WotC To Give Core D&D Mechanics To Community Via Creative Commons

Wizards of the Coast, in a move which surprised everbody, has announced that it will give away the core D&D mechanics to the community via a Creative Commons license.

This won't include 'quintessentially D&D" stuff like owlbears and magic missile, but it wil include the 'core D&D mechanics'.

So what does it include? It's important to note that it's only a fraction of what's currently available as Open Gaming Content under the existing Open Gaming License, so while it's termed as a 'give-away' it's actually a reduction. It doesn't include classes, spells, or magic items. It does include the combat rules, ability scores, and the core mechanic.

 

[mamba]

Along with literally every other monster, magic item, race, and class.

Yes, such D&D specific things like Elf, Dwarf, Gnome, Fighter, Druid, Cleric, Paladin, Goblin, Orc, Dragon, Troll, ... need I go on ?

 

[Yaarel]

Yes, such D&D specific things like Elf, Dwarf, Gnome, Fighter, Druid, Cleric, Paladin, Goblin, Orc, Dragon, Troll, ... need I go on ?

As a rule of thumb, if a term exists in a dictionary of the English language, it is laughable for Hasbro-WotC to claim to "own" it.

 

[mamba]

What is it you could have done with 1.0a before which you cannot do with this combination of CC and 1.2, other than hateful content, which you wanted to do with it?

computer games, VTTs that are not laughably outdated even today

 

[mamba]

The CC release is a smokescreen unless you are going to create your own D&D equivalent system.

That is not a smokescreen, that is literally why anything is being released under CC at all

 

[mamba]

As far as I know, the Pathfinder SRD isn't a product relying on WotC's SRD, it's a product that REPLACES WotC's SRD.

well, goes to show how little you know. PF would not exist without WotC's SRD and the OGL. That includes their SRD

 

[mamba]

This license is worse than the not-draft, IMO/.

not sure what you are reading then, this is so much better

 

[mamba]

Here's wotc telling us how we can and can't use something that is completely outside their control.

it's not outside their control, it is their license after all

Either you agree to the terms, or you cannot use OGL licensed content for your VTT and need a separate license from WotC (which you probably need anyway for all the stuff not covered under the OGL, but that is a separate issue)

I do not like this restriction, esp. in how limited it is. So in my feedback I will ask that in the OGL text (so it cannot be changed later), WotC agrees that the limitations imposed upon VTTs in their VTT policy are also applicable to their own VTT. Levels the playing field quite nicely

 

[mamba]

Regardless of whether this announcement is good or bad (your opinion may vary) the deauthorization of OGL 1.0 is still B.S. and WotC has already shown they don't operate in good faith. At this point, even if they walked everything back it would be too late for me.

if they kept 1.0a as is, would you then stay? Because I do not see how you can do that either then...

 

[mamba]

What they have defined as "Core Rules" is extremely limited and not exactly suitable to make a fully-functional game, as others have pointed out.

it is entirely suitable to make a complete functional game. It is not a complete functional game and is not suitable to make a D&D clone, but that is what the OGL is for

 

[mamba]

The classes are not part of the 1.2 OGL.

yes they are, they just are not in the part covered by CC