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D&D Fandom Part II: The Silver Age
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<blockquote data-quote="talien" data-source="post: 7700847" data-attributes="member: 3285"><p>We explored how fandom influenced the creation of Dungeons & Dragons in the 70s and 80s <a href="https://www.enworld.org/threads/d-d-fandom-part-i-the-dark-ages.663775/" target="_blank">in an earlier installment</a>; two decades later, fantasy gaming had come into its own. It also had a new factor to contend with that was unique to the era: the Internet, a boon for fans and a sea of uncertainty for publishers. The threat posed by fans creating game content -- in a game that encouraged fans to do precisely that -- was now widespread. The Internet genie was out of its bottle and no lawyer could put it back.</p><h3>D&D Unleashed</h3><p>Patton Oswalt, guardian of all things geeky, explains the<a href="http://www.wired.com/2010/12/ff_angrynerd_geekculture/" target="_blank"> impact of the Internet on geek culture</a>:</p><p></p><p>Jennifer Grouling Cover explains how gamers leveraged their newfound communication in <a href="http://amzn.to/1r6RoJj" target="_blank"><em>The Creation of Narrative in Tabletop Role-Playing Games</em></a>:</p><p></p><p>Message boards took the same role as conventions and magazines, accelerating and connecting players around the world. Newsgroups were the forerunners of today's social media. Rec.games.frp.dnd <a href="http://www.hahnlibrary.net/rpgs/faq/rgfdfaq1.html" target="_blank">was created in 1992</a>:</p><p></p><p>Jim Vassilakos provides an exhaustive overview of the early days of D&D on the Internet in his article "<a href="http://www.fantasylibrary.com/period/guild/g07.pdf" target="_blank">Spinning in Circles: A History & Analysis of TSR's Copyright Policies</a>" in the Guildsman #7:</p><p></p><p>D&D was primed for the Internet. It encourages creative expression and collaboration, two things online communication can do very well. With the new medium there was unprecedented access for fans to share, reuse, rewrite, and repurpose each others' content -- something that was happening at conventions already. The difference was that the company that owned the D&D brand no longer had the upper hand; TSR was at best an equal to its fans on the Internet, fast losing its ability to distinguish "professional" content from fan-generated content.</p><p></p><p>When TSR's lawyers realized just how widespread D&D fandom was, they weren't happy.</p><h3>Lawyers vs. the Internet</h3><p>In 1994, TSR sent out Cease and Desist notices to several file transfer protocol (FTP) sites that had D&D-related content,<a href="http://www.hoboes.com/pub/Role-Playing/About%20Gaming/Role-Playing%20Defense/Gaming%20Law/TSR%20Legal%20Debate/03%20TSR%27s%20Letters%20to%20an%20FTP%20Site/" target="_blank">insisting that they could only be hosted at single company-approved site</a>:</p><p></p><p>A little over a month later, TSR had its "way to license these and future creative efforts":</p><p></p><p>There were eventually <a href="http://story-games.com/forums/discussion/18380/tsr-explains-how-to-write-for-ad-d-in-1995" target="_blank">three official places</a> TSR deemed appropriate for fan content:</p><p></p><p>This was the beginning of monikers like "They Sue Regularly" and "T&R" in which fans no longer felt a shared ownership of the game. It was TSR's way or the highway it seemed.</p><p></p><p>As we mentioned in the previous installment, <em>Dungeons & Dragons'</em> existence started with fans. TSR's stance on its fans changed as the old business model collided with newly empowered (and much larger) fandom. The Internet laid bare TSR's change in policy towards its fans. Vassilakos pinpoints the change:</p><p></p><p>For some time, fear and loathing ruled, with fans of D&D enraged by TSR's treatment on one side, and TSR's increasingly failing business model pressuring it to defend itself against all comers -- including its own customers. That all changed when Wizards of the Coast showed up.</p><h3>Wizards to the Rescue?</h3><p>Wizards of the Coast had first-hand experience with lawsuits and the Internet:</p><p></p><p>One of those conversions, of Palladium's <em>Fantasy Role-Playing Game</em>, triggered a lawsuit that was settled out of court. Wizards, and by extension CEO Peter Adkison, was at the nexus of a battle between fandom, RPG companies, and their lawyers, as explained by <a href="https://www.rpg.net/columns/briefhistory/briefhistory1.phtml" target="_blank">Shannon Appelcline</a>:</p><p></p><p>Adkison didn't forget his lessons when TSR was available for sale. With the Internet, fandom was no longer easier to ignore. When Wizards purchased TSR, things changed quickly, <a href="http://www.hahnlibrary.net/rpgs/faq/rgfdfaq.html" target="_blank">as this FAQ explains</a>:</p><p></p><p>That was just the beginning of changes that would ultimately affect the entire business model of D&D.</p><h3>Open to All?</h3><p>As described in my previous article, "<a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?480792-Can-Wizards-Avoid-Another-OGL-Glut" target="_blank">Can Wizards Avoid Another OGL Glut?</a>", Ryan Dancey pushed hard for the Open Game License, ensuring that a form of <em>Dungeons & Dragons</em> would exist forever. WOTC might regret that later, but they had to come to grips with the fact that power was once again in fans' hands and there was no going back.