Wizards of the Coast has revealed MtG's first trans character

Drops a Sweet Katana

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EDIT of the EDIT: I should elaborate that trans here is referring to having the body of a guy, but being psychologically a girl and identifying as such. This shit is REALLY confusing

And you know what? They actually did it pretty damn well. Here's the short story, for those interested, it's actually pretty good: http://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/uncharted-realms/truth-names-2015-01-28

If you didn't read the article, the story focuses on Alesha, the leader of the Mardu Horde (think Mongols + Dragon motifs), leading her clan against the brood of dragons they're warring with. As the battle ensues, she notices a young nameless orc not kicking as much dragon ass with sufficient zeal as should be expected. Now being nameless is big thing for the Mardu as your name is earned by performing heroic (read: suicidal, but admittedly fucking metal) feats in battle. During a quiet point, she confronts the orc and demands to know why he isn't jumping down the dragon throat to emerge sword first out the other end or doing something equally metal as fuck to earn his war-name, and tells him to know who he is and to take it. The orc doesn't really take this well and shoots low saying 'You tell me this? A human boy who thinks he's a woman?' Everyone shits themselves and we then go to a flashback of Alesha's naming ceremony where she (well he) takes the name of her grandmother as her war-name. Everyone's cool with it and celebrates the same as if she picked any other name. Back at the battle, Alesha proving why she's the baddest of asses by taking down a dragon in the space of about five seconds before telling the orc that she knows who she is and he needs to buck up and go cut his *****-ass a dragon. He doesn't. The story ends with a naming ceremony where it turns out he was simply saving his clanmates by cutting off the dragons' claws, slugging them in the face to stun them and getting fallen dragons off of warriors trapped underneath. Everyone tells him what a swell guy he is and he acknowledges Alesha as Alesha, Who Smiles as Death, which everyone thinks is a fuck cool name.

Honestly I was expecting a lot worse when first heard about this, i.e. shoehorning it in where it doesn't belong as an afterthought. It actually played into the story and gave meaning to what would've been a 'They Killed Some Dragons and Shit' type of story.

So what do you guys think of this?
 

Evil Smurf

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Nov 11, 2011
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She's so cool, she's also the khan of the best tribe to draft. MARDU!

Representation of minority groups is someing really going for wizards, it keeps the community from becoming toxic.
 

MetalShadowChaos

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Identifying as Trans has always sounded inherently badass to me anyway. Defying what you've been given because you know if your heart that your true identity lives elsewhere. Then you undergo chemical treatments. You know who else undergoes chemical treatments? Space Marines. I rest my case.


That was a pretty rad story. It had dragons and smashing things. I liked the Orc guy too. He was cute. Is he a card too? I don't Magic.
 

Ironman126

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Apr 7, 2010
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MetalShadowChaos said:
Identifying as Trans has always sounded inherently badass to me anyway. Defying what you've been given because you know if your heart that your true identity lives elsewhere. Then you undergo chemical treatments. You know who else undergoes chemical treatments? Space Marines. I rest my case.
That is possibly the best reasoning I have ever seen. 10/10, would read again.

In any case, I would bet the orc is a card. They don't usually talk about characters, nameless or otherwise, and not make them playable. If not him specifically, then a more general version, like a battlefield medic (which is a card, an old one, at that).
 

Drops a Sweet Katana

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MetalShadowChaos said:
Identifying as Trans has always sounded inherently badass to me anyway. Defying what you've been given because you know if your heart that your true identity lives elsewhere. Then you undergo chemical treatments. You know who else undergoes chemical treatments? Space Marines. I rest my case.


That was a pretty rad story. It had dragons and smashing things. I liked the Orc guy too. He was cute. Is he a card too? I don't Magic.
Not to my knowledge, no. He still need to cut his *****-ass a dragon before that happens. Saying that, he COULD be the orc on the card Battle Brawler since he hits first and gains you life if you any of the other clan colours. Plus his art is in the story.
 

Drops a Sweet Katana

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Ironman126 said:
MetalShadowChaos said:
Identifying as Trans has always sounded inherently badass to me anyway. Defying what you've been given because you know if your heart that your true identity lives elsewhere. Then you undergo chemical treatments. You know who else undergoes chemical treatments? Space Marines. I rest my case.
That is possibly the best reasoning I have ever seen. 10/10, would read again.

In any case, I would bet the orc is a card. They don't usually talk about characters, nameless or otherwise, and not make them playable. If not him specifically, then a more general version, like a battlefield medic (which is a card, an old one, at that).
He could be Battle Brawler, maybe, since the nameless orc has first strike and lifelink vibes about him. Plus his art is in the story. Tenuous, but possible.
 

Buzz Killington_v1legacy

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Sweet zombie Jesus, what a relief it is these days to see a thread like this that doesn't devolve into "TEH CULTURAL MARXIST SJWS!!!one!!!" within the first five posts.

 

VanQ

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Oct 23, 2009
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There have been traps in anime for decades. I'm glad to see the west is finally starting to catch up.

I actually picked a Mardu Runemark and Alesha, Who Smiles at Death from some booster packs at a draft event this past weekend and was going to build a Warriors themed Commander deck around her and see how it went. Some of the new Warrior cards this set are really nice and supplement each other really well.

FriesWithThat said:
He could be Battle Brawler, maybe, since the nameless orc has first strike and lifelink vibes about him. Plus his art is in the story. Tenuous, but possible.
Battle Brawler has First Strike but no Lifelink. The Lifelink orc this set is Brutal Hordechief but rather than Lifelink, he deals 1 damage for each creature of yours that attacks to each target you attack and gives you 1 Life for each attacking creature as well.
 

