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MrHedgehog
Senior Scribe
688 Posts |
 Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 03:02:28
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I am starting a new campaign and one of my player's wants to be a pixie wizard. They feywild/shadowfell and other silly things don't exist in our campaign. I have trouble imagining a pixie wandering around a village, town or city.
How do you think common people would react? Would he have to conceal himself not to cause a fuss?
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Ayrik
Great Reader
Canada
8030 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 03:26:35
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| If silly things don't exist in your campaign then pragmatic necromancers would pay handsomely to obtain specimens for study. |
[/Ayrik] |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 03:26:39
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That's entirely up to you.
YOU set the tone of your campaign. and decide whats normal, and whats not.
Especially since its not a canon FR game, which would contain a Feywild (Faerie) and Shadowfel (Plane of Shadows). The Fey need to come from somewhere - if you don't have a Faerie, how can you have fairys?.
You can do like they do in Mystara (OD&D/Known World), and say Faerie is 'a place in the deepest wood', which can be in any forest, depending on where they are holding the Faery Court.
Regardless, Pixies would be an uncommon sight in almost any human town in almost any setting. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 05 Jan 2012 22:42:34 |
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Brimstone
Great Reader
USA
3290 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 03:38:23
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Make a Pixie Vampire named Moe Skeetoe. |
"These things also I have observed: that knowledge of our world is
to be nurtured like a precious flower, for it is the most precious
thing we have. Wherefore guard the word written and heed
words unwritten and set them down ere they fade . . . Learn
then, well, the arts of reading, writing, and listening true, and they
will lead you to the greatest art of all: understanding."
Alaundo of Candlekeep |
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Diffan
Great Reader
USA
4487 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 04:25:20
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quote:
Originally posted by Brimstone
Make a Pixie Vampire named Moe Skeetoe.
I rather like the name "Drinkerbell" 
I think if the Feywild or Shadowfell don't exist, then they'd have a hard time understanding what a Pixie was or fey creatures such as elves, eladrin, satyrs, and the like for that matter. You could just say they're supernatural creatures in the real world, hailing from parts of the forests and jungles that are mystical and enchanted, not actually a whole plane of existance such as the Feywild. They could just be very, very good at hiding from humans and other non-fairy creatures and this one is just different.
I guess a counter-question is do they believe in fairy-tales (pun intended)? If they believe that certain woods or forest are inhabited by fey or supernatural creatures and one actually presents itself then their reaction could range from terror to violence to curiosity and everything in-between. Are there stories about fairies? Do they exist in folk songs and folk tails? |
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Ayrik
Great Reader
Canada
8030 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 05:04:47
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| I would ask exactly why a player is particularly insistent on playing this pixie wizard. I would likely accomodate the creation of a unique character if the player already envisions some sort of specific and interesting character concept. But if the player just wants to bypass normal campaign restrictions to access some particular power or powergame a particular min-max optimization then he can either make compromises or pick from the "allowable" options - just like everyone else. If he's just trying to be a wild card with a unique gimmick/concept then there might be other options which could accomodate his desires without violating your campaign parameters. |
[/Ayrik] |
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Therise
Master of Realmslore
1272 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 06:03:19
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On a bright Cormyrean morning, a shardmind, a pixie, and a honeybadger-hengeyokai walk into the mayor's office, answering his desperate call for heroes!
*ahem*
Seriously, it's totally up to you what you allow in your campaign (or not). If your campaign more closely resembles the cosmology of 1E, 2E, or 3E, there's still a "Faerie". It existed long before someone dreamed up the silly Feywild and had it crash into whatever it crashed into. But ultimately you're the DM. If the character concept doesn't fit with your planned campaign, you don't have to allow it.
If you -do- want to accommodate the player for this, then most villages are going to have people look surprised and they may have odd reactions when interacting with the pixie (e.g. children might chase it, try to pet it or catch it with a butterfly net; wizards might wonder if it's someone's familiar, or perhaps a ranger's animal companion might think it's food). The more backwoods the village, the less likely they are to see/trust characters of unusual or rare races. In big cities like Waterdeep, people have probably seen a lot more oddities (dragonborn, wilden, what have you). But it also depends on the era. If you're post-Spellplague, post-Abeir crash, then more unusual species will be wandering around. Tieflings might only get a quick look. Pre-spellplague, such things would be quite strange, and you'll have to play NPCs accordingly.
