Why no other race combos except half orc and half elf?

[Spacehamster]

Guess humans can´t get babies with Dwarves, halflings and gnomes?

[Daishain]

They can, human/orc and human/elf are just more common pairings for whatever reason.

In fact, it doesn't stop there. There's an entire racial classification of mutts known as mongrelfolk. Humanoids whose parentage includes so many different species that identifying them all is impossible.

[Spacehamster]

They can, human/orc and human/elf are just more common pairings for whatever reason.

In fact, it doesn't stop there. There's an entire racial classification of mutts known as mongrelfolk. Humanoids whose parentage includes so many different species that identifying them all is impossible.

Oh cool hope they add half dwarves or half gnomes or something along the way then. Would be fun. Or half halflings as hilarious as that sounds. :p

[Grey Watcher]

Short answer is Tolkien.

Basically, because there were half Elves in Lot and because of Saruman's Uruk-Hai, Gygax and and the others felt it was necessary to make those playable. There weren't any dwarf-human or hobbit-human* hybrids and no gnomes at all, so those halvesies don't have an official support.

*Technically, Tolkien's Hobbits are just diminutive humans.

[NotVeryBatman]

Tiefling/Aasimar are half fiend/celestial. Or is it devil?

[Chadamantium]

They can, human/orc and human/elf are just more common pairings for whatever reason.

In fact, it doesn't stop there. There's an entire racial classification of mutts known as mongrelfolk. Humanoids whose parentage includes so many different species that identifying them all is impossible.

We at our table refer to them as the Heinz 57.

[Hiro Protagonest]

Dark Sun. Muls exist. That's not 5e though.

As for half-halflings... sounds boring. Use human stats or halfling stats, the races are pretty similar.

Gnomes are a magic race like elves, so just use half-elf stats.

[Shining Wrath]

Grey Watcher has the right of it; we get pretty much Tolkein's races plus a few to start with.

I would let a player homebrew any hybrid that came to mind. If it's really weird (giant-gnome) someone has to be casting some polymorph spells.

[Nifft]

One way to go with this is just say that all the "traditional" demi-humans are a single race.

Dwarves are the very masculine males.

Elves are the very feminine females.

Halflings and Gnomes are either male or female, but not as exaggerated a degree as Dwarves or Elves.

That way, "Half-Elf" means a human + any one of the "traditional" demi-humans.

- - -

Goblinoids could be a mix of Orc + demi-human.

[Zevox]

Tiefling/Aasimar are half fiend/celestial. Or is it devil?
Not half. More like 90+% Human, the rest a smattering of fiend/celestial. In 3e and prior fluff because they're literally descended from fiends/celestials (and Half-Fiends/Celestials were their own thing), in 4 and 5e fluff because they're either humans who magically infused themselves with some fiendish/celestial blood or the descendants of one who did.

Anyway though, the explanation about Tolkien as the origin of this is correct. Half-Elves were mentioned in LotR, as was the idea of breeding a cross-breed of Human and Orc, and thus we get in them in D&D, since D&D was heavily influenced by Tolkien.

[Envyus]

Not half. More like 90+% Human, the rest a smattering of fiend/celestial. In 3e and prior fluff because they're literally descended from fiends/celestials (and Half-Fiends/Celestials were their own thing), in 4 and 5e fluff because they're either humans who magically infused themselves with some fiendish/celestial blood or the descendants of one who did.


In 5e the Descendants part applies again.

[Ravens_cry]

Planetouched also come to mind. Half-fiend, Half-dragon are another possibility, and that's just in core 3.X.

[Rfkannen]

I agree with most of whats been said, but let me just point out all the hybrids implied you can play.


half elf- duh (also includes half drow)
half orc- duh
dwarf halfling- the stout halfling has dwarf blood.
any humanoid orc- in the monster manual it is stated that orcs can boink basically anything.
genie medium humanoid- I think I remember in 4e it was stated that gensei were not part human but rather anything,I know the forgotten realms people thought they were dwarves, the other half is genie in 5e. Gensie
dragon anything- mm
human werewolf- shifters
human doppleganger- in some settings changelings are these.

in addition you know that all player races can half dragon/storm creature/divine blood so there half to be pure half and half hybrids of those.

And of course teilflings and aasimar exist.



If we look to previus editions, and assume that these races are still canon we also have-
gnome dwarves (gully dwarves)
the dragonlance books say it is all possible





why only these ones? Because not enough people want to play a halfling human for them to publish it.

[Sigreid]

Guess humans can´t get babies with Dwarves, halflings and gnomes?

Because only a dwarf would sleep with a dwarf?

[coredump]

Short answer is Tolkien.

