D&D 5E Half races as sub-races? (+)

[Laurefindel]

Well, like I've mentioned before, if we stop calling them different races, and started calling them what they really are - different species, being a "half" something would be such a loaded term.

Ironically however, If they are different species there cannot be any sustainable half-lineages…

On the other hand, this may explain why only some of them are compatible enough to produce offsprings. Half-elves are the liger of D&D, and half orcs are the zorses, all sharing the same genus? Should they be sterile!?!

 

[cavetroll]

That reads as an incendiary statement.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

The term "halfbreed" is pretty much as bad as "sub-races" tbh. For some folks probably worse.

um... I mean we are talking about numbers on a sheet of paper, not real people, but if you have another word for them I will listen

 

[Deset Gled]

This probably needs to be a (+) thread if anyone wants to discuss the original topic instead of just terminology about the half- races.

 

[deganawida]

Personally, I'd love to see half races removed entirely. Not just because "humans are horny devils" is eyeroll worthy, but it makes other races too mundane (even if they are things like half elf and half orc instead of half elf and half human).

That said, if you have to have them, sub-races are the way to go.

 

[Stormonu]

Heritage?

 

[Horwath]

If we get bonus feats at 1st and 4th level as per latest UA, we could get Aasimar, tiefling, shifter or similar as 1st level only heritage feats.
Something like 3.5e regional feats.

4th level feat could work more on that heritage if one feat would be too "cheap" to get all features of a sub-race/heritage/whatever.

 

[Stormonu]

I'm not sure the term sub-race will be well received, but works for the thread.

What would be the difference with a human / half-elf and a elf / half-elf?

I also do not get the point about having a orc who is also a half-elf (which is part human and part elf)?

Orc/half-elf has no human. You may have been thinking half-orc/half-elf, which would be a human/orc/elf mix.

Also the assumption is you can’t take a “half” of the same base race - so no elf/half-elf.

 

[Laurefindel]

Orc/half-elf has no human. You may have been thinking half-orc/half-elf, which would be a human/orc/elf mix.

Also the assumption is you can’t take a “half” of the same base race - so no elf/half-elf.

Well, we DO have quarterhorses so, quarter-elf?

...back to the OP. I enjoy the current set-up because it offers a broad(er) diversity. If base human was a bit more crunchy, having subraces for human would make more sense but I don't see how half-orc/elf/aasimar/tiefling could be transcribed as such without becoming very same-y. Maybe I'm wrong; they all have darkvision after all, but that's not something they inherited from the basic human package.

At the moment, half-elf / half-orc feels more like variations on elves and orcs than on humans. If anything, I'd suggest making half-elf a subrace of elf. Then again, the half-elf is the only race that has both "halves" in the PHB; there is no full orc to slap a half-orc subrace on, let alone celestial or fiend...

 

[Corinnguard]

You might want to check out Level Up. They've got a simple, general way to do any mix of heritages.

Niklanna is right above Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition. In A5e, race is broken up into Heritage (who your parents were) and Culture (the society you were raised in). Currently there are 8 heritages in A5e (Dragonborn, Dwarf, Elf, Gnome, Halfling, Human, Orc and Planetouched). Each heritage gives you traits that you have in common with other members of your heritage plus 1-3 heritage gifts. To make something like a Half-Elf, all you need to do is pick up a heritage and make it your base heritage, and then pick one of the other heritage's gifts.

So you could pick the human heritage and one elven gift, or pick the elf heritage and one human gift to make your Half-Elf.

No need for templates. Just the Narrator's approval.