WotC Salvage: Alternate, clever, weird, or just plain *different* interpretations of the races

[Chaosmancer]

Another salvaged piece from the shutdown.

Do you have an alternate interpetation or variation on one or more of the races that you want to share with others? Are you in search of an alternate interpretation of a race? Looking to spice up your character or campaign, and break out of "the norm"? Looking to surprise your players or DM?


Then you've come to the right place!


The goal of this thread is to collect and present different "versions" of the races of D&D (especially the "classic" ones) for the benefit of helping players and DMs break the mold, if that is their goal.


D&D has a long history of creating alternatives to the races, some for the purposes of variety, and some for trope-busting. One of the core conceits of Dark Sun was to present the races in very different terms. Eberron does this too, to a lesser extent.


So contribute away! Your contributions could range from new sub-races, complete with homebrew mechanics, to simple fluff changes that change the way you look at a race (those are my favorite, btw). They don't even have to be yours! If you've come across something you think is cool, share it! As more are contributed, I'll collect them here in the first post (inside spoiler tags) so this thread can become a repository for DMs and players to mine for ideas.


I'll start things off:


Dwarves who refrain, if not outright refuse, to use hammers (and maybe axes) in battle because of the hammer's position as a sacred tool. To stain a hammer with the blood of enemies is to do it a great dishonor, and its purity as a tool of creation is forever tainted.

Orcs who refuse to eat other sentient races, not because they care about their rights or nothing, but because dwarf tastes like rubbered sweatsocks, gnomes are full of transfats, halflings aren't meaty enough to be worth the effort, elves carry diseases, and humans smell so bad that their sensitive orc noses start to burn.

In my setting:


The two Gith races are always born as twins: one Yanki, and one Zerai. They are two bodies that share a soul, and so that soul is split between them. Yanki receive the soul's passions, its courage, wit and drive for adventure, while the Zerai gets the contemplative side of the soul, the discipline, and the diligence. When a Gith dies, the soul transfers entirely into the linked individual, forcing him or her to experience the full weight of the soul for the first time in their life. This can be very traumatic.

In Foxfaces's excellent collaborative world project, I mentioned the idea of a band of elves that wear helmets or visors whenever they are out in the open in public, and only take them off when they are in specially prepared rooms that is shielded with a special type of curtain. You never see them converse in the public and they act through couriers. I will leave the reasoning behind open so others may use it, but I had my own reasons that I may play out if I run a campaign again.

My gnolls in my world are all born male. As they age they grow aggressive and lash out on other races. Once they kill enough poweful wildlife or intelligent beings, a gnoll will grow female body parts and turn female. Gnolls need to kill to ensure the survival of their species, making them dangers to others if not sicced on a common enemy. Clans trade "innocent males" for breeding purposes so their males are feel to kill and turn female.


My orcs are a magically fusion of elf, human, ogre, and dwarf. They were created by the elves are grunts for their war with the hobgoblins. Orogs and half orcs are random appearances in orc births programmed in by the elves for smarter or tough soldiers.


My gnomes use photosynthesis. A gnome can live off the fat in his or her body for a year if provided with 12 hours of sunlight, enough drinking water, and movement is minimal each day. Well "sunned" gnomes do not need sleep.


Halflings culture revolves areound food by choice. The entire halfling society revolves around a stict food based caste system. Cooks, waiters, farmers, butchers, fisherhalflings, knife makers. stove mages, and dishwashers are all castes. Most halfling thieves are butchers, waiters and knifemakers tired of their jobs.

In the Realm of Quindia, wood elves have been replaced by savage elves (at least on the prime material plane - the Feywild is the source of PC wood elves), thirteen nomadic tribes that range through the Jungles of Omeer. The differences are mostly cosmetic - war paint, accoutrements of bone and animal hide, masks of totem jungle animals, etc. In 5E game terms, replace proficiency with the long sword and short sword with the spear and javelin. Their alignments tend more toward neutral than good.

In an Egyptian setting a group of wizard priests attempted to use ritual magic to become closer to their gods. They failed. The results of their work turned on them and nearly destroyed their civilization. In the aftermath of the war the humans had retreated to their once great cities, the countryside became overrun with the new beings called god children:


lizardmen
gnolls
minotaurs
leopardmen
lionmen
winged vulturemen

Some alternate flavor for 4e devas:


Devas whose souls become corrupted are reborn as . . .


Dark Devas: Deep in the recesses of memory, devas recall what they once were: immortal servitors of the gods of evil, spirits forcefully bound to the world in mortal flesh. For millennia, their souls have been reborn to wage an endless war against the forces of light.


This supplants the default flavor of corrupted devas being reborn as rakshasas (see PHB 2). Devas and dark devas are essentially ‘pallet swaps’ [MK Ninja-style] of the same race, light and dark, good and evil. This gives devas of all alignments raison d’etre.


All devas were once angels; there was never a sundering [like there was between eladrin, elves and drow for instance]. For this reason, dark devas never work against their own kind (non-devas are fair game of course). The conflict within their hearts hinders constructive interaction with other devas, so most dark devas choose to keep themselves separated (and vice-versa). This ‘gentleman’s agreement’ holds in part, because outside of their immediate circles, devas are largely isolated from one another anyway.


Perpetual rumor aside, rakshasas are not corrupted devas, reborn in an alternate form. Legends say that they stole the secret of reincarnation from devas. Or more disturbingly, perhaps they ‘borrowed’ it from dark devas. Neither side is telling. As far as rakshasa are concerned, they even improved upon the process: Rakshasa reincarnate immediately upon death and remember their previous lives (devas do not).

I've tried to tweak most races in my homebrew setting. Major notes - this is an archipelago setting, and most non-human races have fey ancestry, similar to elves. Big influences on this setting were the Earthsea novels, The Voyages of Sinbad and other Tales of the Arabian Nights and Celtic folkore. Civilisation level is 'enhanced classical' (ie more advanced than you might think!)


Biggest change is probably:


Goblins - in addition to having fey ancestry, the majority of savage and 'monster' races (including goblinoids, kenku, kobolds, gnolls, and so on) are 'phenotypes' of goblin. That is, when a goblin is born (or perhaps comes into existence) it does not matter what its parent is; it has a completely random chance of having a heyena head (gnoll) crow head( kenku) or some other crazy random deformity (other races). Some of these types like to cluster together in particular types of environment (like kobolds) but plenty of them will all mix in happily. So an encounter is unlikely to be "just goblins" but rather a random mix of several different savage huanoids, all of which are technically goblins - they could even be members of the same family!


A bit more background on the fey heaviness - fey and creatures of fey ancestry are roughyl divided into seelie and unseelie. These two groups and often nicknamed "elves" and "goblins" respectively, even though sveral different races actually make up each type.


Dwarfs are much more magical than in other worlds. They live on mountain rather than in them, and are solitary or live in small groups. They are prophets, sages, philosophers and mystics. The too have fey ancestry and claim to be Seelie, though in fact lots of evidence points to them, along with gnomes, being Unseelie.


Wood Elves are very terratorial - like tigers, each elf constantly patrols it's own area. They meet up for festivals but are otherwise pretty solitary. They mark their bordes with grisly totems. They are stern and quiet.


High Elves live on invisible islands and other magically hidden places, often magically shaped hollow hills. They are pretty friendly though when they take a liking to somone. They are very good sailors when they can use magic to aid them.


Halfings are renamed Raftlings and live in villages of houseboats lashed together, Many of them never set foot on dry land.


Tieflings deformities can take many forms but can usually be kept hidden. They are heavily mistrusted but are actually mostly good, trying to make up for nthe sins of their ancestors who rules the previous empire before it fell. A few notable noble families are secretly tieflings.




I also made space for most other 4E races with their own twists (eg the extremely rare Warforged are made mostly of exotic wood). I'm not sure how 5E will change things just yet but can't wait to get back to this world (at the moment we are playing Lost Mines without changing much as written).

For me, High Elves are fae and are the Seelie Court. Drow are Fae and are the Unseelie Court. I kinda hate how D&D changed ot so Elves are no longer Faerie.

You know, something that might be considered is now throwing race into your world willy-nilly. Think about the niches each race is trying to fill. What is about them from a fundmental design perspective that is different from humans. Try to create a range of archetypes. Maybe even set up your archetype system and THEN consider what race to put into each and then disclude any races that double-up. If you don't do this you'll almost certainly end up with races that are criminally under-utilized.


