Rolling for Initiative is a weekly column by Scott Thorne, PhD, owner of Castle Perilous Games & Books in Carbondale, Illinois and instructor in marketing at Southeast Missouri State University. This week, Thorne looks at the social media controversy revolving around The Making of Original Dungeons & Dragons: 1970-1977, amplified by Elon Musk’s post about it.
There has been some controversy on social media over last summer’s The Making of Original Dungeons & Dragons: 1970-1977 book (see “Dungeons & Dragons 2024-2025 Deets and Dates“), especially over comments Jon Peterson made in the forward on the sexism and use of gods in the early books.
Sexism? Yes, it existed in the early works. Go look at the cover art and much of the interior art from the era. Male characters could go around both bare-chested in a breechcloth as well as fully armored. Females, however, almost always appeared in revealing outfits and impractical armor both inside and prominently displayed on the cover of the book. Judges’ Guild’s …