Tabaxi Race 5e: Lore and Game Guide
The DnD Tabaxi race is one of the many playable choices for players of Dungeons & Dragons (DnD). They were first introduced as a playable character race in the game guide Volo’s Guide to Monsters for the 5th DnD edition (5e). Tabaxis are cat-like humanoids who hail from distant places in search of treasures or some wanderlust. Get to know more about Tabaxi’s lore including our featured game guide in the following sections below.
Table of Contents
Article Summary:
- Tabaxi is a playable race in the game Dungeons & Dragons (DnD).
- They are cat-like humanoids who hail from distant places in search of treasures or some wanderlust.
- Tabaxis share most of their physical characteristics with feline creatures such as leopards, jaguars, and panthers.
- Their personality dictates their curiosity and motivation throughout the campaign, which may give an advantage or disadvantage depending on the situation.
- Tabaxi characters have racial advantages like increased dexterity and charisma, dark vision, feline agility, and cat’s claws.
Tabaxi Race 5e Name Generator
There are no written accounts that detail the origins of the Tabaxi aside from the lore that they were created by a deity called The Cat Lord. They prefer to isolate themselves and dwell in their homeland, Maztica, far away from the civilized societies of humans and demi-humans. They spend most of their days hunting for food and crafting goods, and most of all, keep to themselves and become unbothered by outside affairs. Despite their preference for isolation and peace, they remain curious creatures wondering about the happenings outside their little abode.
Tabaxi Characteristics in D&D 5e
Tabaxis share most of their physical characteristics with feline creatures such as leopards, jaguars, and panthers. Thus, they were called “Cat People” or “Cat Folks” by humans who meet them. They have long tails, striped or spotted furs, sharp teeth, and catlike paws. Their humanoid characteristic gives them the ability to stand upright and hold weapons as if they have hands. They can wield weapons, and wear clothing and armor. Yet they remain catlike, and they are, in many ways, agile and athletic like cats.
It is a common belief among the Tabaxi race that The Cat Lord gifts each newborn Tabaxi a unique feline characteristic—such as the gift of curiosity. Those who were gifted with curiosity are heavily driven with wanderlust, seeking unknown stories, treasures, and treacherous adventures.
One might think that the Tabaxi crave rare riches and relics, but few knew that it is the wide treasure of knowledge that they desire the most. For them, wealth is nothing but a means to survive the world and is not worth the effort to collect in vast amounts. Despite this, their curiosity still urges them to examine rare objects, magical items, and ancient artifacts. Their very purpose on these items, however, is to study them, unravel their secrets, and learn their stories.
Their pointy ears straighten up when they hear stories from conversing strangers around them. They even bride people with coins and drinks just to squeeze out information from gossip or tales. When two wandering Tabaxi meets, they often trade information about the latest curiosities from places they visit. Some become too obsessed with information, to the point they resort to burglary or rogue-like activities just to obtain rare gems, treasure maps, and letters to satisfy their unsatiated curiosity.
Game Guide 1: DnD 5e Tabaxi Racial Stats
When using a Tabaxi character, players should consider Tabaxi’s personality first. Their personality dictates their curiosity and motivation throughout the campaign, which may give an advantage or disadvantage depending on the situation. These personalities are dictated by Tabaxi Obsessions and Tabaxi Quirks.
Tabaxi Obsessions |
Tabaxi Quirks | ||
| d8 | My curiosity is currently fixed on… | d8 | Quirk |
| 1 | A god or planar entity | 1 | You miss your tropical home and complain endlessly about the freezing weather, even in summer. |
| 2 | A monster | 2 | You never wear the same outfit twice, unless you absolutely must. |
| 3 | A lost civilization | 3 | You have a minor phobia of water and hate getting wet. |
| 4 | A Wizard’s secret | 4 | Your tail always betrays your inner thoughts. |
| 5 | A mundane item | 5 | You purr loudly when you are happy. |
| 6 | A magic item | 6 | You keep a small ball of yarn in your hand, which you constantly fidget with. |
| 7 | A location | 7 | You are always in debt since you spend your gold on lavish parties and gifts for friends. |
| 8 | A legend or tale | 8 | When talking about something you’re obsessed with, you speak quickly and never pause and others can’t understand you. |
| 9 | You are a font of random trivia from the lore and stories you have discovered. | ||
| 10 | You can’t help but pocket interesting objects you come across. | ||
Tabaxi Racial Traits
Tabaxi characters have the following racial advantages:
| Ability Score Increase | Tabaxi has a +2 in Dexterity and +1 in Charisma. |
| Age | Tabaxi’s lifespan is the same as humans. |
| Alignment | Tabaxis are chaotic neutral or chaotic good and rarely evil. |
| Size | Tabaxi tends to be much taller than most humans with sender bodies. Their size is Medium |
| Speed | A Tabaxi’s base walking speed is 30 feet. |
| Dark Vision | Their catlike eyes allow them to see in the dark within 60 feet. They interpret darkness as dim light but cannot discern colors in it. |
| Feline Agility | The Tabaxi’s catlike reflexes allow them to move with bursts of speed. When they move or are in combat, they can double their speed until the end of the turn. |
| Cat’s Claws | Their sharp catlike paws allow them to climb with ease. Tabaxis have a climbing speed of 20 feet. Moreover, their claws can serve as natural weapons that can be used to perform unarmed strikes. Tabaxis deals slashing damage equal to 1d4 + Strength modifier. |
| Cat’s Talent | Tabaxis have proficiency in Perception and Stealth skills. |
| Languages | Tabaxis can speak, read, and write Common and another language of the player’s choice. |
Name Guide: Tabaxi 5e Names Convention
A Tabaxi only has a single name. This name is often dictated by a complex formula involving astrology, prophecy, history, and other factors, and is dictated by the clan. Their names are genderless, and they utilize nicknames based on their full names. Tabaxi surnames are based on geographical features found around the clan’s territories.
