OGL: Kobold Press 'Raising Our Flag' For New Open RPG

Kobold Press has announced its plans regarding the upcoming new OGL v1.1, which involves a new, open game codenamed Project Black Flag.

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Kobold Press has been and always will be committed to open gaming and the tabletop community. Our goal is to continue creating the best materials for players and game masters alike.

This means Kobold Press will release its current Kickstarter projects as planned, including Campaign Builder: Cities & Towns (already printed and on its way to backers this winter).

In particular, Deep Magic Volume 2 will remain fully compatible with the 5E rules. We are working with our VTT partners to maintain support for digital platforms.

As we look ahead, it becomes even more important for our actions to represent our values. While we wait to see what the future holds, we are moving forward with clear-eyed work on a new Core Fantasy tabletop ruleset: available, open, and subscription-free for those who love it—Code Name: Project Black Flag.

All Kobolds look forward to the continued evolution of tabletop gaming. We aim to play our part in making the game better for everyone. Rest assured, Kobold Press intends to maintain a strong presence in the tabletop RPG community. We are not going anywhere.

Raising Our Flag - Kobold Press

Kobold Press is committed to open gaming. We are moving forward with clear-eyed work on a new Core Fantasy tabletop ruleset: available, open, and subscription-free for those who love it—Code Name: Project Black Flag.

koboldpress.com

 

[tetrasodium]

This I fully understand. Thanks!
I think this depends on the players and not so much on the system. I have encountered this in different systems too.
People have limited possibilities to experience certain roles, and they want to do that. But the story might dictate otherwise. And thus there will be conflict between the player and the DM.
Once one of my friend wanted to play a gnoll. In Bloodstone lands (FR) where gnolls are attacked on sight. Wasn't easy.
Or there was another player who wanted to play his weretiger character. I let it. But then I was not good enough in convincing his character to go adventuring.
So I think the most important rule should be that the DM is going to spin a story and players want to take part in it. And by taking part I also mean that one might not be able to bring a CE murderhobo to a game about tacktful diplomacy.

No. If the GM is simply a captive tool for wish fulfilment as you describe & even underline in that bolded bit you've moved from game to service & are in a very different realm of gaming. Players who come to the table with that mentality should go write a story.

From the tone of your post... have you read the pbf packet being discussed?

 

[Horacio]

This I fully understand. Thanks!
I think this depends on the players and not so much on the system. I have encountered this in different systems too.
People have limited possibilities to experience certain roles, and they want to do that. But the story might dictate otherwise. And thus there will be conflict between the player and the DM.
Once one of my friend wanted to play a gnoll. In Bloodstone lands (FR) where gnolls are attacked on sight. Wasn't easy.
Or there was another player who wanted to play his weretiger character. I let it. But then I was not good enough in convincing his character to go adventuring.
So I think the most important rule should be that the DM is going to spin a story and players want to take part in it. And by taking part I also mean that one might not be able to bring a CE murderhobo to a game about tacktful diplomacy.

I agree, it isn't a problem of game system, it's a problem of expectatives matching between players and DM.

It's kind of off topic here, but I'm more than 30 years of DMing, I haven't found that kind of problem (not dismissing at all, I am sure it exists, I guess simply that I have been lucky enough and I have always played with friends). For me the key to do it has always been is what young people () call session 0: discussing with the players about the setting and the expectatives they have, and the expectatives they have for characters. And tweak all that (adapting everybody expectatives and eventually modifying setting), everybody make some concessions. It's a social game after all. It doesn't work everytime, I mean there are lots of games and settings that I wanted to try that I have never DMed because my group wasn't up for it. But for me if players and DM aren't in phase, is better not to play.

 

[kunadam]

No. If the GM is simply a captive tool for wish fulfilment as you describe & even underline in that bolded bit you've moved from game to service & are in a very different realm of gaming. Players who come to the table with that mentality should go write a story.

I'm just reading Guy Sclanders "The practical guide to becoming a great GM", and there are some very different styles of play. Some I have seen, some I have not. There is always some kind of wish fulfillment in a game. When I play, I also have expectations. Sometimes I got what I wanted, sometimes I do not. And from that on it is up to all players (which in the packet includes the GM) to fit their expectation/styles/whatever. In our last campaign, I played a cleric. I like setting immersion, and I wanted a fully described pantheon (or at least a name for the god my character served). But for our GM it was not a thing, the game was immersive in other ways. I still had fun.

From the tone of your post... have you read the pbf packet being discussed?

I think you refer to this part "Through collaborative storytelling, one player—called the Game Master (or GM)—and
a group of other players—called Player Characters (or PCs)—will explore unique locations and embark upon adventurous quests within them." and then the description of GM and PCs
To be honest I have not read that and for me these parts are mostly fluff and I'm more interested in the rules. I welcome this tone, but as most people I play with never ever read that part of the PHB (or mostly any of it except maybe their race/class/spells), it is not D&D or any other system that should be blamed.

 

[Remathilis]

No. If the GM is simply a captive tool for wish fulfilment as you describe & even underline in that bolded bit you've moved from game to service & are in a very different realm of gaming. Players who come to the table with that mentality should go write a story.

From the tone of your post... have you read the pbf packet being discussed?

