sigmaphidelta8 they’re sociopathic marauders who look down on being even mildly well-informed? I agree for the sake of completeness they deserve an episode, because whether I like it or not they’re an official race, but the idea that anyone who’s read their lore would want to play one in group with their friends is d i s g u s t i n g.
I played a firbolg in a campain. As i was travelling to warn the city of a hill giant attack i got framed for the death a of a girl who was crushed by a giant. Luckily i had a teifling lawyer to beat the case.
@@clarenceyax8117 sounds fun... My DM gave every plant a different accent every time there was a mile difference. They don't move much, so the accents spread really slow.
I like to use real world cultures to flesh out the races when I plan out a world (I've never DMed I just play right now but I still plan out a world as inspiration for my characters). My Dwarves are German, Gnomes are Irish, Halflings are English(Lightfoot) and Scottish(Stout), Humans are southern European/Mediterranean and African, Elves are Asian, Half-Elves are Middle Eastern, Dragonborn are Jewish, Giants are Icelandic, Goliaths are Continental Scandinavian, Orcs are polynesian, goblinoids are Mongolian/Turkic, Aaracokra and Kenku are Native American, Tabaxi are Aztec, Lizardfolk are Aboriginal Australian. Having Firbolgs be Slavic is a great idea, strong and spiritually/magically attuned, distantly related to Goliaths and Giants.
You wouldn't think it, but the Spore Druid is very much geared towards front-line fighting. Set aside that you're making undead and poisoning people, and look at the raw mechanics. Most of the Spore Druid's "kit" keys off of the Druid being right next to enemies or getting up in their face. Their alternate Wild Shape is a buff to melee damage and temporary hit points. They need to be close to enemies to use their Reaction to deal poison damage. They also need to be close to a creature that dies to use their Reaction to raise them as fungal zombies. Yes, you also get things like Chill Touch, but most every other feature you get from being a Spore Druid is designed for close range combat. That would be an...interesting Firbolg. Firbolg Spore Warrior. Is master of life and death.
I had a Firbolg tempest cleric that I played once. He tried to negotiate with the enemy and then began to chant "fee fie foe fum" rhymes about killing them when they decided they still wanted to fight.
Caden Michel It’s a subclass in one of the Unearthed Arcana PDFs. Haven’t had a chance to play it yet, but the idea of a creepy fungus-themed druid definitely piqued my interest :P
I can easily see Firbolgs reskinned as plains-walking nomads, covering vast distances with their long, tireless strides season by season. You can also double down on “shepherds of trees”: maybe they literally herd mobile trees between water sources. A Firbolg migration might be a slow-moving avalanche as the forest moves across the landscape uncaring of your nice little town built since they passed through here last.
I recently watched a video on the real life Johnny Appleseed, and cause you basically just described the historical figure crisscrossing the multiverse, I had myself a good laugh. Would highly recommend researching him for your planeswalker firbolg, he was a weird motherfucker but somehow a very pure soul haha.
On the current campaign I'm running. The players are exploring the ruins of a Firbolg empire, inspired by Aztec society. The warrior / animal and nature aspect merged nicely. Added creepiness by them falling into the influence of Kyuss.
The moment you guys started talking about limited communication with animals, I thought, "Oh, an Insight check would be really cool for that" and then you guys said it. But yea, giving Firbolgs and Tritons advantage or a flat plus number (like +5) for communicating with animals and fish seems like an easy way to show that you can communicate with animals without directly speaking.
Animals and Plants understand Firbolgs completely, as long as you don't ask "wheres the books?" wildlife doesn't usually know what a book is. Firbolgs can't understand back though, unless they have some bonus outside of race.
I've had a Firbolg Nature Cleric named Silent. He was painfully shy, socially awkward and almost mute when it came to interacting with humanoids, but adept at conversing with animals of all kinds. Also, despite his quiet and gentle behaviour in most situations, he was a fierce, almost berserker-like melee combatant, especially when dealing with the cultists of Tiamat, with whom he had a giant bone to pick. All in all, the party loved him. I hope to play him again some day.
It totally clicked for me when you guys talked about firbolgs being like a type of minotaur, i have been wanting to make a minotaur nature cleric kinda like wow taurens, however the statblock never worked, i could see a firbolg being reskinned to "hornless minotaurs" which sacrificed their horns a long time ago and took up to shepherding and druidic magic and slowly over time became less like minotaurs and more like long hair bison humanoids.
@@SupSatire I could never get into it, im super bad at sitting down and watching others play DND, i guess its because i would always do things differently than the various characters do things.
Roughly translated from Old Irish, Fir Bolg means "Men of the Bag" or "People of the Bag" but that ultimately depends on which translation you decide to go with, there is quite a bit of debating over how and why they earned this particular name. And yes, D&D's Firbolg does draw on the figures in Irish lore, you can get a bit more detail on them in Irish lore in the Book of Invasions, Ireland's collection of lore on those who settled it but it has a lot of holes in it and almost everything written down comes from the transcriptions of Christian monks who chronicled the history of Ireland for various reasons.
I like the idea that as a firbolg reaches the end of its lifespan they start to look more treelike (hair turns green and eventually becomes moss or leaves, skin takes on a bark-like texture and color) and eventually they become immobile and turn into a tree. That way the speech of beast and leaf thing becomes how firbolgs speak to their ancestors
The talking animals knowing that they are going to be sacrificed/eaten reminds me of the book "The Restaurant at the End of the Universe" by Douglas Adams. They serve beef at the Restaurant and the cow will come out and ask you which part of it you want to eat and will even give you tips such as "my thigh meat is especially savory" or something like that.
Fairy spirits take the form of pigs, talking pigs, that beg humans to kill and eat them, promising that their flesh will be tasty and nutritious. The fairy pigs don't mind being eaten, as they can just travel back to the fairy realms and grow a new body, then return to human lands as a fairy-pig again. Why are they so eager to be eaten? If humans consume enough of their flesh, they can impregnate the human with fairy energy and create a new fairy spirit, literally vomiting up a baby fairy-pig in the middle of the night, with the human awaking the next day to believe it was all a nightmare. They turn out to be a race of immortal fairies that use humans to gestate their young. Trust me, do this and it will freak out your players.
