Anybody Can't Be Anything

I like the concept of 'race as class' in BX. The designs are thematic and iconic, and they force you to learn the unique style the race brings to the table. The Elf in Old School Essentials is an arcane caster, while the Drow are divine casters (with web also added to their spell list). Both can use all types of weapons and armor. There is clarity and clean design here, and OSE does not face the problem of 'too many races' because each must support 'race as class' while retaining its thematic design.

If you come from an AD&D point of view, where "anyone can be anything," the design gets muddled, and the thematic choice of a race is very weak. Nothing is special. An elven fighter can't cast spells, whereas an elven wizard can't use all the weapons and armor. In essence, all races become human variants, and typically, humans get an extra buff and still are the best choice in the game.

We lose more than we gain.

Before we had plate-mail-wearing 1d6 hit die elves that could use a bow and fling a fireball at level six.

After, we have a d4 hit die magic user who can't wear armor and uses a dagger or staff, and can't fire a bow. But they are an elf. I guess. Maybe infravision and detecting secret doors? Immunity to ghoul paralysis? Who cares, just pick human.

We lost that flexible, unique, iconic, armor-wearing, and bow-shooting elf who could cast magic spells for another human variant with infravision. The race-as-class elf is a uniquely crafted class that is, in essence, a multi-class option specially reserved for the elf. Humans can't do that, nor should they. In later editions of D&D, any race is anything, anyone can multiclass, and every option feels the same and is flavorless. There are very few viable multi-class builds. No race is special. Nothing is.

If I want a special Drow "spider rider," I will get out my BX class creation book and craft one. It is not too hard, and I will have a unique, thematic, and interesting choice based on the current Drow class, but less oriented towards divine spells and more towards mounted combat underground. Sort of a mix between the current Knight class and a Drow.

Or, as a one-off, I could use OSE's "race plus class" system and do a one-off pick for that NPC, and allow a "Drow knight" and be done with it. Most Drows will be the race-as-class pick, but there will be exceptions to the rule, and the OSE rules allow this. You can do this for exceptions, or you can do race-plus-class for everything.

I like the race-as-class designs in OSE enough to make them the standards in a campaign world, and leave the exceptional cases as one-offs for iconic NPCs. Having all elves knowing magic and being able to wield bows makes them exceptionally dangerous and cunning foes, and makes messing with them a very lethal affair. The Orcs should think twice about entering Elven forests.

In a race-plus-class world, most Elves are fighters, and who cares? Most everyone is a fighter, the orcs, too, and we lose the danger and iconic nature of Elves and their kin. Who has magic? All Elves do.

That is a compelling and cool campaign world.

It beats out the muddled, later "iconic" realms such as The Forgotten Realms and Greyhawk easily. We are not assuming "all Elves have magic" because "AD&D does not require it." Thus, the study of arcane magic goes back to Human norms, magic schools, and high wizards, and we assume this is true for the Elves, too.

Race-plus-class worlds adopt a human-centric perspective. We look at everything through a human lens.

Race-as-class worlds feel far more compelling and unique.