FF Battle Tested

Riftbound gamer. Proud husband and father. Check out the SuperMegaRiftboundPodcast!

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

@dunctcg Listen I LOVED Akali 🤣🤣

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

This is super fun! Thanks Dunc!

Here are mine -

[DUNC TCG @dunctcg]

Saw everyone doing Top 9s for games and films, so I made a website for Riftbound.

Best art/most played/cards you love, whatever you want.

Mind below. Lemme see yours!

https://t.co/6Con7T0s7L

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

Well yes - part of building bridges is being able to approach a topic with an open mind willing to allow your opinion to change or improve based on the conversation.

If both sides are rigidly set in their beliefs and are stalwart walls there is never much to be gained and it probably just shouldn’t be discussed at all!

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

I think that’s a completely normal way to feel - if it didn’t bother you that would actually be more of an issue I think.

We as humans crave approval/respect from our peers as a large part of our nature.

The problem here (in my opinion) is that you are craving that approval/respect from the same group that the political system you have supported seeks to eradicate.

A cat fights back when it’s cornered - emotions run high when backs are against the wall and people feel threatened.

Anonymity on the internet is a strong thing - I’d urge you to log off for a while and stop posting about these topics. Not as a means of silencing your opinion (I don’t believe in that) but instead as a mental reset. Take time to invest into physical relationships offline and come back with an open heart and refreshed mind.

As a personal charge I’d love if you could have a meaningful dialogue with a member of the LGBTQ or larger Trans community in person similar to how we are speaking to one another.

I think you will find that humans have a huge fondness of building bridges and helping others understand themselves.

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

We did have a good conversation yesterday!

My point here is that it makes me sad that the neither side understands the other and escalates immediately.

My “I wish they’d understand” is referring
to the fact that I do think your worldview is wrong and genuinely have hope that one day you and everyone else with that view will see that it is stripping people of their humanity to believe what you believe.

I do not and will never condone anyone ever telling someone to kill themselves or wishing harm on them.

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

It was definitely a good dialogue.

To be clear though - I still do believe that your beliefs are a harmful ideology to hold and I do not support the rhetoric you perpetuate. In fact, I actively work against it every day!

That being said, I understand the environment in which you exist more intimately than someone who has never been a Christian and understand why you could believe what you believe.

We can all agree that the online space is harsh and people can get very angry very quickly. I just hope that does not diminish the value of trying to understand one another and approach disagreement with civility and an open heart.

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

I think that comes with being somebody who is using a platform to speak on these issues in an open environment - the same happens to content creators across all platforms regardless of topic.

Can the internet be hateful and over the top? Absolutely. We kind of have to expect it at this point.

I don’t know you personally. The only perception I and the majority of the space has is your online presence and footprint.

I think if you are trying to have these meaningful conversations and grow relationships that it would be better done offline and with others in your own physical community.

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

This will be a longer one so bare with me -

I grew up Roman Catholic.

From a young age I was constantly told that women were subject to their husbands will, that abortion was a mortal sin akin to murder, that queer people could never truly love without sin, and that trans individuals were “lost” and needed to be corrected.

This never sat right with me but I was a kid. I believed my parents. I believed my community.

I went to the Right to Life protests in my area. I went to Catholic summer camps that reinforced my worldview. I was fully a Catholic and I was proud that I could help all my friends live the way that I was told was right.

When I started reading the Bible it all started falling apart for me. Here Jesus Christ was trying to instill in an entire society of people to radically love one another as they are and yet I was taught that people were in need of help or living in sin just because they were being their true selves.

Galatians 3:28 really slapped it home for me - "there is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus,"

I started viewing things differently (this was early High School) and made it my mission to approach and befriend people who thought about the world differently and truly understand their point of view. In doing so I discovered a lot about myself and about them - I was bisexual and had been repressing it my entire life out of fear that I was lesser. The people I befriended were the most accepting and Christ like in their love that I had ever experienced - to this day I remember those friendships very fondly even if adulthood has taken most of them away.

I am now one of the people you would consider persecuting you. I am very left of center and believe unequivocally that abortion is healthcare, that queer people deserve all rights, that trans people should be affirmed and encouraged in their gender discovery, and that women are equal to men on all levels of life.

However, I was you man. I was in that same position of feeling like my views were persecuted and people around me were tearing me down for it. I get it. What got me out of that mindset and worldview was creating genuine friendship and connection with people with a lens of trying to understand and appreciate who THEY were and what they had experienced in life.

I have a true hope deep in my soul that you will someday come to realize what I did all those years ago and can look back with the same level of introspection.

People are people. They are their OWN person and all are valid and should be able to make decisions for themselves unimpeded by the notions of others.

Sorry for the ramble, hope it made a bit of sense to get my point across.

[Krashy // Joseph @Krashy]

Don’t take this as crying but it’s just so disappointing being an outspoken Christian conservative in the TCG world.

People actually just lie and create some villainous character out of me when I’m very kind and respectful to all people.

Self victimization is such a disease.

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

Opposing viewpoints are totally fine - where I and others are going to be contentious is the sticking point.

You may not personally want our rights taken away, but voting for and supporting people who do is going to create tension no matter the effort in bringing people together.

The two party system absolutely does exist and is a problem - participating in that to the detriment of the personal lives of people is always going to make them not want to associate with you sadly

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

I understand the intent of what you are saying about coming together and think the sentiment is strong.

If you look at it deeper though man it starts to look grim and that is why people within these identity groups have such a strong reaction.

Let’s say the Supreme Court rules that gay marriage is now illegal. Life for people who that does not impact (anyone who is not gay) goes on normally with zero interruption. You still have your family and you live your day to day with no change.

For the gay couples in that position, it impacts them immediately and harshly. No right was gained in this exchange - only one stripped from a group of people. This group is naturally going to be angry and less likely to want to “break bread” with the group of people who voted to take this right away from them.

The communities of which these rights are taken from or denied are the most impacted group by far and are the only ones who feel it as drastically. If we put ourselves in their shoes I think most humans would react the same way.

I have a beautiful wife and daughter and an awesome family. I was just as likely in my life to marry a man and make a family with him. If my right to do that was stripped it would be removing and condemning a part of who I am as a person for no reason other then to satisfy a metaphysical conviction of others - does that seem fair? Would I really want to associate with the people who were denying me my own freedoms?

I respect everyone - truly. To my core I believe that freedom is a human right and that division of opinion is completely valid. I think it’s just a bit naive to think that marginalized and legislated against groups will be able to coexist with those that actively vote to drastically hinder their lives.

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

@AliEldrazi Totally respect this take!!

Personally I prefer lower power play environments which is why I like rotation/bans a lot

Definitely not a popular opinion but one some have shared with me locally

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

@reiabeamz Hating Barrens in all forms

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

@thriftbound Do you mean predicting prior to or after stacked deck?

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

Do we think the upcoming bans are going to be subtle or scorched earth?

Not sure which I would prefer tbh. What do we ban?

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

@eSpo298 I’d personally love to see Hillock go as well

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

@ItzPlop Twitter told me this post was sensitive and I had to update my settings

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

@LHP64D Hi Logan 😊

I did some amateur Hearthstone and League of Legends casting prior to my daughter being born, now full time dad and Riftbounder!

Love what you do and hope to see you at Convergence Fest!

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

@PurpleFlurpWF @FrankieFriday98 Bro???? Purple Flurp!?? Whattup bro it’s Leumer from THL

[FF Battle Tested @BattleTestedTCG]

@Will_P_Paul I would expect this too but I want a heavier hand I think