Creating a Race
In addition to humans fantasy and science-fiction worlds contain at least 3 more races of creatures like humans and several non-human animal type creatures.
By 'like' humans I mean beings that humans can hold a conversation with (or could if they spoke English).
Here I hope expand your mind-hole and get you thinking of different races other than the stereotypical elves and dwarves so common to fantasy worlds. Elves and dwarves are great but they are done so often they need refreshing and making different to stand out and be worth reading about or playing as. Not only that I'm going to show you how to make a completely new race of humanoids. So often the issue is that we are stuck in our mindset thinking that things can only be a certain way or become so focused on the norms that we limit ourselves to what is possible. Not anymore! Fantasy and science-fiction are completely made-up and you can have anything you want doing whatever you want but all this freedom becomes restrictive because you don't know where to begin.
So without further ado let us start looking at ways in which we can make a new race for our stories/games that are believable and interesting and we'll start off by breaking it up into the following sections:
1) Language
2) Clothing
3) History
4) Gods (if any)
5) Social behaviours
6) Technologies (if any)
7) Magical powers or racial abilities (if any)
8) Weapons and armour (if any)
9) Animosities to other races or alliances
10) Physical appearance
To jump to certain section use the "find" function by pressing ctrl+f on the keyboard then type the number to the left of the section you want to jump to into the little box that has appeared at the top right of the screen.
From the list above we can already see a large number of factors that may be relevant to our new race. I say 'may' because as the bracketed words imply, they may not apply at all.
The more creative of you would have already been thinking of the implications bullet points have when you were reading them and what the possibilities are now that they have been pointed out to you.
I'll go through all of the bullet points to elaborate on the potential differences and deviances one may be able to take.
By 'like' humans I mean beings that humans can hold a conversation with (or could if they spoke English).
Here I hope expand your mind-hole and get you thinking of different races other than the stereotypical elves and dwarves so common to fantasy worlds. Elves and dwarves are great but they are done so often they need refreshing and making different to stand out and be worth reading about or playing as. Not only that I'm going to show you how to make a completely new race of humanoids. So often the issue is that we are stuck in our mindset thinking that things can only be a certain way or become so focused on the norms that we limit ourselves to what is possible. Not anymore! Fantasy and science-fiction are completely made-up and you can have anything you want doing whatever you want but all this freedom becomes restrictive because you don't know where to begin.
So without further ado let us start looking at ways in which we can make a new race for our stories/games that are believable and interesting and we'll start off by breaking it up into the following sections:
1) Language
2) Clothing
3) History
4) Gods (if any)
5) Social behaviours
6) Technologies (if any)
7) Magical powers or racial abilities (if any)
8) Weapons and armour (if any)
9) Animosities to other races or alliances
10) Physical appearance
To jump to certain section use the "find" function by pressing ctrl+f on the keyboard then type the number to the left of the section you want to jump to into the little box that has appeared at the top right of the screen.
From the list above we can already see a large number of factors that may be relevant to our new race. I say 'may' because as the bracketed words imply, they may not apply at all.
The more creative of you would have already been thinking of the implications bullet points have when you were reading them and what the possibilities are now that they have been pointed out to you.
I'll go through all of the bullet points to elaborate on the potential differences and deviances one may be able to take.
1) Language
How does your race communicate with itself or others? Do they speak their own language or do they share a common tongue with other races? The more alien a race is or detached from the rest of the world it lives in the more different its language will be from the rest of the world. Creating an entire language requires great effort but it is possible and can have great rewards but it is much simpler to create words that are useful and relevant to the world.
You do not need to create another language at all if you do not want to and everyone can speak the same tongue but another language adds a touch of authenticity to your work even when only used in a few circumstances.
You do not need to create another language at all if you do not want to and everyone can speak the same tongue but another language adds a touch of authenticity to your work even when only used in a few circumstances.
2) Clothing
Not all races wear the same clothes you only need to look at the world around you to see that people from different countries where different clothes because they have a different style. In a fantasy world nobles wear much better clothes than the poor. Different races place different values on certain things. Does your race think that a belt of skulls is a display of strength in battle or think that it is a monstrosity to wear to skulls of the fallen?
Your race may wear robes if they are magically inclined or leathers if they live on the plains. Clothing must distinguish the race from other races even if only the form of head wear.
Your race may wear robes if they are magically inclined or leathers if they live on the plains. Clothing must distinguish the race from other races even if only the form of head wear.
3) History
Knowing some of the significant events of the past helps to shape a race. How long have they been around and what has shaped them to become what they are today? Sometimes knowing the past can help determine the future course of your race and decide the purpose for their existence. Likewise not knowing adds mystery and uncertainty but no-one has said you must share the knowledge of the past with anyone.
4) Gods
Does your race worship any gods? If so are those gods the same of other races or are they their own gods? A race does not need to worship anything at all if you do not want them to.
5) Social Behaviours
What behaviours are characteristic of your race? Spitting is a trait that is a sign of disrespect in these modern times but back in the 1980s it was a sign of respect and adulation for TV presenters to be spat at. How does your race interact with each other? What conventions do they hold to?
6) Technologies
In some stories/games, mainly sci-fi but also some fantasy, there is technology of some kind. Does your race use any? Did they invent certain technologies that are now lost to them or the world? Or do they use their knowledge for their own gains?
