Pathfinder 1E OGC equivalent to Yugoloths?

[Wicht]

Is this for home use, or are you looking to do something beyond with it?

 

[VelvetViolet]

Is this for home use, or are you looking to do something beyond with it?

Maybe release it as a free supplement (since all text would be OGC), and maybe sell a premium supplement with art. I'm trying to follow the same formula used by Iconic Bestiary: Classics of Fantasy and Fiery Dragon's Counter Collection. That's why I can't just use the yugoloths (and because they were essentially kind of boring as the third great race of fiends).

It's just like if I wanted to write my own supplement about, say, male medusa. I can't use the maedar because they're Product Identity.

 

[VelvetViolet]

Are there any OGC supplements that include neutral evil fiends? I know Bastion Press' Complete Minions has a couple decent NE fiends that are completely OGC, but I'm not aware of any others. Green Ronin's Book of Fiends would be my first choice, but while the "name, statistics, and combat section" of the monsters are OGC, the descriptions aren't (I'm not sure if this means I can't mention the actual likenesses of the monsters, but I won't chance it).

 

[Wicht]

Are there any OGC supplements that include neutral evil fiends? I know Bastion Press' Complete Minions has a couple decent NE fiends that are completely OGC, but I'm not aware of any others. Green Ronin's Book of Fiends would be my first choice, but while the "name, statistics, and combat section" of the monsters are OGC, the descriptions aren't (I'm not sure if this means I can't mention the actual likenesses of the monsters, but I won't chance it).

You have to rewrite the fluff text. But that's not really that big a deal. Write up the likeness in your own words and you should be good.

I would have to check, but I would be very surprised if Creature Collection did not have some NE outsiders. But you have the same problem with those books as you do with Book of Fiends. The fluff text is closed while the stats are ogc.

 

[VelvetViolet]

I've settled on a name for these mercenary fiends: Deveels. It's a pun on devil (much as daemon is the origin of demon). The name and MO is a reference to a children's book series I haven't read (and currently forgot the name of). I'm thinking of these deveels as being the native inhabitants of Tartarus, which isn't so much a plane as a primordial deity that is so large that it effectively qualifies as a plane. Aeons ago a chunk of an exploded planet crashed into Tartarus, causing it to become pregnant and soon give birth to the first and most powerful of the deveels. Tartarus does not naturally attract the souls of the dead, so the deveels must steal souls in order to increase their numbers, leading them to offer their services as mercenaries to the fiendish races. They've industrialized the process of their creation, building vast factory forges within the bowels of Tartarus where the captured souls are rendered down for fuel that is channeled through the plane itself before being interred within one of countless artificially created husks that will become members of the lower castes.

As of yet, my idea for the basic castes are: war hounds (animalistic creatures bred for fighting), foot soldiers (the basic soldier unit), shock troops (stronger soldiers that lead armies), commanders (the various officers that coordinate the armies), tanks (various creatures created as living siege engines), and aristocrats (the original race of deveels).

The deveels are neutral evil because their behavior is midway between devil and demon without the weaknesses of either. While they engage in numerous machinations like the devils and rule through power like the demons, their ultimate motivation is purely selfish self-preservation.

 

[N'raac]

Deveels are the demon bargainers in the Myth Adventures series, as I recall. If you think you got a good deal from a deveel, stop and count your fingers and toes. I wonder if that makes them copywritten,/trademarked, especially given your intention to utilize them in that capacity.

 

[VelvetViolet]

Deveels are the demon bargainers in the Myth Adventures series, as I recall. If you think you got a good deal from a deveel, stop and count your fingers and toes. I wonder if that makes them copywritten,/trademarked, especially given your intention to utilize them in that capacity.

Right, that was the series. You can't copyright an idea, technically (I checked and it isn't trademarked either). I've never read the books so the only thing I know is a brief mention of the Deveels on TVTropes as being a race of cutthroat merchants, so it wouldn't be copyright infringement unless I took more than the name and MO from the books (and I'm changing it up to make them mercenaries too). The idea is as general as "elves are a race of long-lived forest dwellers," so I think I'm safe.

 

[N'raac]

I think "elves are a race of long-lived forest dwellers" comes from ancient folklore. That's why the Tolkein Estate couldn't hit TSR with any claims based on elves, dwarves, orcs, etc. but forced them to stop using Ents, Balrogs and Hobbits. I make no claim to expertise in IP law, but was only pointing out the source and the possible issue, especially with your concern on OGL material.

oo - found the quote - "If you think you've gotten a good deal from a Deveel, first count your fingers, then your limbs, then your relatives."

A site search of Deveel on tvtropes reveals two pages of hits - the only one not linked back to these works is a phonetic spelling for a TV character of common pronunciations. It seems likely Asprin's estate would have as much claim to that name as Tolkein had to short guys with hairy feet called hobbits.

 

[Wicht]

After thinking about it, I would choose a different name. Deveels comes across as trying to be "cute." Which is likely why its in the Myth-adventures series. And it makes me think of weevils when I hear it.

 

[VelvetViolet]

A site search of Deveel on tvtropes reveals two pages of hits - the only one not linked back to these works is a phonetic spelling for a TV character of common pronunciations. It seems likely Asprin's estate would have as much claim to that name as Tolkein had to short guys with hairy feet called hobbits.

That's because Tolkien has a legally registered trademark on the word "hobbit" (but not the world "halfling" used in the same context). Asprin's estate never registered "deveel" as a trademark.

After thinking about it, I would choose a different name. Deveels comes across as trying to be "cute." Which is likely why its in the Myth-adventures series. And it makes me think of weevils when I hear it.

That sounds like a possible reason to adopt it. The deveels choose a name that sounds cute in order to trick others into underestimating them. But I could use "daevils" instead if you think that sounds better.