Truly, it’s a shame.
I had genuine hope that Wizards of the Coast might turn around from their present course, and perhaps listen to the concerns of their fans. But I was wrong. With each passing moment more rumors are now circulating about the new Open Gaming License, a document which not only aims to restrict publishing rights with current D&D projects, but also with past editions as well.
It should go without saying that Dungeons & Dragons has had a phenomenal impact in shaping just how we play games. But now all of that might be coming to an end…
However, I’m not writing this just so I can shed more light on the actual license itself, not to mention the underlying legality of it all. I’m no lawyer, myself, and there are already several other platforms doing just that as we speak.
The damage has already been done. It’s been a long time coming, but now I can safely say that I’m finally through with WotC as a business.
Instead, I hope to be more optimistic in my outlook. What with several business decisions, each more moronic than the last, it now seems that our fellow “friends” in Seattle are hell-bent on stomping out any and all competition that stands in their way.
OneD&D is right. There can only be one D&D to rule them all, one publisher to bind them, yet even I didn’t think it would come to this.
RPG fans are angry, and this is despite differences in overall design philosophy, social etiquette, and even sociopolitical beliefs.
Many of us will have to keep our ears close to the ground in both the weeks and months to come, as we learn just how this document affects other tabletop publishers, not to mention WotC itself. Perhaps they will fully embrace this new and insidious philosophy of theirs; or perhaps instead they will try to save themselves from complete and utter financial oblivion.
Regardless, I think many of us won’t be checking out the new edition of OneD&D any time soon, and even 5th-edition doesn’t quite hold the same appeal it once had.
Instead, I think there’s no better time for us to explore alternatives, games which aim to explore the idea of venturing into another world, conquering both dragons and monsters, all in a mad dash for that shiny and elusive reward.
Already, I can think of a few good systems off the top of my head. I’ve heard several good things about Castles and Crusades, a system which appears to improve on many design facets of 5th-edition, all without adhering to WotC’s Open Gaming License. That’s also not even mentioning older versions of D&D itself, such as first- and second-edition Dungeons and Dragons, as neither are bound to this new agreement. Even other systems that still use the current OGL, such as Pathfinder 2e and Old School Essentials, appear to be taking great measures to help make sure their games remain intact.
All of these systems are out there right now. So what are we waiting for?
It’s clear that Cynthia Williams, the new acting CEO of Wizards of the Coast, doesn’t have our best interests in mind. Even if the OGL proves to be a complete farce or WotC decides instead to revoke the license, we should still remain adamant in voting with our wallets and standing for ownership of what we create.
At the end of the day, rulesets are really just that - a set of tools to be used. Now granted, a good rule system is invaluable to a fun game with friends, but it only ends up making for about one-third of the game in total. The rest is determined by both the players and, of course, the game master.
D&D is a creative hobby, after all, and we the fans are constantly adding in both our own passions and ideas for what the game should be like. Whether that be through planning out a session or campaign, fleshing out various characters’ backstories, making tough decisions, or even just interpreting unexpected outcomes, we are the final authors of our games. This isn’t even factoring in the idea of homebrew content, which WotC seems all-too-intent to steal without fear of consequence. How many custom-made settings and mechanics have been made by fans which are now inseparable from D&D itself?
The examples are simply too many to list; yet for the longest time it appeared that there was at least some mutual understanding at the table - some measure of respect for what fans were adding to the hobby…
But no more. Now it’s time for us to show the world just how much we care about medieval monsters and magic. For many of us, D&D has even helped to bring us together in several meaningful ways. As my friends and I have often stated in the past, RPGs can even help us to stand up and face our own inner demons, confront what has haunted us in real life, and give us the chance to overcome it.
That’s the magic of role-playing, and no one can take that experience away from you. That moment in time was no one else’s but your own, made by both you and your friends all the while knocking back some beers and having a few laughs. It should be acknowledged that publishers like Wizards of the Coast and TSR were there to set the stage, but everything after that - the actual act of rolling dice, planning, playing your character, and overcoming challenges with your friends - all that is you.
That’s why it’s important for us to find alternatives. No one company owns the idea of roleplaying; not even the games that imitate D&D, for that matter. Even companies like WotC must find their inspiration from somewhere, and only time will show us just how idiotic their decision really was.
But in the meantime, I ask that you each reach out to your friends, discuss other roleplaying systems that might catch your interest, and give them the old college try.
Who knows, you might even find yourself enjoying it more than The World’s Greatest Roleplaying Game.
I gave up on WOTC some time ago, but they just keep adding nails to their coffin. Ah well. I might play D&D (whatever edition) with friends but I will not buy more from WOTC.
I've heard good things about Hyperborea...
D&D died with 3.5 as far as I'm concerned, it was the first causality of the soy invasion for reasons you'll understand perfectly if you think about it for 0.1 seconds. And it isn't something you can ignore either, because the rules themselves, aka the things you are buying suffer.
But even in 3.5 I found it woefully limiting, the sorts of things you would need do just so characters other than primary spellcasters can even participate was just laughable, and that says nothing about the cat herding involved, etc.
I eventually just said screw it and made my own system, PRO is loosely D&D based but has far more influence from other things with the most being original content. And TLB uses the same system but with a different setting. And it isn't something that would work in tabletop at all, but it is something that makes warriors and rogues valid archetypes, which is what I wanted. That and not hitching my wagon somewhere else, resulting in me having wasted time and effort when they go full soytard (you never go full soytard!)