d20 Story

[Walter_J]

Hi,
I'm writing a story on the d20 System Logo/OGL/SRD for a college class which I'm doing some research for and I was wondering if anyone would care to contribute. I'm working off of two basic questions: As a fan, how did the d20 system affect your gaming (i.e. what did it mean to you)? If you also published using the logo or license, how did that affect you (i.e. what did being able to publish using that material mean to you)? I know those are broad questions, but I'm looking for the personal as opposed to the business aspects. For example, "The release of the d20 Logo allowed me to publish this particular thing" or "because these books were available, my gaming group..." Was it a dream come true or a nightmare at the gaming table? In other words, how did the d20 Logo/OGL effect you, if at all. Thanks!

 

[Varianor Abroad]

Interesting question.

As a fan, how did the d20 system affect your gaming (i.e. what did it mean to you)

It meant that when I got back into D&D after a 15 year absence, that there was a lot more to keep my interest. It meant that there was a pile of material, some good, some bad, some inbetween to choose from when running a game. It also meant that eventually I got to be a published author since the d20 license encouraged a lot of third party publishers to pay people to freelance. I wrote for those that I wanted to work with. Once Wizards got a little freaky over d20, and everyone went OGL, I continued to write and play the game.

If you also published using the logo or license, how did that affect you (i.e. what did being able to publish using that material mean to you)?

The d20 license was very specific. If memory serves, I only contributed to a couple projects that used that license. It was originally easily confused with the OGL. As a writer, it meant that I had to careful a) not to reuse Wizards IP and b) that I had to provide cites under the license occasionally.

The very very cool thing about the OGL more than the d20 license was that you could reuse other people's material, taking nifty bits here and there that fit in with what you were doing.

 

[Desdichado]

As a fan, how did the d20 system affect your gaming (i.e. what did it mean to you)?

Wait; the system, or the license?

I think you mean the latter, but I'd suggest that for most gamers, myself included, all that meant was that there were a bunch of books available that otherwise wouldn't have been, which I bought, and which enabled me to further customize my campaign to my taste.

 

[jdrakeh]

First, a point of clarification: The d20 STL (System Trademark License) and the OGL (Open Game License) are two different things entirely. With that in mind. . .

As a consumer, the d20 STL didn't really affect me at all. The OGL, on the other hand, opened up lots of new possibilities for me as a player and DM due to the influx of third party publications. I also allowed me to fan-publish (for free) some of my house rules and such.