Ravenloft 4e Part II...Races...

[Baron_Samedi]

Continuing on from my thread on Classes, here's the racial half...including races from PHB and PHB II...

Deva: Bad choice, given that they are severly connected to the Etheral Plane, it would be like a Seraphim Angel living in Hell.

Dhampyr: Yes, this is a racial modification that you add onto your initial racial choice...the stats are found in Dragon magazine no. 371.

Dragonborn: Considering that most of the races in Ravenloft are very xenophobic, they would consider Dragonborn to be monsters. However, in Rokushima Tayoo and I'Cath, they would be considered honourable...

Drow: Given the appearance of the Zell'Drow from the Shadow Rift, these Dark Elves would be a portent to bad news to most.

Dwarf: Common across the Core.

Eladrin: Depends on how you want to slice it. The Fey in Ravenloft are almost worse than the Liches. You could have an outsider fey come into the Domains, but Fey Step ability could have their character teleporting into nothingness.

Elf: Common across the Core.

Genasi: Possible but not common...elemental appearance could be a problem.

Giomorgio: Half-Vistani are a near human race but bonuses for spell like abilities and knife fighting...see the Ravenloft patch at www.fraternityofshadows.com.

Gnome: Common, but with them being fey folk, they would be more evil aligned like svirfneblin...or at least some of them anyway.

Goliath: I actually think they would do alright in some domains in the Core as farm hands, workers or soldiers...

Half-Elf: Common across the Core.

Halfling: Common across the Core.

Half-Orc: Also called Caliban, look at the patch for Ravenloft 4e at www.fraternityofshadows.com for details.

Human: Common across the Core. (See a patern?)

Shifter: Familiar to any Domain that has a history of Lycanthropes.

Tieflings: Could live in the outskirts of some domains, but given their appearance, would be very difficult to maintain inside a group.

Again, all races are at DM discretion, i would also add that given the nature of the Mists, any and all races can and do exist in the Demiplane of Dread...its just a matter of how long they can survive, given their appearances.

[Tamerath]

Shadar-kai: A great addition since the Domains of Dread are located on the Shadowfell in 4th Edition. Personally I've used them as the witches of the Lysaga Hill in Barovia (Expedition to Castle Ravenloft) to great effect. It made them so that they could still integrate a little with the mostly human villagers in town, but also keep them seperate enough to keep an air of secrecy to them.

[Baron_Samedi]

They describe the Shadar-Kai as a race indiginous to the shadowfell that worship the Raven Queen. If i can make an extrapolation...i see the Vistani as filling the same role. In Ravenloft, the gypsies are the only ones that can successfully navigate the Mists...hence their protection being one of the three immutable laws of Barovia. One could also argue that the Mists are the one true constant in the Demiplane, being that it is a deity type figure...So the S-K and Vistani are very similar in role, and almost interchangable...the only exception being their ability to shadow shift, or whatever they refer to it as. Although, like the eladrin, it would be difficult for them to perform such a feat and come in safely on the otherside, unless they have a unique understanding of the Mists...At least they would have a better idea than the eladrin would...I don't know, just a thought...