D&D (2024) How did I miss this about the Half races/ancestries

[Micah Sweet]

When I say that art reflects reality I mean that it has something to say about the human condition. And sometimes the viewer can place meaning in a work of art that the original creator did not intend. The X-Men started out as an allegory for racism, but by the time the second movie came out in 2003 it was an allegory for homosexuality. Art that doesn't reflect reality is devoid of meaning. It's like a meal devoid of flavor; just ashes in your mouth.

Sure, but does that mean, if some people can take meaning from a piece of art that they don't like, we shouldn't make art from which that meaning could be taken?

 

[Bagpuss]

So why should a setting-specific prejudice be part of the core game?

Because the core game has generally had a default setting.

 

[Vaalingrade]

Because the core game has generally had a default setting.

Then maybe we make a good default setting like we did last time instead of planting seeds in a waking corpse begging to be let go to its final reward?

 

[MGibster]

Sure, but does that mean, if some people can take meaning from a piece of art that they don't like, we shouldn't make art from which that meaning could be taken?

I'm only arguing that it isn't unreasonable for people to look at D&D and see meaning in the real world. Personally I think D&D can deal with just about any subject that can be dealt with in other works of fiction. I don't particularly care that children might see it or others might be offended.

 

[Bedrockgames]

When I say that art reflects reality I mean that it has something to say about the human condition. And sometimes the viewer can place meaning in a work of art that the original creator did not intend. The X-Men started out as an allegory for racism, but by the time the second movie came out in 2003 it was an allegory for homosexuality. Art that doesn't reflect reality is devoid of meaning. It's like a meal devoid of flavor; just ashes in your mouth.

That is fair. We all bring our own ideas to engagement with art. But I guess what I am pushing back on is this idea that because someone sees something in an RPG or other media, that it is either the creator’s fault if that the creator should have worked to avoid that interpretation being possible. So intent matters a great deal here I think

 

[Bedrockgames]

It is a judgement on the half-elves, by omission, because it's not saying "elves are bigots." Why do half-elves suffer discrimination? Because they're half-elves, that's why. If the reason why people don't like half-elves is because half-elf biology forces them to, say, eat the still-beating hearts of children to survive, then that's a useful thing to know. But "aren't liked by other people because those people are bigots" isn't a useful description. If half-elf hair was described as "not brown," that doesn't tell you what it is, just what it isn't.

I have to say this strikes me as an extreme reach. I have never got the impression from any of the half elf entries that they are somehow at fault for the prejudice they face. And I don’t think any of the entries suggest half elf biology is somehow to blame. It is mentioned in the half elf entry because it is relevant to half elves

 

[Faolyn]

Does mentioning that a PC may be subject to bigotry in some settings mean the same thing as it being the standard from your point of view? Because that mention is what I'm asking for.

Is the core book a setting book?

 

[Imaro]

Other forms of media and entertainment are seemingly able to do this, RPGs, especially WotC version, seemingly 'cannot' or 'should not'.

Rpg's are uniquely different in that WotC, as opposed to the writers of Avatar, can't guarantee that the product any particular player receives is both handled maturely and avoids glorification. Once they include it, it's up to the individual DM how it will be handled.

 

[TwoSix]

Is the core book a setting book?

I think that's a pretty core division in the D&D playerbase. A lot of people will say "No, the point of the PHB is to be a toolkit" and others will say "Yes, the PHB should be the ur-setting book, that other products all knowingly deviate from".

 

[Faolyn]

Because the core game has generally had a default setting.

Really? Which is what again? Can you point me where in the 5e PHB it says "this is the default setting"?