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I love the Drow. Not the "outcast with a heart of gold", but the scheming & selfish members of a dysfunctional spider-loving society, who are also very aesthetically pleasing.
I also love Illithids (especially using the name, "Mind Flayer" is so pedestrian). They're quite original, have a cool name, look cool and positively creepy.
Finally, I love dragon-people. Drakelings were my favourite race to play in Ancient Domains of Mystery and I guess my love for them can extend easily to other similar races, like Dragonborn.
Same; My favorite races in settings are when the "monstrous" races are given rational culture and society, and aren't just treated like wandering little bags of XP for adventurers to find and kill. (Or even worse, a gigantic army that wants to slaughter all of humanity for no apparent reason.) This is one of the reasons I love Eberron so much.
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Originally Posted by JetThomasBoat
I agree so much with this. I LOVE Eberron. And while Eberron made me love orcs and half-orcs as never before, I agree that the setting does this for so many races. Gnolls are the most prevalent race in Droamm, orcs and goblinoids were on Khorvaire before the humans, and I don't know if anyone else read this in the Eberron game books, but the kobolds hold that their race was created when the blood of one of the three progenitor worms fell to the earth and it also mentions they spoke draconic not only before it was cool, but before the dragons taught it to other races.
And I love how the drow in Eberron aren't like...you know, all drowy...
Normally I don't like Eberron, but I have to agree. What it does with goblinoids and orcs is quite suberb.
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Originally Posted by JellyPooga
I've long been torn between the Githzerai and Githyanki as my favourite D&D race.
Dak'kon (from PS:T) was the first gith to really open my eyes to the race(s) as a whole and I just fell in love with them since then. But which to favour? the 'Yanki with their Dimension Door-ing, Pirates of the Astral Plane, Red Dragon pact-ing, Lich-Queen slaves with honking great silver swords, bad-boy-biker image OR the 'Zerai with their super quick, race of law living in pure chaos, totally bad-ass but somewhat melancholic outlook, karach-wielding, completely in control of their own selves, perfect-monk image?
I just don't know.
Wasn't Dak'kon's backstory and the Unbroken Circle of Zerthimon pretty much made up for the purposes of Planescape: Torment? Many people accept it as canon because of how great it is, but it's not actually canon, I think.
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My FFRP characters. Avatar by Kid Kris. Sigatars by Gulaghar, Kid Kris, Zefir and billtodamax, respectively.
“Not a promise, not an oath, or a malediction or a curse,” I said, sounding calm, probably inaudible in the midst of the screaming. “Inevitable. Wasn’t that how she put it? I told them. Warned them.”
-Taylor Hebert. Yes, I'm a proud Skittle.
My biggest issue with it is that there is no mechanical way for them to have done it. If they made it possible for them to do I would be more interested, but it feels a little silly for a race that's primary power is stunning things to have time travel.
I do like the Thoon version of Mindflayers though.
Well, they do make a point that it's both lost technology and that the Mind Flayers were fleeing a dying universe. It's been a while since I read it, but I do think it was some 3.5 homage to Spelljammer.
Flumphs. Full stop. In my campaigns I have them refluffed as created by the same mad gods that made the other Abberations. The Flumphs were created to be the wardens and crusaders of the Abberations. There form allowed them to use almost any weapon imaginabe in their quests. In the current time, Flumphs are what stop creatures like the Mindflayers and stuff from taking over.
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Telle Abscondus Avatar by me.
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Originally Posted by MoleMage
Wow. I started on 3.5 edition so the flumph is something I learned of later, but this is genius.
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Thri-Kreen w/ greatsword by flumphy Insane Binder Avatar by Babale
I can has 1 cookie jar
Well, they do make a point that it's both lost technology and that the Mind Flayers were fleeing a dying universe. It's been a while since I read it, but I do think it was some 3.5 homage to Spelljammer.
Yup, I still have the original spelljammer books at my house. I still find the idea that they would flee backwards in time and ditch their technology to be odd though.
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Originally Posted by Tiki Snakes
Finding out that the ennui and cynicism of our times is not, after all, an unavoidable unreverseable fate does kind of throw your world-view off, potentially.
Flumphs. Full stop. In my campaigns I have them refluffed as created by the same mad gods that made the other Abberations. The Flumphs were created to be the wardens and crusaders of the Abberations. There form allowed them to use almost any weapon imaginabe in their quests. In the current time, Flumphs are what stop creatures like the Mindflayers and stuff from taking over.
