Human PCs: why do you (or why don't you) play them?

[Luccan]

I play humans for a couple reasons. Firstly, you can't deny that an extra feat and (essentially) an extra fully ranked skill are nice. There are times when I've wanted skill points I just don't have, because I wasn't playing a human. Secondly, I don't find humans boring. In every setting I can think of, humans are pretty much always interesting on a personal level. Some non-human societies or species might be cool, but sometimes they can be a little one note with individuals. I guess I find it hard to break from standard fluff and stereotypes at times, even with races I like and playing the exact opposite of the, say, elf stereotype doesn't always appeal to me. But with humans, I have no stereotypes or assumed societal quirks I have to work off of. They can be who they are and no one (specifically me) asks how or why.

[Deophaun]

I play humans because I like to play something I'm not, plus the roleplay is good practice for field work.

[Crake]

In my previous post I specifically called out exactly what you describe. And if tieflings are "even things" I shudder to think what hoops I'd have to jump through to play something like a Lhosk or a Tsochar.

See, this is why I have such strong opinions on the subject. I'm not interested in "fitting in". The xenophobic angle's been done to death. Along with occasional misguided appeasement by DMs. It's taxing as a player. I really wanna move on.

See, our table is the exact opposite. Every race under the sun walking about a busy metropolis has been "done to death" as you put it. Having a more conservative setting is what we see as a breath of fresh air.

And besides... Isn't a tsochar's WHOLE SCHTICK that they inhabit bodies to fit into society and dismantle it from the inside?

[Zanos]

This argument is absurd. Yes, humans are the only race that has historically existed and thus all our real examples of living tool & language-using singing and building intelligent creatures are human but that same variety should exist within each fictional race. The whole point of fantasy is that you're not limited to history or reality. You can do reality just fine within all the other genres (historical fiction in all its countless forms), why do it within the single genre that's looking to do something different? Fantasy is exploration of what exists beyond this reality. And writing non-human races as simple stereotypia (or worse, "stocky human with a beard and a taste for alcohol" or "long-eared lithe humans with racial superiority complex") is just poor writing/playing, not an inherent trait of playing non-human races. I don't think it's a valid argument against said choices that some people do so poorly. Well, unless you're going for a campy Wheel of Time-style game, which is of course its own genre and can be quite rewarding and a lot of fun. But something a bit more light-hearted and less rules heavy like FATE would certainly suit such a game better; in a D&D forum I'd expect a rather heavy tone as defined by the system.

That's not what you quoted actually says, though. All that blurb says is that suggesting that human is a boring choice is absurd.

In any case while such variety should exist it often does not, because writing out different cultures for each and every race that has some core conceit that's different enough from humans to be interesting while also being diverse enough to support the same variety that we see in humans is enormously difficult. The result is that "like humans, but [x]" is am immensely common trait of other species in fantasy settings, because writers are, well, human, and inventing cultures that have no basis in any existing ones is super hard.

And I don't have a problem with people who play non-humans in general, but I have frequently seen it used in lieu of an actual character. When you have blue skin and golden hair it sort of distracts the conversation away from who your character actually is, which is immensely convenient.

[Kelb_Panthera]

And besides... Isn't a tsochar's WHOLE SCHTICK that they inhabit bodies to fit into society and dismantle it from the inside?

Yes. Yes it is. They're creepy-crawly little worm-monster freaks that crawl inside people and use them like meat puppets whether they're still alive or not. They're one of the very few things in this game that freaks me out a bit.

[tiercel]

Elves: like humans, but more pointy-eared, longer-lived, and better than you
Dwarves: like humans, but more bearded, tough, drunk, craftsmanlike, and Scottish than you
Half-elves: like humans, but (generally) worse than you
Half-orcs: like humans, but stronger, dumber, uglier, and more tragic than you
Gnomes: like humans, but smaller, trickier, and more troublesome than you
Halflings—
{exposition gets Sleight of Handed by Lidda}

Lidda: Okay, look, BEST case scenario for your view of us is in the not-so-Forgotten-Realms, the Stronghearts. “Just about like smaller humans.” Thanks.

But overall, we’re characterized as wandering, clannish, untrustworthy wagonfolk whose favored class is thiefrogue. Gosh, thanks for getting that prejudice all over me.

Oh, and don’t think I don’t know what’s behind the whole “hawt Lidda” thing, you freaks.

And don’t even. Get. Me. Started. On. Kender.

—————

*coughs*

So, yeah, fantasy racial stereotyping is a thing. That doesn’t mean one can’t play nonhumans, of course, but it’s just potential baggage, particularly if different players and/or DM have different expectations of the fulfillment and/or subversion of said stereotypes....

...which means it can come down to mechanics, and, yeah, humans.

[Karl Aegis]

Humans don't have stereotypical behavior, so they get to take on the stereotypical behaviors of whatever cult they belong to. Deity before race!

[Ninjaxenomorph]

I have a history of playing both, slightly skewed with more humans. However, it also extends to non-d20 systems such as Rolemaster or Palladium Fantasy.

While most of the reason is because humans are good at anything, a bit is that classes I like to play don't actually have a lot of really suitable races (I can think of three PFRPG races that give Str/Int, all of which are racial variants, and one Paizo tried to retcon for some reason). I guess I just enjoy the minimal baggage.

I've also enjoyed playing nonhumans, but the idea of not including humans in a setting is baffling to me. In the setting I work on, I've contributed a handful of races (plus added cultures to a few I didn't add), but my favorite contribution was adding a handful of human ethnicities. Because a player asking me "Why can't I play someone in your setting like me" is... kinda terrifying and awful to my socially awkward self.

[Tvtyrant]

I tend to play none-humans because I enjoy exploring cultures more then exploring individuals.

Playing an Elf I can get into the concept of a dabbler culture, where everyone is expected to be able to cook like a chef, garden rare herbs, cast spells and sew their own elaborate party costumes while quoting the latest philosopher-poet. Being moderately skilled at a large number of seemingly trivial things isn't something my own family cherished, no one cares if you teach yourself to speak French badly, but it is fun to explore socially.