You see these same archetypes pop up not only in D&D and other fantasy games, but to some degree you'll see these same archetypes to various degrees in Star Wars, Star Trek, Guild Wars, Mass Effect, Final Fantasy... basically in successful franchises, even when people don't have 'elf' and 'dwarf' you still see the same basic archetypes pop up.


Examples....


1. A race that is beautiful, graceful, intelligent, long-lived and seemingly perfect in every way. Perhaps also to a degree detached, logical and lacking in a certain spark of wild passion (for if a race is passionate and emotional, how could it possibly live very long)? They probably even have an advantage on mysticism or technology. Generally you should only have one race like this in the world, but it can be divided between a beneviolent sect and a malicious sect who might go by different names.


2. A race that might be tough but probably lacks a bit in overall physicality. Might more than make up for those failings via use of magic or technology. This race should be conservative, orderly and structured using strictly upheld rules that they try to hold others to since through construction of these rules they can get the advantage. They ought to be very good at things with a very solid and structured foundation, crafting, economics, construction, etc.


3. A race that is highly energetic and brilliant, but generally lacking pretty severely in physicality. Probably has a significant advantage over the other races in terms of magical or technological power. They should be generally extroverted and talkative, sharing ideas between each other but also listen well and remember everything people say to them. Their high intellect ought to come with a certain spark of madness that might blind them to more obvious, easier or direct ways of handling situations, but don't take this to a too exaggerated extreme. This archetype likely tries to avoid violence and prefers to handle thing socially, at least among its general members. They might also be swindlers.


4. A race that is highly physical, but orderly and restrained in a very militaristic manner. They ought to be quick to follow orders and give them too. Clever and tactical, but also quite willing to handle things directly when it is the most expendiant solution. They likely lag behind other races in terms of magic or technology, but not terribly so. This race is probably found lacking when it comes to artistic spirit, beauty and compassion. They are certainly violent and arrogant, maybe even go out of their way to dominate other races, but are also honest and sincere.


5. A race that is just beastal. Maybe driven to madness by the moon, maybe universally filled with ever brewing anger and strife, or maybe simply not all that far removed from a predatory or territorial animal ancestor. They have short fuses and resort to violence quickly. Always takes the most direct and obvious route to solving their problems, knocking down barriers with sheer force of strength and will rather than trying to find a way around them. In a fight they are scary, but they probably to some degree lack the intellectual and most certainly the mystical and technological skills to really keep up with other races. Probably quite primitive and probably quite ugly... or at least very animal-like in appearance.


6. A race whose primary defining feature is being smaller than everyone else. This can come accompanying some other advantage-- for instance, they might be fantastically advantages when it comes to mystical or technological powers or the race might be advantaged in the fact that they are constantly aware of their surroundings and how to use what is in them to their advantage or that they have a special bond with the wild or... something..., but... alternatively, a more dull route could simply be to make being small their only defining feature and exaggerating the benefits of small size while downplaying the disadvantages. This is the only categoy where you can probably get away with multiple races particularly if they are rivals, but D&D has too many filling this niche. No more than 2-3.


7. And the opposite-- a race that too large for the world it lives in. With great strength and toughness, but also big clumsy hands that are almost certain to break whatever it handles. Maybe they can carry more, maybe they can use larger weapons, but they also have a hell of a time navigating. They might be slow, particularly when they get caught up in difficult terrain, or they might be severely lacking in both intelligence and social skills (and certainly lacking all mystical and technological benefits). The point is that they are bigger than all the other racial options.


8. An artificial race. A race that is functionally physically adult, but they could either be impossibly young or impossibly old and left lost and forgotten somewhere until awakened. They don't have any real experience in the world, they almost certainly don't have real emotions and they have never been raised. Their minds might be empty or might be filled with bookish knowledge, but they almost certainly lack a lot of social skills and maybe even the knowledge of how to properly care for themselves. They probably have great advantages over a non-artificial person, both physically and intellectually, but at a severe cost of social and creative abilities. They might even get 'stuck' in situations and have a complete mental meltdown when non-artificial beings would be more willing to engage in trial and error experiments until they find a workable solution. A race like this might need to be reacharged or regulated instead of eating or sleeping and their special method of doing so might come with special restrictions that most don't have to deal with.


9. An instrutable primitive or alien race that is wildly distantly or not at all related to the other races. Lacks any form of common communication and may lack the ability to even speak works as we would be able to comprehend them due to lack of similar biology (no vocal chords or very differently shaped mouth). You can cheat and give them telepathic communication, but then it becomes an advantage rather than a disadvantage and you should balance them accordingly. A race like this is almost certainly massively advantaged in some other way-- be it physical, mental or mystical.


10. A race born with a particular curse that basically defines them. It leaves them marked and everyone recognizes that they are marked and this puts them at a serious social disadvantage. This curse almost certainly gives them some sort of great magical, but possibly physical or even technological edge that others can't match... problem is that others will not help but to perceive them as enemies and treat them as such.


11. A race that is generally 'at peace' with the world. Slow, ponderous but driven and decissive in its actions when it is able to act. They probably live very simple lives as monks, farmers, shepards, nomads or shamans and are certainly poor and wanting for basic needs. They are probably universally beneficial and are good listeners who can also impart a good deal of common wisdom and objective insight. They probably act very dower and somber or at least just way too serious or blandly serene. They likely have great mystical and physical advantages, but have little drive to utilize them-- particularly in violent, aggressive ways. Of course, this sort of race probably lacks the drive and ambition to become adventurers as their culture and nature is all about finding so much contentment in the simple things in life others take for granted.


I think that pretty much covers it. There might be a few more that could fit without stepping on any other toes. I would probably think it nice to make this list to 20 or an even dozen, but I did note that you are probably going to have both a good and evil version of #1 and you can probably get away with more than one 'small' race so long as they have clearly different advantages balancing being little. I would be interested to see anyone come up with an archetype I missed.


Anyway, what I would suggest doing is looking at this list, getting rid of any archetypes you generally just don't like and then checking off that you have a race that fills each archetype you want in your world and you aren't doubling-up. You can also tweak them a bit though this might start making them too unrecognizable and too difficult to relate to unless you have cool accompanying art. Anyway, the nice thing about understanding the underlining archetypes is that when you go to create NPCs and you have a certain idea of what you want that NPC to be like, you kind of know which race you are going to default to unless you want them to be a slightly unique member of their race-- in which case you choose a different one but their race's fundamental archetype will still probably color their behavior to a degree... And, even better... let's say you are creating an NPC and decide to determine the race randomly. You roll, get your race and then so much of the NPCs personality, behavior and habits is pre-selected so long as you play them as a pretty average member of the race.
You can't really do that so much if you have 30 possible races, consider only 10 of the races of your world as PC/NPC-worthy regarding the other 20 as monsters to be killed and you hardly know much of what defines those 10 beyond their general size and shape.


Remember to account for both your protagonist and antagonist races and really, really only try to use each archetype only once or your races are going to come across as way too limited or your world is going to come across as a wild endless menagerie with certain races being criminally under-utilized in order to give more time to their identical counterparts. Or the differences between the races will seem so slight and muddied that the only real differences is what make-up the actor is wearing that day.
D&D probably has way too many races. For instance, I think Half-Orcs and Half-Elves should probably be removed and replaced with regular Orcs and something more clearly distinct (probably a smaller Ogrekin), there are too many kinds of Elves, there are too many small races, Dragonborn seem wholely unncessary and don't really have a meaningful archetype beyond 'they are related to the most badass monster in the game' and what distinction they have beyond that is too identical to Hobgoblins who have already existed in the game for far too long. The Tiefling and the Aasimar could probably be merged into the same basic thing so long as their outsider blood makes them look freaky and makes people not like them, frankly, they stole and exaggerated the concept of the Half-Elf and Half-Orc anyhow about being 'curtsed' by special mystical blood further nullifying those races having a purpose.


You might be able to go beyond these archetypes if you were doing a very political-based game and wanted to use other races as certain extreme forms of certain political ideologies that you would like to hold up for examination. In such a case you could get away with a Communist race, a Fascist race, a Libertarian race, a Republic race that runs their government on logic, an Imperial race and expedience, a Theocratic race, a Plutarch race... In such a case none of the races really even need to differ from humans in terms of physical, mental, technological or other abilities to any great degree beyond perhaps what their extreme political ideology might suggest. A number of races in Star Trek really fall more into that sort of category. Mind you... you could overlay this onto the archetypes I have given above. Certain archetypes tend to find certain political ideologies really, really well and that could give them an extra layer of depth.

