Amid Criticism, Wizards of the Coast Quietly Removes Racist Lore From Dungeons & Dragons

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Dungeons & Dragons publisher Wizards of the Coast has quietly removed language from its newly released Spelljammer setting that came under fire for racist overtones. While its D&D Beyond online tools no longer contain references to a primate-like race becoming “sapient” through enslavement, the already-published physical books still contain the problematic language, as well as depictions of a primate-like race that closely mirror the racist imagery of minstrel shows.

The new Astral Adventurer’s Guide, a setting source book for the revived Spelljammer setting, was published last month. The book swiftly drew criticism for its depictions of a primate-like race whose backstory involves enslavement and forced experimentation to alter and advance their physical and mental capacities. A variety of outlets have highlighted the issue, while many D&D players and experts took to Twitter to express frustration and confusion over what is an ongoing racism problem that dates back to the origin of the game itself.

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Dungeons & Dragons is no stranger to issues concerning race and representation. But despite a history of problematic and directly racist depictions of peoples in its fictional worlds, the new Astral Adventurer’s Guide offers up lore that includes the “hadozee.” {snip} This fictional history was also accompanied by imagery that mirrors real-world racist, anti-Black imagery from 19th and 20th century minstrel shows.

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This latest concern over racist overtones in D&D follows a public commitment from the publisher to address its legacy of systemic racism in its products and to do so in a transparent way. In 2020, Wizards of the Coast released a statement in which it committed to making products that better reflect the diversity of its players. It also pledged to reprint recent books such as Curse of Strahd and Tomb of Annihilation, which had also come under scrutiny for what Wizards itself described as “racially insensitive” text. {snip}

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Sensitivity readers, diverse staff, and changes to in-game language have all been part of the larger efforts of TTRPG companies to create more inclusive and less insensitive material. Yet, the most famous role-playing game in the world, with the clearest history of racist fiction and mechanics, continues to struggle.