D&D General D&D Assumptions Ain't What They Used To Be

[Hussar]

So... Repeated underage rape is boring, but slavery, serfdom and racism are a bridge too far and you'd be embarrassed in twenty years for accepting that in your books?!?!

This is why alignment discussions never work.

Wait, what? What are you talking about? "Repeated underage rape"? Huh?

 

[Reynard]

I honestly don't know where to start with this post. We are putting continuous rape of men and women for profit on the same level as overlogging a forest because the lumber baron gave the mayor a sack of gold.

Maybe I'm the weird one, but I don't tend to make vile big cities where slavery and rape are common, where diseased beggars die in the streets and gangs shank people for fun. I can't imagine wanting to make a city like that. Sure, I might have a gang or two run by a mob boss, but he's more into smuggling, illegal pit fights, and blackmail. Things that are crime, but aren't going to involve dog fighting or prostitution. Heck, I stitch together a few different eras of humanity including the modern day and if I have Pleasure Houses, they are places that are legal, well-run, with medical care, that are full of willing people who like their jobs. I'm sure that has never all happened in one place in human society, but we've had parts of it, and we also don't have a lot of other things in a fantasy setting. Why can't I make part of that setting be that things are... not naughty word?

Like, people keep saying that we have all these historical periods, and we should make sure to take slavery from Rome and serfdom from Europe and this from there and that from over here... why can't I decide to take acceptance of Transgendered people from Native American traditions, a culture of bathing and cleanliness from the Saxons I believe it was, maybe some gender equality norms from African Tribes. I'm not saying have no conflict, no simple evils like conmen or criminals, but... I don't know.

Not directed at anyone in particular, but it feels like the more I read this thread, the more people seem to be of the opinion that if you aren't including some of the most vile acts of human depravity in your setting, you aren't really making a good DnD setting. And that just feels so viscerally wrong to me.

It's like you didn't even read the post and a) decided to go with your own vile interpretation and b) ignore the fact that I said I don't dwell on these things.

 

[el-remmen]

Everybody, take a deep breath and count to 10 before posting in this thread again.

As the person who started this thread, I am fine with shutting it down. It has gone far from the original point (which a lot of people never seemed to grasp to begin with).

 

[Desdichado]

Wait, what? What are you talking about? "Repeated underage rape"? Huh?

You said you'd read the first several books of Game of Thrones, I thought. It's that not correct? Or have you blocked out the content of them?

 

[payn]

As the person who started this thread, I am fine with shutting it down. It has gone far from the original point (which a lot of people never seemed to grasp to begin with).

QFT

 

[Reynard]

As the person who started this thread, I am fine with shutting it down. It has gone far from the original point (which a lot of people never seemed to grasp to begin with).

Once you release a thread with the "post" button, you have released your hold on it. Believe me, I know. I have often wondered how I could have stated the OP better to get people to actually engage the subject, rather that whatever they actually end up wanting to talk about. Not that I am not guilty of the same thing, but it can feel a little exhausting from time to time.

As far as shutting down threads just because they topic drift: I think that would generally be a bad idea. Better to just turn off notifications and let the thread have its own life out of sight.

 

[KYRON45]

And I categorically reject the idea that there was any miscommunication. The players took what information they had and decided the best course of action was to kill an NPC who did nothing to provoke them. They made no attempt at communication, they just went straight to violence. None of you were at the game, so it's more than a little odd that you would presume to know what happened better than I do.

In a game where 90% of the rules are focused on killing things (no i do not have a source and can't show my math); it's no surprise that PCs ended up killing a thing that was lurking around in a horror setting. Of course it was tacky of them to do so; but that's what most of the game is...My attack value vs. your HP. Not to mention that there is generally no repercussions in game.

I do get what you are saying...i just felt the need to butt in. Carry on.

 

[TiQuinn]

I have often wondered how I could have stated the OP better to get people to actually engage the subject, rather that whatever they actually end up wanting to talk about. Not that I am not guilty of the same thing, but it can feel a little exhausting from time to time.

Yeah, I’ve seen plenty of this and it’s not special to ENWorld. People will focus on one particular word or phrase and go off on a total different direction. Nothing to be done for it.

 

[Hussar]

You said you'd read the first several books of Game of Thrones, I thought. It's that not correct? Or have you blocked out the content of them?

OIC.

I read three? Maybe. It was some omnibus thing or other. Fifteen years ago? Can’t really remember much of it at all. Was so bored by the end I was skipping entire chapters.

Would have been a great novel. Thousands of pages? Yeah not particularly interested.

But I’m still not sure what point you’re trying to make.

 

[Chaosmancer]

I wonder if the problem is that people are insisting that we have institutional evils. Individual evil we all can add into a setting with no problems - you have a serial killer on the loose in the town and the party needs to stop him before he horrifically murders puppies again. No problems.

But some people seem to think that unless we have these intitutionalized evils - slavery, serfdom, racism, etc - there cannot be evil in the setting.

The thing is, D&D is largely leaning on the idea of individual evil - no more evil races for example - as opposed to half assed bringing in institutionalized evil.

That could very well be it. I don't have much problem with individually evil people, but the stacking of institutional evils that really don't have viable solutions in a game session.