DF: I need some Asian non-human races please

[b-dog]

If anyone has any ideas for some Asian style non-human races for my DF world and you could post them here I would appreciate it. I don't want just use the standard DF races because they are mostly European and the Forbidden East would not seem very exotic if there were Asian minotaurs, Asian elves, Asian dwarves etc. So if you have races it would help me and if you have Asian style monsters that would also help, thanks.

[downer]

Folks with animal aspects seems like the obvios idea. Nagas (snake)and Kitsune (Fox) come to mind, monkeys and rats as well.

[Xenarthral]

Any particular part of Asia? It's a big place.
Is this to add to an already established West or worldbuilding starting from scratch?
How mythologically correct is the West?

Hero Games' Asian Bestiary vol. 1 and 2 might be useful.
They're available as proper books as well.
The volume 1 section The Legendary Men of China seems a natural place to
start, with the caveat that, like the Plinian races of the West, they're not
really created with the attitude of gamers in mind.
(The same volume also has the Chinese Hobgoblin, whose description
basically is "Well, they usually have long hair and Asian clothes and weapons.
The rest is pretty much up to you.")

Then again, there is something to be said for arguments like "if there are
humans, horses and dogs both in the east and west, why shouldn't there
be dwarves, rust monsters and beholders in the east as well, no more or less
different from those in the west than the humans, horses and dogs of the
east are?".

The obviousness of folks with animal aspects for Asian flavour, Sun Wukong
and the bears and monkeys of Ramayana notwithstanding, seems to have
been a bit exaggerated, I'm afraid.

[quarkstomper]

Are you looking for potential PC races, or just plain monster-type races?

Here are a few ideas. No stats, I'm afraid; I've done rough stats for some of them, but nothing really finished; and I'd have to wake up my napping wife to get at them. My Stealth roll isn't that good; and neither is my Fast-Talk.

Tengu -- Are either like winged monkeys with long beaks, or like large crows with arms. They are intelligent, mischevious, and know a lot about magic. There are stories about Japanese heroes who were taught magical techniques by a tengu. They are sometimes used by gods and/or magicians as messengers, and they make good retainer characters for a powerful sorceror.

Oni -- The Japanese word is often translated as "Demon". It's more like a kind of ogre. The Oni live high in the mountains, have horns and wear tiger skins. They may or may not have magic powers, depending on how you want to use them. It is possible for a human to turn into an oni if he becomes obsessed with dark emotions like hatred and vengeance. Lum's people from Urusei Yatsura are based on the Oni. Although Lum is cute and wears a tiger-skin bikini, she still can be pretty dang scary.

Gaki -- Or "Hungry Ghosts"; creatures which never recieved enough of something in life and so after death become mindless creatures obsessed with devouring what they lack. There are a number of variations on the "Hungry Ghost" in different Asian cultures. In China, for example, it's traditional to put out food for one's deceased ancestors during an annual festival. If a family cannot, or impiously will not feed the spirits, those spirts may come back as Hungry Ghosts. (Obviously, this type of creature is better suited to be a threat than a character race)

Kitsune -- There are a number of shape-shifting animal races in Japanese folklore. The Kitsune, or Fox, is perhaps the best known. Able to take on human form, they can pass in human society. Usually, they do this for the purpose of playing pranks on humans, but Kitsune are also considered messengers of the Rice-god Inari.

Kappa -- A type of river-monster, about the size of a small child, but with repulsive, scaly skin and webbed claws. They have an indentation on the top of their head which they must keep filled with water when they are out of their river home. If the water spills, they become paralyzed. Generally speaking they are mischievious at best and dangerous at worst; they have been known to drown small children and rape women who swim in the wrong places. They can be bribed with cucumbers.

Dragons -- I know you didn't want Western fantasy races in asian costumes, but in the case of Dragons it really is appropriate; because Chinese dragons are more like powerful spirits of nature than the antisocial reptiles of Western Europe. And many Eastern Dragons are also shape-shifters and so can imitate human society.

This is all off the top of my head; I'm sure a little Googling will get you more and better information. But I hope this is a helpful start.

[downer]

Originally Posted by Xenarthral

The obviousness of folks with animal aspects for Asian flavour, Sun Wukong
and the bears and monkeys of Ramayana notwithstanding, seems to have
been a bit exaggerated, I'm afraid.

Possibly, but the fact is that in Western RPGs and computer games from Legend of the Five Rings to Heroes of Might and Magic have been using them this way, so they might give the players an appropriate feeling.

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by b-dog

If anyone has any ideas for some Asian style non-human races for my DF world and you could post them here I would appreciate it. I don't want just use the standard DF races because they are mostly European and the Forbidden East would not seem very exotic if there were Asian minotaurs, Asian elves, Asian dwarves etc. So if you have races it would help me and if you have Asian style monsters that would also help, thanks.

Well there's the faceless people. They like to pose as humans but when emotionally agitated or just feel like freaking people out, they revert to their true face-lacking form.

Then there's the Tengu, big nosed bird men who like to live in the mountains.

Then there's the Kappa, an aquatic species who have a bowl-shaped head that is used to carry a water supply when they walk on land.

Then there the Oni, but they're pretty typical troll/ogre types with grotesquely distorted faces who like to wear tiger skins. Sometimes their daughters are hot so where the Oni males are trolls their daughters can be trollops. (Note that Oni are actually Chinese imports to Japan)

Then there's the Chinese "hopping" vampires, so called because their advanced rigor mortis doesn't let them walk but they can just leap up into the air, making impossible jumps without even bending their knees, propelled by magic.

Then there's smart foxes that can turn into humans (usually women) or cast the illusion of same.

Then there are the long snakey dragons who control the weather and the seas.

Then there are the Rakshasas, Indian monsters who are the inspiration for the Ogre Magi of D&D. They share roots with the Oni, but have abilities like shapeshifting, shrinking, growing, and flying and like to eat spoiled food and human flesh.

[shkspr1048]

If you can find some Year of the Lotus supplements from White Wolf's Old World of Darkness, there should be quite a few examples within (of varying authenticity, but still...)

[Xenarthral]

Originally Posted by downer

Possibly, but the fact is that in Western RPGs and computer games from Legend of the Five Rings to Heroes of Might and Magic have been using them this way, so they might give the players an appropriate feeling.

But is that appropriate feeling what is desired here?
Is it chop suey and chicken tikka masala, century egg and dal makhani
or somewhere inbetween?

Originally Posted by David Johnston2

Then there are the Rakshasas, Indian monsters who are the inspiration for the Ogre Magi of D&D.

I was under the impression that the Ogre Magi were originally referred to
as Japanese Ogres...
(And the ADD Rakshasas appear to belong in the subcategory "is actually
a reasonably accurate/acceptable depiction of the monster as appearing
in stories".)

[Stone Dog]

Originally Posted by Xenarthral

I was under the impression that the Ogre Magi were originally referred to
as Japanese Ogres...

Ogre mages were often wearing bits of samurai gear in art and miniatures, after all.

[Captain-Captain]

Pendalaagen (sp?) Malay vampires. Flying faces that drink bood. Difficult to negotiate with I;m afraid.