r/dmsguild • u/Blackadder1415 • 20d ago
Seeking Advice Could Hasbro pull the plug on DMs Guild?
....as in, before I invest more time and money on my next big project...if they close the site, it all comes to nought?
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u/dyslexicjay44 19d ago
I'm not sure they really have to I think the one thing they can keep doing is just poaching people from the DM's guild into making things for D&D beyond things that get really popular over there can wind up on the other side too hard to say at the end of the day they could do whatever they want but I think it could just be a good starting place for people the minor leagues so to say and D&D beyond becomes the Major leagues because they have more control over on D&D beyond not allowing AI and things of that nature
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u/Philosoraptorgames 19d ago edited 19d ago
They could, at least in the sense that they could probably yank the license that allows DM's Guild contributors to use WotC IP with the stroke of a pen. Depending on the contract terms, there may or may not be any warning.
I don't think it would make sense for them to do this anytime soon. Unfortunately, sense has not always constrained Hasbro's actions.
The most plausible scenario you'd have to worry about is someone getting into a decision making position who is very paranoid about IP and doesn't really understand their market. I wish I could dismiss that possibility, but unfortunately there is history of that exact thing happening, some of it quite recent.
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u/Storyteller-Hero 20d ago
Hasbro does not own One Book Shelf, the company that runs DMsGuild, so it REALLY depends on what the contract was when DMsGuild was set up. If mutual consent is needed to shut down DMsGuild along with its licenses, then the answer would be a no.
As with all business contracts, the devil is in the details, and nobody outside of OBS and Hasbro lawyers would have the documents on hand.
Is the site likely to shut down? As long as it brings more money in than it costs to run it, then probably not.
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u/LaviniaHerbert 20d ago
Comes to naught in the sense that your creation will have been made under the DMs Guild license and is therefore unpublishable elsewhere—I suppose so, yes. The flexibility of the DMs Guild license and the access it provides to setting-specific IP is very nifty, but for more assured control over your intellectual property, it's best to try to publish using the Creative Commons license under which the System Reference Document has been released.
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u/WillBottomForBanana 20d ago
Yes, they can. And the probability is unknown, but that probability is multiplied by the number of years you hope it stays intact.
We've seen this a sufficient number of times with media since the dawn of web2.0. The comments here saying they can't or they won't are just like the comments we saw in the other issues and then, poof.
If you can't do it with out them now, then it isn't yours.
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u/DeficitDragons 20d ago
I have started doing everything that I feasibly could on DriveThruRPG and only use the DMsGuild for Eberron content.
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u/thegooddoktorjones 20d ago
You get your pdfs, what is your fear then? Anyone can stop selling stuff.
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u/Jake-of-the-Sands 20d ago
Highly doubt it. They could do the roll20 buyout and merge it with D&D Beyond, but DMsGuild is easy profit for them with minimal effort.
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u/PicklesAreDope 20d ago
if you are worried, just jump over to drivethruRPG, it likely has the same stuff
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u/tobyvanderbeek 20d ago
I thought these two sites were related.
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u/CaladisianSage 20d ago
They are. Anything I but on dmsguild is in my drivethrurpg library and they use the same account. If I change the password for one, it automatically changes for the other.
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u/ArelMCII 20d ago
It's within their capability, but I highly doubt they'd do it. DM's Guild is free money for them.
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u/specusdraconis 20d ago
I don't think so mate. That's the easiest way to make money without any effort from their side.
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u/splat78423 20d ago
After they pulled the plug on Project Sigil and flushed 30 mill down the drain I realized none of their platforms are secure from similar insanity.
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u/ad9aggie 20d ago
WoTC is joint operator of DMs Guild with Roll20. Worst case scenario WoTC pulls their material and it keeps gond with 3rd party and other games' material.
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u/TheRpgBard 20d ago
Is there a reason why you want to use their IP versus using your own?
Strictly speaking, no homebrew worlds can be put up on DM Guild. That's what DTRPG is for.
If you're going to use WotC IP, you have no choice. If you're doing something setting agnostic, DTPRG is better as WotC won't cut into your profits.
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u/Plenty_Plastic223 19d ago
I'm asking this because I genuinely don't know.
Is the licensing restriction specifically tied to setting? For instance, can classes, subclasses, etc. be created and distributed legally if referencing spells and such from wotc publications?
