D&D 5E Mythological Figures & Maleficent Monsters: suggest who to include

[Tonguez]

Note to self: add King Kong!

What’s the legal status of Godzilla?

Godzillas tied up until 2050

 

[MechaTarrasque]

Note to self: add King Kong!

What’s the legal status of Godzilla?

Toho is known for aggressively defending its IP, which is a far cry from back in the old days when they let the suit designer run off with monster suits to make Ultra Q and Ultraman (which is probably why they eventually got so serious about it).

King Kong is an interesting case, due to RKO publishing the story in Boy's Life (I think, the memory isn't what it used to be) without copywriting it, so the story is open to the public. I think you could do it, but you couldn't use any images from a King Kong movie without permission. I am not sure how far you can vary from the Boy's Life story (so making him Godzilla-sized might not be kosher).

 

[Benjamin Olson]

I was briefly a copyright lawyer, and I think I should say that the public domain status of many Lovecraftian mythos characters is very much up in the air. Pre-1924 stuff is always public domain in the United States, but much of what comes after either from Lovecraft himself or others is either not public domain or only de facto public domain because nobody can make a clear claim to be the one who owns it. And, of course, who may claim some sort of trademark right is also debatable.

It's not that there's a major chance of actual legal action, but honestly I'd just skip them; they've been done to death anyway.

 

[bedir than]

Tatoosh, the Thunder Bird

From
A bird so large it shakes mountains with its wings and catches whales instead of salmon

 

[Quartz]

A bird so large it shakes mountains with its wings and catches whales instead of salmon

So it's just a big Roc?

 

[bedir than]

So it's just a big Roc?

And eyes that shoot lightning

 

[Eltab]

Hiawatha, as per Longfellow.

 

[Quartz]

You know, it's looking more like a 200-entry splatbook now.

128 pages, 2 entries per page plus table(s) of contents, indices, appendices, and the usual whatnot.

 

[Morrus]

You know, it's looking more like a 200-entry splatbook now.

128 pages, 2 entries per page plus table(s) of contents, indices, appendices, and the usual whatnot.

A lot of them will be cut. Each has to be justified as an archetype. We don’t need 24 similar mid-level thief types, so we have to choose the most iconic of each archetype.

 

[Quartz]

And eyes that shoot lightning

So, a re-skinned Blue Dragon, then?