The description of each race includes racial
Traits that are
Common to
Members of that race. The following entries appear among the
Traits of most races.
Ability Score Increase
Every race increases one or more of a character’s
ability scores.
The age entry notes the age when a member of the race is considered an adult, as well as the race’s expected lifespan. This information can help you decide how old your character is at the start of the game. You can choose any age for your character, which could provide an explanation for some of your
Ability Scores. For example, if you play a young or very old character, your age could explain a particularly low
Strength or
Constitution score, while advanced age could account for a high
Intelligence or
Wisdom.
Most races have tendencies toward certain
alignments, described in this entry. These are not binding for player
Characters, but considering why your dwarf is chaotic, for example, in defiance of lawful dwarf
Society can help you better define your character.
Characters of most races are
Medium, a
size category including
Creatures that are roughly 4 to 8 feet tall.
Members of a few races are Small (between 2 and 4 feet tall), which means that certain rules of the game affect them differently. The most important of these rules is that Small
Characters have trouble
Wielding heavy
Weapons, as explained in “Equipment.”
Your speed determines how far you can move when traveling ( “Adventuring”) and
Fighting (“Combat”).
By virtue of your race, your character can speak, read, and write certain
languages.
Some races have
Subraces.
Members of a subrace have the
Traits of the parent race in addition to the
Traits specified for their subrace. Relationships among
Subraces vary significantly from race to race and world to world.
