The Dragonlance campaign setting is returning to Dungeons & Dragons in the upcoming Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen campaign, and it will be interesting to see how the book handles the playable races, as not all the races in the Player's Handbook appear in the setting. Dragonlance involves the world of Krynn, which is different from the other DnD campaign worlds in a number of ways, especially when it comes to magic. The world of Dragonlance was shaped by its novels and not everything that works in a book will work in a DnD game.

There are some races from the DnD 5e Player's Handbook that aren't native to the world of Krynn. Technically, they could appear as outsiders, as DnD Spelljammer adventuring ships can travel to Krynn, and interdimensional travel is possible with magic, so DnD players do have an easy avenue if they really want to play a different race in Shadow of the Dragon Queen. One entry that came very close to being included was the tiefling, but they technically appear in an official Dragonlance adventure called Price of Courage, and demons/devils are part of the setting, so tieflings make it in. Some of the Player's Handbook races exist in Krynn, like humans and dwarves, but other playable races are not part of the Dragonlance setting.

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Half-Orcs Don't Exist In Dragonlance (Because Orcs Don't)

Artwork of an Orc in Dungeons & Dragons

One of the biggest ways in which Krynn differs from DnD's different campaign settings is that orcs don't exist, which means half-orcs are also absent. Orcs are a common threat in many DnD campaigns and have even formed their own formidable empires. Some of the recent DnD books have taken a different approach with the orcs, presenting them as something closer to Klingons from Star Trek, with a focus on honor and duty, but many groups still use them as villains. Half-orcs have been mentioned in the Dragonlance novels, but this is assumed to be an oversight on the part of the creators.

Orcs might not exist in Krynn, but that doesn't mean similar races aren't around. The DnD goblins and goblinoid races exist in Krynn, which means half-goblins, bugbears, and hobgoblins are all present. Ogres are also a major part of the setting, having once been a race similar to the elves, known as the Irda, but they were corrupted and transformed into their current form over the ages. Minotaurs also have their own nation in Krynn, which means they're more commonly seen in Krynn than in places like Faerun or Oerth. Tthe Dragonlance novels have mentioned half-orcs on rare occasions, so players who want to play one have an avenue for introducing them, but the half-ogre race could also act as a decent substitute.

DnD's Drow Don't Exist In Dragonlance (But Dark Elves Do)

Dungeons & Dragons Drow Wizard Spider Cover

The drow elves are closely associated with the Underdark and the evil goddess Lolth. This is thanks to DnD's Drizzt Do' Urden, the drow ranger whose exploits have been chronicled in the long-running The Legend of Drizzt novel series. Drizzt's books did a fantastic job of diving into the drow culture, where individual noble houses fight secret wars while maintaining a veneer of lawfulness, all in the service of Lolth. In recent years, the drow have had an image change, with many following Drizzt's example and coming to the surface world. There are many drow who become adventurers, preferring a life on the road to facing superstition and prejudice. The popularity of Drizzt has ensured that many players want to play as drow elves, which the DnD 5e Player's Handbook provides rules for.

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DnD's familiar drow race does not exist in Krynn, nor does it have an Underdark. Instead, the word "drow" is sometimes used to describe dark elves, who are regular elves that have been banished from their society and turned into exiles. This is a common punishment for elves who are discovered studying evil magic, as was the case for Dalamar the Dark, one of the most famous spellcasters in the DnD multiverse. There's nothing stopping a player from playing a dark elf in Shadow of the Dragon Queen, but they're closer to high elves or wood elves than drow elves.

Halflings Don't Exist In Dragonlance (But Kender Do)

A Dragonlance Kender character in front of a map.

The halfling race is one of the cornerstones of DnD, as it's the closest thing to a hobbit that is allowed in the game. Halflings do not exist in Dragonlance, but a race that is similar in appearance does. Dragonlance has the kender race, which is confirmed to be appearing in Shadow of the Dragon Queen. Kender are a controversial race among longtime DnD players, as they're a strong contender for being the most annoying race in the game, at least in terms of how the lore and the novels present them.

The entire kender race is driven by curiosity and a desire for new experiences. Kender are among the greatest thieves in the races of Krynn, but they do not consider themselves to be criminals. Instead, kender simply grab objects that interest them, stick them in a pouch, and then forget about them moments later, which means they're shocked when they're accused of stealing and the item is found on their person. The concept of the kender "handler" is a great idea for a Dragonlance subclass to add to DnD 5e, but they have the potential to be very annoying, and a DM who has a lore-accurate kender in the group will soon be missing the halflings, and praying to Yondalla for them to appear in Krynn and save the party from being arrested every five minutes.

Dragonborn Don't Exist In Dragonlance (But A Similar Race Does)

The dragonborn race was not created until DnD 3.5 and they weren't introduced to the Player's Handbook until DnD 4e. The world of Krynn has a race that's similar to the dragonborn in a number of ways, known as the draconians, who predate the dragonborn by decades. While the dragonborn are native races in other settings, the draconians were the result of horrific magical experiments. Before the War of the Lance began, Takhisis (the Dragonlance version of Tiamat) had the eggs of the metallic dragons stolen, and held them as hostages, in order to keep the good dragons out of her upcoming war. Unbeknownst to the metallic dragons, the eggs were used in magical rituals to create the draconians, who acted as shock troopers in the dragonarmies.

While the dragonborn and the draconians look similar, they have some big differences. Draconians often have wings and tails, which is a much rarer trait among the dragonborn. In terms of combat abilities, the dragonborn retains the breath weapon of the dragons, while the draconians have a special effect that kicks in when they're killed, such as turning to stone or exploding in a blast of acid. The Player's Handbook does mention that draconians are similar to dragonborn, but the Dungeons & Dragons dragonborn are a different race.

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