WoW's Race/Class Limitations (Should Gnome Druids exist?)

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About WoWcrendor
Professional nerd, mediocre comedian and expert non-content creator.

Wowcrendor

[e-wookie]

If gnome druids happen, they need to have cub forms. If mechagnome druids happen, they need to have transformer forms

[Angus_MacFarlane]

It terms of druids, it makes sense at the moment seeing as all races have entered the Emerald Dream multiple times now and saved it.

[slaytonbryant]

To me it makes some sense, these races have worked and lived together for years so I wouldn't be surprised to see a dwarf who has helped druids so much to be like I'm gonna try it out.

[ElbyHere]

I think one of the most interesting things you can have in an RPG setting, tabletop or otherwise, is having a character that is an exception to established rules, and unorthodox class/race combinations is one of the most obvious examples of that. Like you said, it's easy to imagine some people of a race doing something different from the norm, because, well, they're a race, made up of people, being a gnome doesn't make you have to like nature-damaging technology any more than being Italian means you have to like pasta. Hell, even in that example, you could come up with something like, maybe your gnome loves developing technology that's specifically designed to help with nature restoration. More options just give more avenues for creativity.

I do acknowledge that most people in Warcraft are not going to care anywhere near that much, and I do think there's something to be said about seeing loads of Gnome Druid (or whatever other example) running around can take other people out of the world a little bit, but I think it's something that'll balance out over time and be more interesting in the larger scope.

[hollandlogtenberg]

I’m super torn on this concept, because on the one hand, not being race bound for certain classes would be nice. I’ve wanted to play Paladin more for ages but I don’t really like the available races for Paladin. But with that being said, I’m also super into the lore implications for each race having certain classes. I remember during the first class expansion, when Trolls got Druid, and I thought to myself “Well yes. That makes perfect sense. The Trolls feel very in tune with nature, and are related to the elves, so why not give them Druid? It just makes sense.” But the idea of the others does feel a bit strange to me. But Of course, as someone else pointed out in the comments, these races have been working and interacting together for so long that it would make sense that things would be taught and shared. Why wouldn’t trolls or Tauren share Druidic practices with the already shamanistically inclined Orcs? Why wouldn’t the Draenei teach the Night Elves the way of the light as Paladins? It does make sense… :’) I do hope that WoW is at least somewhat thoughtful with how they roll this out, but I do get their motivation!

[Shadow.Darkraven]

gnome druid makes a lot of sense, so small they are closer to azeroth than any other race

[AKImeru]

The first time they expanded class options they explained 'well these groups lived together so they taught their ways to each other"

A Night Elf from Warcraft 3 and a Night Elf from 2023's WoW Dragonflight have canonically co-existed with the Alliance for 15 (!) years.

[TheTimberwolfGrey]

I think Dracthyr Druids would be fun, personally. Let me fly around as a whelpling lol

[Ten_Tacles]

Perhaps new class/race combinations should be locked behind a questline we would have to do ingame.
We find an area where nature is all angry and messed up, and we aid a druid in fixing it. Then we discover that a gnome accidentally messed it all up, who vows to never do it again, and wants to study under the druid so they can make their tech more in tune with nature, not against it, unlocking gnome/druid combo for our account.

That would give us a lore reason on why we couldn't before, but now can and also why one would.

[algernopkrieger]

As a gnome druid you can pet battle directly. Real time pet dungeons with 5 gnome druids.

[MattwosRandomNonContent]

Gnome or Goblin Druids could still pick up engineering (and with classic engineering you can specifically specialize in goblin engineering). In fact any druid can. It just happens to be associated with those two in particular and the only reason to not have skinning and leatherworking as a druid is if it's an alt to another character with leather armor. In classic, us hunter mains basically _had_ to have engineering to craft our own ammo though.

[Xenomonkeys]

I remember back in Burning Crusade, there was a gnome studying druidic magic in Outland, that would have been enough lore to put gnome druids in later expansions. Gnomes didn't have priest for the longest time, but they put them in eventually. People should be able to play whatever race/class combo they want, especially since Blizzard can just make up a lore reason like with everything else. Fun should come first, not restrictive mechanics.

[kevanchicago]

I agree with what you said about staying away from this in Classic. People play Classic for Classic. But they could totally make it work in Retail. They could have different starting zones for what class you choose. Like a goblin can start in Mulgor or something

[nathanwinters]

Personally I feel that the races that would be least-likely to be a class would be the spiciest story set up. Like Goblin's can already be Shaman, despite the fact that they literally pollute every environment they settle in. Where things could be interesting are for say, Undead Druids. It sounds stupid, but you can actually design some really cool models and spell re-textures to make it fit. Instead of thorns, bone shards jut out of them like porcupines. Instead of rejuvenation/fixing their flesh it falls off to reveal new flesh beneath. It can get super gruesome in a way that wouldn't fit a Taruen or a Night Elf. Kind of like the undead's inverse faith of the Church of the Holy Light- The Cult Forgotten Shadow. Lead by the Shadow instead of the Holy.
It opens up newer ideas which in general is good. But it needs to be handled in a particular way that I do not believe Blizzard will do. Undead Druids will still do the same things as Living Druids and that's where the disconnect is going to hit, in the same way that my Goblin Shaman is calling upon the elementals; there are pretty much no Goblins in WoW that show the capacity to use Shamanistic power in the way the Lore describes. Dark Shaman, maybe, but not Shaman.

[Draconzis]

I actually like class restrictions, it makes each race feel more unique and can reflect the lore, abilities, and ideals of the people those races are a part of. It seems Blizzard has the opposite view though and are going heavily towards 'player choice' and I fully expect all vanilla classes to be unlocked within the next few expansions.

[its_deer]

coming from wow but now playing GW2, where everyone can be anything, I think it' the way to go. roleplaying is the most fun if you're able to get creative and come up with your own race class combination and backstory if you want to. does it make more sense for a gnome to pursue the path of a mage or warlock over being a druid? sure. but imo that should not keep them from trying.

[MattwosRandomNonContent]

4:47 Also Demon Hunter and Evoker... Doesn't even make sense that there's BElf DHes but they had to make it for both sides form some dumb reason like they did with making shaman and paladin available to both sides. I just can't see evoker on other races because it's so intrinsically linked to Dracthyr in so many ways that it would just not make any sense on any other race. Not just in a lore sense but also in a logical sense. Like some of the Evoker abilities are basically just Dracthyr racial abilities.

[astrealove]

For obvious reasons they shouldn't do all race/class combos in Classic.

But for retail they really should allow for all race/class combos, because that's good for gameplay, it's too restrictive to not allow Blood Elf Druid or Night Elf Paladin or Tauren Warlock.

[thewerdna]

I think in current lore it actually works quite well, as in lore its been 15 years since the start of the game. Plenty of time for say a few orcs to go learn how to be a druid from the tauren or like a night elf learning to be a paladin from some humans. The factions have been established long enough for that to be starting to, while still uncommon, happens now and then.

[Dandelion_Stitches]

I'm all for opening up all classes and races combos. The only one that really feels odd at all is Lightforged Warlocks, but even that, I'm fine with the lore they added to handwave it. For everything else... yeah, bring it on. No logical reason why any race couldn't be basically any class at this point. Saying a gnome can't be a shaman or a druid is like saying a black man can't be a doctor. It's fine if you want to keep that in classic, but modern WoW doesn't need that kinda stuff weighing it down.