So in the Homebrew world I've been making for my next campaign, sentient races emerge on the prime material, they do so in groups of three, with a big, medium and small variety. For example, orcs, humans and halflings all came into being at the same time with orcs filling the large slot, humans the medium, and halflings the small. I've then decided that the fey tried to mimic this by creating Firlbogs, Elves, and Gnomes. So basically I treat Firlbogs as the elven equivalent of orcs. They generally just want to be left alone to do their own things and are easily swayed by their passions, but if you make an ally of them, they will be the best ally you can possibly imagine.
@@anthonynorman7545 I left a comment in this thread where I went through the groupings if you want to check that out. The second group is: Large: Giants Medium: Gith (before yanki and zari were things) Small: Dwarves
Any nature based class Firbolg is a slam dunk. Ancients clerics, druids, all that. I love the idea of a Firbolg adventurer trying to reason with "civilized" races, like Avatar's Na'Vi who see the behaviour of humanity as a form of insanity
When I saw the bonus to strength and wisdom I had to make a Firbolg war cleric. She is about as far from a gentle forest guardian as you can get. As a DM I rule that giant-kin like Firbolgs and Goliaths can always grow up to large size for up to 1 minute a day just because it makes sense.
23:16 "You kinda get their attention, get outta there..." After that cast shillelagh, then use hidden step, double back and clobber one of them, so you have meat for the coming winter.
I think a circle of spores druid would fit great with a firbolg. Flavor-wise, perhaps it would be protecting the natural balance of life, death, and undeath. Stat-wise, circle of spores has several melee and close-range abilities that would work well with the firbolg's strength bonus.
@@hipsterbrigadier9428 I was also thinking Spore Druid Firbolg that was more like a sloth. Lets moss and fungi grow in his fur, which he then activates as part of his Spore Druid abilities. Never in a hurry, even in a fight. If the enemy keeps back, he's got Chill Touch. If they come to him, all the better.
I like this. The firbolg could be on a mission to feed the hungry masses like a missionary. Almost Jesus like with the spore growing on them. "Eat my body and drink my blood" (if you have create/destroy water). Could be with the party as a means to travel with protection, or someone in the party is using the firbolg for their selfish gain. In madman food and water is a big deal, anyone who could conjure that and provide hallucinations must be messiah.
Its funny you mentioned the "Forest Justice League" idea since that was my first introduction to firbolgs in 5e. My friend brought a firbolg ancients paladin to the table and it was fun to play my highly militant forest elf druid. He was the only one at the table with a charisma higher than 10, and it was just really enjoyable to have this 7'9" mass of muscle and pain pain playing the _good_ cop, to my 5'4" people eater and our 3'8" gnome (A beast master/chevalier).
You wouldn't necessarily think of it, but Inquisitive Rogue works amazing with Firbolgs. They have several abilities that help them blend in or gather information, and the Wisdom bonus is really nice for Inquisitive.
To hear someone on RUclips say Celtic with a 'K' sound is sooo beautiful. Too many others (Gnogin) say it with a 'S' sound. *grits teeth* Thank you guys.
@@isaacgleeth3609 I know, right? But some people think that is the same as the culture name, which is an annoyance. But, thank you for knowing that (what you just said).
My respect for you was already pretty great, but that discussion about cornbread caused it to double, possibly even triple... Oh right, Firbolgs are also pretty dope. For real I just might make a Firbolg character now. I don't know why but Rogue was the first thing that popped into my head, though I've had this idea for playing an Artificer Alchemist that grows their own ingredients on themselves and that seems quite appropriate for Firbolg.
Thank you WebDM once again for a truly inspiring video. This stuff made two huge forests in my DnD setting much more interesting and really tied firbolg into my setting ^^
"And just like that, everything changed. At that terrible moment, in our hearts, we knew. Home was a pen. Firbolg and bovine alike, cattle." -Attack on Human
I had a Firbolg Circle Druid/Bear Totem Barbarian named Fozzie. He was all about bears, he'd shapechange into a bear and go into a "bearian" rage. Such a fun character.
The cows traded being chased down by wolf in the dark for a slow inexorable doom of being cattles... It's the story of humanity, this is one of the best description of our own ''evolution''.
Well, it can be argued humans domesticated themselves. That civilization is just the process of training and breeding the wild out of the human race. And that it fails sometimes because something of that wild is neccessary for survival. But it does seem hypocritical to ponder this when it is this being civilized that allows pondering this point in the first place. Indeed, having the time and resources to reflect is definitely part of the civilized world. The less of either you have, the less you can spend thinking on anything not directly affecting living another day.
I would very much like to see one of these videos on Vedalken in future (I couldn't find one, so if it does exist, please direct me to it!). You seem to be working through all the races so I'm sure it's on the list, and all the ones I've watched are great. Thank you for your dedication to the game.
I went full on Celtic with my Fir Bolg's, so I have mine being Honorable oathbound warriors with a strong competitive streak, tempered by a powerfull sense of fair play, who also have a deep connection to the land. I also tied in their name origins as Fir Bolg actually means People of the Bag, and refers to a bag of soil from their homeland which they keep with them at all times. I made it so if a Fir Bolg looses this bag of Soil they will become homesick, and will become quite dour and depressed until they can return to their homeland and replace the bag. My Fir Bold are mostly human looking though, basically big buff Celts with a few elf features as they have close alliance with the Elves of my world which implies their wpuld be some interbreedinge.
Great timing! I am building a campaign including a Firbolg NPC and using the disguise self to add a Clark Kent to his interactions with the party... This video helps me with the motivation and mindset I need to flesh out the character. Much appreciated!!
Oh same in my campaign world of Damerel gnomes are the offsprings of Elves and Halflings or Dwarves and Firbolgs are the offsprings Elves and Goliaths.
