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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Yaarel" data-source="post: 8863824" data-attributes="member: 58172">The most significant genetic feature of the human species is the brain evolving the capacity of speech and the ability to learn and teach new things.This human reliance on speech, whence clothing and jewelry and their symbolic uniforms to artificially create new self-identities, is so radical, many humans cease to even self-identify with other species of animals. Even bonobo and chimpanzee who are genetically similar to us can seem unrelated.Speech is also why culture matters more than instinct. Different human groups learn and teach different ways of adapting, surviving, and flourishing. These artificial differences are of more consequence than any trivial genetic difference. Humans evolve by means of evolving cultures far more rapidly and dramatically than by means of mutating genetics.The problem is. Elves and Dwarves understood as separate species are still TOO HUMAN.Consider how many D&D gamers characterize Dwarves as if vikings with Scottish accents. Reallife ethnicities.And to declare reallife ethnicities as if inborn traits of a separate species, is actual racism. (Also, to culturally appropriate an others ethnicity, such as misrepresenting vikings, is problematic.)And even if the D&D game was no longer about Humans, but rather about Cats and Dogs and other animals: gamers seem likely to declare Nigerians are Cats and Russians are Dogs, or whatever, and the worst kinds of racism become endemic to the game.I can see no other solution for the future of the D&D traditions.1. There must be a clean separation between biology and culture: biological Species versus cultural Background.2. The biological traits must be strictly nonhuman, such as wings and firebreathing.3. The cultural traits are strictly human. Any reallife human can participate and self-identify with the fantasy culture.Any biological Trait that is plausibly human, such as being slightly higher Intelligence or slightly higher Strength is historical racism and eugenics. D&D must end this kind of racist thinking, as soon as possible.The Dwarf can have inborn Traits but only ones that are clearly nonhuman. No reallife human has Darkvision. So Dwarves adapting underground can have Darkvision. But things like being miners is cultural. The setting will have have innate Humans who happen to be members of the dwarven-founded ethnicities. They too will be miners like other members of their respective community. Perhaps these Human-born miners will routinely wear a magic ring of Darkvision, or learn the Darkvision cantrip, in order to work in their mines. It is similar to how some Humans where contact lenses in order to drive cars, in order to participate in a culture that builds cars and travels distances to work.</blockquote>

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