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Allusion Q. Witticism ([info]kadath) wrote in [info]fandom_wank,
@ 2005-07-07 10:27:00
Previous Entry  Add to memories!  Tell a Friend!  Next Entry
OMG White Wolf is trying to KILL LARPING!
White Wolf, publishers of the popular and angst-ridden World of Darkness line of roleplaying games, have announced a new licensing system for Live Action Roleplaying (LARP) events run in their universe. In short, WW wants to require people who charge a fee for entrance into a game to join its national LARP club, the Camarilla, at a cost of $20 a year, and to require that all players in such a game be Camarilla members as well. This is a wee bit controversial, since the license is unclear as to whether requesting donations to cover costs counts as charging a fee. Additionally, many people (full disclosure: your humble scrivener included) think the Cam is useless.

Consequently, eight nine many pages of hell break loose. A representative sample of the discussion: WW-is-killing-LARPing!!!, OMG-I-QUIT!11, quit-complaining-they-own-the-copyright, what-the-hell-are-they-smoking, help-help-i'm-being-repressed!11!!, and feh-this-license-is-unenforceable. (My favorite part so far is tweaker, The Amazing Armchair Lawyer, on page 4.)

(Post a new comment)


[info]skarrow
2005-07-07 07:19 pm UTC (link)
...so, what, they're going to have LARP police or something?

(Reply to this)(Thread)


[info]kadath
2005-07-07 07:33 pm UTC (link)
If they were to find out it was happening, they'd probably try C&D letters first, then take it to civil court under the happyfun DMCA rules.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


[info]skarrow
2005-07-07 07:37 pm UTC (link)
If they were to find out. And they'd have to prove that the players in question weren't just SCAdians, playing under a different system, nutjobs running around playing tag, etc.

It's ridiculous.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


[info]kadath
2005-07-07 07:41 pm UTC (link)
"Your Honor, these people were illegally pretending to be vampires!"

"Nah, we were playing GURPS: Vampire with the Cthulhu Live rules, Your Honor."

"...Get out of my courtroom, you freaks."

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


[info]ianthefira
2005-07-07 07:50 pm UTC (link)
XD

That's so awesome.

(Reply to this)(Parent)


[info]bubba_ray
2005-07-07 07:56 pm UTC (link)
Damn, I would pay to see that.

(Reply to this)(Parent)


[info]cat_mcdougall
2005-07-07 08:10 pm UTC (link)
That they would need to sell tickets for.

(Reply to this)(Parent)


[info]mistressrenet
2005-07-07 09:37 pm UTC (link)
I wonder how many people who would've ponied up a fee as a courtesy will now swear off ever doing so for any reason.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


[info]skarrow
2005-07-07 11:32 pm UTC (link)
I would.

(Reply to this)(Parent)

Eh, whatever
[info]karmakaze
2005-07-07 08:22 pm UTC (link)
I run a Vampire LARP, using a homebrew version of tabletop because (a) their LARP system sucks, and (b) their crossover rules don't balance. We're not a member of One World by night because (c) the Camarilla sucks. If they want to hunt us down and C&D us for making back food, supplies and location costs, then we'll just end the game, otherwise, I'm ignoring it.

(Reply to this)(Thread)

Re: Eh, whatever
[info]kadath
2005-07-07 08:26 pm UTC (link)
Woo! Stand proud with basically every other WoD LARP on the planet, as, with one voice, they say, "meh."

(Reply to this)(Parent)


[info]mistressrenet
2005-07-07 09:38 pm UTC (link)
Oh, dude, all the players have to be members as well? That's the special kind of stupid.

(Reply to this)

I guess we were lucky...
[info]vinylgrrl
2005-07-07 09:40 pm UTC (link)
...our Vampire: the Masquerade LARP in college was always free....BYO everything.

(Reply to this)

Off-topic heads-up
(Anonymous)
2005-07-07 10:01 pm UTC (link)
http://www.livejournal.com/community/metaquotes/3468967.html?thread=39480999#t39480999

Don't know if metaquotes-wank counts, but there you have it! Arikatt made a funny post in the statements community on LJ, and brn_eyd_grl felt the need to arbitrarily cut vowels out of her username, which should have been a clue completely blow it out of proportion, spark fights with everyone and martyr herself.

(Reply to this)(Thread)

Whoops.
(Anonymous)
2005-07-07 10:21 pm UTC (link)
Sorry, didn't know about wank_report. D:

(Reply to this)(Parent)


[info]atalantapendrag
2005-07-08 12:47 am UTC (link)
White Wolf just keeps getting stupider. Are they trying to claim rights to rock-paper-scissors now?