Love you guys and what you do. Would you ever do a series on the different types of dragons? Not just lore and stats but interesting ideas on how to incorporate them into your games. I know you did a single episode covering all of them but I'd like to see your points of view on each of them individually. Just an idea. Thanks guys
@@samuelhowarth6571 😂. Maybe. My being Irish and into mythology etc. is affecting my ability to take the Fir Bolg out of that context and in the legends the Formorians are the monsters and the Fir Bolg are one of the groups of people who travel to Ireland
@@declaration14 Yes I can't separate them in D&D from what I know from Irish mythology. I have a campaign set in an alternative Earth where the firbolg are exiles from Ireland and find themselves in small groups in forests dotted around Europe and the British Isles. They have a desire to return to their homeland but are prevented by the warlike and crazy elves known as the Tuatha De Danaan
got a Firbolg Ranger as a player at my table. He plays it as Poison Ivy. Hating on people and civilizations. Observing settlements, taking stuff from it and sending it back to his clan. And if his report is a certain way... His clan will send seeds that will overgrow and destroy those settlements. Oh and he has a patron in the shape of Relkath of the Infinite Branches. Last adventure a hag had a negative impact on the woods. Turning it into a marshland/mangrove. So he had a nice motivation to hunt and kill that hag. But the party needed that hag to stay alive for a ritual to save some babies and stuff. He's also taming a Kruthik to eventually ride into battle with.
You're telling me Jim and Pruitt have never had a breakfast sandwich on pan fried/ not sweet cornbread? Guys, go to one of the (admittedly small) conventions in Tennessee, we got you.
I had a drunken master firbolg named Barrel. Named Barrel because he walked around with a small barrel/keg on his back so he could always have a beer on hand. He spent his time getting into fights, being sassy with our bard, stealing booze, and stuffing anything and everything he could into a bag of holding (including a vampire in mist form). He just recently retired from adventuring to become an arena fighter. His monk darts were also broken bottles which was fun.
Came for the inspiration, stayed for the cornbread discussion! Cast iron skillet sweet cornbread slathered in real butter the second it comes out of the oven is my late Ma's way and it blows all restaurant cornbread out of the water! I mean, we Lawsons don't live past 70, but damn! I'll have me a half skillet and some beans cooked in ham hock! Thank you, ma'am! 🤗
Also Web DM is like my favorite RUclips channel I cut class almost everyday in high school junior and senior year just so I can walk around town and listen to mp3 downloads of your videos even though I listen to like all of them at least five times over.
Again, instead of saying, this is what's cool about this race to play, a laaaarge part of this vid is "what if they weren't what they are and were something else? Also what if we swapped out their skills?." Don't mind that being part of the vid but think you've missed out on giving people the base advice on playing the race as is.
That's what makes me sad about this video. I came here for exactly that. Thankfully I got a couple ideas for what I think the base race would be from this.
I used Firbolg and reskinned it as Huldra for one of our players in a very Norse themed game heavy with hags and trolls and a Gulthias treat. It worked out pretty nicely for a variation of Huldr that combined the male/female traits from myth.
Playing a Firbolg Divine Soul Sorc in my current campaign. He goes around preaching the idea that the Divine is within everyone and there is no reason to worship gods as they just use worship for their own gain. Been extremely fun to play! Thanks for the advice and insight into some more ideas. Definitely going to mediate an animal conclave one of these sessions.
Incorrect, Lizardmen are definitely connected to the swamps, and they can hold their breath for up to 15 minutes, swim as fast as they can walk, and their very scales and teeth are as hard as steel. Also is Ironwood still a thing? Hear that used to be big with Wood Elves.
I wasn't a fan of the size changing ability so my DM and I homebrewed an alternative that has some positives and negatives. As I'm a Druid Firlbolg we tossed out the Alter/Disguise race ability and replaced it with the ability to Shapeshift into a Chipmunk. - I can enter towns without drawing attention. I can hide. I can scout (with low HP so risky). - I can't talk. I can't cast spells. I can't use items or abilities.
11:34 it made me think of the "Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy" more specifically the "Restaurant At The End of The Universe" where a boar alien creature is willingly on a silver platter offering itself to be eaten. (if anyone is confused cause they only saw the movie, I'm referring to the books and the 1981 BBC tv series).
in my quest for a holistic creation and connections between races, I’ve made Firbolg as Goliath that became stuck in the Feywild for 10 generations, along with Elves (from humans), Gnomes (from halfling) and Brownies (from dwarves)
I wanted to try this class but I wanted to get weird with it. Not just stay with the usual classes a Firbolg would play as but something different. So what I thought of was a Firbolg Ranger. Left in the woods as a young age and was picked up by hunters who took him in and raised him to become a hunter who hunts for sport .
I'm not sure exactly if anyone has noticed, but by the description of the Firgolg, it would seem they are some sort of Giant/ Wood Elf hybrid, that or a really drunk, and really ambitious forest gnome and giant. (Which goes well with the Goliaths that seem to be some sort of Stone Giant/human hybrid.) There are half-elves, half-orcs, and all sorts of half this or that, so why not? 5th edition, the half-breed edition, woot! That being said, I did play a hippy-style Firbolg druid. A real peace-nik, totally not understanding why the other peoples of the world have to "harsh on each other, and get all edgy when living in harmony is the way to go, you know? Every creature has it's purpose, and we all live in symbiosis, right?" Since I played him so Pauly Shore-ish I was subsequently forbidden to ever to play him again.
I play a Firbolg rouge (Partly because I thought it would be hilarious to see a giant furry creature trying to creep around), who's tribe was destroyed when fighting with a clan of druids, and lived the rest of her life in a library. I love the idea that firbolgs and druids fight over how to take care of nature, and the idea of a nature person having to live in the city and learn worldly knowledge. Shes my favorite and I love her.
I have a totem barb/Druid Firbolg that is from a tribe of nomadic and feral Firbolgs that are a bit more Native American in representation. The tribe travels the world using psychedelics and rituals to break the egos of man and help them see the true beauty in the natural and spiritual world around them. It’s kind of dumb but I love him.
