I play Clyde.
Some of you may have met him and experienced his rants about authority, or his comments on the various freaks that wander into town unhindered, his derisive nicknames for non-human races, and women doing men's work.
Most of the time he's met with derision for his views which most PCs sadly consider antiquated. Now don't get me wrong, sexism actually is antiquated given the relative gender equality in the Forgotten Realms, but that doesn't mean it can't still be a valid part of a PC, or the setting.
So people ought to consider when they're creating their PC's story, that given their tragic past, or hometown, or any other facet of the PC; whether there would be some normally benign racial group they might just feel paranoia and superstition towards. Or whether your PC may have abused their wife when they were married. Or at least whether you just don't like someone that's different from yourself. I guarantee you it will make your character a lot more interesting. Don't just insert it into your character though, you need to build their personality to encompass the sum of their traits, not just tack them on.
And while your PC may not feel the same way, it doesn't mean that you'd suddenly call out a person for their bigotry. Remember, racism is not some minority opinion. Its a pervasive part of the Forgotten Realms. To act like you were born and raised apart from it and were not affected by it just breaks immersion for everyone else.
Some of you may have met him and experienced his rants about authority, or his comments on the various freaks that wander into town unhindered, his derisive nicknames for non-human races, and women doing men's work.
Most of the time he's met with derision for his views which most PCs sadly consider antiquated. Now don't get me wrong, sexism actually is antiquated given the relative gender equality in the Forgotten Realms, but that doesn't mean it can't still be a valid part of a PC, or the setting.
So people ought to consider when they're creating their PC's story, that given their tragic past, or hometown, or any other facet of the PC; whether there would be some normally benign racial group they might just feel paranoia and superstition towards. Or whether your PC may have abused their wife when they were married. Or at least whether you just don't like someone that's different from yourself. I guarantee you it will make your character a lot more interesting. Don't just insert it into your character though, you need to build their personality to encompass the sum of their traits, not just tack them on.
And while your PC may not feel the same way, it doesn't mean that you'd suddenly call out a person for their bigotry. Remember, racism is not some minority opinion. Its a pervasive part of the Forgotten Realms. To act like you were born and raised apart from it and were not affected by it just breaks immersion for everyone else.