Types of gnolls based on the different species of hyenas!
This is based on the base D&D lore that gnolls are created by Yeenoghu, so if you don't vibe with evil gnolls this might not be the post for you. However, we do believe their connection to Yeenoghu is a cultural thing rather than them all being inherently evil.
Spotted gnolls are your traditional gnoll. Big, strong, vicious, active hunters. They are poor magic practitioners- what little magic they have comes directly from the rare occasions of Yeenoghu’s blessings. They have nomadic lifestyles, traveling often to find new prey after they decimate the populations of previous prey. They are merciless and wipe out as many people as they can when they attack, driven to kill and gorge on their prey rather than hunting sustainably. In cases of mixed groups of gnolls, spotted ones pretty much always take over the role as leader with their brute strength and brave, reckless personalities.
Brown gnolls are weaker than spotted and striped ones in terms of physical ability, but possess far greater magic ability than other gnolls, especially for necromancy. Like spotted gnolls, they are nomadic. They tend to scavenge and pick off weaker prey instead of rushing into battle like spotted gnolls. Their groups have a larger than average number of undead compared to other species, but generally have lower natural numbers (that is, not accounting for deaths in combat, since their ranged fighting style often spares them; they simply have smaller group sizes on average). Sometimes they follow packs of spotted gnolls around to scavenge from or resurrect their kills- the spotted gnolls usually don’t mind, as the extra forces from their undead is beneficial to them. Like spotted gnolls, they also tend to completely destroy civilizations they come across before moving on, overwhelming them with the armies of undead under their control while sticking to the safety of the back lines.
Overall, brown and spotted gnolls tend to get along quite well due to similar lifestyles.
Striped gnolls are more cunning than most gnolls (though still not particularly intelligent), with stationary packs (or very limited mobility across a few dens that they set up). Instead of killing off a group of humanoids and moving on like other gnolls do, they intentionally leave enough alive to create a sustainable food source. Civilizations near them are often too terrified and weakened to do anything about them. In a way, they’re like livestock to these gnolls- intentionally kept alive but culled for food (and to prevent them from getting too strong to control). Their dens have strong defenses due to consistently living there over generations. They are difficult to take down due to having the advantage of knowing their dens and being able to set traps- something that other gnolls' nomadic lives can't take advantage of. Sometimes they set up their homes in caves or dens they dug themselves, while other times they steal homes from creatures or humanoids they killed or chased off (based on real hyena behavior!!). A den is typically signified by bones, armor, weapons, or other remnants of their victims scattered around. They are not as strong as spotted gnolls, but are stronger than brown gnolls and quite dexterous. They have lean, muscular builds, but can’t take hits as well as the bulk of a spotted gnoll. Skirmish and ranged fighters are rather common. Due to their more conniving intellect they may use poisons to weaken foes in combat, something that a spotted gnoll may think of as a waste of time to create or procure.
The Aardwolf- “false gnolls.” Not actually related to gnolls (no demonic origin)* but are often mistaken for them. They are reclusive due to hostility from other races from this misunderstanding. Much smaller than any true gnoll (small creatures rather than medium ones), much weaker as well. Relies on stealth, misdirection, and small, hidden homes to survive, as avoiding conflict is the best option for them compared to fighting or diffusing the fight. They often live in very small, close-knit groups (often just their immediate family, rarely other unrelated individuals they are close with), for fear that large groups will attract undesired attention. They generally have a very wretched and miserable lifestyle due to their constant fear of attack from other humanoids preventing them from truly being comfortable and thriving- too big or comfortable a house won’t blend in compared to a cramped burrow, and farmlands or other sustainable living setups are too visible, so they must survive on what they can find. Primarily eats bugs, doesn’t really eat meat unless it is cooked (unlike other gnolls who eat raw meat regularly), rarely hunts animals aside from bugs. (Bugs large enough for humanoid-sized species to eat are not uncommon in the Forgotten Realms, so this is viable for them) Due to not being true gnolls, aardwolf gnolls are not even safe from attack by true gnolls, so they don't even have that benefit going for them.
*Aardwolves are actual hyenas irl, but for this lore, I'm making them "false gnolls" due to their very different diets and lifestyles that make them the odd ones out of the bunch!
Alternatively, they could be "true" gnolls in that they are biologically related to the other gnolls if you would like gnolls to have natural origins, but "false" in that they don't tend to follow Yeenoghu and thus typically won't attack unprovoked unless desperate.
