Paizo Announces ORC License

[Savage Schemer]

It had to be Paizo.
The last time WotC tried this they created their major competitor who overtook them as industry leader for a time.
This time, having retaken the industry by storm, they destroy their own reputation and goodwill and who steps in to take over? Paizo.

History had to repeat itself, the Meme Gods demand it.

What has been will be again, and what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 1:9)

 

[pdboddy]

What has been will be again, and what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 1:9)

Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.

 

[JamesV]

... I hope this hurts, like “D&D gets sold off, because we’ll never be able to use it again” level of hurt.

I dunno, it's not unusual for bigger companies to continue holding "dead" IPs for nothing else than the occasional licensing opportunity, or the fear of someone else succeeding with it.

 

[Gabriel]

Fiery the Angels rose, and as they rose deep thunder roll'd
Around their shores, indignant burning with the fires of Orc.

If anything good to me has come out of this, it's the realization that Roy Batty in Blade Runner was quoting this wrong.

 

[Tulpa Girl]

Open RPG Creative License

I insist we say, "orc lick" when discussing this thing.

 

[Gabriel]

View attachment 54633

The mascot potential is staggering.

 

[BedrockBrendan]

Boy do I hate 3.5 and PF. But I’m going to find some way to throw money their way now. Bravo.

I am assuming companies can use ORC to create a simplified version that feels more like Basic or east edition but do so in a way that keeps it in ORC and doesn't give WOTC anything to go after

 

[T. Foster]

Fiery the Angels rose, and as they rose deep thunder roll'd
Around their shores, indignant burning with the fires of Orc.

If anything good to me has come out of this, it's the realization that Roy Batty in Blade Runner was quoting this wrong.

Which brings up the fact that while when seeing ORC most gamers’ minds are going to go straight to Tolkien and/or the GW and WoW green-skin brutes (or David Sutherland’s pig-faced version for the grognards), the more apt comparison is definitely to William Blake’s created mythology, where Orc is the romantic hero and personification of freedom and rebellion. I very much doubt that resonance was lost on the folks at Paizo.

 

[PolarBlues]

I see ORC as a missed opportunity. The new gaming licence to replace the OGL really needed to the the SWO-GL.

 

[Vile Traveller]

I see ORC as a missed opportunity. The new gaming licence to replace the OGL really needed to the the SWO-GL.

Some What Open Gaming Licence.

 

[Raleel]

In perhaps related news, the archive of Nethys is struggling. oh so struggling. the database backend is working mightily, but it appears dead.

 

[EmperorNorton]

In perhaps related news, the archive of Nethys is struggling. oh so struggling. the database backend is working mightily, but it appears dead.

I was making a character this morning because we are talking about switching our 5e game to PF2e, and the site was definitely not agreeing with me.

 

[Raleel]

I was making a character this morning because we are talking about switching our 5e game to PF2e, and the site was definitely not agreeing with me.

I have found Pathbuilder to be quite good. I recommend the $5 once to get google drive storage.

HOWEVER, it ALSO appears to be struggling mightily under the burden, but it did come up.

 

[pdboddy]

I have found Pathbuilder to be quite good. I recommend the $5 once to get google drive storage.

HOWEVER, it ALSO appears to be struggling mightily under the burden, but it did come up.

I don't need the storage space, my Pathfinder collection is slowly bending my Ikea shelving units. xD

 

[AsenRG]

As someone who works at a court in Ohio, our state statutes are contained in the Ohio Revised Code which everyone calls the ORC so it's a little bit weird with all the gaming ORC talk now.

Use Orc Lick or Oracle, as suggested in this thread?

Boy do I hate 3.5 and PF. But I’m going to find some way to throw money their way now. Bravo.

There are other publishers coming on board with it. If Paizo makes something you genuinely like, of course buy it. But if it's Kobold Press that makes something you like, spend the money there.

Yup, I'm hoping on the Kobolds mostly...because Paizo have yet to make something I want to play (other than an adventure).

Really in this environment, spending money anywhere other than WotC, or a company that has agreed to the not-Open Gaming License 1.1, is doing good.

