D&D 4E Women in 4E

[Snapdragyn]

I agree that there should be more images of serious women adventurers.

That said, I'd also like to see more beefcake, please. Really. Please? (though heavy on the 'cake' & light on the 'beef' is better IMO)

What can I say? I want as much demi-pr0n (that appeals to my eye) as any other man does!

 

[Nifft]

http://youtube.com/watch?v=iAUXdDO_NgM

Wow, that's pretty darn cute!

I guess if you only have one line, you get pretty good at saying it.

Thanks, -- N

 

[airwalkrr]

I used Conan only because I simply COULD NOT FIND another picture of a half-naked buff guy wielding a sword that emphasized his body.

I swear, I went through so many pages of Google Image.

Sounds like you enjoyed it.

 

[Rechan]

Sounds like you enjoyed it.

There were a lot of scantily clad female barbarians.

That said, I'd also like to see more beefcake, please. Really. Please? (though heavy on the 'cake' & light on the 'beef' is better IMO)

By this, do you mean more scantily clad Hennet less Tordek in skivvies? I can get behind that, if they got rid of the buckles.

 

[Wormwood]

I suggested that over on the WotC boards, and got bombarded by female players saying "What, you want a multitude of ugly women? I don't want my character to look ugly."

In my wife's brief D&D career, she has played a human cleric, a human fighter and an elf rogue.

All hot.

 

[Erik Mona]

Well, the module "Palace of the Silver Princess springs to mind." As WotC's website notes, the first print was recalled because "A woman tied by her own hair, being menaced by nine men who threaten her with knives while tearing off bits of her clothing, is hardly wholesome, but rather mild by TSR’s standards."

Also "it pales in comparison with the cover of 1976’s Eldritch Wizardry (a nude woman tied down to a sacrificial altar".

It was also the first Dungeons & Dragons module written by a woman.

--Erik

 

[I'm A Banana]

If you're going to be like that, then, as another ENworlder (whose name I can't recall) once said, there is a special circle of Hell reserved for those who spell "lose", "loose".

Curses. Grammar burn.

There are, for example, few scarred women. If you look at most D&D art, there *is* a lot of midriff, and it seems women adventurers spend a lot of time focusing on their hair. And, there's also a huge number of women in the books entirely - I'd definately say more than half. You can tell the books are aimed at male gamers.

Point #1: There's also a lot of swords. I think D&D is encouraging violence through the images! People with swords! Oh no! Our children are being brainwashed to stab people!

Point #2: If I was going to demographically aim a book at a feminine stereotype in classic Marketing Wiz style, I would have it be about celebrities, fashion, and weight loss, because that's what sells!. If it popped up on Oprah, it'd be the best seller in the world inside of a week.

More than half the books also depict horrible things from alien dimensions, who, exactly, are those books aimed at?

 

[Gloombunny]

One point that is often missed in these discussions is that a woman can be hot without impractical skimpy clothing. "chainmail bikinis vs ugly characters" is a false dichotomy. Any artist who can't make a female character look good without turning her into a cheesecake model shouldn't be illustrating.

I'd also like to see some non-hot women in the art once in a while, though. And not just disfigured evil hags, but more or less plain women who don't spend hours a day curling their hair and putting on makeup while camping in a freakin' dungeon.

 

[Erik Mona]

Part of the problem is that artists are 100% perverts. Seriously. You wouldn't believe how hard we have to ramp them back sometimes.

But for those looking for newer representations of women in fantasy, I hope you've had a chance to check out Pathfinder Iconic Kyra.

Or perhaps you prefer elves.

For fans of the classic style, of course, there's always Seoni.

--Erik

 

[I'm A Banana]

I'd also like to see some non-hot women in the art once in a while, though. And not just disfigured evil hags, but more or less plain women who don't spend hours a day curling their hair and putting on makeup while camping in a freakin' dungeon.

If Hennet can do those buckles, and Tordek can weave his beard, and Gimble can oil his beard, the least we can ask is for Mialee to do a little eyeshadow...

I really, REALLY don't want realistic pictures of sweaty beaten adventurers to appear in my books very often. They're fantasy heroes, that would be a bit too much brutal realism. I want characters that I want to be, poster children for the lifestyle of goblin-slaying and treasure-taking. They should all be beautiful, glamorous, powerful, and generally everything we all wish we were.