Monarch Queer Literary Awards

Transgender Stat Block

by William Roberds-King
Genrepunk Magazine

Transgender. Medium Humanoid (Any Race), Any Alignment—Unlawful in too many places. Armor Class. In 2020, Washington State banned the Gay or Trans Panic legal defense. +2 little too late for some. In 2024, so far five anti-trans bills have been introduced. Most target transgender youth. -5 to our legal protections. Hit Points. The last time I saw her, we ate pickles with mayo in the Satellite Diner. She told me that Emily Dickinson was a total lesbian, embarrassingly in love with her sister-in-law. Two men assaulted her for going to a bakery while trans. I think of it every time I go downtown alone. (1d8)-every time a trans person is attacked just for existing. Speed. The headline for the HRC's Anti-Transgender Violence report in 2015 stated that there was "An Epidemic of Violence" with 21 (at least) deaths reported. In 2023 "at least 32 transgender and gender-expansive people" were killed. My husband told me, in the first year after I came out, that I was overly anxious about anti-trans rhetoric. "That's how politics works. It goes one way, then the other." Four years later, we avoid crossing the border into Idaho. 21 mi. to State Line. Senses. Truesight 60ft. Cis-people believe we have to "pass" to earn our humanity. Our final goal can't be the fair weatheredness of cis-approval. Languages. Common, Uncommon, Memes, Poetry, Prose Challenge. everyone who believes we don't have the right to live. Proficiency Bonus. +4 STR, we know our strength, +4. DEX, we know our struggles, +4. CON, we know our lives, +4. INT, we know our histories, +4. WIS, we know our worth, +4. CHA, we know we're not alone, +4. Actions. Resist. Exist. Persist.

William Roberds-King is a queer trans writer in the PNW. He lives with his husband and their furry gremlins.

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