LudicSavant
2022-02-21, 06:36 AM
Hoo boy, does this book shake up PC races. There's a whopping 33 races (39 including subrace options), and many of them are strong. There's a lot for optimizers to digest here. I'll try to be quick about it (I already had to cut down my original writeup because it told me the post was too big!)
Anyways, here are my early impressions.
Bugbear
Hobgoblins and Goblins have always been strong in 5e, but Bugbears got left behind.
Mordenkainen's Monsters of the Multiverse changes that in a big way. For one thing, they are now a liquid.
https://c.tenor.com/Y_gs772PLrkAAAAC/cat-liquid.gif
Pictured: A Bugbear, now capable of moving in spaces for Small creatures without Squeezing. Also has Fey Ancestry now.
Bugbears have a good assortment of minor extras. Darkvision, a skill proficiency, Fey Ancestry, Powerful Build, the ability to move in spaces for Small creatures without squeezing, and Long Limbs (situationally useful for hit-and-run attacks against foes with a small reach. Don't expect it to extend the range of Booming Blade or anything, though).
But the big change is that Surprise Attack has changed from "if you get Surprise, you do +2d6 damage on a single attack" to "if an enemy hasn't acted yet, you get +2d6 damage on all of your attacks."
This works on any kind of attack. Swords? Yep. Bows? You got it. Eldritch Blast? Mhm. Spiritual Weapon, Crown of Stars, Scorching Ray, Blade of Disaster? That's right. The AoE of Steel Wind Strike? Yep, that too. That Reaction attack the Order Cleric made you take? Yes, even that. They all do an extra +2d6 damage per hit.
This change turns Bugbears from something that were generally ignored by optimizers into a deadly offensive contender. Grab your Alerts, Fey-Touched Gifts of Alacrities, your Luckies, your Gloomstalkers and War Wizards and Battle Masters with the new Ambush maneuver and go forth, my children. Be a bugbear, leap out of a crack in the wall and eat someone's face before they get to act.
Do it as a Flurrying Monk dipping Fighter for Action Surge.
Do it as a Gloomstalker Echo Knight projecting their Echo Avatar to assassinate someone from 1000 feet away.
Do it as a Sorlock Quickening Eldritch Blasts.
Do it as an Evoker Overchanneling a Scorching Ray and firing a Crown of Stars bolt alongside their Simulacrum doing the same.
Do it dipping Assassin so that you get Advantage on all attacks before your enemy takes a turn (don’t even worry about the “getting Surprise” clause).
Go. Be a big brutal sneaky liquid fairy goblinoid, that your enemies may know to fear the Bugbear that’s hiding in your closet right now.
Kobolds
https://tinyurl.com/2j26c8a9
Pictured: A Kobold lets loose a Draconic Cry
New Kobolds are strong. Damn strong.
Draconic Cry is a bonus action that gives you Advantage on all of your attacks, and all of your allies’ attacks, for an entire round, proficiency bonus times a day. Bloody hells, even if this was only affecting you, it’d be like a Samurai’s Fighting Spirit offensively. As a racial feature. And it doesn’t only affect you, it affects your whole damn party!
And unlike old kobolds, you aren’t paying for this with any drawbacks. No Sunlight Sensitivity, no ability penalties, nothing.
What, that’s not enough for you? You need more features? Well guess what, you get to pick one of three subrace choices:
Craftiness will give you a skill proficiency, Defiance will get you fear resistance, and Draconic Sorcery will get you a Sorcerer cantrip with your choice of mental casting stat.
The cantrip option offers some interesting possibilities: You could give a Bard an actually solid attack cantrip, a Cleric or Rogue a Booming Blade, or just hand a Wizard more space for great cantrips (there’s enough good ones on their list for that to matter). The skill proficiency or fear resistance are good choices if there aren’t any cantrips you want for your build.
And you get Darkvision on top.
The one thing I'll note is that Draconic Cry requires you to get close (though you don't need to stay there). The kobold race is ideal for characters who...
- Don't have overwhelming bonus action competition.
- Are comfortable getting in close now and then.
- Benefit significantly from Advantage and/or have party members who do.
- Are looking for a way to pick up a Sorcerer cantrip (basically, the same characters who liked High Elf or Variant). Or not, because they can just take another subrace.
Aarakocra
Aarakocra got their wild 50 foot movement speed nerfed down to a more standard 30. As a consolation prize, they get Gust of Wind as a spell-like 1/day (and learn the spell, if they have slots -- something that's standard for all racial spells for MPMM races).
Of course, it's still at-will flight, so it's still a potent race choice based on that alone.
The armor restriction means that you'll want to be using lightly or unarmored characters as an Aarakocra.
Shadar-Kai
I feel like whoever was doing these changes just overlooked the fact that unlike the Eladrin, the Shadar-Kai's teleport was 1/day, rather than 1/short rest. And then just gave them the same "proficiency/day" treatment they gave the Eladrin.
This means Shadar-Kai are getting a big buff, and they were already one of the stronger races.
A bonus action, nonspell teleport prof/day on an elf chassis would already be enough to be great. Having that bonus action also give resistance to all damage makes it amazing -- easily superior to the Earth Genasi's bonus action.
They also have Necrotic Resistance (one of the best Resistances to get) on all day. On top of all the usual stuff that makes it good to be an elf -- Darkvision, Charm Resistance, +1 skill, Trance, and access to elf-only feats like Elven Accuracy.
As if all that wasn't enough, Trance got buffed (https://tinyurl.com/bdbes24h), giving you extra proficiencies, 4 extra hours to do stuff every day, and the ability to cheese 8 hour spell durations. In addition to having a shorter rest, you're also conscious while resting, making you an excellent watchman.
Harengon
You get to add your Proficiency bonus to initiative rolls -- already a feature comparable to the best bullet point of the Alert feat, once you get a big enough proficiency bonus under your belt.
Now, people generally have a vague sense that initiative is good, but don't have a concrete idea of exactly how much it's worth. So here's how you can think about initiative bonuses when comparing features: Each +1 to initiative is an increase to the % chance that you get an extra turn relative to Team Monster. And an extra turn is better than an Action Surge (after all, you get an Action as part of a turn). So you can kind of think of it as an X% chance of getting that extra turn each combat.
As nice as this feature is though, it wouldn't make the race on its own -- after all, you could always have been a VHuman with the actual Alert feat. Fortunately for the Harengon, they don't stop there!
You get 3 other things: +1 skill, Lucky Footwork, and Rabbit Hop. No Darkvision though!
Rabbit Hop is basically like a less-movement-speed version of the new Orc's bonus action move, except it gets to ignore opportunity attacks, and the movement can be a vertical jump. This is a pretty meaty mobility feature, allowing easy disengages and extra kiting or engagement range... or simply hopping right over troublesome terrain.
Finally, you get Lucky Footwork, an at-will Reaction equivalent to +2-3 to your Dex save. Like a mini-Resilient that eats your Reaction (and of course stacks with Resilient).
Eladrin
Eladrin was an already-great race that got some modest improvements… which leaves it as a great race.
It has all the usual benefits of being an Elf (fey ancestry, newly buffed Trance, Darkvision, being able to use Elven Accuracy, an extra skill, etc), plus an excellent teleportation feature.
Now instead of 1/short rest, you get your teleport proficiency times a day, which I’d say is better overall. It also now can key off of any mental stat, giving it extra synergy with some more builds… though Eladrin remains a solid choice even if you don’t have any mental stats at all (after all, the Spring and Summer options won’t care).
Summer gives you a small amount of action-economy-efficient, auto-hitting AoE damage, while Winter gives you the chance to frighten enemies, offering you more control and defense. Both are good for characters using the teleport primarily to help them engage in melee. Spring on the other hand will help you move allies around the battlefield.
Level 1-4: 4 auto-hitting AoE damage
Level 5-8: 9 auto-hitting AoE damage
Level 9-12: 16 auto-hitting AoE damage
Level 13-16: 25 auto-hitting AoE damage
Level 17-20: 36 auto-hitting AoE damage
The charm is a bit more situational, since they’re only charmed by you and still free to attack your allies, and because damage will break the charm. But in exchange, at least it can target two creatures over Winter’s 1.
Goblin
Fury of the Small does less damage than it used to (at least, if we're assuming you got an average of 2 short rests), but it's still a decent chunk of damage -- basically, a total of proficiency^2 over the course of the adventuring day.
Level 1-4: 4 total damage
Level 5-8: 9 total damage
Level 9-12: 16 total damage
Level 13-16: 25 total damage
Level 17-20: 36 total damage
And you get charm resistance added on from Fey Ancestry!
So I'd say the Goblin is about as strong as it used to be... which is to say, really damn good, particularly for classes that can spare their bonus actions, like Wizard. It basically is getting you some of the biggest benefits of dipping Rogue, without actually dipping Rogue.
Why is this so good for a Wizard? Well, enemies can't Counterspell you if they can't see you. And stealth only applies Advantage to one attack/turn... which is a considerably larger DPR buff to someone like an Evoker throwing a single 4d10+5 Fire Bolt than it is to someone using multiple attacks (in fact, large enough to make it do nearly as much DPR as a vanilla Agonizing Eldritch Blast). And you can casually disengage from pesky melee combat or the like. And Fury of the Small can buff spell damage.
Goblin isn't great for everyone though. Its flagship ability is entirely redundant for Rogues, and builds that rely heavily on their bonus actions won't benefit as much from throwing a Goblin's Cunnning-Action-like feature into the mix.
Hobgoblin
This one is more of a reimagining than a simple tweak!
Fortune from the Many is a very strong feature. Like, you know how people sometimes say Advantage is worth very roughly as much as a +3 on the roll, and how the Lucky feat is good? Well this gives a +3 on a roll, not 3 times a day but Proficiency times a day. And unlike Lucky, it's a fixed bonus... if you fell 2 short of a roll, you know this will make the difference, and thus it's a lot harder to be "wasted" than Lucky.
As if that wasn't a good enough bonus to your saves already, you also get charm resistance from Fey Ancestry.
And I haven't even talked about Fey Gift yet. This gives you the ability to use a buffed up version of the Help action as a bonus action, proficiency times a day. In addition to basically giving you the benefit of the Mastermind Rogue's feature (albeit with limited uses), you also get to choose from a variety of options.
