Learn all about the githyanki
Natural warriors, the githyanki harness psionic power bestowed on them over centuries of living in the astral plane and in captivity to mind flayers. The githyanki’s hatred for their former overlords runs deep. They will generally attack mind flayers on sight but are often aggressive towards over races too, having a feeling that they are owed for centuries of oppression and enslavement. The githyanki are closely related to the githzerai who share racial similarities but harbour irreconcilable differences of opinion and attitude and generally have a strong dislike for one another. The githyanki are a playable race in D&D 5e and you can learn about all their features and traits below.
Githyanki Features in 5e
| Ability Scores | +2 to one ability score and +1 to another or +1 to 3 different ability scores |
| Creature Type | Humanoid |
| Size | Medium |
| Speed | 30ft |
| Traits | Astral Knowledge, Githyanki Psionics, Psychic Resilience |
| Book found in | Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse, Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes |
If you want to play as a githyanki, your character will have the following traits and abilities:
Githyanki Traits
Astral Knowledge – You are able to draw upon the knowledge and experiences of the astral plane. As such, whenever you complete a long rest, you can gain proficiency in one skill of your choice and in one weapon or tool of your choice selected from the Player’s Handbook. These proficiencies last until the end of your next long rest.
Psychic Resilience – You have resistance to psychic damage.
Githyanki Psionics – You know the mage hand cantrip and the hand is invisible when you cast this spell with this trait. Starting at 3rd level, you can cast the jump spell and at 5th level, can cast the misty step spell, both without requiring material components. You can only do this once until you’ve completed a long rest. You can also cast these spells using any spell slots you have of the appropriate level. You can use intelligence, wisdom or charisma as your spellcasting modifier (you choose when you create your character).
Which classes are good for githyanki?
Githyanki have a bit of a range of abilities making them generally decent for any class but often not the most optimal option for any particular race. Psychic resistance is good for anyone though not one of the more common damage types. If you know you’ll be facing a load of mind flayers though, they could be a good option.
Misty step, mage hand and jump are universally useful spells (misty step in particular) and your astral knowledge means you can choose to be proficient with any weapon type and get an extra skill proficiency of whatever you like. These are also universally handy and also mean that magic weapon you just found is always going to be something you can wield competently.
Best classes for githyanki
Fighter
Fighters are always in the thick of combat so psychic resistance is more likely to help a fighter than other classes. On top of that, misty step and jump are great spells for getting you into the right place and as fighters get no natural spells (unless you’re an eldritch knight), it’s nice to have a few to cast. Even better, they don’t rely on a spellcasting ability to determine their effectiveness.
Paladin
Githyanki make great paladins for the same reason they make great fighters. Psychic resistance makes them hardier and misty step and jump make them more maneuverable. On top of this, paladins don’t get these spells as standard. That extra skill proficiency is also helpful as you’ve probable invested in charisma related skills and might want to invest in other skill types (though probably not stealth with that armour).
Rogue
Though not dedicated melee combatants, rogues do often find themselves in dangerous situations whether they’re swashbuckling on the front lines or sneaking beyond the front lines, a bit of resistance will help them out in some situations.
On top of this, misty step will really help them escape these dangerous situations when they need to escape quickly and while we might argue a spellcaster might need this spell more for their greater vulnerability, rogues are often in those situations more often.
An extra skill is also great for rogues as they tend to use a lot of skills whether it’s the dexterity based skills or using that silver-tongue, githyanki make great rogues.
Worst classes for githyanki
Githyanki tend not to be a terrible option for any class but barbarians benefit less from some of their traits. They’re already proficient in the weapons they’ll want to use and while misty step can help with mobility, it can’t be used in the same turn as rage (or while you’re enraged).
Monks fair a little worse than barbarians. Typically not needing weapon proficiencies and not having mobility issues of their own (and unlikely to want to use a bonus action on it), a lot of traits feel wasted on this class. At least psychic resistance is still good.