Mezahmay

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Hmm! Great story. I love short stories like this to build world lore in a way that isn't as developed in the core product, and makes me that much more excited about the latest block of MtG cards. Can't wait to get some money and get back into Magic beyond dicking around in Duels of the Planeswalkers 2014.
 

Erttheking

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You know I said before I went into this thread that it was going to be about people complaining how they're shoving Political Correctness down our throats.

Frankly I like being wrong sometimes.

Also I like the sound of this tribe.

EDIT: Annnnnnnnd I spoke too soon. That'll teach me to have hope in the human race.
 

freaper

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Apr 3, 2010
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It's kinda funny how we, as presumed civilized people, still struggle to wrap our heads around the notion of gender all the while belittling tribal cultures as primitive, while they, historically as well, manage to be totally cool with transgenders. I'll be playing some Khans tomorrow, hopefully I'll be able to draft her into a deck.
 

Grumman

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MetalShadowChaos said:
Identifying as Trans has always sounded inherently badass to me anyway. Defying what you've been given because you know if your heart that your true identity lives elsewhere. Then you undergo chemical treatments. You know who else undergoes chemical treatments? Space Marines. I rest my case.
Transsexuals are not badass. Somebody who rejects the importance of gender stereotypes, like a man who is working to be a babysitter without bigots assuming he's doing to because he's a pedophile, or a homosexual of either persuasion who feels the same way about a member of their own sex that heterosexuals do about the other? Sure, I can respect that. But I do not respect somebody who is so obsessed with gender stereotypes that when they are presented with proof that it is nonsense, they decide the proof is wrong and needs to be fixed.
 

Jesterscup

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Grumman said:
MetalShadowChaos said:
Identifying as Trans has always sounded inherently badass to me anyway. Defying what you've been given because you know if your heart that your true identity lives elsewhere. Then you undergo chemical treatments. You know who else undergoes chemical treatments? Space Marines. I rest my case.
Transsexuals are not badass. Somebody who rejects the importance of gender stereotypes, like a man who is working to be a babysitter without bigots assuming he's doing to because he's a pedophile, or a homosexual of either persuasion who feels the same way about a member of their own sex that heterosexuals do about the other? Sure, I can respect that. But I do not respect somebody who is so obsessed with gender stereotypes that when they are presented with proof that it is nonsense, they decide the proof is wrong and needs to be fixed.
you know, I'm going to take a step back, and hope I misread this. What exactly are you trying to say?
 

Drops a Sweet Katana

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Grumman said:
MetalShadowChaos said:
Identifying as Trans has always sounded inherently badass to me anyway. Defying what you've been given because you know if your heart that your true identity lives elsewhere. Then you undergo chemical treatments. You know who else undergoes chemical treatments? Space Marines. I rest my case.
Transsexuals are not badass. Somebody who rejects the importance of gender stereotypes, like a man who is working to be a babysitter without bigots assuming he's doing to because he's a pedophile, or a homosexual of either persuasion who feels the same way about a member of their own sex that heterosexuals do about the other? Sure, I can respect that. But I do not respect somebody who is so obsessed with gender stereotypes that when they are presented with proof that it is nonsense, they decide the proof is wrong and needs to be fixed.
Aaand here's where the thread ends and descends into madness. Move along folks. Nothing to see here.
 

Drops a Sweet Katana

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Buzz Killington said:
Sweet zombie Jesus, what a relief it is these days to see a thread like this that doesn't devolve into "TEH CULTURAL MARXIST SJWS!!!one!!!" within the first five posts.

Instead it happened 12 posts in. What a time to be alive.
 

MrPhyntch

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While I am not a fan of shoehorning minorities into works like this for "diversity"'s sake, and in particular I think that tans-sexualism is bullshit (come at me bros, I'll fight this all day. I'd just rather not do it here and now), I think that it was really well done in this story, and really helped to establish who exactly the Mardu are. If you prove yourself in battle, you can be whatever the hell you want to be, and no one will stop you.

"See this guy right here? He's a woman now."

"Are you insane? You can't just do that."

"Really? Ok, well you take it up with the guy who just took down a motherfucking dragon and see how wee that goes for you. In the meantime, I'll going to go help HER fight her next dragon. Good luck, buddy."
 

the December King

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While I have no opinion of the gender of any of the characters, I would think a real Khan, in the end, would have seen that that nameless orc already had a name, and was the truly great fighter. She is the selfish one, while he fought FOR the tribe...

But maybe I don't get the lore.

Also, is this a story about a 16 year old human(boy OR girl), leading hulking orcs? Into a battle against dragons? Guh, I'm tired of tiny opponents being able to defeat truly awesome foes... my suspension of disbelief only goes so far in such a scenario.

Again, maybe this lore isn't for me. I've never played Magic, and I turned my back on booked lore for D&D from Wizards early on, then walked away entirely in favor of Pathfinder when I couldn't convert my characters to 4 ed.
 

Redryhno

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It was also said that being trans is not badass to them since there's real examples of both (real? normal? there's really no word I know that specifies exactly what I'm trying to say without pissing somebody off here, so I guess I'll have to live with it.) genders being called out for their choices in profession and passion in reality that are against the norm and doing it anyways despite the countless stereotypes and bias in many people's minds.

But of course the only thing anybody cares about is a mild silly statement against trans. You never disappoint in your predictability OT, keep up the good work!


On-Topic:

Ok, so there's a trans character...who cares? Are they going to be as broken as most of the recent Plainswalkers(Everyone knows about Jace of course)or as that one Khan that instantly kills all creatures who block him?