Really? This isn't how copyrights and trademarks/servicemarks work in
general. Is there some special provision that I haven't seen? Do the
OGL/STL docs mention this? The reason I say is because I thought the lvl
advancement rules from the PHB were not a part of the OGL or the STL and
therefore fell under normal Copyright law, in which case I don't think you
can duplicate it in part, in whole, or in effect. The law doesn't take a
literal approach to this matter. Plagiary need not mean exact duplication
of text and/or style. I couldn't, for instance, publish a cookbook that has
the exact recipes found in Joy of Cooking even if I changed the wording
entirely. That will get me sued...unless I can prove that it was intended
as parody (the sole exemption to the copyright law that I know of) which
ain't likely. Has WotC put something out saying that they won't enforce the
copyright on the level advancement system found in the 3ePHB?
-Tom Caudron
----- Original Message -----
From: "Brad Thompson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
It's true that you can't photocopy or otherwise duplicate the PHB sections
on level advancement, but 'Of his own devising' has very broad
possibilities, including this:
What we're talking about here is about a page and half of very rules-heavy
text. If you read those sections, grok the rules sufficiently to explain
them in your own words, put the PHB away, and then write them down based on
your understanding what you read, you should be fine. What you will get
(ideally) is something functionally equivalent to the PHB without actually
infringing on their copyright (which only covers the words and presentation,
not the rules themselves). Same goes for the two pages on character
creation.
