D&D 5E Content Warning Labels? Yeah or Nay?

[Sacrosanct]

I think the author note at the beginning is a good idea - maybe consider sidebarring it since people seem to notice sidebars more than preface or foreword text.
I'm not sure I'm keen on a monster by monster flag, at least not without context being identified. Maybe have a table of the monsters that have the flag and a keyword or two about why the monster will be flagged later in the book.

I do like the cultural source of the folklore under the creature's name, but I also think it would be nice to include a reference to whatever textual sources you're drawing from - like a citation of the books consulted at the end of the monster's description. Maybe a "For further reading" header. It would be a nice addition for people who see the glashtyn and say "Manx folklore?!? Where can I learn more?"

Use Google, man!

I jest. Well, partly...

In all seriousness, and I do mention this in the introduction, that there is so much overlap between cultures of basically the same creature, just with a different name or very slightly different aspect, that it was decided to go with a version that tries to encompass all of them into one. I do also mention additional sources in the introduction as well, citing MacCulloch, Yeats, and Briggs in regards to fairy lore, and Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia Regum Britanniae and Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur for the Arthurian lore (as well as side mentions of the Volgate Cycle and others).

 

[Yora]

I think that every work in any form of fiction should communicate by its choice of title and presentation what kind of work it is. Whether it's something for kids, or something that is feel-good, or something gory, or something scary, you should be able to know it at first glance. It's nice to not have any ugly surprises, but that's really not that difficult for any creators of fiction.

If authors feel they need to put warning labels on their products, I am getting the impression that they have no confidence in their work, regarding what it actually is supposed to be. If you make something that is gross or horrific, have the confidence to make something that is gross and horrific, and don't be afraid to present your work as such. If you don't think what you've created is okay, then I don't actually want to take it out for a spin either.

 

[schneeland]

So my question to the community is, is something like that worth it? Is it off-putting? Not needed? Do you appreciate it, or would it turn you away?

I think it would depend on how much I am interested in the content that follows, but it has a non-zero chance of reducing my interest in reading the rest if I know that there's more of this to come. For me, it comes across as lecturing and rather dramatic. But then I'm also a politically centrist German, so I'm probably also not your primary target audience. Also, if it's really just an author's note section in the beginning of the book, I would probably just read past it.

 

[J.Quondam]

I think that every work in any form of fiction should communicate by its choice of title and presentation what kind of work it is. Whether it's something for kids, or something that is feel-good, or something gory, or something scary, you should be able to know it at first glance. It's nice to not have any ugly surprises, but that's really not that difficult for any creators of fiction.

If authors feel they need to put warning labels on their products, I am getting the impression that they have no confidence in their work, regarding what it actually is supposed to be. If you make something that is gross or horrific, have the confidence to make something that is gross and horrific, and don't be afraid to present your work as such. If you don't think what you've created is okay, then I don't actually want to take it out for a spin either.

It's a bit more than that, though. In a bestiary (or any gaming material, really), these indicators can be useful for a GM--inexperienced or veteran-- who is not especially disturbed by the material, but who might have players who are. These cautions can be very helpful anyone finding themselves managing diverse tables.
Remember that the consumer of this sort of thing is not just the reader directly, but also the rest of a gaming group indirectly.

 

[Sacrosanct]

I think that every work in any form of fiction should communicate by its choice of title and presentation what kind of work it is. Whether it's something for kids, or something that is feel-good, or something gory, or something scary, you should be able to know it at first glance. It's nice to not have any ugly surprises, but that's really not that difficult for any creators of fiction.

If authors feel they need to put warning labels on their products, I am getting the impression that they have no confidence in their work, regarding what it actually is supposed to be. If you make something that is gross or horrific, have the confidence to make something that is gross and horrific, and don't be afraid to present your work as such. If you don't think what you've created is okay, then I don't actually want to take it out for a spin either.

I don't think it's that at all. From a designer's perspective, I realize that we're all different. Some people might not have any triggers at all. Others might have different triggers than me. If I don't have any triggers about traumatic experience X, and put it in the book with no warning (since it doesn't affect me), that does a disservice to someone picking up the game who does. So I want to ensure I'm thinking about them as well. It has nothing to do with being afraid to present my work or not.

 

[Composer99]

I think some general remarks over the table of contents, describing what the exclamation mark symbol is for and why it is there, not unlike the content warning blurb you posted in the OP - though not necessarily identical? - and then adding that symbol to the creature's name in its individual entry and in its table of contents entry is the way to go.

I think the content warning blurb is... I don't know... too wordy? Too editorial? I don't know, it just doesn't seem right?

I think maybe it could be cut down, and then as someone upthread mentioned, consider adding a more extensive discussion on making use of darker materials in a game and how to discuss them with sensitivity and tact before they appear during gameplay. Essentially, I suppose I'm suggesting having a section of "rules advice" for "yo, this is dark stuff, careful how you add this to your game" and a less extensive content warning.

 

[HammerMan]

Use Google, man!

you joke but really that is the 'for more information' note of the future...

 

[Henadic Theologian]

nay

 

[IndigoTraveler]

Yeah just put the content warning on the first or second page. And make sure at the end of it, you give proper warning to the reader that the book WILL eat their children and should exercise the proper caution to ensure the dog lives.

The children are outta luck but hey, they can always have more kids according to the rules of nature.

 

[Crimson Longinus]

The most important place for such content warning is somewhere where the customer can see it before buying the product!