Option 1) Temp HP! This'll give 1d6+PB temp HP to whoever you helped. If you used all your Fey Gifts this way, it'd work out to...
Level 3-4: 11 HP
Level 5-8: 19.5 HP
Level 9-12: 30 HP
Level 13-16: 42.5 HP
Level 17-20: 57 HP
Wow, that's a lot of temp HP to be tossing around over the course of the day racial feature... especially considering how good the Hobgoblin's other stuff already is.
Option 2) This one boosts your ally's movement speed by 10 feet, which may not seem like a lot... but when it makes the difference between getting into range and not, you'll realize just how nice it is to have this on call.
Option 3) Spite: If the person you help hits with an attack (any attack, not just the one you helped), the target gets Disadvantage on one attack. Could be worth more than the temp HP depending on the situation.
Any of these would be nice on their own, but getting them all as tactical options makes this a powerhouse race.
Kenku
The Kenku have an actual non-ribbon feature now! It lets them get Advantage on a skill check they have proficiency in, PB time/day, basically turning them into a skill monkey race. Besides that, the Kenku are bringing 2 skills, Advantage on forgeries, and their vocal mimicry. No Darkvision or defensive features or anything, though.
The thing is, unlike something like Fortune From the Many (Hobgoblin) or Knowledge from a Past Life (Reborn from Van Richten's Guide), you've gotta use the Advantage before seeing the skill check, which makes it very possible to waste it on checks that succeed on the first roll. Also unlike those things, it won't stack if you have Advantage from some other source.
At the very least, Kenku are a big step up from what they used to be. They just have stiff competition these days.
Centaur
Unlike Fey Ancestry, actually being a Fey is a mixed blessing. Oh sure, Hold Person won’t work on you… but the big bad could cast Forbiddance over the whole damn dungeon. Or throw up a Protection from Evil and Good. Or turn you. Or use Planar Binding on you. Yeah. (The Forbiddance one came up in a game just recently! We stuck our Fey character in a Bag of Holding!)
So what else do we have? A +10 base movement speed, a bonus action unarmed attack (but only at the end of a straight 30 foot move, so you’ll get it maybe once a combat), a skill, and the ability to attack with your feet (which can be helpful for a grappler with a shield, as can the extra speed). Note a lack of Darkvision, and trouble with climbing.
When it comes to sheer mobility I’d probably rather have a Tabaxi (who has Darkvision, and is great at climbing, and also has natural weapons just like the Centaur does – including probably on their feet).
For some few builds, the bonus action attack might make a deciding difference, if there’s room in the build for it. But it won’t work well for Barbarians (who generally want their opening bonus action to be Rage), or anyone using PAM, or Rogues, and it won’t benefit from stuff like the Dueling fighting style or Divine Smite or the like.
Another few things to consider…
- +10 base movement speed means that even if you dump Strength, you’ll move at normal speed in heavy armor (and faster than a dwarf). On the other hand, dumping Strength doesn’t really suit a Centaur since it means you’re getting nothing out of their bonus action attack.
- You are probably “anatomically appropriate for riding” by small creatures, and mounted combat rules are, uhm, kind of insane (https://tinyurl.com/49rpwt8v). Though I haven’t rated this – or any – race on the assumption that you’d be abusing the mess that is mounted combat rules.
Goliath
At first glance, the Goliath doesn't look like it changed that much. It just got the 1/short rest to PB/day change and called it a day. But I'd say this makes a big difference for the Goliath. It not only means they're likely to get more mitigation/day, but also that they can use their mitigation back to back to back as needed.
You get Cold Resistance, 1 skill and Powerful Build. No Darkvision, though.
Their main ability is being able to use a Reaction to reduce an attack’s damage by 1d12+Con, now buffed to Proficiency times a day.
We can count about how much HP this is worth. Assuming a 16 Constitution, it’d be (on average)…
Level 1-4: 19 HP with 16 Con (23 with 20 Con)
Level 5-8: 28.5 HP (34.5)
Level 9-12: 38 HP (46)
Level 13-16: 47.5 HP (57.5)
Level 17-20: 57 HP (69)
Compare this to the likes of, say, the Hill Dwarf granting 20 max HP at level 20, and it reveals just how much mitigation this really is, especially at low levels when 19 HP is very possibly more than you have.
Also, unlike a Hill Dwarf or Shifter’s extra HP, this is actually reducing damage, and thus reducing Concentration saves, extending Armor of Agathys, and the like. Also unlike the Shifter or Hobgoblin, this ain't temp HP: It'll stack with that Glamour Bard or Twilight Cleric or Inspiring Leader or Armor of Agathys or the like.
And here's the thing about that proficiency/day change: You can use your reactions back to back to back. While a Shifter is basically transforming once per combat, a Goliath can easily use multiple damage-reducing reactions in a single fight, getting more burst durability.
This could work well on, say, a Cleric (as many Clerics don't have great Reactions, but love their bonus actions).
Fire Genasi
The old version of Fire Genasi was basically a worse tiefling.
Sadly, the new version hasn’t come far. It’s basically a Tiefling with a markedly worse spell list. Like, seriously, Flame Blade? Flame Blade? We waited so long for Fire Genasi buffs and this is what we get? Who thought this was okay right next to the goblinoids and the like? When I read this I was half-expecting to see the Air Genasi get Witch Bolt. Bloody hells.
They even lost a bit of their flavor. Now they see only in shades of grey, rather than shades of red. It really feels like they didn’t put any thought or care into this one. Which is a damn shame, because I know a lot of people were eager to see genasi finally get some love.
Water Genasi
This one’s like a Tiefling with a worse spell list and a worse Resistance (Acid), with swimming tacked on. They arguably made the spell list even worse than it used to be, because at least Shape Water was kinda interesting, and Create or Destroy Water used to be a 2nd level slot version (now it's 1st).
Water Breathing I generally see as a ribbon, since any party that cares probably got it as a ritual at 5th level (and that ritual lasts 24 hours), which means that it only matters in the niche case of getting dispelled and not having enough time to deal with that (and 5e characters can hold their breath a very generous time).
A swim speed is a little harder to grab, but there’s still things like, say, an Uncommon magic item that gets you a better swim speed, attunement-free (like a Cloak of the Manta Ray or Ring of Swimming). So you basically have to be in a campaign where a swim speed is a big enough deal to outshine all the time other races are outshining you on land, and you can’t find any options that just would have given you a swim speed anyways (and things like Ghosts of Saltmarsh are perfectly happy to toss those items at you).
Water Walk is quite situational – especially since you're already aquatic. Acid Splash is an unremarkable cantrip. Create or Destroy Water might actually be the most useful thing on their list, which… isn’t inspiring.
Create or Destroy Water’s main use is to keep it in your back pocket as a sort of “dispel fire or fog” spell. It also can be useful for providing fresh water in the middle of a salty ocean, or an arid desert. So that could be nice... but very situationally.
Overall I'd say it's better than the Fire Genasi, though, since at least I can hypothetically think of situations where it might be useful, unlike that tire fire.
Air Genasi
Again this is rather tiefling-like, but it makes out slightly better than Fire and Water.
Lightning is a markedly worse Resistance than Fire (at least, on average), but at least the spell list doesn't have Flame Blade on it. Feather Fall is a “seat belt” spell to have ready just in case. Levitate is just okay – more useful than the original Air Genasi since it can use a main casting stat for its DC now. Shocking Grasp is a pretty situational cantrip.
Overall I'd rather have some of the Tiefling spell lists. But hey, at least they get a 35 foot base movement speed instead of 30.
They also get their ability to hold their breath indefinitely, but I'm not impressed by this feature. While this can deal with some situations that water breathing can't (like, say, the noxious fumes of a wildfire), it's still pretty situational since 3-4 minutes (the time most characters can hold their breath) is already more time than it'll take for most encounters to be resolved, and longer-term things often need you to solve the breathing problem for the party, not just yourself.
Aside from Feather Fall, their racial spellcasting is stat-dependent, so you'll want to use this on a casting class.
Earth Genasi
The only genasi that appears to have gotten a significant buff is the one that perhaps needed it least (though really, all genasi needed it).
Earth Walk now works on most difficult terrain, instead of just that made of earth or stone. Passively ignoring difficult terrain is a Nice Thing, both in general and in terms of combo potential (since you can walk through difficult terrain created by yourself or party members, too).
Additionally, it gets Pass Without Trace added to your spell list, which is a pretty darned good spell – the sort of thing you can build a character or a party around.
Finally, you get a bonus action version of Blade Ward, Proficiency/day. This may not be as good as a Shadar-Kai’s bonus action, but it’s still quite good. You get enough uses to throw this on for a few rounds of combat and pretend you're Raging. However, since it is a bonus action spell, even though it's a cantrip, you can't cast a leveled spell in the same turn.
Altogether, this looks like a genasi people might actually want to play mechanically. Why didn’t the others get this sort of treatment?
Githyanki
This is another Tiefling-like race (except for the fact that, of course, Tieflings themselves haven’t got the “choose your casting stat, use your racial spells with spell slots” update yet)
Psychic Resistance is one of the better kinds to get, comparable to Fire in terms of how many monsters use it. And the spell list is decent, mostly because of Misty Step – though this feature pales in comparison to the non-spell teleports usable Proficiency times a day. The cantrip is also worth noting: Since the Mage Hand is invisible and componentless, it’s gonna be really hard to ever keep you tied up, among other things.
You also get a bonus skill and tool proficiency, and can just change what that proficiency is each long rest -- a versatility that I find only marginally better than just getting a single skill proficiency. It looks like you get this basically instead of a Tiefling’s Darkvision.
Githzerai
This is like the Githyanki, but changes out the spell list and skill proficiency.
In place of the bonus skill, we get what is basically Fey Ancestry and halfling Bravery rolled into one… which is to say, you get Advantage on an awful lot of Wisdom saves. Which is pretty neat. And you get the same Psychic Resistance as the Githyanki. That's a good-sized collection of resistances.
The big feature that sets this apart, though, is the spell list. You get the same cool invisible componentless Mage Hand as the Githyanki, but you also get a componentless Detect Thoughts (which I’d say has some significant implications over regular Detect Thoughts) and Shield on your spell list. Not just a free slot for it, but also the ability to cast it with your slots. For the likes of a Cleric or Bard, that’s a big deal!
