Ema's RPG Sheet Website down...

[Shadowsong666]

Does it suck, yeah, I guess. But before anyone goes off about TSR or "that other Washington-based company", keep in mind They were probably looking at a direct competitor, not fan-sites in general.

Well, i don't think that this statement makes it any better for the fans that used the site and where happy with the services he provided so far.

I think i should be happy, because getting rid of the competitors helps WotC strengthen the product they created so far. The character builder. just don't talk about the other stuff..please. Does it make me trust in WoTCs online tools now? Not really - no.

As it looks now, our gaming group will move away from 4e anyway for some time and revisit some systems that made us happy a long time before (funny thing how 4e shows you that old stuff isn't bad at all just because its old. ars magica and midgard come to mind. or merp, rm.. *cries*) and will make us happy again. But hell yeah, we ever been gamers first - no matter the system. Its all about the fun, right?

ok - steam is kind a gone now i think.

did i mention that buying a netbook was one of the best things to do for gaming?

 

[Xyxox]

Before we all go Nova and start using instead of letters, take a deep breath.

Ema probably wasn't in trouble for his character sheets. He was probably in trouble for his auto-filling character generator which stored PC data on his website in a fashion similar to (though pre-dating) WotCs.

There has always been a "software" clause in the SRD. WotC has turned a blind eye to HEROforge and the like because they were free. Ema was charging (abit a small fee used to webstorage) for his char-gen, which seems to violate WotC's good-natured policy.

Why now? Well, maybe its because WotC has competing software (in a different edtion) and they wanted to make sure no one uses the OGL/GSL to make a 4e Ema site to compete against WotC's DDi.

Does it suck, yeah, I guess. But before anyone goes off about TSR or "that other Washington-based company", keep in mind They were probably looking at a direct competitor, not fan-sites in general.

Pssst, the 3.5 System Reference Document is covered under the Open Game License and contains no "software clause". I think what you're thinking about was the System Trademark License which did contain a "software clause". Of course, the STL is now defuct and 4E is only covered under the Game System License with a weird System Reference Document . At any rate, I would agree with most who have stated that the C&D probably went after the 4E online storage stuff.

 

[Jack of Shadows]

OMG! Call Olbermann! WotC is clearly the worst person in the world!

BTW, can I have your D&D books?

Bite me fanboy,

This situation struck an emotional chord and I should be allowed to express that emotion with out smug half-witted sarcasm.

JoS.

 

[Ktulu]

I know I should be irritated, but it's not like I ever used a fan-made character sheet, anyway.

 

[Rel]

There is a LOT of inappropriate posting going on in this thread. Get it under control, folks. If this has you furious then take a few deep breaths and step away from the computer. Or go post about it someplace else. You know the rules here require that opinions be expressed with civility.

 

[Glyfair]

Ema probably wasn't in trouble for his character sheets. He was probably in trouble for his auto-filling character generator which stored PC data on his website in a fashion similar to (though pre-dating) WotCs.

Maybe.

Seriously, why was Ema's site asked to be taken down when other similar sites weren't? What was different about it?

 

[Lonely Tylenol]

But isn't the issue that Ema didn't do that with the character manager? (Not rhetorical - I'm actually asking because I never really used that - and was it 3e/3.5e?)

I discovered Ema's site when she did a d20 Call of Cthulhu character sheets and a GM's screen. Those were absolutely beautiful.

I think you mean "he".

 

[thecasualoblivion]

I paid for the full "God" subscription to Emas place, but only as a stopgap until the WotC character builder came out. Since I've had the full Insider app, I haven't touched Emas, so its no real skin off my back, though I may end up missing Ema's for printing out Ritual cards, which the Character Builder does not do. Despite a few bugs(of which Ema's had an equal amount), the Character Builder is a much better program. The magic item section in particular blows away anything else I have seen from anywhere else.

I'm surprised Ema's was around for as long as it was. If anything pushed the boundaries of what WotC could tolerate, it was that.

I agree with previous posters that it was the charging for content that was the major downfall of Ema's. If it was free, I don't think it would have been shut down.

 

[rounser]

The more I see, the more convinced I am that the OGL is the only way to go for gaming. NO issues whatsoever so long as you stay away from everything Wot¢ cosniders IP and closed.

See my new sig for one suggested way forward. I feel 3E is too much bookkeeping and prep time, 4E too hard to suspend disbelief for and retains 3E's long combats, and don't like the AD&D and OD&D thief and clunky bits, so a custom game based on S&W combined with the magic item and spell splat compilations of late 2E is looking darn appealing.

 

[thecasualoblivion]

I think the major gripe in this thread is that D&D(in the present tense) isn't OGL anymore, and this is the first real taste of that we've had.