I love goblins and lizardmen. Goblins because deranged little dudes running around is always a blast. Lizardmen because alligator people with melee weapons are the way I wish dinosaurs evolved instead of being birds.
I know it makes me super basic but… dragons. I know, it’s not inspiring. But I must add a caveat. I prefer that they are intelligent, on par with or surpassing humans in intelligence and willing (if reluctantly) to interact with them. Game of Thrones dragons are cool and all but they don’t really do it for me in the same way as, say, the dragon from Dragonheart.
Basic is good. In fact I asked this question because I wanted to get a “vibe check” on what people thought was iconic.
K’chain Che’malle. Fricken’ dinosaurs with fricken’ sword arms.
Yes. This pleases me.
Probably dwarves - they’re not that exotic but I really vibe with them… for something more out there I’m a big fan of Yuan-Ti, they have spectacular lore and it’s always tickled me that their most human-like form is basically considered low-born while the pure bloods are full on snakes.
Dwarves definitely take the cake for me though, big beards, stout, egalitarian, sometimes greedy - but always devout craftsfolk. As a big gender non-conforming man with a bigger beard and an intense love of my craftwork, I really vibe with them.
… I am a dwarf, and I’m digging a hole Diggy diggy hole, diggy diggy hole
Snake people is a decent answer, but dwarves are not typically considered monstrous.
Interesting use of terms. In Discworld Dwarven society, being lowborn would be a good thing and while being high born is only one step below surface dweller. The dwarves are ruled by the Low King (or Queen). The lower you are, the deeper you are in the mine, and the more rich and important you must be.
Weeping Angels
The PCs. The party are the real monsters in any campaign. That old woman hoodwinked is out of 2gp. KILL HER.
“It turns out it’s man.” -Futurama
Absolutely a legitimate answer.
Parshendi, if they can be called a monster race.
Having completely different forms they take for specialization depending on task is fascinating. And I love the way rhythm is baked into their being so innately, how every Parshendi can hear the same rhythms and attune them to express or mask emotion.
Skaven yes yes.
First gen Pokemon? Or is that cheating?
Not really a race or a fantasy setting. Think more in lines of trope that could be applied across multiple settings (kobolds, orcs, tengu, etc).
Okay, you consider it a cheat answer, that’s fair. But, just for the record, pokemon is a fantasy series. And the pokemon are a race of monsters.
But for a more typical answer, I’d go with either dragons cause they’re usually powerful and intelligent and can fly or warcraft’s taurens cause they’re like a hippie version of a minotaur. Strong and intelligent but with an affinity for nature. A tauren druid being a very fun combo with tons of versatility.
I feel like Beholders are the product of some nightmare fueled fever dream. They fascinate me endlessly.
Fun fact, fever dreams are how beholders reproduce
I’ve always loved dragons in fantasy genres, specially intelligent talking ones that are on the mcs side.
Also like slimes and love when fantasy worlds play around with different types of them
I’ll go with the Alzabo from Gene Wolf’s worlds. Mimics the intelligence of anything it eats and begs its prey to be eaten in the voice of (already eaten) loved ones.
The people who submit, don’t do so out of momentary stupidity, but because the Alzebo/Loved Ones make such a compelling case that the only way to be reunited again is to join the beast.
Elves. They’re basically a cross between the 1% and the most insufferable celebritity influencers imaginable. Having a murder-hobo license to burn down their superiority complex is the best solution imaginable.
I love goblins and lizardmen
Fine 😔
Hobgoblin is a subspecies of goblin thus I would include them in my statement of fondness. Gotta have someone ordering the goblin rabble around and nothing beats a hobgoblin at that.
Dragons, dragonborns (though half-dragons are original and better than dragonborn but more poweful so they wasn’t balanced as player race) and kobolds.
Khajiit and all other cat-people and cat-monsters everywhere (maybe except Kzinti)
Owlbears are great too.
Trolls come in dizzying array of variants (my favourite are the troll gods from Edding’s books).
Tengu, especially the crow-tenguGoblins, there’s an inner goblin in us all.
Werewolves and dragons are close aswell.