So yeah. A good Resistance, Advantage on a large percentage of mental saves, two solid spells with notable boosts from being componentless, and one game-changer spell added to your spell list (Shield). I’d say that’s enough to secure a spot as a strong race choice.
Clerics will love this race. Advantage on an already-good Wisdom save will make them near-immune to charms and fear, while Shield is a significant addition to their spell list.
Fairy
It flies, and that’s already enough to make it a high tier race. The armor restriction means it will be best suited to Dex-based martials or lightly/unarmored casters.
The spellcasting is a cherry on top. For a non-caster that isn’t competing for Concentration, Enlarge/Reduce is an attractive pre-cast buff – especially for those with many attacks, like a Fighter. Faerie Fire is a little more situational, especially if you don’t have Int/Wis/Cha boosting the DC, but is a useful tool to have in your toolbox nonetheless. Druidcraft is a handy cantrip, too, that isn't dependent on your stats. Overall, I'd rate its spell-likes as superior to the Aarakocra.
Also, you’re a Fey. Unlike Fey Ancestry, actually being a Fey is a mixed blessing. Oh sure, Hold Person won’t work on you… but the big bad could cast Forbiddance over the whole damn dungeon. Or throw up a Protection from Evil and Good. Or turn you. Or use Planar Binding on you. Yeah. (The Forbiddance one came up in a game just recently! We stuck our Fey character in a Bag of Holding!) So… yeah. Be careful with that.
Firbolg
The updates are pretty much what you’d expect – their racial casting now allows the spells to be used with slots (just like all the other MPMM races), and their bonus action Invisibility got upgraded to prof uses/day.
The Invisibility can be used to do some rather Goblin-like tricks, which makes this a pretty solid race. It also means the kind of classes that liked Goblin will also like Firbolg.
Being briefly invisible will stop people from being able to Counterspell you, opportunity attack you, or the like. And will give you Advantage on 1 attack roll (best for characters who make one big attack instead of multiple little attacks).
Unlike a Goblin, though, you can’t just spam it willy-nilly, and being Invisible isn’t the same thing as being Hidden. And their spell-likes and beast speech is no match for Fury of the Small, Fey Ancestry, and Darkvision (yep, Firbolgs don’t get that).
I'm tempted to bump this to blue just because of the "avoiding counterspells" thing, though...
Lizardfolk
The Natural Armor is basically a free Mage Armor, and won’t matter for Strength-based characters. Whereas the Hungry Jaws are a strength-based attack.
The Hungry Jaws are usable more often than the Volo’s version. If the Jaws hit, they will generate the following amounts of temp HP over the course of an adventuring day:
Level 1-4: 4 HP
Level 5-8: 9 HP
Level 9-12: 16 HP
Level 13-16: 25 HP
Level 17-20: 36 HP
Of course, miss chances are a thing. For example, if you have 20 Strength and are attacking AC19, that level 17-20 figure goes down to 23.4. They’re also temp HP, so won’t stack with a lot of things. You shouldn’t expect it to be providing as much of a defensive benefit as a Shifter or Goliath. And if you want the bonus action attack? Well, Longtooth Shifters do that too.
Getting a bonus action attack is nice, but it’s only ever going to be a nonmagical attack that doesn’t benefit from Dueling or the like, so I wouldn’t expect it to be adding a ton of damage. You can’t even smite with it as a Paladin, since it counts as an unarmed strike now.
The rest is little ribbons and extras. Hold Breath is only a slight improvement given the length of time 5e characters can already hold their breaths, swim speeds are as situational as usual, and you get 2 skill proficiencies. Their ability to craft things that people without special racial abilities could conceivably already craft has been removed – no loss there.
So… yeah. I don’t really see an optimizer leaping to take this as a Dex-build just for the Natural Armor. Or leaping to take it as a Str-build just for the Hungry Jaws.
Shifters exist and do basically the same schtick better, unless you really care about getting a swim speed.
Orc
Okay. In the past, I’ve said that Orc was basically a wannabe Tabaxi. How does it compete now?
Well, its bonus action move is no longer at-will, but it can move in any direction, and “profiency” is a goodly number of uses. Moreover, it also gives you PB temporary hit points when you use it!
Or in other words, over the course of a day...
Level 1-4: 4 HP
Level 5-8: 9 hp
Level 9-12: 16 hp
Level 13-16: 25 hp
Level 17-20: 36 hp
It also gave up its 2 skill proficiencies (from the Eberron version), but in exchange gets Relentless Endurance from the Half-Orc.
This makes it less directly comparable to the Tabaxi (who have 2 skills). Sure, their mobility might not be quite as good as a Tabaxi, and they might have less skills, but Tabaxi don’t have any extra durability features.
So how good is Relentless Endurance? Well, it won’t block insta-death effects like Death Ward does. It’ll only really give you one extra hit against more conventional offense. Though that’s still pretty neat! Like, I’d rate that at 5-30 hp or so, potentially more in some cases. Plus, you can also use it in cases like, say, Overchanneling as an Evoker.
Of course, a Tabaxi’s mobility is still better, especially if your build demands your bonus action. But if it doesn’t? Well, then orc offers some beef with your mobility. It's main competitor for that niche might well be the Shadar-Kai, sittin' over there with its bonus-action teleport and damage resistance. Which is probably better. But still, this is good stuff, and a Shadar-Kai can't use its mobility to drag people further through a bed of Spike Growth.
In short, the full orc is finally getting some time to shine. Good stuff.
Tabaxi
The Tabaxi is the king of raw movement speed. No action economy requirement here, you just double everything – which means it compounds with other movement speed bonuses, too! And all you have to do to get the ability back is NOT move for a turn.
They also have a decent selection of lesser extras, like +2 skill proficiencies, a climb speed, Darkvision, and natural weapons (which probably also include their feet, for those of you who have your hands full with a shield and grappling).
Tabaxi are a good choice for
– Melee characters who very much want to make sure they can get into melee range.
– Ranged characters who want to get out of dodge and climb up the walls.
– Grapplers who want to drag enemies further.
What the Tabaxi doesn’t offer is extra durability tools – if you want that AND mobility, consider the Shadar-Kai, Orc, Eladrin, etc. It also won’t offer you flight or teleportation or free disengages or the like.
Tortle
Tortle’s main offering is its no-hassle 17 AC. That’s equivalent to a 14 Dex and Half-Plate, or an 18 Dex and Mage Armor… but without the respective investments. Something an unarmored caster is sure to appreciate. Alternatively, you could see it as removing the penalty to stealth checks (and saving 750gp) for builds that would otherwise wear Half-Plate.
https://c.tenor.com/MjZlvC4KFncAAAAC/turtle-tmnt.gif
Pictured: Tortles enjoying the fact that unlike that Mountain Dwarf in half-plate, they’re not going to be taking any penalty to stealth checks.
However it’s not doing a whole lot else. Shell Defense is only situationally better than just taking the Dodge Action. Beyond that it's just a skill proficiency and mostly-negligible ribbons. No Darkvision or resistances or the like.
Anyways, you're looking at +2 AC relative to, say, a 14-Dex Mage Armored Wizard. And while that's nice (not just for the AC, but saving a 1st level slot, too), so are other durability races. Said Wizard could be a Beasthide Shifter getting +1 AC and dozens of temp HP, and arguably better ribbons. Or a Hobgoblin doing... all that hobgoblin stuff. Or take a 1 level dip to get armor and a shield. You get the idea.
Also, unlike, say, a Mountain Dwarf, you're never going to be putting on magic armor. Or be able to take a half-feat that gives you a shield, either.
I guess I could also mention that a Tortle can redirect that 14 Dex to other stats, but... well, investing in Dex is not a bad thing.
Triton
Of the various races overcharged for their access to water breathing and swimming speed, Triton is at least a bit nicer than Water Genasi, but only just. A second-string Resistance, modest spell-like abilities, Darkvision, and a little "communicate simple ideas to sea creatures" ribbon are all they get (though oddly enough, their version is a bit better than the Sea Elf version, which is limited only to Beasts, while theirs can communicate with elementals and monstrosities, too).
They traded out Wall of Water for Water Walk, and I for one am not impressed. I mean, how often do I need to cast Water Walk, especially if I'm already aquatic? It would have been nice to give them some more out-of-water utility so they felt less situational.
Yuan-Ti
OG Yuan-Ti were infamously powerful, so it’s unsurprising to see them receiving some nerfs. Doubly so now that they aren't locked into a Cha/Int statline.
Their poison immunity got downgraded to poison resistance.
Their magic resistance got downgraded to only applying to spells, instead of “spells and other magical effects.” So a lot more monster abilities are gonna pass right through it.
The only improvement is the quality of life changes to racial spellcasting. Their spell list is just okay. Poison Spray isn’t something I’d spend a cantrip slot on, but it’s certainly not bad to have as a freebie option. It is, after all, another save you can target, with a d12 damage die. The ability to talk to snakes is mostly a ribbon. And Suggestion is a solid spell – albeit one that does care about your save DC, and also varies a lot based on DM arbitration.
I’d say that the combination of magic and poison resistance remains a solid defensive investment on its own. And unlike Satyrs, they’ve got Darkvision.
Still good, but nerfed enough that your DM might actually let you play one now.
Satyr
Like the Yuan-Ti, the magic resistance got downgraded to only apply to spells, instead of “spells and other magical effects.”
Compared to the Yuan-Ti, they swap out their poison resistance, Darkvision, and spellcasting for a little jump boost, hands-free natural weapons, 2 skill proficiencies, and a +5 foot movement speed.
Still good, but nerfed enough that your DM might actually let you play one now.
Duergar
Unlike a usual dwarf, this has a 30 foot movement speed, but gets slowed normally by plate armor.
It also has...
Double-range Darkvision, with no Sunlight Sensitivity anymore
Advantage vs Charms (like Fey Ancestry) and Stunning – both really troublesome effects that you don't wanna get hit by. In addition to the Dwarf’s normal Poison Resistance, this is an unusually high amount of useful resistances.
Racial spellcasting. The Enlarge/Reduce is a self-only version, so it’s mostly notable for martial characters as a pre-cast. Invisibility works for pretty much anyone. No big game-changer spells, though.
But it actually loses the dwarf’s tool proficiencies and Stonecunning, which you may or may not care about.
