So if you can't tell from my little teaser photo that I posted at the end of my previous post, I've started PVPing or more specifically, doing arenas. I arena with my boyfriend just like I raid with him. We do 3s with a very good friend of ours that has been with us for a long time in WoW (he transferred with us, twice!).
Repost of my sneak peek =P
Anyway, to prepare for my foray into arena, I started reading up Arena junkies and I found blogs focused on PVP and arena. More specifically, I started reading World of Ming.
In time, reading current entries and archived entries, I realized that World of Ming originally had a female blogger named Anna but eventually quit blogging due to the unbelievable trolling in the comments. She had some type of personal drama dug up and posted in her face, meant to mortify her. And it did. As a result, she quit WoM.
Many of the blog commentators had the reaction of "Tits or GTFO" and didn't seem to take her seriously at all as she wasn't really seen as a top tier PVPer but rather more as a groupie. This all happened before I ever started reading WoM but it is what I pieced together from reading old entries and their comments.
Comments posted pics like this =T
Anyway, recently Ming of WoM hired a new blogger to write for him, Verdak, who is a female! To the consternation of WoM readers, Verdak was not a PVPer so her entries revolved around her own background as an "e-whore" as she had been involved in some personal drama in WoW and such.
Readers did not react kindly at all to her but again, the general consensus from the WoM readers was "Tits or GTFO" and they posted many, many pictures in the comments to highlight this sentiment.
I didn't particularly mind Verdak's entries but they were really not related to PVP at all so I could understand the readers' objections to her inclusion into a PVP centric blog like World of Ming.
However, the readers seemed to enjoy bashing on her that they gave WoM a lot of traffic just from her blog alone despite their comments of her entries being boring, horribly written, etc. Not only did they criticize her entries, they would criticize her as being fat, ugly, stupid, slutty, etc.
I don't think she is ugly or fat, etc
Verdak seemed to take all of this in stride and exhibit a thick skin but in the end, she may wind up leaving WoM though she has stated it is due to RL reasons.
I can't help but feel that the absence of female bloggers on the PVP scene is not because they do not exist. I feel it is because of the PVPers themselves, who do not welcome the idea of females trying to PVP competitively.
Maybe I am wrong but I got the impression from my time on WoM and arena junkies that PVPers in general tend to troll more, talk derisively, have epeen/elitism and seem to be very nasty people. There seems to be way more negative than positive feedback and many comments are done for a laugh (for the "lulz").
The PVP world, from the outside, seems like a very harsh and exclusive clique that is not welcoming in general. As a female player, it would seem very daunting to try and break into that "higher echelon" of players.
This is from the PTR a while ago, not my server on live =)
It makes me wonder if PVPers think that females cannot be good at PVP so just tend to disrespect without giving them that chance or is it because there is just a general hazing process.
Outside of these 2 female bloggers in WoM, the only other female PVP blogger I know of is Megan of Oom, who has quit blogging consistently.
Would the gender of the blogger affect your reaction to their thoughts on PVP?
Why do you think there are not many prominent female PVPers?
Do you think females are just bad at PVP?
Be truthful.
P.S. S8 Pally set looks hot!
Repost of my sneak peek =P
Anyway, to prepare for my foray into arena, I started reading up Arena junkies and I found blogs focused on PVP and arena. More specifically, I started reading World of Ming.
In time, reading current entries and archived entries, I realized that World of Ming originally had a female blogger named Anna but eventually quit blogging due to the unbelievable trolling in the comments. She had some type of personal drama dug up and posted in her face, meant to mortify her. And it did. As a result, she quit WoM.
Many of the blog commentators had the reaction of "Tits or GTFO" and didn't seem to take her seriously at all as she wasn't really seen as a top tier PVPer but rather more as a groupie. This all happened before I ever started reading WoM but it is what I pieced together from reading old entries and their comments.
Comments posted pics like this =T
Readers did not react kindly at all to her but again, the general consensus from the WoM readers was "Tits or GTFO" and they posted many, many pictures in the comments to highlight this sentiment.
