“Monstrous” NPCs

[Edgar Ironpelt]

We were all icked out by manga where the PCs cook and eat orcs (on the grounds that they look like pigs and taste like pork*) because orcs are, even if evil, tool-using sapient humanoids with language etc and eating anything you can have a conversation with is off the table as far as we’re concerned.

*As do humans.

I was icked out by the concept of "dragonhide" armor in 3.x D&D for a similar reason: Wearing the skin of a talking sapient...

So I did a fluff-text change for my D&D games. Same costs and benefits, but a different name, and a source that doesn't rate an [evil] descriptor when one takes advantage of it.

 

[jian]

Why that's what some weak-kneed Mork-lover would say!

Gork told us vanilla is the one true flavour!

Fools! Gruumsh One-Eye sees all! Gruumsh One-Eye knows all!

The only flavour fit for Gruumsh is that which portrays the true struggle of orc-kind! The only flavour is Rocky Road! So speaks Gruumsh!

 

[aramis erak]

This is bizarre. There have been examples of monstrous companions, quest givers, or advisors as far back as I can think of: Glabbagool in Out of the Abyss, Meepo in The Sunless Citadel, the lizardfolk in Danger at Dunwater, the Phanaton or Rakasta on the Isle of Dread (even the Aranea)... off the top of my head.

Yeah, it is bizarre. If you need ammo to shame the guilty, AD&D 2e had character gen for a couple dozen non-demihumans, and an entire setting where the PCs are standard D&D dragon types (Council of Wyrms); 3e and 5e both have extensive writeups for various PC races most woould consider monstrous.

Then again, in Tunnels and Trolls, I've had a party of 1 1-legged dwarf warrior, a fairy rogue, a Lamia wizard, and an animated statue... plus a Dragon. All statted up as PCs, all done with tables in the core T&T 5th ed rules from 1979... All of them PCs. So... if I can stat it as a PC, the right player can probably get approval.