Quote from: GeekyBugle on January 22, 2023, 01:31:16 PM

Quote from: RPGPundit on January 22, 2023, 01:15:24 PM

Quote from: BoxCrayonTales on January 21, 2023, 12:33:01 PM
Another widely used concept that can fall under fire: outer planes. A plane for each alignment, along the axes of law/chaos and good/evil, with its own race of anthropomorphic personifications, with additional races of petitioners. The concept is detailed enough that WotC probably has a valid copyright claim, and Pazio can't avoid this just by reducing the number of planes from 18 to 9.

People are welcome to use my planes from World of the Last Sun:

Wisconsin? And it's not Earth? Now I HAVE to buy the book just find out why, and also to thank you for the planes, I assume there's rules to travel between yes?

Well, there's means to travel through the planes. If you're running DCC, the Planar Step spell, for example. Also powerful artifacts. And the Grey Realm people use their UFOs to travel through the lower planes.

And no, the Wisconsin of the world of the Last Sun is not Earth. But the Last Sun setting is supposedly set in a Dyson Sphere around the last star of our universe, after our universe ceased to exist.  And there are things from Earth that survived in the World of the Last Sun. Keith Richards, for example, is the King of the lost city of Tijuana.

Quote from: Spinachcat on January 23, 2023, 08:34:47 PM

Quote from: FingerRod on January 23, 2023, 04:49:24 PMAccording to a graphic on Professor DM (hi, btw...I'm 99.9% sure you lurk here), 1500 publishers have joined up on ORC.

Does ORC even exist yet? 1500 might have expressed interest, but until the ORC gets published publicly and debated publicly, I can't imagine anyone using it.

Also, for the ORC to be able to support 1500 publishers, it would need a RPG attached that drew a huge chunk of 5e fans away to play the new ORC RPG.

Because if the ORC just produces a Not-5e that 1500 publishers can use to sell 5e/6e compatible products around the WotC OGL, then I'm betting on WotC going on the legal offense.

The ORC's first draft is supposed to come out in February.

Quote from: RPGPundit on January 25, 2023, 10:51:48 PM

Quote from: Spinachcat on January 23, 2023, 08:34:47 PM

Quote from: FingerRod on January 23, 2023, 04:49:24 PMAccording to a graphic on Professor DM (hi, btw...I'm 99.9% sure you lurk here), 1500 publishers have joined up on ORC.

Does ORC even exist yet? 1500 might have expressed interest, but until the ORC gets published publicly and debated publicly, I can't imagine anyone using it.

Also, for the ORC to be able to support 1500 publishers, it would need a RPG attached that drew a huge chunk of 5e fans away to play the new ORC RPG.

Because if the ORC just produces a Not-5e that 1500 publishers can use to sell 5e/6e compatible products around the WotC OGL, then I'm betting on WotC going on the legal offense.

The ORC's first draft is supposed to come out in February.

Interesting, but I won't be using it. There is not reason to use any license unless you just have to produce games using the word-for-word content of the original. I don't see anyone breaking my door down in the future demanding that of me.

Quote from: squirewaldo on January 26, 2023, 08:30:57 AM

Quote from: RPGPundit on January 25, 2023, 10:51:48 PM

Quote from: Spinachcat on January 23, 2023, 08:34:47 PM

Quote from: FingerRod on January 23, 2023, 04:49:24 PMAccording to a graphic on Professor DM (hi, btw...I'm 99.9% sure you lurk here), 1500 publishers have joined up on ORC.

Does ORC even exist yet? 1500 might have expressed interest, but until the ORC gets published publicly and debated publicly, I can't imagine anyone using it.

Also, for the ORC to be able to support 1500 publishers, it would need a RPG attached that drew a huge chunk of 5e fans away to play the new ORC RPG.

Because if the ORC just produces a Not-5e that 1500 publishers can use to sell 5e/6e compatible products around the WotC OGL, then I'm betting on WotC going on the legal offense.

The ORC's first draft is supposed to come out in February.

Interesting, but I won't be using it. There is not reason to use any license unless you just have to produce games using the word-for-word content of the original. I don't see anyone breaking my door down in the future demanding that of me.

I was thinking about using ORC if it's terms were good, but after FingerRod showed me the Lamentations of the Flame Princess use license (aka the "don't be a jerk" license) I think something very much like that that with some actual clarification for non-lawyers of what is and isn't fair use (ie. "yes, you can reproduce monster stat blocks in full" and "yes, you can reference the setting lore, in your work," but "no, you can't just cut and paste the whole thing into your work.") will actually be about perfect for my desires to allow third parties to use my material.

