Race in RPG and the Alternatives

[jhkimrpg]

My theory post, "Who's on Top? -- Social Class in Tabletop RPGs" brought me back to some continuing thoughts on representations of race in RPGs, following up on my other posts under the racism tag.

In particular, I'd like to link to the Race in D&D blog, started by Chris Van Dyke last November after he gave a presentation on that topic for nerd

Comments

[jimhenley]

I think what John is saying is

1. It wouldn't be like, "All elves are like this and all dwarves are like that, but humans are incredibly various," to the extent that the answer to "What would it be like" isn't completely arbitrary, non-human sapients being constructs of the human imagingation.

2. In fantasy, "What's your sign?" can be as compelling a question as you make it.

[jhkimrpg]

That sounds like a science fiction question to me. I don't think Tolkienesque fantasy really delves into what non-human sapience would be in any non-trivial way. My alternatives list, and indeed all of the above, is aimed at fantasy. In sci-fi, the alternatives to alien races would be rather different -- including transhumanism and cyber-modification.

Fantasy usually isn't about "what would it really be like to have elves" -- because that isn't a very compelling question, any more than whether the Enterprise could really beat a Star Destroyer. Instead, it's often about examining human traditions and myths.

Astrology has a vital place in history and culture, and was among other things a driving force behind the development of astronomy, mathematics, and physics in Europe. I think it is at least as central to our mythology as elves and dwarves are.

[jimhenley]

Imagine if being born under a sign had noticeable phenomorphic effect: e.g. every Cancer can breathe water, and even has chitinous skin; every Taurus is heavy-bodied with multiple stomachs etc. Maybe there are issues around pair-bonding outside your sign (maybe Pisces don't even pair-bond, they just squirt milt), and Aries tend to hook up with Aries etc. But the vagaries of human gestation schedules mean that even if two married Aries try to have a baby Ram and conceive at the proper time, they've got a decent chance of birthing a Fish or a Bull. You can be LESS flashy than that, but you don't have to be.

Race in RPG's

[anonymous]

I'm going to make a series of barely-related remarks. I don't really have a point, just some musings

[selentic]

Usually i ignore, or denigrate (and, ouch, what a word!), the whole idea of Tolkien-esque fantasy race, but from a world-building perspective, the part of the issue here that i find particularly interesting (though i haven't had the opportunity to play with it yet) is the exploration of what the world would be like if it really had different (biological) races.

Imagine a world where Neanderthals, H. erectus, even Paranthropus, survived alongside us... now there is a fantasy racism background worth exploring! (Of course, we can just say Elves, Dwarves, etc... but it's more interesting to start from scratch, and not just follow the Tolkien bandwagon.)

People who are really different... or maybe not.

I suppose that's the whole question we'd be asking if we put the word "race" (or species, even) in our games.

What else could we hope to learn from such a game?

[selentic]

On the other hand, i like where the OP is going:

What if race in our fantasy game isn't based on genetics, or even any kind of birthright (star signs, etc)...

...what if it is a choice made by each hero? (What if they let their parents/guardians make it for them?)

[anonymous]

For some alternate background character options, there is this comic book and its subsequent RPG, Artesia (both authored by the same guy), which has an interesting take on how birth order, horoscope and social status influence character creation. It even has a Fate/Destiny system based on the tarot Major Arcana that may help with character growing and for earning experience points