![]() ![]() So, for example, when second edition published a 'splatbook' with rules for using 'monster' races as PC's, it was called the Complete Book of Humanoids and included rules for aarakocra, alaghis, beastmen, bugbears, bullywugs, centaurs, fremlins, giant-kin (firbolgs), giant-kin (voadkyns), gnolls, gnoll (flinds), goblins, hobgoblins, kobolds, lizard men, minotaurs, mongrelmen, ogres, half-ogres, orcs, half-orcs, pixies, satyrs, sauriel, swanmays, and wemic. The terminology of "humans, demihumans, and humanoids" was carried largely unchanged into second edition, although the hardcore human chauvinism behind it and championed by Gygax had waned along with level limits on non-human characters. When one wanted a term to include humans together with demihumans and humanoids, all the smaller sentient races together (most of which were not playable races), the collective group was often called ' persons' or people, and was loosely defined as anyone that was a possible target for a charm person spell.įinally, when speaking of everyone except humans that could be considered a 'person', and then adding in the larger, higher-HD sentient races that could not be affected by a charm person spell, the collective term was (somewhat counter-intuitively) ' giant-class', which was most well-known for being the races against which PC rangers received damage bonuses and was basically anything sentient excluding humans. Those sentient races that were largely opposed to humanity were called ' humanoids' and again, the distinction here was on their enmity to humanity in general rather than their suitability as PC's. This largely overlapped with what you are calling "character races", although the concept was more about whether the race was at the end of the day an ally of humanity writ large or not half-orcs, for example, were playable races but were not demihumans. Other races that were dominantly forces for good, or at least generally allied with humans, were called demihumans: gnomes, elves, dwarves, and halflings. (Note that the masculine/human usage is generic I do not like the terms freecreatures or gentlebeings!) My own GREYHAWK campaign, for example, assumes all player characters (unless I personally place one who is otherwise) are freemen or gentlemen, or at worst they can safely represent themselves to be so. Humanity was assumed to have structured the background society and nations of the campaign settings. All PC's were assumed to be human unless the DM had explicitly allowed another race (and these optional races were constrained by rules limiting their level). Gygax's versions of the game were explicitly and unapologetically humanocentric. ![]() Up to first edition (before Forgotten Realms) ![]()
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