Body Modification in Settings

[Llum]

Now tattoos are fairly common in settings and in modern life. But what about more esoteric body mods? Piercings in your nose? your lip? Stretched earlobes? Maybe even things of a magical nature (if that's possible).

This is a subject that is almost never touched upon. We have attitudes from different cultures on everything from races to other cultures to magic to politics. However body modification, something that has been going on (in one form or another) since the beginning of man-kind is kind of glossed over.

So now let's bring it out. Is it something taboo in your setting? In your gaming group? Is it something that you've never thought of before?

[Cap. Karnaugh]

Well, nothing against body piercing or tattoos, not a taboo in my setting but their probably absent because I never thought about it before.
That said, I did have some beduin-like tribe in my setting, who could tattoo spells on their skin and cast them.

[Hibou]

Never really addressed it, although I suppose there have been a few organizations that do it as a symbol of allegiance or whatnot. It's definitely something that exists, just not something that has been worked on to any level of detail with my stuff.

[Jharviss]

One of the larger issues with this stems from D&D's approach to magic items. If you've played D&D for any period of time, you've probably had a person ask if they could use one of their two "magic ring slots" as an earring.  Some people rule that an earing is different, whereas a lot of DM's will allow the magic ring slot to be used in more creative locations.

For a lot of people, it all depends on your player base. I'm currently playing a character that has a series of pierced studs that run vertically down the length of my forehead, nose, and part of my chest.  That idea came from early on in the campaign when my character received an almost career-ending blow that cut me straight up the center. It scarred over and I got piercings along it. It's a cool image, in my opinion.

A lot of it also comes from cultures. European culture, which most games are based on, had little in the ways of piercings. Yet when you introduce eastern cultures and gypsies, you're much more likely to have a lot of piercings.

I can't really address the magic subject, as my setting doesn't have "magic items," per se, but you'll definitely find character with unique body modifications, even going so far as to create mechanical limbs, replace fingers, that sort of thing.  But at the point, we've almost left the norm of body modification and entered something that is more akin to cyborg-ing.

[Steerpike]

It's very prominent in CE - hexed tattoos, grafts (of course), eldritch piercings, symbionts (physical and psychical), etc.

[Elemental_Elf]

Most settings I've seen tend to say 'tattoos aren't taboo as long as they are neither excessive or display perverse material. Piercings tend to be of two minds - if the culture is 'barbaric' piercings are fine, if the culture is, well, cultured then piercings on anything other than a woman's ear lobe is very much taboo.

In Aeolond, piercings even on a human woman are considered bad form and rather 'Highlandic' (a term that describes the most barbaric country (it would be a cognate for the term 'provincial' in our world). However, for Elves piercings are a common part of daily attire, for both men and women. Tattoos are less restricted, especially for legionaries who proudly display the number of battles they've survived on their arms. Sailors often emblazon the names of their ships on their chest. Pages often receive a brand on their leg to showcase their passage into manhood. Upon marriage, many North-eastern Human women tattoo a sun burst emanating from their eyes, the sun burst represents their new beginning in a new household and their oath of fidelity to their husband.

[Polycarp]

It's generally something I don't think about much.  I've become a bit more aware of it in my current setting only because I've been thinking about alien physiologies quite a bit (and thus, how they would adorn/modify their bodies), but I've really never given the topic any systematic treatment in my settings with humans and humanoids in them.  I don't recall anybody I played D&D with having a character with notable tattoos, piercings, and so on, which is probably the reason that I seldom consider it when making a setting.

[Elemental_Elf]

I don't recall anybody I played D&D with having a character with notable tattoos, piercings, and so on, which is probably the reason that I seldom consider it when making a setting.

I was pretty much the same way until I discovered the rules for alternative Wizard Spellbooks, which included small smooth rocks and Body Tattoos. I've never really been able to use the rules but I have been tempted on more than one occasion.

[LD]

The earring thing is a nice idea Jharviss.

[Jharviss]

The earring thing is a nice idea Jharviss.

Hah, I'm actually surprised to hear it's not more common. I've DMed for and played with a pretty good amount of people, and I thought it was old hat by now. I guess I just attract the type of players who do things like that. ^_^

[Mason]

I've certainly thought of it. Never really incorporated it though... I was thinking of how pirates used to pierce their ears to supposedly better their eyesight.. Or how Yakuza do full back tattoos as a show of personal strength.. Something like that , but with literal very real results in the campaign world, I.E....the seafarers of San-Moko island use a rare metal...to increase their eyesight etc. etc. But that is just me..taking real world inspiration and turning it through the ol' meat grinder.

[sparkletwist]

In Crystalstar, several cultures-- Varrdyen and Kroefko come to mind-- are all about body modification. Tattoos, piercings, and other various scarring/marking are rather commonplace. In Varrdyen, most of the modifications would have some sort of ritual significance. For example, priestesses wear different types and numbers of earrings to show their status within the church orthodoxy, and whatnot. In Kroefko, on the other hand, kind of like some people in our own culture, they do it just to be freaks, and revel in that.