#romance? more like two non-humanoids attempting to interact

[bnha-more-like-bnh-gay]

Shouto: my brother just read something I wrote and called me an emo.

Shouto: he’s now making fun of me for it

Shouto: he is correct, and all his points stand, but this was not necessary

[furrbbyx]

Monster March d.6: the season

I'm actually begging you as a writer to get a notepad or something because of the silly shit your write when you're half thinking out an idea.

I present to you another half baked monster romance story and made me snort as I read it again.

approx 1000 words

more breeding and egg laying sex between consenting adults. Kind of. Sometimes you just forget to mention all of the details.

Appearance

Four arms, three fingered with retractable claws. Two sets of dull pink reptilian eyes head, neck, shoulders and arms are covered in delicate scales, while the rest of its body is covered in tough skin. It is completely mottled brown. Males have a very visible penile sheath, a large dewlap and a crest of spines. Females do not have mammary glands and secrete "milk" on their skin. They do not have cervix, but cloaca and womb to incubate

Fe'ratis Stats 

Average Height:7 feet / 2.5 metersAverage Lifespan: 140 yearsMaturity:35 yearsBreeding age:35 years

No. of young:a clutch of 20 eggs every 6 months, but not always fertilized. eggs are oblong and about as long at a human thumb at first but they grow bigger as they gestate

Population:Common

Temperament:RIZZED (silly)

Diet:fresh meat, grubs and giant spiders

Family life

Competition between males is non-existent. They live within polycules wit one female because they lay so many eggs and lots of supervision is needed for the gestation period

males fertilize and deposit offspring. Females incubate and because of this they are pampered

Outline:

"Welcome aboard ambassador Ra'akaa" A humanoid alien female stands from their seat at the center of the bridge, the hub of the carrier space ship. They greet the ambassador by placing a fist over their heart, which the Fe'ratis visitor returns. There are many aliens stationed around the hub involved with the business of navigating a 400 soul corporeal ship through between stars and debris. Ra'akaa spends a moment taking in the activity of the bridge with mild interest.

"Lufffly ssshwip Ca'tain. I thank you for the transport" Ra'akaa says this through his translator and his Fe'ratis accent is distinct. He opens his mouth as he looks down on the captain, attempting an earth expression, smiling. 

The captain nods, their body language formal yet agreeable. "You flatter us, but go on. I like to hear how well liked my ship and crew are." they say using their own translator which added friendly tones.

The doorlock to the bridge unseals with a soft puffing release alerting everyone to the ensign that steps out. She walks with purpose toward the captain greeting him with the hand gesture before turning to greet the Fe'ratis. She falters entirely for a moment now fully aware of Ra'akaa unnatural height and nakedness.

When she had been briefed of her detail three days ago she had been given some visual and audio files to familiarize herself Fe'ratis and their diplomatic forays across the galaxy. The highly intelligent, and gentle Fe'ratis in her materials had been slight, only 2 meters tall and wearing robes or other coverings that hide most of their bodies. She had learned basic details to avoid cultural misunderstandings like their history of interactions with other species. The materials explained that Fe'ratis had adopted clothing to smooth the diplomatic process, but they usually did not cover their bodies on their planet. Recently though, there had been a shift in this culture as the Fe'ratis sought out stronger positions in the universe and made contact with species that appreciated highly adapted physique and ferocious hunting skill.

Ra'akaa was obviously a practitioner of the new ways. The ensign stared openly at his 2.5 meter form made of thick broad limbs. His mottled skin pattern drew her gaze unwaveringly.

aboard a diplomat ship a Fe'ratis male boards on his way to [redacted]. An Ensign meets him and can't stop staring at his sheath. She gets to escort him to his quarters. He tells her he's very unfamiliar with this type of living ask asks her to show him how things work. She shows him how to turn on the lights and he insists on a dim ambiance. She shows him the replicators and he requests something sweet from his home planet in his sibilant mother tongue. The ensign watches in fascination while his tongue snakes out to lick up the treat before he devours it like a lizard, bulging his throat. 

"Is that...good?"

