D&D 5E The Fall Of The Dwarves: What Races Do People Actually Play?

What races are people actually playing, and how much of it is Tolkien fantasy as against other stuff?

Fortunately D&D Beyond provides a better source of data than we've ever had. The most recent data from less than a week ago in December 2020 alas does not provide percentages.

1. Human
2. Half-Elf
3. Dragonborn
4. Tiefling
5. Half-Orc

In February 2019, using stats found via this very site:

1. Human
2. Variant Human
3. Half Elf
4. Tiefling
5. Dragonborn
6. Wood Elf
7. High Elf
8. Half-Orc
9. Goliath
10. Mountain Dwarf
11. Lightfoot Halfling
12. Hill Dwarf

Which is a bit of a change from what people were creating in launch month for D&D Beyond (mid 2017)

1. Human
2. Elf
3. Half-Elf
4. Dwarf
5. Tiefling
6. Dragonborn
7. Genasi
8. Halfling
9. Half-Orc
10. Gnome
11. Goliath

The percentages are presented in different ways in 2019 and the launch month, with launch month merging the various subraces. So to compare like with like:

• Wood elves and high elves taken together in the 2019 data are more popular than half-elves (or variant humans)
• Meanwhile if we split the wood elves and high elves from 2017 they are probably both behind tieflings and dragonborn
• Dwarves taken together in 2019 are only just behind dragonborn. They've still fallen from ahead of tieflings and dragonborn to behind them
• Halflings combined in 2019 are neck and neck with half-orcs and ahead of goliaths
• Genasi combined in 2019 are a little behind goliaths and slightly ahead of combined gnomes

Interesting that dwarves have fallen so heavily out of favour - and half orcs have climbed so strongly into favour; I guess there's been a lot of talk here. The thematics of tieflings and dragonborn (entirely unsurprisingly IMO) have made them core races and even the dwarfs are disappearing in favour of half-orcs (which IMO is a surprise).

 

[doctorbadwolf]

In my new game in progress, Dwarves live anywhere from deep underground to in deep dark forests, most notably Germany's Black Forest. They cannot be poisoned by ingestion, and can metabolize nearly any organic material, and even some minerals, meaning they can eat moss and if necessary stone, and they can get drunk but they don't suffer hangovers. A dwarf can also make themselves immune to hunger for weeks or even months at a time by loading up on difficult to process food, because their system will just keep it until it's processed, even if it takes months.

They have clans, and Kings (any ruler is a King, regardless of gender), non-binary gender identity is as common as male and female, and whether they have a beard or hair is dependent on a hundred different social, professional, religious, and other factors, from your trade, your place in your family, your standing in the community, etc.

Their culture is very gift-exchange oriented, and family is as determined by deed and loyalty as by blood.

 

[THEMNGMNT]

In my homebrew world, I've just decided to mash up gnomes and halflings into one. There's just no meaningful difference between them. I mean, if there can be 100 different flavors of elf, why can't little people do the same?

Regarding dwarves, I think there's room for reimagining them. The artificer aspect definitely has potential. Duergar are a bit of a conceptual mess with their psychic powers, devil associations, and worship of a god of toil...but somewhere in there are the makings of an Underdark-themed dwarven subrace.

 

[J-H]

My party:
2 dwarves (cleric & barbarian)
2 half elves (arcane trickster & paladin)
1 half orc (artificer)
1 wood elf (monk)

My characters:
Human (wizard)
Human (druid)

Races I have concepts for that I'd like to play:
Halfling
Half-orc
Human

 

[Hexmage-EN]

In my homebrew world, I've just decided to mash up gnomes and halflings into one. There's just no meaningful difference between them. I mean, if there can be 100 different flavors of elf, why can't little people do the same?

I personally feel like gnomes are conceptually very different from halflings. Gnomes are curious, passionate creatures with a knack for magic: rock gnomes are tinkerers and artificers, forest gnomes are effectively woodland fey, and deep gnomes are dour survivalists who find joy in gems (which, in Out of the Abyss, at least, they can turn into what are effectively reusable spell scrolls). The Fade Away feat reinforces the magical feel, as does the Svirfneblin Magic feat.

Halflings don't have as much of a clear gimmick. Back in 4E the designers realized this and tried to give halflings a role as the primary traders, the people who feel most at home on the move, the ones who travel the road and ply the river waters. The default Points of Light setting had the goddess of luck, trade and travel as their patron. There was also a brief nod to Birthright's halflings with a bit of lore about a certain group of halflings who discovered secret paths through the Shadowfell.

5E got rid of the niche 4E tried to make for halflings and replaced it in Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes with a pastoral one. Whereas in 4E halflings were lucky partially because they pleased the goddess of luck and travel (who includes among her commandments "luck favors the bold"), in 5E halfling luck refers to an apparently supernatural protection that causes halfling settlements to be overlooked by monsters.

Duergar are a bit of a conceptual mess with their psychic powers, devil associations, and worship of a god of toil...but somewhere in there are the makings of an Underdark-themed dwarven subrace.

I really liked 4E's fiendish duergar (save for the strange beard quills) and in my own current campaign have decided that the duergar god Laduguer is merely a false persona for the archdevil Mammon, who himself is only playing the role of a false god for Asmodeus until the god of the Nine Hells decides to increase his presence in the Underdark. Depending on how things go in the campaign, the party may be tricked into defeating the priest of Laduguer only for a half-fiend duergar with a half-fiend fire giant ally to seize control in the name of Asmodeus.

 

[Weiley31]

Perhaps one nice thing about playing as a Dragonborn is the fact you can actually reskin it to be somebody who is Half-Dragon. So Dragon Monster Girl/Boy. Cuz if I'm not gonna play the Dragonborn as the 3.5. lore version, that's probably would I'd play a Dragonborn as.

 

[Zsong]

Dwarfus Gigantus?

 

[steeldragons]

Seems Dwarves are perfectly set up for a long series of campaign... Something in which where they have a complete surprise of a "Return," p'haps... Possibly with some kind of "Revenge" being sought... yes... A "Rise" of sorts... good... good... It's bubbling... coalescing... This will work... I want to run it... I've seen this somewhere before...HAHA! YES!

 

[Voadam]

That was a fantastic cover. Dwarves as barbarians from the 1st Conan Movie.

 

[steeldragons]

That was a fantastic cover. Dwarves as barbarians from the 1st Conan Movie.

You can never go wrong with vintage Elmore.

 

[NaturalZero]

I went with the communist dwarf theme too and I'm currently playing a duergar that defected to the surface to escape fascist duergar society. The grey dwarves exalt a joyless work ethic and unending toil in order to enrich their masters, and the whole culture revolves around slavery and hierarchy as default institutions. He's looking to create a society that raises up the worker against the tyrannical Laduguer and the pursuit of profit for the elite. I tossed the cliched scottish dwarf accent for russian.