It's almost always an option in my games; if lizard men exist in the setting, they're playable, and if I designed the setting there's lizard men in it. So far, I've had very few players. Certainly, any D&D game I run is going to allow lizard men PCs, especially since they're considered a staple Spelljammer race.

My Wandering Stars setting has the Sauren, that are lizard/dinosaur/dragon men. Last time I ran the game, I had one player take me up on it, playing a Sauren wizard engineer.

The native Venusians in my Cascade City setting are more straight up lizard men, but I haven't run a game in it yet-- and if I do, I'm likely to limit PCs to humans or possibly even Earthlings.

The first D&D novel, Quag Keep had one.

I'd have allowed it in D&D, but no one was interested. I'd have allowed it in Runequest too. It wouldn't be advantageous since lizard people are a weaker than humans species, but I'd have allowed it. Nobody ever asked. My wife did run Donn the Duck, a Gloranthan Duck from Sartar who talked like Donald Duck and became a Wroon Pwriest of Humakt.

Quote from: Shipyard Locked;873262Not counting dragonborn from 4e and 5e, have you ever offered lizard men as a playable race in a fantasy game? Would you?

Yes and yes.

Quote from: Shipyard Locked;873262Did anyone take the option? How did it go? Did it lead to any interesting RP?

No one bit, which I'm assuming (and I'll state straight out, I could be dead wrong) that it was due to the inherent inhumanity of the species, and the perceived inability to function in a city environment (actually, I would have set aside a 'lizardman' section for when they come to trade.)

Quote from: Shipyard Locked;873262Not counting dragonborn from 4e and 5e, have you ever offered lizard men as a playable race in a fantasy game? Would you?

Did anyone take the option? How did it go? Did it lead to any interesting RP?

Yup - way back when D&D 3 came out, I believe. I offered a lizard man, and my friend Allyn took that offer. Everyone loved Sssssakah (or his name sounded something like that). i think he used to lick his eyes, or something like that (the PC, not the Player).

Quote from: Molotov;873421Yup - way back when D&D 3 came out, I believe. I offered a lizard man, and my friend Allyn took that offer. Everyone loved Sssssakah (or his name sounded something like that). i think he used to lick his eyes, or something like that (the PC, not the Player).

Thanks for clarifying. Otherwise I might have thought your player was this girl.

I recall some Saurigs (per the Arduin Grimoire) back in the day; a lizard man was a character in Andre Norton's Greyhawk-inspired novel Quag Keep, as I recall.

More interesting was an all-Dragonewt scenario using personality trait rules -- prototype for the rules in Pendragon -- from Wyrm's Footnotes.

The first character I ever played was Phoebus, from Rogues Gallery, who had been reincarnated as a lizard man.  I've had a soft spot for them ever since though I've mostly DMed and only been able to play them a couple times.

One was a very civilized and intelligent runt of a reptile man in GURPS.  Nobody thought him safe once he'd torn a few people's heads off with his teeth.  Bite and thrash for the win.

Lizard Men have been a playable race in Palladium Fantasy since probably the 80s.
I've never played one, as it never seemed appropriate for any campaign I've been in.

Yes. Used Lizard men from the 2e expansions for Lizard Men and Saurials.

And for 5e allowed the Lizard men from Southlands Heroes.

For BX we used the custom class system from Dragon.

Quote from: Christopher Brady;873415No one bit, which I'm assuming (and I'll state straight out, I could be dead wrong) that it was due to the inherent inhumanity of the species, and the perceived inability to function in a city environment (actually, I would have set aside a 'lizardman' section for when they come to trade.)

Weird, their 'inhumanity' is what would attract me and several other players I know to playing one in the first place.

Quote from: Shipyard Locked;873459Weird, their 'inhumanity' is what would attract me and several other players I know to playing one in the first place.

Well, if he's correct in it being the, "the perceived inability to function in a city environment," then it is the challenge of playing the outcast role. That's a fun role to attempt, but certainly a challenging role.

Quote from: Willie the Duck;873465Well, if he's correct in it being the, "the perceived inability to function in a city environment," then it is the challenge of playing the outcast role. That's a fun role to attempt, but certainly a challenging role.

It can be challenging to both sides.  As stated above, the inhumanity might be a draw for some people (not the people I played with, but I never asked, and it's been over a decade that I spent any time with some of them), but it's also a challenge to the DM/GM.

I mean, how do you make it so that they can go into a civilized place and not get chased out without feeling contrived?  That's assuming that Lizardfolk are meant to be considered outcasts or 'alien'.

Very few societies and communities are that accepting, so how?

It can be a lot of fun, but it can be a hassle for both sides.

I'm willing to try, but none of the people I played with back then didn't seem to care enough to, just happy to be elves and orcs and dwarves.  (Now that I think about it, no one wanted to play Halflings or Gnomes...)

GURPS Fantasy Folk had reptile men.

OD&D allowed anything via the DM

Also AD&D sort of had them via the reincarnate spell. There was  an iconic one in the rogues gallery named Phoebus

I'm not fond of them but I generally prefer humans only.

GURPS Fantasy Folk had reptile men.

OD&D allowed anything via the DM

Also AD&D sort of had them via the reincarnate spell mentioned upthread

And David  Johansen were you  the original Phoebes?  Wow. That guy was kind  iconic to me in that it showed the weirdness that is D&D

Personally I'm not fond of them outside of very classic AD&D

Sorry for the 3rd post, I'd appreciate if #28  and this was deleted. For some reason edit is borked and the info in #28 is redundant since I went back and read the thread again