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

[Micah Sweet]

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

Everything they describe about the races and classes, everything in the magic section, is part of the default in 5e. Now, I really liked how they provided examples of different characterizations by drawing on the settings in the PH. It was one of the things that made me love the 5e PH, that they were seemingly embracing the many settings of the game (little did I know how much they would backtrack on that respect from my point of view). I think it would be great if they went back to showing different ways to handle stuff like species and culture by way of examples, in the PH, from the settings.

 

[Micah Sweet]

The sensitivity of the current times makes me quite nervous to even attempt a homebrew setting for dnd. If an entire team of professionals can't manage to handle delicate topics, what chance do randoms with far less knowledge and experience have?

I've got quite a narrow experience of the world, and no matter how much research I do there are always more viewpoints and experiences I'm finding out from people. It feels like literally anything I write could be culturally or racially insensitive to someone.

There's the great tragedy. If anything is an example of how this situation is stifling creativity, it's the above post. I am truly sorry.

 

[Alzrius]

Fiction is the art of spinnings lies to tell a human truth.

To paraphrase Aaron Sorkin:

An artist's job is to capture your attention for as long as they've been told to capture it. If they stumble into truth, it's because they got lucky.

 

[Incenjucar]

The sensitivity of the current times makes me quite nervous to even attempt a homebrew setting for dnd. If an entire team of professionals can't manage to handle delicate topics, what chance do randoms with far less knowledge and experience have?

I've got quite a narrow experience of the world, and no matter how much research I do there are always more viewpoints and experiences I'm finding out from people. It feels like literally anything I write could be culturally or racially insensitive to someone.

Ehhhh.

Work with people with diverse perspectives and seek out sensitivity readers. Plenty of folks from various communities will be more than happy to volunteer their perspectives for a name in the credits for an indie project. WotC seems to just be more comfortable with not expanding their own enough to keep up with those of us who have been concerned with social issues for the last 30+ years, and so they're just avoiding it altogether.

 

[Imaro]

But why should the game be designed around the worst possible tables? And people who would do that, will probably take the game in that direction anyways

Whether you think it's fair or not... because perception matters when you want to build a brand into something big and you want your game to be played by the largest number of possible players.

 

[Imaro]

People have very much handled other forms of media in ways that lack maturity and embrace glorification, as you say. Why should WotC trust their fans less than Hollywood, for example?

Those other properties don't predicate the cornerstone of their product on a philosophy of making it your own being the valid way to experience it.

 

[Imaro]

The sensitivity of the current times makes me quite nervous to even attempt a homebrew setting for dnd. If an entire team of professionals can't manage to handle delicate topics, what chance do randoms with far less knowledge and experience have?

I've got quite a narrow experience of the world, and no matter how much research I do there are always more viewpoints and experiences I'm finding out from people. It feels like literally anything I write could be culturally or racially insensitive to someone.

Are you trying to publish this homebrew? If not why are you worried about it? If so... well yeah that's part of branding and selling anything for public consumption, and it always has been.

 

[Bedrockgames]

Whether you think it's fair or not... because perception matters when you want to build a brand into something big and you want your game to be played by the largest number of possible players.

Except this approach also turns off many potential fans and existing fans as well. I don't think it is as simple as people think. I won't pretend to know where this shakes out, but I am very much getting the impression that what counts as a controversy on twitter and even on a gaming forum, doesn't outside of those venues (at least not to the degree it does online) and I think peoples emotional response to these kinds of things (worrying that this trope is potentially going to anger someone, or worrying that this creative risk will be misperceived) are weakening each time it happens. Also, at the end of the day the game still needs to be good and often it feels like this decisions are prioritizing things that work against that

And in this case we are talking about not even the content but how it might be used by people in the wrong way. This just strikes me as very much constraining creativity and having a relaxing time with friends.

 

[Bedrockgames]

Whether you think it's fair or not...

To be clear here, I am not saying whether it is fair or just. But I think the pendulum has swung too far in the direction of mitigating any possible offense or perceived problem, that it really is impacting quality. And at the end of the day fantasy is meant to be a place for people to explore ideas and be creative. But I WOTC is going to do what they think they ought to (whether that is because of their bottom line or because they are pursuing some kind of social goal). I don't expect things to shift because me or someone else is troubled. But I do think it is important for us to always voice our opinions on these matters because it really does effect the hobby as a whole (personally I just feel it has reached a state that is creatively very uncomfortable, and not leading to better games or settings)

 

[Vaalingrade]

The sensitivity of the current times makes me quite nervous to even attempt a homebrew setting for dnd. If an entire team of professionals can't manage to handle delicate topics, what chance do randoms with far less knowledge and experience have?

I've got quite a narrow experience of the world, and no matter how much research I do there are always more viewpoints and experiences I'm finding out from people. It feels like literally anything I write could be culturally or racially insensitive to someone.

Look at what they screwed up. It was basic stuff. Like maybe don't have monekyman former slaves in Jim Crow poses. And don't time travel to the 80's and be 'fair for the time' trying to be funny or edgy.

Do you have basic empathy and google? If you mess up can you apologize without blaming the people harmed or trying to start a culture war? If yes, you'll be fine.

Are you unwilling to do a modicum of research and more than willing to cry censorship and cancel culture if called out? Maybe don't then?