BattleTech community closes ranks to support an LGBTQ fanzine

Original creator of the BattleTechSubreddit cleaned house this weekend. This creator, Reddit’s ddevil63 returned to the message board with a bang, and removed every moderator after they had banned mention of any fan-made video. BattleTechA zine by authors who identify as queer. Reps of BattleTech Catalyst Game Labs, the publisher of Catalyst Game Labs has told Polygon it is now in contact ddevil63. They are also working on new ways to move forward with this often toxic online community.

BattleTech Pride Anthology 2020: Queer Tales from Inner SphereIt is a fan made zine that contains five short stories by queer writers. This fan-made zine includes a foreword with contributions from author Michael A. Stackpole, and a story by Russell Zimmerman. Both are authors of official licensed BattleTech content. When the content is not up to scratch, then it’s not worth paying attention. BattleTech Pride AnthologyOriginally, the phrase “was first mentioned” was used. BattleTechSubreddit was taken down repeatedly by moderators who claimed it violated several rules that have been in place for a long time against posting politics on the message board. But users pushed back, noting among other things that the existence of queer people is not a political issue at all — their erasure, however, is.

That’s when ddevil63 rolled in, called bullshit on the entire moderation process, hit a few buttons, and started over from scratch.

“I originally created r/battletech 15 years ago because I wanted a place to talk about Battletech on Reddit,” ddevil63 wrote on Sunday. “I have not been active as a moderator or contributor but I regularly read posts and comments. Yesterday, I learned of the removal and rightfully-deserved criticism of the Pride Anthology posting. I have no moderation or community management experience but I’m trying my best to right any wrongs.”

Polygon has contacted ddevil63 to obtain additional information.

When the main BattleTech subreddit was in turmoil, Catalyst Game Labs’ newly minted community and marketing director Rem Alternis was caught flat-footed and in the middle of moving house. Alternis is a pseudonym, which she uses to shield her identity from online trolling. This practice is common for people who deal with toxic fan communities. The developer did have accounts in place, such as on Reddit. However, they didn’t fully exercise their authority to be the guardian of this decades-old trademark. So, Alternis and her team quickly spooled up a lifeboat of sorts — an officially sanctioned BattleTechA team of experienced moderators will moderate your subreddit. More than 8,000 users are already registered.

That’s when ddevil63, already in the process of cleaning house, reached out to Alternis. Later this evening, Alternis said, she and ddevil63 will meet to make plans for how to move forward — together, as a united front.

“I think that […] how we choose to react, and what we choose to react to does say a lot about the company,” Alternis told Polygon today in a video call. “There’s an opportunity here to show who Catalyst is on the inside. […]The ability to express yourself is essential. ‘Hello, we’re who and what we are. BattleTech is about everyone. Respect is an important right.’ And that’s how we’re going to operate our communities.”

“Hateful people that were building their own brand […] under the name of a company’s flag — whether it’s Warhammer, or Games Workshop, or Catalyst or whoever — they’re gonna realize that [we] don’t care what your stances are, your opinions are,” she continued. “If you can’t be respectful of other human beings, you’re not welcome in this community.”

Battletech Pride Anthology: Queer Tales from Inner SpaceDownloads are still available for free.