| Abstrakt: |
Since the mid-2010s, Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) actual play podcasts and web series have skyrocketed in popularity. At the same time, the gender gap between male and female players began to close with approximately 40 per cent of players identifying as women, according to the latest data from Wizards of the Coast. However, D&D's androcentric history and roots have remained, albeit in new, less openly sexist ways. While female characters are no longer mechanically disadvantaged and female players are able to play strong and confident women in this collaborative storytelling game, the lingering strings of misogyny and sexism present in the earliest fan spaces still pervade modern-day gaming spaces as well as fan spaces for D&D actual play series. Using thematic analysis, this article explores how discourse in fan communities on Reddit of two web series, Critical Role and A Crown of Candy, continues to maintain D&D spaces as male preserves through discourse about female players' knowledge of mechanics, the narrative importance of female characters, and the perceived femininity of player and character actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