Just my $0.02
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Female, 40-year DM of a homebrew-evolved 1E Realms, including a few added tidbits of 2E and 3E lore; played originally in AD&D, then in Rolemaster. Be a DM for your kids and grandkids, gaming is excellent for families! |
Edited by - Therise on 05 Jan 2012 06:42:52 |
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MrHedgehog
Senior Scribe
688 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 06:36:13
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I already allowed him to be a pixie. I don't think its power gaming. He just bought Heroes of the Feywild.
I just imagined pixies, satyrs, etc. living in the woods. I don't see why they have to come from another dimension, or even a "magical wood". The thought never occurred to me. It certainly is not NECESSARY that they come from another dimension or magical place to exist. Before 4th edition could you tell me where they mention a Feywild or Shadowfell? I know there is a "Plane of Shadow" from the War of the Spider Queen trilogy but not a "Faerie"
I am just wondering how this would be viewed by the world at large.
When you go to a tavern, meet a local lord, encounter traveling pilgrims, and so forth. Are you a terrifying monster? A thing of awe? Or have people seen wizards with pixie/brownie familiars before (or at least hard of them) so its unusual but not TOO bizarre. |
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Therise
Master of Realmslore
1272 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 06:53:22
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quote:
Originally posted by MrHedgehog
I already allowed him to be a pixie. I don't think its power gaming. He just bought Heroes of the Feywild.
I just imagined pixies, satyrs, etc. living in the woods. I don't see why they have to come from another dimension, or even a "magical wood". The thought never occurred to me. It certainly is not NECESSARY that they come from another dimension or magical place to exist. Before 4th edition could you tell me where they mention a Feywild or Shadowfell? I know there is a "Plane of Shadow" from the War of the Spider Queen trilogy but not a "Faerie"
Absolutely they can just be from the deep woods, forest, whatever. In AD&D and early 1E, fey just came from Nature.
Before 4E, there wasn't a "Feywild". There was a "Faerie" but sources alternately considered it either a separate world or a different plane. In 4E, several things are merged together (Faerie, the positive energy plane, probably some bits of colorful pocket lint) and given the name "Feywild".
quote:
I am just wondering how this would be viewed by the world at large. When you go to a tavern, meet a local lord, encounter traveling pilgrims, and so forth. Are you a terrifying monster? A thing of awe? Or have people seen wizards with pixie/brownie familiars before (or at least hard of them) so its unusual but not TOO bizarre.
I put some possible examples above in my previous post. Terrifying, no, not unless they cast damaging spells in plain sight. Most people would likely not know quite how to react, and might indeed think it was someone else's familiar. Or pet. Some, who have misheard legends might ask the pixie for wishes or "aelf-shot" to vex a neighbor or his cows with disease. An angry farmwife might march up and demand that the pixie stop stealing her pies and souring the goat's milk.
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Female, 40-year DM of a homebrew-evolved 1E Realms, including a few added tidbits of 2E and 3E lore; played originally in AD&D, then in Rolemaster. Be a DM for your kids and grandkids, gaming is excellent for families! |
Edited by - Therise on 05 Jan 2012 06:56:33 |
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Diffan
Great Reader
USA
4487 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 07:28:00
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quote:
Originally posted by Therise
Before 4E, there wasn't a "Feywild". There was a "Faerie" but sources alternately considered it either a separate world or a different plane. In 4E, several things are merged together (Faerie, the positive energy plane, probably some bits of colorful pocket lint) and given the name "Feywild".
Because "Faerie" sounds soo much better  . In all seriousness, Feywild is just another term used to describe that which was already there (in Lore) as Faerie. Nothing more, nothing less. Same goes for the Shadowfell (or Plane of Shadow if you prefer boring names).
quote:
Originally posted by MrHedgehog
I already allowed him to be a pixie. I don't think its power gaming. He just bought Heroes of the Feywild.
