Re: what about TSR and GPL

[Michael Maher <mike@redhat.com>]

On the whole TSR thing.... 

A while back there were some webpages that did automatic character
generation.  If you do a websearch, you'll find that they no longer exist.
This is b/c TSR asked them to stop doing this b/c it was their
'technology' or some crap like that.   If their position on something as
simple as this was that strict, imagine on using the whole ruleset.  
It's also why you don't see any TSR 'clones'.  

I'm not sure about WotC but I'm sure they aren't much better based on what
I've heard on this list.  It may be best to just use some gurps type
rollup system and to the nine planes of Hell with TSR. 

-mike



> > > Point-systems come with different problems, such as highly increased
> > > versatility of mages. This can hamper game enjoyment (at least for the
> > > others in the group) by making magic-using characters too powerful.
> 
> That's true, the memorization system although it's a little weird
> actually works pretty well I think, but there must be something better
> around. I usually make spells very rare unless the player researches
> them
> himself (a lot of work) and I once had this campaign where the discovery
> of gunpowder interfered with magic, it destroyed the ether ;)...
> so everywhere it was used magic would first become completely chaotic
> and
> then become impossible... a huge campaign removed all gunpowder and all
> memory of it from the world however... but eh, the thought was nice,
> all the teddybears falling from the sky were nice.
> 
> > I didn't say making a balanced point system was easy but I think it lends
> > itself to computer games better.  (Besides I personally think magic should
> > be more chaotic and versatile than the AD&D system.  Technology is created
> > through order while magic is chaotic.)
> 
> I agree, if linuxgames tries to arrange development tools then why
> wouldn't
> the rpg programmers amongst us set up our own free general technical
> rules
> set? It sounds like a reasonable thing to do if a lot of people have
> trouble
> not being able to use WotC owned rules like TSR.
> Besides, it sounds like a very GNU thing to do ;)
> 
> If we could use some webspace somewhere we could set up an rpg rules
> development page with a forum and stuff...
> 
> Willem van Hage
> 
> wrvh@xs4all.nl / wrvhage@wins.uva.nl
> http://www.wins.uva.nl/~wrvhage
> http://www.xs4all.nl/~wrvh
>