Wow. I started on 3.5 edition so the flumph is something I learned of later, but this is genius.
I've got a liking for gnolls, though more the human half than the other. In my personal setting, I reworked them into nomadic desert living coyote-people with strong family ties. They were also the first race I ever tried to write a language for (except for the part where languages have more than thirty-odd words I succeeded too).
Yup, I still have the original spelljammer books at my house. I still find the idea that they would flee backwards in time and ditch their technology to be odd though.
Everything anyone has said about Dwarves in this thread so far pretty much sums it up for me. Dwarves are awesome.
Other than Dwarves:
Half-Giants = The closest I'll get to being tall.
Werebears and "unusual" lycanthropes (Sharks, Bison, Whales, etc, etc) = To be fair, Werewolves are awesome, but I'd rather turn into a Bear than a Wolf in the end.
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Avatar by Miss Nobody.
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Originally Posted by Anuan
Yes, but that's Fred. He radiates awesomeness.
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Originally Posted by Bhu
I like Fred. I shall make him an honorary Pimpsquatch.
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Originally Posted by A Rainy Knight
I love Fred because he returned from the dead in a form that doesn't hunger for the flesh of the living! Also, he's a nice guy.
I love Drow, but found myself very disappointed by the Eberron Fluff; Scorpions? When we could've had Spiders! Unacceptable!
Other than that though, they are probably my favourite race ever; the weird, dysfunctional society, the near constant machinations against everyone you care for, the tests of Lolth. That and they make me feel all tingly
...moving on.
I also really love Changelings, both because Shapeshifters are awesome, but also because they look awesome in their base forms (which, admittedly, doesn't matter much for a shapeshifter). I also really enjoyed their fluff in RoE
Mostly anything that is not primarily a D&D construct. Dragons, elves, dwarves, dryads, brownies, ... Any traditional fantasy race.
But there's one traditional race I love above all others. They can be the most noble, or the most villainous. They combine all the most interesting aspects of the other races. You can never predict what they do, since their experience covers everthing.
I'm going to go with Spellweavers, assuming non-playables are allowed. All the power of a sorcerer of a level two higher than their number of HD, and the ability to cast 6 levels worth of spells in a single round. Their strangely appealing arthopoidal appearance and their indestructible chromatic disks which also store an additional 10 levels worth spells are just gravy.
They also, to exaggerate, came close to achieving a TippyVerse in their ancient past, before the gods decided to crash their party and blow up of their monolithic portal hubs. At least, that's what I drew from their Ecology article in Dragon, which I suppose might not be valid.
I don't have a particular favorite race excluding D&D, though I suppose I'm sort of fond Norse dwarves, since the idea of awakened, magically inclined, humanoid maggots seems pretty interesting to me. I might be selectively remembering my readings on Norse mythology, though.
I love Drow, but found myself very disappointed by the Eberron Fluff; Scorpions? When we could've had Spiders! Unacceptable!
Other than that though, they are probably my favourite race ever; the weird, dysfunctional society, the near constant machinations against everyone you care for, the tests of Lolth. That and they make me feel all tingly
...moving on.
I also really love Changelings, both because Shapeshifters are awesome, but also because they look awesome in their base forms (which, admittedly, doesn't matter much for a shapeshifter). I also really enjoyed their fluff in RoE
Well, to be fair, I think part of the reason they didn't go with spiders was because if all the other gods were new in Eberron, then they had Lolth waltz in and be up to her old tricks, SOOOOOOOOOOO many people would have been really peeved. I think going with just another arachnid might be kind of lazy, but I would rather it be scorpions than tics, cause tics are just completely gross and creepy. One the other hand, they probably also wanted Vulkoor to be a male, for another degree of separation from Lolth.
Also, I would edit your post about the whole "machinations against everyone they are for" to "everyone they're related to" since they don't have a word for love, and all that business.
But while I feel the exact opposite of you about Eberron drow, I do so with the utmost respect. And as an aside, concerning them making you feel all tingly, look at he bright side of Eberron drow: they're now available in loinclothed barbarian
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Thanks to Kymme for my sweet avatar of Bendar Roy, my kick@$$ dwarven rogue.
