Half-Troll
“Half-Trolls are incredibly strong and also very stupid and slow. They are so ugly that a Half-Orc grimaces in their presence.”
— Angband
Human
“West, North, and South the children of Men spread and wandered, and their joy was the joy of the morning before the dew is dry, when every leaf is green.”
— The Silmarillion, Of Men
Half-Elf
“The Half-elven (Pereldar) were thus all closely akin, being descended on the mortal side from the House of Hador, and the House of Bëor: the two chief houses of the Elf-friends (Dúnedain) from whom most of the Numenoreans came; and on the elvish side from the House of Finwe (the greatest of the Kings of the High-elves who went to the Blessed Realm) and from the House of Elwë (Elu-thingol) who remained in the west of Middle-earth. But since Melian, wife of Thingol and mother of Lúthien came of the people of the Valar a strain of the ‘race divine’ was also possessed by them.“
— J.R.R. Tolkien, Explanatory note
Elf
“Yes, they are elves,” Legolas said. “and they say that you breathe so loud they could shoot you in the dark.” Sam hastily covered his mouth.”
— J.R.R. Tolkien
“The Elves have their own labours and their own sorrows, and they are little concerned with the ways of hobbits, or of any other creatures upon earth.”
― Gildor Inglorion
“He already lay motionless, his fair hands folded upon his breast, his eyes unclosed, blending living night and deep dream, as is the way with Elves.“
— The Two Towers
Halfling
“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.”
— J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, or There and Back Again
“There is more in you of good than you know, child of the kindly West. Some courage and some wisdom, blended in measure. If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.”
— Thorin Oakenshield
“I am in fact a Hobbit (in all but size). I like gardens, trees and unmechanized farmlands; I smoke a pipe, and like good plain food […]; I like, and even dare to wear in these dull days, ornamental waistcoats. I am fond of mushrooms (out of a field); have a very simple sense of humour […]; I go to bed late and get up late […]. I do not travel much.”
— J.R.R. Tolkien
“May the hair on your toes never fall out!”
Gnome
“The Earth is filled almost to the Centre with Gnomes or Pharyes, a People of small Stature, the Guardians of Treasures, of Mines, and of Precious Stones. They are Ingenious, Friends of Men, and easie to be commanded. They furnish the Children of the Sages with as much Money, as they have need of; and never ask any other Reward of their Services, than the Glory of being Commanded. The Gnomides or Wives of these Gnomes or Pharyes, are Little, but very Handson; and their Habit marvellously Curious.”
Comte de Gabalis (1670)
“The clever, spunky, and oftentimes eccentric gnomes present a unique paradox… Brilliant inventors with an irrepressibly cheerful disposition, this race has suffered treachery, displacement, and near-genocide. It is their remarkable optimism in the face of such calamity that symbolizes the truly unshakable spirit of the gnomes.”
World of Warcraft
Dwarf
“Since they were to come in the days of the power of Melkor, Aulë made the dwarves strong to endure. Therefore they are stone-hard, stubborn, fast in friendship and in enmity, and they suffer toil and hunger and hurt of body more hardily than all other speaking peoples; and they live long, far beyond the span of Men, yet not forever.”
― The Silmarillion, “Of Aulë and Yavanna”
“Dwarves are not heroes, but a calculating folk with a great idea of the value of money; some are tricky and treacherous and pretty bad lots; some are not but are decent enough people like Thorin and Company, if you don’t expect too much.”
— J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, or There and Back Again
“Baruk Khazâd! Khazâd ai-mênu!” // “Axes of the Dwarves! The Dwarves are upon you!”.
Half-Orc
“Are they men he has ruined or has he blended the races of orcs and men?”
— Treebeard
“It became clear in time that undoubted Men could under the domination of Morgoth or his agents in a few generations be reduced almost to the Orc-level of mind and habits; and then they would or could be made to mate with Orcs, producing new breeds, often larger and more cunning. There is no doubt that long afterwards, in the Third Age, Saruman rediscovered this, or learned of it in lore, and in his lust for mastery committed this, his wickedest deed: the interbreeding of Orcs and Men, producing both Men-orcs large and cunning, and Orc-men treacherous and vile.”
