The Firefly community is an open roleplay environment. We do not have applications or roles to fill, except within certain niches, like ships' crews, or the town sheriff's office. We do not look at a new player coming into our sims and say, "Okay, you may be a this or this, but you can't be that." Anyone coming into Firefly roleplay can be anything. It's about the freedom to make our own choices for our characters, and it's why this community is such a great one.
That being said, here's the gristle of my post. No one person has the right to tell any player what they may or may not portray their character as, nor may any person dictate to another how that person's character should be played. Just so it's out on the table for anyone who isn't aware of it. If you want to play a ship's captain, then you go ahead and play a ship's captain. If you want to play a Registered Companion, you go ahead and play a Registered Companion. There's no reason to stop you.
Recently, there's been a bit of confusion over the freedom of players to choose their own characters. The Companion's Guild of Paquin seems to feel that they and they alone are in charge of all Companion characters in Firefly roleplay, that EVERYONE wishing to be a Registered Companion must do it under the terms of Varahi Lusch. These terms include a year (Yes, an entire year, 365 actual days, not roleplayed, a real life year) being spent as an Acolyte in training, a curriculum designed by Varahi, but not necessarily canon (Really, I don't think Companions would have learned how to be Kajira and Geisha, but maybe I'm wrong.), before they are considered for elevation to the status of Registered Companion. It has gotten to the point where the esteemed leader of the Companion's Guild has harassed and bullied players wearing a Registered Companion title into joining their group as an Acolyte, and threatened them with lies about their not being recognized by the community as a Registered Companion unless the Guild acknowledged it.
Personally? I take HUGE issue with this behavior. Varahi Lusch does NOT, nor does any other person, have the right to dictate to ANY player what they may or may not portray. If players CHOOSE to join her organization, then she has that right. It is also the right of the players within her organization to leave if they do not agree with her rules or methods. Simple as that. Nobody put Varahi in charge of every facet of the Companion role, she stepped into the position of High Priestess when the last High Priestess left. She was not given the authority to lord over other players and make decisions that are not hers to make.
I stand by Calina Tereshchenko's decision to leave Varahi's Companion's Guild to portray a Registered Companion and open her own Companion Temple. I will stand by any other player who chooses to leave Varahi's Companion's Guild to portray Registered Companions, whether they are independents, as Inara was, whether they start up their own Companion Temples, or whether they join Calina's. I would also stand by any player who knowingly and willingly decide to stay with Varahi's Companion's Guild, so long as they choose to do so of their own volition. Calina is one of the VERY few Companion characters I have seen in Firefly roleplay recently (Gee, why is that? Cuz they all got bullied into being Acolytes) who actually ACTS like a Registered Companion would.
When I wanted to roleplay a pilot, nobody told me whether I could or couldn't. When I wanted to roleplay a ship's captain, nobody told me whether I could or couldn't. And you can be damned sure that if I wanted my character to be a Registered Companion, that she would be a Registered Companion, and I would NOT go through Varahi's training program, or anyone else's, because I felt like I needed to get her "approval" and "acknowledgement" to play what I wanted to play. This is a game, we're here for fun and to play out our fantasies and dreams. And sorry, but letting someone tell me which of my fantasies and dreams are ALLOWED is not my idea of a game.
I hate to attack someone like this, but I feel like this is a VERY serious breach of ethics. Sadly, from what I've seen, the people running the show over on Paquin just don't get it. They're afraid that the actions of Registered Companions who are not of their Guild, who have not gone through their training, will besmirch their names. Really? Who cares? Make your Guild different. Make it clear to the community that those Companions who are not of your Guild do not effect your Guild. Stop trying to control the decisions of other players, and stop trying to control things that are out of your control, like other sims. It's NOT GOING TO HAPPEN. EVER. So deal with it in an adult manner please!
So here's my message to players:
- Do not ever let anyone tell you what you can or cannot portray here. The only people who have the right to dictate rules are sim owners, and then, only on their own sims. Yes, we must follow the rules of the sims we play in, so if a sim owner doesn't want a particular type of character there, well then, those portraying that role are out of luck in that sim. But a sim owner cannot just decide one day that their policies need to be umbrella'd over ALL of the Firefly roleplay sims. So, players, freedom is yours.
- Power of the consumer is very important, especially here. If you don't like the way a group acts, don't be in that group, don't support that group. If you don't like the policies of a sim, don't go to that sim. It's that simple.
Firefly is about freedom. It's about being your own person and going your own way. Remember that while you're playing with us here. Freedom is a very important concept and belief, and is fundamental to our virtual environment here. If we continue to allow players to bully and threaten other players, to demand that things be their way or no way at all, we may as well start taking applications and become a closed, exclusive roleplay environment. Or start roleplaying on an Alliance cruiser. But then, we'd lose a really important aspect of this great 'verse that Joss Whedon has created and we've helped flesh out. And that would be truly sad.
~K.D.F.
Imrhien Fargis' Typist