Whereas it's perfectly fine for the DM to dictate their personal opinions on character design and world building since the DM is God Emperor and the players merely peons that are allowed to bask in the glory of the DM'S creation. A privilege that is easily revoked if proper reverence is not paid. All hail the DM, thank you for letting me play an elf.

 

[tetrasodium]

I'm just reading Guy Sclanders "The practical guide to becoming a great GM", and there are some very different styles of play. Some I have seen, some I have not. There is always some kind of wish fulfillment in a game. When I play, I also have expectations. Sometimes I got what I wanted, sometimes I do not. And from that on it is up to all players (which in the packet includes the GM) to fit their expectation/styles/whatever. In our last campaign, I played a cleric. I like setting immersion, and I wanted a fully described pantheon (or at least a name for the god my character served). But for our GM it was not a thing, the game was immersive in other ways. I still had fun.

I think you refer to this part "Through collaborative storytelling, one player—called the Game Master (or GM)—and
a group of other players—called Player Characters (or PCs)—will explore unique locations and embark upon adventurous quests within them." and then the description of GM and PCs
To be honest I have not read that and for me these parts are mostly fluff and I'm more interested in the rules. I welcome this tone, but as most people I play with never ever read that part of the PHB (or mostly any of it except maybe their race/class/spells), it is not D&D or any other system that should be blamed.

That bold bit is a critical party of the shift and I consider some of it to be present in the snippet we have of rules themselves. For example:

Spoiler: ROLE OF A PLAYER CHARACTER

A player’s role is to portray their character as fully as possible.
Imagine perceiving the world through the character’s senses and
reacting as they would to the situations presented by the GM.
When interacting with characters portrayed by the GM or other
PCs, a player’s voice serves as the character’s.

That's a pretty big shift on its own but it continues.

Spoiler: Chapter 1: Character Creation

Before you begin gameplay, you must create your Player Character
(PC). Character creation involves making several choices that
dictate what your heroic character can do, as well as making
creative choices about your character’s history and personality. The
exact steps and options required to create your character are listed
in this chapter. If you are creating a character for the first time, it
can be helpful to work with your Game Master (GM) to choose
options that best support your vision.

If that particular bolded bit were where things ended it could be swept into fluff yes, but it's a tone that keeps coming up.

Spoiler: CREATE A CHARACTER CONCEPT

Before you choose any game options, spend some time thinking
about what kind of heroic character you want to play. Do you want
to be able to cast magic spells? Do you want to be good at swinging
a sword? Do you want to play a human or portray a member of a
more fantastical lineage? Having an idea of what you might enjoy
playing can help guide many of the decisions you will make in the
following steps.
During this brainstorming phase, talk to the other players about
your concept and ideas. Hearing what other players have in mind
for their characters can help narrow down your options or inspire
you to create a concept that works well with other adventurers in
your party. For example, if all the other PCs are creating rough-
and-tumble warriors, it might be a perfect move for you to make a
cleric so you can patch them up with healing magic!

The whole "have a session zero" thing is a popular phrase to avoid problems & it always was because the players once quickly learned it was critical to do that bold bit if they want to survive succeed & thrive. In d&d5e it's not at all needed for the group to accomplish those three things & the GM is helpless to make their players participate in such brainstorming as coequals rather than The star taking time out of their day to inform sidekicks what they will be playing. The PBF packet is pushing players to participate right from the getgo & giving an example of compromise.

Spoiler: DON’T KNOW WHERE TO START?

If you are brand new to the game and have no idea where to start

creating a heroic character concept, that’s okay! Many of the options

available to you are common archetypes found in all manner of fantasy

media. Modeling your adventurer after a character from a fantasy film,

book, or other source you enjoy is a fantastic first step.

And of course, don’t be afraid to rely on the other players at your

table for help. Your GM or more experienced players likely have sug-

gestions on what character options are easier for beginning players

to master and options that best align with the kind of experience you

want to have.

.

So on & so forth. With the choose any other skill each time if so much as offered a skill twice no longer present as in d&d5e & the skill/talent choices provided within the the backgrounds now thematically linked it becomes a mechanical pressure for players to quickly realize that they need to make good faith efforts at working with their GM &fellow players as group if they try to just mary sue it in isolation & expect things to work out well when they imvoke the ttrpg equivalent of "no offense but..." using phrases like I'm a role player and ... or well my character ... .



@Remathilis I'm not sure how you made that leap.

 

[Remathilis]

@Remathilis I'm not sure how you made that leap.

I think it was the phrase "[T]he GM is simply a captive tool for wish fulfilment" that is an extremely tortured reading of the 5e character creation rules and the relationship between players and DM, one that brings its own inherited bias and then finds ways to justify them.

So I figured one tortured reading deserves another.

 

[tetrasodium]

I think it was the phrase "[T]he GM is simply a captive tool for wish fulfilment" that is an extremely tortured reading of the 5e character creation rules and the relationship between players and DM, one that brings its own inherited bias and then finds ways to justify them.

So I figured one tortured reading deserves another.

Context matters & that bold bit is not the context that statement was made in regards to. It was made in regards to the" describe[d] & even underline[d] in that bolded bit" quoted in post 421 as it explains in said post. Even if you think the bolded underlined bit I was responding to in post 421 is what you call "an extremely tortured reading of the 5e character creation rules", you've quoted the wrong person.

 

[Umbran]

This thread is no longer about the OGL, and is specifically not about D&D, so I am moving it to the appropriate forum...