D&D (2024) Should 2014 Half Elves and Half Orcs be added to the 2025 SRD?

[W'rkncacnter]

In material which covers areas which have been covered in the past, they're retconning existing named half-elf and half-orc characters into full elves and orcs.

 

[Mind of tempest]

Orcs have always been humanoid, but they've also traditionally looked extremely not human, looking fully like their own unique species.

But in the 5.5e art, orcs have been changed to look like humans with grey skin and sharp lower canines.

they should be green with bigger fangs minimum.

oh dear I can feel the nerd rage in the noosphere from this information as we speak.

 

[Maxperson]

Orcs have always been humanoid, but they've also traditionally looked extremely not human, looking fully like their own unique species.

But in the 5.5e art, orcs have been changed to look like humans with grey skin and sharp lower canines.

My favorite orcs are still the pig men version of 1e.

 

[Micah Sweet]

given they were made as purely xp speed bumps for 5 editions does not make them much of anything playable

I'm talking about the art. And they've been playable for decades.

 

[Micah Sweet]

to little human and it is hard to identify with it also it has to be humanoid for most weapons and armour to make sense

People didn't seem to have a problem identifying with orcs before 5.5's art.

 

[Micah Sweet]

How many of those are biological mixing of genetics and how many are supernatural entities? That may sound like a cop-out but consider this. A draconic sorcerer is said to have a draconic influence somewhere in their ancestry (be blood of the dragons, a draconic gift of blessing, etc). They get draconic abilities, but nobody says they're "half-dragons". They are humans (or whatever species) given some abilities of a dragon. They don't follow the rules of biological genetics, they're built different.

Many of your examples (but I admit, not all) follow that same idea. Shadow is a human with godly heritage. He's not a half-God. Probably closer to a Divine Soul in D&D terms. The whole Muggle/WIzard divide in Harry Potter doesn't change their species, despite the fact magic is genetically handed down. (So apparently is the Force in Star Wars). You wouldn't stat Aragorn as a Half-elf, nor Aquaman as a half-Triton. They are humans who have some special abilities that would probably reflect in a class feature, feat, or the like.

In Level Up, you could easily stat up Aragorn with the Human heritage traits and an Elf heritage gift, or vice versa.

 

[Maxperson]

Aasimar? Tiefling? Shifter? Dhampir? There are plenty of species that that are part mortal, part something else that can fill the same niche without busting out Punnet squares for game mechanics.

None of those are mixed race. Aasimar have a smidge of blood from the distant past, and Tieflings get theirs from a bargain made in the distant past. Dhampir are transformed somehow, not born that way. Shifters also have some blood from the distant past.

None of those qualify as a representative of a mixed heritage from your parents.

 

[Minigiant]

And, we're back to "MY preferred combos are legitimate because the rules support them. YOUR preferred combos are illegitimate because they lack rules support and thus cannot happen."

Honestly, I think at this point I would prefer NO intermixing period. None. No elf-human, no orc-human, no orc-ogre, nothing. Everyone swims with their own kind and is completely sterile to others. I'd rather have nothing, than an "only the good ones" system

Well are we talking about all possible combo or just the ones important to D&D, its history, and fantasy gaming?

Because only a few hybrids ever got screen time in fantasy gaming.

 

[Maxperson]

How many of those are biological mixing of genetics and how many are supernatural entities?

All of them involve genetics. Just because half the genetics come from a supernatural entity doesn't mean it isn't genetics.

Many of your examples (but I admit, not all) follow that same idea. Shadow is a human with godly heritage. He's not a half-God. Probably closer to a Divine Soul in D&D terms. The whole Muggle/WIzard divide in Harry Potter doesn't change their species, despite the fact magic is genetically handed down. (So apparently is the Force in Star Wars). You wouldn't stat Aragorn as a Half-elf, nor Aquaman as a half-Triton. They are humans who have some special abilities that would probably reflect in a class feature, feat, or the like.

Are you kidding me?! Shadow is literally half-god. His father is Odin! And I never brought up muggles. I mentioned Hagrid who is genetically half-giant, and there were two of those in the books, and Fleur who was part veela and had supernatural charisma from it. Aragorn's abilities are absolutely racial and he doesn't get stated as a half-elf. He gets Dunedain/Numenorean which have a different bloodline than half-elves. I'm also not sure what that comment about Aquaman means. You asked for examples of half-races in media, not D&D races in media. Aquaman qualifies 100%.

Just going off the top of my head I named 45 if you include the multiples in the books, or if you only count those as one instance, 14 instances. And I guarantee you I could find a ton more if I did any kind of research.

Half races are all over media, and they generally have a mix of abilities from their parents.

 

[Maxperson]

Well are we talking about all possible combo or just the ones important to D&D, its history, and fantasy gaming?

Because only a few hybrids ever got screen time in fantasy gaming.

It isn't the elven blood that makes the Dunedain/Numenoreans what they are. It's the Maia blood they received through Luthien. In D&D terms they would be closer to Aasimar than half-elves, having that distant upper planar blood in their veins.