Can 3.5 cut WOTC Connections?

[Bacris]

Except that those parts of the PHB and DMG are not Open Game Content, so you'd have to include a different set of chargen/XP rules of your own making. For instance, in Monte Cook's Arcana Unearthed/Evolved, the level advancement table has slightly different XP values and such.

Exactly.

The SRD doesn't have everything needed to play. It has almost everything needed. At that point, it becomes a variant, so you have to pick one. If you already HAVE to make a variant, why not go with an established line?

 

[Alzrius]

I wonder if you could reprint the XP table without penalty. I mean, the values there are derived from a rather straightforward mathematical formula - there's no way that's subject to any sort of copyright, and the table seems too simple to even fall under the "artful presentation" of game rules. And I know I've seen stand-alone OGL products that included character-generation rules that were (very nearly) identical to what we have in the PHB.

I'm not a lawyer, but it seems to me that these are non-issues.

 

[dmccoy1693]

I wonder if you could reprint the XP table without penalty.

I remember PapersAndPaychecks commenting that tables in 1E created from mathematical formulas could be copied wholesale into OSRIC while those that were based upon arbitrary numbers had to be changed some.

Having said that, if I were making a 3.5 variant, I'd change the XP table.

 

[rgard]

I wonder if you could reprint the XP table without penalty. I mean, the values there are derived from a rather straightforward mathematical formula - there's no way that's subject to any sort of copyright, and the table seems too simple to even fall under the "artful presentation" of game rules. And I know I've seen stand-alone OGL products that included character-generation rules that were (very nearly) identical to what we have in the PHB.

I'm not a lawyer, but it seems to me that these are non-issues.

I think you can. I just looked at my Mongoose Conan RPG (Atlantean) and found the experience point progression table to be identical in so far as the xps needed to advance a level are the same. They did use 2.5 and the like instead of 2 1/2 (cross class skills column.)

IIRC, you couldn't reproduce the experience point table and use the d20 license. You could use the table if it was just OGL and not labeled with the d20 license.

Thanks,
Rich

 

[Nadaka]

You can not copyright, patent or trademark a mathematical formula. Nor can you copyright, patent or trademark the most basic expressions of the values of that formula.

So:

           n
xp = sigma((level-1)*1000)
       level=1

represents the number of xp needed to reach level n level.

Expressed in a table

xp	level
0	1
1000	2
3000	3
6000	4
1000	5
15000	6
21000	7
.	.
.	.
.	.

 

[dmccoy1693]

Except that those parts of the PHB and DMG are not Open Game Content, so you'd have to include a different set of chargen/XP rules of your own making. For instance, in Monte Cook's Arcana Unearthed/Evolved, the level advancement table has slightly different XP values and such.

Exactly.

The SRD doesn't have everything needed to play. It has almost everything needed. At that point, it becomes a variant, so you have to pick one. If you already HAVE to make a variant, why not go with an established line?

Not just an established line but an established name from a company with major print capabilities, major distribution capabilities, and serious name recognition. I mean Joe Schmoe's Publishing can put out "Joe Schmoe's 3.5 SRD", but no one will buy it because no one knows the name, no one knows the quality, it'll probably only be found at DTRPG, and the company will be simply written off as another fantasy heartbreak.

Paizo is the 3rd largest game company in the industry, has a loyal and devoted fanbase (who are mostly OGL believers and less "WotC-only Tables"), and the PfRPG will be carried in LGSs. Random people will be alot more willing to try your product with the PfRPG logo on your product then Joe Schmoe's logo.