Species
There are 24 different playable species (previously known as races) in Dungeon Crawl. Most species are humanoid to some degree, although some are human-animal hybrids and a few are even stranger creatures.
Player gender is irrelevant in Crawl, and the game does not ask for the player to specify one.
Contents
List of Species
More information can be found at the pages for the individual species.
- Human (Hu): The basic species against which all others are measured. They have average aptitudes across the board and no special abilities, but gain levels at the fastest possible rate.
- High Elf (HE): A species of tall, long-lived elf, with many enhanced aptitudes. They advance in levels very slowly.
- Deep Elf (DE): A cave-dwelling species of elf, smaller and weaker than others, but with incredible magical ability. A very good choice for spellcasters.
- Deep Dwarf (DD): A cousin of the mountain dwarf, unable to regenerate but with a strong empathy for the earth and the ability to intrinsically resist small doses of damage.
- Hill Orc (HO): A brutish species, related to the cave orcs who can be found all over the Dungeon and in the Orcish Mines. They make excellent warriors and have their own god.
- Merfolk (Mf): An aquatic, magical race of half-humanoids, half-fish that thrive in the water. Great aptitudes for Transmutations, Polearms, and Ice Magic.
- Halfling (Ha): A small humanoid that cannot use large weapons and is poor with most magic, but is otherwise quite hardy and stealthy. They excel with Slings.
- Kobold (Ko): A tiny, hateful lizard-like being with a powerful stomach. They level quickly and are quite good as sneaky assassins.
- Spriggan (Sp): A very small fairy-like humanoid. They move swiftly and have high aptitudes for many schools of magic, but cannot eat meat or wear most forms of armour.
- Naga (Na): A humanoid with a serpentine lower half. Exceptionally stealthy and skilled with Poison Magic, but moves very slowly.
- Centaur (Ce): A humanoid with a horse's lower half. Its four hooves allow it to run very quickly, but it is poor at most things apart from ranged combat and must eat frequently.
- Ogre (Og): Enormous and bloodthirsty, its interests include hitting things and throwing things.
- Troll (Tr): Even larger and stronger than the ogre, with huge claws, incredible regeneration and a near-infinite hunger.
- Minotaur (Mi): A brawny, bipedal bovine species. Great at all forms of physical combat (both ranged and up close), but horrible with all forms of magic.
- Tengu (Te): A somewhat fragile bird-like species with a beak, talons, and a propensity for violence, both physical and magical. They eventually learn to fly.
- Draconian (Dr): A humanoid dragon that eventually matures into a random adult form, with different aptitudes based on its colour.
- Demigod (Dg): A human with divine heritage that prevents them from worshipping any god. They have excellent statistics, but need more experience for both their skills and their leveling.
- Demonspawn (Ds): A person with a demonic heritage. Unlike Demigods, they may lend their services to all gods except the good ones. They acquire powerful mutations as they mature.
- Mummy (Mu): Animated by an unholy magic, this dry and bandaged corpse needs no food to survive. However, their skills advance slowly and they fear fire above all else.
- Ghoul (Gh): A terrible undead corpse which must eat the flesh of others to maintain its life force. Has manageable (if below-average) aptitudes for magic and is fairly skilled with its claws.
- Vampire (Vp): A sneaky, undead humanoid which can become alive by drinking fresh blood. Exceptional at disabling foes, then stabbing them in the back.
- Felid (Fe): A sentient housecat that is incapable of using almost all forms of equipment and many items, but is fast, stealthy, and has multiple lives.
- Octopode (Op): An amphibious squid-like creature with eight tentacles. Cannot wear most types of armour (only hats), but can wear eight rings and is at home in water.
- Gargoyle (Gr): A humanoid with stonelike skin and a large set of resistances.
Removed species
These species used to exist, but were removed in the version listed. They may still be seen in high score lists.
- Hill Dwarf (HD) - 0.3
- Elf (El) - 0.3
- Ogre-mage (OM) - merged with Ogres in 0.5
- Grey Elf (GE) - 0.5
- Gnome (Gn) - 0.6
- Mountain Dwarf (MD) - 0.10
- Sludge Elf (SE) - 0.13
Table of Aptitudes
Your choice of species affects several important characteristics, in particular the speed at which you learn different skills, which are referred to as aptitudes. Some species are also limited in their choice of background.
The following table describes the aptitudes of the various species for each skill.
0.12
General Skills
Species | Arm | Ddg | Shd | Sth | Inv | Evo | Shp | HP | MP | Exp |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Armataur | 2 | -3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 1 | 0 | -1 |
Barachi | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | -1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Coglin | -1 | -1 | -3 | -1 | -2 | 3 | -2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Deep Elf | -2 | 2 | -2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | -2 | 2 | -1 |
Demigod | -1 | -1 | -1 | 0 | N/A | -1 | -2 | 1 | 2 | -2 |
Demonspawn | -1 | -1 | -1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | -2 | 0 | 0 | -1 |
Djinni | 0 | 1 | 0 | -1 | 0 | 0 | -2 | -1 | N/A | 1 |
Draconian | N/A | -1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | -1 | 1 | 0 | -1 |
Felid | N/A | 3 | N/A | 4 | 0 | 1 | -2 | -3 | 1 | -1 |
Formicid | 1 | -1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Gargoyle | 1 | -2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | -1 | -3 | -2 | 0 | 0 |
Ghoul | -1 | -1 | -1 | 2 | 1 | -1 | N/A | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Gnoll | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Human | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Kobold | -2 | 2 | -2 | 4 | 1 | 2 | -1 | -2 | 0 | 1 |
Merfolk | -3 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Minotaur | 2 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 0 | -1 | -3 | 1 | -1 | -1 |
Mountain Dwarf | 1 | -3 | 1 | -2 | 3 | 1 | -2 | 1 | 0 | -1 |
Mummy | -2 | -2 | -2 | -1 | -1 | -2 | N/A | 0 | 0 | -1 |
Naga | -2 | -2 | -1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | -1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Octopode | N/A | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | -1 | -1 | 0 | 0 |
Oni | -1 | -1 | -1 | -2 | 2 | -2 | -1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Spriggan | -3 | 3 | -3 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 2 | -3 | 1 | -1 |
Tengu | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 | -2 | -2 | 1 | 0 |
Troll | -2 | -2 | -1 | -5 | -1 | -3 | -1 | 3 | -1 | -1 |
Vampire | -2 | 1 | -1 | 5 | -1 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 |
Vine Stalker | -2 | -2 | -1 | 3 | 0 | -1 | -1 | -3 | 1 | 0 |
Melee & Ranged Combat
Species | Fgt | M&F | Axs | Pla | Stv | UC | Thr | SBl | LBl | RW |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Armataur | -1 | -1 | -2 | -2 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -3 |
Barachi | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
Coglin | 0 | -1 | 0 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | 0 | -1 |
Deep Elf | -2 | -3 | -2 | -3 | 0 | -2 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 3 |
Demigod | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
Demonspawn | 0 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
Djinni | 0 | -2 | -2 | -2 | -1 | 0 | -2 | -1 | -1 | -2 |
Draconian | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 | 0 | -1 |
Felid | 0 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Formicid | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Gargoyle | 1 | 0 | -1 | -1 | 0 | 0 | -1 | -1 | -1 | 0 |
Ghoul | 1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | 1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
Gnoll | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
Human | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Kobold | 1 | -1 | -2 | -2 | -1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | -2 | 3 |
Merfolk | 1 | -2 | -2 | 3 | -2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -2 |
Minotaur | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
Mountain Dwarf | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | -2 | -2 | -1 | -2 |
Mummy | 0 | -2 | -2 | -2 | -2 | -2 | -2 | -2 | -2 | -2 |
Naga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 | 0 | -1 |
Octopode | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Oni | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 | -1 | -1 | -3 |
Spriggan | -2 | -3 | -2 | -3 | -3 | -2 | 0 | 1 | -2 | 0 |
Tengu | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Troll | -2 | -1 | -2 | -2 | -2 | 0 | -1 | -2 | -2 | -4 |
Vampire | -1 | -2 | -1 | -1 | -2 | 1 | -2 | 1 | 0 | -2 |
Vine Stalker | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | 0 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
Spellcasting and Magic
Species | Spc | Coj | Hex | Sum | Nec | Trl | Alc | Fir | Ice | Air | Ear |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Armataur | -2 | -1 | -1 | -2 | -2 | 0 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
Barachi | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
Coglin | -2 | -1 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
Deep Elf | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Demigod | -2 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
Demonspawn | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
Djinni | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 |
Draconian | -1 | 0 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Felid | -1 | -1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
Formicid | 0 | -1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 2 |
Gargoyle | -1 | 1 | -1 | -1 | -2 | -1 | -2 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 2 |
Ghoul | -2 | -2 | -2 | -1 | 0 | -1 | -1 | -2 | 1 | -2 | 1 |
Gnoll | 8 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
Human | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Kobold | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Merfolk | -1 | -2 | 0 | 0 | -2 | -2 | 3 | -3 | 1 | -2 | -2 |
Minotaur | -4 | -3 | -4 | -3 | -3 | -3 | -3 | -3 | -3 | -3 | -2 |
Mountain Dwarf | -2 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | -2 | -2 | 2 | -1 | -3 | 1 |
Mummy | 2 | -2 | -1 | -2 | 0 | -2 | -2 | -2 | -2 | -2 | -2 |
Naga | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Octopode | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Oni | 1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
Spriggan | 2 | -3 | 2 | -2 | -1 | 4 | 1 | -2 | -2 | -1 | -1 |
Tengu | -1 | 3 | -3 | 2 | 1 | -2 | -1 | 1 | -1 | 3 | -3 |
Troll | -5 | -3 | -4 | -3 | -2 | -3 | -3 | -3 | -3 | -4 | -1 |
Vampire | -1 | -3 | 4 | 0 | 1 | -2 | 1 | -2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Vine Stalker | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
History
Prior to 0.10, Tengu were known as Kenku.
0.13 removed Sludge elves and added Gargoyles.