In my setting Fey and Giants are mortal enemies, but were not always so. Firbolgs are descendants of a mixed Fey-Giant community that both sides now hate, so they hide out in the deep woods trying to do the harmonious thing. They look more like Na'vi from Avatar, but with deer coloration and small antlers on the males.
I have a Firbolg CG Rogue whose entire thing is thanks to an Acolyte Back Ground was studying priestly ways wanting to learn more about the powers that be when they realized how boring studying was an walked off to see the world for themselves. It was at this point that they saw humanoids borrowing from each others pockets and became intrigued. So "sneaking" up on a thief he asked if he could learn the tricks of the trade so here we are... Their whole thing is, complicated but driven by an insatiable curiosity. so they are a Mastermind or Investagator type (the one best at getting info out of others, I forget which). play style is a character that smokes out info using thievery to set up people if needed but preferably with simple questioning. they use animals to spy and has created a system with a pack of Starlings (200ish in size). He explained to them symbols and acts to convey info to him and sends them out to observe and collect and illicit help from local animals, telling them that he will feed them in return for info and if needed safety from abuse or hunters. after all if animal understand him then they need no training just explaining so give him an hour with local animals in attendance and he can explain the 100 words he needs them to know to express numbers and other details well info to black mail or entrap others with it when needed but also habits so he can appear on their route and ask them things for clarity. Most info is self interest related but he simply needs to know every thing he can about any thing... also with handle animal checks he can understand some animal chatter since he has worked with that kind of animal enough to pick up cross chatter meaning at basic levels... plants use a similar system but their language is to complex for him to pick up; so they also build out his network and work to keep him aware of actions near him preventing ambushes that are not complex enough to blend into normal life. I know broken seeming; but really their combat sucks enough they are balenced by it.
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Can you guys please do lizardfolk, they don't get nearly enough love.
sigmaphidelta8 they’re sociopathic marauders who look down on being even mildly well-informed? I agree for the sake of completeness they deserve an episode, because whether I like it or not they’re an official race, but the idea that anyone who’s read their lore would want to play one in group with their friends is d i s g u s t i n g.
@@wysegalloway4546 You should watch the first season of Save or Dice, Jardon is awesome. I myself have a lizardfolk druid and he is a blast to play.
@@wysegalloway4546 Have you ever heard of drax the destroyer? Do you think he'd be fun to play?
TA-DA!!! LIZARDFOLK!!!
Please do Lizardfolk... Please take them seriously...
Firbolg paladin of conquest trying to turn each city back into a beautiful forest one step at a time
That sounds fun to DM.
Love it
My guy has two friends that are firbolg twins one ranger Druid and the other ranger rogue
now that's an awesome villain
Mass genocide, for nature (:
I played a firbolg in a campain. As i was travelling to warn the city of a hill giant attack i got framed for the death a of a girl who was crushed by a giant. Luckily i had a teifling lawyer to beat the case.
Would you say they were a Devilish Advocate?
“Don’t worry, I’m infused with the energies of the Lawful Evil plane, being a lawyer is in my blood.”
In my campaign setting, Firbolgs are kind, friendly, and socially inept fey giants with thick Russian accents. My players absolutely love them.
Sounds lame.
@@jimjim292 What a great thing that the only opinion that matters is my players then.
@@clarenceyax8117 sounds fun... My DM gave every plant a different accent every time there was a mile difference.
They don't move much, so the accents spread really slow.
I like to use real world cultures to flesh out the races when I plan out a world (I've never DMed I just play right now but I still plan out a world as inspiration for my characters). My Dwarves are German, Gnomes are Irish, Halflings are English(Lightfoot) and Scottish(Stout), Humans are southern European/Mediterranean and African, Elves are Asian, Half-Elves are Middle Eastern, Dragonborn are Jewish, Giants are Icelandic, Goliaths are Continental Scandinavian, Orcs are polynesian, goblinoids are Mongolian/Turkic, Aaracokra and Kenku are Native American, Tabaxi are Aztec, Lizardfolk are Aboriginal Australian. Having Firbolgs be Slavic is a great idea, strong and spiritually/magically attuned, distantly related to Goliaths and Giants.
This reminds me of a hilarious Firbolg character currently being played by one of the guys in the Adventure Zone podcast.
Forest Gnomes, Wood Elves, and Firbolgs next on "Copse".
You sir... Just won.
*slow claps*
WELL DONE
I’m loving the food talk, completely irrelevant to the Firbolg conversation, but still lovely :)
I'd watch a video about cornbread if they did one.
Sweet or savory?
Web DM is that even a question? BOTH.
@@WebDM Sweet corn bread is just corn cake. Although delicious, it's been made to be an excuse to have cake during a meal instead of after it.
It was like hear my thoughts outside my brain.
Firbolgs: that old man that really wants you off of their lawn...
Firbolg Spirit Totem barbarian with ritual caster is a lot of fun. Full tank warrior with a shocking amount of casting potential.
“Its fantasy! Just come up with an explanation that works for the group.” Best and most underrated statement regarding DnD ever.
You wouldn't think it, but the Spore Druid is very much geared towards front-line fighting. Set aside that you're making undead and poisoning people, and look at the raw mechanics. Most of the Spore Druid's "kit" keys off of the Druid being right next to enemies or getting up in their face. Their alternate Wild Shape is a buff to melee damage and temporary hit points. They need to be close to enemies to use their Reaction to deal poison damage. They also need to be close to a creature that dies to use their Reaction to raise them as fungal zombies. Yes, you also get things like Chill Touch, but most every other feature you get from being a Spore Druid is designed for close range combat.
That would be an...interesting Firbolg. Firbolg Spore Warrior. Is master of life and death.
I had a Firbolg tempest cleric that I played once. He tried to negotiate with the enemy and then began to chant "fee fie foe fum" rhymes about killing them when they decided they still wanted to fight.
"Druids need a melee based subclass"
*sideyes Circle of spores*
Nature Cleric....