No, he's definitly not powergaming. To be a pixie powergamer, he'd have to take the Beast Ranger class feature, the Fey Wild Animal Tamer theme, and use his animal companion as a mount while using Twin Strike with a Bow. THAT would be more akin to powergaming. A pixie does get Intelligence and Charisma, so it makes him more likly to choose Enchantment powers and specialize with the Orb and save penalties. Sounds resonable to me. |
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E6 Options: Epic 6 Campaign |
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Therise
Master of Realmslore
1272 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 07:38:15
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quote:
Originally posted by Diffan
Because "Faerie" sounds soo much better . In all seriousness, Feywild is just another term used to describe that which was already there (in Lore) as Faerie. Nothing more, nothing less. Same goes for the Shadowfell (or Plane of Shadow if you prefer boring names).
It's more than a name change, the cosmology was altered in a dramatic way.
Feywild is a mash-up of more than just Faerie. It also includes the prior positive energy plane, maybe parts of Arvandor IIRC. Shadowfell is a mash-up of the prior plane of shadow, also the old negative energy plane, (and in core) also the realm of the dead (in the Realms, the "Fugue" is still separate, though).
Really, not just new names.
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Female, 40-year DM of a homebrew-evolved 1E Realms, including a few added tidbits of 2E and 3E lore; played originally in AD&D, then in Rolemaster. Be a DM for your kids and grandkids, gaming is excellent for families! |
Edited by - Therise on 05 Jan 2012 07:42:08 |
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Ayrik
Great Reader
Canada
8030 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 07:39:44
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Tabloid: "Bigfoot's wedding photos - bride is a mischievous flying creature!"
Scientist 1: "This is a previous undiscovered species! We must observe them in their natural habitat, and try to obtain one for anatomical study."
Scientist 2: "The article says it was spotted flitting around the beaches in California. Another, or possible the same one, was chased by drunken rednecks in an Iowa farmland."
Scientist 1: "Nevermind." |
[/Ayrik] |
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Therise
Master of Realmslore
1272 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 07:51:04
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quote:
Originally posted by Ayrik
Tabloid: "Bigfoot's wedding photos - bride is a mischievous flying creature!"
Scientist 1: "This is a previous undiscovered species! We must observe them in their natural habitat, and try to obtain one for anatomical study."
Scientist 2: "The article says it was spotted flitting around the beaches in California. Another, or possible the same one, was chased by drunken rednecks in an Iowa farmland."
Scientist 1: "Nevermind."
Stop hanging out in the Feywild, seriously. That "pixie dust" is really just powdered Xanax. They'll steal your shoes when you're high and convince you to sing Disney tunes in falsetto.
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Female, 40-year DM of a homebrew-evolved 1E Realms, including a few added tidbits of 2E and 3E lore; played originally in AD&D, then in Rolemaster. Be a DM for your kids and grandkids, gaming is excellent for families! |
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Ayrik
Great Reader
Canada
8030 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 07:58:39
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| I already sing Disney tunes in falsetto. |
[/Ayrik] |
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Therise
Master of Realmslore
1272 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 08:25:12
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quote:
Originally posted by Ayrik
I already sing Disney tunes in falsetto.
I would give gobs of story XP for that. GOBS! As a pixie PC, break out in a sweet rendition of Fly With Me. Oh god yes, worth at least a half level!
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Female, 40-year DM of a homebrew-evolved 1E Realms, including a few added tidbits of 2E and 3E lore; played originally in AD&D, then in Rolemaster. Be a DM for your kids and grandkids, gaming is excellent for families! |
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Ayrik
Great Reader
Canada
8030 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 08:44:04
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| Lady Gaga songs worth any XP? |
[/Ayrik] |
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MalariaMoon
Learned Scribe
324 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 15:42:57
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quote:
Originally posted by Ayrik
Lady Gaga songs worth any XP?
That's what negative levels were invented for. |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2012 : 22:46:20
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Give him (or her) a 'Kender Complex', and your good.
Insatiable curiosity got the better of their Fey nature - they have a burning need to learn everything about 'mans world'. So at first humans would find it remarkable, and then their patience would wear thin and they would find it annoying.
