Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
[ UPDATE 16:00 02/08/2021 : The following clause has been modify to more clearly define the Vistani in Dungeons & Dragons . ]
Wizards of the Coast , the newspaper publisher ofDungeons & Dragons , has get critique over the days regarding some of the content in their sourcebooks , and one of the more recent criticisms is the portrayal of the phantasy mathematical group the Vistani in the 2016 dangerous undertaking module Curse of Strahd . In reaction to the backlash , Wizards of the Coast retconned and re - unloosen the vade mecum with amendment to the depiction of the Vistani , but it ’s not sealed that it did enough to ease the racial stereotyping .
The Vistani are a thinly hide fantasy parallel to the Romani ( Roma ) people , a marginalized group residing in Europe and West Asia . The Roma , often labeled by the pejorative full term ‘ gypsy ’ , were subject to the ethnic cleanup put forth by the Nazi Party during the Holocaust . The originalD&D5ECurse of Strahdcampaigndepicted the Vistani as bird of passage who wore scarves and bracelet , traveling in covered Wain know as " vardos"(which closely resemble the real - life Romani vardo wagons ) , telling fortunes , and reading Tarokka Cards . They were also put forth as rummy , liars , cheats , sister thieves , and dark illusionist who used an Evil Eye to place curse on people - distinctive of stereotype utilized to ostracize the Romani hoi polloi throughout real - world history .
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In an effort to make the TTRPG more inclusive , Wizards of the Coastpulled the originalCurse of Strahdcampaignfrom shelves and re - released the revised version in 2020 with the aid of a Romani consultant . Unlike the previous version of the faculty where the Vistani were exclusively depicted with either a neutral or evil alignment , they were now demo with give birth an equal propensity to all alignments as others did . They also neutralized their terminology when it hail to the Vistani finish , no longer label them as drunken reprobates or uncivilized . Chris Perkins , D&D ’s principal narrative designer , on the changes toldIGN , “ We wanted to clean that up a bit and remove some stuff that the fans did n’t particularly like in terms of theatrical performance and how they were depicted - it ’s that sorting of very granular - but - significant alteration . More like surgical changes to the adventure than some sorting of wondrous sweeping change . "
Why Changes to The Vistani Did Little to Fix Problematic Depiction
Some fans and critics of the roleplaying game alike have agreed that thechanges made by Wizards of the Coastare not enough to strike the harm imposed by the stereotype . There was no redaction on the Vistani ’s propensity for their dark , mysterious powers , or use of the Evil Eye which was a unrelenting prejudice used against the Romani the great unwashed . Their physical innovation also still close match the harmful stereotype of the wandering charlatan pushed in Gothic and British lit . There was whole picayune effort made to divorce the conception of the Vistani from the veridical - world hoi polloi upon which they ’d been based .
WhileWizards of the Coasthas publicly stated on its blog that efforts on diversity and inclusion are an explicit destination offifth editionDungeons & Dragons , the troupe still has a tenacious agency to go with better its past history of problematical designs . The Vistani advertize a harmful stereotype analogous to the Romani mass , and despite travail to amend that , the effect still hang on .
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Sources : IGN , Wizards of the Coast
