5
\$\begingroup\$

FATE Freeport was made by Green Ronin games. It uses FATE rules, and FATE comes from Evil Hat, so I assume they have a license from Evil Hat. It also uses some of the ideas from Dungeons and Dragons, so I wouldn't be surprised if they depend on some a license from Wizards of the Coast. For example, I see that they use the 6 D&D attributes which I don't know are considered D&D IP, but I know some games try to avoid using them.

I started thinking about this question when I heard that Wizards of the Coast wanted to change the OGL license. I guess the news today is that OGL 1.0 is staying in place, but I'm still curious about games work legally.

\$\endgroup\$

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
10
\$\begingroup\$

Evil Hat Productions published the Fate Freeport Companion under the 1.0 OGL with Green Ronin Publishing as the primary author, with no credit to Wizards of the Coast other than the text of the license.

15. COPYRIGHT NOTICE

Open Game License v1.0 Copyright 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.

Fate Core System and Fate Accelerated Edition ©️ 2013 by Evil Hat Productions, LLC. Developed, authored, and edited by Leonard Balsera, Brian Engard, Jeremy Keller, Ryan Macklin, Mike Olson, Clark Valentine, Amanda Valentine, Fred Hicks, and Rob Donoghue

FATE Freeport Companion, Copyright 2013, Green Ronin Publishing, LLC; Authors Brian Engard, Robert J. Schwalb, and Clark Valentine

In accordance with the Open Game License section 8 "Identification" the following designate Open Game Content and Product Identity:

OPEN GAME CONTENT

The entirety of Chapters One through Three, all statistics excluding proper names in Chapters Four and Five, and statistics present in Fury in Freeport.

PRODUCT IDENTITY

Freeport: The City of Adventure and all proper names.

-- The Fate Freeport Companion p.192, "License"

To very slightly elaborate, the book comprises five chapters and the "Fury in Freeport" sample adventure.

There is no d20-facing material in the book; the "Freeport Companion" series were intended as rules affixes for the systemless setting book The Pirate's Guide to Freeport, which Green Ronin Publishing publishes under its own imprint.

The Fate rules, per p.2 of the frontispiece, are "licensed for our use under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/)".

\$\endgroup\$
2
  • 1
    \$\begingroup\$ FATE rules in general are available under the creative commons or the OGL, and on their web page they ask you to select one of these two options that fits to your needs. What does it mean and how does it work to have both licenses on the same work? Do you have to fulfill the requirements of both for the whole work? \$\endgroup\$
    – Nobody the Hobgoblin
    Commented Jan 28, 2023 at 8:51
  • \$\begingroup\$ @GroodytheHobgoblin The publisher states if you have to follow both, or can choose either. I have yet to see a case where "follow both" is invoked though, and I can't imagine one where it would even be a useful idea for a publisher (other than making licensing so difficult and complicated without admitting to it). \$\endgroup\$
    – toolforger
    Commented Jan 28, 2023 at 9:17

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .