Part IV: We look into character race choices and see if there is a correlation with other character choices, as well as the types of players that play this race.
It was early in 2020 that we posed the question: does your personality type affect what kind of D&D character you play as? Well, after about a year of collecting hundreds of responses, we have analyzed them all and come to some interesting conclusions. Not only about personality, but about player gender, age, ethnicity, and how some character choices correlate to others. This is the fourth in a series of blog posts throughout this month to dive into what we learned, and what it means for the game of Dungeons & Dragons.
The first question in our survey focused on Myers-Briggs personality types. The second and third on self-identified gender and ethnicity. The third and fourth were on age groups and occupation choices. The fifth question was about the race of the respondent’s favorite D&D character they have ever played. We’ve taken a look at each character race and analyzed for player data correlations, as well as other character choice correlations. Again, we had 546 respondents for this survey.
Half-Elf
This was our most popular race, with 85 total respondents. It is easy to tell why this would be an attractive race to play. Generally regarded as a mix between Huma and Elven blood, you get some of the best of both worlds.
- 25% are played by INFP Mediator types.
- 67% are played by female players, and 65% of these Half-Elf characters end up being female.
- 57% are played by players aged 25 – 34 years.
- 42% are on quests of Understanding.
- 32% have a Person vs Self conflict.
Tiefling
Tieflings were our second most popular race, with 74 respondents playing Tieflings. With ancestry from the Nine Hells that often gives them horns and a tail (among other features), Tieflings can definitely be a lot of fun to dive into.
- 64% of players are female, and 58% of these characters end up being female.
- 51% of player ages are 25 – 34 years.
- 44% are on quests of Understanding.
- 31% are in a Person vs Society conflict.
Human
Humans were tied for third most popular along with Elves, with 73 respondents. It can be fun to play an ordinary person in an extraordinary world!
- 25% are played by INFP Mediators.
- 50% are played by players aged 25 – 34 years.
- 42% are on quests of Understanding.
- 27% are in a Person vs Person conflict.
Elf
With 73 total responses, this category encompassed High Elves, Wood Elves, and other newer subraces of Elves. Drow are excluded from this category.
- 58% of the players are female but 64% of the characters end up being female.
- 42% of players are aged 25 – 34 years.
- 47% are on quests of Understanding.
- 34% have a Person vs Self conflict.
Halfling
With 33 total respondents, Halflings are a significant drop down from the most popular races.
- 75% of the players are female and 75% of the characters are female.
- 66% are played by players aged 25 – 34 years.
- 30% are Rogues.
- There is a tie for internal quests, with 39% on a quest of Understanding and another 39% on a quest of Transformation.
- 34% are in a Person vs Society conflict.
Aasimar
Aasimar was next in line with 27 respondents. Aasimar are a race born with celestial blood.
- 70% of their players are female but only 62% of the characters are female.
- 51% of players are aged 25 – 34 years.
- 33% are Clerics.
- 59% are on quests of Understanding.
- 37% have a Person vs Self conflict.
Gnome
There were 24 Gnome players within our survey.
- 33% are played by INFJ Counselor types.
- 66% are played by female players and 58% of the characters are female.
- 66% are played by players aged 25 – 34 years.
- 25% are Druids.
- 58% are on quests of Understanding.
- 41% are in a Person vs Self conflict.
Dwarf
There were 21 respondents who play Dwarves. This is one of the races that often get stereotyped into being a certain way.
- 28% are played by INFJ Counselors.
- 52% are played by male players and 52% of the characters end up being male.
- 45% of the players are aged 35 – 44 years.
- 38% are Clerics.
- 33% are in a Person vs Person conflict.
Dragonborn
With the ability to blow breath weapons and a scaly appearance, Dragonborn had 17 respondents.
- 64% have male players and 70% of the characters are male.
- There was a tie for top age group, with 41% being 18 – 24 years and another 41% being 25 – 34 years.
- 41% are played by Students.
- 29% are Paladins.
- 47% are on quests of Understanding.
Half-Orc
Tied with Dragonborn, Half-Orcs had another 17 respondents for a D&D character.
- 25% are played by ENFP Champion types.
- 58% of their players are male but 70% of the characters end up being male.
