Talk:Earth Pony (4e Race)

Balance issues

I've spotted a few balance issues:

• Languages: "Pony" and "Lower Animal" are not 4e languages. Try instead something like the Pixie's trait Speak with Beasts ("You can communicate with Natural Beasts and Fey Beasts")
• Only particularly studious races have more than two skill bonuses, so recommend dropping one.
• Prehensile Tail tells us what PCs are capable of anyway. If you just want to justify how a pony can use equipment, explain so in the fluff. Drop the +2 AC bonus to a +1 racial bonus to AC.
• An extra feat is something humans get to represent their versatility and to make up for a lack of any special abilities. Ponies already get a power, an AC bonus and speed 7. Recommend dropping this.
• Average Joe: Besides "Never penalize a race", "magic" isn't a 4e keyword. Do you mean Arcane power source? Never restrict classes. Do you mean magic items? That will cripple the character by level 3.
• Power of Earth: Racial powers ought to be Encounter, not Daily. I'm sure this can be toned down to an Encounter power and still remain flavourful. Marasmusine 02:31, 7 January 2012 (MST)

Thank you for your assistance! I'll be changing the languages (I left most of what was already there as I didn't have much time to do all the editing I wanted last I was on). It shouldn't be too hard to choose the right skill bonus. The AC bonus change seems fitting, I just need to figure out what "fluff" is and how to add it. I would rather drop the AC bonus than the Cutie Marks (the extra feat was a way to represent this, but I'm thinking I may have to change that). Again, I didn't have as much time as I wanted. In the case of class restriction, Earth Ponies have no magical aptitude and cannot use magic inherently, nor can they learn them. I suppose the use of magical items would be an exception since the arcane power isn't working through their non-existent horn, but through the item itself. As for the racial ability, I can tone it down! TsawlaEltuTsamsiyu 09:27, 7 January 2012 (PST)

Deletion

I am not the original author of this page. However, I have added quite a bit of stuff over time to it, mostly fluff. I hope it won't need to be deleted in the end. I am trying to finish it out more so it will be playable. What do you think so far? Obake 23:07 September 11 2012 (MST)

I would start by resolving the "average joe" issue. Here's my suggestion. Races don't restrict class choice, but sub-races can through the Feat system. Have a base "pony" race. Have a "Earth Pony" feat with the "non-arcane class" restriction, which gives some small bonus relating to that kind of pony. Add other sub-race feats for the other kinds of ponies. This is in accordance with the way 4e handles subraces - compare with Elf and the feat "wild elf", or Dwarf and the feat "gold dwarf". This is the only way I can see it being resolved for the purposes of this wiki (people can of course play their personal games however they like). Marasmusine (talk) 02:45, 12 September 2012 (MDT)

"Average Joe" issue resolved. Instead of even going to the trouble of making sub-races (I'm doubting this race would even have enough material to warrant having any sub-races of its own), I've simply ditched the "average joe" trait for another, simpler, much less restrictive ability called "natural technician". Basically, it makes it so if a player has a higher constitution score than wisdom, they can use their constitution bonus for their nature skill. It won't work for those whose Con is less than Wisdom, of course, but because there are already plenty of other traits available to the race, it shouldn't matter too much. Plus, it sort of makes sense that earth ponies would be extra good in nature; most of them are avid farmers, after all. Do you think the new trait will work? Obake 01:51, 18 September 2012 (MDT)

That's cute, I like it. Marasmusine (talk) 16:02, 18 September 2012 (MDT)