In a homebrew world of mine, the largest city in the world is called Madripor. I love that name, and for the longest time I was utterly convinced I'd come up with it myself.
Then, one day, I picked up an old copy of X-Men, in which Wolverine is in ... Madripoor.
And I go '... oooohhhhh!'
I pride myself for coming up with my own stuff. In this case, however unconsciously, I've failed. But what now? I really like Madripor! Do I rename it? Can I call it something like Mahdripore? Or would I need to actually own up, and rename it to ... Mahadristan, or some such?
I realise how little this matters to anyone but me. But I'd still like to hear some opinions and insights. Maybe in more general terms, not necessarily this exact context.
Like, try this one for instance. I have three characters, called respectively Caliban, Menelaus and Xoriantha. Caliban is obviously shameful, being both a Shakespeare character and a Marvel morlock. Menelaus is an ancient persian king - I think?! And Xoriantha is a name I came up with myself. Stolen, inspired by, invented myself. Clearly, the last is cooler - at least according to me - because I made that up.
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Blanket disclaimer: I only ever state opinion. But I can sound terribly dogmatic - so if you feel I'm trying to tell you what to think, I'm really not, I swear. I'm telling you what I think, that's all.
Caliban is obviously shameful, being both a Shakespeare character and a Marvel morlock.
Why is it OK for Marvel to take a name from Shakespeare but not you?
The answer is that it's OK for you to use it too! The setting for your game is yours to build from any and all things that inspire you. The only time you need to worry about using something in a way that doesn't respect the origin is when you start to profit from it. Beyond that, it's just your private game and fun.
Many place names are used and reused. For instance according to the website for Aberdeen in Scotland they share their name with 30 other locations. So have at it, if you like Madripoor then use it. Although for my part I read Madripoor as Marid-poor and now picture it as a small coastal town run by a down on their luck Marid Genie.
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Why is it OK for Marvel to take a name from Shakespeare but not you?
It's perfectly ok for absolutely anyone to use the name Caliban.
However, I take pride in coming up with my own stuff. I did not come up with Caliban, I just liked it and ripped it. And I realise the title of this thread is 'something-something morals'. But ... I'm in no way saying it's morally wrong to use a name. I'm saying it's morally wrong to pat myself on the back for my creativity - then go wholesale importing other people's stuff.
Wholesale being perhaps too big of a word. But still.
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Blanket disclaimer: I only ever state opinion. But I can sound terribly dogmatic - so if you feel I'm trying to tell you what to think, I'm really not, I swear. I'm telling you what I think, that's all.
i'd say it is as you say it right there, how much do you self back pat, is the real measure of what you speak.
If you know you lifted X% of your material and create the rest yourself. Then i'd assume as long as you keep the self back patting to the % of effort you put in, no foul/misrepresentation is happening.
Also as a GM, my actual real measure is: are the players having fun?
If i successfully facilitate everyone having a fun session, then i was a good GM and that's what i pat myself on the back for. A great GM,, can run a paid for module as is without supplying a lot of their own personal creatively to the world. If they run it well and everyone has a great time, they were a good GM and deserve the back pats.
i'd say it is as you say it right there, how much do you self back pat, is the real measure of what you speak.
If you know you lifted X% of your material and create the rest yourself. Then i'd assume as long as you keep the self back patting to the % of effort you put in, no foul/misrepresentation is happening.
Also as a GM, my actual real measure is: are the players having fun?
If i successfully facilitate everyone having a fun session, then i was a good GM and that's what i pat myself on the back for. A great GM,, can run a paid for module as is without supplying a lot of their own personal creatively to the world. If they run it well and everyone has a great time, they were a good GM and deserve the back pats.
You know ... you may be onto something.
I'm not the guy who can run a bought module and do great. I'm sorta mediocre at most GM tasks, actually kinda awful at combat - so maybe that's why I need to give myself some credit for the one thing I'm actually good at: Inventing my own stuff.
I'm going to assume my regular players would have the same amount of fun, no matter the percentage of lifted material. But I think I need them to have fun playing stuff I came up with on my own.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Blanket disclaimer: I only ever state opinion. But I can sound terribly dogmatic - so if you feel I'm trying to tell you what to think, I'm really not, I swear. I'm telling you what I think, that's all.
that is the best advice i have ever been given as a dm. one of my major npcs is named belisarius cawl after 40k lore, i used the name bc it fit the npc as an easter egg and i love the name. go ahead, take what you want!
that is the best advice i have ever been given as a dm. one of my major npcs is named belisarius cawl after 40k lore, i used the name bc it fit the npc as an easter egg and i love the name. go ahead, take what you want!
Well - yes, I value the depth of this insight. And I mostly agree with you ... yet:
There's a word in Danish - Olm - dating back a long, long time. It basically means angry. A player of mine made a hammer for his own character, with the head of a ram, and named it Olm. And it was such a great name for a magic item, it stands out now so many years later. He invented that, all of it - the name, the magic, the design of the weapon.
