If we go full fantasy I'd like to see the following tropes used for demihuman societies
Cquote1.svg
Learn now the lore of Living Creatures!
First name the five, the free peoples:
Eldest of all, the elf-children;
Dwarf the delver, dark are his houses;
Ent the earthborn, old as mountains;
Man the mortal, master of horses;
And half-grown hobbits, the hole-dwellers.
—Treebeard's song on the lore of creatures, The Lord of the Rings
Cquote2.svg
Many fantastic settings attempting a universe will end up using 'races' of people. This is less in the spirit of being different species and more an easy way to soapbox or describe different points of views and aspects of normal people; or, in a game world, simply to give the player a wider range of choices. At least one has a good chance of being from a One-Gender Race. These usually include:
Stout (Dwarf): Gruff, usually associated with hard physical work and masculinity. The typical Stout is the dwarf. Often has a counterpart in Speculative Fiction settings, in the guise of humans genetically or cybernetically enhanced for heavy labour or life on high-gravity planets, or possibly actual robots. The Proud Warrior Race, if they aren't one of the evil races, may also fill this role.
Fairy (Fairy or Angel): The most magical race, relatively speaking. Can include angelic types or even gods. The typical Fairy is an elf who doesn't get along with Stouts. Recently, having this be a Cute Monster Girl is more and more common. In Speculative Fiction, substitute humans with psionic abilities, or advanced but not quite Sufficiently Advanced Aliens.
Mundane (Human): What the modern reader most identifies with. The least magical race, usually enjoys simple pleasures instead of adventuring, a la Tolkien's Hobbits. Usually the Jack of All Trades of the races. This is usually the role cast for humans, unless you have...
High Men (Taller Elf or Human): Usually a historical or fantastic interpretation of what humans are or want to be, at least in character. A setting that doesn't have elves as Fairy or High Men simply doesn't have elves *cough*. If the Precursors still exist in a Speculative Fiction setting, they might fill this role if The Federation isn't heavily idealized.
Cute (Hobbits/Moogle/Gnome etc): The fifth, increasingly common group, and becoming more popular in modern gaming. They may seem weak, but have a sort of closer-to-Earth spiritual purity and inner strength that allow them to succeed in the face of adversity. Or not. Tends to either overlap with Mundane (to produce Hobbits) or Fairy (to produce gnomes), but usually designed with a larger dose than usual of Fun Personified.
This doesn't include the various "evil races" that crop up, though some of those can fit into the above categories as well as their own.
If the heroes in this setting form a Five-Man Band, there will typically be one of each race represented, since each race can usually "map" to one of the five slots better than any of the others. (Humorously enough, this often means that the Dwarf in the party fills the role of The Big Guy.) In the role of a Sixth Ranger, the 'sixth species' may be a lost or hidden race, namely there's always a Last of His Kind or some ancient ruins of the once great species. This set up usually enforces Hybrid Overkill Avoidance to keep the balance.
tropedia.fandom.com/wiki/Five_RacesAND Any fan of fantasy, Heroic, High or Low (or otherwise) knows the usual Tolkien mould of heroic races- elves, dwarves, halflings, gnomes, and whatever else. (Oh, and humans too.) But of course the Always Chaotic Evil races often come in certain varieties themselves, in something of an Evil Counterpart trope of the Five Races.
Savage (Orc, Ogre): Big, tough, usually not particularly bright, these lot are generally a race of The Brute. Often the Proud Warrior Race, and may have a Noble Savage bent if cast sympathetically. Counterpart to the Stout.
Eldritch (Demon, Undead): Powerful, dangerous and inherently magical, these are often the most frightening and inhuman race, and most likely to be completely okay to slaughter en masse. They may have the most variety within them. Counterpart to the Fairy.
Humanoid (Hobgoblin, Beast Man, sometimes orcs): Effectively humans, with a similar society and capabilities, but stranger looking and often foreign. Sometimes just humans themselves. Counterpart to Mundane.
Fallen (Dark Elf): Good looking, stylish, manipulative backstabbing jerks who are downright proud of it. Usually live underground or in some other well-hidden area, specialise in stealth, sneakiness and ruthlessness. Dark mirror of the High Men. Like High Men, they're the most likely to be absent from the Fantasy Axis of Evil.
Crafty (Goblin): Small, numerous and often smart and cunning, otherwise they wouldn't still be around. These buggers are usually the most technically inclined group, with trap-filled lairs and warren-like fortresses but still tend to use Zerg Rush tactics. Often Ugly Cute. Counterpart to the Cute, of course.
Unlike the usual Five Races they are not always allied, and are as prone to getting in fights with each other as they are with the 'heroic' groups. Its common for Evil Overlords to unite them yet other times they'll work together without a real leader. There'll almost always be at least one good member of at least one race, and sometimes the story will make efforts to either show that they're not necessarily inherently evil, or find a way to justify it through magic, circumstances or whatever else.
They often have more style and personality and more interesting lore than the heroic races, and at least one will often be more popular than the good races combined. That is, if they're not being used solely as mindless Mooks and XP fodder.
tropedia.fandom.com/wiki/Fantasy_Axis_of_Evil
