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

 

[Vaalingrade]

We were talking about this privately and one of my artists point out that this could be the fatal flaw in the OGL 1.1 plan: even the biggest other game companies in this ecosystem aren't really big enough to become inherently unprincipled and shackled to the profit motive. They're small enough and lack a board to demand they follow the money and not take risks. More than WotC or we suspect are likely to try to make their own than kiss the ring.

 

[Zardnaar]

Kobolds are the new Paizo for me. I'll throw them some money for PDFs.

Shipping for their books cost about the same as the books, $200 for 3 of them.

 

[Robert F]

Kobold Press has announced its plans regardimg the upcoming new OGL v1.1, whihc involve a new, open game code named Project Black Flag.

View attachment 271922​

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

KP shall endure!
"... Prepare to repel boarders!!!"

 

[timbannock]

Maybe I like the people I play with.....

Then you're all set because you still have everything you already own for D&D!

 

[Shardstone]

Tbh, if I were a small 3pp, I might be feeling more than a little stuck between a rock WotC's OGL1.1 and a hardplace potential fan blacklash.

I am.

 

[el-remmen]

The odds I can get my group to agree on a game that isn't DnD are small. But because they won't try new games, but because we'd all have to agree on one game.....

Just get yourself players who love to play but are basically totally disconnected from what is going on the in the community/industry and then call any game you present them "D&D."

For example, I pitched Gamma World by calling it "post-apocalyptic D&D with mutated plants and animals."

 

[Reynard]

Just get yourself players who love to play but are basically totally disconnected from what is going on the in the community/industry and then call any game you present them "D&D."

For example, I pitched Gamma World by calling it "post-apocalyptic D&D with mutated plants and animals."

I think @Zaukrie has a group he likes, that likes D&D, and that's okay. We don't need to demand other people conform to our idea of sufficiently ideologically pure regarding D&D or the OGL.

 

[Jadeite]

Small but fierce indeed.

 

[DEFCON 1]

I'm glad to see Kobold is going to try to put together their own game... but I also know that getting enough buy-in on your new product to be able to keep your doors open is not easy. Especially when it does not have a substantial built-in fanbase to access.

So just because Kobold are saying this right now... there's still plenty of time for them to come back to 5E if HasbrotC ends up changing their decisions on 1.1 and makes it more enticing for them to continue as-is. Which means those fans who are trying to wipe their hands completely clean of HasbrotC might be jumping the gun a little bit by going all-in on this product.

 

[see]

Notably absent is anything along the lines of "We think we can work with WotC and look forward to using the OGL 1.1."

Which, if Wizbro had any sense of history, should be taken as a particularly bad sign. Because that means this "OGL 1.1" is getting a worse reaction than the GSL, which Mongoose Publishing said some nice things about.