Deep Gnome
Hey look, they buffed gnome movement speed! But only for Deep Gnomes (and all the other Small races in MPMM). Why haven’t the PHB classes gotten updates again? I dunno.
The spells are lovely, Concentration-free utility options for certain types of campaigns – Disguise Self and component-free Nondetection. Combine that with the double-range Darkvision and Advantage on Stealth checks PB/day and they’ve got one of the best racial kits for sneaky shenanigans. They round out the kit with Gnomish Magic Resistance, giving them Advantage on mental saves vs spells (but, unlike OG gnomes, not against other magical effects).
Nondetection is a whopping 3rd-level spell that usually has a costly component. It lasts a full 8 hours (so, basically a whole adventuring day), and -- here's the important part -- counters an awful lot of the things that counter Disguise Self or hiding (not to mention other abilities a character might pick up, like invisibility or the like). More than you might think. (https://rpg.stackexchange.com/questions/172662/can-a-creature-under-the-effect-of-nondetection-be-detected-by-the-detect-magic) Even stuff like True Seeing, which would detect Changelings. (https://twitter.com/jeremyecrawford/status/786625163831848960?lang=en) As such, the various parts of this kit complement each other extremely well.
So when it comes to intrigue and infiltration, Deep Gnomes are one of the best choices around. And unlike Changelings, they're still getting actual combat features.
As a side note, they still have access to the Svirfneblin Magic feat, which is mostly relevant for giving Abjurers an endlessly regenerating ward. However, this isn't quite as big a deal as it used to be, since Abjurers can do this with the Eldritch Adept feat these days, too.
Aasimar
https://64.media.tumblr.com/d7473608209f7338b97df59a09e18c53/bfc83d47d23cd471-da/s500x750/9b8c592654f1ec63bfeaf01faa09c2cdc08498fb.jpg
Radiant Consumption can be a terrifying thing to behold... and a risky weapon to wield.
Okay. So their transformation now only does proficiency damage instead of level damage, and it’s still only 1/day. On the other hand, they get to use it as a Bonus Action, so it’s something you don’t need to pre-cast anymore, and is thus a much more reliable bonus.
You can pick one of three different transformations:
Oddly, Necrotic Shroud is still locked to Charisma. But notably, it no longer friendly-fires! It's great for folks like Conquest Paladins or casters using Summon Shadowspawn -- you know, Cha-based people who can capitalize on the fear. Note the range is rather short, so be comfy up close. Also note that it has a worse damage type than the other two.
Radiant Consumption now does Proficiency damage in an AoE (not a huge change from its original level/2), and still friendly-fires you. Be wary: This won’t turn off if you go unconscious, it CAN finish you off at 0 hp. It’s risky, but it’s also rewarding – that damage is auto-hitting AoE damage.
Radiant Soul can now use its flight more reactively, thanks to being a bonus action! It's an excellent choice for those who want to fly on occasion, but want considerably more non-flying features than Fairy or Aarakocra will offer.
This is basically only going to last for 1 combat. If you get say, 3 rounds of action out of it (3 rounds in which you hit with at least one thing, anyways), you can expect...
Level 1-4: 6 damage (+6 auto-hitting AoE damage if you picked Radiant Consumption... but it hurts you for 3 damage)
Level 5-8: 9 damage (if RC: also+9 AoE if RC, 3 self damage)
Level 9-12: 12 damage (if RC: also +12 AoE, 6 self damage)
Level 13-16: 15 damage (if RC: also +15 AoE, 6 self damage)
Level 17-20: 18 damage (if RC: also +18 AoE, 9 self damage)
Healing Hands also got changed. Instead of healing 1HP/level 1/day, it now heals 1d4xproficiency 1/day.
So…
Level 1-4: 5 HP
Level 5-8: 7.5 HP
Level 9-12: 10 HP
Level 13-16: 12.5 HP
Level 17-20: 15 HP
Overall a nerf to Healing Hands. But still a decent feature, not too far off from the original 1 HP/level.
You also get the Light cantrip (oddly, it’s still Charisma locked unlike all the other racial spells in MPMM), not one but two handy Resistances (both of which are relatively hard to get from other sources), and Darkvision.
So overall I think they came out alright. Yes, their Healing Hands got slightly weaker and their transformation isn’t as good if you get a pre-cast, but not needing to pre-cast it is a significant benefit, as well as a major quality of life improvement.
Defensively, they’ve got 2 Resistances (including the ever-valuable Necrotic), a heal that’s worth almost as much HP as the Hill Dwarf’s +1hp/level, and potentially help from their transformation (such as using Necrotic Shroud for CC, or Radiant Soul for wings). Offensively, they’ve got their extra damage 1/day. Overall, a solid mix of benefits.
Shifters
+1 skill, Darkvision, and a bonus action transformation proficiency/day.
The transformation is worth the following amount of temp HP/day:
Level 1-4: 8 HP
Level 5-8: 18 HP
Level 9-12: 32 HP
Level 13-16: 50 HP
Level 17-20: 72 HP
As you can see, it’s quite a lot before we even talk about the additional features for the specific transformation types. This is a durability race, great for any character that doesn’t have too much pressure on their bonus actions or temp HP already (since temp hp don’t stack).
So what about the specific types of Shifters?
Beasthide gets +1 AC and an extra 1d6 temp hp per transformation (on top of what you already get), doubling down on this race’s already considerable durability.
Now it looks like…
Level 1-4: 15 HP +1 AC
Level 5-8: 28.5 HP +1 AC
Level 9-12: 46 HP +1 AC
Level 13-16: 67.5 HP +1 AC
Level 17-20: 93 HP +1 AC
That’s a bloody ton of extra durability. You want a tank race, here you are. This might just be my default go-to Shifter.
Unlike the original version, Longtooth can now use its bonus action attack on the turn you shift, a meaningful improvement. This basically gives you a bonus action attack without having to take a feat or use up a hand. On the other hand, it’s a nonmagical piercing unarmed strike. That means you can’t smite with it, you can’t apply Dueling to it, you can’t sneak attack with it, a lot of enemies resist it, etc.
Even so, you didn’t need to be getting a ton of extra offense for Shifter to be worth it, as it already has that solid base of HP.
Another thing worth noting is that unlike an awful lot of bonus action action attacks, Longtooth’s doesn’t require you to take the Attack action first. You can do things like use your action to cast a spell (or any other action), then attack, no problem.
Swiftstride gets a +10 foot base movement speed, putting you on par with a Centaur. Even if it’s not at will, you get to use it an awful lot. In addition, you get another 10 foot movement Reaction that doesn’t trigger OAs, which offers a rare opportunity to move off-turn, allowing you to disengage from foes, move out of hazards, or whatever. Note that even allies can trigger this.
As far as mobile durability races go, this is fighting with Orc and Satyr, and I’d say it puts up a heckuva fight with its fat stack of temp HP.
Wildhunt gets you Advantage on Wisdom checks while shifted, and enemies can’t get Advantage against you unless you’re incapacitated. Period.
This is will actually cancel out things like Reckless Attack. Sure, the shifting bonus action competes with the Rage one, but it’s still a good option on round 2+... or in combats where you’re not raging at all, just using Reckless – especially for those of you who merely dipped Barbarian.
You can also do things like, say, close your eyes to avoid gaze attacks, and grant your enemies no advantage in the process. Or take better advantage of fog, darkness, and other vision blockers (similar to Alert).
Minotaur
https://i.pinimg.com/564x/69/a0/df/69a0dfed34d83f2f7a6f86f57b7d32e3.jpg
Minotaurs are pretty bare-bones -- no Darkvision, no skill proficiencies, no resistances, not even Powerful Build! Look how skinny that minotaur is!
Goring Rush is kind of like a nerfed version of the Charger feat -- and the Charger feat ain't good. At best, this is a small consolation prize for a melee character getting stuck out of range. After all, there's not a whole lot you can do with this extra attack... it can't smite, it can't sneak attack, it can't benefit from the Dueling fighting style, it doesn't overcome nonmagical resistance, etc. Ideally, I never want to even get into a situation where I'd use Goring Rush, and even if I end up in one, it's usually not making much of a difference.
Labyrinthine Recall is a pretty modest and situational ribbon.
So it comes down to Hammering Horns, pretty much their one meaningful ability. This lets you shove someone 10 feet as a bonus action, which could be nice for comboing with hazard-using allies. However, it allows a Str save (worse than using a contested check like a normal shove), can't target Huge+ enemies (unless you get Enlarged or something), and requires you to use it after you make and hit with an Attack action.
At this point, given how light the rest of their other features are, I'm wondering why I wouldn't just pick a VHuman with Shield Master or PAM or something (Fun fact, with PAM you can shove->attack->attack!).
In order to get decent mileage out of Hammering Horns, you need to be a Strength-based character with little bonus action competition in a party that frequently uses hazards. Which ultimately means that the Minotaur is a fairly narrow race... and yet it doesn't stand out even within its narrow domain.
Changeling
Changelings have basically nothing in the way of combat features. It’s just 2 skills, Shapechanger, and that’s it. Not even Darkvision or anything.
Thankfully, their noncombat feature is a unique one. At-will, they can change their appearance in a way that is a fair bit harder to see through than the likes of Disguise Self or Alter Self. And they get voice mimicry. The fact that this is resilient to physical investigation gives you a much better chance of actually impersonating someone long-term, living among their family, etc. That's pretty cool.
Still… it’s not like there aren’t races that have cool noncombat features and cool combat features. The pre-WotC draft of Changelings actually had this – they could use their shapechanging to get some minor combat benefits. That would have been super cool! Yet this version has none of that.
You can't even do much in the way of creative deceptions or flavorful flairs mid-combat (like changing your face to various others that an opponent knows in the middle of a duel -- practically an entire trope), since they made the regrettable decision to make the shapechanging take an entire Action, solidly relegating it to the realm of pre-casting. At least you can start combat disguised as an enemy, or as one of the other PCs (so that they don't know who has what abilities).
Sea Elf
Take an elf and put Swimming and Water Breathing in the slot where Shadar-Kai are getting their Resistance Teleport prof/day and Necrotic Resistance.
Yeah... not the best trade, I'd say. Anyways, compared to a Triton, we don't have any racial spells, but we get an arguably better Resistance (Charm Resistance), a skill, Trance (which got buffed (https://tinyurl.com/bdbes24h)), and the ability to take Elven Accuracy. I'd take that trade on a number of builds... at least, if I wanted swimming badly enough.
