Why are demigods their own race?

[blueeyedlion]

From the wiki:
"Demigods are mortals (Humans, Hill Orcs, or High Elves, for example) with some divine or angelic ancestry, however distant."

This implies that being a demigod would be an optional flag for almost any race rather than being its own race. What is up with that?
(I have similar questions regarding mummies, ghouls, and vampires)

Aside from potential balance issues, I don't really see the problem with playing a naga demigod vampire <insert class here>.
I think I am probably missing some reason this isn't the case.

[nicolae]

From the wiki:
"Demigods are mortals (Humans, Hill Orcs, or High Elves, for example) with some divine or angelic ancestry, however distant."

This implies that being a demigod would be an optional flag for almost any race rather than being its own race. What is up with that?
(I have similar questions regarding mummies, ghouls, and vampires)

Aside from potential balance issues, I don't really see the problem with playing a naga demigod vampire <insert class here>.
I think I am probably missing some reason this isn't the case.

Potential balance issues are pretty important, but also: it'd probably be a pain in the ass to implement, and it's not really necessary. Presumably, your divine ancestry or conversion to undeath altered your body and mind to an overwhelming degree, obliterating all but the most cosmetic vestiges of your former mortal, mundane form.

[XuaXua]

Was going to ask the same thing about Demigods recently.

[blueeyedlion]

"obliterating all but the most cosmetic vestiges of your former mortal, mundane form."

My response: centaur, naga, felid, octopode (I suppose these two have an excuse).

[XuaXua]

No self-respecting god would debase itself in that fashion.

[blueeyedlion]

"No self-respecting god would debase itself in that fashion."
Very true... and then there is Xom.

"in 0.13 all demigods are forced to worship xom or something"
The demigod worshipers are a thing now?!

Also, for the sake of the argument, I would like you to picture a demigod vampire octopode. Would that not be endlessly amusing (and also be Cthulhu)?

[Marbit]

Well, I guess we don't have octopode or naga vampires because that would be complicated. Crawl takes a lot of unrealistic licences out of convinience; elves, orcs and dwarfs can use the same armour without problems and a banana can block a door. In the same line all vampires have the same structure because it is easier to accomodate than making a another layer of mutations that you may add over your character... then again our vampires are different:

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/OurVampiresAreDifferent

Justify the non existance of a vampires with naga/centaur/octopode/felid body plan as a radical transformation after they became undead or as the imposibility to become a vampire if you don't have a human body plan.

[dpeg]

"in 0.13 all demigods are forced to worship xom or something"

The demigod worshipers are a thing now?!

No, although there is code, speech and a trunk branch as of yet. It's completely unclear if the abstract worshipers make it into 0.13 -- I have some hope.
minmay's comment is his obnoxious self speaking: future DG will, of course, be nothing like Xom worship, and you will be able to completely ignore the additional content.

[TeshiAlair]

I always viewed Demigods as something more abstract. Almost like Xerath from League of Legends, just a barely-contained creature made of power.

Huh. Now that I say that, Djinns might have been a cool way to upgrade demigods.