"Delicious. One of most popular treats" He purred and leaned down "Would you like to try it?"

The ensign nods, nearly frozen by his intense gaze and the desire that had been building in her since she was introduced to him.

They kiss. He sweeps into her mouth with a tender force and she tastes the complex dark caramel lingering on his tongue. She allows him to unzip her uniform

They fuck and he tells her about his eggs and asks if she wants to experience being filled that way.

The ship calls her on the intercom and she tells them that shes still helping the Fe'ratis get settled as he doesn't know how to get around their tech.

"I will return to my post shortly, sir" "Heard Ensign" That is if I can even walk, she thought wryly

He floods her with an aphrodisiac that causes her cervix to dilate and then his cock fuses to her and the first flush is eggs. Then there's a second flush of his genetic material, They both get off on watching her expand. Lots of breast play bc females don't have them and he's fascinated. He cages her and lets his cock grow and push inside slowly. She lays on his stomach while he roughly fucks the shit out of her with one arm across her shoulders , one teasing her nipple, and two holding her down on his length as he ruins her

"Ensign" the com sounded loud in the room. She gasps and trys to answer without her voice sounding sex addled.

"I'm on my way sir"

"Actually ensign stay where you are. Dr. Bruiser has just informed us of the...erm Fe'ratis' biological imperative.

"Umm"

"You're relieved of duty Ensign. Report to med-bay at you're earliest convenience."

"Yes sir"

So then they cuddle and its all very sweet. 

"I suppose I should go to med bay sooner than later"

"I would accompany you." He helps her and they discuss the details of the pregnancy. 10 day gestation and she sill grow bigger palm sized little gellies. They will need to be birthed in water. 

Maybe they get a pool into a replicator.

He asks her to live with him on his planet?

[theshapeshifter100]

I posted 4,890 times in 2022

30 posts created (1%)

4,860 posts reblogged (99%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@shamrockace

@autumnleafauthor

@marginmaster87

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@isa-ghost

I tagged 1,539 of my posts in 2022

#critical role - 252 posts

#loz - 113 posts

#pokemon - 94 posts

#bells hells - 89 posts

#the watch au - 85 posts

#dnd - 71 posts

#tlovm - 69 posts

#jacksepticeye - 68 posts

#the legend of vox machina - 56 posts

#twilight princess - 50 posts

Longest Tag: 124 characters

#i always thought 'you really got me' by the kinks was about someone captured by the opposing side of some fictional conflict

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Babybel Wrapper, Mint, and Sunny D! <3

I? I scare you?

Oh do tell me more

Otherwise, yes, let's go bake cookies and frolic!

9 notes - Posted October 22, 2022

#4

I’m just going to throw this into the tag I hope something comes of it

There’s a whisper at around 9.15-9.20, and you know, it could be nothing, it’s before some of the weirder stuff starts to happen, but come on, it’s a weird whisper, gotta try.

I’m getting ‘We’re here’ Any further interpretations because my hearing is not great

15 notes - Posted October 5, 2022

#3

ALTR 04859

Listen alright no one who’s done these knows who the hell I am but damn it if I don’t enjoy a fun writing concept. I believe @tracobuttons started this

---

ALTR 04859 was first spotted in late 2017, and evaded capture for a full year before being brought into IRIS custody. No harm came to IRIS operatives during this time, although some were throughly embarrassed.

ALTR 04859 has the standard form is a stocky humanoid female standing at 155cm with blonde hair. Whether this is her original form is unclear, as the primary ability of this ALTR is the ability to change form.

There appears to be a preference for canid, lagomorph, feline and raptor forms. There is no known pattern to why she shifts to these forms. Upon being questioned, ALTR 04859 merely shrugged and stated ‘because I feel like it’.

In human form, ALTR 04859 is fidgety, particularly with her hands. A foam stress ball has been provided and was gleefully received. In other forms she displays similar behaviour through other means, such as tail swishing and wing flapping, but the stress ball is still used. It has has to be replaced three separate times at time of writing.

