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Recently, I have been studying the dhampir's description in Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft, and the other legacy races (reborn and Hexblood) (having tried to create something similar before it was published). However, I am finding the Ancestral Legacy trait a little hard to understand:

If you replace a race with this lineage, you can keep the following elements of that race: any skill proficiencies you gained from it and any climbing, flying, or swimming speed you gained from it.

If you don't keep any of those elements or you choose this lineage at character creation, you gain proficiency in two skills of your choice.

Does this mean that dhampirs will lose most of what makes a character race unique?

(Edited) For instance, would a changeling no longer assume other races, would a bugbear's arms shorten and his muscles weaken (long limbed/powerful build), Would a triton no longer breath underwater (amphibious trait that would affect the hexblood), etc...

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  • \$\begingroup\$ After posting this, I guess languages would be a thing too, having known 3 languages and losing one, but I think that can more easily be hand waved by a DM. \$\endgroup\$
    – Victor B
    Commented Jul 22, 2021 at 22:21
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    \$\begingroup\$ I’m not understanding the confusion here, the text you quote seems to answer your question directly and unambiguously. \$\endgroup\$
    – Thomas Markov
    Commented Jul 22, 2021 at 22:27
  • \$\begingroup\$ @ThomasMarkov I recently have discovered how bad my reading comprehension has been in learning D&D. I think that many questions I have posted on this site have been due to just that, and for the most part have been clarified by the community. However, relying on trying to logic it out has left me with 3 questions that I am going to post today in order to understand the RAW and the logic behind them. These are questions I have been spending at least a month trying to break down and understand. Sorry if it seems silly. \$\endgroup\$
    – Victor B
    Commented Jul 22, 2021 at 22:32
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    \$\begingroup\$ @VictorB are you the DM? If you are having trouble comprehending some of the text for your game, you should seek their advice first. They hopefully are more comfortable understanding the information provided. And if you ARE the GM, then speak to your players. Getting an understanding together is better than what an external community can provide. \$\endgroup\$
    – Luke
    Commented Jul 22, 2021 at 22:38
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    \$\begingroup\$ I don't think it's a matter of the community being uncomfortable, just confused at what you find unclear. Given that the quoted text already addresses exactly what elements you keep from your original race, I think it seems like you're not confused about what the rule states, just... dissatisfied with it. \$\endgroup\$
    – V2Blast
    Commented Jul 22, 2021 at 23:48

1 Answer 1

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When taking a lineage, you retain two things from your original race:

  • skill proficiencies
  • your climbing, flying, or swimming speed

Any other trait you had is lost, including all the other examples you list.

Proficiencies include those features that say you gain proficiency with a particular skill or tool. For example the Half-Orc's Menacing trait says:

You gain proficiency in the Intimidation skill.

A Half-Orc taking the Dhampir lineage would retain their proficiency in the Intimidation skill.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ and does "swimming speed" include the amphibious trait, for example? I noticed a similar aspect on the Hexblood, but a lack of Deathless nature. I learned recently that spells like "water breathing" doesn't give a swim speed, so the reverse might apply as well... \$\endgroup\$
    – Victor B
    Commented Jul 22, 2021 at 23:03
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    \$\begingroup\$ @VictorB: I'm not sure which races have a trait called "Amphibious", but such a trait is not the same as a swim speed. Even if a race has a trait that grants a swim speed, the Ancestral Legacy trait specifically says that the only things you retain from your original race are skill proficiencies and climb/fly/swim speeds granted by the race. (You also retain the languages you knew, as mentioned under "Creating Your Character" in the Lineages section.) \$\endgroup\$
    – V2Blast
    Commented Jul 22, 2021 at 23:42
  • \$\begingroup\$ @V2Blast Sea elves, tritons, any class that has a swim speed has another entry specifically stating that the being in question can breath normally in water or air. If that needs to be specified, wouldn't the legacy races such as dhampnir then remove this trait? \$\endgroup\$
    – Victor B
    Commented Jul 22, 2021 at 23:49
  • \$\begingroup\$ @VictorB: Yes... As mentioned, the Ancestral Legacy trait specifically says that the only things you retain from your original race are skill proficiencies and climb/fly/swim speeds granted by the race. (And your known languages also don't change, as mentioned under "Creating Your Character" in the Lineages section.) How you explain these changes narratively is up to you and your DM, but that's how it works mechanically. \$\endgroup\$
    – V2Blast
    Commented Jul 22, 2021 at 23:54

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