Here we go again, with some modifications on my last two posts about this...
So, half-elves are a race that have probably the worst base stats in the game, infravision (woo:rolleyes: ), resist charm, and a +10 to learn (faeries have this too but also have higher int along with it.)
Every class a half-elf (except monk?) can be has clear superiors:
Warrior - Giant-size or demihumans or even human
Bard - Demihumans
Ranger - Giants or demihumans
Monk - Human? pretty close, depends if you want str or extra chakeras from dex
Paladin - Human or elf, either one is better.
Thief - a million...
Ninja - avian, feral, many...
BLM - demihumans, feral, anything
Because of this, the half-elf has absolutely no 'power' niche. So, here is my idea of a somewhat drastic toning of the race. I propose making half-elves into a very easy to play, very newbie-friendly race. A race that gets many small useful bonuses, but that do not really affect pk at 50 when fully trained.
First, let's look at class options. These three classes can be both human and elven, but may not be half-elven. Therefore, I propose opening them up to the h-elf race:
Cleric, Battlemage, Invoker
Now let's take a look at stats right now:
human: Max: Str: 20 Int: 20 Wis: 20 Dex: 20 Con: 20 = 101 (+1 in prime stat)
elf___: Max: Str: 18 Int: 25 Wis: 20 Dex: 23 Con: 16 = 102
h-elf_: Max: Str: 19 Int: 21 Wis: 20 Dex: 22 Con: 18 = 100
My suggestion here is to add a +2 int to simply balance the stats out.
Allow them to be evil align (h-drow): anything with human blood is bound to have the potential for evil anyways, regardless if the parent is an elf.
Finally, open up the Elven kingdom/Xymerria hometowns for them: they are HALF you know...even if outcasts, they live on the fringes
Now we get into the more serious suggestions:
+10 to learning (total of +20) - This is to actually put them above the high int races in terms of training speed
+3 luck: Mixed blood is always lucky!
Bard-like lore. Lore functions like identify. This is a newbie-friendly thing.
+10 lag avoidance (similar to avian/thief bonus): Helps to avoid grapple/bash/other lagging skills.
Automastery sword / 103 prof: I'm all for racial weapon bonuses/specialization, and I'd like to see SOMEONE get use out of swords (which is supposed to be the staple, newbie weapon and aren't generally that powerful for the str h-elves are allowed).
Automaster disarm / shield disarm / offhand disarm: This reflect's the half-elves constant struggles in life..pk wise this won't do much but make training easier and make them more interesting..every half-elf class gets one of or both these skills I think.
Exotic +prof bonus: They are the most curious race and therefore are experts at using unfamiliar objects in useful ways...humans get a bonus with magic objects, so this helps to balance that.
Gold bonus (similar to pious perk): Being unable to hold jobs or gain money, h-elves have become adept at finding gold
+1 wis: reflects a half-elf's bad social position and awareness of environment..humans get +1 in prime stat, this helps to regain for that, but it is not the prime stat for half-elves, so not as good. The average dex between human and elf is 21.5, which is rounded up to 22 in h-elves, but this extra .5 isn't enough in my book.
Two perks. H-elves can choose two perks---this is basically just a fun small bonus.
Autosneak. Elves get it, so maybe their half-offspring can also.
So, to recap, I propose this:
BASIC CHANGES:
Allow them to be clerics, battlemages, and invokers (necromancer and DK if allow evil align)
+2 INT
Allow evil align
Allow the Elven Kingdom and Xymerria as hometowns
**OPTIONAL CHANGES (we can pick and choose from these: Don't need to take them **ALL):
+10 learning
+3 luck
+10 lag avoidance
automastery sword
bard-like lore
automastery disarm/shield disarm/offhand disarm
exotic +prof bonus
+gold
+1 wis
two perks
autosneak
.
jk Foxx