Basically, because there were half Elves in Lot and because of Saruman's Uruk-Hai, Gygax and and the others felt it was necessary to make those playable. There weren't any dwarf-human or hobbit-human* hybrids and no gnomes at all, so those halvesies don't have an official support.

*Technically, Tolkien's Hobbits are just diminutive humans.

You're crazy. Those movies didn't come out until a few years ago, and DnD has been around a lot longer than that.

[Ravens_cry]

You're crazy. Those movies didn't come out until a few years ago, and DnD has been around a lot longer than that.
I thought we were using blue text for sarcasm around here. Right?
Right?!:smalleek:

[Belac93]

You're crazy. Those movies didn't come out until a few years ago, and DnD has been around a lot longer than that.
Tolkien is an author, the hobbit has been around as a book since 1937, and the lord of the rings only a little while longer than that.

[j_spencer93]

um halflings are not just small humans. Even in tolkeins books.

[Zevox]

In 5e the Descendants part applies again.
I got that second one directly from the 5e PHB. I've never actually touched 4e, I only mentioned it because I've seen other people here say that's where the 5e version was introduced.


um halflings are not just small humans. Even in tolkeins books.
Not definitely, but the only origin for the race ever suggested in Tolkien's writings is that they were an offshoot of mankind. (In contrast, every other race in Arda has a definite origin, usually being created either by Eru or one of the Valar, or corrupted from something else by Morgoth.)

[Eriol]

You're crazy. Those movies didn't come out until a few years ago, and DnD has been around a lot longer than that.
/facepalm

The first book, the Hobbit, came out in 1937, and the LotR books came out in 1954-55.

You thought the movies weren't based on books? Well, they aren't, but they're an adaptation (HEAVILY adapted) of the books.

[asorel]

Tolkien is an author, the hobbit has been around as a book since 1937, and the lord of the rings only a little while longer than that.


/facepalm

The first book, the Hobbit, came out in 1937, and the LotR books came out in 1954-55.

You thought the movies weren't based on books? Well, they aren't, but they're an adaptation (HEAVILY adapted) of the books.

Pardon me for speaking on the behalf of coredump, but I believe that the statement was intended as sarcasm.

[Rfkannen]

Because only a dwarf would sleep with a dwarf?


It is odd, because you are posting this on the internet, but it appears that you have never been on the internet.


hah! but in all seriousness you seriously underestimate humans. I bet plenty of people would want to sleep with a dwarf! Heck I could probably find someone who liked half ogre vampire bullywugs.

[Eriol]

Pardon me for speaking on the behalf of coredump, but I believe that the statement was intended as sarcasm.
For his sake, I hope you're right.

[Ravens_cry]

Well, the obvious answer is . . .
"Because no one crosses a dwarf!":durkon:

[Sigreid]

It is odd, because you are posting this on the internet, but it appears that you have never been on the internet.


hah! but in all seriousness you seriously underestimate humans. I bet plenty of people would want to sleep with a dwarf! Heck I could probably find someone who liked half ogre vampire bullywugs.

Haha! True enough. I have a longstanding tradition of harassing dwarves in game. Have a song for my characters to sing in tavern's and everything. (Dwarf the fantasy race, nothing against little people.:tongue:)

[Balain]

I don't recall what edition it was, I remember reading a blurb about humans having sex with just about anything that moves. Half-elves and half orcs had distinct differences. Half dwarves were either dwarf like or human like (then darksun came out with muls) Same goes for dwarf/elf hybrids. Went on about things like dwarf/orc hybrids. Both dwarves and orcs would just kill such offspring so never see them around.

[Lord Raziere]

Pardon me for speaking on the behalf of coredump, but I believe that the statement was intended as sarcasm.

I dunno. It wouldn't actually surprise me if that wasn't sarcasm. history isn't a thing everyone studies, and people have accused Warhammer Online of ripping off World of Warcraft when it came out. when Warcraft is the one who originally ripped off Warhammer, two decades earlier, was it? I could see someone ignorant enough saying what coredump just said without any problems.

[HoarsHalberd]

I dunno. It wouldn't actually surprise me if that wasn't sarcasm. history isn't a thing everyone studies, and people have accused Warhammer Online of ripping off World of Warcraft when it came out. when Warcraft is the one who originally ripped off Warhammer, two decades earlier, was it? I could see someone ignorant enough saying what coredump just said without any problems.


Warcraft was originally commissioned as a warhammer RTS. Then GW withdrew support so Blizzard reused their assets to make Warcraft, saving them a lot of money in the short term and making them filthy, filthy rich in the long term. Warhammer Online can be accused of ripping WoW off in some regards (mechanics) but it is silly too, as MMOs have been about iteration and evolution for a very long time. WoW itself was an iterative "rip off" of Everquest.

