Hi folks, really interested in getting into Descent but I'm also trying to get my wife and the other ladies into the game. Are there any other packs I should start off with for this? Are there enough female characters and storylines to keep the womenfolk into the game? What else should I get besides the core pack to start, or is this enough with consideration for the gaming babes? Thanks

I've found there's a good mix of male and female characters in the game (assuming your female friends only want to play female characters).

The expansions also have a good mix but if you want to get the Cult of the Forgotten expansion right off the bat all four included heroes are female to bulk up your options.

"Crusade of the Forgotten Hero Pack," as Suneisha suggested, has an all female party and three creatures to add to the base game.

Happy gaming!

Descent‘s fairly balanced as far as gender involvement goes... the boxes have a near perfect 50/50 gender balance. Hero packs tilt that towards men (besides the pack other posters mention) but it’s still a solid 65/35 mix.

Lanyrinth of Ruin has a female antagonist. Toughest lieutenant in the game by far.

I’m sure this differs from group to group, but my playgroup doesn’t really care if a guy picks a girl hero or vice versa. (Andira Runehand is a top-tier healer, so I (male) usually pick her).

We have all males playing the game, but 2 of the guys play female characters because the abilities are better.

I'm starting to introduce my family to Descent (two girls and one boy - primary school/intermediate aged) and they're loving it. I think the 2nd edition offers some really cool female characters and they've moved away from the babes-in-bikinis stereotype too, which has gone down well with the crew.

Also some of the missions have much more variation than just kill-the-bad-guys-to-win...

Enjoy!

30 minutes ago, Hinge of Infinity said:

I'm starting to introduce my family to Descent (two girls and one boy - primary school/intermediate aged) and they're loving it. I think the 2nd edition offers some really cool female characters and they've moved away from the babes-in-bikinis stereotype too, which has gone down well with the crew.

Also some of the missions have much more variation than just kill-the-bad-guys-to-win...

Enjoy!

I fully agree, the female heroes in 2nd edition are far less scantily clad. It seems to be a direction with all of their Terrinoth line as the pictures in the Realms of Terrinoth Genesys rulebook also have great and colourful fashion but much less flesh showing 😊

As far as board games go, Descent (and other Terrinoth games) have some of the best female representation I've seen. There's a huge amount of variety in their designs and play styles. I only wish the universe had better representation of POC.

As far as monsters go, most can be either (named monsters are frequently given genders), but they’re generally referred to neutrally, even if the model appears to be male or female. Even then, there’s less than a dozen monsters that I would look at and say "That’s male" or "That‘s female".

I also agree Descent is pretty good about dressing the female characters. Serena is wearing a garment that is quite revealing, but it’s a lot less gratuitous than first edition Red Scorpion (and it looks ceremonial anyways). Besides, Nanok of the Blade is in the same stack. He’s a pretty muscular dude wearing very little.

I hate to be this guy, but... I really don't see anything at all in this game that wouldn't "be" for women.

I mean, if your wife and friends enjoy tabletop gaming, then they probably have tastes that extend beyond simply their sexuality or gender.

If you're asking about representation, though- I'd say it's not too bad. There are some somewhat scantily clad women, but others feature much more practical appearances.

And as @Lightningclaw mentioned, Nanok is an absolute unit and I guess could be whatever the tabletop version of eye candy is. Look at the size of that lad!

Anyway, I think that the representation is probably better than most other games, particularly of this style. If your female friends enjoy this type of gaming experience, or are at least open to it, I say give it a shot.

Imperial Assault is really good, too, but if representation is really an important factor then I'd say Descent probably has a slightly better draw.

game is no business of men or women, it is a matter of player.

If the woman in question is a real player, she might like it. If not, then, she may not. It is that simple

On 1/10/2019 at 1:43 PM, rugal said:

game is no business of men or women, it is a matter of player.

If the woman in question is a real player, she might like it. If not, then, she may not. It is that simple

I wish that were true, but there are quite a few games out there that are off-putting for women in terms of the games' depictions of female characters (though thankfully as more and more women get into the gaming hobby, board game companies are changing their art styles to match the new audiences). You can't say she's not a "player" just because she doesn't enjoy playing a game with graphic one-sided sexualization.

But that's all moot anyway because this game does a fantastic job of representing female characters.

On 1/12/2019 at 8:11 PM, Ringskipper said:

I wish that were true, but there are quite a few games out there that are off-putting for women in terms of the games' depictions of female characters (though thankfully as more and more women get into the gaming hobby, board game companies are changing their art styles to match the new audiences). You can't say she's not a "player" just because she doesn't enjoy playing a game with graphic one-sided sexualization.

But that's all moot anyway because this game does a fantastic job of representing female characters.

Funny, the women I usually play with all like the more "scandalous" dressed characters and don't seem to mind them beeing half naked... But I guess people are different, its more a matter of taste then beeing a men or women Tbh I haven't heard this complaint once from a women in my life, and that was a life full of fantasy genre games, pen and paper and videogames, many of wich dressed up women rather... creativly ^^ Maybe german women have other views / are more easy towards this^^

On 3/8/2019 at 5:45 PM, Tokatasa said:

Funny, the women I usually play with all like the more "scandalous" dressed characters and don't seem to mind them beeing half naked... But I guess people are different, its more a matter of taste then beeing a men or women

Of course it is. People are complex.

My wife tends to gravitate toward the aesthetics of the more Red Sonja-like characters, too. But the other woman that plays with us tends to prefer the more practical armor, if given the chance.

Though, both are smart enough gamers to choose stats over sculpt.

I sometime choose a hero more on sculpt than stats if and only if that hero is some sort of non human thing hybrid 😉