Anyways, here are my early impressions.
Bugbear
Hobgoblins and Goblins have always been strong in 5e, but Bugbears got left behind.
Mordenkainen's Monsters of the Multiverse changes that in a big way. For one thing, they are now a liquid.
https://c.tenor.com/Y_gs772PLrkAAAAC/cat-liquid.gif
Pictured: A Bugbear, now capable of moving in spaces for Small creatures without Squeezing. Also has Fey Ancestry now.
Bugbears have a good assortment of minor extras. Darkvision, a skill proficiency, Fey Ancestry, Powerful Build, the ability to move in spaces for Small creatures without squeezing, and Long Limbs (situationally useful for hit-and-run attacks against foes with a small reach. Don't expect it to extend the range of Booming Blade or anything, though).
But the big change is that Surprise Attack has changed from "if you get Surprise, you do +2d6 damage on a single attack" to "if an enemy hasn't acted yet, you get +2d6 damage on all of your attacks."
This works on any kind of attack. Swords? Yep. Bows? You got it. Eldritch Blast? Mhm. Spiritual Weapon, Crown of Stars, Scorching Ray, Blade of Disaster? That's right. The AoE of Steel Wind Strike? Yep, that too. That Reaction attack the Order Cleric made you take? Yes, even that. They all do an extra +2d6 damage per hit.
This change turns Bugbears from something that were generally ignored by optimizers into a deadly offensive contender. Grab your Alerts, Fey-Touched Gifts of Alacrities, your Luckies, your Gloomstalkers and War Wizards and Battle Masters with the new Ambush maneuver and go forth, my children. Be a bugbear, leap out of a crack in the wall and eat someone's face before they get to act.
Do it as a Flurrying Monk dipping Fighter for Action Surge.
Do it as a Gloomstalker Echo Knight projecting their Echo Avatar to assassinate someone from 1000 feet away.
Do it as a Sorlock Quickening Eldritch Blasts.
Do it as an Evoker Overchanneling a Scorching Ray and firing a Crown of Stars bolt alongside their Simulacrum doing the same.
Do it dipping Assassin so that you get Advantage on all attacks before your enemy takes a turn (don’t even worry about the “getting Surprise” clause).
Go. Be a big brutal sneaky liquid fairy goblinoid, that your enemies may know to fear the Bugbear that’s hiding in your closet right now.
Kobolds
https://tinyurl.com/2j26c8a9
Pictured: A Kobold lets loose a Draconic Cry
New Kobolds are strong. Damn strong.
Draconic Cry is a bonus action that gives you Advantage on all of your attacks, and all of your allies’ attacks, for an entire round, proficiency bonus times a day. Bloody hells, even if this was only affecting you, it’d be like a Samurai’s Fighting Spirit offensively. As a racial feature. And it doesn’t only affect you, it affects your whole damn party!
And unlike old kobolds, you aren’t paying for this with any drawbacks. No Sunlight Sensitivity, no ability penalties, nothing.
What, that’s not enough for you? You need more features? Well guess what, you get to pick one of three subrace choices:
Craftiness will give you a skill proficiency, Defiance will get you fear resistance, and Draconic Sorcery will get you a Sorcerer cantrip with your choice of mental casting stat.
The cantrip option offers some interesting possibilities: You could give a Bard an actually solid attack cantrip, a Cleric or Rogue a Booming Blade, or just hand a Wizard more space for great cantrips (there’s enough good ones on their list for that to matter). The skill proficiency or fear resistance are good choices if there aren’t any cantrips you want for your build.
And you get Darkvision on top.
The one thing I'll note is that Draconic Cry requires you to get close (though you don't need to stay there). The kobold race is ideal for characters who...
- Don't have overwhelming bonus action competition.
- Are comfortable getting in close now and then.
- Benefit significantly from Advantage and/or have party members who do.
- Are looking for a way to pick up a Sorcerer cantrip (basically, the same characters who liked High Elf or Variant). Or not, because they can just take another subrace.
Aarakocra
Aarakocra got their wild 50 foot movement speed nerfed down to a more standard 30. As a consolation prize, they get Gust of Wind as a spell-like 1/day (and learn the spell, if they have slots -- something that's standard for all racial spells for MPMM races).
Of course, it's still at-will flight, so it's still a potent race choice based on that alone.
The armor restriction means that you'll want to be using lightly or unarmored characters as an Aarakocra.
Shadar-Kai
I feel like whoever was doing these changes just overlooked the fact that unlike the Eladrin, the Shadar-Kai's teleport was 1/day, rather than 1/short rest. And then just gave them the same "proficiency/day" treatment they gave the Eladrin.
This means Shadar-Kai are getting a big buff, and they were already one of the stronger races.
A bonus action, nonspell teleport prof/day on an elf chassis would already be enough to be great. Having that bonus action also give resistance to all damage makes it amazing -- easily superior to the Earth Genasi's bonus action.
They also have Necrotic Resistance (one of the best Resistances to get) on all day. On top of all the usual stuff that makes it good to be an elf -- Darkvision, Charm Resistance, +1 skill, Trance, and access to elf-only feats like Elven Accuracy.
As if all that wasn't enough, Trance got buffed (https://tinyurl.com/bdbes24h), giving you extra proficiencies, 4 extra hours to do stuff every day, and the ability to cheese 8 hour spell durations. In addition to having a shorter rest, you're also conscious while resting, making you an excellent watchman.
Harengon
You get to add your Proficiency bonus to initiative rolls -- already a feature comparable to the best bullet point of the Alert feat, once you get a big enough proficiency bonus under your belt.
Now, people generally have a vague sense that initiative is good, but don't have a concrete idea of exactly how much it's worth. So here's how you can think about initiative bonuses when comparing features: Each +1 to initiative is an increase to the % chance that you get an extra turn relative to Team Monster. And an extra turn is better than an Action Surge (after all, you get an Action as part of a turn). So you can kind of think of it as an X% chance of getting that extra turn each combat.
As nice as this feature is though, it wouldn't make the race on its own -- after all, you could always have been a VHuman with the actual Alert feat. Fortunately for the Harengon, they don't stop there!
You get 3 other things: +1 skill, Lucky Footwork, and Rabbit Hop. No Darkvision though!
Rabbit Hop is basically like a less-movement-speed version of the new Orc's bonus action move, except it gets to ignore opportunity attacks, and the movement can be a vertical jump. This is a pretty meaty mobility feature, allowing easy disengages and extra kiting or engagement range... or simply hopping right over troublesome terrain.
Finally, you get Lucky Footwork, an at-will Reaction equivalent to +2-3 to your Dex save. Like a mini-Resilient that eats your Reaction (and of course stacks with Resilient).
Eladrin
Eladrin was an already-great race that got some modest improvements… which leaves it as a great race.
It has all the usual benefits of being an Elf (fey ancestry, newly buffed Trance, Darkvision, being able to use Elven Accuracy, an extra skill, etc), plus an excellent teleportation feature.
Now instead of 1/short rest, you get your teleport proficiency times a day, which I’d say is better overall. It also now can key off of any mental stat, giving it extra synergy with some more builds… though Eladrin remains a solid choice even if you don’t have any mental stats at all (after all, the Spring and Summer options won’t care).
Summer gives you a small amount of action-economy-efficient, auto-hitting AoE damage, while Winter gives you the chance to frighten enemies, offering you more control and defense. Both are good for characters using the teleport primarily to help them engage in melee. Spring on the other hand will help you move allies around the battlefield.
Level 1-4: 4 auto-hitting AoE damage
Level 5-8: 9 auto-hitting AoE damage
Level 9-12: 16 auto-hitting AoE damage
Level 13-16: 25 auto-hitting AoE damage
Level 17-20: 36 auto-hitting AoE damage
The charm is a bit more situational, since they’re only charmed by you and still free to attack your allies, and because damage will break the charm. But in exchange, at least it can target two creatures over Winter’s 1.
Goblin
Fury of the Small does less damage than it used to (at least, if we're assuming you got an average of 2 short rests), but it's still a decent chunk of damage -- basically, a total of proficiency^2 over the course of the adventuring day.
Level 1-4: 4 total damage
Level 5-8: 9 total damage
Level 9-12: 16 total damage
Level 13-16: 25 total damage
Level 17-20: 36 total damage
And you get charm resistance added on from Fey Ancestry!
So I'd say the Goblin is about as strong as it used to be... which is to say, really damn good, particularly for classes that can spare their bonus actions, like Wizard. It basically is getting you some of the biggest benefits of dipping Rogue, without actually dipping Rogue.
Why is this so good for a Wizard? Well, enemies can't Counterspell you if they can't see you. And stealth only applies Advantage to one attack/turn... which is a considerably larger DPR buff to someone like an Evoker throwing a single 4d10+5 Fire Bolt than it is to someone using multiple attacks (in fact, large enough to make it do nearly as much DPR as a vanilla Agonizing Eldritch Blast). And you can casually disengage from pesky melee combat or the like. And Fury of the Small can buff spell damage.
Goblin isn't great for everyone though. Its flagship ability is entirely redundant for Rogues, and builds that rely heavily on their bonus actions won't benefit as much from throwing a Goblin's Cunnning-Action-like feature into the mix.
Hobgoblin
This one is more of a reimagining than a simple tweak!
Fortune from the Many is a very strong feature. Like, you know how people sometimes say Advantage is worth very roughly as much as a +3 on the roll, and how the Lucky feat is good? Well this gives a +3 on a roll, not 3 times a day but Proficiency times a day. And unlike Lucky, it's a fixed bonus... if you fell 2 short of a roll, you know this will make the difference, and thus it's a lot harder to be "wasted" than Lucky.
As if that wasn't a good enough bonus to your saves already, you also get charm resistance from Fey Ancestry.
And I haven't even talked about Fey Gift yet. This gives you the ability to use a buffed up version of the Help action as a bonus action, proficiency times a day. In addition to basically giving you the benefit of the Mastermind Rogue's feature (albeit with limited uses), you also get to choose from a variety of options.
Option 1) Temp HP! This'll give 1d6+PB temp HP to whoever you helped. If you used all your Fey Gifts this way, it'd work out to...