...so now gamers spending money are doing a good thing?

They may possibly promote both out of industry solidarity, but logically they would put more emphasis on their own

Well, no doubt.

I think that the basic BRP is what's going under the ORC license, but stuff to do with their actual IPs will stay under their own license. Pure speculation on my part, of course.

I simply hope that you would be right...

What has been will be again, and what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 1:9)

...I never thought I'd put a laugh reaction to an Ecclesiastes quote. Never say never, I guess?

The mascot potential is staggering.

Indeed it is!

 

[Raleel]

I don't need the storage space, my Pathfinder collection is slowly bending my Ikea shelving units. xD

more that it integrates with your google drive and stores your character there, so it can go with you between games and devices. My group has already seen the use of it

 

[EmperorNorton]

I have found Pathbuilder to be quite good. I recommend the $5 once to get google drive storage.

HOWEVER, it ALSO appears to be struggling mightily under the burden, but it did come up.

I use Pathbuilder for making it but tend to use Nethys for looking up stuff while I'm doing it. Like, it is way easier to look at all the background choices in Nethys than Pathbuilder. And yeah, I paid the $5 a while back.

 

[Spellslinging Sellsword]

More info.

Paizo President Jim Butler Reveals Plans for a Universal RPG License

The Open RPG Creative License (ORC) will be created in order to support the industry in conjunction with fans and creators.

gizmodo.com

 

[brettmb]

Maybe brettmb can buy the TSR catalog for cheap

When I saw that someone mentioned me, I figured it was about Swords & Six-Siders or some other OSR relation, but this was gold.

 

[JAMUMU]

I'm drunk. You're paying attention:

 

[Voros]

As usual for Paizo that is a lot of words, anyone up to posting a précis?

 

[raniE]

As usual for Paizo that is a lot of words, anyone up to posting a précis?

"WotC says they can repeal the OGL 1.0a. Paizo says this is in fact impossible. But also, fuck WotC, we're building our own OGL called ORC, with blackjack and hookers. And by that we mean Green Ronin, Kobold Press, Chaosium and a bunch of other companies. This new license will be owned by first the law firm that helps us make it but we want to find a home for it with a nonprofit with a history of open source values (such as the Linux foundation) to own it."

 

[JAMUMU]

"WotC says they can repeal the OGL 1.0a. Paizo says this is in fact impossible. But also, fuck WotC, we're building our own OGL called ORC, with blackjack and hookers. And by that we mean Green Ronin, Kobold Press, Chaosium and a bunch of other companies. This new license will be owned by first the law firm that helps us make it but we want to find a home for it with a nonprofit with a history of open source values (such as the Linux foundation) to own it."

This is the way.

 

[Voros]

"WotC says they can repeal the OGL 1.0a. Paizo says this is in fact impossible. But also, fuck WotC, we're building our own OGL called ORC, with blackjack and hookers. And by that we mean Green Ronin, Kobold Press, Chaosium and a bunch of other companies. This new license will be owned by first the law firm that helps us make it but we want to find a home for it with a nonprofit with a history of open source values (such as the Linux foundation) to own it."

So this isn't built on D&D mechanics? Seems like a big shift for Paizo if so.

 

[PolarBlues]

As an aside, I love how the quote "with blackjack and hookers.." - a throw-away line in a random episode of Futurama - has stuck in the public consciousness. It's typical of The Simpson and Futurama in their prime. Most shows need to repeat a catchphrase again and again for it to catch on. These shows just needed to say "cromulent" once, and it became part of the English language.

 

[raniE]

So this isn't built on D&D mechanics? Seems like a big shift for Paizo if so.

The OGL wasn't built on D&D mechanics either. The OGL allowed anyone to put in an SRD, and many did. The ORC will be the same. And there'll be a Paizo SRD based on Pathfinder 2. And they're looking Hasbro in the face and saying "come at me about it, if you think you're hard enough".