When left alone, ALTR 04859 will sing, no matter what form she has taken. Observers greatly dislike when she does this in the form of a cat, or a fox. However, being prohibited from singing caused an increase in stress, so ALTR 04859 was merely advised not to sing in such forms, and has so far cooperated.

Intelligence appears to be on the same level as an average human, and retains the same cognition and awareness no matter the form taken.

ALTR 04859 displayed recognition when some other ALTRs were described, but claims to have never interacted with them. The Watchr cameras told us that she was being truthful.

The one known exception is ALTR 0899, whom ALTR 04859 appears to enjoy the company of greatly. The two ALTRs are not to be left unsupervised with each other, and given their propensity to mimic each other when changing form, measures are to be taken to ensure the correct ALTR is returned to the correct cell.

A steady supply of fiction books is to be maintained in order to distract ALTR 04859 and lower stress. ALTR 04859 has expressed great enjoyment of certain tropes found in fantasy and science fiction novels, although has also stated a great distaste of the romance genre, and romantic plot lines in general. Despite IRIS’s best efforts, there are a limited number of titles that fit those requirements, but there has yet to be any great discontent over the matter.

Despite clear curiosity, and potential pleading, ALTR 04859 is not allowed any non-fictional resources we have about magic.

Whilst in IRIS custody ALTR 04859 appears mostly calm, and sometimes amused. There is the concern that ALTR 04859 will attempt to escape using her ability, and while many security measures have been put in place, we are not yet certain of her full capabilities. It is unlikely that ALTR 04859 will display them willingly.

Future tests of ALTR 04859′s abilities are still under board consideration.

There is to be constant monitoring of ALTR 04859′s cell and any new forms shown are to be reported immediately. She is to be allowed supervised exercise in an enclosed space once a week, and if well behaved, is allowed light training with the guards. ALTR 04859 appears to have some level of skill in unarmed combat, but is not allowed to properly train, in case physical restraint is required. Under no circumstances allow ALTR 04859 to know of the location of IRIS’s weapons stores, let alone allow her to use them, no matter of assurances that she ‘just wants to look’.

In the event of escape, food is one potential non-violent method of recovery, as ALTR 04859 appears to have trouble turning down food. Sweet food and chocolate are recommended, however given the clear preference for predator forms, having meat on hand is also recommended

19 notes - Posted November 13, 2022

#2

Jackieboy-man and IRIS

So this is the result of a conversation on The Watch discord between me and @dawnstar13, and @isa-ghost‘s posts.

If I stare at this work much longer I might scream

Word Count: 2,141

Warnings: strong language, kidnap, inplied needles (right at the end)

---

IRIS, like many dubious facilities, has levels of security. Not all key cards allow all access. Not all security personnel have the same level of training.

Not all the corridors have the same level of security. Not all of them had a pair of guards every five metres and three, five-inch steel doors going down it.

At the far end of this corridor, is an eleven-inch steel door. Two blocks of five-inch steel and one-inch of lead. Naturally.

On the other side of that door, a figure paced. He paced at the speed of a sprint, moving across the room that only had a basic bed shoved against the back wall. In a corner near the ceiling a camera sat, a black blob in mostly grey room with an ever present, blinking, red light.

Jackie glared at it as he paced, blue eyes flickering bright green. If he messed with the camera, this already cramped room would be stormed by armed and protected guards and he’d be hauled somewhere with even less space. As if that was going to help.

The bastards fucking kidnap him, pump him full of shit, drag him out every now and again for random tests, and then just leave him. What the fuck?!

The anger made his brown hair flare the same bright green as his eyes before settling again, glaring at the camera again before slumping onto the bed with enough force to send loose sheets flying up.

His eyes naturally fell on the door. The stupid, fucking, door. Thicker than any door had any right to be, with one of those panels in the top that can slide open so someone could look in. Smug pricks.

His eyes flicked from the camera to the door. Maybe…

Planning and prepping with an ever-present camera was tricky. There was always the chance that someone was watching, and the already sparse room would be tossed. At this point he was lucky to have a bed frame and not just a mattress on the floor.

So, spur of the moment it was.

