More Racial "Stats" from Lore
Strictly from a lore perspective, the "stats" for each race break down like this:
Xaela Au Ra: physically strongest of all races
Plainsfolk Lalafell: very good hearing
Dunesfolk Lalafell: resistant to many (non-Eorzean) poisons, aptitude for magic
Wildwood Elezen: best eyesight, best hearing, natural affinity for magic
Duskwight Elezen: best hearing and uncanny awareness
Seeker Miqo'te: best smell, exceptional balance, very good stamina and agility
Keeper Miqo'te: best smell, exceptional balance
Midlander Hyur: most educated, keen aptitude for magic
Highlander Hyur: very good stamina and physical strength
Sea Wolf Roegadyn: very good physical strength, best stamina, generally open-minded
Hellsguard Roegadyn: very good physical strength, best stamina, great mages
Sources:
1.0 Character Creation Wrote:The long, pointy ears of the Plainsfolk are extremely sensitive, said to be able to detect the faintest scampering of the prairie's various fauna.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Averaging some thirty-five ilms in height, the Lalafell are by far the smallest of Eorzea's races. What they lack in physical strength, however, they more than make up for in swiftness of reflexes and sharpness of mind. Underestimating a Lalafell has been a costly mistake for more than a few men. Hair of grassy and earthen colors is common among Plainsfolk, with dubious theories claiming that these hues evolved to camouflage their bearers from the sight of the fearsome vultures that roam the skies above their island home.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Another unique Dunesfolk practice is that of feeding their children cups of herb tea infused with minuscule portions of diluted snake and scorpion venom. As such, Dunesfolk raised in traditional households often display a remarkable resistance to certain poisons.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Dunesfolk miners also rival the Roegadyn in their numbers and accomplishments, making up for their lack of brute strength with resourcefulness and the ability to delve into the narrowest tunnels.
1.0 Character Creation Wrote:For hundreds of years the Wildwood Elezen have lived in the relative safety of Eorzea's lush forests. They are blessed with extremely keen eyesight - a contributing factor to their famous talent for archery.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Owing in part to their large ears, they possess a sense of hearing keener than that of the other races. The Wildwood Elezen also display a natural affinity for magic, with great mages hailing from this clan seen throughout history.
1.0 Character Creation Wrote:As part of their physical adaptation, the Duskwight have developed an acute sense of hearing, capable of detecting the faintest of sounds. This natural gift grants them uncanny awareness, which many have put to exemplary use in the field of hand-to-hand combat.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Similar in height and build to their Wildwood cousins, the defining trait of the Duskwight is the color of their skin, which has come to take on darker hues after generations of calling shadowy caverns home. For the selfsame reason, they also possess an evolved sense of hearing - their ability to ascertain the source of a sound with unerring accuracy, unaffected by echoes or reverberations, is often likened to that of the shadow-dwelling bat.
1.0 Lodestone Wrote:Adaptation to a hunting lifestyle has fashioned [Miqo'te] with a keen sense of smell, powerful legs, and a tail which provides them with exceptional balance.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:The agile Miqo'te value freedom of movement above all else, shunning unwieldy armor that might restrict their range of motion. Miqo'te legwear is invariably perforated with a hole through which the tail dangles free, allowing them to maintain their unerring sense of balance.
Vavaki Wrote:The Seekers of the Sun are a true miracle of evolution at work. Though lean and flexible, they possess immense strength and stamina, and excel at near any physical act─be it bounding amongst the treetops or swimming in rough waters. Above all that, their powers of expression are also second to none.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Roughly a head shorter and smaller of body than the average Hyur, the Seekers are blessed with a wiry strength, surpassing agility, and the stamina to run for hours under the blazing sun - a combination of traits that makes them uncommonly suited to hunting in arid climes. As many Seekers are adept at climbing and diving, they also make for excellent sailors.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Save for their longer tail, the Keepers are nearly identical to their Seeker cousins in physical stature, and can be distinguished by their fur, dark as the night fog, and the large pupils of their eyes. Though lacking the physical stamina of the Seekers, they make up for this with a fierce strength of will and unerring instincts. With their keen intuition, Keeper hunters have been known to easily snare even targets concealed in the gloom of night.
1.0 Lodestone Wrote:[Keepers of the Moon] are distinguishable from their diurnal cousins by their darker fur, larger ears, rounder eyes, more pronounced canines, and longer, skinnier tails.
1.0 Character Creation Wrote:Trained in letters from infancy, the Midlanders are generally more educated than many of the other races and clans.
Merewina Wrote:Midlanders do not possess the endless stamina of the Roegadyn, nor the hawk-like eyes of the Elezen, nor the hound-like noses of the Miqote, nor the deer-like ears of the Lalafell, nor even the muscle-bound builds of their cousins, the Highland Hyur. Then how, you ask, is it that they became the most prevalent race in the realm? Why, I believe it is their creativity and craft, combined with their intrinsic ability to adapt and borrow from other cultures.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Midlanders often display a keen aptitude for magic, with Midlander mages adept in teleportation magic serving a vital role in many an adventuring party.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Highlanders are noticeably taller and more muscular than Midlanders, with full-grown men reaching towering heights of nigh eighty ilms. Some posit that the impressive Highlander physique is the fruit of countless generations spent residing in harsh, unforgiving mountain climes, where the air is thin and each day a struggle for survival. Though some discount this theory, none can deny that the physical prowess of the Highlanders greatly outstrips that of their Midlander cousins.
Vavaki Wrote:Long years at high altitudes endowed [Highlanders] with a stamina that lent itself well to physical activity, and both the men and women are trained in the arts of combat from childhood, which accounts for their thick musculature.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Massive and heavily muscled, the Roegadyn are easily the most imposing of Eorzea's races. Oft seen vying with one another in feats of strength, they can appear barbaric to the uneducated observer, but in fact are known to be an honorable and compassionate people. The histories are filled with tales of Roegadyn warriors and their courageous deeds.
1.0 Character Creation Wrote:[Sea Wolves] are typically open-minded, and blessed with a healthy sense of humor and booming laughter, which can be heard echoing around the alehouses of most ports.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Blessed with the same bulk and brute strength as their Sea Wolf cousins, the Hellsguard can be distinguished by the color of their skin, which often takes on reddish hues akin to molten rock. Many Hellsguard partake in ascetic firewalking, training from a young age to bring out their latent mystical talents. It is doubtless due to this age-old tradition that the Hellsguard have produced so many great mages, in addition to the fearsome sword and axe-wielding warriors for which their kind are best known.
All this lore and more can be found in my racial lore compilation
here and
here.