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You can view the page at http://loremaster.org/content.php/23...-Chaos-Part-IX
No Colonel Sanders, you're wrong! Hey, you wrote an article. LOL
Last edited by D'karr; 10-25-2011 at 11:04 AM.
Here I am, all excited because I got a comment, and it's just you. That's a major disappointment.Originally Posted by D'karr
You should have known better...
Nice conversion, almost as nice as that WotC conversion of "Hidden Shrine".
Last edited by D'karr; 10-25-2011 at 11:05 AM.
I love it. Great article, Rob
Great article and a helpful conversion. I'm reading through your Dungeon crawl ideas now and loving them. Thanks for putting this all up, so helpful. Ab
I wonder if the restrictions from trademark, intellectual property, OGL, and what not aren't a good thing? It really makes you have to love your craft and put forth necessary time and effort. It might keep the number of inferior products out of the market and therefore your dollars are purchasing better quality items. Just a thought and great article.
eh, I'm not sure that's how it works. It does, however, put doubt into people's minds about producing content--which helps the organization that owns the IP. I'm not sure a direct correlation between quality and intellectual property can be drawn. It's too much of a stretch. These articles are great in that they debunk a lot of the flailing people do on various boards in regards to the law. You may notice that some organizations don't use the GSL when producing 4e content. There's other articles on the subject here. I forget which ones cover it.
Matt, thanks for the very interesting clarity around these complicated and confusing topics. They certainly bear relevance to anyone passionate about the hobby, and who may want a handfull of simple protections to pursue that passion to it's full extent.To that end, I'm curious about this article. It's in line with something I've done for years, it sounds like in parellel to your own efforts. I've created 3e and 4e conversions of a variety of my favorite adventures, and run them at conventions for years. Part of why I like this is the "shared community" around these gaming experiences. Another part of why I like this is because these events will "sell" well. So, here's been one of my concerns. I run Ravenloft at Origins. 10, 20, or 100 players play in that game (a 3e or 4e conversion of the original). The convention makes $5 a pop on these players. I make "free room and board" for the convention, estimated value at approximately $250. Clearly "consideration" here. As you've pointed out here, I'm often asked for copies of my conversion following the adventure.SO, all the preamble is to say: where do I need to start to feel concerned about DISTRIBUTION as you highlight in your article? You've laid out a beautiful roadmap to follow with regards to the "fluff" and how I could HONOR an original, but safely provide the relevant info that my fellow gamers would be interested in. But, where would I need to start to be worried/protected? A few high level examples I've considered:1) I write notes to myself but use the NAME of the module in my con brochure. Not much room for trademark/copyright language there...Tsojcanth, Ravenloft, White Plume...2) I share a copy of my notes, all game rules stuff, or original material, with anyone who plays.3) I share a copy of my notes with 20 of my fellow DM's at a con and run a three round tournament for 300 people.4) I point people to my website/blog and provide content for download there.5) As #4 above, and I put it and all content behind a paywall.6) As #4, but I charge a fee for the download instead of a paywall.7) I sell the notes as an "article" to a gaming publication such as KQ.If I'm "crossing the line" to legal advice, just call me out publicly. It's all good. Take it either way as a compliment that your articles have struck a cord with me (and I'm sure other passionate gamers).Good gaming!
Matt didn't do squat.
People! This man has crossed a line!
Some of what you ask is too specific for me to answer, so expect some vagueness in my response. I'll do my best.
I've yet to see an adventure title that's been trademarked, and for good reason. Don't worry about trademark unless you see a TM, SM, or (R) immediately following a term. Then, just to be safe, assume it's a valid trademark and avoid using it unless you have room for a disclaimer (e.g., "Dungeons & Dragons" is a registered trademark of Wizards of the Coast, LLC). As for copyright, don't worry about using the name of the adventure. If you write a paragraph describing the adventure, make sure it's very short and the wording is your own. That should keep you out of trouble.
Some of this could be a problem. It all depends on what the notes contain. Unfortunately, I can't go into any specifics about your notes, so I refer you to my article. As you've already read it and still don't understand, I don't know what else to say.
This is an important point. There are six rights granted to copyright owners. Whereas four of them apply only in the public setting, two of them apply to the private setting as well. You may not reproduce (e.g., photocopy, re-type into a word processor document) or create derivative works even if those works never leave you home.
If (according to #2) you can't distribute the work to the players after the game, you aren't permitted to distribute the work to the DMs even if they give it back to you afterwards. Technically, if your copying represents infringement, you may not make copies even for personal use without express permission. (Note: Most character sheets have a permission statement on them for this exact reason.) So, if you haven't followed the guidelines I gave above, you aren't permitted to distribute the work to others, even temporarily. Merely making those copies for your own use is a problem.
As a caveat to that, there's an old (though technically inaccurate) saying: "It's not a crime unless you're caught." Well, from that perspective, it's also not a tort unless you're sued. WotC understands that people like you are actually spreading their game to others, so you may never receive a "Cease and Desist" letter from them even if they know what you're doing. My job here, though, isn't to tell you what's going through WotC's heads. I've dealt with WotC legal personally, and I can assure you you're wasting your time trying to figure out what they're thinking. My job is to tell you what the law is as best I can in this forum. The only thing I strongly discourage is distribution of anything you do unless you understand this article. If WotC objects, it's distributed to the public, and they'll know you did it.
No different from what I said above. It's public distribution even if via a 'public computer network.'
Getting paid for what you're distributing might make it even tougher to justify. It could result in higher damages for copyright infringement, and if you're relying on a fair use defense (see my fair use article on how reckless that is), it's a factor that cuts against a finding of fair use.
Same analysis as #5.
I doubt a third-party with a lot of visibility would publish your notes, but if they did, I'm guessing they'd require that they meet the standards I've provided here. KQ has published 4e content outside the GSL, so they understand at least some of this, but expect some serious scrutiny even if they're open to distributing your work.
The entire dungeon crawl project of mine is very important to me. I'll be very happy if and when you try it out and tell me it feels right. 4th Edition is a phenomenally flexible gaming system that allowed me to recreate the feel of First Edition and specifically the feel of those brilliant adventures.
As for the Protection from Chaos series, this is also important to me. Educating the players of the game not only protects players from potential lawsuits, but it also protects WotC from unintentional or "unwarranted" infringement, and I'm very much a supporter of what WotC has done for me as a player, and I'm interested in protecting them from infringement that they wouldn't be able to catch. By "unwarranted," I refer to the fact that if people realized just how much they *could* legally copy, they might just reproduce that portion rather than the whole damn thing. Most of us aren't adversarial towards WotC and have no desire to steal from them. If you realize you don't have to steal in order to play the game, perhaps you won't.
Thanks for the kind words . . . even though you addressed them to Matt.
---------- Post added at 04:03 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:02 PM ----------
Making me this angry will cause you only pain and suffering.You should have known better...
Nice conversion, almost as nice as that WotC conversion of "Hidden Shrine".
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