Using Open Systems and Creative Commons

Although I'm bad about not giving credit for everything I use (I'm working on it), that's down to notes. I am working on getting better at taking them, but it isn't easy to find them once I do, so it's an overall issue that I am actively working to eliminate. But I digress:

Using open systems, such as UniSystem*, and the Creative Commons, helps me avoid rewriting the same thing 1000 times more than I have already written it so far. This is not my first rodeo; in fact, I released S.A.F.E. into the CC two decades ago, so this is not even the first time I've developed and written a TTRPG. That one was created from scratch - to the extent that anything can be, especially in the RPG world - but this iteration of Buffy relies heavily on documents that are freely available.

I did both of these things for that reason: To ensure that at least some of it will always be available for free. I would be a fool, especially after fighting this hard for this long to make these things available on a consistent basis to anyone who wants to use them, not to use the documents that are in the Creative Commons, Public Domain, or are available via Open Game Licensing myself. If that makes me a hack or my work hackneyed, then so be it; that some should feel that way is fine, of course, but that's hardly the case.

Regardless, while the quality of some of these things may be questionable, such as the old Netbooks, they are still available to cannibalize with almost zero restrictions. And I have contributed to documents like these and others many times throughout the years, although not everything I contributed has been used, so I am free to publish it here or elsewhere. Not just as a leech; as a provider and a leech.

I've never self-published anything other than on blogs, so I had to schedule far enough in advance to give myself some time to learn what goes into that and if it's for me. As a writer, many things I do are rejected for many reasons and I do not take it personally (all the time, anyway). When it comes to RPG, however, given the fights that have happened over the OGL, piracy, and "toxic fandom," I do take it personally. As a survivor of the Satanic Panic writing from a district which still relies on the Satanic Panic to fuel their need for more security (police), I definitely take it personally. But this is no revenge mission, FFS.

I simply need the time to work on the things I do not know how to do yet, such as self-publishing. And I want to be sure that others, myself included, can later find these notes and this material because I definitely use what I develop in my own games - they were developed specifically for my own games.

I'm proud to support independent creators and their products, and happy to support a hobby I love. And I encourage you to avail yourself of these free products, in addition to paying for the for-profit products people publish. I also obviously support alliteration and onomotopeia. Everyone I recommend and support that offers for-profit products also provides ample free supplies, so don't be a miser and don't miss-out on the Creative Commons work we've done for 20+ years.
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* I'm not 100% certain that their OGL extends to the Cinematic UniSystem, so I'm trying my best to remain in compliance with whatever we can do, but I honestly don't know what all we're allowed to do and, despite my efforts, have not heard from anyone who should know.

© The Weirding, 2025