I hope that this kind of topic is allowed. I did not see a clear rule against this, so here goes nothing.

I am a fairly new addition to the TTRPG space, having started in 2019, and GMing since 2020. I found my first groups within DnD, and quickly found that while I loved the general setting, I preferred Pathfinder 2e by a whole lot, and have moved almost completely to that system.

Now, you might say it was a big mistake, given how woke Pathfinder is. And, absolutely, it's a nightmare. Almost all the adventures contain your stereotypical idiot worthless men, all factions are led by strong females and there's the token gay and trans characters all throughout. But here's the thing - I don't really care. At my table, I just ignore all of that and have a world where things make sense. And, generally, I'm not too against a bit of unrealism. I mean, DnD and its clones are generally games where you can be a small Kobold and still be a barbarian who knocks down a dragon or something. But I still do have a grip on reality, which is why most of my characters are male despite my irl sex being female.

That being said, I hate how limiting the culture around Pathfinder is. The forums, the content creators, every aspect of the game is woke, and not only that, all sorts of related places are going woke as well. Now, I totally would avoid any people who advertise being LGBTQOIJKLé+ friendly, or wanting such an environment, but is there any place on the internet left where you can safely say 'I want people who aren't woke ideologues'? I don't even have a problem with whatever your personal political views are, I just want someone who can keep these things out of the session and has a grip on reality. Someone who isn't a trans ideologue in particular (both me and my husband are detrans, and left severely slighted by a system that pretended to be kind while ignoring mental issues and offering a quick fix that just ended up ruining our lives). And maybe people who don't need to talk 'trigger warnings' before the game.

I'll be honest, that was what I was hoping most when coming to this forum. A place to find refuge from the constant barrage of ideology, and hopefully to find people who are also looking for a respite. That being said, I don't think there's a strong LFG element to the site, so I was wondering... where do you find people to play with? And if they're not available online due to censorship, are there private groups that could fill that same niche?

(PS - in theory, I have nothing against trying other systems. But I genuinely like Pathfinder 2e a lot, just as a system. Open to alternatives, but I hope there's some reconciliation between my disparate needs.)

My group is apolitical, but we meet in person. Personally I think its the best way to avoid the toxic gamers.

You could try asking on the MeWe group - Inglorious OSR.  But, they kind of lean hard the other way.
https://mewe.com/join/ingloriousosr

Oh Jesus Christ, does every fucking game thread here have to mention being  anti woke?  Does everyone  here have to fuckibg constantly virture signal how anti woke they are?

The anti woke crowd is as fucking tiresome as the woke crowd.

Quote from: Battlemaster on July 06, 2022, 03:27:10 PM
Oh Jesus Christ, does every fucking game thread here have to mention being  anti woke?  Does everyone  here have to fuckibg constantly virture signal how anti woke they are?

The anti woke crowd is as fucking tiresome as the woke crowd.

Methinks thou dost protest too much.....

Quote from: Battlemaster on July 06, 2022, 03:27:10 PM
Oh Jesus Christ, does every fucking game thread here have to mention being  anti woke?  Does everyone  here have to fuckibg constantly virture signal how anti woke they are?

The anti woke crowd is as fucking tiresome as the woke crowd.

"This is how things are now. You and me, trapped in this moment, endlessly."

Suggestion: start decoupling the political from everything.

Quote from: Battlemaster on July 06, 2022, 03:27:10 PM
Oh Jesus Christ, does every fucking game thread here have to mention being  anti woke?  Does everyone  here have to fuckibg constantly virture signal how anti woke they are?

The anti woke crowd is as fucking tiresome as the woke crowd.

I apologize for apparently brushing against a sensitive issue; I am a newcomer from a space where it's genuinely difficult to find online resources specifically for this, but I suppose if it helps, I won't add to it further in the future.

As for the other replies, I am grateful for the responses. Meeting in person is definitely something that's... probably been a bit lost on my generation, sadly, but definitely something that should happen more.

Quote from: splishbuzz on July 06, 2022, 03:37:56 PM

Quote from: Battlemaster on July 06, 2022, 03:27:10 PM
Oh Jesus Christ, does every fucking game thread here have to mention being  anti woke?  Does everyone  here have to fuckibg constantly virture signal how anti woke they are?

The anti woke crowd is as fucking tiresome as the woke crowd.

I apologize for apparently brushing against a sensitive issue; I am a newcomer from a space where it's genuinely difficult to find online resources specifically for this, but I suppose if it helps, I won't add to it further in the future.

As for the other replies, I am grateful for the responses. Meeting in person is definitely something that's... probably been a bit lost on my generation, sadly, but definitely something that should happen more.

Don't mind him, he's got chronic sore buttocks.

Honestly, I'm not sure there's any way to do it, short of actually interacting with folks and feeling them out to make sure you're not winding up in an uncomfortable situation.

Quote from: Ghostmaker on July 06, 2022, 03:39:22 PM
Honestly, I'm not sure there's any way to do it, short of actually interacting with folks and feeling them out to make sure you're not winding up in an uncomfortable situation.

@OP a good way to do it is to join a club/Meetup that doesn't look too awful, then invite the people you like to a private game. You'd need to risk being around Woke gamers initially though, which I can see could be triggering given your experience, the abuse you suffered.

