As we do this look at the revisions/reprints in Monsters of the Multiverse, here's a link to the first post, where I explain the parameters of what we're looking at. With that out of the way, let's kick things off.
Lizardfolk:
A subtle distinction: Lizardfolk get a swim speed equal to their walking speed, rather than strictly 30 feet, which could be useful for Barbarians or Monks.
Bigger changes include the removal of Cunning Artisan. While this is flavorful and cool, it's the sort of ability where it's presence seems to imply (erroneously) that other races can't do things like make simple weapons and items out of harvested materials (granted, the speed with which they can do this is pretty high, but I think we could use a rework of crafting rules in the 2024 core books anyway).
Hunter's Lore has been renamed Nature's Intuition, adding Medicine to the skill options.
Hungry Jaws has been slightly changed. The healing it does equals your Proficiency Bonus rather than your Constitution modifier, and you can use it a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus per long rest, rather than once per short rest.
Also, for some reason, your Bite does slashing, rather than piercing damage.
So, the real question here is if you think Cunning Artisan's loss is a nerf. The thing is, this is absolutely the sort of thing I'd allow any character with the proper tools to do, so, in essence, the Lizardfolk isn't losing this so much as it's becoming a universal trait. The other changes, I'd say, are pretty much a pure buff - except in the very rare cases where you'd prefer piercing damage over slashing damage, like if you're fighting an Ochre Jelly.
Minotaur:
Like the Centaur, this is the first non-MTG printing of Minotaurs as a playable race. I suspect that the chaotic evil monstrosities associated with Baphomet in the Monster Manual might be somewhat altered to reflect this more humanoid take on them. Here, the lore presents Minotaurs as possibly the creation of the Lady of Pain in Sigil, made to patrol the Mazes she creates to punish people in her city. (There is some reminder text to suggest that the Ravnica and Theros stats were already suitable for minotaurs that escaped Baphomet's influence on other D&D worlds).
Minotaurs lose Imposing Presence, but they gain Labyrinthine Recall, which lets them always know which way is North and gives them advantage on any Wisdom (Survival) checks to navigate or track.
I think more than any revision, the changes here are really dependent on what you want. For my Minotaur Ranger, Labyrinthine Recall is obviously more useful to him than being a bit Intimidating. I will note that this is one of those races that, while liberated from being pushed to play a Strength/Melee character thanks to the flexible ability score bonuses, these features do still push you in that direction. Most of your racial features aren't going to be super useful unless you're a melee fighter (and indeed, one that isn't dual-wielding).
Orc:
This, of course, was one of the races to get a negative ability score adjustment removed in errata, which was welcome. But we're also seeing some changes under the hood as well. Notably, one of the Half-Orc's best features, that neither of its parent races had before, is now also given to full Orcs, but we'll get to that. Interestingly, the description for Orcs suggests Gruumsh is not quite the pure-evil god he's been depicted as in the past - describing him instead as an unstoppable warrior and powerful leader, who has made orcs tireless guardians and mighty allies wherever they are found. Good aligned Zealot Barbarian of Gruumsh incoming?
Aggressive has been reworked as Adrenaline Rush. You can now take the Dash action as a bonus action a number of times equal to your proficiency modifier per long rest - and when you do, you gain temporary hit points equal to your proficiency bonus. The old version effectively did the same an unlimited number of times, but with no temp HP and you always had to move closer to a hostile creature.
Primal Intuition is gone. However, you now get Relentless Endurance, which works like it does for Half-Orcs.
So, I count this as a buff. Aggressive is likely to only be relevant in the first round of some combats, and only if you're a melee fighter, so even if it's limited in use, Adrenaline Rush is far more versatile (and the temp HP is nice). While Primal Intuition was of course great, giving you two bonus skill proficiencies, Relentless Endurance is an absolute clutch racial feature, and I think it's well worth it.
Satyr:
Another classic Greek creature that previously only existed in MTG settings (specifically its Greek-inspired Theros,) we have the Satyr.
It appears that the only change here is that your Ram attack now does 1d6 rather than 1d4 bludgeoning.
So, the tiniest of buffs (aside from being able to choose your ability score bonuses). Might be small, but it's undeniably a buff. Purely better.
Sea Elf:
Ah, once again we come to an elf sub-race (and probably the one that I've seen the least lore around.)
Like the Eladrin, this has been formatted as its own race, but with an "elf" subtype to ensure that they count for all things elvish. Likewise, the sleep element of Fey Ancestry has been moved into the Trance feature, and you now gain temporary proficiency with a weapon or tool of your choice from the PHB for the day when you finish your trance.
Sea Elves now get a Darkvision range of 120 feet instead of 60.
Additionally, the Child of the Sea trait that grants them the ability to breath underwater also now gives them resistance to cold damage (similar to buffs given to the Triton). They've also got a swim speed that is now listed as equal to their walking speed, rather than a flat 30 feet.
Sea Elf Training is gone (which seems to be a common thing among racial weapon and armor proficiencies).
Summing this up, you basically get cold resistance and better darkvision at the cost of some unconventional weapon proficiencies. I'd say that counts as a buff.
Shadar-Kai
Ah, the last of the elf subraces from Mordenkainen. Interesting fact: in the 4th Edition sourcebook "Shadowfell: Gloomwrought and Beyond," the Shadar-kai are actually a group of humans from the Shadowfell. But hey, retcons happen.
As with the Eladrin and Sea Elf, Trance now grants a skill and weapon proficiency for the day.
Aside from that, the only difference is a straight buff to Blessing of the Raven Queen, which works the same (including the buff at level 3) but can now be used a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus per long rest, rather than just once.
So, again, we've got a pure buff here. Unambiguous.
Shifter:
These pseudo-lycanthropes from Eberron are now in a setting-agnostic sourcebook. Where are my Warforged? I mean, I love werewolves, and getting something like a playable one is awesome. But where are my Warforged? I'll calm down.
Shifters get a big... shift here in that they have been consolidated into a single race rather than a bunch of subraces. In practice, this is similar to what they did with the Aasimar in this book, given that, beyond ability score adjustments, Shifters generally only differed in how the effects that came with their shifting, and a single skill proficiency.
The Shifting feature works similarly, however, the temp hit points you get now equal twice your proficiency bonus, rather than your level plus your Con modifier. While that will, I think, in most cases, mean a nerf to the temp HP you gain, you also now get to use it a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus per long rest, instead of once per short or long rest, which will generally mean more times per day.
When you choose the race, you pick Beasthide, Longtooth, Swiftstride, or Wildhunt, which are now just flavors of Shifting rather than subraces (but still a one-time choice).
The Longtooth Shifting feature now allows you to use it with the bonus action to shift, as well as on subsequent turns, but otherwise the former subrace bonuses work the same.
You now also get Bestial Instincts, which lets you gain your choice of proficiency in Acrobatics, Athletics, Intimidation, or Survival. Notably, these were the skills that came with each of the subraces, so you can still pick up the one that used to come with your choice, or you can pick a different one.
So, a lot of this has been shuffled around, but ultimately winds up being very similar to the original version. It's obviously more flexible in a few ways, but the big question is how the temp HP from Shifting is calculated. Unlike Fury of the Small for Goblins, I think the doubling of the proficiency bonus means that you're ultimately going to get more out of this than you do with the old version.
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