D&D 5E (2014) How should be the future Oriental Adventures.

[Tonguez]

There are actual Asian gamers living in Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Indonesia and I suspect China too.

hire them to design the game they want to play

 

[Orcslayer78]

WOTC keeps adding MAGIC the Gathering settings to D&D, so the next Oriental Adventure will be for sure Kamigawa, then people on DMGuild will use the rules and subclasses in Kamigawa to build stuff for Kara-Tur as well.

 

[Azzy]

that's only a small part of the problem. China especially lately has a problem with if you print anything they consider belittling them or idolizing their rivals they will keep your book out of their country. Even if you try to disguise it. I don't know how much Hasbro is worried about the China Market but it is something to consider

Meh, screw 'em. Can't capitulate to totalitarian authoritarism (regardless of country).

 

[Azzy]

Is it possible to have a class called a ninja and not be already "culturally appropriating"? If you added to that class the attributes of being stealthy and using strange farm implement based weapons does THAT make it "culturally appropriating"? How about if you make that class native to a far away land not the center focus of the campaign?

The question I have to ask is: Why have a ninja class when the rogue currently fills that archetype or the monk subclass that's already called a ninja in its description in the PHB? There's nothing Asian archetype that I'm aware of that would remotely require a new class. You could maybe add some subclasses, but present them like the samurai subclass in Xanathar's--the only Asian coding is the name.

And, yes, it's possible to have an Asian (or whatever culture)-coded class or subclass if there's the involvement from people from that actual culture (or modern-day heirs of).*

* If I'm wrong here, someone please correct me.

 

[Orcslayer78]

It's funny how you all are saying that only Asians could write about Oriental Adventures or be heavily involved in it while D&D, which core classes and monster are taken from European culture is written mostly, by Americans who have nothing to do with Europeans.
And please, spare me the common roots thing, being white doesn't mean anything, you've born and live in a country that has nothing to do with Europe, Europe and Usa have very different lifestyles.

 

[humble minion]

The question I have to ask is: Why have a ninja class when the rogue currently fills that archetype or the monk subclass that's already called a ninja in its description in the PHB? There's nothing Asian archetype that I'm aware of that would remotely require a new class. You could maybe add some subclasses, but present them like the samurai subclass in Xanathar's--the only Asian coding is the name.

Yeah, I'd agree with that. Older D&D editions tended to churn out kits or new classes that were basically 'fighter, but more Asian' etc. I don't think that's really necessary. 5e subclasses should be based around capabilities, not cultures.

I can see two real holes I can see (from my limited knowledge) where there's common Asian pop-culture archetypes that D&D doesn't really cover. First is the unarmoured wise scholar/investigator that you see in a lot of Hong Kong fantasy movies, but you could do that by making an optional Cleric modification that loses shield and medium armour proficiency in exchange for an additional proficiency, access to Investigation and Arcana, and maybe the monk's unarmoured AC bonus. Second is some sort of pet-trainer or companion-of-monsters archetype, which is all over so many different animes - the beastmaster ranger is the only attempt at this sort of thing in D&D right now, but the animal companion is an afterthought and really doesn't cut the mustard. You'd need to have a new base class to do the concept proper justice. I foresee enormous screeching about the anime-fication of D&D if the latter ever comes to be a real thing, but que sera sera...

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

Kamigawa is more like a "one-shot", after the end of the kami war it's not a very interesting setting. It's worse than Dragonlance without the heroes of the lance.

Today WotC has to worry more about a right crunch (possible new base classes, subclasses, PCs races and monsters) than a setting, about to sell the right pieces and after the own fandom will create their own homebred settings enough "politically correct".

* I suggest a little retcon of the korobukuru to be more coherent with etimilogy of its name. They wear a traditional hat made with a giant leaf, and then the name means "under a leaf".

* I like the lore of the shen/spirit folk, I imagine them like the elves' cousins but the racial traits aren't so practical.

* Japan produces more Manga comics than toilet paper. Hasbro/WotC not only wants to be really politically correct but even new multimedia franchises to be loved among the Asian markets. Think about all those webtoons you can read totally free in internet. This is a fabulous indirect promotion. Let's imagine how many fanboys who would buy D&D to can play as ersatzs/ripoff of their favorite shonen heroes. Hasbro wants to produce new IPs to can sell manga-anime-videogame and other merchadicing products. And later even a Bollywood version of D&D for the Indian market.

* Now I am awaiting the moment when somebody says Italians can't produce spaguetti Western movies because they aren't Northamericans.

* If we have to be pollitically correct, can you create stories set in the pirate age where Spanishs is the evil empire who stopped the human sacrifices in the new world and the English the heroes who trafficked blackafrican slaves? and could Otoman empire to be used as antagonist?

* I would bet a new PC has to be created, something about kawai-kemonomimi (" cute-animal ears") because they are popular in some Asian RPGs.

* I dare to say I know how is to wear their shoes, how they feel. We can't forget that scene in Impossible Mission 2 with strange mash-up of Spanish popular festivals.

* I guess WotC will want to develope a videogame like Jade Empire by Bioware.

 

[Orcslayer78]

Now I am awaiting the moment when somebody says Italians can't produce spaguetti Western movies because they aren't Northamericans.

Touchè

 

[Enevhar Aldarion]

* Now I am awaiting the moment when somebody says Italians can't produce spaguetti Western movies because they aren't Northamericans.

No, Italians can't produce spaghetti at all because the Chinese invented it.

 

[Charlaquin]

WOTC keeps adding MAGIC the Gathering settings to D&D, so the next Oriental Adventure will be for sure Kamigawa, then people on DMGuild will use the rules and subclasses in Kamigawa to build stuff for Kara-Tur as well.

I very much doubt it. Kamigawa block performed very poorly and the higher-ups would much rather sweep it under the rug and make a new setting to fill the same niche than revive it.