Creative Commons and tabletop roleplaying

Most people know a bit about CC (Creative Commons) licences by now. Basically, it's a licence that lets you put stuff that's made by you on the net for others to use and/or distribute forward as long as they give credit to you. They can't take money for it, and credit goes were credit's due. Of course this won't stop people that are bent on stealing your stuff stealing your stuff, but since it's there for free anyway it'll be a bit hard for them to make a profit out of it. I suppose they could sell it to gullible people if they feel like it.

Anyway, tabletop roleplaying games have seen a quite major progression point with the appearance of the CC licences. Roleplayers are often number crunchers and rules lawyers (often in a good way, both of these, don't get me wrong) and like to change system that they feel doesn't work or take a thing or two from a system they like and create their own on top. Now, if it's a blatant ripoff where you change just a few rules, you can post about what you did on an rpg forum and that's that, you have a house rule to your favorite system. But if you actually create your own system with backstory and rules and all the other doo-hickeys, it's kind of a shame that it never leaves your living room.

This all changed drastically with the CC licence. Now, if you want people to try out your rule system but don't want to make them pay for it (i.e. you're not selling but you'd like people to know about all the effort and time you put into it), you slap a CC on the thing and upload it to the net. Now, anyone can play your game if they feel like it. Sure, it might not be as finished and playtested as a D&D rulebook, then again it and all the paraphernalia doesn't cost you hundreds of euros. This is good. This is better than good, this is great! There's always been creative people who just haven't had a good way of putting their work out there. Guess why the licence has the name it has, anyway... But now, with the CC, people have an option to do that.

For CC licenced roleplaying systems that I like, try OneSeven Design games. The games are a bit different from your basic tabletop rpg's with focus on storytelling and interaction, not the rules. Oh, and if you don't feel like a challenge, don't start with Ghost/Echo, it's a bit on the odd side. Now, a good friend of mine, Kari Hoffren, was thinking about publishing his quasi-Japanese samurai rpg, Bushi, on the net soonish, and I hope he does. I'll get a link up when he does, because it's a really fun and cinematic system. It might have some balance issues but that's what players are for.

Here, as a finish, is a picture owned by OneSeven Design Studios. It's beautiful concept art for their beautiful game, Lady Blackbird.