Ancients Paladin.....
Caden Michel It’s a subclass in one of the Unearthed Arcana PDFs. Haven’t had a chance to play it yet, but the idea of a creepy fungus-themed druid definitely piqued my interest :P
@@malogranatum4914 It's also in Guildmaster's Guide to Ravnica.
*looks at circle of stars's chalice* I see a battle caster in the making
I can easily see Firbolgs reskinned as plains-walking nomads, covering vast distances with their long, tireless strides season by season.
You can also double down on “shepherds of trees”: maybe they literally herd mobile trees between water sources. A Firbolg migration might be a slow-moving avalanche as the forest moves across the landscape uncaring of your nice little town built since they passed through here last.
I've got a far traveler, kensei monk, that I want to multiclass. He's realm/world/plane hopping right now.
I recently watched a video on the real life Johnny Appleseed, and cause you basically just described the historical figure crisscrossing the multiverse, I had myself a good laugh. Would highly recommend researching him for your planeswalker firbolg, he was a weird motherfucker but somehow a very pure soul haha.
On the current campaign I'm running. The players are exploring the ruins of a Firbolg empire, inspired by Aztec society. The warrior / animal and nature aspect merged nicely. Added creepiness by them falling into the influence of Kyuss.
The moment you guys started talking about limited communication with animals, I thought, "Oh, an Insight check would be really cool for that" and then you guys said it. But yea, giving Firbolgs and Tritons advantage or a flat plus number (like +5) for communicating with animals and fish seems like an easy way to show that you can communicate with animals without directly speaking.
Animals and Plants understand Firbolgs completely, as long as you don't ask "wheres the books?" wildlife doesn't usually know what a book is. Firbolgs can't understand back though, unless they have some bonus outside of race.
I've had a Firbolg Nature Cleric named Silent. He was painfully shy, socially awkward and almost mute when it came to interacting with humanoids, but adept at conversing with animals of all kinds. Also, despite his quiet and gentle behaviour in most situations, he was a fierce, almost berserker-like melee combatant, especially when dealing with the cultists of Tiamat, with whom he had a giant bone to pick.
All in all, the party loved him. I hope to play him again some day.
Vaguely reminds me of a The Black Company character of the same name, but that Silent was completely mute and creepy af...solid dude though.
It totally clicked for me when you guys talked about firbolgs being like a type of minotaur, i have been wanting to make a minotaur nature cleric kinda like wow taurens, however the statblock never worked, i could see a firbolg being reskinned to "hornless minotaurs" which sacrificed their horns a long time ago and took up to shepherding and druidic magic and slowly over time became less like minotaurs and more like long hair bison humanoids.
I'm guessing you watch Critical Role?
@@SupSatire critical role can't be the only place sporting bovine firbolgs.
@@SupSatire I could never get into it, im super bad at sitting down and watching others play DND, i guess its because i would always do things differently than the various characters do things.
Could still have horns just small vestigial ones.
Cows have horns, too. After all, they are the half of the Minotuar that the horns came from.
Roughly translated from Old Irish, Fir Bolg means "Men of the Bag" or "People of the Bag" but that ultimately depends on which translation you decide to go with, there is quite a bit of debating over how and why they earned this particular name. And yes, D&D's Firbolg does draw on the figures in Irish lore, you can get a bit more detail on them in Irish lore in the Book of Invasions, Ireland's collection of lore on those who settled it but it has a lot of holes in it and almost everything written down comes from the transcriptions of Christian monks who chronicled the history of Ireland for various reasons.
I like the idea that as a firbolg reaches the end of its lifespan they start to look more treelike (hair turns green and eventually becomes moss or leaves, skin takes on a bark-like texture and color) and eventually they become immobile and turn into a tree. That way the speech of beast and leaf thing becomes how firbolgs speak to their ancestors
Firbolgs are now a valid choice for me now. Still hoping you guys do a warforged video. Keep up the good work
Yes! Warforged!
Agreed, love to hear Web DM's take on warforged and how they could fit into a non-Eberron campaign.
That would be great!
The talking animals knowing that they are going to be sacrificed/eaten reminds me of the book "The Restaurant at the End of the Universe" by Douglas Adams. They serve beef at the Restaurant and the cow will come out and ask you which part of it you want to eat and will even give you tips such as "my thigh meat is especially savory" or something like that.
Fairy spirits take the form of pigs, talking pigs, that beg humans to kill and eat them, promising that their flesh will be tasty and nutritious. The fairy pigs don't mind being eaten, as they can just travel back to the fairy realms and grow a new body, then return to human lands as a fairy-pig again. Why are they so eager to be eaten? If humans consume enough of their flesh, they can impregnate the human with fairy energy and create a new fairy spirit, literally vomiting up a baby fairy-pig in the middle of the night, with the human awaking the next day to believe it was all a nightmare. They turn out to be a race of immortal fairies that use humans to gestate their young.
Trust me, do this and it will freak out your players.
So in the Homebrew world I've been making for my next campaign, sentient races emerge on the prime material, they do so in groups of three, with a big, medium and small variety. For example, orcs, humans and halflings all came into being at the same time with orcs filling the large slot, humans the medium, and halflings the small. I've then decided that the fey tried to mimic this by creating Firlbogs, Elves, and Gnomes. So basically I treat Firlbogs as the elven equivalent of orcs. They generally just want to be left alone to do their own things and are easily swayed by their passions, but if you make an ally of them, they will be the best ally you can possibly imagine.
have you given any thoughts to dwarves?
Yes, who are the large dwarves?
@@anthonynorman7545 Giants
@@HSuper_Lee so are dwarves medium and gnomes small?
@@anthonynorman7545 I left a comment in this thread where I went through the groupings if you want to check that out. The second group is:
Large: Giants
Medium: Gith (before yanki and zari were things)
Small: Dwarves
Any nature based class Firbolg is a slam dunk. Ancients clerics, druids, all that. I love the idea of a Firbolg adventurer trying to reason with "civilized" races, like Avatar's Na'Vi who see the behaviour of humanity as a form of insanity
When I saw the bonus to strength and wisdom I had to make a Firbolg war cleric. She is about as far from a gentle forest guardian as you can get. As a DM I rule that giant-kin like Firbolgs and Goliaths can always grow up to large size for up to 1 minute a day just because it makes sense.