Tabaxi 5e Name Suggestions
Below are some examples of Tabaxi names followed by a clan name and a nickname enclosed in parenthesis.
Starry Hilltop (Star)
Enigmatic Skies (Enigma)
Storm Mountain Dew (Storm)
Kicker Armstrong (Kick)
Mystical Cove (Mystic)
Three Stone Cliff (Third)
Porcelain River South (Porce)
Sickle Land Claw (Claw)
Vanishing Misty Rain (Rain)
Conquering Coastline Shore (Con)
Game Guide 2: Tabaxi 5e Versions
The Tabaxi race has received adjustments throughout new releases of game guides in the 5th edition. The original and classic version of Tabaxi was first introduced in Volo’s Guide to Monsters. It was then carried out in the next book, Explorer’s Guide to Wildemount.
The Custom Origin Rule paved the way for the second version of the Tabaxi. In this change, players are allowed to rearrange Tabaxi’s ability score and skill proficiencies to fit into other classes. The third version returned Tabaxi’s original proficiency to perception and stealth. This change was introduced in the book Monsters of the Multiverse.
Game Guide 3: Recommendations on Tabaxi Classes in 5e DnD
When picking classes, it is always the best option to pair the racial traits into a fitting character class in DnD. This is to create a more advantageous skillset for your character throughout the campaign and avoid unutilized talents or traits. Below are our suggested class recommendations if you are planning to use a Tabaxi PC.
| Class | Rate | Description |
| Artificer | Rarely Recommended | The Artificer class is unlikely recommended for a Tabaxi because of its lack of compatibility with the Taaxi’s trait sets. The ability spread is also bad considering that Tabaxis earns a bonus in Dexterity and Charisma. |
| Barbarian | Rarely Recommended | Players who want to have a Barbarian class will have to heavily invest in Strength ability scores to make a Tabaxi Barbarian a relevant character. Although a Barbarian class will greatly benefit on utility abilities such as climbing speed and the Feline Agility. |
| Bard | Highly Recommended | Tabaxi’s bonus in charisma and dexterity also benefits the Bard class. Lore-wise, Bards, and Tabaxis are quite similar due to their curiosity and lust for information and stories. |
| Cleric | Rarely Recommended | Tabaxi lacks the Wisdom score to fit Cleric’s spell demands. Players will find it hard to utilize a Tabaxi PC under the Cleric class because of the incompatible traits. |
| Druid | Rarely Recommended | Druids can benefit from Feline Agility while using Wild Shapes. Other than that, there are no added benefits for a Tabaxi under the Druid class. |
| Fighter | Recommended | Fighter characters greatly benefit in a race geared toward Dexterity. A Tabaxi Fighter may consider dexterity-based weapons such as a rapier or bow and arrows. The climb speed and added agility from Feline Agility is a great kit for a Dexterity-centered fighter. |
| Monk | Recommended | Like Fighters, a Dexterity-based Monk also benefits from the Tabaxi traits. The speed increase of the Monk stacks with the Tabaxi’s climbs speed. The only limitation is Tabaxi’s unarmed strike ignoring the slashing damage with the Monk’s increased unarmed strike. |
| Paladin | Highly Recommended | For players intending to create a hybrid Dexterity-based paladin, the Tabaxi will be a good choice. Dexterity and Charisma are also a good combination for this kind of paladin. If stealth is intended to be used, players can utilize it well with a Tabaxi character. On the other hand, if they want a frontline paladin, a Tabaxi with heavy armor paired with Feline Agility for melee combat will be deadly. |
| Ranger | Recommended | The Ranger class is a good alternative to a Dexterity-based Fighter or Monk. The increased score indexterity from the Tabaxi trait greatly benefits the Ranger class which is always geared towards dexterity. The bonus proficiencies and skills supplement the lacking impact of a Bard or a Rogue. The only drawback for this build is the lack of the Wisdom increase, which is often supplemented by a Kenku character. |
| Rogue | Highly Recommended | The bonus ability score of the Tabaxi is perfectly aligned with the Rogue. Rogues capitalize on climb speed and Darkvision, the traits that are naturally acquired by the Tabaxi race. Feline Agility and Cunning Action can work together by using the Dash action, allowing the Rogue to move up to six times their usual speed. |
| Sorcerer | Rarely Recommended | The Tabaxi’s climb speed and Feline Agility become useless when you can fly or use teleport as a Sorcerer. Additionally, the added dexterity and speed will be useless if you can just cast spells from a long range. |
| Warlock | Rarely Recommended | Dexterity and Charisma work well for a warlock class. Charisma increases the warlock’s spell while dexterity with buffs the AC. However, the racial traits of the Tabaxis don’t offer anything else to benefit the Warlock class. |
| Wizard | Rarely Recommended | The Wizard class is the worst class for the Tabaxi. No Tabaxi traits or racial skills will function well in a wizard class. |
In Conclusion
The Tabaxi of DnD 5e is catlike humanoids that came from the distant land of Maztica. They are a curious group of humanoids who wander the world in search of knowledge, stories, lore, and treasures. They favor knowledge above anything else and treats material wealth as nothing but a means to survive.
Tabaxi is often chaotic neutral and rarely evil. Their racial traits center on being agile, with them having the bonus climbing speed and Feline Agility trait. Additionally, they have a bonus ability score in Dexterity and Charisma, making them great Rogues in campaigns.
The recommended classes for the Tabaxi are the Bard, Fighter, Monk, Paladin, Ranger, and Rogue. The Sorcerer, Warlock, and Wizard are the least suggested class for them.
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