There are a number of spells like this one, tiny hut, etc, that have generic versions that are included for free with the SRD as well as named versions which are included in published material for copyright reasons. The spells are identical in every way other than the name.
Also the named versions of the spells are almost always the original version of the spell. The only exception to this I believe is Jim's Magic Missile versus Magic Missile. Magic Missile has been in D&D since the very beginning but Jim's Magic Missile is the result of Penny Arcade being silly in their D&D setting Acquisitions Incorporated.
Also I am not 100% on this but the names are the player characters that initially came up with the spell. Mordenkainen for example was originally a Wizard played by Gary Gigax.
Also the named versions of the spells are almost always the original version of the spell. The only exception to this I believe is Jim's Magic Missile versus Magic Missile. Magic Missile has been in D&D since the very beginning but Jim's Magic Missile is the result of Penny Arcade being silly in their D&D setting Acquisitions Incorporated.
Also I am not 100% on this but the names are the player characters that initially came up with the spell. Mordenkainen for example was originally a Wizard played by Gary Gigax.
Jim's magic missile isn't exactly an exception -- although I do agree it is different -- as it is intended to be a different spell. All the others are intended to be the same spell only missing the intellectual property.
I'm also not sure how protect-able the name 'Jim' is from an intellectual property standpoint.
Back when D&D was first created, it was owned by a company called TSR. Gary Gygax put together a group of friends to playtest the materials of the game. So they created a bunch of the very first characters, some of whose names stuck around to become O.G. D&D legends - Mordenkainen, Bigby, Leomund, Drawmij, Nystul, Otto, Rary, Bucknard, Robilar, Tenser, and Melf. And many of those names became the intellectual property of their creators. For example, Drawmij was played by a guy named Jim Ward. Get it? Luke Gygax created a male elf - Melf. Get it?
Well, a lot of the original D&D spells and magic items were created by that original playtest group, and were thus named after their characters. Like the spells Mordenkainen's Faithful Hound, the various Bigby's Hand spells, Leomund's Tiny Hut, Drawmij's Instant Summons, Nystul's Magic Aura, Otto's Irresistible Dance, Rary's Telepathic Bond, Tenser's Transformation, Melf's Acid Arrow, etc etc.
So, many years later, TSR was going belly up and Wizards of the Coast bought the copyrights and everything, so the game could continue and thrive. But even after the deal was sealed, there were some lingering arguments about copyrights and such here and there, so WotC simply dropped the names from those old spells and magic items, to avoid any legal issues. I'm sure there's a lot more detail and such involved in all the legal wranglings and whatnot. But that's the general jist of it.
Also the named versions of the spells are almost always the original version of the spell. The only exception to this I believe is Jim's Magic Missile versus Magic Missile. Magic Missile has been in D&D since the very beginning but Jim's Magic Missile is the result of Penny Arcade being silly in their D&D setting Acquisitions Incorporated.
Also I am not 100% on this but the names are the player characters that initially came up with the spell. Mordenkainen for example was originally a Wizard played by Gary Gigax.
Jim's magic missile isn't exactly an exception -- although I do agree it is different -- as it is intended to be a different spell. All the others are intended to be the same spell only missing the intellectual property.
I'm also not sure how protect-able the name 'Jim' is from an intellectual property standpoint.
Oh, your absolutely correct, in the case of Jim's Magic Missile it is a separate spell. Thanks!
What is the difference? I can't find one.
There are a number of spells like this one, tiny hut, etc, that have generic versions that are included for free with the SRD as well as named versions which are included in published material for copyright reasons. The spells are identical in every way other than the name.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
Also the named versions of the spells are almost always the original version of the spell. The only exception to this I believe is Jim's Magic Missile versus Magic Missile. Magic Missile has been in D&D since the very beginning but Jim's Magic Missile is the result of Penny Arcade being silly in their D&D setting Acquisitions Incorporated.
Also I am not 100% on this but the names are the player characters that initially came up with the spell. Mordenkainen for example was originally a Wizard played by Gary Gigax.
Jim's magic missile isn't exactly an exception -- although I do agree it is different -- as it is intended to be a different spell. All the others are intended to be the same spell only missing the intellectual property.
I'm also not sure how protect-able the name 'Jim' is from an intellectual property standpoint.
Back when D&D was first created, it was owned by a company called TSR. Gary Gygax put together a group of friends to playtest the materials of the game. So they created a bunch of the very first characters, some of whose names stuck around to become O.G. D&D legends - Mordenkainen, Bigby, Leomund, Drawmij, Nystul, Otto, Rary, Bucknard, Robilar, Tenser, and Melf. And many of those names became the intellectual property of their creators. For example, Drawmij was played by a guy named Jim Ward. Get it? Luke Gygax created a male elf - Melf. Get it?
Well, a lot of the original D&D spells and magic items were created by that original playtest group, and were thus named after their characters. Like the spells Mordenkainen's Faithful Hound, the various Bigby's Hand spells, Leomund's Tiny Hut, Drawmij's Instant Summons, Nystul's Magic Aura, Otto's Irresistible Dance, Rary's Telepathic Bond, Tenser's Transformation, Melf's Acid Arrow, etc etc.
So, many years later, TSR was going belly up and Wizards of the Coast bought the copyrights and everything, so the game could continue and thrive. But even after the deal was sealed, there were some lingering arguments about copyrights and such here and there, so WotC simply dropped the names from those old spells and magic items, to avoid any legal issues. I'm sure there's a lot more detail and such involved in all the legal wranglings and whatnot. But that's the general jist of it.
I hope this helps.
Anzio Faro. Protector Aasimar light cleric. Lvl 18.
Viktor Gavriil. White dragonborn grave cleric. Lvl 20.
Ikram Sahir ibn-Malik al-Sayyid Ra'ad. Brass dragonborn draconic sorcerer Lvl 9. Fire elemental devil.
Wrangler of cats.
Oh, your absolutely correct, in the case of Jim's Magic Missile it is a separate spell. Thanks!
Yes it does thank you. The whole thing was driving me nuts because it shows up twice on character sheet but it looks exactly the same.