> Doug Meerschaert > > The names of feats are just names, and so can't be copyrighted--right? > But they can be trademarked, and if they are trademarked then you can't > use them. > > But if the name of a feat *wasn't* claimed as a trademark, it could be > used, right? You couldn't refer to _Tome & Blood_ specifically, and you > couldn't quote the exact feat, but if the name just isn't trademarked, > could you just refer to it by name and let your players sort it out? > > If I'm on the mark for all of the above, then the problem is really > knowing if WotC considers it a trademark or not...
I think you're right about the trademark issue, but that doesn't let you sidestep copyright. From what I've read, if you make something that looks a lot like or is similar in enough ways to something else, and you had an opportunity to use the other thing as a basis, then you may be asked to prove (in court) that you have not derived from it. Nobody really knows how similar is similar enough, or in how many ways - it all depends on the situation. In text, the name "Rocky" is not copyrightable by itself (trademark notwithstanding), but I think a spunky boxer from back east named Rocky would be derivative. Likewise, two feats named "Boot to the Head" would not necessarily be derivative of each other, but if one appears in a WotC work and you own that work, and you create a feat with the same name and game mechanics, you might be asked to prove you were not derivative. YMMV. -Brad _______________________________________________ Ogf-l mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://mail.opengamingfoundation.org/mailman/listinfo/ogf-l
