Pinned Post: Looking at My Stats and Revisiting My #RPG #Copyright Posts

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The quarantine has me doing a bit of blogging lately, which means I’m also looking at my stats. With respect to my posts regarding copyright and RPGs:

The posts are broken into two separate issues. Part 1 and part 2 are about the copyrightability of RPG stat blocks, and part 3 (not relevant here) is about the OGL. As to the first issue, to date, part 1 represents ~30% of text by page count and has 17,037 hits (edit 10/20/2020: 17,667 hits), whereas part 2 (70%) has only 704 hits (edit 10/20/2020: 802 hits). Moreover, part 1 spends much of its text on going over basic copyright principles that don’t represent the actual argument. It’s clear by the stats and the basis of the criticism itself (often peppered with personal insults) that the vast majority of (non-lawyer) criticism I’ve received is from people that have read only 30% (at most) of that argument. I know it’s long, convoluted, and at times poorly written (mostly because it targets two very different audiences); and you’re under no obligation to read it (or even care about it). However, it’s all connected, and if you’re going to criticize it, you should probably understand it first.

Or not. Free speech and all that.

Endnotes:

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My Star Trek Anniversary for My OGL Posts. Wait, What? #TTRPG #RPG #Copyright #OGL #DnD #StarTrek

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And now for something stupid. As of today, it’s been 1701 days since I published Part I of my posts on the copyrightability of stat blocks.

1701 days. Get it? No? Here’s some help.

I wrote this post on February 15, 2023, over one year ago. Here’s some proof.

I told you it was stupid.

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A Rant About the Silver Surfer Casting, but Not the One You May Expect #MCU #SilverSurfer #comic #movie #FantasticFour

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I don’t read comics, so my knowledge of them is spotty. Also, I’m far more concerned that Marvel hire actors based on their talent rather than whether they remain faithful to the comics. Ergo, having no sentimentality towards the print medium, changing up the characters doesn’t affect me. But I get that it may affect others who love that medium and the particular characters as written. All that said, I still need to ask this question: What’s the big deal with the Silver Surfer casting for the Fantastic Four movie?

According to Wikipedia (sorry, that’s my source), Shalla-Bal is a canon Silver Surfer in an alternate universe (i.e., not the 616-universe of the MCU), and all the reporting claims that the Fantastic Four movie will be based in an alternative universe. Therefore, it makes sense that Shalla would be the Silver Surfer. Now, maybe your objection is that you prefer Norrin Radd, and that makes sense, but how do you know Norrin won’t be in this movie too?

According to Wikipedia, Shalla and Norrin were co-Silver Surfers in that alternative “Earth X” and “Universe X” universe (whatever that is). Just because Norrin hasn’t been cast yet doesn’t mean he won’t be. We currently have no reason to assume that you won’t get your Norrin Radd too, and maybe having two of them creates a better dynamic, if not in the comic, in the MCU, which is all I’m talking about and the source of your complaints.

As always, these complaints are coming far too early in the filmmaking process, and I suspect they’re based on assumptions rather than logic. Consider the complaint, “Krypton isn’t going to be destroyed in Man of Steel! I know! I saw a quick clip of an undestroyed Krypton!”

Spoiler alert!

That turned out to be hysterical nonsense, didn’t it?

Dirtbaggery aside, Jonathan Majors was awesome as Kang, so other than his unforeseen legal troubles, his race-swap casting worked out very well. But this isn’t even a swap. Shalla-Bal is a canon Silver Surfer as is, and Julia Garner is killing it (e.g., Ozark on Netflix). I’m not just disagreeing; I don’t even see the issue here.

One respondent on Facebook pointed out that many people don’t want the Silver Surfer in this movie at all, whether male or female, because we’ve already seen it. They want Dr. Doom. This response makes at least some of the following assumptions:

  1. Dr. Doom won’t be the main villain in Secret Wars (or elsewhere);
  2. Dr. Doom won’t be the main villain in Fantastic Four;
  3. The Silver Surfer wasn’t cast merely as a cameo to set up Galactus as the next big bad evil guy for the next couple phases of the MCU.

All we have right now is confirmation of a casting. Everything else being thrown around is mere speculation. Everyone should just relax. If the movie (like its predecessors) sucks, you’ll have plenty of time not to watch it then. If it doesn’t, but you insist on hating it anyway, it’s your loss.

Everybody just be cool.

