Reason for removal:
You got it right on the money, SD. The current 3.5 D20 Amethyst is a portly 391 pages. By creating an OGL, we would have to add in nearly 120 - 200 pages of rules. Something would have to go. The story elements would be the first casualty. We may also pull other elements as well and release an additional sourcebook soon after. We would like to keep our books under 400 pages, closer to the 300 mark. Plus Nick Greenwood (our primary artist) will be doing additional artwork (nearly 40 pieces given our current budget) which will add additional girth to the final products.
Framing fiction:
The framing fiction in Amethyst attempts at a more realistic approach to storytelling, less on the glorifying of combat abilities and the like. As a result, these segments--and others scattered about the book--might rub people the wrong way. We present (in my opinion) an honest depiction of a possible world and mankind's role within it. We knew about the decency clause but figured we were okay because we had no nudity, did not graphically describe sex, and because we present our tales with a skew towards the nobility of heroes against evil. I didn't write it for players to be elf slave hunters but be the heroes that try to crush the slave market. Of course, you can run the game how you want...just saying...
GSL:
Oh, and we have been talking with a few people, including a rep from a distribution warehouse, and we believe that we should be able to get away with employing a non-D20 modern GSL. But this is a point which possibly has been addressed already. WOTC claims there are two GSL, a D&D GSL and a D20 GSL. Nowhere do they say "Fantasy" and "non-fantasy." People have been adding the "(fantasy)" entry and I am not sure that is accurate. They are specific with their wording, claiming D&D, not fantasy, which could mean the first GSL is only for those donating material for the D&D setting. The D20 GSL could be for everything else, forcing those wanting to do so to wait until 2009. This is what concerns us--the limits on the GSL. We can't do a darn thing until then. When the GSL comes out, we are doing a podcast the following Monday to be uploaded Tuesday, which will outline our future.
Novel:
Yes, I am writing a novel. Yes, it includes material taken from and based on the game. It’s in the ballpark 400 page mark. This will not be printed through our label. I am actively searching for an agent. This would be another reason why the framing fiction was removed.
By the way, your thoughts here and on our
home page are being read and heeded. The big question is that are there enough holdovers for 3.5 OGL to to warrant it. Given what my contact from the supplier said, the answer to that would be no. I hope he is wrong. We want whats best for the setting, but we also want to earn enough to make more books.
