After years of quiet lurking, the original creator of the r/battletech subreddit, ddevil63, resumed activity over the weekend, locking out forum moderators who had been deleting Pride-related posts, based on the simple premise that "battletech is for everyone." Subreddit's new content rules established.

According to Redditor LiquidAether, the subreddit moderators had previously removed images of mechs painted in Pride colors, but their actions went largely unnoticed. That changed when users began posting about the Battletech Pride Anthology 2023, a collection of five short stories "by LGBTQ people, for LGBTQ people, and for those who wish to read more queer-oriented stories set in the Battletech universe." This changed because of.

These posts were also deleted, but because of the high profile of the anthology, people noticed and filed complaints. In response, the moderators admitted that they had been deleting Pride-related posts, justifying the subreddit's longstanding policy of prohibiting discussion of real-world politics and current events since 1988, when Battletech was first released.

This did not placate the community, which apparently objected to the suggestion that LGBTQ existence was "political."

Around that time, Battletech's publisher, Catalyst Game Labs, took stock of the situation and created a brand new subreddit called r/OfficialBattletech as an inclusive, CGL-approved home for Battletech fans. Community Marketing Director Rem Ortanis said that Reddit had not previously been one of the company's community-building priorities, but "our community urgently needed our presence and support."

Shortly thereafter, r/battletech creator ddevil63 joined in. 'I'm not an active moderator or contributor, but I do read the posts and comments regularly. 'Yesterday I learned that a Pride Anthology post was removed and there was a well deserved backlash. I have no experience in moderation or community management, but I am doing my best to right the wrongs.

"Effective immediately, r/battletech rule 1 reflects r/OfficialBattletech rule 1 'BATTLETECH IS FOR EVERYBODY'. The previous rule "All posts must be Battletech related" and its 1988 provision have been removed. The current moderation team has been removed. We ask that you give them the respect they deserve. I sincerely hope they remain a part of this community. Tensions are very high and I am saddened by what has been said publicly and privately. Please bear with us while we work as a community to resolve this issue."

There was some uncertainty about where things would go from there: author Russell Zimmerman, who had been chosen by Alternis to be the lead moderator of the OfficialBattletech subreddit, expressed appreciation for ddevil63's actions, though, Whether the subreddits will be merged, run separately as "official" and "unofficial" forums, or be separate altogether, he said that the path forward is ultimately up to "the powers that be" (presumably referring to Catalyst Game Labs).

Yesterday, the decision was made to discontinue the OfficialBattletech subreddit and revert to r/battletech. Ironically, discussion of real-world politics remains banned, but the act that started the uproar in the first place is also banned.

"Battletech belongs to everyone. Make sure everyone feels safe. And degrading remarks about (but not limited to) race, religion, culture, disability, career, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, etc. will not be tolerated."

"The zero tolerance rule is in effect for the use of defamation against any of the above identifiers, including those such as "r*tard" and "cu*k.") Attempts to dodge moderation by using euphemisms will be considered a violation of the No Defamation Policy. If you must ask whether a word is considered defamatory, do not use that word."

Zimmerman said the rules are still in "draft" form and that CGL will continue to gather feedback from the community before finalizing them. He added, however, that "we as a community are choosing one side or the other and viewing the bigots as the enemy."

Speaking to Polygon, Alternis, CGL's community manager, said essentially the same thing. There is an opportunity here to show the inner workings of Catalyst," said Alternis. We have an opportunity here to show the inner workings of Catalyst," Alternis said. Battletech belongs to everyone, and respect is a right. And that's how we run our community. [Whether it's Warhammer, Games Workshop, Catalyst, or whoever. If you can't respect another human being, you are not welcome in this community."