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Gary Con 2024 Post-Mortem #TTRPG #RPG #DnD #ADnD #GaryCon #StarTrek #DelveRPG @GaryCon @DelveRPG

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My thoughts on Gary Con will be brief. I doubt I’ll return. This isn’t a criticism of the con anymore than a non-football fan not liking a football game is a criticism of how good of a job the NFL is doing. It’s simply something that doesn’t appeal to me. I know a few industry insiders — two were my roommates — which means I’m within a degree of separation of almost all of the legacy ones. For me, the highlight of the trip was talking about the past, present, and future of the industry with Stephen Radney-MacFarland, James Lowder, and Dave Christ. The direct topic is interesting to me, but even more, this conversation inevitability leads to a back-and-forth on intellectual property law (usually copyrights). So, yeah; I’m in for that. Other highlights are conversations with Stephen and Jason Dandy (a non-industry friend) and with Jason and his friend, Mark, on sociopolitical issues. These guys think very differently than I do on most issues, but we engage in a form of constructive dialogue that’s very rare today. I even discussed abortion and Citizen’s United with no fear of generating anger from any of them.

But I can do all of that over Zoom. I don’t need to spend hundreds of dollars on airfare, lodging, a convention badge, and grossly overpriced convention food to have these conversations. One could say the same thing about Winter Fantasy, but that’s a different animal. Just eyeballing it, I’d say I know about 50% of the people that attend, and when I’m not hanging out with them, I’m relaxing. It’s a genuinely relaxing vacation. The food is good, and the whole trip is just an awesome ritual. While Gary Con could become the same thing for me, I don’t need two of them. Winter Fantasy is enough.

YMMV

I hope it’s clear that I’m not saying I didn’t have a good time, and it’s certainly not to say that you wouldn’t. It’s a small-ish con, which is what I like about Winter Fantasy. I went with a mission to get to play (as opposed to DM) 1st Edition AD&D, and I played in three such games. I actually got to play the Dragon #56 bard in two of them. How many people can say they’ve done that? I got to play Stephen’s Delve game that uses a few mechanics that Vic and I added to our 4th Edition D&D game (e.g., “gang-up”), so I liked that. I got to finally make use of my Star Trek Adventures purchase by playing that game (granted, mere months before it’s rendered somewhat obsolete by its second edition). The only objective criticism I have is that there were too many tables in the rooms, which made it very difficult to hear your own DM/GM/judge, and I’m not alone in expressing that concern.

I saw only one celebrity (Pat Kilbane formerly of MadTV, with whom I spoke briefly), but I wasn’t looking for them. If that’s your thing, you may run into them for a selfie. The con was fairly easy to navigate, and I had no administrative difficulties at all.

All of this was good, but now that I’ve been there and done that, there’s no need to go back. I’m quite happy to have left Saturday so that I have all day Sunday to recover, and I return with added appreciation for both Winter Fantasy and my home gaming group. I don’t need this to be a regular thing, or even a sporadic thing, but if you’re a gamer, especially with an appreciation for its history, this is as good a con as any to attend.

Just expect to be inundated with some silliness. Every attendee got one of these.

I don’t think Luke knows what “personal” means.

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Just Another Voice in the Choir: RIP James Ward #RPG #TTRPG #DnD #ADnD #gaming #RIP #JamesWard

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When I started running 1st Edition D&D again two years ago (first time in 40 years), I gathered and took an inventory of my 1st Edition material, and then went on a spending spree. Then I went on another. About a year ago, I somehow made a purchase that blew my mind. It’s a mint condition (you read that right) Wilderness Survival Guide by Kim Mohan but signed by James Ward. It was such an unbelievable haul that I had to contact James, before I even received it, to make sure the signature was legit. James verified his signature for me. (I’m sure many of you have even better stories of James, but that’s mine.)

Shortly thereafter, Kim died. Yesterday, the community lost James. I didn’t know James, but he shaped my childhood. Of note, I didn’t study mythology because I played 1st Edition; I played 1st Edition because I was already a mythology buff, and that drew me to the game. You can imagine how much I loved Deities & Demigods when I was a kid. When I returned to D&D after 23 years away, it was for the tail end of 3.5 Edition, and despite that edition’s Deities & Demigods being even less useful than the original, it was still my favorite book. He also wrote the “zeroth” edition D&D sourcebook Gods, Demi-Gods & Heroes (which I never used), and the TTRPG Metamorphosis Alpha (which I played once). That’s just to name a couple.

James is just the latest entry in a long list of TTRPG gaming legends we’ve lost, but as I didn’t know any of them personally, everything they’ve ever meant to me will exist for me as long as I do. No one can take that from me. But last month, I lost yet another family member in a long list of ones that meant a lot to me, so I get that I’m not the one grieving today. There’s a piece missing from each of their family members and friends, and I get the impression James had many. It’s hard to find a picture of the guy by himself. He seems always to be hanging out with someone, shaking hands, etc.

My condolences to all who’ve lost something so significant yesterday.

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Operation: Cat Aquisition #cat #pet #Caturday #PetSmart @PetSmart

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Yes, this is a day late for Caturday. Sue me.

