Fantasy Races: Hungry for Creative Races and Racial Traits

[celt]

In my homebrew, there's a subrace of lorekeepers (gnomes, but could be something else) who live always near what they call "sacred lakes" and that are lakes situated on a lei node.

I'm definately going to have an equivalent of lorekeepers. The job will be done more by a guild then a race, though. I think I picked up this idea from "Touched by the Gods" from Atlas Games. Another excellent book that I highly recommend to people. On the spectrum between crunchy and flavor I definately tend to appreciate flavor more. I think Atlas has some great writers. At least they communicate to ME.

 

[celt]

Sarellion and Vlos I've partially responded to your messages within my previous replies. Thanks!

I'm in the process of creating a new setting for an upcoming game, and I wanted to create solid hooks for all the core races, so I came up with...
Dwarves: First great civilized race, now near extinction, in decline both in terms of influence and physical stature (they never call themselves dwarves)

I was totally affected by having played Morrowind on my PC. In Morrowind they have the dwarves as one of the great founding races that began tinkering with technology and eventually wiped themselves out through an unknown (but guessed at) technological mishap! The dwarves never appear physically in the game but you FEEL them all over the place. I kept waiting for them to step out from beind an Oz-like curtain and say something like "let me expain . . ."

Also, I want to come up with names for the classic races but I'm afraid my gut reaction will be to keep referring to them as elves and dwarves no matter what I do. Or that the players will eventually bring us back around to the classic names. Is this a winnable battle? Can I call them the "Varushnacoc" and have it stick? I love the fact that the name change alone makes you reconsider the race.

Elves: The highest order of faerie, royalty of the Undying Court, have to spend a few centuries as mortals traveling the world before they can return to their brethren

Love it. I'm totally going to play up the Faerie/Elf link. There's so much beautiful lore available there that I'm not going to muck around too much. I really like your angle of them being able to get "home". Roleplaying will proceed from that idea easily. I'm hoping I can have this core beauty and a surface of Nazi-like hatred of the other races co-exist. Maybe with the idea that the players will have an effect on Elf groups or individuals and help them see how *wrong* they're acting. Ooo, i got all free-form there.

Gnomes: Lesser faeries can be trapped in mortal form by spiteful humans; they are especially prized as wizards' assistants

No Gnomes for me! Done with them! They come with too much boring baggage for me to want to bother. I'd rather slap a good idea on almost any other noun. You can have all MY gnomes!

Halflings: Sometimes human children stop aging; "Halflings" are considered touched by the devil and cast out of human society; some are playful and immature, some are twisted and demented; they travel in packs

This is NASTY! I love it! Absolutely! Holy crap! What a great angle. What a way to wake up a race that was run-down and lingering in mediocrity. You blew me away. Did you come up with this idea?

Orcs: Just as the race of man has surplanted the race of dwarves, so to do the orcs wait to surplant the race of man

Interesting, kind of has a "Planet of the Apes" feel to it. I might have my orcs working as jackbooted thugs for my Nazi Elves.

Many thanks for these great ideas!

 

[Gez]

The dwarves never appear physically in the game but you FEEL them all over the place.

Actually, one do.

Spoiler

Check the caverns under the Corprusarium, at Tel Fyr, in Zafirbel Bay.

 

[physics_ninja]

You can also try Nyambe. It has halflings, elves, gnomes etc. but gives them new names and abilities. There are also around 18 human tribes given with descriptions. Here is a brief rundown of the non-human races;

agogwe -- wild man halflings (not cannibals)
unkutulu (spelling) -- wise dwarves
kitunusi -- shadow gnomes
unthalatu -- half dragon/half elf (sort of)
(cant remember the name) -- tree dwelling elves with tails.

Check it out. You'll be glad you did.

 

[Dirigible]

One way to differentiate races is by how they are perceived by others. Frex, I played in a campaign where elves were viewed by humans as mystic pixie-type creatures with pots of gold... when they were in fact muderous, powerful sidhe-like beings (though very rare in humans lands, luckily for the treasure hunters).

 

[Remathilis]

some races I've designed/played with:

Nekolin: A race of nomadic cat people, they have strong senses of pride, honor, and are a bit materialistic (some mildly greedy, some wantonly). Basically, they love the finer things in life and have some pretty big egos.

