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Message: <blockquote data-quote="pawsplay" data-source="post: 4033813" data-attributes="member: 15538">It will look more like you just want a game system "for free", or are trying to say Wizards has no right to set the terms of their licenses to people.Now you're finally getting it. Because, you see, Wizards has no right to restrict 4e concepts to people. None. First of all, they probably didn't invent them, second of all, they're probably not patentable, third, if they were, they didn't bother to patent them. That leaves copyright and trademark. Neither one prevents anyone from creating a similar game.As a courtesy, you want to avoid nullifying someone's hard work. As a matter of prudence, you want to avoid the appearance of a "derivative work."But if WotC decides to make an end run around the OGL concept and the accepted scope of IP laws I don't think they deserve any special respect. I think it's contemptible what they have done to the OGL and I think it's immoral to "license" something for $5000 that already belongs to public by virtue of it being a common application of the art. I.e. there is likely nothing in 4e that is not already a part of the everyday design toolkit of RPG writers. Various novel patents have been rejected... along with the boardgame case law, it appears very, very, very unlikely you could defend a roleplaying system as anyone's IP. I suggest you educate yourself better on the distinctions between copyright, trademark, and patent, as well as between actual ownership and intellectual property rights.</blockquote>

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