Am making a War cleric firbolg as we speak. Glad to hear it works out haha
23:16
"You kinda get their attention, get outta there..."
After that cast shillelagh, then use hidden step, double back and clobber one of them, so you have meat for the coming winter.
My firbolg was adventuring to find another colony of firbolgs because back at home inbreeding among his kin became real problem
I think a circle of spores druid would fit great with a firbolg. Flavor-wise, perhaps it would be protecting the natural balance of life, death, and undeath. Stat-wise, circle of spores has several melee and close-range abilities that would work well with the firbolg's strength bonus.
I thought about a character like this, I was going to call him cabbage and he’d basically look like a sloth that got thrown into a swamp
@@hipsterbrigadier9428 I was also thinking Spore Druid Firbolg that was more like a sloth. Lets moss and fungi grow in his fur, which he then activates as part of his Spore Druid abilities. Never in a hurry, even in a fight. If the enemy keeps back, he's got Chill Touch. If they come to him, all the better.
I like this. The firbolg could be on a mission to feed the hungry masses like a missionary. Almost Jesus like with the spore growing on them. "Eat my body and drink my blood" (if you have create/destroy water). Could be with the party as a means to travel with protection, or someone in the party is using the firbolg for their selfish gain.
In madman food and water is a big deal, anyone who could conjure that and provide hallucinations must be messiah.
I've always used firbolg's as if they are ogier from the Wheel of Time books.
Its funny you mentioned the "Forest Justice League" idea since that was my first introduction to firbolgs in 5e. My friend brought a firbolg ancients paladin to the table and it was fun to play my highly militant forest elf druid. He was the only one at the table with a charisma higher than 10, and it was just really enjoyable to have this 7'9" mass of muscle and pain pain playing the _good_ cop, to my 5'4" people eater and our 3'8" gnome (A beast master/chevalier).
"Complete Book of Humanoids" is the book you're referring to.
45 seconds in and I'm already so thrilled by everything about this video!
You wouldn't necessarily think of it, but Inquisitive Rogue works amazing with Firbolgs. They have several abilities that help them blend in or gather information, and the Wisdom bonus is really nice for Inquisitive.
Also, I would have watched half an hour of that ending conversation about food
I like firbolgs, the modern edition ones have the same kind of energy as gnomes but big
To hear someone on RUclips say Celtic with a 'K' sound is sooo beautiful.
Too many others (Gnogin) say it with a 'S' sound. *grits teeth*
Thank you guys.
I only use the soft "c" sound when referring to the Boston NBA team.
@@isaacgleeth3609 I know, right?
But some people think that is the same as the culture name, which is an annoyance.
But, thank you for knowing that (what you just said).
Is that a rare occurrence?
@@anthonynorman7545 on RUclips's geek/nerd corner that I have explored (so far), yes it is.
@@dragonmaster613 you need nerdier nerds or more wrestling fans
My respect for you was already pretty great, but that discussion about cornbread caused it to double, possibly even triple...
Oh right, Firbolgs are also pretty dope.
For real I just might make a Firbolg character now. I don't know why but Rogue was the first thing that popped into my head, though I've had this idea for playing an Artificer Alchemist that grows their own ingredients on themselves and that seems quite appropriate for Firbolg.
That's legit fuckin adorable.
Thank you WebDM once again for a truly inspiring video. This stuff made two huge forests in my DnD setting much more interesting and really tied firbolg into my setting ^^
Awesome!!! Glad it helped you add to your world
I just had my first character death yesterday, and I'm thinking about a firbolg Cleric/fighter now. Love the video, RIGHT in time!
Great presentation, gents. I'm playing a firbolg druid in my current campaign, and this information is very helpful. Thanks for posting!
I say this all the time, but I'm stealing all of this. You guys are the best.
I really want to make a Celtic Irish themed Firbolg due to its mythological origins
"And just like that, everything changed. At that terrible moment, in our hearts, we knew. Home was a pen. Firbolg and bovine alike, cattle."
-Attack on Human
I had a Firbolg Circle Druid/Bear Totem Barbarian named Fozzie. He was all about bears, he'd shapechange into a bear and go into a "bearian" rage. Such a fun character.
The cows traded being chased down by wolf in the dark for a slow inexorable doom of being cattles... It's the story of humanity, this is one of the best description of our own ''evolution''.
This would sound really pretentious if you didn't also sound like you're 12.
@@brosephnoonan223 God damn. Gonna need Greater Cure Wounds for that one.
you can disagree with me without insulting me
Well, it can be argued humans domesticated themselves. That civilization is just the process of training and breeding the wild out of the human race. And that it fails sometimes because something of that wild is neccessary for survival.
But it does seem hypocritical to ponder this when it is this being civilized that allows pondering this point in the first place. Indeed, having the time and resources to reflect is definitely part of the civilized world. The less of either you have, the less you can spend thinking on anything not directly affecting living another day.
I would very much like to see one of these videos on Vedalken in future (I couldn't find one, so if it does exist, please direct me to it!). You seem to be working through all the races so I'm sure it's on the list, and all the ones I've watched are great. Thank you for your dedication to the game.
I went full on Celtic with my Fir Bolg's, so I have mine being Honorable oathbound warriors with a strong competitive streak, tempered by a powerfull sense of fair play, who also have a deep connection to the land. I also tied in their name origins as Fir Bolg actually means People of the Bag, and refers to a bag of soil from their homeland which they keep with them at all times. I made it so if a Fir Bolg looses this bag of Soil they will become homesick, and will become quite dour and depressed until they can return to their homeland and replace the bag.
My Fir Bold are mostly human looking though, basically big buff Celts with a few elf features as they have close alliance with the Elves of my world which implies their wpuld be some interbreedinge.
