Topic: Making Profession in Area Stand Out from Other Areas

[RandalThor]

And I am pretty-sure Conan can handle some venison-still-on-the-hoof, though his sidekick Andy may have a problem.

[Cory Magel]

I wouldn't penalize a group too much for race selection.  To a degree, if you have a group of power gamers you are going to have to try and adjust without alienating them out the door.  I think the most important factor in encouraging/discouraging certain things (Race, Heavy Armor, packing around a lot of gear in general, openly carrying what would really be unusual weapons, etc) is simply the attention it draws to the party.

Imagine...
...someone in full plate walking through a 'big' city.
...someone carrying a Heavy Crossbow or large 2H Sword around with them.
...a mixed or off race group entering certain communities.
...horses which obviously have a lot of gear packed on them.
...the reaction an armed and armored group could get traveling along the road.

And that's just the basic stuff.  Then start thinking about more unusual things, like a Animal Companion for example.  Anything other than a dog is going to get some serious attention in most settings.

You don't have to be in a game where the party is trying to keep a low profile for the attention they draw to become a noticeable problem.  A party of adventurers could often be compared to a group of fully armed and prepared soldiers walking through your yard.  What would be the typical reaction?  Depending on what part of the world you are anything from hiding in the house and peering at them through the curtains and maybe calling the authorities to organizing a decent sized lynch mob are distinct possibilities.

[RandalThor]

The best way to deal with this situation, I believe, is to just make sure you know the world and its people well, and when the players go to make characters, you be there. So long as you make sure they don't run away with character creation, and make one that would fit in your world, then it should be fine. They need to fit together as a group as well, though I don't subscribe to the: 1 warrior, 1 mage, 1 rogue, & 1 cleric group philosophy. (I started to put that to music in my head as I typed, weird.)

The only other way I can think of is for you to make the characters yourself. The players tell you the generic type of character they want to play in the world & campaign you present to them, but you are in charge of the "nuts & bolts" of the character. Not many would go for this, but it is an option.