If you RP regularly, you’ve probably seen people with the line “LGBT+ Friendly” somewhere in their TRP or MRP. Some people in the community might have positive, negative, or neutral opinions on this topic, so I’d love to try and offer my own take!
My goal in making this post is primarily to encourage mutual respect and positivity in the RP community, as most of us can agree that we’re all in this to have fun! Bear in mind that I’m only one person, and I’m open to hearing other people’s thoughts!
Why might someone put this in their TRP?
Players may wish to advertise to others that their character is LGBT, and putting this tag in is an easy way to hint at that!
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Some players may believe that, as a quasi-medieval setting, different Warcraft cultures would realistically view or treat LGBT individuals differently, though this is neither confirmed nor disproved by canon. By including “LGBT+ Friendly” in their TRP, some players may wish to advertise that they don’t personally hold this view, and may not include such themes in their RP.
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Some players may simply wish to include this tag to attract others who may be of a similar mind! Not every type of character may be considered acceptable to every player, and forming a community which fosters acceptance can make for a better experience for some players.
For the Naysayers
Some players may feel including “LGBT+ Friendly” in one’s TRP is adding needless politics to the community. But I don’t believe it’s always political, as the reasons above may point out.
Ultimately, it just comes down to preference! I don’t believe people should be expected to include “LGBT+ Friendly” in their TRPs, or that excluding it means they’re automatically xyz-phobes.
It’s just another way that some players may wish to quickly communicate to others via their TRP, just as “No ERP”, “XYZ Themes Preferred”, “/roll battles only”, or any other such information does, and I don’t see the harm!
I look at people who do the tag " lgbtqxyz+ friendly " as shady. Tell your characters backstory and if it comes up it comes up. like it normally would.
its easier to let the reader pick it up instead of just having it said outright.
well during legion we saw that its not uncommon. During the quest crossroads rendezvous we see a enchantress still deeply inlove with a priestess who turned saytr. Near the end they both meet once more in eternal afterlife. https://www.wowhead.com/quest=40169/crossroads-rendezvous
plus, steamy romance novels shows marcus tending to stable boys in your garrison.
best way to do that is to let it come naturally in conversation. forced is never the best way to go. i can also see this for guild recruitment but not really necessary for RP.
There are some people who prefer to include detailed background information in their profiles, some who don’t. I don’t see what’s shady about that.
I don’t think this is necessarily so simple. It’s an unfortunate fact that some players, OOC, do not accept LGBT themes or react negatively to their inclusion. In that case, a player may wish to let people know ahead of time so both parties are aware and that kind of situation is avoided.
I’m in favor of people RPing with who they’d like to RP with, and making use of the /ignore function as they wish, so long as they aren’t making other people’s RP experiences worse.
Thats the greatest part. if they even raise a fuss about it. Dont interact with those psychos.
to me it just seems like social point grabbing in a unnessary way. Like, its just as jaring to see as if they put " people of color friendly "
it shouldnt be needed to be stated. its just standard tbf.
that cuts the fun out of it tho. If you encounter a psycho its honestly like encountering a leprechaun.
i havent ran into 1 in my years of rping.
I’ll be honest, I don’t think that’s a valid comparison. People of color are visibly…well, people of color. On the other hand, it’s impossible to tell who is and who isn’t LGBT+ just by looking at them. It’s just another facet to one’s profile that communicates to others.
I understand the instinct to see it as a “social point grab”, but in my experience as someone who is LGBT irl, it can be a relief to know where the people around me stand on the topic. I’m not sure where you’re from, but in America, LGBT acceptance in casual spaces is still very muchnot the standard.
As I’ve said, this is totally a matter of personal preference! You don’t need to include the information on your TRP. Hell, I don’t even include it on most of my characters.
Encountering loathsome idiots on the Internet can be fun in moderation! But when they’re openly bragging about how, where they’re from, people like you are IRL murdered or beaten in the streets, then that can make the ignore function really appealing really fast.
I cant disregard your personal feelings but why does that give you relief? Why does it matter what others around you think?
im just saying theres a better way of doing it. Instead of saying at the very top " lgbtxyz friendly " just tell your characters story.
Let the reader pick it up.
but even then they arnt rping that… you are role playing. Irl shouldnt mater since youre in the characters mindset.
Of course in the game. Characters, at least humans/gnomes/dwarves/helves, can still be a variety of skin colors. Not that this point has much relevance with my main argument.
Because, in the real world, it goes far beyond just feelings. LGBT people are still targeted for violence in America, can still be harassed or face workplace discrimination. I’m not sure if you understand the gravity of the situation.
I’ve already explained why “Just tell your character’s story!” isn’t entirely suitable for this circumstance. Would you say the same to someone if they wanted to include other details about their character that aren’t immediately made apparent? Would you have this same complaint for people who put “I do not ERP” or “Mature/Dark themes preferred” on their profile?
I don’t know how to explain to you that I don’t want to engage in RP with people who are horrible IRL. Even if that RP had nothing to do with their hateful views.
I didnt qout the whole thing so to clarify. In both ways, putting LGBTQXYZ friendly is just as unnessarcy as puting " people of color friendly "
because its standard.
i understand the gravity of it but what weight does it hold in world of warcraft RP?
no, because thats prefered role play styles. i dont see how a LGTBQXYZ is a role play style…
its just normal sexuality preference… not really needed to disclaim at the very top imo.
i cant understand this part. can you explain a little more?
The person Role playing has a hateful mindset or is it the character who has a hateful mindset?
also, shouldnt you want to engage with those people? teach them there mindset isnt correct?
i doubt theyve actually met a lgbtqxyz person or had a conversation with them.
You’re looking extra yiffy yourself, bud. All I want is to help people understand where another perspective might be coming from. Sure, I like debate up to a certain point, but I’ve never cared about trying to win Internet coolguy points by boldly strutting into a thread and confidently proclaiming “baaaaaaaait!” as if I couldn’t just…not bother responding to the thread. It’s that easy.
If you want more background info on this thread, I mainly put it up because I saw a troll TRP in-game that was written with the tag “LGBT Unfriendly”. It made the sarcastic claim that “of course if you don’t put LGBT+ Friendly in your TRP then you’re a horrible person”, which is factually untrue. That profile was basically made with the intention of mocking those who add the tag to their TRPs.
I think seeing it upset me, not because I’m an incredibly sensitive person, or because I thought that person with the troll TRP was a horrible psychopath or something. I just get upset when I can pinpoint exactly where someone’s beliefs are hindering their ability to just open their minds and be chill with what other people are doing.
Call me hypocritical, but I just don’t see the point in going out of my way to condemn someone including “LGBT+ Friendly” on their TRP. Maybe it’s just that one player who’s still on my mind.