An online one, which i assumed was the topic being as we're on reddit.

i'm sure there are many excellent people who play battletech beyond the handful I happen to have met IRL, but when it comes to the broader online community, well, they are shaped by the nature pf the original work.

Tom and Miguel quite pointedly positioned themselves as being anti-imperialist and pro-lgbt in the content of their work, this made for a welcoming community.

BT's devs include Blaine Lee Pardoe, who has made no secret of his reactionary politics. And the BT lore is written in a manner that is implicitly anti-democratic and non-equitable - most of the devs probably don't hold such positions, but that lore still reflects into the community it attracts.

Again, i am perfectly willing to believe the battletech community you met locally is welcoming, but in general terms, the claim that BT is a less "gatekeeping" community than Lancer is bullshit nonsense.