Recalled RPG products?

[resistor]

Speaking of Mongoose, while I don't think they recalled the product, they did destroy their stock of Sheoloth, City of the Drow.

Why?

 

[JustKim]

Why?

According to Matt Sprange, because they gave Mongoose Publishing a bad name.

 

[jdrakeh]

According to Matt Sprange, because they gave Mongoose Publishing a bad name.

Yeah. . . as if their editing problems in early life were confined to that one book.

 

[jeff37923]

Well, that's what FFE claimed. Since the event, however, several individuals on both sides of the issue have stated, in various public forums, that there was no order of destruction but, rather, a simple cease and desist order accompanied by instruction to rectify future printings and cover the d20 logo on existing products.

Which side of events cleaves more to the truth is something that, I suppose, you have to judge for yourself. I tend to think that the latter does, given that WotC didn't demand or enforce any kind of a recall (FFE products found in violation of the d20 STL can still be found on the market).

FFE products that were supposed to be destroyed can still be found and purchased through Sci-Fi City ebay store and brick & mortar stores.

 

[jdrakeh]

FFE products that were supposed to be destroyed can still be found and purchased through Sci-Fi City ebay store and brick & mortar stores.

And at Noble Knight Games. I plan on ordering some in the near future (I still really like the Dungeon World ideas).

 

[guildofblades]

The FFE books...

As I understand it, they had violated the D20 license. WOTC had notified them of the violation and said that they could no longer sell or distribute books that were under violation of the license (or, I presume, they could have been sued). There was no recall. But books that you legally can't sell or distribute, including free distribution; well, not much left that can be done to those but be destroyed.

However...I know that was not the fate of most of those books. They were sold to a company that buys game product liquidations. Some number of pallet loads of books were bought be said liquidator. Those books remain on the market today, sold by that company online, through conventions, and to other retailers.

That liquidation was likely not something WOTC approved us. There was no reason, even after destroying or liquidating product, that FFE shouldn't have been able to continue operations by simply then publishing and releasing products that were legal under the D20 license, or even just publishing under the OGL. Why didn't they? Idle speculation, but maybe it was easier to shut down that business rather than leave it exposed to potential lawsuit, should WOTC have found out about the liquidation (a sale of those goods after WOTC had notified them that they couldn't sell those goods) and chosen to do something about it.

Ryan S. Johnson
Guild of Blades Publishing Group
http://www.guildofblades.com
http://www.1483online.com
http://www.thermopylae-online.com

 

[Enforcer]

Okay, so I read the Wikipedia entry on Palace of the Silver Princess, but I still don't know what was so bad about the original art? Naked women? Beardless dwarves? What was the deal?

 

[Enforcer]

Ah, nevermind. http://www.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/dx20020121x7 has the answer.