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<blockquote data-quote="I'm A Banana" data-source="post: 3396881" data-attributes="member: 2067">A: Software piracy isn't really theft.B: &quot;Spell Priacy&quot; is only a problem as much as wizards want to control access to their spells. Most of the time, a sort of common body of public access wizarding knowledge is available for those with the intelligence and magical aptitude to comprehend it. There are very few protected magical IP in D&amp;D -- even the named spells (Bigby's Hand, etc.) is free to copy, use, and manipulate, and just usually requires a Creative Commons-style attribution. (You can use this spell all you want, but it's called Bigby's Hand, not just Hand!). C: The idea of rare, dark magic that is known only to a handful has a lot going for it, mythically. Turning this on its head and saying that magic is rare because wizards are jealous and greedy and will strike down those unlicensed users who dare even closely mimic their magical power lends a pretty nifty atmosphere to a setting, I think. D: HOWEVER, the idea of at least a common ground of wizard spells is useful for the game and for the setting and for class balance and mechanics. The idea that there's something basic about Magic Missile means every wizard can learn it and the class can be balanced around it. If there wasn't that kind of reliable baseline, the wizard would be significantly more slap-dash. Of course, a Wizard could learn Magic Missile by paying the Worldwide Wizard Copyright Industry a &quot;small fee,&quot; I suppose. This could even exist in the game right now, and be part of the GP cost of scribing a spell into a spellbook -- you need to buy the license from the current holders.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="I'm A Banana, post: 3396881, member: 2067"] A: Software piracy isn't really theft. B: "Spell Priacy" is only a problem as much as wizards want to control access to their spells. Most of the time, a sort of common body of public access wizarding knowledge is available for those with the intelligence and magical aptitude to comprehend it. There are very few protected magical IP in D&D -- even the named spells (Bigby's Hand, etc.) is free to copy, use, and manipulate, and just usually requires a Creative Commons-style attribution. (You can use this spell all you want, but it's called Bigby's Hand, not just Hand!). C: The idea of rare, dark magic that is known only to a handful has a lot going for it, mythically. Turning this on its head and saying that magic is rare because wizards are jealous and greedy and will strike down those unlicensed users who dare even closely mimic their magical power lends a pretty nifty atmosphere to a setting, I think. D: HOWEVER, the idea of at least a common ground of wizard spells is useful for the game and for the setting and for class balance and mechanics. The idea that there's something basic about Magic Missile means every wizard can learn it and the class can be balanced around it. If there wasn't that kind of reliable baseline, the wizard would be significantly more slap-dash. Of course, a Wizard could learn Magic Missile by paying the Worldwide Wizard Copyright Industry a "small fee," I suppose. This could even exist in the game right now, and be part of the GP cost of scribing a spell into a spellbook -- you need to buy the license from the current holders. [/QUOTE]

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