Hmmmm,
Women who are adamantly against D&D. Here's the problem as I see it: The concept of what a 'Gamer' is. Let's face it, those of us who are here consider ourselves 'Gamers'. We are people for whom this is generally a way of life. some more than others. I myself can handle a game every other week comfortably. I have friends back home that go 5 games a week, every week plus boffer events during the summer. These friends are both men and women. They are 'Gamers'.
What you have proposed is to create a game that will draw non-gamer women into being gamers. Informal polls aside, one of the best ways to start is to look at what draws non-gamer men into being gamers. First of all, there is the type. A certain set of interests that inspires the gaming spirit. Sci-fi/Fantasy is a big one. Let's face it, not all men and not all women share these interests. I had roommates in college to whom the very idea was anethma, among other things it would have cut into the drinking time. Some women are the same way.
Now you have a target audience. Young geeky guys. The majority of male gamers I know tended towards engineering/computer science. In a way, people who wanted a way to express their creative needs but couldn't really act. Now you want to find an analgous group of women. You don't want to be tapping Sororities (in general - there are some Engineering related sororities but I think those are the exception, not the rule). Anime fans are a good start. There are more and more girls moving into the engineering and computer science fields these days.
One final note: I think that there are a lot more women gamers out there than you realize. In my experience the female of the species is less prone to 'Rules Lawyering', a Syndrome that often spings up in gamers who have read every single rulebook and know it backwards and forwards. You'll find that most guys say gaming is better with a woman. The reason for that is the difference between watching a movie in black and white vs. in color. The characters become less stats on paper and more detailed. Based on that, you can't judge the presence of women gamers based on how many books they buy.
All of this is based off personal experience. Anyone with different experiences than me are free to dissagree.
-Bill