(Reply to this)(Thread)


[info]raykat
2005-07-08 08:23 am UTC (link)
If they did, I'm sure each of them would have their own source books, like, "Rock: The Smashing" and "Scissors: The Cutting".

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


[info]atalantapendrag
2005-07-08 08:11 pm UTC (link)
I doubt most of White Wolf's audience needs a sourcebook on cutting.

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[info]raykat
2005-07-08 11:17 pm UTC (link)
*SNERK*

(Reply to this)(Parent)


sharonapple
2005-07-08 10:38 am UTC (link)
asjakjslk ignore my last posts. It's four, I'm stupid, and was skimming.

But still, WW can get pretty wanky.

Ah, Underworld wank, I remember you.

(Reply to this)(Thread)


[info]kadath
2005-07-08 03:17 pm UTC (link)
One of my friends wrote one of the books that was used in the Underworld copyright suit. He didn't know a thing about it until one of his old cowriters from WW mentioned it. He was like "IF I CARED ANY LESS I WOULD BE DEAD."

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


sharonapple
2005-07-09 01:13 am UTC (link)
...Like a vampire? /end lame joke!

It was a pretty lame suit, I remember looking through it and seeing, at the most, ten actual points that were possibly valid. The rest was just ridiculous.

They were trying to claim that they had the copyright over "dark, gothic cities" and my favorite one... "WE INVENTED THE SILVER HURTING WEREWOLVES THING!"

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


(Anonymous)
2005-07-11 09:47 pm UTC (link)
Except the points weren't claiming that WW invented anything. They were claiming that their IP, the World of Darkness, was a collection of a whole bunch of ideas. It's that particular collection of ideas that makes it unique.

They weren't claiming they invented silver hurting werewolves, or dark, gothic cities. They were claiming that because Underworld featured those and 59 other points of similarity, that that was pretty strong evidence that they were ripping off the World of Darkness. 61 points of similarity is a big deal.

If I made a cartoon, with a character named Lisa, I'd be fine. If I made a cartoon set in a fictional city named Springfield with characters named Lisa, Bart, Homer and Marge, I'd have Matt Groening and Fox's lawyers on my ass.

Groening and Fox wouldn't be claiming to have invented Springfield, or cartoons, or the names Lisa, Bart, Homer or Marge. They'd be claiming that because both our works share so many points of similarity, I'm obviously ripping off The Simpsons. And that's just six points of similarity.

-etherlad (http://www.livejournal.com/users/etherlad)

(Reply to this)(Parent)


(Anonymous)
2005-07-11 09:47 pm UTC (link)
Except the points weren't claiming that WW invented anything. They were claiming that their IP, the World of Darkness, was a collection of a whole bunch of ideas. It's that particular collection of ideas that makes it unique.

They weren't claiming they invented silver hurting werewolves, or dark, gothic cities. They were claiming that because Underworld featured those and 59 other points of similarity, that that was pretty strong evidence that they were ripping off the World of Darkness. 61 points of similarity is a big deal.

If I made a cartoon, with a character named Lisa, I'd be fine. If I made a cartoon set in a fictional city named Springfield with characters named Lisa, Bart, Homer and Marge, I'd have Matt Groening and Fox's lawyers on my ass.

Groening and Fox wouldn't be claiming to have invented Springfield, or cartoons, or the names Lisa, Bart, Homer or Marge. They'd be claiming that because both our works share so many points of similarity, I'm obviously ripping off The Simpsons. And that's just six points of similarity.

-etherlad (http://www.livejournal.com/users/etherlad)

(Reply to this)(Parent)


(Anonymous)
2005-07-11 09:47 pm UTC (link)
Except the points weren't claiming that WW invented anything. They were claiming that their IP, the World of Darkness, was a collection of a whole bunch of ideas. It's that particular collection of ideas that makes it unique.

They weren't claiming they invented silver hurting werewolves, or dark, gothic cities. They were claiming that because Underworld featured those and 59 other points of similarity, that that was pretty strong evidence that they were ripping off the World of Darkness. 61 points of similarity is a big deal.

If I made a cartoon, with a character named Lisa, I'd be fine. If I made a cartoon set in a fictional city named Springfield with characters named Lisa, Bart, Homer and Marge, I'd have Matt Groening and Fox's lawyers on my ass.

