I was reading Phantasmagoria #1 and the 2019 Gongfarmer’s Almanac and came across two specific things that gave me an idea.
GA19 has a Faerie character class. Phantasmagoria has a Gremlin class. I don’t care much for the standard DCC Elf class.
So I’m going to combine them!
My idea, and this is still in the rough stage is the following…
Fae Folk
At character creation, when rolling Backgrounds, there will be a Fae background. Rolling that, gives you a sub table of Faerie, Sprite, or Pixie. All three are fundamentally the same in terms of powers and abilities. They can fly, they are tiny, they use tiny weapons and equipment, their alignment is Neutral, and they have limited innate magical abilities. Physical appearance wise, Sprites have wings like bees or dragonflies, Faeries have wings like butterflies, and Pixies don’t have wings at all. Skin and hair color can be any color imaginable. Clothing is optional.
Still with me?
When the zero level Fae character reaches 1st level, they get to choose a path of advancement. They can stay a faerie, sprite, or pixie and remain Neutral in alignment (and a first level character will get increased and cooler powers and abilities, of course). These dudes are like the peasants/commoners of the Fae folk, while elves are more like nobility and goblins are black sheep.
OR
They can choose to be a Lawful Elf or a Chaotic Goblin.
Elves
Elves are like the fae nobility. Their alignment is Lawful as they are members of the Seelie Court and know and abide its laws (at least when someone important is watching). They are fighter/wizards like in standard DCC RPG, but their patron is ALWAYS an Elf Lord (either the King of Elfland or one of the several elf patrons from Angels, Demons, and Beings Inbetween Volume 2: Elfland edition). Elves no longer get free Mithril shit at level one because it doesn’t make sense and is dumb. Instead they gain the following cool power; Magical sneakery! They can move silently and leave no tracks in snow or dirt, and make no sound when walking on dead leaves or sticks.
Goblins
Goblins are Chaotic and small. They owe no fealty to any elf lord or lady. They aren’t necessarily evil; more like mischievous. They enjoy playing pranks, sabotaging technology (like the Gremlin from Phantasmagoria), and avoiding actual work. Goblins have some limited spell casting ability like summoning small nasty critters, spoiling food and drink, and stuff like that.