Character Races

A Race is chosen along with a class when creating a Charecter in The World R:2. Each race is a part of the story of The World, and, as with classes, each race influences a character's beginning stats.

Humans

They are an ancient race said to be the true descendants of the elves. Many humans have a tendency to look down on the beast tribe because of their primitive way of thinking and technology. The animosity between the two races has caused strife in the past. All humans have very average abilities (parameters) and are capable of doing just about anything. They are highly adaptable and able to handle all kinds of obstacles that come to them.

Humans come with many different appearances in the game, and have average stats. The have developed technologies such as Steam Alchemy.
Beasts

Beasts

Beasts are a race of creatures with the body of a human, and the head and tail of an animal. They place a high value on the technology and culture from ancient times, and tend to resist innovations. As a result, steam technology has yet to spread in their cities. Beasts are separated into three tribes that are differentiated by their appearances and abilities (parameters). Although beasts possess amazing abilities and skills in some areas, they are also often extremely vulnerable in others. They pose fierce united fronts with their tribe to overcome these vulnerabilities.Beasts have three tribes:

Ya Tribe
Beasts of the Ya Tribe have fairly large bodies.Although they have bodies of steel that are capable of resisting physical damage, they have limited understanding of magic and are very vulnerable against magic attacks.Ya Tribe Beasts appear large and intimidating, boasting high strength and defense. However, they have low magic defense and attack stats. Their name comes from the Chinese word for "fang"

Lei Tribe
Beasts of Lei Tribe possess bodies that are similar in proportion to humans and have the quickest reflexes and speed. They have average physical and magical abilities similar to humans, but are slightly less resilient.Lei Tribe Beasts- Although Lei Tribe Beasts usually have the size and shape of human characters, they tend to have canine or feline appearances. Lei Tribe Beasts have high speed and agility, but poor defense.

Tu Tribe
Beasts of the Tu Tribe are smaller than the others. They are highly sensitive and possess great magical abilities and wisdom, but their bodies are much more fragile and they pose almost no resistance to physical attack.Tu Tribe Beasts (ウ族) are small animals in appearance. They have limited defense and strength attributes, however, their magic attack and defense are are very high. All members of Medic Union use this race. Their name comes from the Chinese word for "hare" (兎).

NPC Races
Vital Vistas

Vital Vistas are machine dolls created by steam technology and are treated as domestic servants by humans. They have high dexterity and are capable of operating complex devices that even humans have difficulty with. They are also equipped with self-awareness equal to a child and are able to judge matters on their own. Recently, some Vital Vistas have come to possess self-awareness very close to humans. They have become self-sufficient and started to disobey commands issued by their masters. Some now live independently in towns and have jobs. More and more humans are now worried that eventually the Vital Vistas will revolt against them.Vital Vistas are dolls made by humans. They are powered by steam, with varying degrees of consciousness and intelligence. These NPCs act as shopkeepers and quest characters. They have black, featureless faces, and are shorter and rounder than humans in stature.

Elves

Elves are a race that died out long ago.They are said to be the ancestors of all humans and beasts.Elves were the ancestor race of both Humans and Beasts, and were responsible for building many of the ruins that can be found in the game. Cursed by the gods, the Elves are now extinct and there are no traces that any still exist.

Spirits

Spirits are tiny sprites that inhabit streams and forests. Magic spells harness their powers.Spirits are harnessed by the spellcasters of The World R:2. Harvest Clerics ally themselves with the light spirits, while Shadow Warlocks ally themselves with the dark spirits, and Macabre Dancers ally with both.

Grunties

Grunties are pig-like creatures that players of The World can raise in Root Towns as virtual pets. As a type of NPC, most Grunties can speak. Their backstory, appearance, and uses are dramatically different between the two different versions of The World
Grunties in The World

In The World, Grunties are used as a method of transportation across fields, useful for avoiding Magic Portals. According to the mythology of The World, Grunties are the messengers of the great god Hebiguso, and the inhabitants of The World care for them to gain his favor. Players start out with a Baby Grunty, and by finding and feeding them various kinds of Grunty Food, the player can raise the baby into various kinds of Grunties, each with their own distinct personality and abilities, and an inventory of items to trade.

The types available vary from server to server. After all the types of Grunties available on a server have been raised, Grunty Racing becomes available. While Grunties weren't allowed to leave their home server during the .hack games, it seems this restriction was lifted later on, as Hotaru and Komiyan III were both able to bring their Grunties with them when they changed servers during .hack//Legend of the Twilight.

Grunties who are neglected by their owners will eventually come down with the Grunty Flu. Numerous items can cure this flu but it depends on what stage the flu is at. The more advanced the flu, the more rare and difficult the item is to obtain.

Grunties in The World R:2

Grunties were famous for their triangular hats and their distinctive speech. They were cursed by Sol, the God of Creation and were turned into Puchi Pongo and became beasts of burden for humans. However, they assumed their original form when humans defeated the gods. They are often entrusted to managerial positions of important facilities and secretaries to VIPs due to their peaceful nature and excellent communication abilities.

In The World R:2, Grunties are kept as pets, and act as guild mascots and "greeters" to people visiting foreign guilds. Grunties retain the same basic appearance as in the previous rendition of The World, but they are shorter, thinner, and stand on two legs. They manage guild @HOMEs and take on the appearance and personality of the guildmaster. An exception is Mecha Grunty, who is found deserted in areas and can be saved by players willing to power it up with Chim Spheres. The three treasures of the Grunty race are event items in The World R:2, used in Haseo's quest to become a guildmaster. They consist of the Grunty Hat (obtained from Gao Grunty), the Grunty Shoes (obtained from Melo Grunty), and the Grunty Brush (obtained from Wise Grunty). They are a parody of the Imperial Regalia of Japan. The following are the Grunties seen in The World R:2.