Infiltrator Armorer, wearing armor that is bonded to them, makes them look different. Because it's magically bonded to them and may show features or the armor in battle.
Or it's just either that Drow's creator decided to give their character a different skintone than what is typically presented as a Drow, which is what Tasha's is all about, or the artist was simply hired to paint a portrait of two different Artificer Armorers and went with their vision.
Or, perhaps, strangely enough, the editor went with that decision after seeing the art rather than assuming all Drow are Charcoal skin colored?
Through out the history of D&D, Drows have always been drawn with different skin colors. TSR and WOTC artists usually used a purple tint on Drow especially in the early days.
They come in a few different shades, sometimes really dark or really light. I'm not fan of the artwork in this book anyway so I'm not gonna be too hooked up on it.
From the original (and therefore only valid :D ) description of drows: "Drow are black skinned and pale haired." But I guess that a black skinned race of mostly evil humanoids cannot exist in this day and age...
I refuse to change my conception of Drow to suit the sensibilities of either snot-nosed goofs or effete corporate snobs when I had to put up with the Satanic Panic and all the crap surrounding it as a young D&D player in the 80s. Changing the depiction of Drow to suite these people is just throwing Gary Gygax (and by extension all of us older fans) under the bus and proclaiming we're racist when there is literally zero evidence of such claims being anything but spurious trash by hustlers looking to be offended by everything. And it won't end there. It never does.
I believe that Drow should have a range of skin tones, similar to people in real life. Some drow might be deep black, others a pale grey, and still others bluish. It makes more sense for them to be paler IMO, since they wouldn't need as much melanin in their skin to protect them from the sun, since they live underground.
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A fool pulls the leaves. A brute chops the trunk. A sage digs the roots.
There also are already pale-skinned Elves that live underground in D&D: Shadow Elves from Mystara (aka The Known World setting). And they're not like the Drow, since they were not forced to retreat underground.
There also are already pale-skinned Elves that live underground in D&D: Shadow Elves from Mystara (aka The Known World setting). And they're not like the Drow, since they were not forced to retreat underground.
That doesn't mean that some drow can't be pale skinned as well.
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A fool pulls the leaves. A brute chops the trunk. A sage digs the roots.
Indeed, but few people remember that anymore, all of BECMI, Mystara and in particular the Shadow Elves, although they were really cool at the time. That being said, the original drows were really badass adversaries back in AD&D, they were just (at least for me) very much ruined by Salvatore's drizzteries... :p
Yep. And it ruined Rangers in turn as well since Drizzt's use of dual scimitars had NOTHING to do with being a Ranger and everything to do with being a Drow since just about all Drow warriors in G3/D1-3/Q1 dual-wielded weapons (it was to set them apart from surface Elves that got a bonus of +1 to hit with bows & swords).
Indeed, but few people remember that anymore, all of BECMI, Mystara and in particular the Shadow Elves, although they were really cool at the time. That being said, the original drows were really badass adversaries back in AD&D, they were just (at least for me) very much ruined by Salvatore's drizzteries... :p
Yep. And it ruined Rangers in turn as well since Drizzt's use of dual scimitars had NOTHING to do with being a Ranger and everything to do with being a Drow since just about all Drow warriors in G3/D1-3/Q1 dual-wielded weapons (it was to set them apart from surface Elves that got a bonus of +1 to hit with bows & swords).
Dual-wielding was the Ranger’s thing in AD&D though. You know, back when you had to have good stats to even qualify for the stronger classes.
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Dual-wielding was the Ranger’s thing in AD&D though. You know, back when you had to have good stats to even qualify for the stronger classes.
Actually the two-weapons thingie is not original to the ranger, it came with 2nd ed if I'm not mistaken, which is for me the worst ever (worse than 4e, which at least had clear intents if mistaken). :p
And it was NOT dual wielding scimitars at the time, always hated that and encountering, on a LARP, a "dark elf" dual wielding longswords and causing 4 damage with each and shouting "4! 8! 12! 16!" while I had exactly TWO hit points and a dagger really ruined it for me definitively... :D
It wasn’t original to the Ranger, but it was a Ranger thing when the first Drizzt novels were written and Drizzt is barely a Ranger in other aspects of the class. In my opinion the dual-wielding having nothing to with being a Ranger is a bit of an oversimplification.
That aside, yes, AD&D 2nd is certainly the worst edition mechanically.
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Want to start playing but don't have anyone to play with? You can try these options: [link].
The drow skintones in drawings is meant to avoid the art-equivalent of the black dog phenomenon. When painting in black, you can only use highlights, but not shading. This makes the image less readable at a glance. Hence why colours such as purple, blue, or lighter greys, are used to depict drow nowadays. It has nothing to do with political correctness.
What's wrong with more variety? I mean, no ones saying black drow dont exist anymore. Brown, blue, purple and grey are all good options. I like having choices
Also lets me make jokes about alien abductions. Dancing lights instead of spaceship lights, underground instead outer space, but it's a fun comparison.
From the original (and therefore only valid :D ) description of drows: "Drow are black skinned and pale haired." But I guess that a black skinned race of mostly evil humanoids cannot exist in this day and age...
I refuse to change my conception of Drow to suit the sensibilities of either snot-nosed goofs or effete corporate snobs when I had to put up with the Satanic Panic and all the crap surrounding it as a young D&D player in the 80s. Changing the depiction of Drow to suite these people is just throwing Gary Gygax (and by extension all of us older fans) under the bus and proclaiming we're racist when there is literally zero evidence of such claims being anything but spurious trash by hustlers looking to be offended by everything. And it won't end there. It never does.
