Footsoldier races in module series/homebrews

[Nifft]

I dunno. "Footsoldier race" just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

I've used members of many races as footsoldiers... humans, hobgoblins, mezzoloths, strange insectoid psionic critters, albino drow (or "thurns" as we call 'em)... different humans... er... yeah, lots of different kinds of footsoldiers.

-- N

 

[Corinth]

Orcs, Gnolls, and the golbinoid races usually do the trick for me.

 

[Lord Morte]

Hmmm... I've used hobgoblins and gnolls in my current campaign. Planning on using elves (LE ghost elves), dragon-worshipping orcs and lizardmen. Lots of lizardmen...

 

[Mighty Halfling]

I dunno. "Footsoldier race" just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.


-- N

By footsoldiers, I meant grunts, as Nightfall suggested.
Thanks for your input to all, any more from the Monday morning crowd?

 

[rounser]

More interesting options than the usual suspects include gibberlings, qulan, meenlocks and fire newts, all of which perhaps deserve more footsoldier status than maybe they get...perhaps because gibberlings and qulan are extremely chaotic, meenlocks only likely to be led by some sort of meenlock lord, and fire newts because they only tend to hang out near volcanoes.

Among the standard humanoids, I think gnolls and flinds are my favourites - I'm surprised to see so many others thinking the same way, actually. Half-trolls present some easier footsoldiers than a full-blown troll in a troll army, though trolls generally aren't used because they're far too savage and unlikely to follow commands. Maybe the half-trolls keep them in check like slave drivers.

 

[Hand of Evil]

I have two for different enviroments (underdark and surface). You can't go wrong with hobgoblins, organized and warlike for the surface and trog for the underdark.

 

[Psion]

Humans and Gnolls, and the occasional hobgoblin.

Though I have used Drow and Yuan-Ti as villain races, I never field them in big enough numbers to label them "footsoldier" race. (More "elite unit" races.)

Orcs never interested me. In my old campaign world, they are a race in decline. You can find a few isolated communities of them, but they aren't a major threat.