Going Nuclear:1D&D

[Bluebell]

Two days from when YOU got access to the PDF. Have you considered that the people who need to worry about this actually received the document long before that pdf was leaked?

I've been watching the indie artists and homebrewers on my feeds scramble all week because it turns out that "the people who need to worry about this" extends far beyond the big players, and Wizards didn't think it was worth their time to give every freelancer and indie artist on instagram a heads up. There are plenty of people whose livelihoods are affected by this who found out about it all from leaks, same as the rest of us.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

En publishing already kickstarted "two crunchy roleplaying games". They have a system that's all theirs, and owes nothing to Hasbro. I was actually low key dissapointed when their subsequent kickstarters were for 5e content, rather than further support for these new systems I bought into. I'm sure they're deciding for themselves whether they can just transition to publishing for their own system, or if they need to figure something else out, but until I'm blue in the face: the people who make good content can do so without the OGL.

You can ask our host to explain why he decided to go with 5e advanced (level up) over his own system...
Based on things I have heard but not direct I would bet a larger audiance... but maybe it just struck him that he wanted to make something for D&D

 

[mamba]

But the thread isn't about caring about their plights, it's about boycotting Hasbro and "going nuclear on 1D&D". What about all the people who work at Hasbro whose kids have mouths to feed too? Why are the people who want to boycott hasbro to protect independent creators innocent, while the people who suggest those independent creators can probably just as easily make different content that has nothing to do with Hasbro are the bad guys?

the idea is to get Hasbro to relent, also, because Hasbro broke their promises

The venn diagram of "people who make good content" and "people who can not make content without the OGL" has no intersection in my opinion.

the diagram of those being able to make a living off of it in the TTRPG space on the other hand…

 

[GMforPowergamers]

the diagram of those being able to make a living off of it in the TTRPPG space on the other hand…

my understanding is that was already a small circle... and it looks like it will get smaller

 

[mamba]

funny but vote with your wallet sounds great when you are the one saying it about a product you want to support or boycott, and somehow sounds like an attack when it's the reverse...

what is the reverse? me getting boycotted? Sure, the whole point is to build pressure, not sure what you suggest can be done instead

 

[Vaalingrade]

The venn diagram of "people who make good content" and "people who can not make content without the OGL" has no intersection in my opinion.

The venn diagram of 'people who can make good cars' and 'people who cannot make good cars without designing their own engine' has no intersection in my opinion.

Said the person making a very bad venn diagram.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

what is the reverse? me getting boycotted? Sure, the whole point is to build pressure, not sure what you suggest can be done instead

no when you want to boycott and someone suggests they want to buy it
and when you want to buy it and someone suggests a boycott.

the exact same "vote with your wallet" applies either way, but when something you care about and like is hit by a boycott it feels like an attack, and when someone likes something and says they will support it but you want it boycotted the same...

 

[Malmuria]

The third party D&D publishers have got a good 20+ year easy start, and one year of warning before that sweet deal goes away. If these people are good at what they do, they'll apply that know-how to keep producing great content. The ones that produce great content but can't adapt, and see no way forward other than to continue selling D&D compatible content under unfavorable license terms... well, like I keep saying, i don't think those exist. The venn diagram of "people who make good content" and "people who can not make content without the OGL" has no intersection in my opinion. If you can name a content producer that literally CAN'T make a book worth buying without the OGL, then I will confidently bet that their content sucks.

"Producing content," however, takes time. There are people who are in the middle of a production schedule--fulfilling kickstarters or planning kickstarters--who now all of a sudden have to drop what they are doing and make new plans. To do that, these people need incoming revenue each month to stay afloat, but they won't be able to have that either if they have to stop selling ogl products.

It's also the case that Hasbro is in an uncertain legal position. It is not clear whether they can legally revoke OGL 1.0. It's even unclear whether one needs a license to make a dnd-esque game. But Hasbro has more money than their "competitors," and knows it can outlast nearly everyone in a legal fight. In other words, the company is using its already-monopolistic position to bully relatively tiny businesses out of the market for the sake of control.

If you are wondering if there are ethical stakes to this conversation, yes, there are. Your position lacks empathy toward everyone except for the large corporation and its executives and lawyers.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

The venn diagram of 'people who can make good cars' and 'people who cannot make good cars without designing their own engine' has no intersection in my opinion.

Said the person making a very bad venn diagram.

Do you know who Richard Dansky is?

Richard E. Dansky

Rich "Deadguy" Dansky is a Wraith: The Oblivion, Vampire: The Dark Ages, and Kindred of the East developer, and has written sourcebooks and stories for several other White Wolf gamelines. Following his tenure at White Wolf, Rich went on to work at Red Storm Entertainment, where he serves as the...

whitewolf.fandom.com

he writes RPGs, but he also works for computer games... he couldn't program a game on a bet. He couldn't design the engine, the interface, nothing.

You know what he does amazing at though... story. He is part of a team.
If a AAA game studio all of a sudden out sourced stories he could do it for every game. HOWEVER, being able to do 1 part in no way shows that you can another.

 

[Umbran]

I don't know why people would care for a company that doesn't care about you.

So, everyone who is perfect, who has never screwed up in their lives, raise your hand.

Folks will joke, but I suspect you'll see few raised hands in the crowd. So, when they screwed up, did all their friends, the people with whom they have supportive relationships over decades, abandon them?

If what they did was bad enough, perhaps. But frequently, the people who have had good relationships in the past will at least wait until they see exactly what you have done before completely writing you off.

WotC created the OGL in the first place. They have made missteps, but then also made good steps. Many, indeed millions, have benefited from WotC's products and actions in the past. So, it should not be surprising that some folks are at the very least wiling to wait until we see what actual license gets released.