Art: Bloodfury Savage: Since when do half-orcs shave their pits.

[pawsplay]

In any case, female body parts have as much justification as a tiger head or inverted heads for being on a rakshasa.

All I'm saying is that if something is a natural species, I expect a reasonable explanation for its appearance and habits, and if it's weird or supernatural or whatever, I expect things to make thematic sense. Dragonborn are A) draconic and B) not related to humans or similar races, so I don't get where the you-know-whats entered into things. I would expect, maybe, to see some human-like proportions on a 3.5 type dragonborn, and I could see similar traits in something like a yuan-ti, but when it comes to dragonborn, lizark folk, troglodytes, and the like, I don't expect them to be so, you know, mammalian.

I mean, has anyone ever seriously concerned themselves with whether a picture of a given troglodyte was male or female?

 

[RefinedBean]

I mean, has anyone ever seriously concerned themselves with whether a picture of a given troglodyte was male or female?

I doubt anyone's going to cop to that on an ENworld thread.

 

[Nightchilde-2]

I'm starting to wonder if some of us..

a) Think WAAAAY to hard on things and
b) Take this "gaming" thing WAAAAAY too seriously.

 

[Umbran]

Let's play a game; it's called Who Didn't Read The Thread!

Let's play another game; it is called Who Is Being Rude and Confrontational!

Those that win this game, lose. Got it?

Folks, if you don't like what someone has to say, that is not license to be rude. You can *gasp*, just leave it be! Walk away. Say nothing. Hold your tongue. Or otherwise not make matters worse. You have the power. Please use it.

 

[CelticMutt]

And what purpose, exactly, is served by identifying the gender of a dragonborn?

What purpose is served by identifying the gender of anything?

 

[pawsplay]

What purpose is served by identifying the gender of anything?

.... You don't get out much, do you?

 

[haakon1]

If Chewbacca is a Wookiee, you must acquit the dragonboobs.

Can't . . . stop . . . laughing . . . to type.

 

[ProfessorCirno]

.... You don't get out much, do you?

Actually, if you follow the line of logic, then the primary reason for knowing the difference between male or female - or in fact having that difference in the first place - is for mating reasons. I think that's what he was getting at.

So the question there is, given that those differences are again for mating purposes, and given how often "sexy" was used to describe everything in the Races and Classes preview for 4e...why did they make dragonborn females archtypically similar to human ones?

Wanna know how to tell male and female lizardkin in my games? The male lizardkin have bright and garish colored scales to attract the females. Bam, easily seen distinction between genders, no bizarro bosoms required.

This isn't an argument on fantasy biology. It's the question of "Given the vast number of ways you can differentiate between males and females, not just in the real world but in the trillions of examples you can come up with on the top of your head, why'd they stick with boobs?"

 

[D.Shaffer]

Because Humans, the people who play the game, are wired to recognise humanoids with bulges on their chest as female. While they can learn to recognise other traits as female in different animals, it makes for a handy visual shortcut.

 

[Ginnel]

Because someone is wrong on the internet.

Oh yeah

Wouldn't this "problem" just go away if individual DMs decided on their own within their campaign whether or not female Dragonborn had breasts? I mean, I know it sounds too simple to work and I'm kinda defeating the whole point of teh Intarwebs with the thought; but I guess I just thought I would throw that out there.

What you mean people actually make their own decisions about what happens in their gameworlds, surely not sir! This would seriously cut down on peoples froth time, unacceptable!

Looks like it is time to break out my favorite article:

Stupid Monsters someone was paid to make = the best job ever.

I'll get around to being offended by the existence of dragonborn right after I am finished being enraged by the existence of:

owlbears
gas spores
sea "lions"
duck bunnies
giffs
bowlers
flail snails
...

People will defend anything they have a soft spot for
also, good post

I mean, has anyone ever seriously concerned themselves with whether a picture of a given troglodyte was male or female?

Err yus.

Haven't you ever had characters who have had a code of honor which included not killing females/children of sentient species?

And back on topic
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/ph2_gallery/97105.jpg
We have half-orc armpit hair!!