Changing Races

[AWiz_Abroad]

I'm away from books at the moment.

What is a race in D&D? If you are X type of creature, and change into Y type of creature (Polymorph any object(Permanent Duration), Wildshape, Polymorph, Alter Self, Trollshape, or what have you, are you a different race?

I've been mulling over entering the gouda filled Beholder Mage (I know, but we are talking epic play). The requirement, for those who aren't as into D&D power as I am, is 1. Race: True Beholder, and 2. Must put out central anti-magic eye.

The cheese of beholder mage is really just the tip of the iceberg, Illithid Savant, any of the Changeling classes, all have racial requirements.

To your mind, what precisely makes up a race in D&D terms? Once again, I am away from books, so there may be a book answer for this, but barring that, I'd be interested in what the playground thinks

[Phelix-Mu]

Race is a word usually used in conjunction with "player character race" or something to suggest a connection to gameplay. As for a rule on how it works, I think the only implication is that there is a subtype to your character that corresponds to your race (at least for the core humanoid races and characters that began as humanoids).

I think all form-changing magic was changed so that it doesn't affect type unless it specifically says so. A polymorphed/wild shaped/shapechanged/whatever humanoid is still a humanoid. As noted, even a spell that changes type will probably not remove subtypes, so some effect that explicitly changes the humanoid (dwarf) into an outsider will probably result in outsider (dwarf).

/EDIT: Upon reflection, I don't know if I can justify any of this. Still looking....

[Kelb_Panthera]

Unfortunately, the good folks at WotC never bothered to actually define that particular keyword.

Any answer you get will be the best guess of the person posting it.

FWIW, I'd define race as a particular type of creature. Not just type and subtype, but the actual specified creature. If a feat requires "race: human" it means you can only take it if your character is a human. Not an aventi, not an illumian, not an underfolk, but a human. (all of the above have the (human) subtype.) It's a bit restrictive, but any other interpretation makes racial restrictions a bit easier to bypass than I'm comfortable with. YMMV.

Just to reiterate; there is -no- official answer to your question, to the best of my knowledge.