I didn't particularly mind Verdak's entries but they were really not related to PVP at all so I could understand the readers' objections to her inclusion into a PVP centric blog like World of Ming.
However, the readers seemed to enjoy bashing on her that they gave WoM a lot of traffic just from her blog alone despite their comments of her entries being boring, horribly written, etc. Not only did they criticize her entries, they would criticize her as being fat, ugly, stupid, slutty, etc.
I don't think she is ugly or fat, etc
I can't help but feel that the absence of female bloggers on the PVP scene is not because they do not exist. I feel it is because of the PVPers themselves, who do not welcome the idea of females trying to PVP competitively.
Maybe I am wrong but I got the impression from my time on WoM and arena junkies that PVPers in general tend to troll more, talk derisively, have epeen/elitism and seem to be very nasty people. There seems to be way more negative than positive feedback and many comments are done for a laugh (for the "lulz").
The PVP world, from the outside, seems like a very harsh and exclusive clique that is not welcoming in general. As a female player, it would seem very daunting to try and break into that "higher echelon" of players.
This is from the PTR a while ago, not my server on live =)
Outside of these 2 female bloggers in WoM, the only other female PVP blogger I know of is Megan of Oom, who has quit blogging consistently.
Would the gender of the blogger affect your reaction to their thoughts on PVP?
Why do you think there are not many prominent female PVPers?
Do you think females are just bad at PVP?
Be truthful.
P.S. S8 Pally set looks hot!
Logging you in...
One thing I've noticed, at least on my site, is that any PvP-related articles I post or questions I answer seem to be met with the same general attitude of respect that my PvE articles are. This may just be unique to my own small corner of the web, after building up a fairly open-minded and friendly community around the site, I'm not sure.
ReplyDeleteI have noticed that sites or resources that are primarily PvP-oriented do tend to draw a more hostile crowd, though I'm not sure that's necessarily gender-related. If you look at the official forums, posters appear to be met with vitriol regardless of (presumed) gender. I think the reason why it might seem like female PvPers are singled out is because female players in general tend to be singled out by trolls regardless of the topic at hand, and female PvPers stand out even more because they're just so rare.
I'm personally not a Fan of the new arena set. I hate the helm!
ReplyDeleteAnyways, to the main point...I do not think basing a player's value/skill/opinion on any aspect of the game should be dependent of gender. I know some female players that are better than half the male players I play with. The same can be said about any aspect of the game really. Alliance are kids, horde are elitist! Casuals are bad! Any of these are generalizations that do not do justice to some of the great players in any of these groups.
Megs is back posting on Forbearance Jongs blog!!
ReplyDeleteAlso I never thought about it too much but thats probably because I've always had a female on my Arena team and I think she's one of the best mages on our server so maybe I'm just biased/lucky
I think that the majority of WoW players are male. I'm not sure because I don't have the census data; I don't think anyone does other than Blizzard. However, I'd still say that's a pretty reasonable assumption.
ReplyDeleteThat said, PvP itself is a very competitive atmosphere that seems to bring out the macho, trash-talking, in-your-face mentality of many male PvPers, much as football, baseball, hockey, etc. bring out the machismo of modern males.
Not to say that men are innately good at PvP (I'm a guy but I'm pretty terrible at it), I'm just saying that the environment that these attitudes creates suits males over females more.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI have found that in all aspects of WOW, people with female characters get treated differently than males, and people who are openly female while playing them get treated even more differently.
ReplyDeleteI think PVP may be viewed as 'more macho' and therefore openly female players may make more 'macho' guys feel uncomfortable.
I don't disclose my gender in game or in my blog because I want people to judge me on the content I produce and how I play rather than the fact that I may or may not have ovaries instead of testicles.
My question is how did the readers find out the author was female? If she said she was female, why? Her gender has little to do with what she's writing about, it's irrelevant info. Her readers are on a need to know relationship with her, and frankly her gender is none of their business.