I’m surprised there was no mention of the ogier race from Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series.
Washada I was literally scrolling for the comments looking for this. Literally could straight up be ogier. Likely inspired by similar sources.
I would love it if at some point you guys covered Genasi and all the possible things that could be done them.
Great timing! I am building a campaign including a Firbolg NPC and using the disguise self to add a Clark Kent to his interactions with the party... This video helps me with the motivation and mindset I need to flesh out the character. Much appreciated!!
I've also been thinking about the blurred together gnome/elf/firbolg. I loved how Symbaroum did their elves and thought to do something similar.
Oh same in my campaign world of Damerel gnomes are the offsprings of Elves and Halflings or Dwarves and Firbolgs are the offsprings Elves and Goliaths.
Woot woot caduceus and pumat sol !!!
Don't forget Nila.
Yup her too
Love you guys and what you do. Would you ever do a series on the different types of dragons? Not just lore and stats but interesting ideas on how to incorporate them into your games. I know you did a single episode covering all of them but I'd like to see your points of view on each of them individually. Just an idea. Thanks guys
Thank you for the suggestion!
I like the idea of making Fir Bolg the neutral/nature equivalent of Teiflings and Aasimar.
Maybe they're an ancient offshoot of the Fomorians? Before they got all ugly.
@@samuelhowarth6571 😂. Maybe. My being Irish and into mythology etc. is affecting my ability to take the Fir Bolg out of that context and in the legends the Formorians are the monsters and the Fir Bolg are one of the groups of people who travel to Ireland
@@declaration14 Yes I can't separate them in D&D from what I know from Irish mythology. I have a campaign set in an alternative Earth where the firbolg are exiles from Ireland and find themselves in small groups in forests dotted around Europe and the British Isles. They have a desire to return to their homeland but are prevented by the warlike and crazy elves known as the Tuatha De Danaan
angel, demon, yeti. yep thats pretty ideal.
@@jafarthebarmecide3677Tuatha Dé Dannann as the bad guys?! That's different, I like it
got a Firbolg Ranger as a player at my table. He plays it as Poison Ivy. Hating on people and civilizations. Observing settlements, taking stuff from it and sending it back to his clan. And if his report is a certain way... His clan will send seeds that will overgrow and destroy those settlements. Oh and he has a patron in the shape of Relkath of the Infinite Branches.
Last adventure a hag had a negative impact on the woods. Turning it into a marshland/mangrove. So he had a nice motivation to hunt and kill that hag. But the party needed that hag to stay alive for a ritual to save some babies and stuff.
He's also taming a Kruthik to eventually ride into battle with.
I made a Paladin of the Ancients Firbolg. Last of his kind he found connection with nature in Selune. His name is Froot Brightshroom.
It is seriously worth listening to the very end. Fine discussion until the video reaches its last second.
You're telling me Jim and Pruitt have never had a breakfast sandwich on pan fried/ not sweet cornbread?
Guys, go to one of the (admittedly small) conventions in Tennessee, we got you.
Yeees, speaking my kinda language! I have been playing a Circle of Spores Firbolg for a while now and I am loving the versatility
Thank you guys for doing this race! Also, cornbread with jalapenos!
I had a drunken master firbolg named Barrel. Named Barrel because he walked around with a small barrel/keg on his back so he could always have a beer on hand. He spent his time getting into fights, being sassy with our bard, stealing booze, and stuffing anything and everything he could into a bag of holding (including a vampire in mist form). He just recently retired from adventuring to become an arena fighter. His monk darts were also broken bottles which was fun.
Came for the inspiration, stayed for the cornbread discussion! Cast iron skillet sweet cornbread slathered in real butter the second it comes out of the oven is my late Ma's way and it blows all restaurant cornbread out of the water! I mean, we Lawsons don't live past 70, but damn! I'll have me a half skillet and some beans cooked in ham hock! Thank you, ma'am! 🤗
Just in time for lunch break :)
i fell in love with firbolgs when i saw their art. still havent gotten the chance to play one :(
Also Web DM is like my favorite RUclips channel I cut class almost everyday in high school junior and senior year just so I can walk around town and listen to mp3 downloads of your videos even though I listen to like all of them at least five times over.
Thanks for the love!
Some of us are former educators and don't condone cutting class...but at least you were doing something productive!
@@WebDM don't worry I barely passed and your right listening to your videos to help me make my games better for my players is very productive.
Yes! I'm playing a Firbolg character currently!
Same: Baelun, cleric of The Raven Queen :)
@@TheBaconWizard Excellent!
Qiro Maewaris, Moon Druid researcher writing his own bestiary.
3:08
AHEM.
*AHEM.*
*L I Z A R D F O L K.*
lol
Again, instead of saying, this is what's cool about this race to play, a laaaarge part of this vid is "what if they weren't what they are and were something else? Also what if we swapped out their skills?." Don't mind that being part of the vid but think you've missed out on giving people the base advice on playing the race as is.
That's what makes me sad about this video. I came here for exactly that. Thankfully I got a couple ideas for what I think the base race would be from this.
I used Firbolg and reskinned it as Huldra for one of our players in a very Norse themed game heavy with hags and trolls and a Gulthias treat. It worked out pretty nicely for a variation of Huldr that combined the male/female traits from myth.
Playing a Firbolg Divine Soul Sorc in my current campaign. He goes around preaching the idea that the Divine is within everyone and there is no reason to worship gods as they just use worship for their own gain. Been extremely fun to play! Thanks for the advice and insight into some more ideas. Definitely going to mediate an animal conclave one of these sessions.
My Texan brothers on full display; I'm loving it!
Finally! My favorite race gets some limelight!
God, FINALLY
Firbolgs are my favorite race and you guys are my favorite D&D RUclipsrs! Been waiting for this for months tbh
My player runs a Tempest Cleric former cleric of Umberlee turned now to Valkur
Incorrect, Lizardmen are definitely connected to the swamps, and they can hold their breath for up to 15 minutes, swim as fast as they can walk, and their very scales and teeth are as hard as steel.