Merlane: At one time, it was believed the merlane were human/merfolk crossings, but now they are thier own race. They have feat, can breathe air and water, and are peaceful, serene and shrewd diplomats/negociators/traders between the land and surface worlds.

Grasslings/Grass Nymphs: These dimulative humanoids are rumored to be part fey, part plant (grass). They are free spirits, inquisitive, and prone to hiding from anything bigger than them. They are exceptionally quick runners, able to cross a plain of grass in mere hours.

Orgallion: These humanoids are thought of to be ogrish brutes, but nothing can be farther from the truth. They are large, hard working hulks that love drinking, sports, athletics, and displays of strengh. Generally, they are peaceful until provoked and put more emphasis on strength, not smarts.

Vassal: Long ago a powerful necromancer-king infused his subjects with potent necromantic magic and vampire blood. The result was a race or near-humans, gifted with heightened senses, improved restistances and combat prowess, but weak against necromancy magic and opressed into submission by thier dark lord.

If you want full write ups, e-mail me and I'll send them to you. (any or all).

 

[am181d]

Also, I want to come up with names for the classic races but I'm afraid my gut reaction will be to keep referring to them as elves and dwarves no matter what I do. Or that the players will eventually bring us back around to the classic names. Is this a winnable battle? Can I call them the "Varushnacoc" and have it stick? I love the fact that the name change alone makes you reconsider the race.

One possibility with this is to let "dwarf", "elf", etc. be the human word and then work with the nonhuman PC players to push the "racial name." ("You have called me a dwarf for the last time, barbarian! Now taste Varushnacoc steel!" Or, um, something like that.)

No Gnomes for me! Done with them! They come with too much boring baggage for me to want to bother. I'd rather slap a good idea on almost any other noun. You can have all MY gnomes!

Gnomes were the trickiest race to carve out a place for, but I like the image of a bitter keebler elf looking guy, who's lost his ability to spin straw into gold, so he's bussing tables at a grubby roadside tavern.

This is NASTY! I love it! Absolutely! Holy crap! What a great angle. What a way to wake up a race that was run-down and lingering in mediocrity. You blew me away. Did you come up with this idea?

I'm pretty sure that the halfling as "human children who stop aging" is original to me, though it draws equal inspiration from faerie tales about changeling babies, the children of the corn, and the ocassional "let's pass the halfing off as a little kid" plot.

 

[Tenbones]

You want races with hooks?...

One word: TALISLANTA

Damn!! that's three words... no wait now it's seven. DOH!!! now it's eleven!!

Grrrrr....

 

[Sir Whiskers]

Races of Evenor I and II are available at RPGNow. You can take a look at some freebies at:

http://www.silverthornegames.com

 

[greywulf]

Second vote for Talislanta. That gameworld/rpg could conjour up more with a single picture of a race than any number of nouns and verbs.

Jorune comes a close second, and Mythic Races is just......well..... that's one book I pore over and giggle mercilessly. Freaks the players out mid-game though.

As for races ideas, all human core stock, and some shamelessly borrowed from other sources because it's late:

A race of human monks that can phase through solid stone (think Relg from the Belgariad, complete with emotional hangups).

Psionic Normal sized cyclopses. Wise, secretive as to their powers but hopeless with a bow.

The Unspoken, a race of humans who remove their childrens' tongues as part of a coming of age ceremony before revealing a Great Secret.

A human race that ages in reverse. Born in coccoons as old folk, eventually become halflings (to take a cool idea from above)

Homeless. A race that seek the path to their true home. Wrapped in religious symbolism, clearly non-native tongue and clothing, favoured class Ranger. Considered mostly harmless by other races, have strange pacts with Elves and demons.

Make the Druid class a Race. It's members gain the ability to shapeshift, lose the spellcasting ability but gain advanced camouflage (hide, invisilibity, etc) as they age until they eventually lose themselves ot nature rather than die.

Blink Humans. Like the Blink halflings from Mythic Races, but....well......human. Mingle them in society and Fear Their Power. Enemy of the Displacer Humans. Mmmmmmm. Folks with tentacles growing from their shoulders. Yum.

Frail, dark eyed, grey skinned sorcerers.

A race obsessed with chance. Desicions are made by rolls of special dice, lots of superstitons, high failure change for spellcasters but big unexpected bonuses too.....