D&D (2024) (+) New Edition Changes for Inclusivity (discuss possibilities)

[Hexmage-EN]

So a while back games commentator and academic Austin Walker blasted the concept of the yuan-ti on Twitter for evoking "Yellow Peril" tropes (despite most recent portrayals of yuan-ti looking like people of non-Asian descent; the most recent example I've found is the 3.5 Monster Manual). I haven't really seen anyone else but him and a single poster on another forum say anything about it, but just in case I thought I'd share something I just learned about.

"White Snake" is a 2019 Chinese animated film that focuses on a war between humans and "snake demons" that look pretty much just like yuan-ti.


Images spoilered just in case they're huge (I'm posting from my phone):

Spoiler

I'm now obligated to watch it for inspiration for my future yuan-ti centric campaign.

The film's based on "The Legend of the White Snake" (a folktale dating back to at least the Ming Dynasty), and it's original title is "Báishé: Yuánqǐ" in pinyin.

Pretty sure I know where D&D got the name and concept for the yuan-ti now.

 

[WayOfTheFourElements]

It might not be completely core for the mechanics but how will you know if something is actually evil? Not with the basic single paragraph lore 5e gives a heap of the time, anyway.

By making decisions as a DM about your setting and your game.

 

[Thirteenspades]

Which brings me back to how 5e oversimplifies things.

Another thing, it's not okay to stat Jesus because that allows characters in a fictional universe to kill something a lot of people believe in real life. Also, one reason so many people these days are offended by random things is because they have this over-inclusive ideaology. Satan could be statted (I believe he has) because the only people who worship HIM are psychos. If people fight the flow, they'll eventually change this notion that D&D can't have anything to do with the real world.

 

[Thirteenspades]

By making decisions as a DM about your setting and your game.

Which'll pile more and more work on the DM, the farther it goes. Paizo and Wizards already explicitly state that alignment is fluid.

 

[Cadence]

It might not be completely core for the mechanics but how will you know if something is actually evil? Not with the basic single paragraph lore 5e gives a heap of the time, anyway.

When was the last edition that all monsters had to follow the alignment in their monster description? B/X?

Does it matter if the person who just kidnapped and enslaved you is CN vs. CE or NE? Does it matter if the Gygaxian Paladin who is killing the prisoners who surrendered has LG on his sheet? Does the Paladin get to kill the Death Slaad (CE) who surrendered for being evil, but not the other (CN) slaadi who did?

 

[WayOfTheFourElements]

Another thing, it's not okay to stat Jesus because that allows characters in a fictional universe to kill something a lot of people believe in real life. Also, one reason so many people these days are offended by random things is because they have this over-inclusive ideaology. Satan could be statted (I believe he has) because the only people who worship HIM are psychos. If people fight the flow, they'll eventually change this notion that D&D can't have anything to do with the real world.

Thor is real, damn it. I wrote that I worshiped him on my 2009 census form.

 

[jmartkdr2]

So a while back games commentator and academic Austin Walker blasted the concept of the yuan-ti on Twitter for evoking "Yellow Peril" tropes (despite most recent portrayals of yuan-ti looking like people of non-Asian descent; the most recent example I've found is the 3.5 Monster Manual). I hadn't really seen anyone else but him say anything, but just in case I thought I'd share something I just learned about.

"White Snake" is a 2019 Chinese animated film that focuses on a war between humans and "snake demons" that look pretty much just like yuan-ti.


Images spoilered just in case they're huge (I'm posting from my phone):

Spoiler

I'm now obligated to watch it for inspiration for my future yuan-ti centric campaign.

The film's based on "The Legend of the White Snake" (a folktale dating back to at least the Ming Dynasty), and it's original title is "Báishé: Yuánqǐ" in pinyin.

Pretty sure I know where D&D got the name and concept for the yuan-ti now.

It's one of the best known classic Chinese mythology stories, and more of a tragedy than a tale about good vs evil.

If you modify the lore to make Yuan-ti not always evil, you get around the main issue. But even in this thread I haven't seen anyone argue that we need to keep the evil races always evil (outside maybe fiends).

 

[WayOfTheFourElements]

Which'll pile more and more work on the DM, the farther it goes. Paizo and Wizards already explicitly state that alignment is fluid.

That's the fun of being DM.

 

[Alzrius]

Another thing, it's not okay to stat Jesus because that allows characters in a fictional universe to kill something a lot of people believe in real life.

I dunno, that one product does have a five-star rating.

 

[Cadence]

Another thing,

I don't think I've ever seen someone reply to their own reply to their own reply before. That doesn't technically break any rules, so it isn't necessarily non-lawful indicating, but it sure feels more chaotic. Maybe I like obvious alignment indicators more than I thought I did.