Half-Gnoll

If you're at all familiar with any edition of Dungeons & Dragons after Basic, you'll be familiar with the idea that gnolls, despite looking like hyena-men, are treated fundamentally as just a beefier sort of orc in the grand scheme of things. If so, you may have wondered: if half-orcs are a thing, what about half-gnolls? After all, conceptually, the two are generally indicated as covering the same territory.

Well... not as such, no. Maybe because the furry stigma is too great, but despite being just like orcs in practically every other way, half-gnolls have never been mentioned as existing - heck, by 5th edition, gnolls themselves were stated to not breed at all, but be born out of demonic ritual magics. Ignoring the time when it was suggested that lupins actually descended from interbreeding between men and gnolls.

At least... Wizards of the Coast never said they existed...

Two third-party books for D&D 3.0 both feature the half-gnoll as a race; Bastards & Bloodlines, a Green Ronin sourcebook, and Dangerous Denizens (of Tellene), the Monster Manual for the Kingdoms of Kalamar setting.

However... both books take the route of making half-gnolls even more grimdark than half-orcs were at the time and even worse, statistically speaking, than actual pureblooded gnolls tended to be in 3.0, which is part of the reason why the half-gnoll never took off.

B&B Half-Gnoll

The Bastards and Bloodlinds take on the half-gnoll is described as a "broken, hunched, pitiable creature". Most commonly born of rape, even the rare barbarian tribes who are on good terms with gnolls (seeing them as embodiments of hyena totem spirits or death spirits) usually don't treat them well, because their ugly, distorted frames are seen as a sign of divine displeasure.

As a result, half-gnolls are typically abused horribly by both parents. Humans that don't kill them at birth tend to bring them up as taunted, abused, menial servants. Gnolls usually just treat them as any other slave, because they're weaker than gnolls and dumber than humans.

Seriously, when your sourcebook outright states you have "none of the savage yet noble bearing of the half-orc", you got a fucking raw deal.

Half-gnolls get the worst of both parents when it comes to appearance; they're almost completely hairless on the face, chest and stomach, with patches of fur elsewhere, which makes their hyena-like snouts all the more hideous, their tails are naked and ratlike, their clawed hands and feet have even bigger talons than those of a pureblood gnoll's, and they prone to asymmetrical deformities, such as mismatched limb-lengths and hunched backs. This almost random blending of human and gnoll features, combined with deformities, strengthens their patchwork, pathetic appearance.

Although the book certainly doesn't cut them any slack for it, given the circumstances, it's no wonder that half-gnolls learn to rely on trickery and lies, and tend to scorn concepts like mercy and love: after all, they've never received it. Defensive and underhanded by nurture, a lifetime of abuse makes half-gnolls hotheads who constantly boil over with frustration; though a desperate desire to survive makes them seem cowardly to those looking down their noses at them, half-gnolls can be incredibly vicious when they get the upper hand. They relish the equalising power of trickery and poison, and shamelessly utilize it to bring down those who can ordinarily bully them.

For obvious reasons, loyalty isn't a half-gnoll's strong suite. After all, a lifetime of being taught through harsh experience that the only one interested in protecting their skins is themselves doesn't exactly make one a great team player.

The one personality trait half-gnolls have that other races are forced to admit some admiration for is their tenacity. They will never give up on a goal, no matter the cost. And as they have no sense of pride in themselves due to their abusive histories and frequent self-loathing, they will endure any discomfort or indignity in the process of getting what they want, which more than one warlord or crime-boss has found useful.

Because they like to preserve their own hide, half-gnolls make pretty good archers. For this reason alone, they are natural rangers, combined with subtler knacks for mastering the wild born of bestial ancestry and hidden senses. Of course, the callings of the rogue and the assassin are also natural fits for them. They do admire (and fear) the power of mages, but they're not adept in using such power themselves.

+2 Strength, +2 Constitution, -2 Intelligence, -4 Charisma

Medium

Base speed 30 feet

+1 natural armor

2 Claw attacks (1d4 slashing damage each)

Low-light Vision

Bonus Feat: Iron Will

Favored Class: Ranger

Level Adjustment: +1

Kingdoms of Kalamar

The half-gnolls of Tellene - called "Vraaark" in the gnollish tongue, and refered to as "Drelsibar", "Govalij", "Jhekkarr", "Kinimal", "Raarornaer" and "Zolansahr" in various human languages - are invariably born of the rape of human slaves and other victims by gnolls.

Almost all half-gnolls in Tellene are reared by gnollish tribes - well, we say "reared", we mean "allowed to live at birth and sometimes are tough enough to survive to adulthood alongside the pureblood gnoll pups", as humans who are free tend to kill them a birth. Needless to say, this means half-gnolls are near-universally chaotic evil.

Unlike the Green Ronin version, Tellenish half-gnolls aren't described as being particularly ugly. In fact, they favor their human lineage, looking like tall (6-7ft) humans with dark skin, brown or black hair, wide and pointy ears, and a propensity to being hirstute, sometimes going so far as to have a thin layer of fur across their body.

One thing that Tellenish half-gnolls don't have going for them is that, like the Green Ronin version, they're explicitly called out as being sterile.

Personality-wise, Tellenish half-gnolls are called out as being "ambitious, brutal, chaotic and untrustworthy", although in Tellene pretty much everybody's a dick and the book itself admits that these traits are common to both sides of their lineage. They have a strong solitary streak, unusual for the pack-hunting gnolls, and prefer the wilderness. They tend to be quiet and not prone to speech, preferring to let action take the place of words.

For obvious reasons, the iconic half-gnoll class is the Ranger, although Barbarians and Fighters are also common.

+2 Strength, -2 Intelligence, -2 Charisma

Medium

Base speed 30 feet

Darkvision 60 feet

Gnoll Blood: Treat as a Gnoll for all special traits dependent upon race

+1 racial bonus to Listen and Spot checks

Favored Class: Ranger