— J.R.R. Tolkien,
Dunedain
“I thought you knew enough Elvish at least to know dún-adan: Man of the West, Númenórean.”
— Bilbo Baggins
“So great was the might and splendour of the Numenoreans that Sauron’s own servants deserted him.”
― The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A
“Thus he became at last the most hardy of living Men, skilled in their crafts and lore, and was yet more than they; for he was elven-wise, and there was a light in his eyes that when they were kindled few could endure. His face was sad and stern because of the doom that was laid on him, and yet hope dwelt ever in the depths of his heart, from which mirth would arise at times like a spring from the rock.”
— Appendix A
“Gondor! Gondor, between the Mountains and the Sea!
West Wind blew there; light upon the Silver Tree”
— Aragorn
High-Elf
“O Elbereth! Gilthoniel!
We still remember, we who dwell
In this far land beneath the trees.
Thy starlight on the Western Seas.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
Kobold
“Kobolds are a cowardly, sadistic race of short humanoids that vigorously contest the human and demi-human races for living space and food. They especially dislike gnomes and attack them on sight. Barely clearing 3 feet in height, kobolds have scaly hides that range from dark, rusty brown to a rusty black. They smell of damp dogs and stagnant water. Their eyes glow like a bright red spark and they have two small horns ranging from tan to white. Because of the kobolds’ fondness for wearing raggedy garb of red and orange, their non-prehensile rat-like tails, and their language (which sounds like small dogs yapping), these fell creatures are often not taken seriously. This is often a fatal mistake, for what they lack in size and strength they make up in ferocity and tenacity.”
DnD 2e
“Aaagh, ye dolt. Those aren’t goblin spears look at them, their in too good o’ shape. Nah, they be Kobolds, or I’m a bearded gnome.”
Maldeir Dwarven Ranger, DnD
Yeek
“They have a fairly developed primitive language, but most is
in a frequency range well above human hearing (and that of their predators); the only audible portion comes out as ‘Yeek’.”
David J. Grabiner
Ent
“The Ents are going to war!”
― Treebeard
Thunderlord
“Thunderlords are an old and powerful race of dragon hunters. They can spot dragons anywhere. Thunderlords have tamed the Argentavis (great eagles) and use them in their hunts.”
PWMAngband
Dragon
“Never laugh at live dragons.”
― Bilbo Baggins
“My armour is like tenfold shields, my teeth are swords, my claws spears, the shock of my tail a thunderbolt, my wings a hurricane, and my breath death!”
— J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, or There and Back Again
Hydra
“A legendary beast created by the Gods for some nefarious purpose, the hydra has spoken to the imagination of countless mortals. A monster possessing overflowing vitality, endlessly regrowing as long as just one of its heads remains. Poison strong enough to induce hallucinations, a frightful presence that can make a man drop dead from fear, and a massive body that few blades can pierce. This many-headed gigantic beast bears some similarities to dragons and serpents, and is rumoured to have its origins within a lake called Lerna that is said to contain a passage to the lower planes.”
DnD
Black Numenorean
A High Men from ancient times, renegades and.. ally of The Dark Lord.. Not all of them was ‘corrupted by many gifts and promises of great power’. Some just wanted to have a free will and refused to accepted handouts of the West.. But nonetheless, they had to choose a side, just to survive under the sky.. Black Numenorean could sense ‘evil’ creatures with extrasensory powers at a certain stage of their development.
Damned
Some call them Highlanders and there are rumours of their great power. The truth is that endless life comes not for free. Mortals who belong ‘forever’ live cursed life, getting much less them common human does. Nevertheless, they are resistant to ageing effects and life drain and regenerate extra fast.
Merfolk
Human-like water-dwelling creatures who live on shores to the north of Big Step coast, but plenty of then dwells on river banks and seashores. They spend a lot of time in water and know how to communicate with water creatures. They know waters so well that they even get their own magic from its source. They are resistant to water and good in infravision. But digging isn’t really their big passion.
Barbarian
Wildlings from the North who spread across all Tangaria after undeads have risen in the past Dragon war. Barbarians came to all parts of the land willing to seek a place for their tribes. At first, they came with fire and steel, but nowadays, after they met Magic Council dread they become less aggressive and trying to find a compromise. Barbarians are resistant to poison as they had to eat all kind of ‘food’ to survive in wildlands. And of course, they are fearless.
