Blog (A5E) EN Publishing Launches Advanced 5E SRD

We at EN Publishing have just launched our new System Reference Document project. Taking the rules of our popular Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition tabletop RPG, we are creating a fully-featured complete 5E SRD which will be available under a variety of open and permissive licenses, including licenses which are non-revocable.

Advanced 5E System Reference Document

A5eSRD.com

We have already begun work with a crack team led by Paul Hughes. As we have already written and published the game itself, we are already well on our way.

We don’t know what will happen in the future regarding the OGL. WotC has just released its SRD into Creative Commons. The A5ESRD will be significantly larger and more complete, including feats, archetypes, and more.

(Note: this is a new SRD. The original LUSRD remains published on the official Level Up website and will remain available under the OGL for as long as that license exists; we do not believe the OGL v1.0a can be de-authorised, and we welcome the news that WotC has abandoned its attempt to do so).

 

[Morrus]

Also just to make sure I'm getting this right, it seems that the section under A5ESRD only has links for the Introduction PDF, and all of the other sections have their names, but no links. However, the blurb below says "The A5E System Reference Document (A5ESRD) by EN Publishing is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License..." So should we assume that A5E SRD is already released under CC? Or is this only a statement of intent, and the A5ESRD will be released under CC only when all the links are there?

It's a work in progress. We only just started this week.

 

[Cergorach]

Getting A5E to a CC-BY-4.0 license will assure compatibility with the WotC 5E SRD under CC-BY-4.0. Getting the OGL1.0a updated as well would keep compatibility with older material.

In the future, will ENworld Publishing release (A5E) products under one or both licenses?

And will ORC still be a thing when WotC already pulled the pin on the grenade and went full CC-BY-4.0? What would an ORC license even add at this point?

 

[Reynard]

And will ORC still be a thing when WotC already pulled the pin on the grenade and went full CC-BY-4.0? What would an ORC license even add at this point?

ORC isn't a D&D license.

 

[Cergorach]

ORC isn't a D&D license.

Neither is CC-BY-4.0. Sure the SRD 5.1 is licensed under it, but it allows for probably the most simple license there is, besides the OGL1.a. What would adding another license into this mix add, besides more fracturing?

 

[Art Waring]

And will ORC still be a thing when WotC already pulled the pin on the grenade and went full CC-BY-4.0? What would an ORC license even add at this point?

Use of the CC-BY 4.0 would potentially require publishers to make a separate CC-only SRD for anything they would want to release as creative commons content. It's an extra step anyway, which means some content potentially wont be added back into the pool of CC materials. (But, SRD's are an important part of the open gaming ecosystem).

Theoretically (we haven't seen a draft of the ORC yet), the ORC should function like the original OGL 1.0a, allowing publishers to designate what is Product Identy [PI], & what is Open Gaming Content [OGC], eliminating the need for an SRD for every single project (if they are using the same rulesets).

Both have their own advantages & disadvantages. I think we will have to wait to see how dual or multi-lincensing will work out (not a lawyer).

 

[Steampunkette]

Getting A5E to a CC-BY-4.0 license will assure compatibility with the WotC 5E SRD under CC-BY-4.0. Getting the OGL1.0a updated as well would keep compatibility with older material.

In the future, will ENworld Publishing release (A5E) products under one or both licenses?

And will ORC still be a thing when WotC already pulled the pin on the grenade and went full CC-BY-4.0? What would an ORC license even add at this point?

ORC will be a standard for the TTRPG industry. Not -just- 5e Material, but also Kobold Press' material. Paizo's. Matt Coville.

If we use ORC, we can access -that- material as well.

 

[Ondath]

To be fair, offering your game in multiple open licenses is something TTRPGs have done in the past. FATE is available both in Creative Commons and the OGL, as well as Gumshoe. As well as the terms of the licenses don't contradict each other, things should be fine.

 

[Ondath]

ORC will be a standard for the TTRPG industry. Not -just- 5e Material, but also Kobold Press' material. Paizo's. Matt Coville.

If we use ORC, we can access -that- material as well.

AFAIK Colville never expressed any support for ORC, though he did say their game will use the "most open license available". But his reaction to the ORC announcement was tepid IIRC.

The rest of your points are pertinent, though!

 

[Steampunkette]

AFAIK Colville never expressed any support for ORC, though he did say their game will use the "most open license available". But his reaction to the ORC announcement was tepid IIRCH.

The rest of your points are pertinent, though!

Fair. But I'm hoping it's the most open one there is that is also specific to the industry and entices everyone.

'Cause the less Licenses we have to devote pages to going forward is better.

 

[Uni-the-Unicorn!]

Would be great if you could just down load a PDF,

Maybe they will do that, but the SRD (the new one) is not ready yet.