- 52% of players are aged 25 – 34 years.
- 41% are Barbarians.
Goliath
Typically tall and strong, Goliaths had 12 respondents.
- 27% are played by INFJ Counselors.
- 50% are male players and 58% of the characters end up being male.
- 50% of players are aged 25 – 34 years.
- 33% of the players are Students.
- 41% are Barbarians.
- 58% are on quests of Understanding.
- 50% have a Person vs Society conflict.
Drow
With another 12 respondents, Drow or Dark Elves are next in line.
- 33% are played by INFP Mediators.
- 75% are played by female players, but the genders are evenly split between male and female for characters.
- Player age groups are tied with 41% aged 25 – 34 and another 41% aged 35 – 44.
- 33% are Rogues.
- 41% are in a Person vs Self conflict.
Genasi
With ties to elemental planes, we had 10 Genasi in the survey.
- 60% are played by INFP Mediator types.
- 60% of the players are female and 60% of the characters are female.
- 50% of players are aged 18 – 24.
- 40% of the players are Students.
- 30% are Druids.
- 50% are on quests of Understanding.
- 30% have a Person vs Person conflict.
Firbolg
Relatively new to 5e, there were nine Firbolgs.
- 44% are played by INFP Mediator types.
- 66% are played by male players and 66% of the characters are male.
- 100% of the players are aged 25 – 34.
- 44% are Clerics.
Tabaxi
Cat-like and graceful, there were eight Tabaxi respondents.
- 37% are played by INFP Mediator types.
- 62% are played by male players and 62% of the characters are male.
- 50% of players are aged 25 – 34.
- 37% are Rogues.
- 75% are on quests of Understanding.
- 50% are in a Person vs Society conflict.
Lizardfolk
There were only six Lizardfolk in our survey.
- 50% are played by INFP Mediator types.
- 66% are played by female players and 60% of the characters end up being female.
- 83% of players are aged 25 – 34.
- 50% are Druids.
- 83% are on quests of Understanding.
Bugbear
We had only two D&D character Bugbears in the survey.
- One was played by a male ENFP Champion type aged 25 – 34 years and working in the Education field. The character is a male Paladin on a quest of Understanding with a Person vs Self conflict.
- The second was played by a male ENFP Champion type aged 35 – 44 years and working in the Financial Services field. The character is a male Sorcerer on a quest of Transformation in a Person vs Self conflict.
Triton
There was only one Triton respondent.
- The Triton was played by a male ENTJ Commander type aged 25 – 34 years with an “Other” occupation. The Triton is a male Cleric on a quest of Understanding with a Person vs Society conflict.
Kobold
There was only one Kobold respondent.
- The Kobold was played by a female INTJ Inspector type aged 25 – 34 years with an “Other” occupation. The Kobold is a gender nonconforming Warlock on a quest of Understanding with a Person vs Society conflict.
Kenku
We had only one Kenku respondent.
- The Kenku was played by a INFP Mediator respondent who marked their gender as “Other”. They are aged 25 – 34 years and have an “Other” occupation. The Kenku is a female Rogue on a quest of Understanding with a Person vs Person conflict.
Goblin
We had only one Goblin respondent.
- The Goblin was played by a female ISFJ Defender type aged 25 – 34 years with an “Other” occupation. The Goblin is a female Monk on a quest of Transformation in a Person vs Society conflict.
Aarakocra
There was one Aarakocra respondent.
- The Aarakocra was played by a male INTP Thinker type aged 35 – 44 years in the Financial Services field. The character is a male Monk on an quest of Understanding in a Person vs Society conflict.
Orc
There was one Orc respondent.
- The Orc was played by a male ISTJ Inspector type aged 35 – 44 years in the Science field. The Orc is a male Monk on a quest of Redemption with a Person vs Self conflict.
Duergar
There was one Duergar respondent.
- The Duergar was played by a male ISFP Composer type aged 25 – 34 years in the Writing/Editing field. The Duergar is a female Ranger on a quest of Understanding with a Person vs the Gods conflict.
Deep Gnome
There were no Deep Gnome respondents.
Other
There were 35 respondents that marked their D&D character race as “Other”.