In a blur of green the camera was ripped from the wall and Jackie had pressed himself against the wall by the door, counting down.

There was shouting outside that he could just pick up on, thumping of boots and rattling of guns as the near endless supply of grunts filed outside.

3…2…1…

0…

-1…

Okay these guys really needed to work on their timing.

Five beats late, the door burst open, and Jackie was already moving.

He couldn’t fight these guys. He was stronger definitely, but if enough got their hands on him, he was screwed. They had training and numbers. So running was the best option.

His hair and eyes glowed green and the world slowed to a crawl as he darted past armed guards in black tactical gear. Word seemed to be getting around and the doors ahead were starting to close. At the speed of a snail, so if he took his time, he might have rush to make the last one.

There was an extended boom of a gunfire, and Jackie had the time to look over his shoulder to dodge it. He passed the first door, glided through the second…why was the world getting faster?

Jackie’s breath began to rattle in his lungs as he slowed. No no no no no no no! That door was closing!

He stumbled through the final door as it hissed shut behind him, green glow stuttering like a candle in the wind. The few remaining guards on this side hesitated, all of them appearing confused for a minute.

The dozen blinking cameras in the corridor made Jackie focus, and before the guards could recover he had punched a couple hard enough to rattle their brains and send them to the ground. The last remaining one swung a baton, which Jackie caught and accidentally crushed.

See the full post

22 notes - Posted October 8, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Wasn’t there a thing about making cookies today for In Space with Markiplier?

White choc chip and cranberry!

40 notes - Posted April 4, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[paigesturning]

Race in 5e: Who Is at Your Table?

I had to write an argumentative essay for one of my classes this semester. I was really into the idea I had, and gave it a shot! I think this might be one of the best pieces I’ve ever written.

Word count: 2995 TW: Discussions of race science, orientalism, and references to white supremacist rhetoric

Writing is difficult, and it’s even more difficult to write collaboratively. This applies to TTRPG as much as it applies to novels. Sure, the DM could simply railroad the players into sessions of combat, lock them into a certain path, or make their other options so terrible that they simply must go the way the story is leading, but it’s bad practice. After all, though it’s not a traditional story, written down in book form for distribution, TTRPG relies on the interplay between the DM’s idea for what should happen in the story, and the players’ ideas. Unlike writing a book, however, TTRPGs rely on another influence, rather than just the set of people who have agreed to tell a story. There’s always at least one other person in the situation, who might be completely unknown to the DM and players. I refer, of course, to the game designer. TTRPGs have far more freedom than video games, but the decisions made by the game designer have the same amount of weight in both mediums. In Skyrim, for example, this looks like a prioritization of combat mechanics over puzzle solving mechanics or relationship mechanics. Though both are implemented in the game, there’s not nearly as many options in playstyle for relationships, or variation in puzzle types, for it to be considered a romance game, or a puzzle game. In TTRPG, the influence of the designer is often far less apparent. In 5e, your character can do basically whatever they want so long as the other people at the table agree that it’s something they want to interact with. However, with some exception, you will not be able to run a game set, for example, in real-world Chicago or on a transport vessel in space. Players tend to be locked into a fantasy setting. Like Skyrim, 5e is a system that prioritizes combat in a magical, pseudo-European medieval setting. It’s a mix of mechanics, and built-in worldbuilding that can allow us to come to this conclusion - each spell, if it doesn’t explicitly add or remove hit points from a target, changes the rules for when and how combat can happen, and each class is described in their flavor text in high fantasy terms, often opening with the examples of ways each one can be useful in combat. True as all this may be, it is, at its core a neutral thing, and I find myself blessed to occasionally be at the tables of others as a game designer and homebrewer. All games must make assumptions about the kind of game players want, and must do their best to fulfil those expectations, the same way a speaker might attempt to predict the thoughts, previous knowledge, and counter-arguments of their audience. However, in 5e, there lies a certain set of assumptions that I personally find troubling, and in fact in need of some serious reworking. The way that race functions in 5e represents an old-fashioned way of viewing the world. In the most direct terms, yeah, it’s kinda racist. Therefore, the assumptions 5e makes in their race system, represented in mechanics that both promote archaic ways of thinking and force the narrative in directions the players and DM may be uncomfortable with, means that it is time to either dramatically change the way race works, or pass over the system entirely.

