Normally the blogosphere is peaceful, serene even.
This week has been a hellified nightmare for me on social media. Like, delete my X (Twitter) account and crawl into a hole bad. I can’t remember the last time I had to block so many people for being overly critical asshats.
I responded to one comment that wasn’t aimed directly at me, but it just made me wonder why we’re here in this space. Like, what am I even doing any more? This melancholy is bleeding over into other projects and it’s fairly counterproductive.
I’m a TTRPG blogger. I like to talk about gaming stuff. Sometimes it’s something serious, such as Safety Tools. Other times it’s something light like, check out this cool new creature I made or “I once made an entire party wipe while GMing this encounter with one small often overlooked ability.” I prefer the more lighthearted topics.
Disclaimer: Statements expressed in this article are strictly my opinion. If you disagree or have a different opinion, that’s okay. I’m not an expert on everything. I’m not always right. I’m just writing from my experience as I know it. Your mileage may vary.
Sometimes I feel like a more brusque disclaimer would be okay, but I really want to retain an audience. It’s my blog, my space, my opinion, and I hope everyone is cool with that.
I was fortunate enough to find Busy Wyvern’s site (Link HERE) via one ridiculous online argument with a YouTube Content Creator we both became entangled in. I love Busy’s site. I think I might borrow his review structure after reading the Rust and Redemption review. I like his style.
Some dipshit on X (Twitter) tried to completely invalidate Busy (and myself to a lesser extent) by saying, “Nobody reads your blog or buys your product anyway.” I felt a bit offended by that comment if it were aimed at any human being. I’m starting to think the #ttrpgcommunity is becoming more toxic and divided every day. At least that’s what I’m seeing.
An exercise in Separation and Duality.
We’re not a fraction as cohesive as we were in January 2023 when the Wizards of the Coast Dungeons & Dragons Great Open Game License Debacle of 2023 occurred. We were all on the same page of “Corporation bad, game good. YouTube good.” Now it’s more like people constantly screaming across the void of cyberspace at one another about how people should or shouldn’t run their game. WTAF happened to us?!?
For those who might not know, we talk about Duality and Separation a lot over in the spiritual community. Duality is the notion of If A, then B. If Light then Dark. If plus then minus. And so forth. Basically there are always two sides to every argument.
Separation is even easier to define. I’m not you. You’re not the cat. The cat is not the dog, etc. We’re ultimately all of one Source entity having a physical experience on classroom Earth.
Why am I talking about spirituality stuff on a TTRPG blog? One, because I can. It’s my blog. Two, because everything in the Earthly experience ultimately comes back to Source and spirit. Every experience is intended to teach us something about ourselves, the Universe, or how 3D works. That’s why I (we in the spiritual sense) are here.
But increasing divisiveness in the TTRPG community is a very bad thing. We don’t need to fight over our games that involve elves and magic. We shouldn’t really be hating, arguing, blocking people on social media, and so forth over so many dumb issues.
I would love to see more civil, polite, kind discourse on TTRPG social media.
(Yes, I’m sober.) I know it’s a huge ask. I know people can be stubborn, arrogant, and mean. We don’t have to be that way. We should be able to get along on any given day in the #ttrpgcommunity just talking about the games we love, dice, and other hobby related goodness. I love a rousing debate over dice mechanics, character traits, and various GM related stuff.
But then something comes along to remind us why we can’t have nice things on the Internet (ever.) I’ll be damned if someone, usually on YouTube, doesn’t come along and just shit all over everything and everyone because of some topic that came up elsewhere on social media like X (Twitter.) I feel very sad and frustrated when I see a video bemoaning TTRPG Safety Tools that goes onto complain about BLM, LGBTQ, and how everything is “woke.”
Calling me “woke” is a huge mistake. I’m Awakened. I see deeper meanings in things. I look more deeply into my passions. I use my discernment as often as possible. There are no coincidences, only synchronicity. Everything is energy, including you, me, trans folx, cars, tables- literally everything. I’d like to think that’s beyond “woke.” I’m not on a social justice crusade. I’m on a mission from God (Source, Universe, whatever is preferred.)
I find it immensely more difficult every day to see the greater lesson or the intrinsic value to online TTRPG arguments. The ones that devolve into politics are especially brutal. Example:
Me: I think female space marines are cool. Good for GW.
Reply 1: You’re a woke libtard. Get off this platform!
Reply 2: You don’t know the lore, dumbass. There’s no such thing.
Reply 3: Get away from my hobby, you dirty, rotten tourist!
That’s just the hypothetical example, but I almost guarantee one of my friends gets into online arguments like this on a daily basis, usually much worse. I don’t know how he can stand that level of vitriolic negativity. If you think the female space marine debate is ugly, you should see what happens if we try to discuss favorite ice cream flavors. Yeesh.
“Nobody reads your blog, anyway.”
I’ve now had that particularly nasty bullshit quote hurled at me three times this week now. (at least.) I love you guys. Thank you for being here and being proof that I’m not totally screaming into the void. If you’re reading this, I love you with all my person and I am deeply grateful for your presence.
Why do I persist? Mostly for my mental health. I believe BusyWyvern said much the same over on X (Twitter.) Personally, I do this to retain my sanity and have conversations with a wide variety of people about TTRPGs mostly.
See, if I wanted to be a turd, I could say, “nobody cares what you think,” about a couple of YouTube channels, but I totally refuse to go there! First, because it’s a terrible thing to say to somebody. Your opinion is still valid, even if we don’t agree on an issue. Second, because I know the YouTube algorithm inevitably throws every channel in front of people in an attempt to get more views. Third, I believe in the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and with rare exceptions, I will defend your right to speak even when we don’t agree. However, since YouTube is an independently governed global media platform, all of their Terms of Service apply. (No Hate Speech and No Harassment/Bullying are my favorite rules that most TTRPG YouTubers screw up, btw.)
If I regularly violated WordPress’ ToS, I would expect to hear from them. However, my reach on here is not the same as my reach would be on YouTube. YouTube has a far larger audience, which means Content Creators have to be very careful about following the ToS because their shenanigans are more likely to be seen by someone. And people wonder why I’m camera shy.
If anything tests like the ones this week strengthen my resolve.
I want all of my friends and #ttrpgfamily to know your opinion matters. I’m around on my various social media platforms of choice and via email any time. Admittedly, I’m not getting any younger and I have started going to bed before 3:00 AM most nights. I still wake up and check my notifications, though.
Unfortunately my website comments remain turned off because someone attempted to stink up my blog space with some incredibly rude word manure. This is why we can’t have nice things on the internet. Sorry.
My request this week is can we please all play nice this week and try to get along? None of us are God’s gift to D&D. No one is the ultimate authority on how to play or run a TTRPG at your table. Certain people need to please stop going on social media to talk trash about other Content Creators in any media. Short version: Don’t be an asshole to your fellow gamers.
If anyone is feeling down about the toxic end of TTRPG culture this week, hang in there. Things will improve eventually. Yeah, people are cruel, unfeeling, and or rude at times, but not everyone. Let’s all be here for one another. Kindness goes further than vitriol. Better times are on the horizon.
Thank you for being here today with me. I appreciate you. Please embrace the things that bring you the most joy.
Jeff's Game Box 