t affect base race features, and a variant of a base race that has subraces will apply to the variant trait to the base race as it’s sposta, but all the subraces will all be able to use the variant as a base race too.
To be honest, it’s really not a problem unless you want to share it with community. However we’re not allowed to publish stuff like that that’s specific to a personal campaign anyway. On top of that, there’s the fact that it really wouldn’t meet the criteria of being your own “original work” either as it’s an exact copy of the official forest gnome except it swaps out 1 trait with an official feat, so it’s doubly unpublishable. So that problem is moot anyway.
You basically have two options:
Make the variant of the gnome base race, create your character using it and take the forest gnome subrace like you want, and then remove the variant from your collection. You’ll still be able to use on that character it exactly as you wrote it. Once it’s been added to a PC it doesn’t need to stay in your collection anymore. By removing it from your collection nobody else would be able to use it with the wrong subrace.
Don’t make either a subrace or a variant. Make a new base race using the gnome as a template. Then you can completely replace the gnome cunning trait with the feat like you want, and then instead of adding any subraces to it at all just incorporate the forest gnome traits directly into the base race. That way it can only be that one thing. That’s what WotC did for the new Shadar Kai, Eladrin, and Astral Elf to name a few. They’re not subraces of Elves anymore, they’re just their own whole races now.
Very informative and helpful, thank you. Not what I wanted to hear, but unfortunately what I expected. I suppose if I just name it Variant Forest Gnome (Turen Family) I'd be happy enough. I don't want to delete it because I have multiple Turens in my lore, not a campaign specific character. I don't know. No such thing as a perfect world, eh?
I don't suppose you'd be able to tell me how to limit the choices in adding a feat? I made a homebrew race that's what I wanted, just forest gnomes but with a feat instead of gnome cunning, but I cant figure out how to make it lock in Elemental Adept (Fire) rather then just picking any feat.
I don't suppose you'd be able to tell me how to limit the choices in adding a feat? I made a homebrew race that's what I wanted, just forest gnomes but with a feat instead of gnome cunning, but I cant figure out how to make it lock in Elemental Adept (Fire) rather then just picking any feat.
You can’t, you would either have to explain it in plain text, or recreate the feat as a racial trait.
I’m essentially trying to make a variant FOREST gnome sub race, for the Turen family, a family of forest gnomes i made and wrote an entire lore around.
The issue is, they are specifically FOREST gnomes, and so I’m trying to make a variant that basically gives them the elemental adept (fire) feat, and in exchange removes the gnome cunning racial trait. The issue I’m having is Gnome Cunning is a gnome trait as a whole, and the app is only letting me affect the forest gnome specific traits, but if I make a variant gnome then it modifies all gnome sub races instead of specifically a variant for FOREST gnomes. Can anybody help?
Yeah, no. Can’t make a variant of a subrace, a subrace can’t affect base race features, and a variant of a base race that has subraces will apply to the variant trait to the base race as it’s sposta, but all the subraces will all be able to use the variant as a base race too.
To be honest, it’s really not a problem unless you want to share it with community. However we’re not allowed to publish stuff like that that’s specific to a personal campaign anyway. On top of that, there’s the fact that it really wouldn’t meet the criteria of being your own “original work” either as it’s an exact copy of the official forest gnome except it swaps out 1 trait with an official feat, so it’s doubly unpublishable. So that problem is moot anyway.
You basically have two options:
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Very informative and helpful, thank you. Not what I wanted to hear, but unfortunately what I expected. I suppose if I just name it Variant Forest Gnome (Turen Family) I'd be happy enough. I don't want to delete it because I have multiple Turens in my lore, not a campaign specific character. I don't know. No such thing as a perfect world, eh?
I don't suppose you'd be able to tell me how to limit the choices in adding a feat? I made a homebrew race that's what I wanted, just forest gnomes but with a feat instead of gnome cunning, but I cant figure out how to make it lock in Elemental Adept (Fire) rather then just picking any feat.
You can’t, you would either have to explain it in plain text, or recreate the feat as a racial trait.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting