Species
Version 0.29: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.
In Dungeon Crawl, species selection determines a character's stats, background choices, skill aptitudes, special abilities and equipment options. The game offers 27 different playable species; most are essentially humanoid, although some are human-animal hybrids and a few are even stranger.
Contents
Species List
- Barachi (Ba): An amphibious, frog-like humanoid with an exceptionally vicious disposition. They can hop long distances, though their movement is otherwise somewhat slow.
- Deep Elf (DE): A cave-dwelling species of elf; smaller and weaker than others, but with incredible magical aptitude. A very good choice for spellcasters.
- Demigod (Dg): A humanoid with divine heritage that prevents them from worshiping any god. They have excellent attribute growth, but learn skills and gain levels slowly.
- Demonspawn (Ds): A humanoid with demonic heritage, able to worship any god but the good gods. They acquire powerful mutations as they mature.
- Djinni (Dj): A spirit of smokeless fire that powers their magic with their own life force. They spontaneously gain spells as they grow instead of learning them from books.
- Draconian (Dr): A humanoid dragon that eventually matures into a random adult form, with different aptitudes based on its colour.
- Felid (Fe): A sentient cat that is incapable of using almost all forms of equipment and many items, but is fast, stealthy, and can gain multiple lives.
- Formicid (Fo): A humanoid ant with four powerful arms. They can dig through walls and have a permanent stasis effect.
- Gargoyle (Gr): A winged humanoid with stony skin and a large array of intrinsic benefits, all of which are somewhat offset by their inherent frailty.
- Ghoul (Gh): A terrible undead corpse that draws vitality from slain foes. Has manageable (if below-average) aptitudes for magic and is fairly skilled with its claws.
- Gnoll (Gn): A vaguely dog-like humanoid that has incredible aptitudes for all skills, but must train all skills simultaneously.
- Hill Orc (HO): A brutish species related to the cave orcs who can be found in the Dungeon and Orcish Mines. They make excellent warriors and have their own god.
- 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.
- Kobold (Ko): A small, unpleasant species of humanoid with a natural affinity for the shadows. They level quickly and are quite good as sneaky assassins or as well-rounded mages.
- Merfolk (Mf): An aquatic, magical race of half-humanoids, half-fish that thrive in the water. Great aptitudes for Polearms, Transmutations, and Ice Magic.
- Meteoran (Me): Celestial creatures with strong aptitudes. They can recover swiftly by exploring, but their otherworldly nature makes them easy prey for the dark powers of Zot.
- 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.
- Mummy (Mu): A dry and bandaged corpse animated by unholy magic and uniquely attuned to Necromancy. However, they have slow skill growth, are unable to drink potions, and fear fire above all else.
- Naga (Na): A hybrid creature with a humanoid torso and a serpentine lower half. Exceptionally stealthy and skilled with Poison Magic, but moves slowly.
- Octopode (Op): An amphibious octopus-like creature with eight tentacles. Cannot wear most types of armour (only hats), but can wear eight rings at once and is at home in water.
- Palentonga (Pa): A scaly, four-legged mammalian hybrid that is well-suited for making rolling charges directly into the thick of combat.
- Ogre (Og): Enormous and bloodthirsty humanoids, they are surprisingly proficient with magic, though they are also competent at smashing and throwing things.
- Spriggan (Sp): A tiny, fey humanoid. They move extremely swiftly and have high aptitudes for the subtler schools of magic, but cannot wear most forms of armour.
- 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 at above-average speed.
- Troll (Tr): Even larger and stronger than the ogre, with huge claws, regenerative powers, and abysmal aptitude for most skills that aren't clawing their foes to death or throwing things.
- Vampire (Vp): A sneaky form of undead which can use blood to switch between their frail-but-resistant natural state and a swift-healing living form. Exceptional at disabling foes, then stabbing them in the back.
- Vine Stalker (VS): A fragile creature made of parasitic vines grown from a humanoid core. They have a powerful, magic-draining bite and regenerate incredibly swiftly.
Table of Aptitudes
Your species choice determines aptitudes, the speed at which you learn different skills.
The following tables list aptitudes for each species and skill combination.
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
The following species were added/removed in the given versions. If not otherwise specified, a species was present in the first version of DCSS.
Removed races
- Deep Dwarf (DD) - Removed in 0.29
- Halfling (Ha) - Removed in 0.27
- Centaur (Ce) - Removed in 0.26
- High Elf (HE) - Removed in 0.20
- Sludge Elf (SE) - Removed in 0.13
- Mountain Dwarf (MD) - Removed in 0.10
- Gnome (Gm - formerly Gn before the addition of Gnolls) - Removed in 0.5
- Grey Elf (GE) - Removed in 0.5
- Ogre-mage (OM) - Merged with Ogres in 0.5
- Hill Dwarf (HD) - Removed in 0.3
- Elf (El) - Removed in 0.3
Added
- Meteoran (Me) - Added in 0.29
- Djinn (Dj) - Added in 0.27
- Palentonga (Pa) - Added in 0.26
- Gnoll (Gn) - Added in 0.21
- Barachi (Ba) - Added in 0.20
- Formicid (Fo) - Added in 0.14
- Vine Stalker (VS) - Added in 0.14
- Gargoyle (Gr) - Added in 0.13
- Octopode (Op) - Added in 0.10
- Felid (Fe) - Added in 0.8
- Deep Dwarf (DD) - Added in 0.5
- Vampire (Vp) - Added in 0.4
Renamed
Never included in a stable version
- Mayflytaur (My) - Introduced and removed in 0.29 for April Fools 2022.
- Lava Orc (LO) - Originally planned for 0.13, 0.14, or 0.15
| Species | |
|---|---|
| Simple | Mountain Dwarf • Minotaur • Merfolk • Gargoyle • Draconian • Troll • Deep Elf • Armataur • Gnoll |
| Intermediate | Human • Kobold • Demonspawn • Djinni • Spriggan • Ghoul • Tengu • Oni • Barachi |
| Advanced | Coglin • Vine Stalker • Vampire • Demigod • Formicid • Naga • Octopode • Felid • Mummy |
