Drow as a LA+1 Race?

[Gorfnod]

Subject says it all. Thoughts on this in general? Drow have always seemed a weak +2 LA but maybe too powerful for +1 LA.

It seems that the tipping point may be the spell resistance. A low-op game where the spell resistance may stop a lot of problems tips them to +2 LA but in a higher-op game where characters (casters in particular) are aware of drow spell resistance and would prepare for it in general then +1 LA may be more applicable. These are my thoughts, what do the rest of you think?

[DeAnno]

Drow would be fairer than many +1 LA races/templates at low levels.

[Amphetryon]

Subject says it all. Thoughts on this in general? Drow have always seemed a weak +2 LA but maybe too powerful for +1 LA.

It seems that the tipping point may be the spell resistance. A low-op game where the spell resistance may stop a lot of problems tips them to +2 LA but in a higher-op game where characters (casters in particular) are aware of drow spell resistance and would prepare for it in general then +1 LA may be more applicable. These are my thoughts, what do the rest of you think?

Let their SR come online around ECL 5 and call LA+1 fair, would be my suggestion. LA+2 makes them frighteningly fragile as a PC race.

[FMArthur]

I don't see why pre-ECL 5 shouldn't get it. Lacking a hit die and taking a Constitution hit is some very serious fragility, especially at low levels. I don't think some protection from being casually blasted and dropped is out of line when you're likely to die from even a nonmagical stiff breeze. It only scales by level anyway.

[Morithias]

Really compared to some of the other drow stuff. The drow race itself is rather weak. I'd take the LA +1 Lolth-touched template (+6 str, +6 con, fearless, +4 hide and move silent) from monster manual 4 over a basic drow almost any day. Of course the base drow becomes a lot more attractive if you play with LA buyoff.

[ericgrau]

High OP means you have to reduce all LA, not just drow. SR is fairly underrated considering that half of all enemy spells used against you simply fail and the drawbacks from friendly spells are fairly easy to circumvent. At low level it's also not a bad idea to reduce all LA because of how painful it is to have only 1 or 2 HD.

So sure, it might be a good idea for your particular group, but I'd do the same for everything else that's 2 LA. Or if you're still borderline adding/removing a major +2 ability score is often a handy way to bump a race up/down that last little bit.

[Darrin]

These are my thoughts, what do the rest of you think?

You can play a Drow with LA +0 if you use the Savage Progression (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/sp/20040213a) rules. But yeah, SR is the sticking point. Too powerful at lower levels, then more of an annoyance at higher levels.

[Varil]

Just drop the SR, I say. Without it, they're probably about equal to a Whisper Gnome...which a lot of people say should be LA +1 anyway. Light blindness is super easy to get around, a 120' darkvision is pretty nice, particularly early on.

[Gorfnod]

Thanks for all the input. It seems like I had it about right in my head. I'm going to go with the +1 and see how it goes.

Thanks again.