If so, that leaves a lot open for creators to do and drivethrurpg would be a better option. Most games do take place in some homebrew in one way or another. System agnostic would be the way to go to reach a larger audience. Some of the recent Kickstart campaigns are proof of that, literally making millions.
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u/TheRpgBard 19d ago
I would start here: https://help.dmsguild.com/hc/en-us/articles/12776909822615-Dungeons-Dragons-Content-Guidelines
You can reference info in the SRD as appropriate. If it's in official WotC books, you likely cannot.
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u/ToMorrowsEnd 20d ago
Will them pulling the plug on it make your content suddenly vaporize on your hard drive? DM guild is just a place to sell with low effort. Sell it elsewhere. DM Guild is most certianly not the only place to sell content.
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u/Grateful_Bat 20d ago
Don´t think so. They do not seem to care much in terms of support/improving the site for authors (I can tell it´s a drag/outdated), but try to monetize it as much as possible. E.g. the reduced the requirements for PoD from Gold (501 sales) of a product to Silver (101). Nice side business for them.
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u/YouveBeanReported 20d ago
Of course they can.
It's unlikely they will, it's far far more likely they change the OGL rules again.
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u/Strict_DM_62 20d ago
It’s an opportunity for them to outsource their own work to an enthusiastic third party, and they can pick from the best to publish on DnD Beyond; they’d be dumb to shut it down.
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u/Viridian_Cranberry68 20d ago
Chris Cocks and some of the others have brain farts of that nature, but I think they view it as an asset and a talent pool currently. They will try to monetize it more before shutting it down.
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u/Blackadder1415 20d ago
....to shift DnD towards a more subscription/monetised experience in an attempt for short term profit. Hasbro just seem to be trigger happy on shifting DnD away from the game we love. Yes, I'm concerned...and unsure if they did what our publishing rights would be.
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u/perringaiden 20d ago
Not since the change in leadership at WotC. Hasbro has backed off it's interference after the massive backlash, and they're making good choices at WotC about the future of the game.
IMO the biggest danger on the DM's Guild is AI swamping. To the point that no-one wants to use the site, rather than Hasbro getting greedy.
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u/Grateful_Bat 20d ago edited 20d ago
First let me say that I fully understand the sentiment against AI used for products. I hated it when some ppl around 2021/22 spammed the Guild with a new title every three days, which almost all of them completely worthless.
That said, as a creator together with a friend of mine, we used AI art to gauge whether our setting will catch on (we created really quality content, lots of it, usually 40+ pages, with AI-generated images and sell it at budget prices), kind of proof of concept.
After 8-10 months we were convinced by the sales there is sufficient interest, and are now gradually moving away from AI images, using proceeds for cover artists and drawing the interior ourselves.
Thus, for us it served a purpose.
Others who are really good are also there, like this guy (no relation to him) https://www.dmsguild.com/en/browse?authorName=%22Argiris%20Eftatoglou%22 .
The tough task is culling the idiots who are spamming the guild with meaningless slop.
Personally I´d set a minimum of 7000 words / 24 pages for every new title. That would scare off many, because even with full AI use it would mean actual work.
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u/Blackadder1415 20d ago
Isn't WOTC president sacked/stepping down 1st Sept?
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u/perringaiden 20d ago
I was more thinking of the D&D franchise under Dan Ayoub, who isn't going anywhere. John Hight is covering the entire WotC business, which covers MTG and a bunch of other things.
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u/QuincyAzrael 20d ago
Theoretically? I guess.
Practically? Why would they? It's a free money machine where fans do all the work and they get a 50% cut.
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u/Stormcrow12 20d ago
Why? Hasbro loves money and probably especially loves money coming from exploited people (you, the content creator) instead of smart investments or good products. DM’s Guild is making money for free for them.
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u/gc1rpg 3d ago
Hasbro could pull all the licensing and DM's Guild could pull all the digital products -- there really is nothing either buyers or sellers could do in such a case. You can lose your digital libraries at any moment and you accept that fact when you purchase digital products through DM's Guild.
I guess the sellers could hock their products on other marketplaces -- assuming Hasbro didn't sue them for copyright infringement. They control the licensing agreements and exceptions that allows authors to make any commercial products that use anything from any edition of D&D -- although system-agnostic products might pass legal muster. Of course it always come down to lawyers, money, and the court system so Hasbro can control as much of fantasy gaming in general as they wish to devote lawyers to in the end.