There are no "races" in WoW

[Professor Expert]

Races are a subtype of the same species denoted by varying physical traits and characteristics.

In WoW the orcs, humans, forsaken and elves are all different species - they ARE NOT races...so why do players and Blizzard continue to refer to them as "races"?

There may very well be races within the species of WoW - you could say that blood elves and night elves are both races of the elf species, but people and Blizzard need to correct themselves and stop using "race" to refer to what actually are different species.

[Rabidwhale]

Semantics my friend.

[Rankin]

Except they can all interbreed, Orcs and Draenei, Orcs and Ogres, Humans and Elves, Half Orc/Half Draenei and Humans.

[DEATHETERNAL]

Except they can all interbreed, Orcs and Draenei, Orcs and Ogres, Humans and Elves, Half Orc/Half Draenei and Humans.

My thoughts exactly. It seems that most if not all of the playable races are in fact members of the same species regardless of the fact that that makes absolutely no sense since they originated from differing original species without a common ancestor (unless simply being created by the titans counts as a shared ancestry thereby rendering all the original creations of the titans of a common ancestry despite their inability to interbreed in their original form depending on what original creations you are specifically referring to).

[Funky Kong]

Science and WoW don't mix. Trying to rationalize it is a waste of energy.

[chazus]

Are Forest Trolls, Ice Trolls, Jungle Trolls, not different races of trolls? Dark Iron Dwarves? Green and Brown orcs? Night Elves, High Elves, Blood Elves?

[DEATHETERNAL]

science and wow don't mix. Trying to rationalize it is a waste of energy.

Unbeliever!

[Professor Expert]

Except they can all interbreed, Orcs and Draenei, Orcs and Ogres, Humans and Elves, Half Orc/Half Draenei and Humans.

The ability of two species to interbreed does not make the two species identical, it just makes them biologically compatible. It's also highly unlikely that, if any of these species were real, that they'd be able to breed with each other. As humans we're ~95% genetically identical to chimps, yet we cannot breed with them.

[Akutare]

Except they can all interbreed, Orcs and Draenei, Orcs and Ogres, Humans and Elves, Half Orc/Half Draenei and Humans.

That isn't actually a hard and fast grounds for species classification either. Some creatures can hybridize but are still considered separate species because it's either less successful or just a rare occurrence.

Of course, it honestly doesn't make any sense that draenei and orcs can interbreed. They are from two different worlds and should share no common ancestry. Of course, Wow follows more of a creation model as you have a bunch of random branches that sprung up spontaneously then sort of diverged.

Mostly though calling what appears to be different species "races" is just a standard fantasy thing to do.

The fact that you can have an orc/draenei/human though in this world is pretty maddening, but ultimately the creators of this world willed it to be so, so to some point evolution and speciation doesn't have to apply completely.

[Kayb]

it's a computer game. stop thinking so hard.

[Tya]

Heya,

Biochemist here.

WoW races can interbreed and hence do not qualify as different species. To be a different species, two organisms have to be incapable of exchanging genetic information.

As such, "race" is a more fitting term than "species".

[Professor Expert]

My thoughts exactly. It seems that most if not all of the playable races are in fact members of the same species regardless of the fact that that makes absolutely no sense since they originated from differing original species without a common ancestor (unless simply being created by the titans counts as a shared ancestry thereby rendering all the original creations of the titans of a common ancestry despite their inability to interbreed in their original form depending on what original creations you are specifically referring to).

On earth we're all carbon-based life that is borne of the same fundamental stuff. On a cellular or even molecular level, all earth life is very similar and various species have evolved from the same base "mix" of components, including the same single-celled organisms that go on to be come both plants as well as creatures like fish and birds. Having a common ancestor doesn't mean all life on earth is a bunch of "races" - we are a collection of species.

The concept of race isn't really applied to any species on earth other than humans. Animals and plants of the same species are categorized as "sub-species".