Quote from: Chris24601 on January 26, 2023, 10:09:14 AM

Interesting, but I won't be using it. There is no reason to use any license unless you just have to produce games using the word-for-word content of the original. I don't see anyone breaking my door down in the future demanding that of me.

I was thinking about using ORC if it's terms were good, but after FingerRod showed me the Lamentations of the Flame Princess use license (aka the "don't be a jerk" license) I think something very much like that that with some actual clarification for non-lawyers of what is and isn't fair use (ie. "yes, you can reproduce monster stat blocks in full" and "yes, you can reference the setting lore, in your work," but "no, you can't just cut and paste the whole thing into your work.") will actually be about perfect for my desires to allow third parties to use my material.

Yeah, I just have one question: Why?? Why are people so eager to use some license? Why do they think they NEED to use some license? How does using a license (when you are not just copying and pasting word-for-word) help in any way? I just don't get it. Oh well. To each his own.

Quote from: squirewaldo on January 26, 2023, 10:43:16 AM

Quote from: Chris24601 on January 26, 2023, 10:09:14 AM

Interesting, but I won't be using it. There is no reason to use any license unless you just have to produce games using the word-for-word content of the original. I don't see anyone breaking my door down in the future demanding that of me.

I was thinking about using ORC if it's terms were good, but after FingerRod showed me the Lamentations of the Flame Princess use license (aka the "don't be a jerk" license) I think something very much like that that with some actual clarification for non-lawyers of what is and isn't fair use (ie. "yes, you can reproduce monster stat blocks in full" and "yes, you can reference the setting lore, in your work," but "no, you can't just cut and paste the whole thing into your work.") will actually be about perfect for my desires to allow third parties to use my material.

Yeah, I just have one question: Why?? Why are people so eager to use some license? Why do they think they NEED to use some license? How does using a license (when you are not just copying and pasting word-for-word) help in any way? I just don't get it. Oh well. To each his own.

To clarify and make it safe for people using your stuff they won't get into trouble:

My first game out will be Sci-Fi, I'm making the bestiary from scratch. IF I want people to be able to easily create stuff for the setting, letting them copy/paste monster descriptions is a good idea.

Quote from: squirewaldo on January 26, 2023, 10:43:16 AM

Quote from: Chris24601 on January 26, 2023, 10:09:14 AM

Interesting, but I won't be using it. There is no reason to use any license unless you just have to produce games using the word-for-word content of the original. I don't see anyone breaking my door down in the future demanding that of me.

I was thinking about using ORC if it's terms were good, but after FingerRod showed me the Lamentations of the Flame Princess use license (aka the "don't be a jerk" license) I think something very much like that that with some actual clarification for non-lawyers of what is and isn't fair use (ie. "yes, you can reproduce monster stat blocks in full" and "yes, you can reference the setting lore, in your work," but "no, you can't just cut and paste the whole thing into your work.") will actually be about perfect for my desires to allow third parties to use my material.

Yeah, I just have one question: Why?? Why are people so eager to use some license? Why do they think they NEED to use some license? How does using a license (when you are not just copying and pasting word-for-word) help in any way? I just don't get it. Oh well. To each his own.

I'm guessing you've never had to take anything to court (plaintiff or defendant).

People are naturally risk averse. Uncertainty keeps a lot of people who'd otherwise act from choosing to do all sorts of things. Particularly when the idea of being sued and all the associated costs in US courts is basically a nightmare scenario for most ordinary people.

Sure, anyone can take any part of a game, make a work using parts of it and claim fair use. But unless you're already well experienced and familiar with copyright law you're basically just guessing where the line is. So in the face of uncertainty of where that line is a lot of people who have a cool idea just won't even try.

A clear license that tells a third party creator where the safe lines are is a huge benefit to all those people who have a cool idea, but don't want to risk getting sued. Having clear lines means all they have to worry about is polishing their cool idea to make it as awesome as possible. They don't have to wonder if this part or that part might get them a C&D notice or other legal actions they don't have the time or money to deal with dropped in their lap.

Again, I am approaching this not from the PoV of USING a license. I'm approaching it from the perspective of OFFERING a license. I want content creators with cool ideas (that don't want to build their own system) to feel safe using my system to present their ideas because we both win from that.