(Note: I'm reposting this. I failed at proofreading in my previous comment. Same comment, now with slightly less fail. :p)
I kinda agree with Antigen, and i think it comes down to their competitive attitude, and the fact that a female can beat them in something is just not acceptable to them( i personally think its hot if a chick is as competitive as i am, lol ).
ReplyDeleteThe gender of a blogger should make no difference, i read many blogs where authors are female, and i started reading them not knowing their gender, i just love the content they write, kinda like this blog, i started reading it cause i wanted tips on how to heal better.
Finally, i think gender has absolutely nothing to do with the quality of the player, if your good your good, period.
@Lassirra: I concur!
ReplyDelete@Karney: Generalizations suck for sure but they still seem to occur a lot in wow =T
@Mister K: Yay, more female PVPers! You just don't hear or them often. Yeah I know about Megan on Jong's blog but she doesn't seem to post that often as she used to on her old blog.
@Antigen: Perhaps you are right. My boyfriend's brother who is a hardcore PVPer was surprised we were able to climb up there. When I asked if it was because he questioned our capabilities, the response was that it was rare to see a female PVPer.
@Zan: Yes, I agree that gender is not related but for whatever reason, it was disclosed and the readers all focused on that one fact.
@Mike: I concur for sure!
Hafu was a good female PvPer before she retired, so they do exist!
ReplyDeleteHafu
ReplyDeleteWe have always been here, just being quiet.
ReplyDeleteActually, a few months ago in AV, things were getting boring, and the guys started to get a bit rude. I chimed in, hey, I've been a gal hardcore gamer since I was a 'tween, so cool it, we're going to destroy the enemy! Suddenly, well over half our team admitted to being women, and you could've heard a PIN drop, lol. It was the best AV I've ever been in, and it was very coordinated, and they guys kept their minds on tactics, and we won.
It really doesn't matter which side you're on; it matters on your priorities! I personally have gone through my fair share of boyfriends, until I could find one, who not only could tolerate my love of graphic novels, gaming, and going to conventions - but join me.
We've always been here - just most of us have had to hide who we are on the servers. I love to dish it out in trade, and have won more friends that way.
BE YOU, that's the best I can say. I have had my fair share of bigotry, and prejudism, to say the least. I was kicked out of a 25 man ICC last week, for "speaking too much", when we were wiping over & over...um, perhaps it was more like all the BONG hits they were doing in Vent, and all the drinking of beer and hard liquor? If I never hear another womb joke again, it will be much too soon! Yes; I was the only gal in the group, and wish I had a voice modulator, because I'm a coloratura soprano (very, very high voice, sheesh - better if I sang opera!).
I can't take on 24 guys in vent, but I can take on a server in trade, go figure, heh.
Be strong, be yourself - and laugh, as you kill them, online.
I apologize for the really late comment. This is an old post but I just stumbled upon it and felt the need to comment.
ReplyDeleteHmm...
First, sex and gender are not interchangeable terms. Sex refers to organs, gender refers to the social construct of femininity and masculinity. I, for example, am a female, but I have slightly more masculine tendencies. I play video games('manly entertainment'), I'm going to school for welding, I love hockey, and I'm a geek. I have my feminine days, for sure, but that doesn't make me a girly girl.
...Sorry. I had to say that. It's a pet peeve.
SEX**** of the blogger does and would not affect my reaction to their thoughts. If anything, I'd be more impressed by the fact that they're female, admitting it, and talking about the game, regardless. They are treated differently by some. They shouldn't be.
Perhaps the reason there don't seem to be as many prominent female PVPers is because they don't admit it -because- of how they'd be treated. I want nothing more than to be an equal when I play video games. I don't want to win because you let me or you fucked up, I want to win because I'm better and worked hard at it.
My sex doesn't determine anything that relates to video games. It determines that I'm capable of growing a baby inside of me and that's about it.
Saying females are bad at PVP is the same as saying boys are bad at painting nails. Both are gross generalizations (I agree with whoever said that above). Sometimes you will find a girl that's just -bad-, but that's a result of her not working at it, the same as any other noob out there that doesn't play well.