7) Magical Powers or Racial Abilities
Not all races are the same and they sometimes have significant racial differences based on their homeland/world. This can be manifested in several ways like: being giants, being incredibly strong, adept at magic either their own kind or a common magic, or they may have a racial power or ability that no other race has like telepathy or teleporting.
A racial power can vary dramatically depending on the region your race comes from. If they come from a swampy land full of poisonous insects they may have developed a resistance or immunity to poison or if they live in a volcanic region they may have developed heat resistance the options go on and on.
Use your imagination and come up with something pretty unique.
A racial power can vary dramatically depending on the region your race comes from. If they come from a swampy land full of poisonous insects they may have developed a resistance or immunity to poison or if they live in a volcanic region they may have developed heat resistance the options go on and on.
Use your imagination and come up with something pretty unique.
8) Weapons and Armour
In fantasy worlds weapons and armour are commonplace as wars are often a feature of the story, in science-fiction weapons take priority. Your race may not use any weapons or weapons or armour- they may have natural weapons or armour instead- or they could be a peaceful race that does not engage in warfare or fighting of any kind.
If they do wear armour what kind of armour is it? Is it leather armour or iron or steel? Is it plate armour or chainmail? Is it magical armour? If it is natural armour is it scales, tough skin, rock like skin, or is it normal but absorbs impacts without difficulty? You need to determine as well how the armour of your race sets it apart from that of others by deciding what shapes they make armour. It may be modeled off of a creature in their homeland or they may shape it to resemble a god they worship or animals they place significant value in.
When thinking about weapons all of the above questions and ideas apply. In terms of natural weapons though that means things like claws/talons, teeth, spiked fists or blade-like limbs and horns.
From a sci-fi perspective however weapons are usually some kind of energy sword or guns that fire charged energy. Gun styles can vary depending on individual preference and so can swords but even sci-fi races have their own distinct characteristics (tentacles being a classic example) that can be use as a weapon.
If they do wear armour what kind of armour is it? Is it leather armour or iron or steel? Is it plate armour or chainmail? Is it magical armour? If it is natural armour is it scales, tough skin, rock like skin, or is it normal but absorbs impacts without difficulty? You need to determine as well how the armour of your race sets it apart from that of others by deciding what shapes they make armour. It may be modeled off of a creature in their homeland or they may shape it to resemble a god they worship or animals they place significant value in.
When thinking about weapons all of the above questions and ideas apply. In terms of natural weapons though that means things like claws/talons, teeth, spiked fists or blade-like limbs and horns.
From a sci-fi perspective however weapons are usually some kind of energy sword or guns that fire charged energy. Gun styles can vary depending on individual preference and so can swords but even sci-fi races have their own distinct characteristics (tentacles being a classic example) that can be use as a weapon.
9) Animosities or Alliances
Your race may have an animosity towards another race this could be as a result of great battle they had, betrayal or just an instinctive thing with no solid foundation. They may have no animosities at all but mistrust is an recurring feature in fictional stories.
On the other hand your race may have allies due to support given in times of need or a mutually beneficial agreement.
On the other hand your race may have allies due to support given in times of need or a mutually beneficial agreement.
10) Physical Appearance
Probably the most important point is physical appearance. How can you have a race and not know what it looks like?
Their are several factors to consider when determining a races appearance: Skin colour, height, weight, number of eyes, legs, heads, arms, teeth and mouths, do they have wings? do they have a tail, claws, horns, scales, feathers or fur?
If your race is predominantly human in appearance you can give them a few distinguishing features by making some slight modifications such as giving them a strange skin colour such as green. By tinging the skin with green it sets them apart as something other than human you could do this with any colour really like purple or gold.
Another thing you could do is give them claws, it is not a massive change but humans do not have claws and so a human -or so you think- with claws is immediately a notable being.
Their are several factors to consider when determining a races appearance: Skin colour, height, weight, number of eyes, legs, heads, arms, teeth and mouths, do they have wings? do they have a tail, claws, horns, scales, feathers or fur?
If your race is predominantly human in appearance you can give them a few distinguishing features by making some slight modifications such as giving them a strange skin colour such as green. By tinging the skin with green it sets them apart as something other than human you could do this with any colour really like purple or gold.
Another thing you could do is give them claws, it is not a massive change but humans do not have claws and so a human -or so you think- with claws is immediately a notable being.
So that's it
I hope you have learned much on how to create your own race of beings. There are a lot of things to consider but by knowing at least a bit of each of the points outlined above you will have a better understanding of your race which will in turn make it easier put them on paper and make them believable (at least in terms of your fantasy/sci-fi realm).
You don't need to know everything about them, everything else can come in time, but a basic understanding of who and what they are as a society and what they find important are factors that help you set them apart from everything else and stops you from using cliches like elves, dwarves, halflings, orcs and trolls. Make your race different, memorable and believable.
If you are still struggling a little or want bit of a boost with your ideas try the following race generator as it comes up with some very good ideas that are quite far-fetched- http://www.seventhsanctum.com/generate.php?Genname=fantasyrace
You don't need to know everything about them, everything else can come in time, but a basic understanding of who and what they are as a society and what they find important are factors that help you set them apart from everything else and stops you from using cliches like elves, dwarves, halflings, orcs and trolls. Make your race different, memorable and believable.
If you are still struggling a little or want bit of a boost with your ideas try the following race generator as it comes up with some very good ideas that are quite far-fetched- http://www.seventhsanctum.com/generate.php?Genname=fantasyrace