Tywyll Posted September 30, 2008 Share Posted September 30, 2008 Does anyone know if Chaosium retains any rights to the old RQ mechanics such as the magic system? I mean, I realize the fluff has gone to Mongoose, but if they wanted to publish a book with some variant Divine Magic or whatever, could they? Or do they not have the right to do that with BRP? Anyone know? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickMiddleton Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 (edited) Does anyone know if Chaosium retains any rights to the old RQ mechanics such as the magic system? I mean, I realize the fluff has gone to Mongoose, but if they wanted to publish a book with some variant Divine Magic or whatever, could they? Or do they not have the right to do that with BRP? Anyone know? RQI/-/III are copyright to Chaosium, as were the BRP Monographs (the text of RQIII with all references to Glorantha removed that Chaosium had in print from 2004 until earlier this year). Mechanics (abstract rules ideas) can only be protected by patent. The text expressing an idea is, in theory at least, protected by copyright§. So Chaosium retain the copyright on the exact text of RQII/III and the BRP Monographs and yes they could republish the BRP monograph text§§ - there has in fact been considerable talk of a BRP Magic book that wold be a supplement to BRP and include not only the RQIII Magic book, but also (suitably adjusted) the material from the Bronze Grimoire (the Elric! supplement about magic), the magic from Nephilim and its supplement Liber Ka, plus more. Whether anyone has actually formally pitched a proposal for such a book to Chaosium we don't know. Cheers, Nick § see the recent interminable thread about BRP and the OGL, or better yet, consult an experienced and currently practising legal professional with specialist knowledge of intellectual property law rather than a bunch of opinionated gamers on an internet forum... §§ They could in theory do the same with RQII but would have to remove ALL Glorantha material and IP, which is a lot of effort when they already have the BRP monograph text... Edited October 25, 2008 by NickMiddleton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.