I received my $7,320 tax refund that resulted from my Tesla purchase, and while I’m going to roll most of it back into the car, I had two recreational purchases I knew I was going to be making with those funds. The first was a treadmill, which wound up costing me only $5. The other is a kitten (or maybe two), which I can’t get until early April because of an upcoming vacation this week. While I’m eager to get the cat(s), I want my house cat-proof (to the extent that’s possible) and cat-friendly before then, so I can wait.

Phase 1

Simple enough, right? Well, it’s got a stupid story associated with it. I went into my local PetSmart in South Riding, VA. I need help figuring out what I need. As Carl Sagan would say, I’m facing the unknown unknowns, i.e., I don’t necessarily know what I should ask for. No one was available to help me, and no one seemed to care, so I just bought something that I knew I needed and left. But hey, it was a Sunday. That wouldn’t happen on a weekday, would it? So I went in on a Wednesday.

Crickets.

So, while I’m in the PetSmart, I’m surfing Amazon for information and better pricing, and guess what? I found an automated litter box on Amazon that uses ordinary litter for about 54% the cost of the equivalent model at PetSmart. So, . . .

Phase 2

I bought this via Amazon, and walked out of PetSmart without buying anything. Bad for business, eh? Anyway, the idea is to buy two litter boxes, one for upstairs and the other for downstairs. I’ll need to buy a manual one if my kitten(s) is(are) as young as I want, but that allows me to test this guy to see if it’s any good. If it is, I’ll buy a second one when the cat(s) get(s) older. Otherwise, this will be the secondary one, and I’ll spend the extra 46% for the PetSmart one. But maybe not buy it from PetSmart. They’re very unhelpful.

Phase 3

While I was surfing for automated litter boxes, I also found this.

I define this as a five-level cat tree. By that definition, PetSmart had only two- or three-level cat trees, none of which had scratching posts. Nevertheless, PetSmart‘s trees cost as much as this one did. Granted, you take your chances not being able to verify the integrity of the structure, but this paid off. The “carpeting” is really soft, and the scratching posts seem durable. Moreover, I wouldn’t quite call this “dark grey,” and that works. It’s almost the same color as my carpet, which is a greyish blue, and not particularly dark.

So, I need letter, cat food, and another litter box. I also need to get things off of shelves that are easily knocked over. What am I forgetting?

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Gaming the System #gambling #casino #blackjack #Tesla #IRS #tax

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Funny story.

With last week being pretty rough, I needed a win, and I got one. Granted, I’d rather have my cousin back, but I can’t have that, so you take what you can get.

I received my huge tax refund on Saturday. In order to make my Tesla reasonably affordable, I have to roll most of that back into the car. However, I earmarked $2,500 for luxury items. In particular, I’m getting a kitten (maybe two) along with everything I need to make the house cat-friendly and cat-proof. The other thing I’m getting is a treadmill. I expected to pay $1,000 or so for the treadmill but found a really good one at Dick’s Sporting Goods for $600 plus $36 tax. Remember that number: $636.

I got the treadmill, which wouldn’t fit in my car, so they’ll be delivering it. I got home and thought to myself, “While I knew I was going to spend this money, I really don’t want to pay for this treadmill. How can I have this treadmill but not pay for it? What do I always do in these situations?”

So, I got in the car this morning and headed to WV. I got to the casino just after 9 am, and 2-1/2 hours later, I walked away from the blackjack table with $631 extra in my pocket.

That treadmill cost me $5.

But it really cost me less than $0, because my comp points paid for lunch completely. Oh, and the casino charged my Tesla while I was playing. I overcharged my car battery to 95%, so by the time I got home, I had 84% charge (you generally should keep it at 80%), so I’ll be driving to work tomorrow on the casino’s dime.

I love gaming the system.

So, now I have over $2,000 I can spend on the cat(s). They won’t cost nearly that much, so I’ll probably take the leftover and add it to what I put back in the car. Maybe. I can think of a couple more luxury items I might want. I’d really like to replace my brown suit.

But never forget that gambling can be a problem. Don’t become a war story.

It’s a war I’m winning.

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Norma: Part II #RIP #death #FuckCancer

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Yesterday, I posted about the death of my cousin, Norma. As I continue to parse out my feelings on the matter, I decided to supplement that post with a couple of other things.

First, with respect to the Frankie Valli story, when Norma and her friend disengaged from Frankie, I told her what almost happened. She reminded me that, while she was (of course) appreciative of my concern, she wasn’t stupid. She was an adult and knew what was going on and would never have gone anywhere with the guy. She understood that I wasn’t upset with her behavior but rather concerned with his, and that leads to point number two.