Also is Ironwood still a thing? Hear that used to be big with Wood Elves.
In my world it is XD
I wasn't a fan of the size changing ability so my DM and I homebrewed an alternative that has some positives and negatives.
As I'm a Druid Firlbolg we tossed out the Alter/Disguise race ability and replaced it with the ability to Shapeshift into a Chipmunk.
- I can enter towns without drawing attention. I can hide. I can scout (with low HP so risky).
- I can't talk. I can't cast spells. I can't use items or abilities.
Fir Bolg means "Men of the Bag", they are one of the original races of Ireland before the invasion of the Tuatha De Danann.
Firbolgs remind me of Ogier from wheel of time...
Bout to start a long campaign with a life domain firbolg cleric. Looking forward to playing this race and healing my group as a giant hippie ogre ✌🏼
Not gonna lie I love the 27:00 part onward. Some good content.
I'm going to play one of these in my next game!
Finally! Love you guys forever for doing this video!
loving the vidoes can you guys go over the shardminds and how you could implament them in 5e
Thanks for the suggestion!
11:34 it made me think of the "Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy" more specifically the "Restaurant At The End of The Universe" where a boar alien creature is willingly on a silver platter offering itself to be eaten. (if anyone is confused cause they only saw the movie, I'm referring to the books and the 1981 BBC tv series).
Milliways!!!
in my quest for a holistic creation and connections between races, I’ve made Firbolg as Goliath that became stuck in the Feywild for 10 generations, along with Elves (from humans), Gnomes (from halfling) and Brownies (from dwarves)
The 2e book was called "The Complete Book of Humanoids".
Did you guys and Nerdarchy coordinate? They released a video dealing with Firbolgs a few hours ago. 😂
Great minds think alike!
@@WebDM couldn't agree more, Nerdarchy and Web DM are two of my favorite channels for everything DND related
@R Mcdud
Literally everyone on this platform is a clown
Hello Hello, love all the videos and the depth you go into with them. Do you think you'll be doing a race video on tortles any time soon?
Quite possibly
I want a whole episode of y'all taking about food. Also, grits or hashbrowns?
I like to use this as the stats for a race like the Ogier from the Wheel of Time.
These guys rock!
Good time for notifications to be working
I wanted to try this class but I wanted to get weird with it. Not just stay with the usual classes a Firbolg would play as but something different. So what I thought of was a Firbolg Ranger. Left in the woods as a young age and was picked up by hunters who took him in and raised him to become a hunter who hunts for sport .
Those are some hot takes there at the end
I'm not sure exactly if anyone has noticed, but by the description of the Firgolg, it would seem they are some sort of Giant/ Wood Elf hybrid, that or a really drunk, and really ambitious forest gnome and giant. (Which goes well with the Goliaths that seem to be some sort of Stone Giant/human hybrid.) There are half-elves, half-orcs, and all sorts of half this or that, so why not? 5th edition, the half-breed edition, woot!
That being said, I did play a hippy-style Firbolg druid. A real peace-nik, totally not understanding why the other peoples of the world have to "harsh on each other, and get all edgy when living in harmony is the way to go, you know? Every creature has it's purpose, and we all live in symbiosis, right?" Since I played him so Pauly Shore-ish I was subsequently forbidden to ever to play him again.
I was making a drawing useing a photo of me wearing a Ruana(Celtic shawl) and I made it a firbolg .... that’s a coincidence that I love
I play a Firbolg rouge (Partly because I thought it would be hilarious to see a giant furry creature trying to creep around), who's tribe was destroyed when fighting with a clan of druids, and lived the rest of her life in a library. I love the idea that firbolgs and druids fight over how to take care of nature, and the idea of a nature person having to live in the city and learn worldly knowledge. Shes my favorite and I love her.
Ive got a firbolg that was basically rased by bears so shes a circle of the moon druid with a few levels of barbarian.
I have a totem barb/Druid Firbolg that is from a tribe of nomadic and feral Firbolgs that are a bit more Native American in representation. The tribe travels the world using psychedelics and rituals to break the egos of man and help them see the true beauty in the natural and spiritual world around them. It’s kind of dumb but I love him.
In my setting Fey and Giants are mortal enemies, but were not always so. Firbolgs are descendants of a mixed Fey-Giant community that both sides now hate, so they hide out in the deep woods trying to do the harmonious thing. They look more like Na'vi from Avatar, but with deer coloration and small antlers on the males.
To use a bit of historical Celtic mythos, Firbolg as the Wardens of the Druids Council. Sort of like a Scottish Ghillie.
I have a Firbolg CG Rogue whose entire thing is thanks to an Acolyte Back Ground was studying priestly ways wanting to learn more about the powers that be when they realized how boring studying was an walked off to see the world for themselves. It was at this point that they saw humanoids borrowing from each others pockets and became intrigued. So "sneaking" up on a thief he asked if he could learn the tricks of the trade so here we are...
Their whole thing is, complicated but driven by an insatiable curiosity. so they are a Mastermind or Investagator type (the one best at getting info out of others, I forget which). play style is a character that smokes out info using thievery to set up people if needed but preferably with simple questioning. they use animals to spy and has created a system with a pack of Starlings (200ish in size). He explained to them symbols and acts to convey info to him and sends them out to observe and collect and illicit help from local animals, telling them that he will feed them in return for info and if needed safety from abuse or hunters. after all if animal understand him then they need no training just explaining so give him an hour with local animals in attendance and he can explain the 100 words he needs them to know to express numbers and other details well info to black mail or entrap others with it when needed but also habits so he can appear on their route and ask them things for clarity. Most info is self interest related but he simply needs to know every thing he can about any thing... also with handle animal checks he can understand some animal chatter since he has worked with that kind of animal enough to pick up cross chatter meaning at basic levels... plants use a similar system but their language is to complex for him to pick up; so they also build out his network and work to keep him aware of actions near him preventing ambushes that are not complex enough to blend into normal life.
I know broken seeming; but really their combat sucks enough they are balenced by it.