Black Dwarf
Black Dwarfs was once far stem of one forgotten dwarven clan. They didn’t like deep cavern, preferring to live at hills. This made them outcast among ‘true’ dwarfs and they made more contacts to other races, that to their mountain kindred. They traded a lot with eastern human caliphates and even with some other outcast races (as they themself become one). Some say that they are not in a war with goblins.. Perhaps it was the reason why they became hated by mountain folk and nowadays their family ties lie forgotten. Their proximity to the daylight surface made them especially suffer from past war among Dragons and Titans, which changed their appearance, making their skin darker. But with this they got the special ability – they are somewhat resistant to the ruination of disenhancement magic.
Goblin
Goblins like to sneak around and take what lay on ‘bad’ spot. It’s what people say about this race. Although it’s not always the truth, most of this folk prefer living in the night time, dwelling in a tiny cavern and coming to the earth surface only for fishing.. or fighting. Don’t underestimate these creatures. Despite their size, they are more than capable of destruction. Goblins are resistant to darkness and very agile.
Half-Giant
Giants are shrouded in mystery. One local legend told of giants making the White Mountains, to keep Men out of their lands by the Sea. One of them, Tarlang, tripped, and broke his neck. The other giants did not clean up his body, which became incorporated in the land instead. The giant’s neck became Tarlang’s Neck, his head Dol Tarlang, and the stones he was carrying Cûl Veleg and Cûl Bîn. The city of Minas Tirith, as stood on Amon Tirith, seemed to have been “carved” by giants out of the rock.
The Ettenmoors owed their name to some gigantic creatures of that land, although these were perhaps merely some kind of trolls.
The stone-giants lived in the Misty Mountains during the late Third Age. Upon coming, they drove out the majority of the bears that lived there. They found a sport in throwing rocks at each other, and then into the depths below them to hear them shatter among the trees.
Presumably, not all giants were evil, as Gandalf hoped to convince a more or less decent giant to block the Front Porch to Goblin-town, to make the High Pass in the Misty Mountains safe again.
Huge size makes it hard for them to use teleportation magic thought. At the same time, they are protected from gravity effects, could stun their opponents and are very hard to kill.
Ogre
Ogres or swamp trolls – it’s ancient race. Some say that they were the first of troll race. Slick and covered in slime with greenish skin, ogres are not the most pleasant lot which you could meet under the sky. Not all of them are ‘bad’ though, some ‘families’ came to live in the city and.. what makes them quite special – become a not bad in magical arts, as ogres practice their own, shamanic spell-weaving. Ogres sustain their intelligence even under big pressure.
Troll
Troll is a huge piece of walking rock. Their skin is hard to pierce even with a sharp blade. They are slow though. Don’t fear poison (they eat literally everything, resistant to magical shards. Regenerate fast. Very healthy. Very hungry. Not too bright.. There are plenty of trolls in Middle-lands, they often work as bodyguards protecting caravans.
Orc
“For all that race were bred by Melkor of the subterranean heats and slime. Their hearts were of granite and their bodies deformed; foul their faces which smiled not, but their laugh that of the clash of metal, and to nothing were they more fain than to aid in the basest of the purposes of Melkor.”
—The Fall of Gondolin
Forest Goblin
Forest goblins look like nice little creatures. Indeed, some of them are quite kind and friendly, but some are cruel.. depends on the tribe. They are sneaky and fast, but not quite weak in term of physical strength.
Dark Elf
Dark Elves live in the southern parts of the forest behind Roaring Mountains. Some say that they live underground in caves and that’s why they got pale dark skin. It’s not the truth, though they don’t have too much in common with ‘green’ elves who dwell in forests. Dark elves are hermits who take their spot at Roaring Mountains just recently.. just to survive. Not much of this folk left as for a long time they exterminate each other in families dissension. Dark elves are good fighters, could see invisible, resistant to darkness, but vulnerable to light magic.