I've been tinkering away at a homebrew setting based on a random draw of the Small World board game [for those not familiar, the game has tiles for races (elves, trolls, orcs, dwarves, etc) and powers (diplomatic, wealthy, seafaring, etc) that, when randomly paired together, can make for very interesting combinations]. These are the combos I'm bringing to my world:


Flying Dwarves - Displaced during the Cold War of the Gods, the dwarves live upon a series of enormous earth motes (their former mountain homes) flung skyward when Pelor escaped Torag's prison deep underground. Being master engineers, the dwarves developed a means of using the soaring stone and wood of their earth motes to craft elaborate skyships that could fly them through the air like birds. This has enabled the dwarves to become the masters of long-distance trade throughout the known world.


Seafaring Halflings - hailing from a pair of pastoral islands in the middle of the Crystal Sea, the halflings' small size and natually tough feet have made them some of the best sailors in the known world, and their presence is highly prized even on human ships.


Wealthy (Half-)Elves - Three centuries ago, the Adventuring Prince of Calontir found himself unexpectedly coronated as King following the untimely deaths of his father and four elder brothers due to plague. Never one to listen to his father's bureaucratic courtiers, he defied tradition and married his elven lover, a fellow adventurer. As a result, his heirs were all half-elven and, because marrying elves had become "fashionable" amongst the nobles, so were the heirs of Calontir's noble families. Over time, this resulted in an aristocracy that was composed almost exclusively of true-breeding half-elves (aka Khoravar), their inhuman beauty visibly distinguishing them from the purely human commoners they ruled. While the greater stability fostered by the longer lives of their rulers helped make the nation wealthy, the racial divide between the social classes has resulted in that wealth being largely excluded from human hands (and they're rather bitter about that).


Forest Kobolds - Instead of inhabiting caves and dungeons, the kobolds of the known world inhabit the forests and litter them heavily with traps. Basically, they're Ewoks. You'll be dead before you even realize that they're there.


Diplomatic Orcs - [This was easily my most interesting draw]. The Orcs are a caste society, segmented by natural ability rather than familial bloodline (given the orgiastic nature of orc mating season*, familial lines are blurred at best). The mighty warrior caste of Joruk raids and pillages, but the canny gentry caste of Karjhuuk is intelligent, charming, and just as ruthless. The common caste of Thaark consists of the simple orcs, not strong enough to be Joruk or clever enough to be Karjhuuk, who do the simple labors and serve as cannon fodder in times of war (as opposed to raids). The civilizations neighboring the orcs usually pay one way or another. Either the diplomats of the Karjhuuk caste secure the danegeld (protection money) from them or the warriors of the Joruk caste take it by force.


* - Orcs don’t have families or even mates. Instead, they have a massive, violent orgy after each raiding season concludes in the fall and any offspring produced during the following spring are raised by the Karjuuk while the Joruk go back to raiding. The children are raised collectively and their attributes are evaluated during childhood for placement in the correct caste. The Joruk value Toughness, the Karjuuk value Guile and Charm, and Thaarks are left with Quickness. Orcs of all castes are Strong.


I have many more like that, but that's enough for now.

Uchawi wrote:
In Foxfaces's excellent collaborative world project, I mentioned the idea of a band of elves that wear helmets or visors whenever they are out in the open in public, and only take them off when they are in specially prepared rooms that is shielded with a special type of curtain. You never see them converse in the public and they act through couriers. I will leave the reasoning behind open so others may use it, but I had my own reasons that I may play out if I run a campaign again.



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I collected all the stuff from that thread and started merged it into a campaign bible on OneNote. I'm probably going to run an adventure using it when I'm all done.

Warforged are the first race. They've created the humans, elves, ect... as artifical life.

Dar'kanoth(Thri-kreen)
Kanoth are lawful neutral and live in an eusocial society of non-reproductive kanoth governed by reproductive females, queens. They are similar to an ant colony in that they are eusocial. They are different because multiple colonies live and work together, but each colony has a single queen (who is the sole female reproductive member). The death of a colony occurs when there are no living potential queen. When this happens the colony's non-reproductive members will be absorbed by the other colonies and the reproductive males are killed or exiled.


A colony has small group of non-reproductive female, or heirs, that have the potential to become the queens. The potential is only realized upon the death of the colony's current queen and only a single heir will undergo the metamorphsis. The next queen is difficult to predict since it has no relation to date hatched, though the current queen has some idea who has the highest potential. Heirs tend to serve as ambassador and other roles that send them away from Dar'kanoth to mitigate the threats to a colony.

In my setting, I have changed a few things.


Gnomes are no longer fae-like tricksters, and are instead highly militaristic and war-like (think the Spartans from the 300 movies). Since they live in a land full of water (lots of rivers, lakes, ponds, and rain), they have begun to harness steam power. They also created the warforged, with the help of the dwarves that live in the nearby volcanic mountains.


One subrace of Dwarves are more elf-like. They live in forests instead of mountains, making their homes inside the massive trees. They also do not grow beards. The other dwarven subraces call them "dwelves" as an insult, and don't consider them true dwarves. Not because they live inside trees, but because of the no beard thing. The other subraces shave the beards off anyone they send into exile, and use a special substance that makes it impossible to grow it back.


Orcs are not an "enemy race" (and there's really no such thing as an enemy race in my world, except for the humans of the western continent), and live in a hellish land of eternal fire. They can be good or evil, just like the typical PC races. They aren't green skinned, either. There are 2 castes of orcs: brown-skinned (upper) and black-skinned (lower).


Halflings don't exist because I just could never really figure out a purpose for them or a reason for them to exist.


That's about it, for already existing PC races.


Gnolls in my world are beekeepers. They make their money harvesting the honey from the massive beehives, which are home to giant bees (and it makes me sad that the Giant Bee wasn't included in the Monster Manual). They are also split into 2 subraces: the gnoll (spotted, rather aggressive, kind of the default D&D gnoll minus the pure evilness of them) and the adjule (striped, not aggressive).

The goblinoid races are the dominant species in my world. The hobgoblins are the nobility, bugbears are the soldiers, and regular goblins are the peasants and commoner. The goblin empire is vast and powerful. They are the most civilized of the races.


Elves are humanoid, but are actually living plants. They have bones of wood, sap for blood, lichen and moss for hair, and sometimes sprout flowers or leaves. Their skin also has a greenish tint. They are a proud but also savage species who will ruthlessly slaughter those who enter their forests and jungles.


Humans are primarily desert dwellers. The hobgoblins dislike the heat, so the desert provides a Haven from their vast empire. Humans are tolerated in the goblin kingdoms but are generally treated as lower than the lowliest goblin. Humans are savage and agressive and most want to erradicate the Goblin empire. They have enslaved the desert dwarves and use them for labor building their great pyramids.


Desert Dwarves are the native inhabitants to the desert. Those who are free primarily live in caves and underground tunnels. Many dwarves are slaves to the humans.


Dragonborn appear human and come from the north. Not much is known about them, but it is said they are descendants of dragons and even possess the ability to turn into dragons. That would be madness as everyone knows that dragons went extinct hundreds of years ago.

Halflings are xenophobic and territorial in my world as a result of constant civil war that saw their fertile lands become either battlefields or appropriated by the stronger humans and Elves. Their shire homes mostly resemble bunkers and underground fortresses now. They are (slowly and poorly) being given back their land but racial tensions undermean these attempt.

Bladelings: An insect-based alien warrior race of bounty hunters from the Asteroid Belt perpetually at war with wasp-like Swordwings, also from outer-space/ Astral Sea.

Dragonborn, Tieflings, Kobolds, Imps, Lizardfolk, and Skulks: transformed humans from Venus who seek to become dragons. Tieflings are the result of defiling magic as a route towards turning into a dragon, Dragonborn as a result of shamanic practices. Lizardfolk are failed attempts by Humans to become Dragonborn via the Shamanic method. Skulks are the Humans who failed to become Tieflings. Kobolds and Imps are successful transformations by Dwarven Miners, and thus have diminished even further.


Devas: "angel"-like aliens, kin to the Gods themselves, who control the people through calculation and religion, ruling over them from cities in the sky/ Astral Sea.


Shardminds: Sentient Supercomputers that serve (or are served by, rather) the Devas.


Halflings: Evolved pig-rats from Mars that control the trade routes with merchant principalities.


Orcs/Half-orcs: Larger versions of the Halflings, evolved boar-rodents from Mars that share distant relations to the Halfling Princes and rules the wild steppes.


Minotaurs: Even larger versions, evolved ox-rodents from Mars that lived settled lifestyles in the mountains and plains.


