(no subject)
For those sad enough to be interested in such things, the GSL for Fourth Edition D&D is out (here, along with the SRD list). Also known as "Wizards of the Coast want you as their doormat".
OK IANAL, I have minimal experience of these things, but I'm OK at reading legalese and I certainly wouldn't sign that, it seems to basically involve everything you do being subject to the whim of Wizards, they don't even have to inform you if they change or terminate the license. If you re-release an OGL product under the GSL, you can never sell the OGL version again, even if your GSL is terminated. There are also clauses that basically amounts to "You can't sue us, and if we sue you then you pay our costs". Also no electronic products other than pdfs, though that was kind of expected.
Oh and the best part:
Section 7) The nature and quality of all Licensed Products will conform to the quality standards set by Wizards, as may be provided from time to time. At a minimum, the Licensed Products will conform to community standards of decency and appropriateness as determined by Wizards in its discretion. Without limiting the foregoing, no Licensed Products will depict in any text, graphical or other manner:
(a) excessively graphic violence or gore;
(b) sexual situations, sexual abuse, pornography, gratuitous nudity of human or humanoid forms, genitalia, or sexual activity; or
(c) existing real-world minorities, nationalities, social castes, religious groups or practices, political preferences, genders, lifestyle preferences, or people with disabilities, as a group inferior to any other group or in a way that promotes disrespect for those groups or practices, or that endorses those groups or practices over another.
Without limiting the foregoing, Licensed Products will not contain any content that is unlawful, defamatory, harassing, threatening, abusive, inflammatory, fraudulent or otherwise objectionable or that would infringe upon or violate the rights of any third party or constitute, encourage, or provide instructions for a criminal offense.
Everyone loves having to consult a lawyer because your storyline about the heroes' town being massacred, saving an abused child, or meeting an evilly indecent succubus might infringe on someone else's idea of "Community standards and decency", pre-mid nineties Nintendo anyone? just as well Paizo aren't switching, I imagine products such as Hook Mountain Massacre or Carnival of Tears would be HELLA risky under this license, not to mention Nic Logue's Sinister Adventures or Wolfgang Bauer's Open Design, some of the things being developed for Blood of the Gorgon squick me out, and I've got a high tolerance for these things...
Edit: The list of creatures missing from the SRD!
Everything missing in 3.5 (except Carrion Crawlers, they're in)
Sahuagin
Cambion
Demons (entry exists, but no specific creatures allowed)
Devil (entry exists, but no specific creatures allowed)
Drow
Flameskull
Kruthik
Ooze (entry exists, but no specific creatures allowed)
Otyugh
Owlbear
Shadar-Kai
Shifter
Spider (demonweb terror only)
Warforged
So if you want an Evil Outsider you have to write your own? Also OWLBEARS? Wow... just... wow...
Hopefully this means there'll be more 3PP sticking with 3.5 though :D.
OK IANAL, I have minimal experience of these things, but I'm OK at reading legalese and I certainly wouldn't sign that, it seems to basically involve everything you do being subject to the whim of Wizards, they don't even have to inform you if they change or terminate the license. If you re-release an OGL product under the GSL, you can never sell the OGL version again, even if your GSL is terminated. There are also clauses that basically amounts to "You can't sue us, and if we sue you then you pay our costs". Also no electronic products other than pdfs, though that was kind of expected.
Oh and the best part:
Section 7) The nature and quality of all Licensed Products will conform to the quality standards set by Wizards, as may be provided from time to time. At a minimum, the Licensed Products will conform to community standards of decency and appropriateness as determined by Wizards in its discretion. Without limiting the foregoing, no Licensed Products will depict in any text, graphical or other manner:
(a) excessively graphic violence or gore;
(b) sexual situations, sexual abuse, pornography, gratuitous nudity of human or humanoid forms, genitalia, or sexual activity; or
(c) existing real-world minorities, nationalities, social castes, religious groups or practices, political preferences, genders, lifestyle preferences, or people with disabilities, as a group inferior to any other group or in a way that promotes disrespect for those groups or practices, or that endorses those groups or practices over another.
Without limiting the foregoing, Licensed Products will not contain any content that is unlawful, defamatory, harassing, threatening, abusive, inflammatory, fraudulent or otherwise objectionable or that would infringe upon or violate the rights of any third party or constitute, encourage, or provide instructions for a criminal offense.
Everyone loves having to consult a lawyer because your storyline about the heroes' town being massacred, saving an abused child, or meeting an evilly indecent succubus might infringe on someone else's idea of "Community standards and decency", pre-mid nineties Nintendo anyone? just as well Paizo aren't switching, I imagine products such as Hook Mountain Massacre or Carnival of Tears would be HELLA risky under this license, not to mention Nic Logue's Sinister Adventures or Wolfgang Bauer's Open Design, some of the things being developed for Blood of the Gorgon squick me out, and I've got a high tolerance for these things...
Edit: The list of creatures missing from the SRD!
Everything missing in 3.5 (except Carrion Crawlers, they're in)
Sahuagin
Cambion
Demons (entry exists, but no specific creatures allowed)
Devil (entry exists, but no specific creatures allowed)
Drow
Flameskull
Kruthik
Ooze (entry exists, but no specific creatures allowed)
Otyugh
Owlbear
Shadar-Kai
Shifter
Spider (demonweb terror only)
Warforged
So if you want an Evil Outsider you have to write your own? Also OWLBEARS? Wow... just... wow...
Hopefully this means there'll be more 3PP sticking with 3.5 though :D.