So, if there's anyone interested in using it it's now available.

https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sico

Yawn. 

It looks to be ok as a quasi-Creative Commons style license.  I'm glad they didn't put some form of morality clause.  The biggest thing is that it forces users to declare the source of the game mechanics used.  It seems to be a perfectly workable alternative to the OGL1.0a.   

The funny thing is that game mechanics aren't controllable IP.  The only real protection here is for the use of a written SRD released under the ORC without risk of plagiarism or copyright violations in the future.  If you clone the rules, you don't have to worry about that anyway.  If I write an SRD that I want to share, I'll just put it out as Creative Commons an relinquish all control.

Quote from: BadApple on July 07, 2023, 05:10:21 AM
It looks to be ok as a quasi-Creative Commons style license.  I'm glad they didn't put some form of morality clause.  The biggest thing is that it forces users to declare the source of the game mechanics used.  It seems to be a perfectly workable alternative to the OGL1.0a.

I don't really have a problem with this. Hypothetical: if I used Pundit's Invisible College as a basis for my own RPG under ORC, if nothing else it would at least be polite to credit the man.

QuoteThe funny thing is that game mechanics aren't controllable IP.  The only real protection here is for the use of a written SRD released under the ORC without risk of plagiarism or copyright violations in the future.  If you clone the rules, you don't have to worry about that anyway.  If I write an SRD that I want to share, I'll just put it out as Creative Commons an relinquish all control.

Who wants to fight that out in court though? Might as well head off the issue before it becomes one.

As you noted, the lack of a bullshit morality clause is a good sign.

Quote from: Ghostmaker on July 07, 2023, 08:05:49 AM
Who wants to fight that out in court though? Might as well head off the issue before it becomes one.

Fortunately, for any game developer or aspiring game developer, the case has already been tried so there's solid case law.  Game mechanics cannot be patented.  Licenses like this are strange to me like a license to breathe.  "Wait, does that mean without this someone can take away my ability to breathe?"  While I'm ok with the restriction I see in this license, signing on to this license gives you no extra rights and is more restrictive that what you can already do legally while only giving you the scant protection of using SRDs as written.

Oddly, I don't think it's as ironclad a protection that it's trying to be.  Working legal theory today can be swept away by an unrelated case that up ends how we see liability on IP ownership.  The fiasco over the OGL 1.0a shows just how the the modern thoughts can be intentionally misinterpreted later.  I think the OSR has it completely right, clone and move on.  If an author wants to allow his system to be used openly, clearly state that in the document and surrender it to the public domain.   

Baizuo is trying to get the football back.

Quote from: Svenhelgrim on July 07, 2023, 10:56:46 AM
Baizuo is trying to get the football back.

To be fair it looks like WotC's about to fumble it so they're timing's good.

One ORC to rule them all.

Quote from: Omega on July 07, 2023, 08:03:45 PM
One ORC to rule them all.

Have you read the license? Or the plain english Q&A? Obviously not or you wouldn't have written that.

"But see if you put your dick in our steel trap, we'll give you candy before it crushes your junk!"

My problem is that I don't understand how this will impact things. For example: Pinnacle Entertainment supposedly supports the ORC license. Does this mean that anyone can now use the Savage World rules, or parts thereof, as long as they give the source? I very much doubt that is the case.

Quote from: Rhymer88 on July 08, 2023, 03:06:57 AM
My problem is that I don't understand how this will impact things. For example: Pinnacle Entertainment supposedly supports the ORC license. Does this mean that anyone can now use the Savage World rules, or parts thereof, as long as they give the source? I very much doubt that is the case.

Legally you could always use the rules, just need to write them up in your own words.

No, you can't use anything NOT published under the ORC, exactly like with the OGL.

The only differences are:

It's not controlled by anyone.
It can't be revoked, ammended, etc.
It's more open than the OGL.

It sounds like the final version dropped the "no cutting and pasting" verbiage from an earlier version.

Quote from: thedungeondelver on July 08, 2023, 12:23:27 AM
"But see if you put your dick in our steel trap, we'll give you candy before it crushes your junk!"

Well, the alternative WotC wants you to choose is.....

Seems to me ORC provides some protection against threats of lawsuits. The mere threat of a Lawsuits can bankrupt a small company and in this case the threatened knows they'll be against a bigger financed group of lawyers and will likely lose anyway so the threat is nullified.

Having said that I believe ORC protects others as the ORC lawyers would be drawn into any case so simple intimidation will no longer work.