DnD Harengon 5e species guide

The rabbit-like DnD Harengon are a curious, whimsical, and delightfully swift species to play in any Dungeons & Dragons setting. Originating from the magical realms of the D&D Feywild, the Harengon hopped into other worlds, urged on by a love of freedom, exuberance, and travel. They do not have their own society, preferring instead a vagabond lifestyle in groups or travelling solo. Let’s look at the Harengon, first revealed as an official playable species in the Feywild D&D supplement Wild Beyond the Witchlight and later included in Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse.

Before we jump into the world of the Harengon 5e, here are a few extra D&D guides for anyone creating a character. Our DnD races (AKA species), DnD classes, and DnD backgrounds guides can help you choose your path – and our DnD character sheets guide will even show you the handiest way to write all these details down.

Let’s hop back into this species guide and meet the DnD Harengon 5e.

Playing a DnD Harengon 5e

Appearance-wise, the Harengon are bipedal and covered in fur in neutral colours ranging from beige to white and grey. Energetic and somewhat mischievous, Harengon also have keen senses and powerful legs which can spring them up super high — and are also one of their biggest advantages mechanically in D&D combat.

Harengons are big fans of groups, and they tend to emulate the company they keep over time. They also live a long time, with their average lifespan being just over a hundred years. Temperament-wise, they are very playful and enjoy games like hide and seek. Their personalities tend to be exuberant and high-energy, and Harengons are naturally very quick on their feet.

This presents itself mechanically for them in various ways. First, there’s the Hare-Trigger species feature, which allows you to add your proficiency bonus to your initiative rolls, meaning you’ve got a higher chance of going first in combat.

Second, they have the mighty Rabbit Hop. As a bonus action, you can spring up a number of feet equal to five times your proficiency bonus. This vertical jump lets you spring out of the way of danger, as it does not provoke an opportunity attack from enemies — so it’s pretty handy for escaping sticky situations. You can use it a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus and get a recharge on a short rest. It’s also pretty handy for bypassing difficult terrain.

Next, Lucky Footwork lets you add a d4 to any failed Dexterity saving throw as a reaction, increasing your odds of passing that pesky save after all. Last but not least, Leporine Senses give your Harengon proficiency in Perception, meaning they are naturally good at picking up threats, treasure, and anything else detected by keen senses.

You can also pick between small and medium sizes for your Harengon. A more stealthy Rogue 5e might benefit from being small, however, if you’d like to wield bigger DnD weapons, you’ll need to be a medium size.

Best classes for Harengon 5e

The custom origin rules in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything provide a lot of flexibility when choosing your character’s DnD stats and DnD skills. This means a species like the Harengon can be competent in a wide range of classes. That being said, here are a few of our favourite picks:

Playing a Harengon Bard 5e

Naturally inclined toward wanderlust and the travelling lifestyle, where curiosities and fancies abound, Harengons are an excellent choice for a Bard 5e. As Bards are more often than not utility players focused on buffing other characters and controlling the field, that initiative bonus gleaned from the Harengon ability Hare Trigger can prove useful for setting up those buffs early.

And while Bards aren’t exactly glass canons like other spellcasters, they also aren’t tanks. As such, the Harengdon ability Rabbit Hop can be very useful for getting out of scrapes unharmed, especially if you’ve thrown yourself into the fray to help a party member.

A few Bard subclasses lend themselves to the Harengon. For example, the Fey-infused College of Glamour uses songs and dances to charm foes, and the oratory class College of Eloquence makes you a master of theatrics and wordplay – both of which suit the Harengon’s background perfectly.

Playing a Harengon Cleric 5e

Similar to the Bard, many Cleric 5e subclasses focus on utility in battle, and as such, can also benefit from that initiative boost from Hare Trigger. Even better, fighting Cleric characters can also spring away with Rabbit Hop.

It’s perfect for a medic-style ability with a Life Domain Cleric, meaning you can bounce in and out healing your companions on the front line. Meanwhile, a Trickery Domain Cleric suits the mischievous Harengon nature and can be multi-classed with the dexterous rogue class for extra chaos.

Playing a Harengon Monk 5e

The Monk 5e class is based around your Wisdom stat, so the high Perception of Leporine Senses will stack well with your existing Perception skill modifiers. Even better, Monks tend to hop around the field anyway, so Rabbit Hop will have you literally bounding up to enemies and then away again.

Monk subclass Way of the Drunken Master is great fun for hit-and-run techniques, plus subclass skill Drunkard’s Luck, which lets you burn Monk resource Ki for saving throws, could stack well with Lucky Footwork in a jam.

Meanwhile, standard Monk class Way of the Open Hand sees you speeding around the battlefield unleashing flurries of blows, making your Rabbit Hop both a good defensive and offensive ability.