It would not have been as memorable if he'd had a +1 frostbrand. You know? So .. you're right, only that's not all there is to be said about it =)
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Blanket disclaimer: I only ever state opinion. But I can sound terribly dogmatic - so if you feel I'm trying to tell you what to think, I'm really not, I swear. I'm telling you what I think, that's all.
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In a homebrew world of mine, the largest city in the world is called Madripor. I love that name, and for the longest time I was utterly convinced I'd come up with it myself.
Then, one day, I picked up an old copy of X-Men, in which Wolverine is in ... Madripoor.
And I go '... oooohhhhh!'
I pride myself for coming up with my own stuff. In this case, however unconsciously, I've failed. But what now? I really like Madripor! Do I rename it? Can I call it something like Mahdripore? Or would I need to actually own up, and rename it to ... Mahadristan, or some such?
I realise how little this matters to anyone but me. But I'd still like to hear some opinions and insights. Maybe in more general terms, not necessarily this exact context.
Like, try this one for instance. I have three characters, called respectively Caliban, Menelaus and Xoriantha. Caliban is obviously shameful, being both a Shakespeare character and a Marvel morlock. Menelaus is an ancient persian king - I think?! And Xoriantha is a name I came up with myself. Stolen, inspired by, invented myself. Clearly, the last is cooler - at least according to me - because I made that up.
Blanket disclaimer: I only ever state opinion. But I can sound terribly dogmatic - so if you feel I'm trying to tell you what to think, I'm really not, I swear. I'm telling you what I think, that's all.
Why is it OK for Marvel to take a name from Shakespeare but not you?
The answer is that it's OK for you to use it too! The setting for your game is yours to build from any and all things that inspire you. The only time you need to worry about using something in a way that doesn't respect the origin is when you start to profit from it. Beyond that, it's just your private game and fun.
Many place names are used and reused. For instance according to the website for Aberdeen in Scotland they share their name with 30 other locations. So have at it, if you like Madripoor then use it. Although for my part I read Madripoor as Marid-poor and now picture it as a small coastal town run by a down on their luck Marid Genie.
It's perfectly ok for absolutely anyone to use the name Caliban.
However, I take pride in coming up with my own stuff. I did not come up with Caliban, I just liked it and ripped it. And I realise the title of this thread is 'something-something morals'. But ... I'm in no way saying it's morally wrong to use a name. I'm saying it's morally wrong to pat myself on the back for my creativity - then go wholesale importing other people's stuff.
Wholesale being perhaps too big of a word. But still.
Blanket disclaimer: I only ever state opinion. But I can sound terribly dogmatic - so if you feel I'm trying to tell you what to think, I'm really not, I swear. I'm telling you what I think, that's all.
i'd say it is as you say it right there, how much do you self back pat, is the real measure of what you speak.
If you know you lifted X% of your material and create the rest yourself. Then i'd assume as long as you keep the self back patting to the % of effort you put in, no foul/misrepresentation is happening.
Also as a GM, my actual real measure is: are the players having fun?
If i successfully facilitate everyone having a fun session, then i was a good GM and that's what i pat myself on the back for.
A great GM,, can run a paid for module as is without supplying a lot of their own personal creatively to the world. If they run it well and everyone has a great time, they were a good GM and deserve the back pats.
You know ... you may be onto something.
I'm not the guy who can run a bought module and do great. I'm sorta mediocre at most GM tasks, actually kinda awful at combat - so maybe that's why I need to give myself some credit for the one thing I'm actually good at: Inventing my own stuff.
I'm going to assume my regular players would have the same amount of fun, no matter the percentage of lifted material. But I think I need them to have fun playing stuff I came up with on my own.
Blanket disclaimer: I only ever state opinion. But I can sound terribly dogmatic - so if you feel I'm trying to tell you what to think, I'm really not, I swear. I'm telling you what I think, that's all.
steal shamelessly
that is the best advice i have ever been given as a dm. one of my major npcs is named belisarius cawl after 40k lore, i used the name bc it fit the npc as an easter egg and i love the name. go ahead, take what you want!
Well - yes, I value the depth of this insight. And I mostly agree with you ... yet:
There's a word in Danish - Olm - dating back a long, long time. It basically means angry. A player of mine made a hammer for his own character, with the head of a ram, and named it Olm. And it was such a great name for a magic item, it stands out now so many years later. He invented that, all of it - the name, the magic, the design of the weapon.
It would not have been as memorable if he'd had a +1 frostbrand. You know? So .. you're right, only that's not all there is to be said about it =)
Blanket disclaimer: I only ever state opinion. But I can sound terribly dogmatic - so if you feel I'm trying to tell you what to think, I'm really not, I swear. I'm telling you what I think, that's all.