D&D 5E List of All 33 Races in Mordenkainen's Monsters of the Multiverse

Jfdlsjfd · Jan 14, 2022

Irlo said:
Honestly, I'm not sure what makes that apparent to you.

The only direct quote I have seen to support the notion that halfling can be 6' tall was snipped from surrounding text that put the statement into context.

Maybe we'll have to wait for that book that none of us are going to buy.

It's in Strixhaven race options :

"Player characters, including owlin, typically fall into the same range of height and weight that humans have in our world. If you'd like to determine your character's height or weight randomly, consult the Random Height and Weight table in the player's Handbook and choose the row in the table that best represents the build you imagine for your character".

To be clear, the ability to "choose the row that best represent your build" is the ability to randomly roll from any race build. So, in Strix and "going forward", your S halfling (or owlin) can be 5'6"+2d8 like anyone else.

Note that this is a setting book, so maybe PCs in Strixhaven are a deviation from standard, but WotC stated it would be the standard presentation going forward and they kept to their word with Strixhaven. We'll see how they do that in future books.

Irlo · Jan 14, 2022

Galandris said:
It's in Strixhaven :

"Player characters, including owlin, typically fall into the same range of height and weight that humans have in our world. If you'd like to determine your character's height or weight randomly, consult the Random Height and Weight table in the player's Handbook and choose the row in the table that best represents the build you imagine for your character".

Note that this is a setting book, so maybe PCs in Strixhaven are a deviation from standard, but WotC stated it would be the standard presentation going forward and they kept to their word with Strixhaven.

To be clear, the ability to "choose the raw that best represent your build" is the ability to randomly roll from any race build.

Got it. Thanks!

Arilyn · Jan 14, 2022

AcererakTriple6 said:
No, that's the general ruling on player races. Specific (the size of Goblins, Kobolds, Fairies, Halflings, and Gnomes) beats general (the "player races are typically the same size/weight as humans" statement).

I covered this in this post. The confusion in this thread about the statement was largely due to one poster lying about/misrepresenting the statement as some sort of "all races all the time are the exact same size, weight, and age as Humans". What the statement is really about is a quick shorthand of "oh, most races fall into this, but if a specific race isn't, it will say so in its description".

It's 100% in line with D&D 5e's design philosophy. There are general rules, and there are specific ones. No contradiction, no absolutes.

This is true of ages too. Typically members of races live to 100, but there are exceptions. The typically word is getting skipped over. WoTC is not going to fling open the doors to 6' halflings and gnomes.

Levistus's_Leviathan · Jan 14, 2022

Arilyn said:
This is true of ages too. Typically members of races live to 100, but there are exceptions. The typically word is getting skipped over. WoTC is not going to fling open the doors to 6' halflings and gnomes.

Yep. The most recent UA with the Astral Elves even mentions how they live to around 700 years old when not on the Astral Plane, so WotC is clearly not 100% homogenizing the player races. They're just making things simpler so they have more space for the important stuff (game mechanics, lore, etc).

Gammadoodler · Jan 14, 2022

Cadence said:
I mean, the freakishly strong helps explain why they're not bothered out there a little more.

Of course the similar phenomena makes goblins and kobolds seem scarier.

I had not considered halflings as being the threatening local species. I do like it but it's a little having a biker gang...but they live in the suburbs.

Where are the mobile tent cities that carry news and tales between nations, treehouses at the crossroads traversed by rope swings and faith, villages built into shoreline cliff faces accessed via riding albatrosses and skyships, or wasp-like hives in the city where you can find all kinds of goods if you're willing to sing for it, seafaring caravans in search of the perfect spice.

The template lends itself to so many interesting interpretations and the one they went with was..homebody. It's... fine ...I guess.

Faolyn · Jan 14, 2022

Micah Sweet said:
That leads to a bigger question: should every race be equally good at every class? Not just capable, but equally effective? I've never thought so, and historically they haven't been, but it sure seems like that's what people want now, and WotC is catering to that desire. Small wonder then that the aesthetics of race are eclipsing the mechanics.

The thing is, you're not playing "a race." You're playing an individual of a race. It may very well be that elves don't make good barbarians and halflings don't make good wizards (or whatever). But that doesn't, and shouldn't, mean that your PC is mechanically limited. It also doesn't, and shouldn't, mean that I as a DM can't decide that in this world, elves are a barbaric people and halflings are accomplished magic-users.

Gammadoodler · Jan 14, 2022

Galandris said:
It's in Strixhaven race options :

"Player characters, including owlin, typically fall into the same range of height and weight that humans have in our world. If you'd like to determine your character's height or weight randomly, consult the Random Height and Weight table in the player's Handbook and choose the row in the table that best represents the build you imagine for your character".

To be clear, the ability to "choose the row that best represent your build" is the ability to randomly roll from any race build. So, in Strix and "going forward", your S halfling (or owlin) can be 5'6"+2d8 like anyone else.

Note that this is a setting book, so maybe PCs in Strixhaven are a deviation from standard, but WotC stated it would be the standard presentation going forward and they kept to their word with Strixhaven. We'll see how they do that in future books.

That does seem to be the way it reads. It is potentially dissonant with creature sizes, though how much so really comes down to your players.

But ultimately it's more a recognition that character dimensions have almost zero mechanical impact no matter what numbers you put on your sheet. You just have to be too big for a keyhole and too heavy for mage hand.

Faolyn · Jan 14, 2022

Galandris said:
I think the criticism is that it removes on of the already very few differentiating element. I don't want to speak for others, but I'd bet that most people in the slow halfling camp would like to have them be a little less strong than humans, if speaking such idea aloud was still possible in civilized company.

Races size are already not emphasized, to the point players can forget about it easily: one of the human characters at my table tried to hit on a halfling NPC. He was reminded that the halfling was "approximately the size of a 3 years old..." The player was... suddenly ill-at-ease ;-)

I was running a game that took place in a halfling river port town. I mentioned prostitutes. The orc's player asked if they were all halflings. I said yes. He then said "I look at the prostitutes, then down at myself, sigh, and move on."

Vaalingrade · Jan 14, 2022

Faolyn said:
I was running a game that took place in a halfling river port town. I mentioned prostitutes. The orc's player asked if they were all halflings. I said yes. He then said "I look at the prostitutes, then down at myself, sigh, and move on."

He knew he could never satisfy, poor guy.

Older Beholder · Jan 14, 2022

I can't see myself getting these updated books anytime soon, if I end up playing with people that do, I imagine it will work a little like the Ranger class from Tasha's where you pick and choose from either book to best customize the character you want.