Everyone fights with everyone else. Everyone gets frustrated with everyone else. This is perfectly normal, and you shouldn’t feel bad about it, even in the unfortunate instance that your anger or frustration is the last thing you experience before losing someone. What isn’t normal? Norma never once made me angry. Or frustrated. I never even surreptitiously rolled my eyes at her. She simply never annoyed me at all, and if I ever annoyed her, she never told me so. This is certainly not a testament to my character; it’s a testament to hers. Plenty of people annoy me, and plenty more are annoyed by me. I’ve never heard anyone speak poorly of anything Norma did or said. She really was someone you couldn’t help but love.

RIP, Norma.

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Norma: A Consequence of Estrangement #RIP #death #FuckCancer

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I’m going to share a memory with you.

I don’t know if it’s my best memory of my cousin, Norma, but it’s the one that immediately comes to mind. Norma and a friend came to Chicago when I was in law school (1999 IIRC). We were barhopping in the Rush Street district, which was a popular weekend spot back then. Frankie Valli, a singer well-known for his small acting and large musical roles in Grease, was walking the streets, and Norma and her friend caught his eye. He was hitting on them. I was standing close by to make sure they were okay, which almost resulted in a fist fight with one of his security guards. He kept placing his hand on my chest, and I kept swatting it away. Everything worked out, though. That 60+ year old pervert didn’t get laid that night. Well, at least not by my 29/30-year old cousin. I didn’t follow him around. (EDIT: I added more to this story on tomorrow’s post.)

Last Thursday, Norma died of the same cancer that killed a handful of people in our extended family. I found out on Saturday and found her obituary at about noon today. The most difficult part of being estranged from one’s nuclear family is the loss of people who you still love. Norma was wonderful, and I loved her very much. She was only a year younger than I, but I could never imagine outliving her. I wish I could have said goodbye, not only to her but to a couple others who’ve died, but this is a consequence you sometimes must accept to keep yourself safe and sane. Leaving ties gives them a way to sneak in and do damage, and asking the ones you love to make a choice between you and the ones that harm you is not a fair thing to do. As far as I’m concerned, this is just one more thing they’ve taken from me. I’m a far happier and healthier person in general, but not today.

RIP, Norma Patricia. I love you.

Frankie will never mess with you on my watch.

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An Unexpected Supplement to My Stash of (A)D&D Material #DnD #TTRPG #RPG #WotC #1e #2e #3e #4e

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My return to 1st Edition AD&D (“1e“) is now two years strong, and now I’ve added a 4th Edition D&D (“4e“) game to my schedule. So, it was a nice surprise for my friend, Mike, to let me know that he was offloading his old school D&D material. Before you get too excited, he’s giving these materials only to people he knows well because we’re getting them on the honor system. The only cost is to make a (tax deductible) donation to a cat or dog charity that represents the approximate cost to buy them in the store or on eBay. Considering I’m going to get a cat in early April, that’s an easy ask of me.

So, what did I get? First up, the box sets and hard-covers.

Menzoberranzan box set, Star Frontiers Alpha Dawn box set, Greyhawk Adventures, Dragon Lance Adventures, the Scarlet Brotherhood, a reprint of the Second Edition Player’s Handbook, Oriental Adventures, and Dragon #56

In general, I never owned any of these in the day, and I bought the PDF of Oriental Adventures from the DMs Guild during my recent rebuy because the hard cover wasn’t on sale. I’m glad I now have a hard cover without paying through the nose for it. I’ve been intrigued by Star Frontiers based on the relatively recent chatter it’s generated — the less I say about that chatter, the better — so I picked it up out of curiosity. As for Dragon #56, I told Mike I wasn’t interested in any of the magazines except perhaps the one that has the 1e bard in it, redone as a character you can play at 1st level. Sure enough, he had that issue. Score!

Next up, some soft covers.

I was planning to buy the Book of Lairs and Book of Lairs II, so that makes this supplement all the sweeter. I never owned any of these materials either. Now for the minis.

Yeah, that’s quite the haul, ain’t it. Of particular interest . . .

I never owned this guy. In fact, I never knew it existed, and I was quite the mini collector during the 3rd Edition D&D and 4e days. Somehow this one escaped me. Right now, the cheapest I see it on sale is $20 + about $6 shipping, so this one will set me back a bit.

These are just a few of the minis that I’ve never owned.

These are a few of the minis that I own but could always use more of. My players may not appreciate multiple Balors on the field of battle, but them’s the breaks.

One of my Living Forgotten Realms characters had a giant owl, so I was a bit disturbed when the stand for that mini broke. No amount of crazy glue could fix it. Now, I’ve replaced it. I think I took the second one out of some sort of cosmic spite.

Importantly, I have every intention of using these goodies in my 1e and 4e games, so this is quite the haul.

Some animal shelter is going to be very happy very soon.

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