In WoW you can choose from playable SPECIES not races, with the exception of blood elves/night elves and maybe gnomes/dwarfs.

- - - Updated - - -

Heya,

Biochemist here.

WoW races can interbreed and hence do not qualify as different species. To be a different species, two organisms have to be incapable of exchanging genetic information.

As such, "race" is a more fitting term than "species".

Doubt it.

The ability of two different species to breed would largely be determined by the compatibility of their sexual organs, as well as the ability of each parents' chromosomes to match up.

Mules are the offspring of TWO DIFFERENT SPECIES, a horse and a donkey. The resulting mule is its not species since it is sterile, it's certainly not a "race" within the "horse species".

[Magpai]

Just want to point out that this "problem" is hardly unique to WoW. This semantic issue is a very old one.

[lopk]

Just want to point out that this "problem" is hardly unique to WoW. This semantic issue is a very old one.

I was just going to say the same thing. I literally don't think I've ever seen an mmorpg with different "races" and call it something different. While changing the name to "species" may be correct, I would think that it's entirely - beyond entirely unnecessary.

On the other hand, I see Blizzard and every other game makers misuse pronouns and no one bats an eye. Except me. Really rustles meh jimmies.

Edit: Besides, can't we make it so the term "race" has a different meaning when referring to fantasy creatures?

[ringpriest]

It's ultimately the result of Gary Gygax deciding to call elves, dwarves, and so on "races" in the original D&D materials. The term stuck and roleplaying games and their digital descendants have continued to use it through the present day.

[DEATHETERNAL]

Doubt it.

The ability of two different species to breed would largely be determined by the compatibility of their sexual organs, as well as the ability of each parents' chromosomes to match up.

Mules are the offspring of TWO DIFFERENT SPECIES, a horse and a donkey. The resulting mule is its not species since it is sterile, it's certainly not a "race" within the "horse species".

A horse and a donkey are not of the same species for just that reason, they offspring is not viable for reproduction in the vast majority of cases. If, on the other hand, horses and donkeys could produce offspring that was generally for producing further offspring, they would be of the same species and simply different races or subspecies or whatever you wish to call them.

If the half orc (for example) was generally born without the ability to procreate, then orcs and humans would be different species. As the offspring of an orc and a human is viable for further reproduction, they are most certainly members of the same species.

An interesting case if you enjoy the general topic is that of the Wholphin. A Wholphin can produce offspring with varying degrees of success arguably making Bottlenose Dolphins and False Killer Whales different races or subspecies within the same species despite their current classification under different genus.

[Alltat]

Green and Brown orcs?

It's hard to say, since they have a shared origin but have since diverged. We can't really know how big the differences actually are.

Of course, Wow follows more of a creation model...

WoW very explicitly follows a creation model: the titans did it. With an artificial rather than evolutionary origin for the different races, terms like "race" and "species" become rather meaningless. For all we know, the races may all have the same genome, with the differences being in which genes are expressed. It's kind of meaningless to speculate with artificial races.

Biochemist here.

Biochemistry is not biology. From what I understand, the distinction is a bit more complex than that (and also a bit fuzzier).

[JNovster]

Nope, the Biochemist was correct. According to the Biological Species concept, arguably the most accepted definition of a species in the scientific world, for two organisms to be from different species they must be incompatible when mating, thus interbreeding does not occur (reproductive isolation).

In WoW, the "species" interbreed, and thus would be consider different races or at most different sub species.

You can find more information by googling the Biological Species Concept.

Source: im a Bio major

[Detheavn]

If the half orc (for example) was generally born without the ability to procreate, then orcs and humans would be different species. As the offspring of an orc and a human is viable for further reproduction, they are most certainly members of the same species.

I think Med'an (whi si quarter orc, qquarter draenei and half human) would be a perfect example of this then. His mother was the product of and orc and a draenei and she was able to have Med'an with Medhiv.

[DrStiglit]

Forsaken cannot breed with anything...