Half-elves/Tuathan, Githyanki, and Githzerai: Aragorn-like "high men", human descendants of fairies/elves/eladrin, each with a minor magical talent and the lust for adventure. Some are first generation; see Tristram Thorne in "Stardust." Four sub-tribes; one living in roaming cities high in the mountains (Half-elf); another integrated with the people below (other Half-elf); another of raiding sky pirates (Githyanki), and finally another in secluded mountain shrine-villages where they preserve the ancient ritiuals that they believe keep the world in balance (Githzerai).


Gnomes: Rabbit people originally from the moon who make ricecakes and are genius chefs and tricksters.


Elves: all have wings in my game; fae/angelic-bird folk closer to the heavens and the spirits than the people, who live in soaring cliff dwellings, giant tree cities, or tall skyscrappers with no ground entrances. Included are Sun, Moon, Sea, Wood, and Dark elven kindred, with sea elves being more like penguins, using their wings to soar through the waters, and dark elves being more like vampires, while wood elves are more like birds of prey. All elves have a samurai-like culture in my setting.

Genasi: "fiend"-like aliens, kin to the Primordials, who each represent a natural process of the world.

Warforged: Dwarven-created race of robots for all purposes in daily life who have become self-aware and very aware of the discrimination, enslavement, and opression put upon them.


Dwarves: great-grandchildren of the giants, each kindren related to a different subrace of giant, who were put under a curse of small-ness for their service in the Dawn War of Elements and Logic. They like humans have filtered throughout the three planets, working as space miners.


Humans: once travellers throughout the worlds, but since the rule of the Devas have been fragmented into three major groups: the people of Earth, the people of terraformed Mars, and the people of the mining colonies of Venus (from whence the Dragons came). The Humans of Earth have so much integrated into the native races that they've become the Tuathan and Goliaths (human descendents of fairies and giants respectively) The Humans of Venus died off unless they found ways to adapt to the caustic weather of that planet; they became draconic through either the shamanic or defiling pathways. The Human race as portrayed in the PHB still exists in mass in Deva-ruled Martial Cities, however, but the Shifters (human-animal hybrids) are more common on Mars.


Goliaths: human descendents of the Fomorians and the Firbolgs, in two subraces respectively. The descendants of humans mixing with Fomorians have evil eyes that dominate their lives but grant them preternatural sight. The descendents of firbolgs have been used in gladiatorial arenas and as slaves in areas that didn't have acccess to the Warforged technology of the dwarves.

Gnolls: Shark-jackals of the deserts, created by a mad-scientist for unknown purposes. They believe the Red Day is coming when their lord, the King that Crawls, will rise up from the depths and destroy the decadant cultures of the cities, and bring back equity to the land.

Shifters: Werefolk who are descendants of human resistant fighters in seven animal-totem tribes who landed on Mars and populated it long before the current humans came with the benevolence of the Devas. They are still fighting a guerilla war against the Devas, believing the religion to be a sham, meant to turn humans into slaves.

Changelings and Kalashtar: the children of the dreaming-time, known as Quinkans and Aislings respectively. The Quinkan are dark shapeshifters of the bush-wilds, while the Kalashtar embrace the light within their dreams and memories. They see a new world order on the rise, but are secluded in a part of the world that has seen little contact thus far, until now, as nations race to colonise the southeastern countinent for its material wealth.


As you can note, my races are generally a little bit more powerful than in other settings, the equivalent of a bonus feat at first level, or a baked in new race feature.

In my home campaign setting for many years...


Gnomes are defined by their lazyness, living in 'ghettos' in other race's cities rather than having their own settlements and almost without exception living off of entertainment, theivery, or shady business practices


Dwarves (at least the major group of them) are master necromancers, and every dwarf strives to prove themselves worthy of becoming an 'eternal ancestor' (IE: voted by their 'guild' to be one of the view intelligent undead created each decade) instead of a 'humble servant' (IE: zombie or skeleton). Also slavers of other races in vast numbers.


Orcs are a mercenary race, for hire to anyone who can promise money and power. Almost never produces 'leaders' of its own; always under the command of other races.


Ogres are peaceful and isolationist; and counted amongst the 'civilized' races (alongside elves, humans, and dwarves)


Kobolds are highly respected beureucrats, and almost every major government or business employs them to keep the books and 'run things'; mostly because of their natural lack of ambition and ability to do repetative tasks endlessly without boredom.


An alliance of the Gobliniod races is the major power of the known world, with only human empires standing up to them meaningfully.


Djinn are incredibly feared, and once ruled the world. Gensai worship the Djinn and are hated worse than Tieflings and the like.


Trolls and Dopplegangers are the servents of the defeated 'God-Killer' lovecraftian horror; and work together to bring about its ressurection.

Wow, some of these are awesome.


I kind of am building mine as I go, seeing connections and pulling together reasoning. This has mostly stemmed from my newfound discovery of the nonhuman pantheons and my attempts to subvert it.


Except for Dragons, Everyone believes either elves or dwarves were the first race.


Dwarves worship Moradin and his Wife, but other than that they have a strong sainthood system, with other "dieties" instead being dwarven saints. The Dwarves were never very expnsionaist and mostly kept underground but over the millenia they have built their city of Harth to immense size. It is the only dwarven city, and the lands surrounding it are rife with enemies. Most of the male dwarves follow Moradin's lead and patrol the borders, at constant war with other races. The female dwarves therefore took over law enforcement and government. This does not mean they are any less the fighters of their husbands though, between breaking up bar fights and knowing they are the absolute final line of defense female dwarves are terrifying warriors. Somewhere in the city lies "The Hoard" where all dwarven works not currently owned are given to Moradin for his aproval of their craftsmenship. Since this has gone on for countless centuries legend holds it is the single largest collection of treasure in the world.


The elves were very conquest driven, and pushed to gain and control as much land as possible. They also created the Dragonborn, though exactly how or why is a mystery. The two races soon went into a long and bloody war that lasted for centuries. During this time the elves supposedly discovered, civilized and took in the Gnomes, who they found as a bestial wild things in the borderlands.


Gnomes, in reality, were the first race and highly civilized. Their ancient kingdom fought and sealed the Primal Predator, the incarnation of all that is bestial and hunts, to prevent it from ravagin the world. To do so, though they do not remeber it, cost the sacrifice of their two female dieties to bind the Beast. The resulting mix caused Gnomes to go feral, and the taint still affects gnomes to this day, who are born as wild beasts filled with immense rage that they must suppress or control.


During this time the orc hordes ran into the Dwarven city. Gruumsh values physical strength above all and believes orcs should conquer all lands. Orc tradition prevents the use of any weapon you did not make and any clothes not made frm something you killed. Fighting against the dwarves with their iron weapons and steel armor was a losing battle, where thousands were cut down. Despite this the orcs held out, occasionally surprising dwarven commanders with inspired tactics and gambits. These "half-orcs" are the chosen of Ilneval, Gruumsh's second in command and a god who believes more in intellgent strategy than brute force. Unfortuantely orc society believes women worthless, so they are relegated to "cave-mothers" and not allowed on the front-lines. However, rumor has it that many are powerful spellcasters and that their patron Luthic, Gruumsh's mate, begged her lord to allow her and her followers to fight the dwarves with their magic. He refused and that pride, in certain rebel circles in the orc tribes, is what caused the orcs to fall and prevented their conquest.


The defining moment in my world is the "Rift Events", where many races appeared from other worlds. Humans and Teiflings apeared at the same time, fleeing something. Humans are highly religious, to the point of zealotry most think, with a massive pantheon. Teiflings follow no gods, claiming "the gods abadoned us in our time of need." The story here, though neither races remembers, is pretty interesting. Abominations overtook their previous world and divine magic was lost, temporarily. While a lot of humans desperately turned to arcane arts some thought this was simply a test of faith from the gods. Those who are now Tielfings made a pact with the Abyss for the power to fight the Abominations and defend their brethren. When they finally created a large enough portal to escape through (ending up right in the middle of a pitched battle between the elves and dragonborn) the tieflings were all the last to go through. They do honor and even worship "The Lost Legion" who stayed behind so that the others could escape.


Halflings are gypsie people, but I love the Yandalla, Dalla Thune dynamic I discovered.


