Harengon 5E: Rabbitfolk from Wild Beyond the Witchlight

While I love a trip into the Feywild as much as the next person, one of the most exciting parts of Wild Beyond the Witchlight is the new character options. One of those options is a new rabbit race known as Harengon. learn all about them with our Harengon 5E Guide.

Harengon 5E Guide

The Harengon are a mobile DND bunny race with the ability to get out of a tight spot. While they make natural rogues, the strengths of this race fit well with any class.

What Are Harengon D&D 5E?

Harengon are humanoid rabbitfolk that originated in the Feywild. Over time, they have spread throughout the other planes of existence thanks to their spirit of freedom and love of travel.These creatures are bipedal rabbitfolk with distinct, long ears. They are covered in fur that shares the same natural colors of traditional rabbits, including browns, whites, blacks, and grays.

The harengon originate from the Feywild. However, they are natural travelers who are known for their curiosity. This curiosity has led many harengon to travel the planes as adventurers. While less common in other realms, their presence is not as unusual as it once was due to their spreading influence.

Harengon have a reputation for being energetic and excitable. Often playful, harengon are quick to jump into action whether it involves playing pranks or doing battle with dangerous foes. These rabbitfolk are incredibly mobile thanks to their powerful legs and their ability to leap far distances when necessary.

Each harengon is its own individual. Some of these creatures are noble and brave, while others are craven and evil. The type of harengon you play will depend on the character you have in mind, the nature of your traveling companions, and what your DM allows.

Building a Rabbitfolk 5E Character

The traits of the Harengon are a strong fit thematically. They focus on a rabbit’s keen senses and jumping ability to create a character that is mobile, quick, and able to avoid danger. Unlike with most characters, you can choose to be either small or medium and your walking speed is 30 feet.

Ability Score Increase

The Harengon do not have a set racial bonus for ability score increases. Instead, when determining your character’s ability scores, increase one score by 2 and increase a different score by 1, or increase three different scores by 1. This is in keeping with the approach Wizards of the Coast have adopted in recent years. If you care about optimizing your character builds, the good news is that you can play any class with a harengon character without worrying about having poorly-optimized abilities.

Harengon Languages

As a harengon, you have access to two languages. You are able to read, write, and speak common in addition to one other language of your choice. This choice should be made together with your DM to ensure you pick a language that is appropriate for the setting. If you are playing a campaign based in the Feywild, some suggested languages include Elvish, Gnomish, Sylvan, or Goblin.

Harengon Traits

There are a lot of fun options here. Hare-Trigger is a simple but effective trait. Each time you roll for initiative, you add your proficiency bonus to that roll. This is great for strength-based melee characters who would ordinarily lag in initiative rolls. As we mention in our Paladin 5E guide, offsetting low dexterity is a nice option when it is time to roll initiative. This gives you proficiency in Perception. It is also a very thematic choice for the long-awaited DND bunny race.

You get a bit of fey luck each time you fail a dexterity save. For every failed Dexterity saving throw, roll 1d4 and add it to your total. You could change a failure into a success if this pushes you over the DC. You can use this on every dexterity saving throw unless you are prone or your speed is zero.

Rabbit Hop can get you out of a jam, especially at higher levels. Using your bonus action, you can jump a number of feet equal to 5 times your proficiency bonus. When you jump in this way, you do not provoke attacks of opportunity. You can use this a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus unless your speed has been reduced to zero. While great in combat, this has a variety of uses, especially as you level.

Best Class for Harengon

What class is best for harengon? Thanks to customizable ability score bonuses, you can make anything work optimally. However, the unique racial traits that come with this character option are better for some classes than others. It should be noted, however, that most classes will benefit from the Harengon’s traits given that they are generally useful in and out of combat.

Hexblade Warlock

I love the harengon for a hexblade warlock. Gaining a boost to your initiate gives you the opportunity to cast spells early in the fight. This is great for setting up hex, hexblade’s curse, or other utility options like Darkness. Rabbit Hop is also great for this class. While your build should generally allow you to wade into melee, you are not as stout as a barbarian or fighter in most cases. The option to hop out of a swarm of enemies without taking opportunity attacks is a perfect fit for the hexblade warlock.

Glamour Bard

The glamour bard is a good fit thematically given the ties that the sublcass and the harengon both have to the Feywild. However, it is a nice fit for the harengon’s traits, as well. Rolling high for initiative is important, especially when using Mantle of Inspiration to allow allies to reposition early on in a battle. Rabbit Hop is also a great option for getting out of trouble since you are not a melee character.

Wild Magic Sorcerer

Another great fit thematically is the wild magic sorcerer. Depending on your character background, you could build your harengon around the concept of developing wild magic powers during their time in the Feywild. Dealing with the randomness of this option can be frustrating for some players, but if you don’t mind that there is a lot to like here. High initiative is always good for casters, and rabbit hop can keep you away from trouble.

Roleplaying a Harengon

The character you build is your own, and you should play it the way that makes you happy. If that includes playing your character in a way that matches the whimsical nature of the Feywild, these tips will help.

Harengon are known to be high-energy creatures, likely to hop back and forth with excitement at the smallest of stimuli. They are generally curious creatures, and many of them are imbued with magic due to their time in Feywild. If your character is quick to interest but has a short attention span, you could play your role as if you are easily distracted and constantly shifting your interest from one thing to another.

Harengon are known to travel, even across the planes. It makes sense then that you character might exude wanderlust and have a great curiosity for new places.

Harengon 5E FAQ

Is Harengon Offical 5E Content?

The Harengon is a player option released by Wizards of the Coast. Whether or not it is appropriate depends entirely on the DMs discretion, but it is an official release and not a homebrew creation. You can find the harengon race in Wild Beyond the Witchlight.

Is Harengon a Fae?

Despite its ties to the Feywild, harengon are not considered Fey creatures. Instead, they are considered to be Humanoids.

Does Rabbit Hop Use Movement in 5E?

Rabbit Hop does not use movement in 5E. The language of this trait makes it clear that this jump does not use any of your allotted movement and does not trigger any attacks of opportunity.

Can Harrengon Jump Vertically?

Harrengon can use their Rabbit Hop ability to jump vertically. As written, the trait only specifies the distance of the jump and not the direction. While up to the DMs discretion, the rules as written do not prohibit using the trait to jump vertically.

Does the Jump Spell Affect Rabbit Hop?

The jump spell does not affect the harengon’s Rabbit Hop ability. The jump spell affects a character’s ability to jump using part or all of their movement. When casting this spell, the target has the distance of their jump triple. However, Rabbit Hop does not involve the use of your movement at all. Instead, you are able to use this trait to move a specific distance as a bonus action without using your movement.

Wrapping up our Harengon 5E Guide

That’s it for our Harengon 5E guide. This rabbitfolk race might be overshadowed by the Fairy 5E race, but it is a solid addition that fits well with most classes. Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.