You know, your last post made me think about this issue on and off all morning. The issue of underwear, I mean. It could really reveal a lot about your character. Think about it...

1.) Boxers or briefs?
2.) Silk, cotton, or other?
3.) White, black, solid color, or patterned?
4.) Is the construction generic or specialty?
5.) How much did you pay for your underwear?
6.) Is the cut and style contemporary or old-fashioned?

Going back to the original subject, I also sensed (perhaps incorrectly) that maybe you saw the issue of player character underwear as either being too silly to discuss, or perhaps it made you uncomfortable? In terms of being able to attract the maximum number of females to the game would you suggest making an explicit effort not to talk about underwear?

I've never heard of Saint's Row, but I suppose that you SHOULD get respect if you always wear designer clothing, even in the barrens. It means that you're always in a helicopter gunship in the barrens...

...or if from Scotland, Regimental

The underwear my characters can't wait to get their hands on (or butts into) again are the "armoured long johns" that were around before the crash (must have gone out of vogue when this whole wireless thing came about).

I'm sure hopin' that they're just stockpiled in somebody's Arsenal.

....arrrghhhhh!

The new SR4 sourcebook, Augmentation, has rules for them, including some rules which, when applied creativly, give a character the ability to ejaculate contact toxins on enemies.

...ahhh "machine gun juggies" I take it....

we seem to have drifted off topic but the point is that we, women, have the same outlook as guys, you have to figure out what we want from the game and take it from there. It sounds like the ladies in the original post are either lazy or lacking in imagination.

Hmm. So would you agree with the statement, "The question posed in the title of this thread is a pointless question because the answer would be the same even if the term 'female' were swapped for 'male'?"

I'd say kind of. The reason you're not getting any "clear directives" is that there are about three and a half billion women on the planet and reliable generalisations are hard. Ultimately, we all have the power to decide what we consider our identity to be, and that includes what it means to be a woman or a man. You can't make many generalisations unless you have a group with several thousand members.

But the question is not useless, as we've explored a lot of issues here and even dispelling pre-conceptions is beneficial. If you walk away from it with the knowledge that there aren't any good rules and you have to pay a lot of attention to who someone is, then that's a step forward.

All that said, I'm going to contradict myself a little by saying that if you are a male and not good at seeing another's point of view, you may miss the odd thing that would bother a woman. Both men and women can feel insecure or competitive, and your lingering description of a female NPC's attributes might deter some female players in the same way that a lingering description of a male NPC's attributes might deter male players. Men, women, very similar, but sometimes see ourselves as on different teams. Sometimes. You just have to keep an eye out for times when this might be an issue.

Also, there can be outside issues as well. If your group is entirely male, then a woman can feel a little excluded and less likely to join. Just as you might feel a little odd if you were the sole male player in an all woman's group. If a girl has a boyfriend, she might be concerned about going off to hang out with a bunch of other guys at another guy's place all night (or rather he might be and she will avoid situations like this for his sake). And then there is always unwanted attention (wanted attention is fine, of course).

I was about to type that there should be no reason why you should specifically target female players as we're all people first, gender second, but on reflection it is nicer to have women at the game table than not, and I can't deny that. A gender balance makes things more pleasant and more natural.

But the main thing to keep in mind is the first part of what I said. Everyone is different and you can't make useful generalisations in a groups this small. If you want more female players in your group, use the same approach you use to get more players generally. Public games in FLGS, notices on messages boards, asking people you meet at work or out wherever.

And if you do have an ulterior motive in seeking women for your group, for goodness sake, acknowledge it to yourself and the woman you like.

Hope this helps,

-K.