When the rifts opened a massive rift burst open in the middle of the elven homeland. In a desperate act to save her people a goddess threw herself in front of the massive pulse of Far Realm Magic. It warped her body and mind, and tainted those she protected by clingling her shadow unto her skin. Lolth was a goddess of good, but the massive exposure literally drove her into a paranoid schizofrenic. She and the drow went deep underground, not only to fight the abominations pouring through, but also as it is the most defensible location. I didn't ant Drow to be evil, but I wanted to explain the plotting and scheming, some drow are crazy, others betrayed on to many times, the remaining are malicious tricksters and one-uppers who can work together, but plan and scheme behind each others backs for fun. The rift forced the high elves to seal the capitol in a magic bubble, and within it the high elves suffer from long exposure to the far realms Taint, leading to birth defects, mutations and worse (drow are immune due to innoculation blast that created them). They keep all of this a secret though, fearing what might happen if they world knew of their weakened state.


My biggest change might be the goblins, and they are the only ones I'm stattiing differently (other than an idea for a mutation chart for high elves). Goblins lead the goblin empire, that tore apart the other races and forced an alliance of all races to puch them back beyond the mountains and keep them there. Goblins lead because they are the only goblinoids with magic, and the goldskinned goblins (inspired by the new 5e art) are highly intelligent and powerful. The main military arm of the goblin empire are the hobgoblins, still militaristic and highly organized, but needing the healing magic of the goldskins to fight at peak preformance. Bugbears are next as powerful shock troops and violent warriors. Greenskin goblins are technically last in rank, a seething mass of crazed, bestial things, bu they are clever and vicious fighters whose incredible stealth and massive numbers makes them dangerous enough that the others typically don't mess with them.


I didn't mean to, but I've found Halo's enemies to exemplify it best. Goblin Empire is the Covenant. Goldskins are the Prophets. Hobgoblins the Elites. Bugbears the Brutes. Greenskins the Grunts and Jackals combined. The Abominations are the Flood.

In my campaign setting the races are modified as follows:


The elves are much closer to their faerie origin than typical D&D elves. They have telescopic vision (multiple natural lenses in their eyes can align to magnify distant objects) and possess innate magical abilities (every elf can cast spells regardless of character class, and they can detect magic items or enchantments on people just by touching/handling them). They reach maturity twice as slowly as human, appearing 20 at adulthood, and they are immortal. But, they live their life in 200 year "seasons" that dictate their apparent age: each season ages their body by 15 years. At the end of the winter of an elf's life, she enters a 50 year sleep, during which her physical age slowly reverts back to 20. When an elf is killed her spirit return to nature in a fantastic display of natural beauty; they may turn into a tree, blow away as a stream or cloud of flower petals, or their spirit may pass by as a whispering breeze. If an elf's blood falls on fertile ground, flowers will grow there.


As the elves are closely related to faeries in my setting, so are the dwarves related to the elements. Dwarves are descendent of spirits of flame and stone, with flame and stone dwarves being the two subraces that are available. Flame dwarves are highly resistant to natural fire: they are capable of holding white-hot metal with their bare hands without being burned. Stone dwarves actually have crystalline formations growing out of their bodies. This gives them crystalline knee and elbow spikes as natural weapons, and they are also resistant to being harmed by non-magical weapons. Dwarves cannot cast spells because of an event in the world's history where a dwarf wizard injured the goddess of magic (who is also the goddess of the moon). However, they have found a way to tap into the innate magic of the world by using special ingredients to craft their magical wares (adventurers can always count on dwarves being willing to pay them for dragon blood, unicorn horns, and so on). Gnomes are an offshoot of the dwarves that are said to have been spawned by the mingling of elves and dwarves. Gnomes can use magic, and this gives them an odd place in dwarf society because they are wanted for their magical skills but mistrusted as not being true dwarves.


Humans and Goblins are late entries to the world: the Shadow Schism that separated light and dark elves occurred before humans ever existed. Humans are said to have evolved from apes, and the goblins are believed to have evolved from some breed of lizard. The word "human" is a mispronunciation of the elf word "haluman," which means hollow men. Goblin is also a mispronunciation, this time of a dwarfish word, "golba," which means "greedy" (the literal translation is actually closer to "gobbler" or "glutton" but is used by dwarves to denote someone who is selfish and greedy). The goblin race has developed an offshoot that has come be called "gremlins;" according to the dwarfish tongue, a "greml" is one who relishes in wanton destruction and the misery of others. The "ins" is a suffix that indicates small stature. "Gremlin" basicaly translates as "little psychopath."

A lot of this boils down to "ooh, let's make the race nothing like it normally is!", read 2nd Ed Dark Sun, can go either way: nifty spin, or radical crap.

Brock_Landers wrote:
A lot of this boils down to "ooh, let's make the race nothing like it normally is!", read 2nd Ed Dark Sun, can go either way: nifty spin, or radical crap.



​

Did you read the title of the thread?

Novacat wrote:

Brock_Landers wrote:
A lot of this boils down to "ooh, let's make the race nothing like it normally is!", read 2nd Ed Dark Sun, can go either way: nifty spin, or radical crap.



​

Did you read the title of the thread?



​

Yeah.

Elf, Dwarf, Gnomes, and Trolls are all sub-races of human that have been infused with the elemens of air, earth, fire, and water (repsectivly).

One trick I like to use is to take a sentence or two to 'best' describe a race within a setting (and simply rely on the given PHB description for the rest).


Dwarves for instance might be 'best' described thusly: "Dwarves who deal with other races (both on the battlefield and off) are quick to capitalize upon any weakness they perceive." The PHB gives the rest; that is, short-n-stout, long memories, long grudges, all that jazz. But in this particular homebrew setting, dwarves are 'best' described as battle-ready.


This is the antithesis of the thread topic but I wanted to share anyway

.

I've been thinking about an idea for cyclops being less a giant species and more humaniod.
They do not have central eyes either. Instead come from an enslaved race that always had one eye sewn shut as punishment/ritual etc...


---


Also in my homebrew campaign Drow have hair as jet black as their skin.

Another couple Race changes in my campaign:


Elves
Sensation Gorgers: Due to their long lives, they have an extreme wanderlust and appetite for the new and novel. They seek out new sensations and tend to be nomadic as a result.
Their Homes: They learned everything of their forest homes centuries ago, so they travel the lands in family "Bands" looking for the new and exciting. There are no Elven "cities" but a large "Tree Palace" acts as their diplomatic "hub" between the other races. Most other Elves live in temporary camps or caravans that is in constant flux as they mingle. All races are welcome here.
Sylphs: The Elves are highly intertwined diplomatically and culturally with the Sylphs of their forest home of Highgold. Each year at the Autumn equinox, Elves from all over return and swap stories and share new experiences with each other and the Sylphs. The Sylphs enjoy this most of all as they are bound to the Trees themselves and can't journey on their own.
Values: They value cultural exchanges and diversity above all else.


Dwarves
Structured: Dwarves live in rigid Clans, made up of families and those who have matching Arcanas (Each humanoid is blessed with an Arcana at birth).
Land Owners: Dwarven politics and Clans are built around what property they own. Mineshafts are coveted, family "heirlooms" and there are many laws based around when, where and how the mines can be dug. Those who leave the Mountains often seek out land, property and goods to call their own.
Clans: Dwarves care more about the Clan than the Self. Clan is determined by the Mother upon birth. There are very few laws governing individual freedoms and most laws, including punishments, extend to everyone within the Clan. This encourages a significant amount of "self-policing" within a Clan, with Exile being the most common punishment for undersirables as a Clanless Dwarf has almost no freedoms until they are accepted into another Clan.
Values: Land, Law and Clan/Family are the things Dwarves care most about.

Elves/half-elves


Elves live in small comunities deep in forests female elves stay in the comunity where they are born thir whole lives and almost never travel outside the forest.
When male elves reach adulthood they leave the comunity they where born in ang go on their wondering to find other elven comunitied find a wife and settle down.
These wonderings can take long and player character evlves and the elves players meet are male elves on their wondering.


The female elves live secluded from contact with most other races.
But one race is not even mentioned in elven comunities and wrting are half-elves, the female elves are kept totaly ignorent of the existance of half elves.

I run Tieflings and Aasimar/Deva (I much prefer calling them Aasimar) as a 'split' race in my homebrew setting. Each has half of a soul, in a way. I also made Dragonborn 'lizard men' in that same setting. They have spit attacks instead of breath weapons. Single target, range of 30'. Acid, Poison, Fire (like napalm), sticky (like a web), or hallucinogenic (stuns/confuses).


I like many of the Dark Sun stereotype-breakers. (cannibal halflings, hairless dwarves, non-foresty and elitist elves).


I don't like to make humans the most common or dominent race, either.

In my homebrew camapign setting I've been working on, the sentient races are the result of spiritual energies that attach themselves to some facet of the material world in order to embody a physical form and develop (altho this is not something consciously understood by said races).


