Setting with no humans (or other fantasy races)

[Aeolius]

No equivalents to anything standard fantasy (well, D&D fantasy, that is). Except for one humanoid race, anyway.

I tend to take the approach that undersea is strange enough for most, so I allow undersea equivalents to many typical monster races - though I have altered them accordingly: Undersea Inspirations

And, I've been working on a setting recently, that has no humans, elves, dwarves, halflings, orcs, gnomes, etc.

As have I. I have finally started to flesh out my notes for my all-animal campaign, "Nature of the Beast".

 

[Herobizkit]

I know...I'm quoting the same thing again!

Herobizkit, your post actually inspired me to post anew in this thread:
http://www.enworld.org/forum/genera...tshell-adventures-sentence-9.html#post4924863

Check out post #180.

I checked it out, and I like it. The fact that humans are so un-special when compared to other races makes humanity, in fact, a Xander race. Despite their inferiority in every way imaginable, they still manage to succeed, flourish, and even drive other races to their knees for fear of their lives.

Your idea is pretty novel. The other races come to realize that the human mongrels exist for a reason, and that reason is now the Greater races' only hope.

Still, if you said "no humans", I'd say "swell" and ask to play a Half-elf.

 

[fanboy2000]

I think people would be receptive to the idea of no-humans or other typical D&D races if you presented it right.

It's been my observation that lots of people like to roleplay in worlds that they are familiar with. So, if you say "D&D with no humans or other typical fantasy races" some potential players may be turned-off because they're unfamiliar with non-human fantasy fiction.

So my suggestion is to (possibly re-)watch the Dark Crystal. It's a popular fantasy movie with no humans or other typical fantasy races (although gelflings are elf-like) and it's something the potential player can get into. What's also great about it is that it's only the one movie (sort of) of cannon, so you can satisfy any world-building bug you might have.

 

[Amphimir Míriel]

My current DM has his own campaign setting (which he has worked on for the last 15 years or so, adapting it to AD&D 2nd ed, 3.5 and now 4th edition) where none of the typical fantasy races exist (including humans)

Out of respect for his work, I wont go into any more detail (he dreams of publishing it someday), however I wanted to point out that while playing in his world, I sometimes miss humans as "the baseline" from which the rest of the races are described...

Also, in regular games, I tend to play human characters (usually "simple guys", salt-of-the-earth)

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Still, if you said "no humans", I'd say "swell" and ask to play a Half-elf.

Half-What?

I mean...one half is Elf, just like half of a Half-Orc is Orc...but without humans, what is the other half?

 

[fanboy2000]

Half-What?

I mean...one half is Elf, just like half of a Half-Orc is Orc...but without humans, what is the other half?

Dwarf.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Dwarf.

Soooo...they'd be Erfs and Dorcs?

 

[Aeolius]

...just like half of a Half-Orc is Orc...but without humans, what is the other half?

In the 1e MM half-orcs could be of human, goblin, or hobgoblin descent. I recall playing a half-orc/half-goblin once.

 

[Andor]

In the 1e MM half-orcs could be of human, goblin, or hobgoblin descent. I recall playing a half-orc/half-goblin once.

But was he an Orblin or a Gorc?

 

[Aeolius]

But was he an Orblin or a Gorc?

Before 3e and templates, I had troll/ogre hybrids called trogres and gnoll/troll hybrids called gnorts.

Granted, 3e presents other issues. Is the offspring of an orc and troll a half-orc troll, a half-troll orc, or an entirely new beastie derived from being half-orc and half-troll? And what happens when a half-troll orc falls in love with a half-ogre goblin?