D&D General Kara Tur 5e

I don't see there being a good reason for Spirit Folk being a separate species in 5e, either they're a Planetouched species like Genasi, or they're Elves. With there being East Asian Elves featured in the PHB art (such as on the back cover), there's absolutely no reason for certain PC species not existing on this side of the world like they had in the old books.
Hmm, I’d have to strongly disagree. Elves and dwarves are very distinctly Western, the D&D versions of Tolkien archetypes and European myths, and there shouldn’t really be Japanese elves or Chinese dwarves.

There are of course Asian myths which resemble those archetypes - orang bunian are often portrayed as looking elven in Malaysian films but that’s basically cultural shorthand, they’re quite different.

If there are going to be spirit folk then I’d like it to be clear what myths they’re based on and what role they play in the setting - as written in OA they’re basically nymphs and I have no idea what Asian myths they’re supposed to be representing.

Going back to East Asian myths there’s definitely room for shapeshifters, which are basically Feng Shui transformed animals - animals who have attained sapience and the ability to take human form from living for a very long time (the Korean versions are often called “thousand year old tiger” or similar) or by meditation and enlightenment.

Other non-human races are a bit less obvious and possibly not necessary, and so yes then you could take the “elves and dwarves are just funny looking humans” route that the recently announced Japanese Kara Tur adventure has apparently taken.
 

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Hmm, I’d have to strongly disagree. Elves and dwarves are very distinctly Western, the D&D versions of Tolkien archetypes and European myths, and there shouldn’t really be Japanese elves or Chinese dwarves.

There are of course Asian myths which resemble those archetypes - orang bunian are often portrayed as looking elven in Malaysian films but that’s basically cultural shorthand, they’re quite different.

If there are going to be spirit folk then I’d like it to be clear what myths they’re based on and what role they play in the setting - as written in OA they’re basically nymphs and I have no idea what Asian myths they’re supposed to be representing.

Going back to East Asian myths there’s definitely room for shapeshifters, which are basically Feng Shui transformed animals - animals who have attained sapience and the ability to take human form from living for a very long time (the Korean versions are often called “thousand year old tiger” or similar) or by meditation and enlightenment.

Other non-human races are a bit less obvious and possibly not necessary, and so yes then you could take the “elves and dwarves are just funny looking humans” route that the recently announced Japanese Kara Tur adventure has apparently taken.
There's not only East Asian Elves in the PHB, the same picture that has an East Asian Elf has a Gnome with African features in it. The Halfling species art, has a Halfling mother and her child that look South Asian. The Iconic Cleric Picture in the PHB is of a Dwarf with East Asian features. The Iconic Rogue is a Halfling that looks like she's Latina.

It's done, they've outright gone with the "Elves and Dwarves are funny looking Human route". Those justifications you mentioned above do not fit with the Inclusiveness they're going with. It's why for example even in the picture of Elves as a group, they show at least one Elf that looks African and another that looks East Asian (despite having green skin and orange hair).
 

There's not only East Asian Elves in the PHB, the same picture that has an East Asian Elf has a Gnome with African features in it. The Halfling species art, has a Halfling mother and her child that look South Asian. The Iconic Cleric Picture in the PHB is of a Dwarf with East Asian features. The Iconic Rogue is a Halfling that looks like she's Latina.

It's done, they've outright gone with the "Elves and Dwarves are funny looking Human route". Those justifications you mentioned above do not fit with the Inclusiveness they're going with. It's why for example even in the picture of Elves as a group, they show at least one Elf that looks African and another that looks East Asian (despite having green skin and orange hair).
Yes, that’s fair, and as such I’ve got no problems with that. Spirit folk aren’t elves, though, I just have no idea what they are. If the writers don’t know either, they probably shouldn’t be included.
 

Yes, that’s fair, and as such I’ve got no problems with that. Spirit folk aren’t elves, though, I just have no idea what they are. If the writers don’t know either, they probably shouldn’t be included.
In OA they seemed to be the offspring of mortals and semi-divine nature spirits. Sort of a liminal space between Genasi and Aasimar.

I'd like to see the existing species used where appropriate. It makes too much sense to not just say korobokuru are the local name for forest gnomes.

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In OA they seemed to be the offspring of mortals and semi-divine nature spirits. Sort of a liminal space between Genasi and Aasimar.

I'd like to see the existing species used where appropriate. It makes too much sense to not just say korobokuru are the local name for forest gnomes.

View attachment 413498
It’s not a bad match at all, since they’re based on this Ainu myth:


They’re probably not dwarves.
 

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