Elves, for example, are the result of spirits who have allied with some facet of the Plant world, thus there are Pine Elves, Oak Elves, even Wheat or Kudzu or Moss elves. Most tree-based elves -- while corporeal, flesh-and-blood beings -- are actually birthed from the fruit of their associated tree.


Similarly, Dwarves are spirits allied with the various facets of the Rock and Stone; thus there are Granite dwarves, Limestone dwarves, Shale dwarves, etc. Dwarves are genderless, and spend a good portion of their free time carving, crafting or otherwise fashioning a single, perfect statue from their elemental material; once finished, this statue will be transmogrified via an intricate ritual into a new flesh-and-blood dwarf, their child. Woe be to the dwarf who has unwittingly created a flawed vessel for their progeny to inhabit.


Also, undead in my campaign setting aren't necessrily evil or even mindless. They are simply spirits still attached to a body after it has died, via various rites. While there are many who go insane as a result, the hardier ones can keep their wits about them, and continue to act as they did in life (for good or ill) -- albeit slowly continuing to decompose. Not surprisingly, most still-sane undead prefer to have their bodies mummified or someother procedure, as they don't appreciate the smell and sensation of rotting flesh any more than those around them do...

SteveMND wrote:
In my homebrew camapign setting I've been working on, the sentient races are the result of spiritual energies that attach themselves to some facet of the material world in order to embody a physical form and develop (altho this is not something consciously understood by said races).


Elves, for example, are the result of spirits who have allied with some facet of the Plant world, thus there are Pine Elves, Oak Elves, even Wheat or Kudzu or Moss elves. Most tree-based elves -- while corporeal, flesh-and-blood beings -- are actually birthed from the fruit of their associated tree.


Similarly, Dwarves are spirits allied with the various facets of the Rock and Stone; thus there are Granite dwarves, Limestone dwarves, Shale dwarves, etc. Dwarves are genderless, and spend a good portion of their free time carving, crafting or otherwise fashioning a single, perfect statue from their elemental material; once finished, this statue will be transmogrified via an intricate ritual into a new flesh-and-blood dwarf, their child. Woe be to the dwarf who has unwittingly created a flawed vessel for their progeny to inhabit.


Also, undead in my campaign setting aren't necessrily evil or even mindless. They are simply spirits still attached to a body after it has died, via various rites. While there are many who go insane as a result, the hardier ones can keep their wits about them, and continue to act as they did in life (for good or ill) -- albeit slowly continuing to decompose. Not surprisingly, most still-sane undead prefer to have their bodies mummified or someother procedure, as they don't appreciate the smell and sensation of rotting flesh any more than those around them do...



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I dig your undead idea. I had a lawful good Lich NPC in a campaign once. I also sometimes run ghosts and skeletons as background stuff...They don't hurt the PC's at all. They act out their lives, or deaths, and might interact harmlessly, or even provide clues or adventure seeds. (Or humerously. A pub had a skeleton band.) I've allowed undead PC's as well. Tweaked 4e revenants, and Lovecraft-style Ghouls.


I can imagine the sensation of rotting flesh would be unpleasant at best, excrutiatingly painful at worst. That'd drive a sentient undead to insanity and/or evil...

Chaosmancer wrote:
<Awesome ideas>



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Brilliant stuff. Inspiring!

Ecology of the Goblins -


I recently stole bits of Isterith's modification of the Lost Mine of Phandelver where he referred to Goblins as being spawned from abscesses on other goblins instead of born by more conventional means. One thing led to another until...


Goblins are a literal disease that moves through several different life stages. The most commonly observed form (and the only one that the average person thinks of as a "goblin") is the short, brutish creature that we are all familiar with. This life stage is covered with pus-filled sores and growths that weep blood and other unsightly fluids constantly. Living within these fluids, waiting for the next sentient creature to come into contact with them are the reproductive spores of the goblin race.


If the spores fall into an environment suitable for growth (warm, moist...) they will become amoeba-like cells capable of seeking out matter on which to feed. These protoplasms are saprophytic (they feed on dead and decaying matter) and are a natural part of the soil ecosystem, breaking down nutrients to be recycled back into the food chain. In areas where the number of these amoebas are very great (i.e. near goblin dens) they outproduce other saprophytes and create a thick mucosal layer on and around any dead or decaying matter left lying around. GIven the habitual filth of most goblin warrens this leads to a disgusting slime nearly everywhere within the warren.


Given enough time and material to feed on the spores will reach a critical mass and form a plasmodium made up of many of the amoebal nuclei fused together into an ooze-y mass capable of independant movement. This is the true origin of the ochre jelly and is one reason that this jelly is commonly found near or within goblin lairs. The ooze will continue to grow until it reaches another critical mass, at which point it will seek out a dark location to pupate into 2d4 new goblins. The goblins form within this jelly in a dark miracle similar to the transformation of a caterpillar to a butterfly save that the exterior of the jelly never achieves the same hardness as a cocoon. The exterior of the jelly remains dangerous although the ooze loses its ability to move at this time. After the goblins grow sufficiently large they can rip themselves out of the flesh of the ooze and go on to continue the cycle of spreading spores, spores growing and combining into plasmoidial jelly and then pupating yet more goblins.


I have, of course, extended these ideas out to the creation of the other goblinoid races. If anyone is interested I'll be more than willing to share more. Otherwise, I'd rather not create a wall of text that no one is interested in.

Spekke- wrote:
Ecology of the Goblins -


I recently stole bits of Isterith's modification of the Lost Mine of Phandelver where he referred to Goblins as being spawned from abscesses on other goblins instead of born by more conventional means. One thing led to another until...


Goblins are a literal disease that moves through several different life stages. The most commonly observed form (and the only one that the average person thinks of as a "goblin") is the short, brutish creature that we are all familiar with. This life stage is covered with pus-filled sores and growths that weep blood and other unsightly fluids constantly. Living within these fluids, waiting for the next sentient creature to come into contact with them are the reproductive spores of the goblin race.


If the spores fall into an environment suitable for growth (warm, moist...) they will become amoeba-like cells capable of seeking out matter on which to feed. These protoplasms are saprophytic (they feed on dead and decaying matter) and are a natural part of the soil ecosystem, breaking down nutrients to be recycled back into the food chain. In areas where the number of these amoebas are very great (i.e. near goblin dens) they outproduce other saprophytes and create a thick mucosal layer on and around any dead or decaying matter left lying around. GIven the habitual filth of most goblin warrens this leads to a disgusting slime nearly everywhere within the warren.


Given enough time and material to feed on the spores will reach a critical mass and form a plasmodium made up of many of the amoebal nuclei fused together into an ooze-y mass capable of independant movement. This is the true origin of the ochre jelly and is one reason that this jelly is commonly found near or within goblin lairs. The ooze will continue to grow until it reaches another critical mass, at which point it will seek out a dark location to pupate into 2d4 new goblins. The goblins form within this jelly in a dark miracle similar to the transformation of a caterpillar to a butterfly save that the exterior of the jelly never achieves the same hardness as a cocoon. The exterior of the jelly remains dangerous although the ooze loses its ability to move at this time. After the goblins grow sufficiently large they can rip themselves out of the flesh of the ooze and go on to continue the cycle of spreading spores, spores growing and combining into plasmoidial jelly and then pupating yet more goblins.


I have, of course, extended these ideas out to the creation of the other goblinoid races. If anyone is interested I'll be more than willing to share more. Otherwise, I'd rather not create a wall of text that no one is interested in.



​

I'm interested, create a wall of text already!

Spekke- wrote:
Ecology of the Goblins -


I recently stole bits of Isterith's modification of the Lost Mine of Phandelver where he referred to Goblins as being spawned from abscesses on other goblins instead of born by more conventional means. One thing led to another until...


Goblins are a literal disease that moves through several different life stages. The most commonly observed form (and the only one that the average person thinks of as a "goblin") is the short, brutish creature that we are all familiar with. This life stage is covered with pus-filled sores and growths that weep blood and other unsightly fluids constantly. Living within these fluids, waiting for the next sentient creature to come into contact with them are the reproductive spores of the goblin race.


If the spores fall into an environment suitable for growth (warm, moist...) they will become amoeba-like cells capable of seeking out matter on which to feed. These protoplasms are saprophytic (they feed on dead and decaying matter) and are a natural part of the soil ecosystem, breaking down nutrients to be recycled back into the food chain. In areas where the number of these amoebas are very great (i.e. near goblin dens) they outproduce other saprophytes and create a thick mucosal layer on and around any dead or decaying matter left lying around. GIven the habitual filth of most goblin warrens this leads to a disgusting slime nearly everywhere within the warren.


