But it would not be inaccurate if they said "Boston Native attacked by Canadian Thieves" in fact, I've seen plenty of headlines like it.
It would be misleading to use that phrasing to draw a connection between the Boston native being attacked by someone from another country and colonialism. And I think resident would be a more clear terminology unless it was particularly important that this was a Boston native for some reason. But if I saw a headline "Boston native attack by thieving Canadian!" I'd feel like the paper in question was trying to manipulate me and stir up anti-Canadian sentiment.
Except, the language is important here, isn't it? A headquarters makes it sound like a military group. A lair is a thing of monsters and dark things. A home is a place where people live.
I suppose. I use the term headquarters for groups in my settings. Lair works too. Home is probably not the best label to put on a map, but in terms of function, I think these things are closer to a home or small place of residence if the orcs are living there but there isn't a broader society of orcs nearby. Outpost could work too.
And I had specifically brought up the orcs (or other people) as a group of indigenous people, which you immediately started trying to change into something else. To remove the language markers that would make the sympathy obvious and instead replace them with things appropriate to be killed.
Again though you are adding in the term indigenous there where I don't think it is always going to be the case. And I think the language marker you are using helps you draw a cleaner line to colonialism, but I don't think it matches how orcs are always appearing in these cases in D&D. So I am not changing anything, I am just challenging the presumptions baked into he phrasing you used.
Because a lot of people have started questioning "why are these roaming orcs always bands of raiders, and not... just nomadic people"? And sure, you can call upon game logic. But just like finding a salt-water shark in an underground lake was just "game logic" used to create an adventure, people start applying logic and reason to what they are presented. Sure, they can ignore it because the game says this crazy mystery box has no logic... but that is unsatisfying to a lot of people. Because if there is no logic, you can't solve the puzzle. You would hear hoofbeats and be confronted with horse-hooved turtles, because who cares.
Why describe anyone as a band of raiders then?
I don't know, I think game logic works here. Maybe you want more and that is fine. But I don't think there is anything wrong with someone stopping short of that and saying they want orcs to be roaming bands of raiders. And there is nothing super unbelievable about a band of raiders. They could be out on expedition just like the party.
Right, you can totally protest. Just remember that all these other times people protested for moral reasons it was terrible and harmed art and you've already seen artists harmed by this and culture has really gone too far... but you are free to protest if you really want.
If someone is using protest to ask for art to be taken down , don't people have a right to criticize the protest? That doesn't take away your right to protest, it just means people are going to react to it if they think it isn't grounded in something good.
It may not be poisoning the well, but it is VERY clear that you want people to stop protesting, because you think they are causing too much harm.
That is a mischaracterization of what I am saying. I want there to be a healthy discourse in the hobby around these topics and for you to be able to express your views clearly without being ostracized, called crazy or made into a pariah and I want the same for people who disagree with you....so we have a conversation about these topics. If you want to protest, you have every right. If you start protesting art you want taken down, or games you want removed, people who disagree with you will critique the protest or try to argue the case that it is misguided, but they won't (or at least shouldn't) stop you.
And I have said many times in this thread it isn't just the critics, it is the culture and atmosphere of the times. I can be critical of your position, say I think your protest is bad for art and free expression, and still believe in free expression enough that I would argue for you to be able to say all those things without anyone trying to form an online mob against you, trying to attack your character and ruin your reputation, trying to take work away from you etc. I want people to be able to have open conversations and I want there to be more charitable exchanges than we have had. What I am objecting to is the culture that feels almost like an inquisition when you step out of line