[Coidzor]

Guess humans can´t get babies with Dwarves, halflings and gnomes?

They simplified the game immensely.

Naturally all of the oddball, non-iconic, non-classic combinations got dropped in exchange for the ones with the most market-share.

[Spacehamster]

Curious what stats would you get a half dwarf from human + dwarf?

[Rfkannen]

Curious what stats would you get a half dwarf from human + dwarf?

hmm.welp I may as well try to convert the darksun mul to 5e, I timed this it took 2 muinits, so it probably isn't balanced, but you get the idea.

Ability score increases. Your constitution score increases by 1. Your strength increases by 2.
Size. Medium
Speed. 30 feet
darkvision
dwarven toughness. Your hit point maximum increases by 1, and it increases by 1 every time you gain a level.
Tireless. you gain advantage on doing physical activities that are mindlessly repetive and take a long time such as walking, mining, separating paper into two different stacks, ect. in addition you can stay awake 2 times as long as normal.
languages. You can speak read and write common and dwarvish.

[Mrmox42]

Back in 3.5 dragons could breed with ANYTHING with a pulse, making halfdragon-somethings all the time.
I remember some really silly halfbreeds, like dragon/blue whale, dragon/dog, dragon/mind flayer and even dragon/hedgehog (scary).

For fun, I invented the dragon/penguin and the dragon/jellyfish halfbreeds and used them in a campaign. :smallcool:

Weren't there halfogres about, once?

[Ralanr]

Back in 3.5 dragons could breed with ANYTHING with a pulse, making halfdragon-somethings all the time.
I remember some really silly halfbreeds, like dragon/blue whale, dragon/dog, dragon/mind flayer and even dragon/hedgehog (scary).

For fun, I invented the dragon/penguin and the dragon/jellyfish halfbreeds and used them in a campaign. :smallcool:

Weren't there halfogres about, once?

Yeah. In the MM, they can be half human or half-Orc, which I found interesting.

With the half-dragon template existing still, the fact that dragons can mate with anything still applies.

Begs the question of how a half-dragon ooze came to be.

Dragonborn don't, but 5e doesn't go into genetic details on most interracial conceptions.

[Fwiffo86]

I and my players still prefer the Mystara method.

There are no cross-breeds. It's impossible. The races cannot interbreed at all. In 5e we do this:

Half-elf = dropped from available list
Half-orc = Orc
Dragonborn = Magical creation - cannot breed. Does not have required organs.
Tiefling = Any race cursed by a greater power (pick what you look like: dwarf, human, etc.. All racial abilities are replaced with the tiefling abilities. Breeds with its "base" race. Traits are not passed on.)
Assamir = Any race blessed by a greater power (as above)

[Ralanr]

Dragonborn aren't exactly a crossbreed.

Your table though.

[Fwiffo86]

Dragonborn aren't exactly a crossbreed.

Your table though.

True. Added for additional detail. In the case of the "half-dragon" template, it was likewise dropped.

[KorvinStarmast]

Curious what stats would you get a half dwarf from human + dwarf? You'd get the bearded lady at the circus.

As to the best post in this thread:

Well, the obvious answer is . . .
"Because no one crosses a dwarf!"
Bucket full of win, right there! :smallbiggrin:

[DemonSlayer6]

In terms of "pure" races in the PHB, there are:

Humans
Elves
Dwarves
Gnomes
Halflings


On top of this, you have

Half-Elves (of mixed human and elf descent)
Half-Orcs (of human and orc descent)
Dragonborn (of human and dragon descent)
Tieflings (of human and demon descent)


Note that these mixed races are listed as pretty rare. Humans tend to mate with humans, elves with elves, orcs with orcs. In fact, the Half-Orc description is that these are often the result of truces after years of combat between human and orc nations. And half-elves are so uncommon that one can easily live to meet only one ever.

Within external guides such as the Elemental Evil companions and Unearthed Arcana you have

Genasi (of human and genie/elemental descent)
Minotaur (according to Greek myth, of human descent)
Aarakocra (bird people, don't know if half-something or pure)


The net result being even more mixed races are granted.

Now, as to why there's no "Half-Dwarf" or "Half-Halfling"...We can take the unusual nature of half-breeds in general. Or we can concern ourselves with balance and ability concerns.

The former is self-explanatory. In the latter, meanwhile, how would you build a half-dwarf? What size is a half-halfling? And if a half-dwarf lives among dwarves, couldn't it just be considered a tall dwarf with some fluff (given dwarven knowledge, training, resilience, etc). Plus, dwarves live much longer than humans; to the point that the fluff between the races signifies the dwarves never getting to know a human for long and even that human's kin being more like a friend than any sort of romantic relationship.