Given enough time and material to feed on the spores will reach a critical mass and form a plasmodium made up of many of the amoebal nuclei fused together into an ooze-y mass capable of independant movement. This is the true origin of the ochre jelly and is one reason that this jelly is commonly found near or within goblin lairs. The ooze will continue to grow until it reaches another critical mass, at which point it will seek out a dark location to pupate into 2d4 new goblins. The goblins form within this jelly in a dark miracle similar to the transformation of a caterpillar to a butterfly save that the exterior of the jelly never achieves the same hardness as a cocoon. The exterior of the jelly remains dangerous although the ooze loses its ability to move at this time. After the goblins grow sufficiently large they can rip themselves out of the flesh of the ooze and go on to continue the cycle of spreading spores, spores growing and combining into plasmoidial jelly and then pupating yet more goblins.


I have, of course, extended these ideas out to the creation of the other goblinoid races. If anyone is interested I'll be more than willing to share more. Otherwise, I'd rather not create a wall of text that no one is interested in.



​

I really like it, it's gross, vivid, fits into an ecosystem, etc.


But, it seems more for aberrations than goblins to me. I do love Far Realm stuff, however.

In fact, if I want to bring 4e's Foulspawn into a 5e session (or campaign) I'll copy pretty much what you've typed here.


For example, I like Slaad, but I find their reproduction method to be more Far Realm in feel than demonic, elemental chaotic, or (with 5e), back to Limbo (and chaotic neutral)...but with Primus of Mechanus somehow creating them with an artifact of order

seti wrote:

Spekke- wrote:
Ecology of the Goblins -


Blah.... blah... read above.



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I really like it, it's gross, vivid, fits into an ecosystem, etc.


But, it seems more for aberrations than goblins to me. I do love Far Realm stuff, however.

In fact, if I want to bring 4e's Foulspawn into a 5e session (or campaign) I'll copy pretty much what you've typed here.


For example, I like Slaad, but I find their reproduction method to be more Far Realm in feel than demonic, elemental chaotic, or (with 5e), back to Limbo (and chaotic neutral)...but with Primus of Mechanus somehow creating them with an artifact of order

​

@seti Maybe goblins are, as you say, from the far realm. They just came over so long ago that a lot of their “greater weirdness" has dissipated. On the other hand, everything I've written about the goblins is loosely based off of slime molds. Slime molds exist in the real world and to me there is no reason that they idea can't be extended a little into the fantasy world to create a natural, though disgusting, race.


So now we know that goblins are really just the most numerous part of a complicated life cycle that also includes spores, amoebas, and ochre jellies. But what about their goblinoid kin?




To repeat the standard cycle of goblin reproduction we have: Goblins bleed, ooze and weep spores constantly from the boils and growths which cover their bodies. These spores become saprophytic amoebas that feed on decaying matter becoming a slime layer covering dead animal and plant life until they reach a critical mass and fuse. The fused mass of these amoebas becomes an ochre jelly that seeks out and kills more food until it reaches its own critical mass and finds somewhere safe to pupate. The ochre pupa forms within it 2d4 goblins and eventually these goblins emerge fully formed and ready to continue spreading their foul spores.




Hobgoblins




The slime that forms of the multitudes of amoebas is relatively harmless to the average creature. After a few hours it will begin to sting if it is left on flesh and given days it could conceivably chew through flesh. Most creatures are wise enough to scrape or rinse off the offending slime long before this becomes a problem. If a creature is killed by the slime, however unlikely this is to occur naturally, the slime itself absorbs the energy of the departing soul and is energized into beginning the pupation process immediately using the mass of the dead creature to form the new life of a hobgoblin. Given that this occurs immediately the pupa is often perishes from animal attacks or the elements long before it can complete the cycle. Alternately, since the pupation often begins before the slime has found an appropriate amount of matter to convert the process aborts itself after half-completing the process leaving a body that lacks the structures necessary to survive and the partial body shortly expires.




Hobgoblins, though, understand this process and know exactly what needs to be done in order to facilitate the propagation of their race. They abduct and capture creatures that are large enough to support the growth of full hobgoblins, incapacitating them and forcing them to die slowly and agonizingly to the enzymes of the slime. They carefully protect the slime pupae and monitor their growth, feeding them extra matter as needed in order to ensure that a healthy specimen emerges. This careful regimentation required to ensure the propagation of their species spills over to all aspects of their society and lead to the strict military precision for which hobgoblins are known. While any creature of a sufficient size can be used to provide the soul and matter needed to create a hobgoblin other sentient races have the tendency to be nearly the exact right size and have supremely energetic souls in order to create strong and healthy hobgoblin. This is, of course, the reason why hobgoblins are well known for raiding settlements and capturing women and children. Not for slaves, but as food for the slimes that give rise to yet more hobgoblins.




Bugbears




Going another direction the ochre pupae typically spend weeks in the depths of caves slowly growing new bodies from the material of their own bodies. Near the very end of the pupal period the ochre jelly is little more than a leathery sac filled with the squirming bodies that will tear out of the sac as fully formed goblins. Dividing the mass and energies of the ochre jelly leads to the creation of many small, but twisted, forms that are more than capable of continuing to spread spores but rather inadequate at many other tasks. If the ochre pupa is forced to focus its energy on a single body or is given extra mass during the pupal period much more formidable creatures are formed. This can occur occasionally without any intervention as the bodies within the jelly fight struggle amongst themselves in the early weeks of their formation before going quiescent during the midstage of development. This is the reason for the variable number of goblins generally produced as well as the variations in health and vigor found among goblin hordes. While it isn’t common for only a single body to survive the early weeks, when this occurs the body will become a powerful bugbear instead of its weaker goblin kin. Goblins will occasionally do this deliberately by using a spear or arrows to kill all but one forming body within the jelly.




Another path to creating bugbears is to continue to feed the pupating jelly throughout the pupal period. This allows each body within to grow to the massive strength and size of a bugbear, provided that the creatures outside care enough to continue feeding the mass throughout this time. One sign of a goblin horde that is preparing to rampage is the steady denuding of the land around goblin caves as they feed everything in reach to the jellies to create a powerful core of bugbear warriors. Bugbears feel little, if any, gratitude for the effort of those who feed them during their development and tend to abuse the goblins that gave them the very strength they use to lord over their foul nursemaids. However, goblins are aware that bugbears are a powerful ally and will often be prepared with bribes to get bugbears to act in ways that will benefit the tribe before they begin the process of growing them.




The parasitic life cycle




As mentioned previously, goblins are a disease. The spores spread by goblins will spread within the bloodstream of other creatures to create sores that are very similar to those that grow on goblin flesh. These parasitic cysts are rarely life threatening and generally only present as a minor rash that occasionally gives rise to a cluster of weeping sores that spread spores for a few days before subsiding back into a rash. The rash itself tends to present as a greenish hue that will deepen as it comes closer to the creation of the weeping sores.




The spores can find themselves a host any time they are introduced into the bloodstream. Like staph, anthrax and a host of other opportunistic infections this is relatively easy to avoid as long as care is taken to disinfect wounds and keep bandages fresh. Magical healing is also sufficient to clear out spores, although cure disease is needed once the rash itself begins. Only those who live in filth or do not take these precautions are likely to catch the goblin rash in this manner.

Alternately, those who have been infected by the spores have a small amount of the spores residing in all of their bodily fluids. The spores can transfer themselves any time bodily fluids are exchanged. In this manner many of the high and mighty have contracted the goblin rash and are forced to seek out magical aid to rid themselves of this shameful disease. The spores are much more infective in direct exchange of these fluids even if the rash or sores are not currently presenting.

Doesn't really seem like goblins anymore though, seems more like some sort of a meeting between fungus/moss monsters and zombies.


It is certainly fully of interest and presents dangers that well... if that is a threat to your world, you are probably going to do very post-apocalyptic feeling games. The sort where everyone is doomed from the very start and they know they are doomed. You don't have much choice but to either hide or fight... and if you hide well, you starve.. if you fight? Well, it is inevitable you are going to get killed or bitten and ultimately turned like it or not.