Werewolf
Werewolves are strange folk who dwells to the east from Golden Forest on the north. Ascetic people, victims of a mysterious curse.. or disease.. They can not hold their passion for wildlife and nature. Some of them become to control it and even consider it’s as a gift. Werewolves could use their huge claws and teeth in a battle to tear their enemies in pieces. They feel animals from the distance could regenerate and resistant to dark. They don’t like light magic though.
Undead
Undeads occupy most of the far north at the moment. This is intelligent race (at least some part of undeads), they even got their own country which has to protect itself from real, brainless undead hordes from Wildlands. Not very pleasant looking, but resistant to nether and poison. They do not regenerate their wounds, although they are able to help them. Quite slow at first ‘mature’ undeads are able to move with normal speed. Susceptible to light magic.
Vampire
Vampires live to the north from Honour Empire. A quite reasonable folk actually although most of the races scared of them. Indeed.. They are very powerful, but not too many survived the Last War, which makes them live quietly in their lands.. Vampires don’t regenerate, but they are able to restore their help with the blood of slain enemies. They resist time, poison, nether and darkness. They don’t feel fear and got perfect infravision. They don’t like light though and for them, it’s hard to learn anything new as they lived a very long life already.
Enlightened
Enlightened – descendants of ancient powers. Not much know about them, except that it’s very hard to kill one of them. Resistant to numerous effects and possessing god-like abilities, they are very slow on getting new skills though. Another weak spot is that they receive their power not at once, but after they become experienced in this ‘mortal’ world.
Cambion
Cambion – corrupted spirits, servants of First Gods. They are the same kind as the Enlightened race but to the other side of power. Resistant to chaos, they are able to control nexus vibrations and possess very powerful abilities. But there is a price for this – they are very hard to learn.. Chaos inside of them makes it almost impossible to control their will to achieve their own goals…
Balrog
Balrog – underground ancient ‘race’ or some would call them as a ‘force’. Main enemies of celestials, balrogs fought on Titans side to devastate dragons.. Not much of them left unharmed because dragons use not only fire (for which balrogs are immune), but other elements.. Those who survived that war though, become a terror for all races of Tangaria. Only past ages, Balrogs learned to control their roth.. and their appearance. So nowadays they learnt to appear in ‘human’ form; there are even rumours that in Middle-lands there is a balrog archmage who teach at Magic Academia. But it’s well-known that when balrog takes his true-form, he posses immense fire magic, which makes everything go mad around it, so creatures could ‘feel’ balrog presence from big distance, which makes this race hard to become unnoticed in the dungeons of Enemy.
Celestial
Celestials.. Some people call them ‘angels’, but they are not kind and helpful (and they doesn’t have wings!), but a very cruel race which got their own goals which they would achieve no matter what. The only thing which saves the world from their roth is that there are not too many of them; most of them perished in ‘eternal’ war with Titans. Resistant to gravity, celestials could get rejoice with of lightning when achieving a certain level of development.
Nephalem
Nephalem – example what could appear if celestial would make love to balrog. Amazingly it happens sometimes, so such creatures could be met.. very-very rare, but there they are. They live among us and we won’t know about it. Hey, maybe you are the one, with this twisted blood? They only way to test it is to become exposed to light and dark magic at once. Nephalem doesn’t fear both.
Gargoyles
Gargoyles are stone creatures which sometimes appear after magic storms when arcane nexus vibrations animate rock. It’s a very rare occasion, but for centuries it happened a from time to time, so you could meet gargoyles in Tangaria more often, than, for example, balrogs.
Some powerful wizards tried to make gargoyles with their magic, but they managed to create only ‘golems’ – by powering clay with their spellcasting, as it appeared that much easier to magically operate with clay, than with stone or rock.
Golems
Artificial magical creatures, made by powerful wizards to serve their will. When golems just created they do not understand their purpose and they just do what they told to do. But in time some golems could start asking themself a question – why do they exist? Why they have to do the job which humans obliged them to do? There was a golem rebellion in the past and it brought a lot of destruction. The result was permission for golems to buyout their freedom by working on their master for several decades. Every golem dream to get its freedom. But not all mages are honest with them and not all people respect their ‘feelings’. If you are ‘born’ as a golem, who knows, would you ever get liberty? Should you deserve it or take it by force?
Pixies
Little, but very potent in magic.