</p><p></p><p>We'll look at how RPG companies leverage their fans to make a profit and the open game license in the next installment, the Golden Age.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="talien, post: 7700847, member: 3285"] We explored how fandom influenced the creation of Dungeons & Dragons in the 70s and 80s [URL='https://www.enworld.org/threads/d-d-fandom-part-i-the-dark-ages.663775/']in an earlier installment[/URL]; two decades later, fantasy gaming had come into its own. It also had a new factor to contend with that was unique to the era: the Internet, a boon for fans and a sea of uncertainty for publishers. The threat posed by fans creating game content -- in a game that encouraged fans to do precisely that -- was now widespread. The Internet genie was out of its bottle and no lawyer could put it back. [HEADING=2]D&D Unleashed[/HEADING] Patton Oswalt, guardian of all things geeky, explains the[URL='http://www.wired.com/2010/12/ff_angrynerd_geekculture/'] impact of the Internet on geek culture[/URL]: Jennifer Grouling Cover explains how gamers leveraged their newfound communication in [URL='http://amzn.to/1r6RoJj'][I]The Creation of Narrative in Tabletop Role-Playing Games[/I][/URL]: Message boards took the same role as conventions and magazines, accelerating and connecting players around the world. Newsgroups were the forerunners of today's social media. Rec.games.frp.dnd [URL='http://www.hahnlibrary.net/rpgs/faq/rgfdfaq1.html']was created in 1992[/URL]: Jim Vassilakos provides an exhaustive overview of the early days of D&D on the Internet in his article "[URL='http://www.fantasylibrary.com/period/guild/g07.pdf']Spinning in Circles: A History & Analysis of TSR's Copyright Policies[/URL]" in the Guildsman #7: D&D was primed for the Internet. It encourages creative expression and collaboration, two things online communication can do very well. With the new medium there was unprecedented access for fans to share, reuse, rewrite, and repurpose each others' content -- something that was happening at conventions already. The difference was that the company that owned the D&D brand no longer had the upper hand; TSR was at best an equal to its fans on the Internet, fast losing its ability to distinguish "professional" content from fan-generated content. When TSR's lawyers realized just how widespread D&D fandom was, they weren't happy. [HEADING=2]Lawyers vs. the Internet[/HEADING] In 1994, TSR sent out Cease and Desist notices to several file transfer protocol (FTP) sites that had D&D-related content,[URL='http://www.hoboes.com/pub/Role-Playing/About%20Gaming/Role-Playing%20Defense/Gaming%20Law/TSR%20Legal%20Debate/03%20TSR%27s%20Letters%20to%20an%20FTP%20Site/']insisting that they could only be hosted at single company-approved site[/URL]: A little over a month later, TSR had its "way to license these and future creative efforts": There were eventually [URL='http://story-games.com/forums/discussion/18380/tsr-explains-how-to-write-for-ad-d-in-1995']three official places[/URL] TSR deemed appropriate for fan content: This was the beginning of monikers like "They Sue Regularly" and "T&R" in which fans no longer felt a shared ownership of the game. It was TSR's way or the highway it seemed. As we mentioned in the previous installment, [I]Dungeons & Dragons'[/I] existence started with fans. TSR's stance on its fans changed as the old business model collided with newly empowered (and much larger) fandom. The Internet laid bare TSR's change in policy towards its fans. Vassilakos pinpoints the change: For some time, fear and loathing ruled, with fans of D&D enraged by TSR's treatment on one side, and TSR's increasingly failing business model pressuring it to defend itself against all comers -- including its own customers. That all changed when Wizards of the Coast showed up. [HEADING=2]Wizards to the Rescue?[/HEADING] Wizards of the Coast had first-hand experience with lawsuits and the Internet: One of those conversions, of Palladium's [I]Fantasy Role-Playing Game[/I], triggered a lawsuit that was settled out of court. Wizards, and by extension CEO Peter Adkison, was at the nexus of a battle between fandom, RPG companies, and their lawyers, as explained by [URL='https://www.rpg.net/columns/briefhistory/briefhistory1.phtml']Shannon Appelcline[/URL]: Adkison didn't forget his lessons when TSR was available for sale. With the Internet, fandom was no longer easier to ignore. When Wizards purchased TSR, things changed quickly, [URL='http://www.hahnlibrary.net/rpgs/faq/rgfdfaq.html']as this FAQ explains[/URL]: That was just the beginning of changes that would ultimately affect the entire business model of D&D. [HEADING=2]Open to All?[/HEADING] As described in my previous article, "[URL='http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?480792-Can-Wizards-Avoid-Another-OGL-Glut']Can Wizards Avoid Another OGL Glut?[/URL]", Ryan Dancey pushed hard for the Open Game License, ensuring that a form of [I]Dungeons & Dragons[/I] would exist forever. WOTC might regret that later, but they had to come to grips with the fact that power was once again in fans' hands and there was no going back. We'll look at how RPG companies leverage their fans to make a profit and the open game license in the next installment, the Golden Age. [/QUOTE]
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