"Quality Standards" in the d20 System Guide

[Felon]

No matter what they are, or become, the trademark is theirs. The only reason why anyone else can use it is that it promotes their products.

Like I told Psi, that's indisputable...but this policy change makes some of us wonder if that's becoming regrettable.

And please don't take my criticism of Mr. Valterra as a personal shot. I admire him for what he has done for the d20 license and his efforts to try and stop the idiocy that they're doing now. I don't admire him for his actions after losing that fight and his creation/promotion of his new product. But that is his business, and I expect him to do what he thinks best for his own interest.

Fair enough. Btw, have I mentioned that MiaMS is the best book I've read in a loooong time?

Next thing you know, they'll copywrite the words "Player's Handbook" so no one else can use those words.

Maybe AV's next book will have "Fair and Balanced" in a large font on the cover?

 

[C. Baize]

Agreed. I'd call those "soft porn".

You have GOT to be kidding....

And I thought the UseNet showed me the dregs of illumination....

 

[Psion]

You have GOT to be kidding....

And I thought the UseNet showed me the dregs of illumination....

Not in the least bit. But it's nice that you could stop by to insult my intelligence on the basis of my values.

 

[shadow]

Geez! Go back and read my original post! I never called the BoEF "pornography". (Although in my personal definition it may be, but I haven't seen it yet.)

What I said was that players were free to incorporate "porn" in their games if they wanted to. I meant to imply that a ban on "pornography" (nipples, explicit sexuality, etc.) would not affect how people play the game. You can still incorporate all the elements in your game even if their isn't a d20 adventure module that specifically calls for it.

Are we clear on that?

 

[isidorus]

Originally Posted by TiQuinn
Alright, so it sounds like there are a few notable OGL products out there, but the vast majority are d20. And it sounds like a shaky proposition to get your stuff into stores without the d20STL. In that case, I definitely hope that a more viable alternative appears for people who want to create mature products that would not be allowed under d20STL. I still think this is much ado about nothing right now, and hopefully that will remain the case. This has always been in the power of WotC to change or even revoke the d20 license so I really don't see much changing here...more the fear that things could change for the worse. From my standpoint, that's ALWAYS been a possibility.

The way I see it if your not d20 or one of the bigger publishers getting it in the store is virtually nil. jeez I cannot get ICE(TM) products here or Garys Gygax's LA(TM) here. So it makes me wonder how many hard it will be for new publishers to get anything on the shelf.

To bad this happen and I had a few months before I could get anything out myself. Being laid-off gives you plently of time.

Just to throw a non-topic note. I just cannot believe it I have Mod access at http://Slashdot.org for the second time in three weeks.

 

[C. Baize]

Not in the least bit. But it's nice that you could stop by to insult my intelligence on the basis of my values.

Illumination and intelligence are not the same thing.
You should know this.

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

Actually, as a PDF publisher, I am far more annoyed at the font size issues. I have 15-20 PDFs I have to track down and change the font size on "Requires the D&D PHB, 3rd Ed" from 9-point to 10-point. And my trademark owner text from 8-point to 10-point. Highly annoying.

[OT] Using your layout software of choice, create a single style sheet for your legal text. Then, at least, you don't have to track down each usage-- just open each file, change the style sheet, and you're done.

Wulf

 

[mythusmage]

Another point here.

Thanks to The Internet -especially the World Wide Web- society is undergoing a big change. Children today see more nudity and even sex than at any time in the past, except for the time before we got so concerned about the possible damage the little dears might suffer should they see a stranger's 'equipment'. A good friend once told me he was more concerned with the people his then 15 year old son might meet in chat rooms than what the boy might see on certain sites. I doubt he's the only one out there.

(Then there's the comment his then 12 year old daughter made about the pictures her older brother liked to look for, "Yuck.")

My point? The time is coming, and sooner than you'd expect, when we will no longer consider certain subjects taboo. When nudity and even open sexual activity may very will be tolerated, and in some cases even accepted. We are more adaptable than some would think.

Yes, some activities will still be forbidden, but they will be those that cause harm to others. Rape for example, or child sexual abuse. But except for those who have a pathological condition something as innocuous as a naked third grade boy will raise no great row. By 2030 Wizards may have a clause in the d20 STL counseling for tasteful displays of genitalia and sexual activtiy in d20 branded products. And so giving their permission for elf erotica, but not elf porn.

Remember, before the wide spread adoption of interior walls in building architecture there was no real privacy in daily life.

 

[DaveStebbins]

Here's an idea: Is it possible to "double brand" a product? That is, could a new product (eg. The Slayer's Guide to Wombats - SGtW) be marked with both the d20 logo and the Prometheus logo someone mentioned?

Absolutely. This is what many people on the ogf-d20 list have been recommending, and I agree with them. Others are recommending against something that will fractionalize the publishers.

-Dave

 

[tburdett]

I haven't read the entire thread, and I don't plan to at this point, so my reply may be redundant.

AV must be sweating bullets right now. I am sure that there are many people who would love to see WotC send Valar a breach letter the day that the BoEF hits the shelves. Follow that up with a 'my way or the highway' approach that gives Valar no room to manuever and wait 30 days for the cure period to end. I guess your only hope is to sell as much product as possible in that 30 days and hope that it's enough to break even.

Whatever the outcome, this will certainly send a strong message to anyone else who is thinking about publishing a book that WotC sees as a threat to their image or sales figures.