When a DM is preparing to start a new game of 5e, one very good place to start is the Dungeon Master’s Guide, or DMG. In it, theoretically, are the tools for DMs and players alike to better understand exactly what the game they are playing looks like. In many ways, it’s a behind the scenes look at what goes into planning a session. For example, each “encounter”, or a portion of the game in which the players fight enemies or find ways around them, there’s a bit of calculation which can tell you what enemies will be appropriate for your party size and level. However, in a new game, before even doing that, you should go to the beginning of chapter 1, on page 9. It lists the assumptions the rules make about your setting, which is a helpful tool for anyone attempting to rectify the base rules with a far-out, high-concept world. They are as follows: “Gods Oversee the World”, “Much of the World is Untamed”, “The World is Ancient”, “Conflict Shapes the World’s History”, and “The World is Magical”. On paper, that’s all you need to know (though it might be worth noting that on page 43 the book contradicts this and gets more specific about what sort of multiverse is required to support the rules). These are five basic rules anyone can follow, rules that most people working to create a fantasy setting would have followed anyway, especially in such a combat-focused system. However, in the Player’s Handbook, (abbreviated as PHB) there are additional assumptions about the setting you’ll be playing in, most notably in the section on the different races that appear in 5e. For starters, each race has a small box that explains how the other races in the game are likely to view them. Taken from page 37, when the book is discussing how Gnomes (a small race of humanoids with large heads and thin limbs) think about their place among other races, “It's rare for a gnome to be hostile or malicious unless he or she has suffered a grievous injury. Gnomes know that most races don't share their sense of humor, but they enjoy anyone's company just as they enjoy everything else they set out to do.” They give no explanation for why gnomes tend to be “Good”, in terms of 5e’s morality system. Perhaps this isn’t an oversight, and instead they are allowing you to fill in the blanks yourself? Do the gnomes perhaps have free healthcare, while some others do not? 

I am of course being facetious. I am certain the creators didn’t think quite so far ahead, and instead just wanted to paint a picture of the world they envisioned. It’s not some great sin of design, of course, to do this, and I will admit I am guilty of it in my own design. However, this is just one of the smaller examples of 5e making decisions for the DM and the players. Unlike some other portions of the rules, that brief note can be ignored with little to no need for creating a replacement. You could just as easily scribble the note out of the book, and leave a black sharpie stain where it once sat. Unfortunately, there are other decisions made about race that are much harder to ignore without a level of homebrewed (or player-created) mechanics. For example, a little later, on page 43, the book tells you about the specific mechanical benefits that half-orcs get. Two in particular stand out to me as disturbing. The first, Menacing, means that “You gain proficiency in the Intimidation skill”. The other is Savage Attacks, which reads “When you score a critical hit with a melee weapon attack, you can roll one of the weapon's damage dice one additional time and add it to the extra damage of the critical hit”. There is no way in which these cannot be seen as narrative decisions on the part of the creators. Exactly what is it about an orc’s presence that would mean it is more intimidating than any other person? One could surmise that, perhaps they are much larger than most people, or that their rarity means that people are not used to their size and tusks. Perhaps I only speak for myself, but I do not often find myself intimidated by people who look different from what I am used to. The explanation the rules provide is that full-blooded-orcs are barbaric raiders, who wantonly destroy and kill, and are considered evil. Why is it, however, that there’s an entire group of people, people with thoughts, feelings, social structures, who can produce viable offspring with members of other groups of people, that the book deems evil? I submit that, in the minds of the creators, there is some sort of orientalist mystique behind the savage barbarian, one that is physically superior, and yet is still no more than fodder to be torn through by the heroes of the story. This isn’t even the worst example of racism built into the game, but to explain this next portion, I will need to explain a concept. 

