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Message: <blockquote data-quote="AbdulAlhazred" data-source="post: 6254892" data-attributes="member: 82106">Fair enough, C4 is a whole other kettle of fish, which I agree is almost surely  in violation of copyright, though there are still some arguments there he could make. I just doubt they would be very effective since he's pretty much copying the product effectively, even with some minor tweaks. There could be some other issues like Design Patents that could exist on some elements of the game's layout (stat blocks for instance might be something you could design patent, though we don't know if WotC did so even if they could have). Things like Masterplan and CBLoader allowing DDI subscribers to put the data they have access to to use in new ways and new formats however is in no way shape or form 'clearly a violation' as Mistwell would have it. Its just not. These kinds of issues are murky enough with music, but they are even a whole lot more murky with games, who's rules are considered facts not subject to copyright in and of themselves (IE you can describe the rules of the Monopoly game, how the board is laid out, etc, just not, perhaps, in the exact words used by Hasbro). The same is presumably true of RPGs, but given their more creative and extensive nature even that isn't sure to hold up. It is just VERY VERY murky.Honestly the "be a good citizen rule" is the best guide. If you do something that allows you to better enjoy and play a game without depriving its publishers of the fruits of their labor, you are probably OK. At worst you might be asked to stop, but in general the game companies want to be seen as good citizens too, and they want you to enjoy their product, as long as it doesn't cause them harm. Normally everyone gets along. In that context I don't think advising a player to use a tool like Masterplan and its DDI downloading tool so he can make encounters more easily or print out better stat blocks is particularly dubious. Again, as long as said person isn't going to hand all this data to his friend who doesn't have a DDI subscription or etc.</blockquote>

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