That sounds like a great roleplaying hook.  |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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MrHedgehog
Senior Scribe
688 Posts |
Posted - 06 Jan 2012 : 18:57:53
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I know that in real Celtic mythology there was another Faerie realm, but I'd never heard of it in the realms. Was it in a novel? The only place I could think of to look was Magic of Faerun and it just described "Fey Mounds" and their gateways. Where is this described? A dragon magazine? Something Ed said?
The specific back story is that priests of Amaunatar turned him into stone (in my realms Amaunatar is JUST lawful not good, and so a pixie is just as bad as a Quasit because they are both chaotic) then the party discovered him on the grounds of an abandoned Abbey of Amaunatar and are going to return him to flesh in the next session. He is going to replace his Githyanki Artificer (an orphan since Githyanki can't reproduce in the astral plane) with this Pixie wizard. |
Edited by - MrHedgehog on 06 Jan 2012 19:01:43 |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36965 Posts |
Posted - 06 Jan 2012 : 19:25:52
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| Check out the third party book Faeries, from Bastion Press. Some WotC/TSR alumni (including our own Steven Schend) were involved in that book, and it's a wonderful resource for all things fae. I'd readily use it with the Realms, if I was DM'ing. |
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doctorbadwolf
Acolyte
USA
31 Posts |
Posted - 06 Jan 2012 : 19:49:53
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quote:
Originally posted by MrHedgehog
I already allowed him to be a pixie. I don't think its power gaming. He just bought Heroes of the Feywild.
I just imagined pixies, satyrs, etc. living in the woods. I don't see why they have to come from another dimension, or even a "magical wood". The thought never occurred to me. It certainly is not NECESSARY that they come from another dimension or magical place to exist. Before 4th edition could you tell me where they mention a Feywild or Shadowfell? I know there is a "Plane of Shadow" from the War of the Spider Queen trilogy but not a "Faerie"
I am just wondering how this would be viewed by the world at large.
When you go to a tavern, meet a local lord, encounter traveling pilgrims, and so forth. Are you a terrifying monster? A thing of awe? Or have people seen wizards with pixie/brownie familiars before (or at least hard of them) so its unusual but not TOO bizarre.
Disclaimer: I don't think that the Feywild of The Shadowfell are silly, at all, so YMMV on anything I have to say on the matter.
In a, perfectly reasonable, world where fey creatures simply come from the deep woods and the like (this is how one of the campaigns I'm playing in is set up), I imagine that a pixie would be less notable than in the standard cosmology, but still worthy of note.
On a weirdness scale that includes all the other stuff in DnD(even discounting edition and new 4e stuff), I'd rate the pixie stanger than an elf, but less strange than a Githzerai.
I would speculate that a pixie would easily be recognized for what it is in all but the most backward, middle of nowhere villages. I would futher speculate that said pixie would be remarked upon in all but the most cosmopolitan cities, like Waterdeep, and even there a bit, since pixies specifically are probably a rare sight in those places. Obviously, amongst a heavily fey population, the pixie will be welcome with little remark.
I would also think that most reactions to the pixie would be positive, not negative. Remember, they are small, pretty, known for their good temper and nature, and known to make the places in which they live feel more vibrant and alive. They are specifically a happy, helpful fey race. They're likely to be very welcome by most common folk.
If your player's pixie happens to fly in the face of pixie norms, and be a dangerous, angry pranskter of ill intent...all the more fun, I suppose. :D
Just my two cents.
EDIT: Love how you're introducing him, btw.
And If I might weigh in as concerns the Feywild and Shadowfell: I don't want to get into an edition war about the cosmology, so I won't touch on whether or not the general decision to change it was good or bad. What I will say is that I think that the Feywild is and Shadowfell represent something that was missing from DnD. Something that it needed. It needed an "Otherworld", or Neverwhere or even a Neverland, and it needed a dark world, too.
The plane of Shadow was pretty good for what it was, but I think it fills it's niche much better as a more fleshed out world with cities and roaming monsters, etc.
