So, I checked some real-world info. Here's why, Lions and Hyenas are both members of Feliformia, which means Lionnin and Gnolls are technically related.
With all the species slowly getting updates with the new 2024 materials, it's only a matter of time before they print a revised version of Leonnin (which I actually like seeing for various reasons) and new rules for how half-breeds work (Half-Elves too popular for the develop team to completely ignore for long) which will likely allow players to create their own mix and match half-breeds, complete with source book the new half-breed rules appear in giving a few examples (of which Half-Elves will most likely be among). My thoughts, the same book revised Leonnin appear in could have Gnolls show up as a player option, seeing as how many homebrew Gnolls as a player option I've seen on D&D Beyond it would likely be a notable missed opportunity to keep out as an official playable option. The new official Leonnin material could even mention a new discovery about their surprising relation to Gnolls, especially if Gnolls appear as a player option in the same source material.
Going by the current trajectory, Gnolls look to be in the same design space as Mindflayers: humanoid in form, but not categorized as such and consistently written as something with an inhuman mindset that’s not really compatible with a peaceful coexistence with other beings. Even the Monsters of the Multiverse entry describes them as creations of dark magic intended for specific purposes rather than a truly sapient and independent race. This does not make it categorically wrong for someone to approach them differently in their homebrew, but by all indications 5e is keeping gnolls firmly on the monster/NPC side of things rather than setting them up as a PC option.
Also, I highly doubt they’ll ever create “mix and match” rules for mixed heritage PCs. Aside from the part where it’d be a massive pain in the neck to keep all possible sets of features roughly balanced, that leans way too close to some of the really icky arguments people make about mixed ethnic pairings IRL, and nobody at WotC wants to touch that with a collapsible pole, let alone associate their products with it.
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So, I checked some real-world info. Here's why, Lions and Hyenas are both members of Feliformia, which means Lionnin and Gnolls are technically related.
With all the species slowly getting updates with the new 2024 materials, it's only a matter of time before they print a revised version of Leonnin (which I actually like seeing for various reasons) and new rules for how half-breeds work (Half-Elves too popular for the develop team to completely ignore for long) which will likely allow players to create their own mix and match half-breeds, complete with source book the new half-breed rules appear in giving a few examples (of which Half-Elves will most likely be among). My thoughts, the same book revised Leonnin appear in could have Gnolls show up as a player option, seeing as how many homebrew Gnolls as a player option I've seen on D&D Beyond it would likely be a notable missed opportunity to keep out as an official playable option. The new official Leonnin material could even mention a new discovery about their surprising relation to Gnolls, especially if Gnolls appear as a player option in the same source material.
Going by the current trajectory, Gnolls look to be in the same design space as Mindflayers: humanoid in form, but not categorized as such and consistently written as something with an inhuman mindset that’s not really compatible with a peaceful coexistence with other beings. Even the Monsters of the Multiverse entry describes them as creations of dark magic intended for specific purposes rather than a truly sapient and independent race. This does not make it categorically wrong for someone to approach them differently in their homebrew, but by all indications 5e is keeping gnolls firmly on the monster/NPC side of things rather than setting them up as a PC option.
Also, I highly doubt they’ll ever create “mix and match” rules for mixed heritage PCs. Aside from the part where it’d be a massive pain in the neck to keep all possible sets of features roughly balanced, that leans way too close to some of the really icky arguments people make about mixed ethnic pairings IRL, and nobody at WotC wants to touch that with a collapsible pole, let alone associate their products with it.