Publisher Opinions of FFE Events?

[Ghostwind]

Jim Ward posted this on the FFE message boards:

"There is no way in the world that designers and editors can be expected to do their job and keep track of the thousands of legal details the ogl dectates. These were honest mistakes that have caused Fast Forward to pull product off the shelves. Life happens.

Now that we have seen the mistake we can easily tell our people to design their own gods. The monsters that we used from MMII was a bonehead mistake I made and I'm still kicking myself. I looked for the OGL statement in the back of the book and didn't read any further in my enthusiasm for the ability to use new monsters. Now, my favorite product: TREASURES & TOMBS goes on the chopping block because of my lack of caution. It is of course my own fault as Wizards did their job in placing proper statements in their legal page. Sigh, no, heavy sigh.

I look forward to the day when Fast Forward product won't have to worry about what Wizards does and doesn't do.

Until that day Fast Forward will continue producing amazing & original product."

The first sentence is downright ludicrous. Designers and editors are directly responsible for the content they use and should be responsible enough to know what is and what isn't useable under the terms of the OGL. To say otherwise implies, in my book, total unprofessionalism and a willingness to overlook infractions. It is no wonder FFE was forced to comply given that attitude.

 

[Staffan]

Jim Ward posted this on the FFE message boards:

"There is no way in the world that designers and editors can be expected to do their job and keep track of the thousands of legal details the ogl dectates. These were honest mistakes that have caused Fast Forward to pull product off the shelves. Life happens.

How about "Only work from stuff that's actually released as OGC, such as the SRD and NOT the PHB, DMG and MM?"

 

[karianna]

Re: Re: -slinging simians

Poo flinging from Monkeys is an art form! And Ninja Monkeys Flinging poo is a dangerous thing.

Beware the 'Barrel o' Monkeys'! For they Fling poo with Dextrous ability.

Even more insidious are the Inquisitor Monkeys, if you hear the sounds of angry religious ooking, be very, very afraid. But I'm sure you've all been on your best behaviour anyway.....

Karianna
PCGEN Tracker Monkey Silverback
Soul Reaper Chimp
Head of the Inquisitor Monkey Order
All Round nice Gal

 

[drnuncheon]

Jim Ward posted this on the FFE message boards:

"There is no way in the world that designers and editors can be expected to do their job and keep track of the thousands of legal details the ogl dectates."

Thousands of legal details?

Thousands?

There aren't even that many words in the OGL.
(980, for the curious)

J

 

[Scarogoth]

"There is no way in the world that designers and editors can be expected to do their job...

OK... I might just accept the designers bit, but editors? Um... No, no, no, no, no. This is exactly the sort of thing an editor ought to be highlighting, I'd've thought.

Still, it does upset me to hear of perfectly decent books being pulped as a result of this, oversight or otherwise. I'll probably pick up a copy now, just to see what it's like... so it might work for them!

 

[The Sigil]

OK... I might just accept the designers bit, but editors? Um... No, no, no, no, no. This is exactly the sort of thing an editor ought to be highlighting, I'd've thought.

Still, it does upset me to hear of perfectly decent books being pulped as a result of this, oversight or otherwise. I'll probably pick up a copy now, just to see what it's like... so it might work for them!

I can't put it all on the editors... though there is some fault there.

The editor of a work can't be expected to be thoroughly familiar with every bit of OGC out there - he might not have heard of the source of a monster, and would have no way of knowing if it is OGC or not. Citing your sources is on the WRITER, not the editor - because no editor can possibly know all the possible sources the writer drew from.

I have a library of literally a few hundred d20 sources now... it's not my editor's job to be aware of all of them - it's my job to cite sources - preferably by dropping the reference into the S15 of my submission immediately before I add something to my written work (which I do, FWIW).

--The Sigil

 

[Leopold]

Jim Ward posted this on the FFE message boards:

"There is no way in the world that designers and editors can be expected to do their job and keep track of the thousands of legal details the ogl dectates. These were honest mistakes that have caused Fast Forward to pull product off the shelves. Life happens.

oh he was being serious and that OGL is THAT hard to understand for someone that's worked in the genre for THAT many years??????

 

[Brown Jenkin]

Re: Re: -slinging simians

HEY NOW!!! No stealing our ideas! ;p

Poo flinging from Monkeys is an art form! And Ninja Monkeys Flinging poo is a dangerous thing.

Beware the 'Barrel o' Monkeys'! For they Fling poo with Dextrous ability.

Which is why beating a dead horse is so much better.

 

[TheAuldGrump]

Jim Ward posted this on the FFE message boards:

"There is no way in the world that designers and editors can be expected to do their job and keep track of the thousands of legal details the ogl dectates. These were honest mistakes that have caused Fast Forward to pull product off the shelves. Life happens.

Now that we have seen the mistake we can easily tell our people to design their own gods. The monsters that we used from MMII was a bonehead mistake I made and I'm still kicking myself. I looked for the OGL statement in the back of the book and didn't read any further in my enthusiasm for the ability to use new monsters. Now, my favorite product: TREASURES & TOMBS goes on the chopping block because of my lack of caution. It is of course my own fault as Wizards did their job in placing proper statements in their legal page. Sigh, no, heavy sigh.

I look forward to the day when Fast Forward product won't have to worry about what Wizards does and doesn't do.

Until that day Fast Forward will continue producing amazing & original product."

The first sentence is downright ludicrous. Designers and editors are directly responsible for the content they use and should be responsible enough to know what is and what isn't useable under the terms of the OGL. To say otherwise implies, in my book, total unprofessionalism and a willingness to overlook infractions. It is no wonder FFE was forced to comply given that attitude.

Nice to see that it's an attitude that comes down from the top. [sarcasm] After all Wizards has been so secretive that content from MMII is not OGL... It would be a shame if it had merely been some flunky screwing up.[/sarcasm]

The Auld Grump, who doesn't find the OGL all that complicated ...

 

[HellHound]

"There is no way in the world that designers and editors can be expected to do their job and keep track of the thousands of legal details the ogl dectates. "

It is unfortunate, but true that many designers fail to take into account the requirements of the Open Game License, not only at FFE but at other notable companies also.