Level 3-4: 11 HP
Level 5-8: 19.5 HP
Level 9-12: 30 HP
Level 13-16: 42.5 HP
Level 17-20: 57 HP
Wow, that's a lot of temp HP to be tossing around over the course of the day racial feature... especially considering how good the Hobgoblin's other stuff already is.
Option 2) This one boosts your ally's movement speed by 10 feet, which may not seem like a lot... but when it makes the difference between getting into range and not, you'll realize just how nice it is to have this on call.
Option 3) Spite: If the person you help hits with an attack (any attack, not just the one you helped), the target gets Disadvantage on one attack. Could be worth more than the temp HP depending on the situation.
Any of these would be nice on their own, but getting them all as tactical options makes this a powerhouse race.
Kenku
The Kenku have an actual non-ribbon feature now! It lets them get Advantage on a skill check they have proficiency in, PB time/day, basically turning them into a skill monkey race. Besides that, the Kenku are bringing 2 skills, Advantage on forgeries, and their vocal mimicry. No Darkvision or defensive features or anything, though.
The thing is, unlike something like Fortune From the Many (Hobgoblin) or Knowledge from a Past Life (Reborn from Van Richten's Guide), you've gotta use the Advantage before seeing the skill check, which makes it very possible to waste it on checks that succeed on the first roll. Also unlike those things, it won't stack if you have Advantage from some other source.
At the very least, Kenku are a big step up from what they used to be. They just have stiff competition these days.
Centaur
Unlike Fey Ancestry, actually being a Fey is a mixed blessing. Oh sure, Hold Person won’t work on you… but the big bad could cast Forbiddance over the whole damn dungeon. Or throw up a Protection from Evil and Good. Or turn you. Or use Planar Binding on you. Yeah. (The Forbiddance one came up in a game just recently! We stuck our Fey character in a Bag of Holding!)
So what else do we have? A +10 base movement speed, a bonus action unarmed attack (but only at the end of a straight 30 foot move, so you’ll get it maybe once a combat), a skill, and the ability to attack with your feet (which can be helpful for a grappler with a shield, as can the extra speed). Note a lack of Darkvision, and trouble with climbing.
When it comes to sheer mobility I’d probably rather have a Tabaxi (who has Darkvision, and is great at climbing, and also has natural weapons just like the Centaur does – including probably on their feet).
For some few builds, the bonus action attack might make a deciding difference, if there’s room in the build for it. But it won’t work well for Barbarians (who generally want their opening bonus action to be Rage), or anyone using PAM, or Rogues, and it won’t benefit from stuff like the Dueling fighting style or Divine Smite or the like.
Another few things to consider…
- +10 base movement speed means that even if you dump Strength, you’ll move at normal speed in heavy armor (and faster than a dwarf). On the other hand, dumping Strength doesn’t really suit a Centaur since it means you’re getting nothing out of their bonus action attack.
- You are probably “anatomically appropriate for riding” by small creatures, and mounted combat rules are, uhm, kind of insane (https://tinyurl.com/49rpwt8v). Though I haven’t rated this – or any – race on the assumption that you’d be abusing the mess that is mounted combat rules.
Goliath
At first glance, the Goliath doesn't look like it changed that much. It just got the 1/short rest to PB/day change and called it a day. But I'd say this makes a big difference for the Goliath. It not only means they're likely to get more mitigation/day, but also that they can use their mitigation back to back to back as needed.
You get Cold Resistance, 1 skill and Powerful Build. No Darkvision, though.
Their main ability is being able to use a Reaction to reduce an attack’s damage by 1d12+Con, now buffed to Proficiency times a day.
We can count about how much HP this is worth. Assuming a 16 Constitution, it’d be (on average)…
Level 1-4: 19 HP with 16 Con (23 with 20 Con)
Level 5-8: 28.5 HP (34.5)
Level 9-12: 38 HP (46)
Level 13-16: 47.5 HP (57.5)
Level 17-20: 57 HP (69)
Compare this to the likes of, say, the Hill Dwarf granting 20 max HP at level 20, and it reveals just how much mitigation this really is, especially at low levels when 19 HP is very possibly more than you have.
Also, unlike a Hill Dwarf or Shifter’s extra HP, this is actually reducing damage, and thus reducing Concentration saves, extending Armor of Agathys, and the like. Also unlike the Shifter or Hobgoblin, this ain't temp HP: It'll stack with that Glamour Bard or Twilight Cleric or Inspiring Leader or Armor of Agathys or the like.
And here's the thing about that proficiency/day change: You can use your reactions back to back to back. While a Shifter is basically transforming once per combat, a Goliath can easily use multiple damage-reducing reactions in a single fight, getting more burst durability.
This could work well on, say, a Cleric (as many Clerics don't have great Reactions, but love their bonus actions).
Fire Genasi
The old version of Fire Genasi was basically a worse tiefling.
Sadly, the new version hasn’t come far. It’s basically a Tiefling with a markedly worse spell list. Like, seriously, Flame Blade? Flame Blade? We waited so long for Fire Genasi buffs and this is what we get? Who thought this was okay right next to the goblinoids and the like? When I read this I was half-expecting to see the Air Genasi get Witch Bolt. Bloody hells.
They even lost a bit of their flavor. Now they see only in shades of grey, rather than shades of red. It really feels like they didn’t put any thought or care into this one. Which is a damn shame, because I know a lot of people were eager to see genasi finally get some love.
Water Genasi
This one’s like a Tiefling with a worse spell list and a worse Resistance (Acid), with swimming tacked on. They arguably made the spell list even worse than it used to be, because at least Shape Water was kinda interesting, and Create or Destroy Water used to be a 2nd level slot version (now it's 1st).
Water Breathing I generally see as a ribbon, since any party that cares probably got it as a ritual at 5th level (and that ritual lasts 24 hours), which means that it only matters in the niche case of getting dispelled and not having enough time to deal with that (and 5e characters can hold their breath a very generous time).
A swim speed is a little harder to grab, but there’s still things like, say, an Uncommon magic item that gets you a better swim speed, attunement-free (like a Cloak of the Manta Ray or Ring of Swimming). So you basically have to be in a campaign where a swim speed is a big enough deal to outshine all the time other races are outshining you on land, and you can’t find any options that just would have given you a swim speed anyways (and things like Ghosts of Saltmarsh are perfectly happy to toss those items at you).
Water Walk is quite situational – especially since you're already aquatic. Acid Splash is an unremarkable cantrip. Create or Destroy Water might actually be the most useful thing on their list, which… isn’t inspiring.
Create or Destroy Water’s main use is to keep it in your back pocket as a sort of “dispel fire or fog” spell. It also can be useful for providing fresh water in the middle of a salty ocean, or an arid desert. So that could be nice... but very situationally.
Overall I'd say it's better than the Fire Genasi, though, since at least I can hypothetically think of situations where it might be useful, unlike that tire fire.
Air Genasi
Again this is rather tiefling-like, but it makes out slightly better than Fire and Water.
Lightning is a markedly worse Resistance than Fire (at least, on average), but at least the spell list doesn't have Flame Blade on it. Feather Fall is a “seat belt” spell to have ready just in case. Levitate is just okay – more useful than the original Air Genasi since it can use a main casting stat for its DC now. Shocking Grasp is a pretty situational cantrip.
Overall I'd rather have some of the Tiefling spell lists. But hey, at least they get a 35 foot base movement speed instead of 30.
They also get their ability to hold their breath indefinitely, but I'm not impressed by this feature. While this can deal with some situations that water breathing can't (like, say, the noxious fumes of a wildfire), it's still pretty situational since 3-4 minutes (the time most characters can hold their breath) is already more time than it'll take for most encounters to be resolved, and longer-term things often need you to solve the breathing problem for the party, not just yourself.
Aside from Feather Fall, their racial spellcasting is stat-dependent, so you'll want to use this on a casting class.
Earth Genasi
The only genasi that appears to have gotten a significant buff is the one that perhaps needed it least (though really, all genasi needed it).
Earth Walk now works on most difficult terrain, instead of just that made of earth or stone. Passively ignoring difficult terrain is a Nice Thing, both in general and in terms of combo potential (since you can walk through difficult terrain created by yourself or party members, too).
Additionally, it gets Pass Without Trace added to your spell list, which is a pretty darned good spell – the sort of thing you can build a character or a party around.
Finally, you get a bonus action version of Blade Ward, Proficiency/day. This may not be as good as a Shadar-Kai’s bonus action, but it’s still quite good. You get enough uses to throw this on for a few rounds of combat and pretend you're Raging. However, since it is a bonus action spell, even though it's a cantrip, you can't cast a leveled spell in the same turn.
Altogether, this looks like a genasi people might actually want to play mechanically. Why didn’t the others get this sort of treatment?
Githyanki
This is another Tiefling-like race (except for the fact that, of course, Tieflings themselves haven’t got the “choose your casting stat, use your racial spells with spell slots” update yet)
Psychic Resistance is one of the better kinds to get, comparable to Fire in terms of how many monsters use it. And the spell list is decent, mostly because of Misty Step – though this feature pales in comparison to the non-spell teleports usable Proficiency times a day. The cantrip is also worth noting: Since the Mage Hand is invisible and componentless, it’s gonna be really hard to ever keep you tied up, among other things.
You also get a bonus skill and tool proficiency, and can just change what that proficiency is each long rest -- a versatility that I find only marginally better than just getting a single skill proficiency. It looks like you get this basically instead of a Tiefling’s Darkvision.
Githzerai
This is like the Githyanki, but changes out the spell list and skill proficiency.
In place of the bonus skill, we get what is basically Fey Ancestry and halfling Bravery rolled into one… which is to say, you get Advantage on an awful lot of Wisdom saves. Which is pretty neat. And you get the same Psychic Resistance as the Githyanki. That's a good-sized collection of resistances.
The big feature that sets this apart, though, is the spell list. You get the same cool invisible componentless Mage Hand as the Githyanki, but you also get a componentless Detect Thoughts (which I’d say has some significant implications over regular Detect Thoughts) and Shield on your spell list. Not just a free slot for it, but also the ability to cast it with your slots. For the likes of a Cleric or Bard, that’s a big deal!
So yeah. A good Resistance, Advantage on a large percentage of mental saves, two solid spells with notable boosts from being componentless, and one game-changer spell added to your spell list (Shield). I’d say that’s enough to secure a spot as a strong race choice.
