2300 AD the Kaefer

SuperPheemy

SuperPheemy

Mongoose
I'm a little reluctant to break open this can 'o worms (wyrms? wermz?) But this has been sticking in my head for about 30 years now. Sadly there's not enough Traveller:2300 or 2300AD community out there to have this discussion. At least until you fine folkies cast "RPG Necromancy" on this old title.

I'm talking about Kafers.

Back in '86 when it first came out, I didn't know of the deragatory meaning of Kafer as a term. It worked for the buggy aliens it described and really fit well with the aesthetic of the setting. Of course, the insect-ish alien species hostile to the colonizing humans would get a name like that. I was a sheltered teen from the American Midwest and honestly thought the word was kinda-made-up. Then I made a friend who was visiting the US from South Africa and she let me know what "Kaffir" was used for in her (at the time) apartheid divided country. It makes me a bit uncomfortable. It has made me uncomfortable for decades now. Sort of like having the bad guys being a couple letters off from the N-word.

Kaefir is a step away from the slur. But my worry is that since 2300 AD is still a pretty niche and obscure setting, and that the slur is far more widespread and definitely carries a deliberate racist meaning, I just don't like being that close. Especially when writing about 2300 and playing the game in public.

Does anyone else out here in the community have similar problems? How are you handling it? Where does the desire for sensitivity weigh against the weight of established setting lore? I'm trying to explore this without judgement. That is, I'm not wagging my woke, lefty finger at y'all for using the wrong word in your fiction. But I would like to find a term that the community would understand and as I pass the setting on to the next generation of gamers doesn't carry the stain of it's out-of-game associations.
 
I didn't have problem with it now and I have no problem with kafer now, if anything the Colonverse spelling makes it sound even more like the africanse or arabic slur word.

Kafer is derived from german not africanse or arabic.

There is nothing wrong with calling alien that wants to kill you a bug - but in german.

There are many words in different languages that have different meanings but look or sound similar/the same, there was and is not intent for offence.
 
In Ender's Game the aliens are called buggers - this may be ok for a US audience but here in the UK it refers to
anal sex.
The name was changed in future books and the film.
 
I think it was an unintentional mistake but it was both tone deaf and handled poorly. It has always bothered me. It was the main thing that put me off the entire setting honestly.

As an Aside, the decision to make the heroes French also seemed like a good idea at the time but truly soured the game for their biggest audience, Americans. There was an attempt to pivot to the American Arm but the waters were too muddy for that.
 
ross said:
I think it was an unintentional mistake but it was both tone deaf and handled poorly. It has always bothered me. It was the main thing that put me off the entire setting honestly.

As an Aside, the decision to make the heroes French also seemed like a good idea at the time but truly soured the game for their biggest audience, Americans. There was an attempt to pivot to the American Arm but the waters were too muddy for that.
Click to expand...
As a European, I can't tell you how refreshing it was to not see 'Murrica' in charge for once.
 
The difference in spelling between languages always brings out a few weirdoes. Like the americans who insist that Spain changes the word for 'black'. And one recently was a dude put off by a RPG site called "catarse"- not realising it means catharsis in Portugese. Slightly more uplifting is the Swedish/Norwegian for 'speed' (fart) and 'speed camera' is obviously (fart kamera).
In Turkish, kum = sand. In Kazakh, kum = sugar. In Serbian/Croatian, kum = godfather. You can guess the rest.
In Swedeish, slut means "the end" or "the finish", which means a slutstation is just the last stop on a train line.
In Spanish and Portuguese, preservativo = condom. English speaker orders food “sin preservativos,” thinking they’re asking for no preservatives, but really saying “without condoms, please.”

Digressing....
Back in the day, we were British or American adventurers for the most part, fighting against the dominance of the French. And yeah, we fought the Käfers too. We always retained the umlaut (it's really easy on a Mac/IOS keyboard).

These days, I'd rather be a taikonaut.

Interested in the TAS stuff for 2300AD. I think there's a lot of potential there.
 
Condottiere said:
The reader, if they want to, would have to self analyze as to why they found that compelling, or attractive.
Click to expand...
I remember when I first encountered them and they were terrifying because none of the players had any prior knowledge of them or their biology.

They are a great antagonist in my opinion.

Until one of them basically ends the campaign by launching a grenade into the back of the PC's truck.
 
I appreciate the discussion. I agree that the term was developed honestly, and though tone-deaf, wasn't developed with malice. Hell, The Aliens movies are far far more central to the pop cultural lingo, and the xenomorphs are referred to as bugs all the time, because that's what they kinda-look like in a shiny black carapace sort of way.

As I get older and more in need of anagathics, I'm becoming more aware of how the language of fiction reflect the language of real-life. I think the adjustment that works for me and the groups I'm in will be similar to how I've dealt with other things that haven't aged well either. I'll point to my icon, the purple Kzinti.
I've loved the Kzin as aliens since i discovered Ringworld in my high school library. Speaker-to-Animals was super cool to my still-developing brain. I mean, what's not to love? My alter ego over on CotI is an Aslan. When I started really looking at the Kzinti and what they did to female Kzinti, I was horrified. I know they're aliens and don't really exist, but turning the female sex of your species into non-sentient breeding stock, that look has aged like fine milk. But it's "canon" as penned by the setting author. When I read some of Niven's Known Universe stories that feature Kzin, I have to accept that frame of reference.
But, when designing my own stories around the Kzin, for my own entertainment and the entertainment of my friends, I can do whatever I want with them. Including making them more Aslan than Kzin. I'll just do something similar with the Kaefir, or Käfer. I'll use a different term which I perfer, and since I'm not writing material for Mongoose...

... unless, of course @MongooseMatt wants to give me a dream-assignment of contributing to Traveller (and 2300, and Twilight 2000). Just putting that out there...;)

>ahem< ... as I was saying, since I'm not writing material for Mongoose, I'm not breaking any setting Bibles or design standards by referring to the aliens by a different term. Like i started this reply off with, I appreciate the discussion. Seeing the perspectives of others and hearing your thoughts helps stop me from spiraling too far into my own head. It's "theraputic".

I'm also about to drop $200 more US money on the latest edition of 2300 to rest on my shelf next to my original first edition Traveller 2300 boxed set. So don't worry, the sale's still been made.
 
Condottiere said:
The reader, if they want to, would have to self analyze as to why they found that compelling, or attractive.
Click to expand...
Worth remembering...

Humans perfectly match the Kafers' ancient myth of the "Aach'an" - the legendary "smart barbarians" who destroyed Kafer civilization. To every Kafer, humans are literally the boogeyman from their childhood nightmares made real: destroyers of civilization, eaters of babies, defilers of their sacred legacy. This triggers genocidal savagery. Kafers aren't capable of rational assessment and are determined to exterminate humanity completely to eliminate what they see as an existential threat. The war can only end with the genocide or reduction to savagery of one species or the other.

In other words: A Kafer can't be reasoned with. It doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop... ever, until you are dead!
 
Last edited:
Grognardia said:
Worth remembering...

Humans perfectly match the Kafers' ancient myth of the "Aach'an" - the legendary "smart barbarians" who destroyed Kafer civilization. To every Kafer, humans are literally the boogeyman from their childhood nightmares made real: destroyers of civilization, eaters of babies, defilers of their sacred legacy. This triggers genocidal savagery. Kafers aren't capable of rational assessment and are determined to exterminate humanity completely to eliminate what they see as an existential threat. The war can only end with the genocide or reduction to savagery of one species or the other.
Click to expand...
Genocidal war is a great backdrop to Horror Sci-fi.
 
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