At its base level, phrenology is, as per the Encyclopedia Britannica, “the study of the conformation of the skull as indicative of mental faculties and traits of character, especially according to the hypotheses of Franz Joseph Gall”. Gall, born in 1758, measured the heads of his colleagues, convicts, and people in asylums, in order to determine traits such as intellect and potentiality for criminal behavior. As with many things invented in late 18th century Europe, this practice was used to fuel European imperialism. The article Of ‘Native Skulls’ and ‘Noble Caucasions’: Phrenology in Colonial South Africa, by Andrew Bank, explains very quickly that “The leading proponents of the new discipline almost uniformly adapted their science of the brain to issues of racial differentiation”. I assume that from here it isn’t difficult to see the direction I am heading with this. Elves, Tieflings, Humans, and Gnomes are given bonuses to Intelligence. Dwarves, Humans, and Elves are given bonuses to Wisdom. Elves, Half-Elves, Humans, Tieflings, Dragonborn, and Halflings are given bonuses to Charisma. Of the races present in the PHB, Half-Orcs are the only ones that don’t get any bonuses to the so-called “Mental Stats”. Physical stats, on the other hand, include Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution, and Half-Orcs get bonuses to Strength and Constitution. In mechanical terms, this leads to a fairly good balance. The other classes serve as either well-rounded jacks-of-all-trades, or are specialized for certain casters, or help fit an archetype of dexterous fighter/caster combinations, while the Half-Orcs are specialized for non-caster tanks, such as the Barbarian or the Fighter. This makes narrative sense as well; if Half-Orcs are raised by the orcish side of their family, they are far more likely to be brutal in martial combat, trained to fight and kill anyone who might have supplies or treasure for them. 

However much this might “make sense”, I have to ask why this was an addition to the game. I see three possible answers, and by my approximation, they are likely to all be true. The first is that the creators wanted more narrative control than they let on. The second is that they needed those stats to be stand-in numbers to represent various types of spellcaster and are simply ignorant to their implications. The third is that the creators simply find race science unobjectionable. Earlier, I suggested that the game designer joins the players and the DM at the table, through their work. At my table, ignorance and suggestions that some races are simply more intellectually powerful than others is not tolerated, and I should only hope you feel the same way. 

At this point, you’re thinking so loud that I can practically hear it, even in the past. “Ignorance isn’t tolerated? What if the ignorant person in question is willing to change, and well-meaning?”, but if this is what you were thinking, I say with the deepest respect that you’re being just a touch too literal. Of course, if I’ve sat down and agreed to play with someone I know, I am willing to go over why what they said made me uncomfortable. TTRPG is a dialogue, one where the players and the DM must negotiate, not battle, for the story they want to tell, and where everyone must speak up when something happens that makes them upset. The difference between a literal player’s presence and the game designer’s figurative presence is that there is no arguing with a book. In some ways, it’s easier to change a book’s mind. Simply write your own rules, and move on, there’s no need to debate an actual person. You may also be thinking that 5e simply utilizes the mechanics of previous editions. While that is technically true, what is the point of creating a new edition if you can’t change things moving forward? And what’s more, each of my criticisms can be moved onto 1e. The biggest criticism I expect against my argument however, isn’t any of this. Obviously, only one of the races in 5e is human. Nothing in 5e indicates that one race of human is significantly better or worse than any other race of human, and so surely it can’t be racism. Again, you may be thinking a little too literally. In the world supposed by 5e, each race is seen as a person, and (depending on the setting and narrative your group constructs) has the same rights to freedom and life, and yet some are just more mentally skilled than others as soon as they are born. How often in reality do the dregs of society say something along the lines of “it isn’t that I think [members of a certain race] aren’t people or should be enslaved, it’s just that I think that white people are inherently smarter” to make an effort of sounding more reasonable? It isn’t that I think the races in 5e are 1:1 parallels to real-world racist stereotypes. Instead, it’s a matter of philosophy, race-based pseudoscience, and ideology that makes 5e (and previous editions) racist, without major rules upheavals. 

