Dungeons & Dragons has plenty of different playable fantasy races to chose, from elves to dwarves to halflings. However, players often fixate on these more iconic races and forget to consider the game's less traditional options. This is even more true for races released as a part of the Elemental Evil Player's Companion, a free supplement for Fifth Edition that many players might not have even heard of. The Player's Companion contained a host of new options for players, all related to the events of the Princes of the Apocalypse module. One of these options is the Genasi.

Genasi are similar to Aasimar or Tieflings in flavor, as they are hybrid offspring of outsiders not native to the worlds of mortals. Instead of being descended from angels or demons, Genasi draw their heritage from elementals and genies, primal spirits that embody the natural world. They look mostly humanoid, but often manifest traits of their bloodline, which can range from bright red skin to hair made of flowing water. It depends on both the individual Genasi as well as their subrace, which can be connected to the elemental forces of fire, water, earth or air.

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D&D Genasi races: Earth (far left), Water (center left), Fire (center right), Air (far right)

Playing as a Genasi is perfect for those who want to focus on a deep tie to the natural world, whether that character is a Druid, Ranger or even Sorcerer. Sorcerers in particular get their power from their heritage or bloodline, which can line up really well with the elementally-inspired powers of the Genasi. Players willing to stretch into Unearthed Arcana can find a Sorcerous Origin to line up with each of the four elements. The Storm Origin is a part of Xanathar's Guide to Everything, while the Phoenix, Sea and Stone Origins were all released as a part of the fittingly-titled Unearthed Arcana: Sorcerer.

Genasi each get different mechanical traits based on their subrace, which can help them specialize in different directions. Air Genasi get the Levitate spell, which can provide a great bit of added mobility and versatility to a Rogue. Like all Genasi, they get +2 Constitution, but they also get +1 Dexterity. That works well for Rogues, but it's a good ability score increase for any class. Fire Genasi gain +1 Intelligence, fire resistance and the Burning Hands spell. Burning Hands is a fairly solid damage-dealing spell, but +1 to Intelligence works best for a Wizard or Artificer.

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A warrior made of water riding atop a similarly-fashioned horse

Water Genasi get resistance to acid damage, a natural swim speed of 30 feet and the Create or Destroy Water spell. There's no specific class Create or Destroy Water works best for, but the subrace's +1 Wisdom is useful in a vast array of classes, from Druids to Rangers to Monks. Earth Genasi round out the quartet with the Pass Without Trace spell and the ability to ignore difficult terrain made of earth or stone. Pass Without Trace is an amazing spell for Rogues, but the sneakiest class doesn't benefit from the Earth Genasi's +1 Strength. A less obvious build that benefits from the spell is a Barbarian, a Strength-based class that doesn't have a heavy armor disadvantage to stealth like Paladins or Fighters.

All of these suggestions can be tweaked and reworked if a Dungeon Master is using the Customizing Your Origin option from Tasha's Cauldron to Everything, which lets players assign ability score increases freely. What matters is finding a build that provokes excitement, whether that's a Rogue skilled at moving through the sands of the desert or a Druid protective of the river that birthed them.

Like all races, Genasi work to flesh out the stories possible within the game. They can be seen as outsiders who have a much deeper connection with the world than those who would ostracize them. Choosing a race in Fifth Edition is like picking a specific instrument for a musical composition -- Genasi might not work for some pieces, but could be the perfect fit for others.

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