'Dungeons And Dragons' Introducing First Canonical Person With Autism Spectrum Disorder
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Tabletop gaming phenomenon Dungeons & Dragons have introduced their first autistic character to the canon. Included as part of The Deck of Many Things set due to be released on November 14th, 2023, the Book of Many Things is a history of the deck and includes spells, items, and character options.
The new character, Asteria acts as a narrator, adding jokes, commentary, and short side stories. She was created by Designer, Makenzie De Armas who is also on the spectrum. At GenCon, Armas said ‘It [Autism] permeates all of her actions, but it doesn’t define her. She gets to express her love of other things beyond just I’m autistic, and it’s so rewarding to see her experiences and get to reflect her experiences through the notes and her story.’
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Despite De Armas’ protestations, there’s no doubt that Asteria’s stories do play on her autistic nature, for example befriending a Medusa and not making eye contact and hyper-fixating on a puzzle. But who says that’s a bad thing? All of those experiences are the every day for a great many DMs and players.
Fans might be disappointed that the ‘Princess turned Paladin’ doesn’t have her own adventure or any playable features. Asteria is simply a point-of-view character and this could be seen as lip service to a base that participates heavily in D&D. But we’ve yet to see how Wizards of the Coast will develop Asteria, or if they will add any further characters with additional needs to the canon.
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