However, in some cases, it would require such an overhaul of a system that it isn’t worth it. Most people would look at the rules for 5e’s races and pale at the thought of changing it completely. Do you get rid of stats completely? Do you select whatever stats you want by yourself? Perhaps you instead get certain bonuses when you select your class, rather than your race? These are all possibilities, and I have played games that utilized some of these options. Aside from the strength of reducing the amount of racism in 5e, it also increases the amount of choice a player has when creating their character. It isn’t unheard of to have a dwarf that uses Dexterity and Charisma as it’s primary abilities, but it is poorly optimized in comparison to the options of Half-Elf or Tiefling, and though it takes a bit more work than just handing a player the PHB, I believe it is worth it in the end. There’s no shame in admitting defeat, though. It’s not every day that I feel like fixing another person’s game, and I design games. And I do it for fun. It is the talent I am blessed with, and my lifelong burden. I understand not wanting to put in the effort. However, my suggestion isn’t that you walk away from TTRPG forever, scorned by the problems in 5e, never to roll a die again. Instead, it might be worth your time looking into other systems of play. Whenever I recommend a system to someone who has only played 5e and is looking for a similar aesthetic, I always turn them toward my personal favorite, Dungeon World (abbreviated as DW). DW is, in many ways, the game that I thought I was playing when I first started playing 5e. Looking through the PHB, it seems very comprehensive to incoming players. But to go back to the example of Skyrim, there’s a suggestion when you start it for the first time that you are about to enter a world of endless possibility, only to be shoehorned into a game that directly prioritizes combat. Dungeon World, while it has far less comprehensive rules for combat, one of its biggest strengths is that it has far fewer rules in general. That isn’t to say that it’s harder to follow. Instead of having intense, complicated rules for combat, every moment in the game is subject to “moves” in which, when you say that your character is doing something, the GM - Game Master, in contrast to the Dungeon Master of 5e - can tell you that the outcome is uncertain, and that it might be difficult. When this happens, you roll two six-sided dice, and the game provides very comprehensive rules to help you resolve it. When you choose a race, you get one extra move and nothing else - an option easily alterable, if one finds it uncomfortable. Blades in the Dark, a similar fantasy system, resolves roles in a similar manner, once again, with a much lesser emphasis on violence, and a much stronger emphasis on magic heists. It’s races have no mechanical benefit, and can be completely ignored if so desired. 

Creating a system is difficult, I know. Playtesting aside, it’s a combination of finding something special that you want to create, deciding what the players will be looking for, and editing draft after draft. It’s also difficult, both logistically and emotionally, to kick someone out of a campaign. It’s my belief though that a line should be drawn when someone in the game insists on adding not only social, but biological inferiority to characters of certain races. It’s a privilege to have your work at someone else’s table, and it’s a privilege that can be revoked. Once again, playing 5e isn’t some ethical failing, or mortal offence. However, it is worth evaluating what changes can be made to 5e’s race system, and if it’s worth it to you to not switch to another system. If you have found any of this compelling, consider your other options. In addition to what I’ve already mentioned, there are designers out there who can bring you into space, cities filled with dark magic and/or under control by cosmic monsters, or honey conventions where there are a few bears trying to steal stuff. Next time you get the urge to roleplay, just consider what I’ve said here, and think about who you’re inviting to your table.

Bibliography

LaTorra, Sage, and Adam Koebel. Dungeon World. 1st ed., The Burning Wheel, 2012.

Harper, John. Blades in the Dark. Evil Hat Productions LLC., 2017.

Works Cited

Mearls, Mike, and Jeremy Crawford. Player's Handbook. 5th ed., Wizards of the Coast LLC, 2014.

Mearls, Mike, and Jeremy Crawford. Dungeon Master's Guide. 5th ed., Wizards of the Coast LLC, 2014.

“Phrenology.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., www.britannica.com/topic/phrenology.

Bank, Andrew. “Of 'Native Skulls' and 'Noble Caucasians': Phrenology in Colonial South Africa.” Journal of Southern African Studies, vol. 22, no. 3, 1996, pp. 387–403. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2637310. Accessed 26 Mar. 2020.