Groening and Fox wouldn't be claiming to have invented Springfield, or cartoons, or the names Lisa, Bart, Homer or Marge. They'd be claiming that because both our works share so many points of similarity, I'm obviously ripping off The Simpsons. And that's just six points of similarity.

-etherlad (http://www.livejournal.com/users/etherlad)

(Reply to this)(Parent)


(Anonymous)
2005-07-11 09:47 pm UTC (link)
Except the points weren't claiming that WW invented anything. They were claiming that their IP, the World of Darkness, was a collection of a whole bunch of ideas. It's that particular collection of ideas that makes it unique.

They weren't claiming they invented silver hurting werewolves, or dark, gothic cities. They were claiming that because Underworld featured those and 59 other points of similarity, that that was pretty strong evidence that they were ripping off the World of Darkness. 61 points of similarity is a big deal.

If I made a cartoon, with a character named Lisa, I'd be fine. If I made a cartoon set in a fictional city named Springfield with characters named Lisa, Bart, Homer and Marge, I'd have Matt Groening and Fox's lawyers on my ass.

Groening and Fox wouldn't be claiming to have invented Springfield, or cartoons, or the names Lisa, Bart, Homer or Marge. They'd be claiming that because both our works share so many points of similarity, I'm obviously ripping off The Simpsons. And that's just six points of similarity.

-etherlad (http://www.livejournal.com/users/etherlad)

(Reply to this)(Parent)


(Anonymous)
2005-07-11 09:47 pm UTC (link)
Except the points weren't claiming that WW invented anything. They were claiming that their IP, the World of Darkness, was a collection of a whole bunch of ideas. It's that particular collection of ideas that makes it unique.

They weren't claiming they invented silver hurting werewolves, or dark, gothic cities. They were claiming that because Underworld featured those and 59 other points of similarity, that that was pretty strong evidence that they were ripping off the World of Darkness. 61 points of similarity is a big deal.

If I made a cartoon, with a character named Lisa, I'd be fine. If I made a cartoon set in a fictional city named Springfield with characters named Lisa, Bart, Homer and Marge, I'd have Matt Groening and Fox's lawyers on my ass.

Groening and Fox wouldn't be claiming to have invented Springfield, or cartoons, or the names Lisa, Bart, Homer or Marge. They'd be claiming that because both our works share so many points of similarity, I'm obviously ripping off The Simpsons. And that's just six points of similarity.

-etherlad (http://www.livejournal.com/users/etherlad)

(Reply to this)(Parent)


(Anonymous)
2005-07-11 09:48 pm UTC (link)
Except the points weren't claiming that WW invented anything. They were claiming that their IP, the World of Darkness, was a collection of a whole bunch of ideas. It's that particular collection of ideas that makes it unique.

They weren't claiming they invented silver hurting werewolves, or dark, gothic cities. They were claiming that because Underworld featured those and 59 other points of similarity, that that was pretty strong evidence that they were ripping off the World of Darkness. 61 points of similarity is a big deal.

If I made a cartoon, with a character named Lisa, I'd be fine. If I made a cartoon set in a fictional city named Springfield with characters named Lisa, Bart, Homer and Marge, I'd have Matt Groening and Fox's lawyers on my ass.

Groening and Fox wouldn't be claiming to have invented Springfield, or cartoons, or the names Lisa, Bart, Homer or Marge. They'd be claiming that because both our works share so many points of similarity, I'm obviously ripping off The Simpsons. And that's just six points of similarity.

-etherlad (http://www.livejournal.com/users/etherlad)

(Reply to this)(Parent)


(Anonymous)
2005-07-11 09:49 pm UTC (link)
Fuck, I'm sorry. My browser kept claiming that journalfen.net was not responding, when obviously it was, and my comment was successfully posted.

Don't I feel like an ass.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


sharonapple
2005-07-11 10:08 pm UTC (link)
Hmm, good point.

I personally found WW's points were extraneous (and really silly) and made them look like they were grasping at straws, although I did think that the similarities between the plot of Underworld and the novels WW was bringing up was reason enough for a lawsuit.

But then, I don't know enough about law to say what is extraneous or not :/

(Reply to this)(Parent)

Much Debate, Yes.
(Anonymous)
2005-07-11 09:13 pm UTC (link)
Ah, joy, the frothiness of all this. If you play these games, you absolutely *must* join us.

Crumpets. Tea. Histronic declamations. Unlikely Constructivists.

Jolly fun.

-Levi Kornelsen, Posting there under my (gasp) real name.

(Reply to this)

  
   
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