Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - Suggestions & Feedback Humans on the Sword Coast are not black

Most of them are called Illuskans, or Northlanders, and are fair skinned. Calishites, Chultans, etc. are not. From what i've seen of the game easily more than half of the humans are from somewhere other than the Sword Coast. Just like there being hordes of tieflings, it makes no sense, only it's worse because there's no good explanation.

Not that I expect them to care or change it. "Representation" is mandatory in western culture nowadays.

The "horde" of tieflings does make sense...They're a band of refugees from Elturel led by Zevlor to find a new home in Baldur's Gate. Their oppression as tieflings is why they're stuck out in the wilderness barely surviving off a few druids' goodwill.

As for the black characters...Rath and Wyll are the only ones I can think of that are black. Most of them are white. There seemed to be very few humans among the druids though.

BG is a cosmopolitan city, no reason there shouldn't be black people.

But honestly, does it matter at all? Drow are fine, but you draw the line at black people?

I'm not sure how far the starting zone is from Baldurs Gate, exactly, but BG has plenty of diversity by grace of being one of the larger metropolitan areas in the sword coast and regularly trading by boat. Also, as far as I'm aware Baldurs Gate is not even majority Illuskan, and is way closer to Amn and even the Anauroch Desert than it is to Luskan.

As others have pointed out, the tieflings are basically a refugee caravan that had to form specifically because they were tieflings.

Honestly the homogeneity of the accents is weirder than the diversity in skin tone so far. I hope the PC gets more accent options too.

Hell, goofy accents are part of the identity of the Baldurs Gate series.

Mods need to delete this thread. Nobody should have to see the OP's offense taken at seeing black people in a video game.

Ah yes lets thought police because someone has an opinion we dont like.....

Honestly like others said here already, Baldurs gate attracts alot of people from all over Fearun. If theres any city in the setting where a thing as diversity would be appropiate, its this city.

I can only think of 2 black characters that ive met so far though. One at the druid camp and Wyll ((I think hes called? The Warlock) so its not like we are beeing drowned in poc's or something....

From the Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide, emphasis added.



That guide goes on to detail a number of ethnic origins which "are significant minorities in regions or nations that border the North", many of which have dark skin.

So everything else aside, this complaint isn't even consistent with the source material.

Elturel is roughly 200-250 miles East of Baldur's Gate, since the Tieflings are fleeing persecution in Elturel following the events of the Descent into Avernus adventure, the starting area is likely somewhere between the two cities along the banks of the Chionthar river.

Baldur's Gate itself is a large, cosmopolitan port city and so is likely to be diverse and multicultural with peoples of varying races and ethnicities. This diversity will spread throughout the surrounding area as people naturally move around.

Going to bat for someone whose opinion is "I don't like looking at minorities" isn't the hill I'd die on, but you do you.

If the default human having black skin offended you, you're a racist (the royal "you" here, not the specific you)

God, shut up. I'm someone that honestly doesn't care for "forced representation" (as someone belonging to a minority group, I can sense when there's representation for the sake of representation), but you're just upset at the presence of non-white people.

The D&D team is actively pushing for diversity in the current iteration of D&D. So your "boo hoo there are black people in the Sword Coast" post doesn't have a leg to stand on.

Except that doesent debunk anything. It just states that across the entire continent you will find a great variety of peoples. And that last quote of your basicly confirms the OP's point.

Look, lets all be civil here alright? OP is right on his point that black wouldnt be the norm and others are right in that such a big city minorities would be more present then in other areas.

I personally only saw 2 humans of colour so im not afraid that we will be overrun by the darkies or something (thats a joke before people take it seriously -_- ) but given the current politicall correct climate in alot of industries I can understand the OP not wanting that seeped into his games.

Straight from the PHB:

Tethyrian

Widespread along the entire Sword Coast at the western edge of Faerûn, Tethyrians are of medium build and height, with dusky skin that tends to grow fairer the farther north they dwell. Their hair and eye color varies widely, but brown hair and blue eyes are the most common. Tethyrians primarily use Chondathan names.


So the inhabitants of the Sword Coast are actually too white. Need more brown people in the game.

Baldurs Gate is so far from the mainland settlements specifically listed as Illuskan (Luskan, Neverwinter) in source books that I'm not sure the diversity needs to spread around as it was probably there in the first place. The wilderness around the city has got to have tons of calishites and others.

Anyways, if there's one thing this thread reinforces it's that people who get their boxers in a bunch about "representation" as a hard and fast rule never know what the hell they're talking about.

It isent? Compared to what, actively silencing peoples ability to voice their opinion because you dont like it?

He/she is free to voice their opinion just like you or I am to voice ours.

I give exactly 0 shits about the fact that you dont agree with the opinion and want to silence it.

Sincerely, go fuck yourself.

Hey y'all maybe using fictional details written by a notoriously non-diverse fantasy gaming company to justify why your fantasy video game should by rights be non-diverse is missing the forest for the trees.

edit:


Just so we're clear, yes, racists should be silenced because their views are anathema to civil society.

double edit for the below: https://miro.medium.com/max/614/1*Rk8NgfKRLzD3CUrwgh37gw.jpeg

"I Disapprove of What You Say, But I Will Defend to the Death Your Right to Say It."

Sadly, something that seems to have been forgotten by far too many these days.

You dont counter someones ideas by silencing those ideas. Youre more likely to reinforce them if you do that. If you dont counter them with better ideas of your own you are making the whole situation worse.

So long as OP isent breaking forums rules, inciting hatred or whatnot he can bloody talk about whatever the fuck he wants as far as im concerned. And if your counter to his post is 'hur dur thats racist. silence him' then you contribute less to the discourse then you think the OP is....

My eyes just rolled so far into the back of my skull. I'm not saying the OP doesn't have a right to speech. I'm exercising my right to call out what I perceive to be bigoted nonsense.

The Sword Coast region is a major trade route between disparate cultural trade hubs. You would have seen people from a variety of cultures and ethnic groups, has as you would have in the analogous historical period cities.

You have the right to say vile bull s—- and we have a right to call it what it is. A privately moderated forum has a right to squash inappropriate rhetoric.

You dident. Clanpot on the other hand...