 

[Jetstream]

"WotC says they can repeal the OGL 1.0a. Paizo says this is in fact impossible. But also, fuck WotC, we're building our own OGL called ORC, with blackjack and hookers. And by that we mean Green Ronin, Kobold Press, Chaosium and a bunch of other companies. This new license will be owned by first the law firm that helps us make it but we want to find a home for it with a nonprofit with a history of open source values (such as the Linux foundation) to own it."

… in this scenario, is Green Ronin the blackjack? And if so, are KP and Chaosium the hookers?

 

[Nick J]

We’ll I’ll be damned, Chaosium joining this thing gives me hope they might “Orcify” Magic World and give fans an opportunity to clean up, repackage and distribute the Magic World /Stormbringer stuff?

 

[sharps54]

We’ll I’ll be damned, Chaosium joining this thing gives me hope they might “Orcify” Magic World and give fans an opportunity to clean up, repackage and distribute the Magic World /Stormbringer stuff?

That would be nice

 

[Vile Traveller]

We’ll I’ll be damned, Chaosium joining this thing gives me hope they might “Orcify” Magic World and give fans an opportunity to clean up, repackage and distribute the Magic World /Stormbringer stuff?

My first thought was they wanted to be on the team to try to shoehorn in some exclusion clauses about push mechanics and insanity rules and anything remotely related to King Arthur.

 

[Spellslinging Sellsword]

Yeah, Chaosium's not OGL license was a POS and I find most of their current people in charge not to my liking. However, if they do create an SRD for Magic World under the ORC license it would be cool. I assume the ORC license will be at least as open as the original OGL, otherwise nobody will use it.

 

[migo]

Yeah, Chaosium's not OGL license was a POS and I find most of their current people in charge not to my liking. However, if they do create an SRD for Magic World under the ORC license it would be cool. I assume the ORC license will be at least as open as the original OGL, otherwise nobody will use it.

Yeah, I can't imagine how hard it would be to basically do OGL 1.0 (referring to OGF instead of WotC) with the word irrevocable in it. I guess it makes sense for IP lawyers to think of every possibility and how to word it in the event of change in precedent, but if they're taking too long to release it, it makes me think they're trying to figure out a way to include a termination clause for disagreeable content.

 

[TristramEvans]

View attachment 54633

That reminds me...this is going to be impossible to google.

 

[EmperorNorton]

I'm still waiting on an organized crime era Vegas but with Fantasy races/magic 5e clone called Blackjack & Hookers.

 

[David Johansen]

What has been will be again, and what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 1:9)

Ecclesiastes is the ultimate old man yelling at the clouds rant and should be read in Billy Crystal's voice. "Vanity of vanities, all is vanity and vexation of the spirit!"

 

[raniE]

Yeah, I can't imagine how hard it would be to basically do OGL 1.0 (referring to OGF instead of WotC) with the word irrevocable in it. I guess it makes sense for IP lawyers to think of every possibility and how to word it in the event of change in precedent, but if they're taking too long to release it, it makes me think they're trying to figure out a way to include a termination clause for disagreeable content.

Well, they thought they had it in the last one, and we know how that worked out. I'm willing to give them more than a few days at least. I think the best time to release it, if it's ready by then, would be just before the D&D movie premieres, just to open this debate up again and hopefully hurt the film.

If there's a bunch of "your license can be revoked if you publish something Paizo thinks is bad" that would be shit. But if they follow through with the other stuff they've said, putting the license under a separate, and hopefully already existing, foundation, then I don't see how they get that in there.

 

[Bunch]

Personally I'd have a crapton of drafts ready. After every WotC dumb response I'd release an update giving folks slightly more rights.

 

[ScytheSong]

Ecclesiastes is the ultimate old man yelling at the clouds rant and should be read in Billy Crystal's voice. "Vanity of vanities, all is vanity and vexation of the spirit!"

I'll give you Billy Crystal for Ecclesiates, if you'll let me have Lewis Black for James.

 

[The Mad Hatter]

TristramEvans favorite vtuber chimes in:

 

[TristramEvans]

TristramEvans favorite vtuber chimes in:

Yeah, she get's it wrong in that Paizo's stated intention is not to own the ORC, rather have it placed in the care of a nonprofit, but I think her point at the end is interesting, look forward to her video about the "D&D box".