Re: Legality and WotC help with 3rdEd SJ

In <URL:news:local.spelljam> on Thu 11 May, Static wrote:
> Howdy,
> 
> In our last episode, Dreamer said:
> >In <URL:news:local.spelljam> on Thu 11 May, Static wrote:
> >> In our last episode, Dreamer said:
> >> >I think the main idea is to get some 3rdEd SJ rules (which many
> >> >people will then promptly change! [grin] ).  I don't think anyone
> >> >here is trying to do this for the money.
> >> 
> >> Have you seen what's there already, as far as sj3e?  Beyond the Moons
> >> has an sj3e page (http://www.spelljammer.org/sj3e/), and there are several
> >> other sites that have sj3e systems of their own.  (BtM has a few other
> >> mostly finished docs for this page too, but they need some polish.)
> >
> >I've certainly found it interesting.  Can we pinch several of
> >your Skills and Feats to use in this conversion, please?
> >
> >The Spacefarer and Freefall Feats are the obvious ones.
> 
>     Of course!  That's what they're there for. :)  (With proper
> credits, of course.)

Of course!

Strictly we don't need any Skills or Feats for the first
conversion, as the Proficiencies seem to have been left out of
CoAS, even though there seem to be several references to them. 

But, Skills and Feats are so critical to 3rdEd that it would be
foolish to attempt a conversion without giving at least some
recommendations about them.

Spacefarer is the 'not a groundling anymore' Feat, and Freefall
is the zero-G combat thingy.  A piloting skill is needed, and its
beginning to look like we need Feats for ship weapons.

Your notes on Knowledge and Profession seem to cover most of the
other bases - Rope Use combined with Climb and Jump seem to
handle most spacehand skills.


> >I've looked at a number of SJ sites, but they mostly refer to
> >more or less varient SJ systems.
> 
>     Yeah, I have the same problem with them, which is why BtM doesn't
> have an "official" stamp on any yet.  If this goes well, I may need
> need to do some pinching myself. :)

I've noticed that the pdf I just bought from RPGnow.com is a
different version of CoAS than the printed one that I have.  It
appears to have some extra paragraphs!  I didn't know there was
more than one version.

As for progress, I think most of the guts, bar the combat, and
3rdEd versions of the races, is there now.


> >> As for legality, BtM--as an official site--can post almost anything
> >> without bothering with the conversion license.
> >
> >What things should we avoid to prevent problems?
> 
>     I should mention that even the official sites can't post direct
> copies of large chunks of text from real sources.  Under the official
> site umbrella, I've put up... well, everything that's up, without any
> problems.  One thing that definitely needs to be avoided is using
> WotC's trademarks in OGC.  Can't have a product called "Spelljammer"
> with an OGL in it, unless it's "published" by an official site.  The
> official sites can use WotC trademarks, to a degree.  (I think this
> means we can use other people's OGC in SJ products.)
> 
>     I hope that made sense, and was useful.

Yes, it is.

If we want to do a 3rdEd version of SJ which quotes big chunks of
the original text, with the 3rdEd edits done to it, then we would
need special permission from WotC.

Unless we can use monsters like Mind Flayers and Beholders (and
Neogi), or at least refer to them in a big way, which we are
apparently not allowed to do under the OGC, then it will not
really be Spelljammer we are converting.

Well, if nothing else the Spells, Helms, and Ship Hulls look
mostly OK - maybe that is enough for a lot of purposes.


> -Static

-- 
Dreamer
dreamer@??????.?????.??.uk
http://www.romsys.demon.co.uk/