4e Races I'd love to see, but probably never will:

[Phaezen]

Hobbits: Yeah, yeah, yeah. We have halflings. But halflings in 4e are more like 2e Kender, without any of the fun (or "infuriating", depending on whether you're playign the kender, or someone else is). I want to see hairy-footed, pipe-smoking, anti-magic hobbits. I'm sure I'm not alone.

Ok, so its not a WOTC release, but it is authored by a certain undead rodent...

Advanced Players Guide has "Shire Halflings" which might be to your taste. They are in the free preview here.

 

[Aeolius]

I've had my all-animal game "Nature of the Beast" on the back burner for almost a decade. 2010 might be the year I give it a go, as an OGL/d20 game run with maptools

 

[Scribble]

Grippli: Apparently, everyone else thinks the Frog People who love to hang out in jungle treetop villages, shooting poison darts at those who trespass in their territory and fighting a losing war against the Tasloi are stupid.

Phanatons: Flying raccoon squirrel people. Who can glide. And are superstitious. I love 'em. Quite a bit.

Count me in for these two. I would love to see them back in the game, even if they're just Dragon Magazine entries....

Also, I'd like to see a race of rat men of some type. Rat People are cool.

In my old 3e campaign I had a player who was a Centaur. It was an idea both of us were really excited about at first, but ended up being a pain in the...

 

[Wik]

Ok, so its not a WOTC release, but it is authored by a certain undead rodent...

Advanced Players Guide has "Shire Halflings" which might be to your taste. They are in the free preview here.

Yeah, I've got the APG, and I knew about them when I made my post. But when I made the post, I was thinking more along the lines of "Races WotC will never publish, because they go against game design philosophy". Which is why the fairy from CA, while super awesome, is one that I still think we'll never see in a hardcover book.

Ditto for talking animals (I can hear the designers "How would they wield magic items?"). Or Bauriars. Or, hell, most of the cool critters mentioned here. Which makes Wik sad.

 

[EP]

Yeah, I've got the APG, and I knew about them when I made my post. But when I made the post, I was thinking more along the lines of "Races WotC will never publish, because they go against game design philosophy". Which is why the fairy from CA, while super awesome, is one that I still think we'll never see in a hardcover book.

Ditto for talking animals (I can hear the designers "How would they wield magic items?"). Or Bauriars. Or, hell, most of the cool critters mentioned here. Which makes Wik sad.

Thanks. There's more from Allura Publishing in their Remarkable Races line that are FAR from being the type you'd see officially done. And by far, I mean another galaxy. They're not all exactly what everyone's looking for here but an interesting read if you want something far from the norm.

 

[Monkey King]

It's not exactly the Shadowrun ghoul, but the PC ghoul race in the Imperial Gazetteer does some of what you're after, if I do say so myself.

 

[Mercule]

I'd never heard of the Phanatons. I'd be up for that. The Gripli are the sort of thing I'd like to see in a MM appendix. Thri-kreen and Aarakocra are about the only two inhuman races I've ever been particularly fond of, so I'd love to see those.

I'd be happy to see the Elan, too.

 

[Silverblade The Ench]

Giff: Yeah, the hippos that love explosives and everything to do with the military. Yeah, I know they're a silly race. Yeah, I know most spelljammer races are kind of silly, but even then Giff take the cake. And Yeah, we'll never see them because then there'd have to be firearms, and how do you balance that? Still, sometimes it's fun to be an oddball. Speaking of which...
.

I LUV U!!!

"I love the smell of smokepowder in the morning!"
ah, good old giff, nothing quite says fun like a 900lb hippo-headed lunatic who's greatest joy is using a 44 ounce Magnum, the most powerful handcannon in the Universe!
Who cares if it blows up and kills you one day! Until then, it will be FUN!!
MUHAHA!!

Folk should never take D&D too seriously that they forget it's also about *fun*, you know!

WILDSPACE - Colour Sargeant Oakbrow

 

[Wormwood]

Another vote for fully supported Goblins.

(With apologies to Thomas Hobbes) I prefer my heroes solitary, nasty, brutish and short.

 

[falcarrion]

the turtle folk from a very early issue of dungeon magazine. They are on the cover. they would make a great nemisis to lizard folk and bullywogs.

They where called tortles from dungeon issue #6