How generous of WoTC that it gives us DMs permission to still portray NPCs of other cultures, for now. But they have conditions! And those conditions give away how much their wokist ideology is incompatible with RPGs.
#dnd #ttrpg #osr #dnd5e

How the fuck wouldn't I, as the GM, don't know anything about the cultures of the world I created? I created it! Whatever I say about culture X is true because I say so!

So if I say that culture Y dresses as clowns while sitting in a certain coastal city and drinking their exotic and overpriced non-alcoholic beverages this automatically becomes reality in the game world. It's creation ex nihilo, by the magic of my words.

I don't play anything by WotC, but was recently looking at running Free League's Coriolis. It's heavily flavored by a post-Islam Middle Eastern culture (in space!) as envisioned by a Swedish company. Looks really cool to me, and I'm not at all concerned with the fact that I am neither of Middle Eastern descent, nor of Swedish heritage.

  Is this the part where the Dissociative Identity Disorder community helpfully informs WoTC corporate standards about ALL the cultures being IGNORED, and DEPROTAGONIZED!, among the non-sapient flora, fauna, AND inanimae? 

Just trying to be helpful. 

WOTC is rapidly drifting further into cult mentality and dogma.

Quote from: Omega on July 19, 2022, 08:40:14 AM
WOTC is rapidly drifting further into cult mentality and dogma.

  WotC has been weird from the beginning; anyone else remember John Tynes' article for Salon? https://t.co/pbbkxNuyQ5

  But I'm also of the opinion that if you don't have a strong philosophical and spiritual grounding, you will most likely get sucked into the spirit of the age. Crux stat dum orbis volvitur.

I love Dungeons and Dragons, that's why I hate WoTC.

It's an evil Jedi mind trick! WotC is granting permission using authority they don't have in order to train their customers to believe that they actually have the authority, so they can alter or revoke permission later.

I fully agree that they hate history. They don't understand history and, more importantly, they can't control history. So they hate it and likely fear it as well.

Keep up the good fight. Looking forward to this Polish book you mentioned!

Quote from: rytrasmi on July 19, 2022, 11:03:33 AM
It's an evil Jedi mind trick! WotC is granting permission using authority they don't have in order to train their customers to believe that they actually have the authority, so they can alter or revoke permission later.

I fully agree that they hate history. They don't understand history and, more importantly, they can't control history. So they hate it and likely fear it as well.

Keep up the good fight. Looking forward to this Polish book you mentioned!

"He who controls the past, controls the future. He who controls the present controls the past."

This is where this is all coming from. And I don't think that they're consciously doing it (I don't attribute enough intelligence to these people to either plan nor realize that this is what they're attempting to do), but this is the mindset from where they're coming from. It is the believe that they can change reality by asserting their version into existence.

And since they control the "present" (i.e. the current iteration of D&D's text and the rights for the brand) they believe that this gives them authority to declare what people who play their game are allowed to do with that game. But owning the copyright for the text and the trademark for the brand only grants them the rights to publish works using that brand. It doesn't give them the right to declare what the reality surrounding the game is or what we're allowed to do with it. But they're hoping enough people believe they do, because unfortunately enough people are stupid enough to believe it.

This is so stupid that my brain is melting trying to make sense of this

Quote from: VisionStorm on July 19, 2022, 11:48:37 AM

Quote from: rytrasmi on July 19, 2022, 11:03:33 AM
It's an evil Jedi mind trick! WotC is granting permission using authority they don't have in order to train their customers to believe that they actually have the authority, so they can alter or revoke permission later.

I fully agree that they hate history. They don't understand history and, more importantly, they can't control history. So they hate it and likely fear it as well.

Keep up the good fight. Looking forward to this Polish book you mentioned!

"He who controls the past, controls the future. He who controls the present controls the past."

This is where this is all coming from. And I don't think that they're consciously doing it (I don't attribute enough intelligence to these people to either plan nor realize that this is what they're attempting to do), but this is the mindset from where they're coming from. It is the believe that they can change reality by asserting their version into existence.

And since they control the "present" (i.e. the current iteration of D&D's text and the rights for the brand) they believe that this gives them authority to declare what people who play their game are allowed to do with that game. But owning the copyright for the text and the trademark for the brand only grants them the rights to publish works using that brand. It doesn't give them the right to declare what the reality surrounding the game is or what we're allowed to do with it. But they're hoping enough people believe they do, because unfortunately enough people are stupid enough to believe it.

Oh no, they know EXACTLY what they're doing.

I control who plays at my table and who I spend time gaming with. If there is an individual who thinks the way WOTC thinks they are not welcome at my table and can go find a game elsewhere. 

I will not be held to an impossible and highly illogical standard for my fantasy make believe game of treasure hunt with elves and fire breathing lizards.

Quote from: THE_Leopold on July 19, 2022, 04:01:45 PM
I control who plays at my table and who I spend time gaming with. If there is an individual who thinks the way WOTC thinks they are not welcome at my table and can go find a game elsewhere. 

I will not be held to an impossible and highly illogical standard for my fantasy make believe game of treasure hunt with elves and fire breathing lizards.

This.

I run my game the way I want to. That may not be to everyone's liking. Heck, I do some things that even folks here might not like.

I think WotC is trying to control the 'official' circuit, i.e. Adventurer's League. Which seems highly dubious, as I doubt AL games outnumber 'bunch of friends playing D&D' games. I'm mystified as to why they think this is going to work. As I've stated before, once the material is out there, there's no way to control it.

If understand correctly, what they're telling you is that you're not allowed to be "racist." What is considered racist for this purpose and how do they intend to enforce this rule?

Quote from: BoxCrayonTales on July 19, 2022, 04:17:57 PM
If understand correctly, what they're telling you is that you're not allowed to be "racist." What is considered racist for this purpose and how do they intend to enforce this rule?

Well, for the latter, I expect you might find yourself blackballed from 'official' AL games. Like I said, I think this is WotC's play to exert more influence over said gaming.

As to the former? Probably resembles TBP complaints. Doesn't matter if it wasn't racist if the complainant was offended.