More importantly, because it was less represented, is the Feywild. A strange, magical, wild, beautiful and deadly realm of powerful and capricious fey. Brilliant! It's one of my very favorite things in DnD, to date. A place that one can go, but which is easier to reach by accident, than on purpose, and not so easy to leave. A place where all the fairy tales are fact. Even the wild stuff that the DnD universe rejects, like the dew on the leaves being put there by fairies, and the like. In the Feywild, that's the truth. There could well be a place in the Feywild where children never grow old, and battle pirates with the help of Indians. And somewhere, just over the mountains maybe, is a place that's London town, but not.
Finally.
My only issue, is that I think they should have been one world.
An example of what I would have liked:
As the party reaches the edge of Greenwood, the Great Forest, their fairy guide stops, his expression impassive. Across, is a sweeping valley, and you can see a band of Centaur chasing a buffolo near the edge of the Lake of Dreams, about which your guide has warned you already. Beyond, are the Lost Hills, and beyond those, your goal.
Taking a long drink from his flask of faery-wine, your guide sighs. "Here, I must leave you. The centaurs of this valley will know that you are guided by a servant of Oberon, and will allow your passage. If you offer them gifts, they may even share their meal with you, and give you rest. The hills are no great challenge, so long as you keep to the path, and ignore any strange singing you might hear. Beyond them is a land I may never enter, for it is the valley of Gol Calbraith, and its shadows would overwhelm me. There, is the Shadow strong, and there is no day. The shadow fey, whom you call Shadar-kai, dwell there in their mad city, and wage constant war against the shadow giants, who my people call Haldram. I am sorry, my companions, but I can guide you no further."
I'm thinking about combining the two in future campaigns, because this just seems far more interesting, and true to the feel of mythology and modern fairy talish fantasy, to me. |
Edited by - doctorbadwolf on 06 Jan 2012 20:16:39 |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31799 Posts |
Posted - 07 Jan 2012 : 00:37:37
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quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
Check out the third party book Faeries, from Bastion Press. Some WotC/TSR alumni (including our own Steven Schend) were involved in that book, and it's a wonderful resource for all things fae. I'd readily use it with the Realms, if I was DM'ing.
Steven Schend has, in fact, claimed that much of the fae material in Faeries have ease-of-portability into the Realms, so long as you're willing to tweak the fae planar domains just a little bit. |
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MrHedgehog
Senior Scribe
688 Posts |
Posted - 07 Jan 2012 : 08:00:57
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Githyanki are descended from humans (aside, I consider Githyanki/Githzerai the same race - just two different cultures, regardless of what anyone else says) and I always thought they could just be confused as half-orcs or orcs, so I didn't think it was as strange as a magical creature in a tavern.
"What is [i]that[i]?" (points at Githyanki.
"He has a rare skin condition....don't point it out...he's really sensitive..."
Pixies might also be accused of stealing children, causing mischief, and so forth as another poster mentioned. [real world] Think of the legend of changelings and pepople blaming their disabled children on pixies stealing their real child [ /real world]
Where is a foot tall person with wings can't be hidden. |
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Ayrik
Great Reader
Canada
8030 Posts |
Posted - 07 Jan 2012 : 08:22:22
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| Aw, now, there's no need to be hating the Giths here. Keep the negativity focussed on those silly fey things. |
[/Ayrik] |
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MrHedgehog
Senior Scribe
688 Posts |
Posted - 08 Jan 2012 : 00:13:59
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| I didn't mean I hate the Gith, but imagine a yellow skinned person walking into a bar you're at :O |
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doctorbadwolf
Acolyte
USA
31 Posts |
Posted - 08 Jan 2012 : 01:15:33
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| Lol do I live in faerun? If so, I probably raise an eyebrow at a critter I've never seen before, but that's about it. I'd certainly understand that it's a different race, not some freak. |
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doctorbadwolf
Acolyte
USA
31 Posts |
Posted - 08 Jan 2012 : 05:01:46
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| By which I certainly don't mean to say that going the other way would be wrong. I merely intend to present a different point of view. :) |
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Heroes of the Feywild + Pixie PC's
