D&D General Transgender Drow are Canon in Forgotten Realms! Woo!

[Steampunkette]

https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/1908006909237473451

Meanwhile, someone asked the Elminster "AI Bot" on the official FR Discord and got a dramatically different answer that feels less "Forgotten Realms" and more "Evening News"...

Ed Greenwood wins this time, in my book!

 

[overgeeked]

I knew Ed was good people.

 

[ezo]

Like everything in D&D, and anything really, canon doesn't matter--they are in there if you want them, if you don't then they aren't. Pretty simple.

 

[BookTenTiger]

That's a great answer from Ed Greenwood. I love the idea of the transformation of self-shape being something that's ingrained in Drow culture. Ed's take just feels very "Drow."

 

[pukunui]

FWIW there's a trans male drow gunslinger running with the Bregan D'aerthe in Waterdeep: Dragon Heist.

Here's what the book has to say about him "Fel’rekt is a male drow who was born female. Unhappy with the treatment of males in his society, he petitioned to join Bregan D’aerthe. Jarlaxle took a shine to Fel’rekt almost immediately, and the young drow has since become one of Jarlaxle’s most loyal lieutenants. Eager to prove himself, Fel’rekt is quick to volunteer for tasks and hurls himself into combat with verve."

 

[MonsterEnvy]

This isn't new. Though in the past it was pretty clear that Drow leaders disliked any claiming to be trans.

 

[Yaarel]

Acknowledging the existence of transgender is most important.

At the same , I would also like to see transgender presence among Good factions ... so as to avoid literally "demonizing" these individuals via Lolth.

That said, it would be because certain Drow houses are an Evil faction that these seek to silence and oppress transgender individuals.

 

[Dire Bare]

FWIW there's a trans male drow gunslinger running with the Bregan D'aerthe in Waterdeep: Dragon Heist.

Here's what the book has to say about him "Fel’rekt is a male drow who was born female. Unhappy with the treatment of males in his society, he petitioned to join Bregan D’aerthe. Jarlaxle took a shine to Fel’rekt almost immediately, and the young drow has since become one of Jarlaxle’s most loyal lieutenants. Eager to prove himself, Fel’rekt is quick to volunteer for tasks and hurls himself into combat with verve."

Nothing in the OP shows trans drow as "canon" . . . but this excerpt from Dragon Heist does!!

Ed is good people, and of course gives anything he posts or publishes a degree of canon-feel, as he is the beloved creator of the Realms . . . but he does not own the rights to the Realms, nor does he work for WotC. So Ed's word on the Realms isn't canon, although I often feel it is better than that . . .

And the AI bot? I'm just disappointed to learn today that there is an official AI bot spewing nonsense.

I love the above excerpt from Dragon Heist! I own the book, but somehow missed that.

I was already cool with trans characters of any species in my games, but I love Ed's explanation of how they could fit into drow society, I think I'll incorporate that into my own personal Realms canon.

 

[DarkCrisis]

Eds always been a good dude about this stuff. He's always like "Every type of person exists here."

 

[pukunui]

I love the above excerpt from Dragon Heist! I own the book, but somehow missed that.

It's hidden away in the appendix in the section on the Drow Gunslingers.

Dragon Heist also features a forge run by a married gay genasi couple (Embric and Avi) and an apothecary run by a non-binary elf (Fala), both on Trollskull Alley.

I think the approach that WotC has taken with trans / non-binary / gay characters in their adventures is the right one - they're just there, and it's normal, and it isn't "a big deal". They're also not portrayed as villains or anything -- like, yes, Fel'rekt can be an antagonist depending on how you run the adventure, but he isn't a villain.

EDIT: There's also the potential gay love interest, Jalester Silvermane, an undercover cop who "has been romantically unattached ever since [his lover] Faerrel’s death but longs again for love."