Re: Adventures in Glorantha, RQ4

From: Trotsky <TTrotsky_at_blueyonder.co.uk>
Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 17:52:10 +0000


>
>
>Does anyone know the legal status of AiG/RQ4? Avalon Hill was purchased by
>Hasbro but they are unlikely to publish a pen & paper RPG.
>

None the less, they still own the rights to the name "RuneQuest" which therefore cannot be used without their permission. One could, in theory, publish the system under a different name, so long as all the text in the 'new' version was original and didn't infringe the copyrighted text in any of the earlier books. That's in theory - in reality Hasbro's lawyers are almost certainly too expensive to fight off, even if they're manifestly in the wrong (i.e. it would be too expensive to get such a case to court and have the chance of proving that they're wrong). Yes, this sucks, but that's life. Somebody could buy the rights from them, of course, but its difficult to see anyone wanting to stump up the kind of money they'd be likely to ask.

>Chaosium has advertised the return of Basic Role Playing. Any chance that
>they will go all the way, i.e. Publish RQ again?
>

No. Even leaving aside the legal questions, they just don't want to. Sorry :-(

>BTW Any chance for a less abstract combat resolution system in HeroQuest?
>

No. There's nothing to stop you devising one of your own, of course, but there won't be an official one. Again, sorry :-(

-- 
Trotsky
Gamer and Skeptic

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Trotsky's RPG website: http://www.ttrotsky.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/



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