If you were still going to do your world as a typical fantasy, well... you kind of lost your go-to bad guy humanoid races. Nothing that functionally counters elves and dwarves in the world any more. Well, not on the surface that people can expect to ever run into anyway. It is unimaginable given your description of these Goblnoids would have any kind of functional intelligence. After all-- how could they? Their entire beings are just made up of slime mold that may or may not be attached to a corpse and they absolutely certainly have not been alive long enough to pick up any intelligence level higher than animals. I couldn't imagine them actually using weapons or armor or mounts or tools, building anything, negotiating with anyone... how could they? They are nothing more than a plague of spreading fungus bent on spreading for the sake of spreading.

Hebitsuikaza wrote:
Doesn't really seem like goblins anymore though, seems more like some sort of a meeting between fungus/moss monsters and zombies.



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Thanks for your criticisms! It has helped me think a little bit more about these ideas and flesh them out. My justification for why they are still goblins is that when they are goblins they ARE goblins. The goblin lifestage, except for the sores, remains essentially the same as they have always been. They are a low level threat to most adventurers that happen to have a unique method of reproduction compared to the live birth that nearly every other sentient race undergoes.

Hebitsuikaza wrote:
It is certainly fully of interest and presents dangers that well... if that is a threat to your world, you are probably going to do very post-apocalyptic feeling games. The sort where everyone is doomed from the very start and they know they are doomed. You don't have much choice but to either hide or fight... and if you hide well, you starve.. if you fight? Well, it is inevitable you are going to get killed or bitten and ultimately turned like it or not.



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I certainly do think that it could be played this way if you wanted to but I don't see why it would have to be. All of the monster races (it seems) tend to be TRYING to reproduce like crazy and kill off everyone else. They don't succeed in most campaigns. I think that I may have miscommunicated my idea of what the disease itself entails. You don't BECOME a goblin/hobgoblin/bugbear if you catch the disease. You just get a minor rash, spreading spores everywhere to be sure, but those spores only become an issue in areas where they can get a lot of dead material without competition from other creatures.

Hebitsuikaza wrote:
If you were still going to do your world as a typical fantasy, well... you kind of lost your go-to bad guy humanoid races. Nothing that functionally counters elves and dwarves in the world any more. Well, not on the surface that people can expect to ever run into anyway. It is unimaginable given your description of these Goblnoids would have any kind of functional intelligence. After all-- how could they? Their entire beings are just made up of slime mold that may or may not be attached to a corpse and they absolutely certainly have not been alive long enough to pick up any intelligence level higher than animals. I couldn't imagine them actually using weapons or armor or mounts or tools, building anything, negotiating with anyone... how could they? They are nothing more than a plague of spreading fungus bent on spreading for the sake of spreading.



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Everything is a spreading something spreading for the sake of spreading. That's what life is. If you are better at it, then you win. The reason we have millions of species across the world is that each something spreading is a little better at filling a single niche than any other creature. Goblins are individually weak and are squeezed out of a lot of the more fertile lands by stronger, smarter races. But fetid caves? Bam. That's the right stuff. No one else wants those nasty places.


As for them lacking functional intelligence? Why not? Until metamorphosis butterflies are fat wingless slugs. After metamorphosis they have huge wings. I'm sure you are familiar with the changes that tadpoles undergo as they become frogs. That's obviously only a pair of examples but they still show that even in the real world we can see something changing drastically from what it was before to what it is after. Within the pupa the goblins bodies are built from the ground up from the ooze they were into creatures with bones, organs, flesh and brains.


There is no reason goblins couldn't be intelligent from the get go. There are plenty of species with young that can walk, run, and live on their own within minutes of birth. Often these creatures have a set of instinctive triggers that tell them exactly how to respond to a stimulus and survive... most of the time. Typically, this ends up making animals look much smarter than they actually are. In my opinion goblins fall into this category they are born with a greater set of instinctive behaviors that allow them to survive and fake intelligence. Goblins would also have the ability to learn (unlike most animals) and so older goblins would be able to teach new goblins just as we pass knowledge from generation to generation.


Again, thanks for responding. Let me know if you think my justifications are still too much of a stretch or would still end up fundamentally changing how a typical fantasy world would look. One of my favorite parts of world building is changing something kind of minor and then looking at how it would snowball into vast changes to the rest of world. And then either rolling with it or tweaking it a little more until I get something I like.

The issue is using tools. Weapons are tools. Clothing is tools.


No animal naturally, instinctively knows how to do this. One needs to be taught how to do this. Which means one needs to have a teacher and one needs to see these customs in use.


What you have described here is a thing that grows underground in moss, emerges and then pops out either as a bunch of small goblins or as one big bugbear. At least this is how I understand it. The creature(s) run around for some set period of time-- not clear if it is days or months... then they EXPLODE and infect everything around them. Or they are slain and infect everything around them.


If humans or... possibly other things I suppose... are infected and manage not to get cured for long enough, they turn into Hobgoblins.


Now, this is a really cool concept for an enemy. Transforms my favorite race into something utterly unplayable, but nonetheless... it is a great idea... for an Apocalyptic campaign. Fight them, you just spread the spores and you'll get infected and hopefully you'll be able to get yourself uninfected before you transform. The wall of fungus just spreads and spreads because nothing functional exists that can really get rid of it all for good.


But the lifespan and lifestyle of these creatures means that at no time are they children, at no time do they have the chance to observe the adults using tools or wearing clothes or speaking or writing. Generally communication methods much beyond those of wolves would be beyond them even if they had something akin to brain capacity large enough to learn it-- without the experience, they wouldn't have any chance to. Same as if you locked a child in a room from the day it was born until it was a teenager. The result wouldn't have any of the basic abilities that the game assumes that goblins would have. Hobgoblins could, maybe, although one might be hard pressed to explain why they are so willing to join this collective and transform others if they do indeed retain all their memories and skills from being a human.


There is a way out though. Outside of the infected humans transforming into Hobgoblins, this is basically identical to Orks in WarHammer 40K. I would be shocked if you came up with this idea without knowing about it. In that game the fungus is genetically modified so that Orks emerge with a whole bunch of skills, talents, culture and personality already in place. Every Ork is pretty much like a duplicate but some are just bigger than others and are the bosses-- others are smaller and are called "Grots" or even "Snotlings". There are a lot of weird allowances there that don't make much sense to make them function mechanically though.


I suppose if you followed that example and these plague of fungus was somehow divine and that divinity placed all it needed to know within its mind as it grew. Or... hmm...


It'd be odd, but... perhaps the new goblins that grow from the fungus of the old ones retain the memories and skills of the previous incarnation. In fact, maybe if the Goblin forms from the fungus of several previous Goblins, it could retain all their memories and skills in some way. So, in that way, not only is the fungus itself an ever-spreading, unstoppable threat-- but every generation of Goblins is more knowledgable and skilled than the previous... not that it is likely matters all that much since each generation probably only lives for a matter of months or maybe a few short years at best before dying and in that time they may never have the chance to learn or do anything new or acquire any new skills since they would primarily just always be doing the same limited things.

Want interesting takes on the normal races? Look no father than the Warcraft Universe!


Drow that are 9 feet tall, druidic, and the protectors of the world? sure!


Orcs that are shamanistic and honorable (Barring those pesky fel orcs)? You've got it!


High Elves that are completely addicted to magic driving a good amount of them insane? It's there.


Trolls being very spiritual instead of monstrous? Yup.


Undead? Ok, still evil.

Some times it is small things that add flavor to a race.


In my campaign world the dwarves use a base 5 counting system.
based on counting using one hand for single numbers and the other for multiples of 5.
making them able to count to 30 using fingers if they use both hands.


They are the master architects of the world and this counting system is now comonly used aong builders and architects of all races.
this explains in the world why it is common to have rooms that can be divided in 5 feet squares, becouse counting in base 5 is is very easy to lay out a plan in multiples of 5 feet.




and don't get me started on the complicated elven counting system.

to me dwarfs are the best smiths not elves they are also the best miners. elves are more enchanters and jewelers and wood elves are the best hunters while orcs can be friendly if you dont anger them. i also like the thought of dragonborn having tails and cities not being of mainly one race.

My Kenku are mostly bards, messengers and scribes, my halflings ride giant sea hawks and live in cliff side cave towns, my drow are desert nomads with communal burrow towns under the sand for when they need better shelter than their tents or for big meetings, the warforged were made by warlocks thousands of years ago, and these days are the only ones who know how to make more, and half-orcs are paragons of ideals like freedom and impartial justice, and have the setting's most "good" kingdom, basically playing the part of a romanticized arthurian england, complete with goodguy knights.

 

[Chaosmancer]

I have also expanded on my races and the world. Calling the world Arista, and I'm moving the WotC thread for it over to EnWorld. No idea where it will end up though.