Quote from: splishbuzz on July 06, 2022, 03:37:56 PM

Quote from: Battlemaster on July 06, 2022, 03:27:10 PM
Oh Jesus Christ, does every fucking game thread here have to mention being  anti woke?  Does everyone  here have to fuckibg constantly virture signal how anti woke they are?

The anti woke crowd is as fucking tiresome as the woke crowd.

I apologize for apparently brushing against a sensitive issue; I am a newcomer from a space where it's genuinely difficult to find online resources specifically for this, but I suppose if it helps, I won't add to it further in the future.

As for the other replies, I am grateful for the responses. Meeting in person is definitely something that's... probably been a bit lost on my generation, sadly, but definitely something that should happen more.

You don't have to apologize for shit. Battlemaster is perpetually butthurt and suffers from Trump Derangement Syndrome.

As for finding apolitical or non-woke gamers, try veterans. I have yet to meet a military veteran who is woke. I am sure that there are some out there, but I haven't met any yet.

Also, while Pathfinder 2e is known to be woke, nothing whatsoever is stopping you from playing a woke game like it was normal. Just throw out the woke garbage. Although this may mean tossing the entire game in the case of Thirsty Sword Lesbians or Coyote and Crow.

Good luck with your search!

Quote from: Battlemaster on July 06, 2022, 03:27:10 PM
Oh Jesus Christ, does every fucking game thread here have to mention being  anti woke?  Does everyone  here have to fuckibg constantly virture signal how anti woke they are?

The anti woke crowd is as fucking tiresome as the woke crowd.

The OP didn't mention anti-woke at all. You are the one who brought that up. Not wanting to play RPGs with the woke is a perfectly reasonable position to take. A lot of people don't want any real-world politics at their table, be that woke, anti-woke or anything else. Some of us just want to roleplay for fun.


To the OP, do you mean finding a group online or in-person? If you're looking for play-by-post online, there's a section of this forum (https://www.therpgsite.com/play-by-post-games/), or there's the likes of https://r.rpol.net/, which I've found tends not to be woke, though there are no doubts some elements there.

If you're looking for virtual real-time play, you can look for a random group at places like https://app.roll20.net/. I've not tried that, but you'll probably get some woke. I'd suggest running short games, e.g. one-shots, to find players you want to play with. Invite those to longer campaigns and leave the woke (or anyone else who ruins the fun) behind.

For meeting in real-life, I suggest going with the suggestions you've already had.

I think you can filter out a lot of hostile people by the game you play. D&D 5e and PF have huge player bases, so I imagine it's easy to find groups but you will increase your chances of getting hostile or political people. However, if you start with a niche game, like a good OSR game or an older edition of D&D, you might find or be able to build a good group.

I met my regular DCC group at a game store by showing up to an open game. We are all just regular schmucks and we don't talk politics at the table.

I play and run a few historically authentic games, like Aquelarre, and that filters people quite nicely. Actually, I don't know for sure because I've never had a hostile interaction with this type of game.

My advice would be advertise in the usual LFG places but be very specific about the game or setting. Like I don't know much about PF, but perhaps advertise you're going to run an old module or say you run it in an OSR style. Also, check out your game stores for local groups. There are many more regular people running and playing games than hostile political types (whose voices are amplified online).

And welcome to the site!

i would suggest places like 4chan's /tg/ or saidit.net, or some other freespeech site i don't know right now.

I will say I thought you were a man with how you type, but when you revealed yourself to be a woman I was taken back. Of course I don't mind you being a woman.

To the OP: Welcome! I've had a lot of the same difficulties wanting to host an apolitical game. My best advice is to simply ignore woke or anti-woke sentiments presented in any gaming materials, and use only what you want from the materials you present for your games. Change what you disagree with to fit how you want to run your game.

And as for players, if they recognize that you have changed something and make a fuss at how you present the materials, advise that you took artistic license with the game matter presented to you just as that same game matter has been artistically changed up to suit the play style of those who re-wrote it in the first place. After all, most of the setting and materials for PF2 and 5E aren't really original or new, they are simply rewrites from a new crop of game designers. You are merely reinterpreting their reinterpretations, and they should not take offense or issue with it.

That might be a hard sell to the crowds most of these two games are written for these days, but it is worth a shot to run the game you want to.

I simply don't bother with 5E anymore unless it isn't a WotC product after my last fiasco. I hosted a one shot at an open table of Ravenloft in a game store and changed Dr. Viktra Mordenheim's name to Dr. Viktor Mordenheim and presented him as male rather than female and explained after a player interrupted to tell me I was "doing it wrong" that I would be using the original characters from Ravenloft and not the remade characters at my game, and it caused three of the players to have a hissy fit and demand I run it as written. I gave them the option to play the game as I presented it or step away from my table, and they left after "reporting" me to the game store owner.

Since then, my adverts for games have largely been for neither of those games, but I always write in them that I as the GM reserve the right to run, modify, and change any prewritten adventure at my table and no player should expect it to be run as written. I would advise that disclaimer for every GM seeking to run a game when they aren't sure who might be showing up at the table.

Welcome to the site splishbuzz.

Yeah, that's a tough conundrum with no easy answer.

Generally speaking, older players trend to be anti-woke, meaning that 40 or older crowd.

I suppose if I was to advert for players I'd say something like we play pathfinder but are seeking players with an OSR mindset. Not perfect....but...