Clerics will love this race. Advantage on an already-good Wisdom save will make them near-immune to charms and fear, while Shield is a significant addition to their spell list.
Fairy
It flies, and that’s already enough to make it a high tier race. The armor restriction means it will be best suited to Dex-based martials or lightly/unarmored casters.
The spellcasting is a cherry on top. For a non-caster that isn’t competing for Concentration, Enlarge/Reduce is an attractive pre-cast buff – especially for those with many attacks, like a Fighter. Faerie Fire is a little more situational, especially if you don’t have Int/Wis/Cha boosting the DC, but is a useful tool to have in your toolbox nonetheless. Druidcraft is a handy cantrip, too, that isn't dependent on your stats. Overall, I'd rate its spell-likes as superior to the Aarakocra.
Also, you’re a Fey. Unlike Fey Ancestry, actually being a Fey is a mixed blessing. Oh sure, Hold Person won’t work on you… but the big bad could cast Forbiddance over the whole damn dungeon. Or throw up a Protection from Evil and Good. Or turn you. Or use Planar Binding on you. Yeah. (The Forbiddance one came up in a game just recently! We stuck our Fey character in a Bag of Holding!) So… yeah. Be careful with that.
Firbolg
The updates are pretty much what you’d expect – their racial casting now allows the spells to be used with slots (just like all the other MPMM races), and their bonus action Invisibility got upgraded to prof uses/day.
The Invisibility can be used to do some rather Goblin-like tricks, which makes this a pretty solid race. It also means the kind of classes that liked Goblin will also like Firbolg.
Being briefly invisible will stop people from being able to Counterspell you, opportunity attack you, or the like. And will give you Advantage on 1 attack roll (best for characters who make one big attack instead of multiple little attacks).
Unlike a Goblin, though, you can’t just spam it willy-nilly, and being Invisible isn’t the same thing as being Hidden. And their spell-likes and beast speech is no match for Fury of the Small, Fey Ancestry, and Darkvision (yep, Firbolgs don’t get that).
I'm tempted to bump this to blue just because of the "avoiding counterspells" thing, though...
Lizardfolk
The Natural Armor is basically a free Mage Armor, and won’t matter for Strength-based characters. Whereas the Hungry Jaws are a strength-based attack.
The Hungry Jaws are usable more often than the Volo’s version. If the Jaws hit, they will generate the following amounts of temp HP over the course of an adventuring day:
Level 1-4: 4 HP
Level 5-8: 9 HP
Level 9-12: 16 HP
Level 13-16: 25 HP
Level 17-20: 36 HP
Of course, miss chances are a thing. For example, if you have 20 Strength and are attacking AC19, that level 17-20 figure goes down to 23.4. They’re also temp HP, so won’t stack with a lot of things. You shouldn’t expect it to be providing as much of a defensive benefit as a Shifter or Goliath. And if you want the bonus action attack? Well, Longtooth Shifters do that too.
Getting a bonus action attack is nice, but it’s only ever going to be a nonmagical attack that doesn’t benefit from Dueling or the like, so I wouldn’t expect it to be adding a ton of damage. You can’t even smite with it as a Paladin, since it counts as an unarmed strike now.
The rest is little ribbons and extras. Hold Breath is only a slight improvement given the length of time 5e characters can already hold their breaths, swim speeds are as situational as usual, and you get 2 skill proficiencies. Their ability to craft things that people without special racial abilities could conceivably already craft has been removed – no loss there.
So… yeah. I don’t really see an optimizer leaping to take this as a Dex-build just for the Natural Armor. Or leaping to take it as a Str-build just for the Hungry Jaws.
Shifters exist and do basically the same schtick better, unless you really care about getting a swim speed.
Orc
Okay. In the past, I’ve said that Orc was basically a wannabe Tabaxi. How does it compete now?
Well, its bonus action move is no longer at-will, but it can move in any direction, and “profiency” is a goodly number of uses. Moreover, it also gives you PB temporary hit points when you use it!
Or in other words, over the course of a day...
Level 1-4: 4 HP
Level 5-8: 9 hp
Level 9-12: 16 hp
Level 13-16: 25 hp
Level 17-20: 36 hp
It also gave up its 2 skill proficiencies (from the Eberron version), but in exchange gets Relentless Endurance from the Half-Orc.
This makes it less directly comparable to the Tabaxi (who have 2 skills). Sure, their mobility might not be quite as good as a Tabaxi, and they might have less skills, but Tabaxi don’t have any extra durability features.
So how good is Relentless Endurance? Well, it won’t block insta-death effects like Death Ward does. It’ll only really give you one extra hit against more conventional offense. Though that’s still pretty neat! Like, I’d rate that at 5-30 hp or so, potentially more in some cases. Plus, you can also use it in cases like, say, Overchanneling as an Evoker.
Of course, a Tabaxi’s mobility is still better, especially if your build demands your bonus action. But if it doesn’t? Well, then orc offers some beef with your mobility. It's main competitor for that niche might well be the Shadar-Kai, sittin' over there with its bonus-action teleport and damage resistance. Which is probably better. But still, this is good stuff, and a Shadar-Kai can't use its mobility to drag people further through a bed of Spike Growth.
In short, the full orc is finally getting some time to shine. Good stuff.
Tabaxi
The Tabaxi is the king of raw movement speed. No action economy requirement here, you just double everything – which means it compounds with other movement speed bonuses, too! And all you have to do to get the ability back is NOT move for a turn.
They also have a decent selection of lesser extras, like +2 skill proficiencies, a climb speed, Darkvision, and natural weapons (which probably also include their feet, for those of you who have your hands full with a shield and grappling).
Tabaxi are a good choice for
– Melee characters who very much want to make sure they can get into melee range.
– Ranged characters who want to get out of dodge and climb up the walls.
– Grapplers who want to drag enemies further.
What the Tabaxi doesn’t offer is extra durability tools – if you want that AND mobility, consider the Shadar-Kai, Orc, Eladrin, etc. It also won’t offer you flight or teleportation or free disengages or the like.
Tortle
Tortle’s main offering is its no-hassle 17 AC. That’s equivalent to a 14 Dex and Half-Plate, or an 18 Dex and Mage Armor… but without the respective investments. Something an unarmored caster is sure to appreciate. Alternatively, you could see it as removing the penalty to stealth checks (and saving 750gp) for builds that would otherwise wear Half-Plate.
https://c.tenor.com/MjZlvC4KFncAAAAC/turtle-tmnt.gif
Pictured: Tortles enjoying the fact that unlike that Mountain Dwarf in half-plate, they’re not going to be taking any penalty to stealth checks.
However it’s not doing a whole lot else. Shell Defense is only situationally better than just taking the Dodge Action. Beyond that it's just a skill proficiency and mostly-negligible ribbons. No Darkvision or resistances or the like.
Anyways, you're looking at +2 AC relative to, say, a 14-Dex Mage Armored Wizard. And while that's nice (not just for the AC, but saving a 1st level slot, too), so are other durability races. Said Wizard could be a Beasthide Shifter getting +1 AC and dozens of temp HP, and arguably better ribbons. Or a Hobgoblin doing... all that hobgoblin stuff. Or take a 1 level dip to get armor and a shield. You get the idea.
Also, unlike, say, a Mountain Dwarf, you're never going to be putting on magic armor. Or be able to take a half-feat that gives you a shield, either.
I guess I could also mention that a Tortle can redirect that 14 Dex to other stats, but... well, investing in Dex is not a bad thing.
Triton
Of the various races overcharged for their access to water breathing and swimming speed, Triton is at least a bit nicer than Water Genasi, but only just. A second-string Resistance, modest spell-like abilities, Darkvision, and a little "communicate simple ideas to sea creatures" ribbon are all they get (though oddly enough, their version is a bit better than the Sea Elf version, which is limited only to Beasts, while theirs can communicate with elementals and monstrosities, too).
They traded out Wall of Water for Water Walk, and I for one am not impressed. I mean, how often do I need to cast Water Walk, especially if I'm already aquatic? It would have been nice to give them some more out-of-water utility so they felt less situational.
Yuan-Ti
OG Yuan-Ti were infamously powerful, so it’s unsurprising to see them receiving some nerfs. Doubly so now that they aren't locked into a Cha/Int statline.
Their poison immunity got downgraded to poison resistance.
Their magic resistance got downgraded to only applying to spells, instead of “spells and other magical effects.” So a lot more monster abilities are gonna pass right through it.
The only improvement is the quality of life changes to racial spellcasting. Their spell list is just okay. Poison Spray isn’t something I’d spend a cantrip slot on, but it’s certainly not bad to have as a freebie option. It is, after all, another save you can target, with a d12 damage die. The ability to talk to snakes is mostly a ribbon. And Suggestion is a solid spell – albeit one that does care about your save DC, and also varies a lot based on DM arbitration.
I’d say that the combination of magic and poison resistance remains a solid defensive investment on its own. And unlike Satyrs, they’ve got Darkvision.
Still good, but nerfed enough that your DM might actually let you play one now.
Satyr
Like the Yuan-Ti, the magic resistance got downgraded to only apply to spells, instead of “spells and other magical effects.”
Compared to the Yuan-Ti, they swap out their poison resistance, Darkvision, and spellcasting for a little jump boost, hands-free natural weapons, 2 skill proficiencies, and a +5 foot movement speed.
Still good, but nerfed enough that your DM might actually let you play one now.
Duergar
Unlike a usual dwarf, this has a 30 foot movement speed, but gets slowed normally by plate armor.
It also has...
Double-range Darkvision, with no Sunlight Sensitivity anymore
Advantage vs Charms (like Fey Ancestry) and Stunning – both really troublesome effects that you don't wanna get hit by. In addition to the Dwarf’s normal Poison Resistance, this is an unusually high amount of useful resistances.
Racial spellcasting. The Enlarge/Reduce is a self-only version, so it’s mostly notable for martial characters as a pre-cast. Invisibility works for pretty much anyone. No big game-changer spells, though.
But it actually loses the dwarf’s tool proficiencies and Stonecunning, which you may or may not care about.
Deep Gnome
Hey look, they buffed gnome movement speed! But only for Deep Gnomes (and all the other Small races in MPMM). Why haven’t the PHB classes gotten updates again? I dunno.