Goblins, Orcs nd Ogres - beautiful green for all sizes. I never liked how they're treated liek a crap to make Elves and human look better and was always secretely rooting for them. I never like when they just shove down my throat that some race is evil and it's okay to kill it's members, that just doesn't work for me. I like them as representing the alternative to what we are. I like them as living in hard einvorment, where you have to fight for survival, like deserts, jungles, mountains and things like that. Entire world and nature itself unites against them. Humans, Dwarves and Elves wants to kill them, forces of nature doesn't give them a break. And yet, they survive. By their titanic strength (ogres), cunning and boderline madness (goblins) or just sheer determination and refusal to die (Orcs), they survive.
Mul
Because half human half dwarves that have the muscles of Dwarves yet the height of humans is a kickass idea. Also they are good for Battleminds.
Thri-Kreen
Favorite mantis/humanoid, has two extra arms that can be used to quickly switch weapons out. Jumper/climber, just a lot different than the humanoid base races, while dwarves might get resistance to poison, but these guys have extra arms.
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Haggis is Sheep's stomach filled with its intestines.
Githzerai. So lawful, they place their monasteries in the plane of swirling chaos for the challenge of it. So mentally strong, that they make their own rules of reality apply while inside.
Seriously, it's like an order of paladins colonizing Hell for the challenge of it. I love their chutzpah.
__________________ Honor guard at the funeral in the Miko Fan Club.
Those who are too stupid to run, I salute you.
Human Male, age 27
"Have you come to lecture me on my evil ways?"
"Actually, I brought you some supper. But if you'd prefer a lecture, I've a few very catchy ones prepped; sin and hellfire... one has lepers."
Githzerai. So lawful, they place their monasteries in the plane of swirling chaos for the challenge of it. So mentally strong, that they make their own rules of reality apply while inside.
Seriously, it's like an order of paladins colonizing Hell for the challenge of it. I love their chutzpah.
Not all of them are Paladins, and it was the Abyss, not Hell, but look up the Harmonium and the War of Iron.
“Not a promise, not an oath, or a malediction or a curse,” I said, sounding calm, probably inaudible in the midst of the screaming. “Inevitable. Wasn’t that how she put it? I told them. Warned them.”
-Taylor Hebert. Yes, I'm a proud Skittle.
I've always loved Elves. Particularly Warhammer and LotR ones.
A race that has been around for milennia and knows how to avoid all the mistakes humans might make in the current era but won't tell them because the Elves are too god to bother with helping some hairy, barely civilised barbarians.
I've always loved Elves. Particularly Warhammer and LotR ones.
A race that has been around for milennia and knows how to avoid all the mistakes humans might make in the current era but won't tell them because the Elves are too god to bother with helping some hairy, barely civilised barbarians.
Of course, they know about all those mistakes from experiences. Because they made them all tenfold.
“Not a promise, not an oath, or a malediction or a curse,” I said, sounding calm, probably inaudible in the midst of the screaming. “Inevitable. Wasn’t that how she put it? I told them. Warned them.”
-Taylor Hebert. Yes, I'm a proud Skittle.
“Not a promise, not an oath, or a malediction or a curse,” I said, sounding calm, probably inaudible in the midst of the screaming. “Inevitable. Wasn’t that how she put it? I told them. Warned them.”
-Taylor Hebert. Yes, I'm a proud Skittle.
Of course, they know about all those mistakes from experiences. Because they made them all tenfold.
Oh absolutely. But they're far too arrogant to admit that.
I dunno, but the idea of a society whose arrogance is their major flaw intrigues me. Especially when one considers that, of humans, halflings and dwarves, elves have the most cause to be arrogant.
The arrogance is justified. It might piss other beings off, but it's justified. Try as they might, other races will just not match the grandeur of the elves. They can try. And they will fail. Cause the elves are better than you. And they know it.
Oh absolutely. But they're far too arrogant to admit that.
I dunno, but the idea of a society whose arrogance is their major flaw intrigues me. Especially when one considers that, of humans, halflings and dwarves, elves have the most cause to be arrogant.
The arrogance is justified. It might piss other beings off, but it's justified. Try as they might, other races will just not match the grandeur of the elves. They can try. And they will fail. Cause the elves are better than you. And they know it.
And the rest of us smile as we know they're the first one out and we still have countless millennia to equal or surpass them.
Pity that seems to be a common ailment of the Elves, no?
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Re: Fantasy Race you love.
Insane Binder Avatar by Babale
Honor guard at the funeral in the Miko Fan Club. 
