Here. (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/Article.aspx?x=dnd/4ll/20140529)
Nothing concrete except that:
- There will be some sort of third party support arrangement.
- It's not going to start until the system's completely out so people have time to digest it.
- In particular, they want people to have a decent amount of time to study the new DMG because that gives in-depth explanations of how the mechanics hang together and what the consequences of tinkering are.
- 3rd party support is not going to kick off until early 2015.
Frankly, I'm happy with this if it means we avoid getting an early glut of products churned out before people are even familiar with the system.
It sounds as if they learned... Something... From the 3e OGL. Perhaps there will still be a good navigable window to produce our own stuff without too much problem.
QuoteFrankly, I'm happy with this if it means we avoid getting an early glut of products churned out before people are even familiar with the system.
Hah. WOTC's own early 3e products were as bad as anything third parties produced.
I remember in one case, they forgot to include an attack bonus progression for one of the prestige classes and then tried to defend it as deliberate...
But basically this ls like saying only Hollywood should make movies, because it means there won't be a glut of crappy movies.
It's more like saying that you need to know how to operate a camera to shoot movies, and since the full instruction manual for the camera isn't out until November...
It seems like a smart business move to allow WOTC to get their material to market first. Quality products will rise to the top anyway.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't there a gap before the OGL kicked into effect with 3E and the GSL came into effect with 4E?
If the licensing arrangement this time is like the OGL - as in it's effectively a perpetual licence - then it feels like letting Wizards enjoy a few months of exclusivity is a small price to pay for the much longer period of non-exclusivity they're going to put on offer.
Wow, it really seems like they are doing just about everything right this time.
Quote from: Warthur;753725Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't there a gap before the OGL kicked into effect with 3E and the GSL came into effect with 4E?
If the licensing arrangement this time is like the OGL - as in it's effectively a perpetual licence - then it feels like letting Wizards enjoy a few months of exclusivity is a small price to pay for the much longer period of non-exclusivity they're going to put on offer.
Not that I remember for 3E. The Freeport modules from Green Ronin were available at launch with the core books.
Was that by special arrangement with Green Ronin, or could anyone get access to the SRD at that point?
Quote from: Warthur;753729Was that by special arrangement with Green Ronin, or could anyone get access to the SRD at that point?
I have no idea, but I remember there being product almost as early from other publishers too.
I remember something at the time of pre-release about interested publishers being able to get access to the rules. They would have to in order to get product out at or near launch.
The first Creature Catalogue predated the 3e Monster Manual, IIRC. But they were working from an unfinished rules draft that changed when 3e came out.
Also, back then, the d20 license was less defined and there were a lot more gentlemen's agreements in place. Beholders, mind flayers, and the like weren't declared off-limits until later, for instance.
Quote from: Warthur;753725Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't there a gap before the OGL kicked into effect with 3E and the GSL came into effect with 4E?
Not with 3e. There was a way 3pp could sign up for early access to the SRD specifically so they could have product ready for launch. For 3e the adventure that shipped on the cd was pretty good, but then came Sunless Citadel and the wheels started to come off the wagon with the very first stand alone module.
"Fans"? Is that an interesting word to use?
What if, for example, they upcoming license is non-commercial only?
It's a molehill to nitpick a word, admittedly. But still, worries me a bit.
It really sounds like they have learned some good lessons from 3/4e. If they do this right they could really focus on quality instead of quantity.
Quote from: mcbobbo;753753"Fans"? Is that an interesting word to use?
What if, for example, they upcoming license is non-commercial only?
It's a molehill to nitpick a word, admittedly. But still, worries me a bit.
Maybe release the basic rules as CC-BY-NC (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/us/)?
Quote from: mcbobbo;753753"Fans"? Is that an interesting word to use?
What if, for example, they upcoming license is non-commercial only?
It's a molehill to nitpick a word, admittedly. But still, worries me a bit.
Good point- that article doesn't say anything at all about publishing content. I wonder if that was intentional.
I've made it no secret that I'm very interested in the OGL. And I don't have a problem with waiting until a while after the DMG is out because there are going to be tweaks and things needing to change because I don't have early access to that info now.
But I'm very interested in the OGL because of this (https://plus.google.com/u/0/communities/107308672422345398151). Ideally I'd like to use most of the 5e ruleset (minus the tactical grid stuff, but including things like the sorcerer class, etc) for this megadungeon. As you can see, I've already made a significant investment into it (roughly $2000 just in art) because unlike some of the other one-nighter stuff I've done, I don't want to settle for stock art and basic linear dungeon crawls. Those adventures were designed to be quick pick up and play stuff (I mean, they're a buck each, so that tells you they weren't meant to compete directly with Dungeon Crawl Classics line), while this one is a lot more extensive and sandboxy. Because this one is much larger and an entire campaign, I'm putting forth the effort to do it right (custom professional art, extensive playtesting, etc). And while it's for 5e, it's designed to emulate many of the old school elements and feel. (as you can tell by the art, for example). I'm sure there will be tons of "modern" style adventures for 5e when it comes out, and I'd like to have an option out there that shows you can easily do "old school" adventures using the newest version of D&D.
So obviously I have an interest to see how the OGL works out. I'm also not betting on it, and expecting restrictions. I am prepared for either of the following:
1. The OGL only covers the 5e basic rules, so everything in Felk Mor will need to reference only those rules along with any custom created things (like new monsters, magic items, etc)
2. There won't be an OGL at all, and I'll just have to go through and change all the stat blocks to 1e, essentially converting the adventure to OSRIC compatible and releasing it that way.
I'm holding out hope that I won't have to resort to either of those options. ;)
I'm pretty sure I can't comment about this yet.