The spells are lovely, Concentration-free utility options for certain types of campaigns – Disguise Self and component-free Nondetection. Combine that with the double-range Darkvision and Advantage on Stealth checks PB/day and they’ve got one of the best racial kits for sneaky shenanigans. They round out the kit with Gnomish Magic Resistance, giving them Advantage on mental saves vs spells (but, unlike OG gnomes, not against other magical effects).
Nondetection is a whopping 3rd-level spell that usually has a costly component. It lasts a full 8 hours (so, basically a whole adventuring day), and -- here's the important part -- counters an awful lot of the things that counter Disguise Self or hiding (not to mention other abilities a character might pick up, like invisibility or the like). More than you might think. (https://rpg.stackexchange.com/questions/172662/can-a-creature-under-the-effect-of-nondetection-be-detected-by-the-detect-magic) Even stuff like True Seeing, which would detect Changelings. (https://twitter.com/jeremyecrawford/status/786625163831848960?lang=en) As such, the various parts of this kit complement each other extremely well.
So when it comes to intrigue and infiltration, Deep Gnomes are one of the best choices around. And unlike Changelings, they're still getting actual combat features.
As a side note, they still have access to the Svirfneblin Magic feat, which is mostly relevant for giving Abjurers an endlessly regenerating ward. However, this isn't quite as big a deal as it used to be, since Abjurers can do this with the Eldritch Adept feat these days, too.
Aasimar
https://64.media.tumblr.com/d7473608209f7338b97df59a09e18c53/bfc83d47d23cd471-da/s500x750/9b8c592654f1ec63bfeaf01faa09c2cdc08498fb.jpg
Radiant Consumption can be a terrifying thing to behold... and a risky weapon to wield.
Okay. So their transformation now only does proficiency damage instead of level damage, and it’s still only 1/day. On the other hand, they get to use it as a Bonus Action, so it’s something you don’t need to pre-cast anymore, and is thus a much more reliable bonus.
You can pick one of three different transformations:
Oddly, Necrotic Shroud is still locked to Charisma. But notably, it no longer friendly-fires! It's great for folks like Conquest Paladins or casters using Summon Shadowspawn -- you know, Cha-based people who can capitalize on the fear. Note the range is rather short, so be comfy up close. Also note that it has a worse damage type than the other two.
Radiant Consumption now does Proficiency damage in an AoE (not a huge change from its original level/2), and still friendly-fires you. Be wary: This won’t turn off if you go unconscious, it CAN finish you off at 0 hp. It’s risky, but it’s also rewarding – that damage is auto-hitting AoE damage.
Radiant Soul can now use its flight more reactively, thanks to being a bonus action! It's an excellent choice for those who want to fly on occasion, but want considerably more non-flying features than Fairy or Aarakocra will offer.
This is basically only going to last for 1 combat. If you get say, 3 rounds of action out of it (3 rounds in which you hit with at least one thing, anyways), you can expect...
Level 1-4: 6 damage (+6 auto-hitting AoE damage if you picked Radiant Consumption... but it hurts you for 3 damage)
Level 5-8: 9 damage (if RC: also+9 AoE if RC, 3 self damage)
Level 9-12: 12 damage (if RC: also +12 AoE, 6 self damage)
Level 13-16: 15 damage (if RC: also +15 AoE, 6 self damage)
Level 17-20: 18 damage (if RC: also +18 AoE, 9 self damage)
Healing Hands also got changed. Instead of healing 1HP/level 1/day, it now heals 1d4xproficiency 1/day.
So…
Level 1-4: 5 HP
Level 5-8: 7.5 HP
Level 9-12: 10 HP
Level 13-16: 12.5 HP
Level 17-20: 15 HP
Overall a nerf to Healing Hands. But still a decent feature, not too far off from the original 1 HP/level.
You also get the Light cantrip (oddly, it’s still Charisma locked unlike all the other racial spells in MPMM), not one but two handy Resistances (both of which are relatively hard to get from other sources), and Darkvision.
So overall I think they came out alright. Yes, their Healing Hands got slightly weaker and their transformation isn’t as good if you get a pre-cast, but not needing to pre-cast it is a significant benefit, as well as a major quality of life improvement.
Defensively, they’ve got 2 Resistances (including the ever-valuable Necrotic), a heal that’s worth almost as much HP as the Hill Dwarf’s +1hp/level, and potentially help from their transformation (such as using Necrotic Shroud for CC, or Radiant Soul for wings). Offensively, they’ve got their extra damage 1/day. Overall, a solid mix of benefits.
Shifters
+1 skill, Darkvision, and a bonus action transformation proficiency/day.
The transformation is worth the following amount of temp HP/day:
Level 1-4: 8 HP
Level 5-8: 18 HP
Level 9-12: 32 HP
Level 13-16: 50 HP
Level 17-20: 72 HP
As you can see, it’s quite a lot before we even talk about the additional features for the specific transformation types. This is a durability race, great for any character that doesn’t have too much pressure on their bonus actions or temp HP already (since temp hp don’t stack).
So what about the specific types of Shifters?
Beasthide gets +1 AC and an extra 1d6 temp hp per transformation (on top of what you already get), doubling down on this race’s already considerable durability.
Now it looks like…
Level 1-4: 15 HP +1 AC
Level 5-8: 28.5 HP +1 AC
Level 9-12: 46 HP +1 AC
Level 13-16: 67.5 HP +1 AC
Level 17-20: 93 HP +1 AC
That’s a bloody ton of extra durability. You want a tank race, here you are. This might just be my default go-to Shifter.
Unlike the original version, Longtooth can now use its bonus action attack on the turn you shift, a meaningful improvement. This basically gives you a bonus action attack without having to take a feat or use up a hand. On the other hand, it’s a nonmagical piercing unarmed strike. That means you can’t smite with it, you can’t apply Dueling to it, you can’t sneak attack with it, a lot of enemies resist it, etc.
Even so, you didn’t need to be getting a ton of extra offense for Shifter to be worth it, as it already has that solid base of HP.
Another thing worth noting is that unlike an awful lot of bonus action action attacks, Longtooth’s doesn’t require you to take the Attack action first. You can do things like use your action to cast a spell (or any other action), then attack, no problem.
Swiftstride gets a +10 foot base movement speed, putting you on par with a Centaur. Even if it’s not at will, you get to use it an awful lot. In addition, you get another 10 foot movement Reaction that doesn’t trigger OAs, which offers a rare opportunity to move off-turn, allowing you to disengage from foes, move out of hazards, or whatever. Note that even allies can trigger this.
As far as mobile durability races go, this is fighting with Orc and Satyr, and I’d say it puts up a heckuva fight with its fat stack of temp HP.
Wildhunt gets you Advantage on Wisdom checks while shifted, and enemies can’t get Advantage against you unless you’re incapacitated. Period.
This is will actually cancel out things like Reckless Attack. Sure, the shifting bonus action competes with the Rage one, but it’s still a good option on round 2+... or in combats where you’re not raging at all, just using Reckless – especially for those of you who merely dipped Barbarian.
You can also do things like, say, close your eyes to avoid gaze attacks, and grant your enemies no advantage in the process. Or take better advantage of fog, darkness, and other vision blockers (similar to Alert).
Minotaur
https://i.pinimg.com/564x/69/a0/df/69a0dfed34d83f2f7a6f86f57b7d32e3.jpg
Minotaurs are pretty bare-bones -- no Darkvision, no skill proficiencies, no resistances, not even Powerful Build! Look how skinny that minotaur is!
Goring Rush is kind of like a nerfed version of the Charger feat -- and the Charger feat ain't good. At best, this is a small consolation prize for a melee character getting stuck out of range. After all, there's not a whole lot you can do with this extra attack... it can't smite, it can't sneak attack, it can't benefit from the Dueling fighting style, it doesn't overcome nonmagical resistance, etc. Ideally, I never want to even get into a situation where I'd use Goring Rush, and even if I end up in one, it's usually not making much of a difference.
Labyrinthine Recall is a pretty modest and situational ribbon.
So it comes down to Hammering Horns, pretty much their one meaningful ability. This lets you shove someone 10 feet as a bonus action, which could be nice for comboing with hazard-using allies. However, it allows a Str save (worse than using a contested check like a normal shove), can't target Huge+ enemies (unless you get Enlarged or something), and requires you to use it after you make and hit with an Attack action.
At this point, given how light the rest of their other features are, I'm wondering why I wouldn't just pick a VHuman with Shield Master or PAM or something (Fun fact, with PAM you can shove->attack->attack!).
In order to get decent mileage out of Hammering Horns, you need to be a Strength-based character with little bonus action competition in a party that frequently uses hazards. Which ultimately means that the Minotaur is a fairly narrow race... and yet it doesn't stand out even within its narrow domain.
Changeling
Changelings have basically nothing in the way of combat features. It’s just 2 skills, Shapechanger, and that’s it. Not even Darkvision or anything.
Thankfully, their noncombat feature is a unique one. At-will, they can change their appearance in a way that is a fair bit harder to see through than the likes of Disguise Self or Alter Self. And they get voice mimicry. The fact that this is resilient to physical investigation gives you a much better chance of actually impersonating someone long-term, living among their family, etc. That's pretty cool.
Still… it’s not like there aren’t races that have cool noncombat features and cool combat features. The pre-WotC draft of Changelings actually had this – they could use their shapechanging to get some minor combat benefits. That would have been super cool! Yet this version has none of that.
You can't even do much in the way of creative deceptions or flavorful flairs mid-combat (like changing your face to various others that an opponent knows in the middle of a duel -- practically an entire trope), since they made the regrettable decision to make the shapechanging take an entire Action, solidly relegating it to the realm of pre-casting. At least you can start combat disguised as an enemy, or as one of the other PCs (so that they don't know who has what abilities).
Sea Elf
Take an elf and put Swimming and Water Breathing in the slot where Shadar-Kai are getting their Resistance Teleport prof/day and Necrotic Resistance.
Yeah... not the best trade, I'd say. Anyways, compared to a Triton, we don't have any racial spells, but we get an arguably better Resistance (Charm Resistance), a skill, Trance (which got buffed (https://tinyurl.com/bdbes24h)), and the ability to take Elven Accuracy. I'd take that trade on a number of builds... at least, if I wanted swimming badly enough.