Then don’t. No one is throwing you or Gary or anyone under the bus because of the color of the Drow. They have been depicted by a lot of different artist as different colors(although they might be doing that as a lighting trick).
I was a young D&D player in the 80s as well and remember the panic as well. I have no worries about how the Drow are depicted because different artists always had a different take on them. “Hustlers looking to offended by everything”. You mean like you are right now. It was just a piece of art in a book for crying out loud.
So, based on the art in TCoE, drow are silvery-grey now. Any thoughts?
Please check out my homebrew, I would appreciate feedback:
Spells, Monsters, Subclasses, Races, Arcknight Class, Occultist Class, World, Enigmatic Esoterica forms
Grey has always been an option, to the pest of my knowledge. Their skin color ranges from pale grey to deep ebony.
Obsidian sometimes appears silvery.
he / him
Infiltrator Armorer, wearing armor that is bonded to them, makes them look different. Because it's magically bonded to them and may show features or the armor in battle.
Or it's just either that Drow's creator decided to give their character a different skintone than what is typically presented as a Drow, which is what Tasha's is all about, or the artist was simply hired to paint a portrait of two different Artificer Armorers and went with their vision.
Or, perhaps, strangely enough, the editor went with that decision after seeing the art rather than assuming all Drow are Charcoal skin colored?
Through out the history of D&D, Drows have always been drawn with different skin colors. TSR and WOTC artists usually used a purple tint on Drow especially in the early days.
They come in a few different shades, sometimes really dark or really light. I'm not fan of the artwork in this book anyway so I'm not gonna be too hooked up on it.
If the appearance of drow need to change a little to avoid the appearance of blackface, then I'm all for it.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
I refuse to change my conception of Drow to suit the sensibilities of either snot-nosed goofs or effete corporate snobs when I had to put up with the Satanic Panic and all the crap surrounding it as a young D&D player in the 80s. Changing the depiction of Drow to suite these people is just throwing Gary Gygax (and by extension all of us older fans) under the bus and proclaiming we're racist when there is literally zero evidence of such claims being anything but spurious trash by hustlers looking to be offended by everything. And it won't end there. It never does.
I believe that Drow should have a range of skin tones, similar to people in real life. Some drow might be deep black, others a pale grey, and still others bluish. It makes more sense for them to be paler IMO, since they wouldn't need as much melanin in their skin to protect them from the sun, since they live underground.
A fool pulls the leaves. A brute chops the trunk. A sage digs the roots.
My Improved Lineage System
There also are already pale-skinned Elves that live underground in D&D: Shadow Elves from Mystara (aka The Known World setting). And they're not like the Drow, since they were not forced to retreat underground.
I didn't think of that. Good point. Still, I think that at least some drow should have paler skin, and some darker.
That doesn't mean that some drow can't be pale skinned as well.
A fool pulls the leaves. A brute chops the trunk. A sage digs the roots.
My Improved Lineage System
Yep. And it ruined Rangers in turn as well since Drizzt's use of dual scimitars had NOTHING to do with being a Ranger and everything to do with being a Drow since just about all Drow warriors in G3/D1-3/Q1 dual-wielded weapons (it was to set them apart from surface Elves that got a bonus of +1 to hit with bows & swords).
Dual-wielding was the Ranger’s thing in AD&D though. You know, back when you had to have good stats to even qualify for the stronger classes.
Want to start playing but don't have anyone to play with? You can try these options: [link].
It wasn’t original to the Ranger, but it was a Ranger thing when the first Drizzt novels were written and Drizzt is barely a Ranger in other aspects of the class. In my opinion the dual-wielding having nothing to with being a Ranger is a bit of an oversimplification.
That aside, yes, AD&D 2nd is certainly the worst edition mechanically.
Want to start playing but don't have anyone to play with? You can try these options: [link].
The drow skintones in drawings is meant to avoid the art-equivalent of the black dog phenomenon. When painting in black, you can only use highlights, but not shading. This makes the image less readable at a glance. Hence why colours such as purple, blue, or lighter greys, are used to depict drow nowadays. It has nothing to do with political correctness.
What's wrong with more variety? I mean, no ones saying black drow dont exist anymore. Brown, blue, purple and grey are all good options. I like having choices
Also lets me make jokes about alien abductions. Dancing lights instead of spaceship lights, underground instead outer space, but it's a fun comparison.
Then don’t. No one is throwing you or Gary or anyone under the bus because of the color of the Drow. They have been depicted by a lot of different artist as different colors(although they might be doing that as a lighting trick).
I was a young D&D player in the 80s as well and remember the panic as well. I have no worries about how the Drow are depicted because different artists always had a different take on them. “Hustlers looking to offended by everything”. You mean like you are right now. It was just a piece of art in a book for crying out loud.
In the bladesinger art, a high elf is blue. If a highelf can be blue, a drow can be grey.
I myself have always thought of them as an Ash color, perhaps I just find that prettier then a pure black melanistic color.
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"Play the game however you want to play the game. After all, your fun doesn't threaten my fun."
Since Drow only really see each other with Infravision, do they ever know what their skin color is?
Oh wait... they changed that too...
I will say, I wouldn't confuse that for a high elf.
Buyers Guide for D&D Beyond - Hardcover Books, D&D Beyond and You - How/What is Toggled Content?
Everything you need to know about Homebrew - Homebrew FAQ - Digital Book on D&D Beyond Vs Physical Books
Can't find the content you are supposed to have access to? Read this FAQ.
"Play the game however you want to play the game. After all, your fun doesn't threaten my fun."