D&D General “‘Scantily Clad and Well Proportioned’: Sexism and Gender Stereotyping in the Gaming Worlds of TSR and Dungeons & Dragons.”

[UngainlyTitan]

Maybe he's actually a gladiator and only does combat-for-show in an arena?

Nevermind; apparently he is a gladiator.

The funniest bit is that I rarely sound off about this stuff (though the thoughts occur) the one time I do there is some justification for the things I am sounding off on.

 

[Steampunkette]

Yes it could be that, but I've also seen an expansion of that same image where Elves and Dwarves are added into the mix. And the Female Dwarf is identical to the Male Dwarf, while the Male Elf is depicted as looking identical to the Female Elf.

 

[Remathilis]

Because it is meant to be reflecting heroic fantasy so you play the good guys and not the bad guys.

But elves have the capacity to be evil. If the game required all PC elves to be Good, you'd have a point. But there is no ratio. So why a ratio on orcs?

 

[Charlaquin]

Leed is best orc.

As soon as I got to the first appearance of orcs in the manga (yeah, yeah, insert “I was into -thing- before it was cool” joke here), I was like, “Well. That’s what orcs look like in my games from now on.”

 

[FrozenNorth]

Will there be setting books?

We know that a Forgotten Realms setting book is scheduled for 2025.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

Ah, but this can easily turn into the trope below, which is definitely a form of male gaze sexism.

Whilst I agree that can be the cause, especially in extreme examples, I think it's important to allow that female players often have preference to have more stereotypically feminine bodies/faces on characters as well. Not necessarily the perfect hourglasses/Victoria's Secret model look that some male designers (or their bosses) clearly prefer, but also very much not the "barely distinguishable from male" or "absolutely hideous" looks that a lot of male designers think are fine to apply to females of species that have particularly burly or grotesque male forms.

In general I think MMOs (and to some extent videogame RPGs in general) are kind of falling down on body diversity, when it would in many cases actually be pretty easy to implement. (I've mentioned it a few times but I think Daggerheart's diversity of appearance for each species should be what stylized MMOs are going for.)

I see your green muscle mommy, and raise you a pig-nosed curvy mommy!
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Dungeon Meshi has best orcs of both genders! I remember the first time I saw them was on here - possibly you posting some from the manga (long before the show came out anyway), and I was like, "Yeah, those orcs! That's what I want in my game!". With the wild boar-like aspects (especially the horrifyingly cute spotted children/piglets!).

 

[CleverNickName]

As soon as I got to the first appearance of orcs in the manga (yeah, yeah, insert “I was into -thing- before it was cool” joke here), I was like, “Well. That’s what orcs look like in my games from now on.”

That manga also changed how tabaxi look in my campaigns. First I was Type 3 or 4, but the more I watch/read Dungeon Meshi, the more I like Type 2.

 

[Charlaquin]

Dungeon Meshi has best orcs of both genders! I remember the first time I saw them was on here - possibly you posting some from the manga (long before the show came out anyway), and I was like, "Yeah, those orcs! That's what I want in my game!". With the wild boar-like aspects (especially the horrifyingly cute spotted children/piglets!).

Haha yeah, that was me. I think I even remember the thread, it was after one of the many evil orc argument threads, and someone split off a + thread about ideas for alternative ways to present orcs.

 

[Charlaquin]

That manga also changed how tabaxi look in my campaigns. First I was Type 3 or 4, but the more I watch/read Dungeon Meshi, the more I like Type 2.

I’m still a 3.5 on average for my games, but I appreciate the full spectrum.

 

[Bedrockgames]

But elves have the capacity to be evil. If the game required all PC elves to be Good, you'd have a point. But there is no ratio. So why a ratio on orcs?

I think this is largely a gaming conceit. Some people like having evil orcs to contend with in the setting. Personally I am more a fan of races be less inherently good or evil that way (it might make sense in some instances if a particular god is guiding them or something) but overall I want some variety. At the same time, I can see the fun of having evil orcs to kill at the end of a long day. I just file this stuff under preference. Also there is a style of fantasy cosmology where you have forces of good and forces of evil, or forces law and forces of chaos where things like elves and orcs might be naturally aligned with one or the other. For those cosmologies it can work (not sure your typical D&D setting needs to be that but it can be fun)