Equality in the DnD world

[Sanackranib]

in the world of the drow its definately the females who have the power.
Dwarves are eqaul but each sex has different roles.
Humans varry by region - in amazon areas its the woman in many others its the men

I had to go with case by case on this one.

 

[Tonguez]

The main culture IMC is a geriarchy (ruled by the elders) and women still live longer than men. As such although most of the leaders are male, behind them (usually as the major religious leader) is a grand 'Matriarch' who may well be the literally as well as symbolic mother and grandmother of the male leaders to whom she acts as advisor.

Beyond that there is seperation of roles but generally equality

 

[Bad Paper]

I called her a swordmaster. Unexpectedly she retorted with, "I am a swordmistress. A woman cannot be a swordmaster"

Well, duh. You used a sexist term; she corrected you. This is like calling Elizabeth Windsor "King Elizabeth II" and being mystified at her response.

 

[Pseudonym]

In fact, our next DRAGON LORE release is titled FEMME FATALE and is a compilation of female-only character classes and magic items geared for female gamers.

Does it include magic thong armor, like in the picture?

 

[Edena_of_Neith]

She was such a cute, petite, high elven girl. Her hair was raven and long, her eyes green, her lips pouting, her face as fresh as a spring morning.
Her mail shone like liquid silver, her sword shined like a beacon of hope, her face was upturned towards me, and courage was written on her noble features.

But she was no match for me. For I had a Girdle of Giant Strength and Gauntlets of Ogre Power, and a Hammer of Thunderbolts was in my hands. 7 feet tall was I, and 300 pounds of adamantine muscle. Armor of invincible steel girded me, and my sword's touch was death to both body and soul.
My magic was strong, my Contingencies innumerable. No damage was there that I could not regenerate, no blow that my Lifeproof could not resist: I was to a troll as a troll was to a mere mortal. My Fire shield was set, my Stoneskin was readied. Force immeasurable resided at my side, in the form of wands and rods.

So I killed her.

Lady Aerviue, of the Giants

 

[wuyanei]

For ALL PCs, and for NPCs of above, oh, 3rd ~ 5th level or so, it is absolutely egalitarian -- their personal power is great enough that nobody will (dare) bat a lash at any occupation they choose. For the vast unwashed masses of mooks, gender does play a great deal in determining role in social, economical and political roles, but what role exactly varies greatly from region to region.

 

[Man in the Funny Hat]

Case by case. It is simply not a distinction that interests me - not IRL, definitely not in D&D. Therefore, for the most part it is in fact irrelevant AFAIC. It isn't a question that comes up IMC, and if it did the answer wouldn't matter.

 

[Edena_of_Neith]

(humor, OT)

You forgot one poll option:

He-Man has The Power!

 

[BiggusGeekus]

When chicks can lob lightning bolts, men will listen attentively.

 

[Azul]

While I tend to have some variation between different cultures, with Good-aligned and Chaotic-aligned cultures being more prone to egalitarianism, I don't accentuate gender roles in my campaigns as a rule. Traditional gender roles show up in a passive manner but the populace isn't alarmed by individuals who choose to engage in non-traditional roles (e.g. my campaign has female warriors and a male favoured soul of Estanna (a hearth goddess) who loves cooking).

In other words, I generally present a relatively egalitarian campaign world with some traditional domestic stereotypes being common (e.g. women tend to be more active in childrearing, men more often do harder physical tasks) but the stereotypes aren't strong enough to produce significant bigotry in most cases.

Jerks and more intolerant cultures do exist of course. Nothing could get under my female player's skins quite like having their PCs told to "know their place" but it's a hook I would use very sparingly because it could genuinely bug a player (my group is 1/3 female).