The Dungeons and Dragons community is filled to the brim with creative talent. Artists, writers, and strategists come together to tell incredible stories, using the systems and tools released by Wizards of the Coast. This creativity is championed within the community and is one of the many reasons that players love the game. That’s why the most recent WotC controversy has players everywhere, especially artists, disappointed.
WotC recieved serious backlash from all corners of its fanbase regarding their newest supplement, Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants. The book, like other supplements in the series, details the lore of the giants while introducing new features and monsters for players to discover and enjoy. While the book was released on August 15th, eager players preordered it and received it on August 1st. When they began reading, however, they noticed something off about the official art inside. After further investigation, the illustrations inside were confirmed to be altered by Artificial Intelligence.
The Problem With AI
WotC was unaware of AI’s involvement in Glor of Giants‘ artwork. The official art was overseen by Ilya Shkipin, a longtime WotC artist who hadn’t previously used AI in his work for the franchise. When confronted, Shkipin admitted that the images had been altered by AI for “certain details or polish and editing.” This deeply disturbed players everywhere, given the franchise’s frequent cooperation with artists like Shkipin himself.
Though WotC released an anti-AI statement, the controversy is still being discussed at length on platforms like X and Reddit. As fans looked deeper into the matter, they found that the original sketches were drawn by other artists. These artists were credited as “concept artists,” and were unaware that their sketches would be fed through an AI generator.
Since the recent rise in AI popularity, artists have been concerned about their jobs. The worry is that companies like WotC may prefer to use machines to generate their official artwork rather than artists they have to pay. Luckily, it seems that WotC won’t be giving into this particular trend any time soon.
Iconic D&D Artists
WotC has an impressive resume of artists that they’ve employed in the past. From the 80s and 90s to the present day, these artists are behind some of the most iconic D&D imagery to date. These artists have won awards, and have even worked on other famous franchises. Without them, the D&D community wouldn’t be nearly as creative as it is today.
William O’Connor was one such artist. Though he sadly passed away in 2018, he worked with WotC for years, producing official artwork that would help to define the franchise for years. He illustrated all the headers for each starting class and some for the playable races in the 4th Edition Player’s Handbook. He wrote art books like Dracopedia: A Guide to Drawing the Dragons of the World, and was even nominated for a Chesley Award in 2002 for “Best Gaming-Related Illustration.”
Larry Elmore is probably best known for the iconic illustration, Basic D&D Ancient Red. The striking illustration of a brave adventurer facing off against a fierce, red dragon is synonymous with D&D and highly recognizable. Elmore’s other D&D-based works are similar, most featuring one or more adventurers facing off against a monster in a cinematic environment. His pieces have inspired artists everywhere to pick up a pencil and create imaginative worlds of their own.
Eva Widermann is well known for the way she portrays female characters in her illustrations, notably the way she allows them to simply be. Her female characters are depicted in action and dressed sensibly for battle. Widermann also has a knack for illustrating creepy monsters that verge into the uncanny, a talent she brought to several 4e monster illustrations.
For Humans, By Humans
When WotC gave their statement, they made it very clear that D&D has been, and always should be, “for humans by humans.” This sentiment is shared by the majority of the community as well. D&D is, in itself, a very human experience. Players come together from all walks of life to tell a meaningful story together, using their life experience and creative skills to do it. A campaign created and illustrated entirely by AI would be incredibly dull and unfeeling in comparison. Players don’t want to play a game where the Dungeon Master relies on an unpolished generator to tell their story, and DMs don’t want to run a game where they have no creative input.
Being a premier fantasy IP, D&D is right to stay away from AI. Not only would the usage of AI generated images convey a disrespect for the artists in the community, but it would drive them away fairly quickly. Artists have been outspoken against the threat that AI poses to their careers and passions for years, and have repeatedly boycotted franchises and companies that utilize it. When the community thought that WotC endorsed the usage of AI in their newest supplement, they quickly began to turn on the company entirely. It seems likely that they would not hesitate to do so in the event that WotC actually intended to use AI generated images for their official art, costing the company a majority of its community. This is doubly true after the OGL update controversy that rocked the D&D world in January 2023.
The D&D community has always maintained a certain environment of support and cooperation that is invaluable. Players continue to inspire each other with artwork, stories and even songs inspired by countless campaigns. Some creators make shows like Critical Role or Dimension 20 that are products of love and hard work that define what it means to be in the community. They are brought together by storytelling and shared creation, something that simply can’t be replicated or replaced by AI.
WotC was quick to show their support for the artists both in their employ and in their community. Glory of the Giants gave way to a disappointing controversy, but also to the important discussion surrounding the ethics of AI generated images in creative spaces, especially spaces largely propelled and endorsed by creators. Players made it clear to WotC that they were not interested in the pursuit of AI, and WotC has, for the moment, listened.