Quote from: Chris24601 on January 26, 2023, 11:26:49 AM

Quote from: squirewaldo on January 26, 2023, 10:43:16 AM

Quote from: Chris24601 on January 26, 2023, 10:09:14 AM

Interesting, but I won't be using it. There is no reason to use any license unless you just have to produce games using the word-for-word content of the original. I don't see anyone breaking my door down in the future demanding that of me.

I was thinking about using ORC if it's terms were good, but after FingerRod showed me the Lamentations of the Flame Princess use license (aka the "don't be a jerk" license) I think something very much like that that with some actual clarification for non-lawyers of what is and isn't fair use (ie. "yes, you can reproduce monster stat blocks in full" and "yes, you can reference the setting lore, in your work," but "no, you can't just cut and paste the whole thing into your work.") will actually be about perfect for my desires to allow third parties to use my material.

Yeah, I just have one question: Why?? Why are people so eager to use some license? Why do they think they NEED to use some license? How does using a license (when you are not just copying and pasting word-for-word) help in any way? I just don't get it. Oh well. To each his own.

I'm guessing you've never had to take anything to court (plaintiff or defendant).

People are naturally risk averse. Uncertainty keeps a lot of people who'd otherwise act from choosing to do all sorts of things. Particularly when the idea of being sued and all the associated costs in US courts is basically a nightmare scenario for most ordinary people.

Sure, anyone can take any part of a game, make a work using parts of it and claim fair use. But unless you're already well experienced and familiar with copyright law you're basically just guessing where the line is. So in the face of uncertainty of where that line is a lot of people who have a cool idea just won't even try.

A clear license that tells a third party creator where the safe lines are is a huge benefit to all those people who have a cool idea, but don't want to risk getting sued. Having clear lines means all they have to worry about is polishing their cool idea to make it as awesome as possible. They don't have to wonder if this part or that part might get them a C&D notice or other legal actions they don't have the time or money to deal with dropped in their lap.

Again, I am approaching this not from the PoV of USING a license. I'm approaching it from the perspective of OFFERING a license. I want content creators with cool ideas (that don't want to build their own system) to feel safe using my system to present their ideas because we both win from that.

I am a retired trial lawyer! hahahahahahahaha!

I will never use a license to avoid having to come up with my own original content (again... yeah I fell for the OGL and perhaps that is why I am so bitter at my own stupidity -- I should have known better!). However, I do use the CC in order to make it easier for other people to use my content, at least for some items. And it is quite satisfactory at that.

I was actually talking to someone about this issue this morning... how ignorant the game community is about the laws that affect them. If I talk to a real estate agent, most of them know more about real estate law than I do. The same for almost every other area of human endeavor. It makes sense. They have to deal with this stuff every damned day and their livelihood depends upon them making the right decisions. But when you talk to gamers and game designers you get a bunch of people who know nothing while holding themselves out as world renowned experts. Very odd.

Quote from: squirewaldo on January 26, 2023, 02:03:49 PM

I was actually talking to someone about this issue this morning... how ignorant the game community is about the laws that affect them. If I talk to a real estate agent, most of them know more about real estate law than I do. The same for almost every other area of human endeavor. It makes sense. They have to deal with this stuff every damned day and their livelihood depends upon them making the right decisions. But when you talk to gamers and game designers you get a bunch of people who know nothing while holding themselves out as world renowned experts. Very odd.

There's nothing odd about that at all.  You get the same effect with many musicians, actors, artists, etc.  Anytime you mix Ego, lack of thought, and the Dunning-Kruger effect, it's a potent brew.  That's more likely to happen in some professions than others.

Quote from: squirewaldo on January 26, 2023, 02:03:49 PM

Quote from: Chris24601 on January 26, 2023, 11:26:49 AM

Quote from: squirewaldo on January 26, 2023, 10:43:16 AM

Quote from: Chris24601 on January 26, 2023, 10:09:14 AM

Interesting, but I won't be using it. There is no reason to use any license unless you just have to produce games using the word-for-word content of the original. I don't see anyone breaking my door down in the future demanding that of me.

I was thinking about using ORC if it's terms were good, but after FingerRod showed me the Lamentations of the Flame Princess use license (aka the "don't be a jerk" license) I think something very much like that that with some actual clarification for non-lawyers of what is and isn't fair use (ie. "yes, you can reproduce monster stat blocks in full" and "yes, you can reference the setting lore, in your work," but "no, you can't just cut and paste the whole thing into your work.") will actually be about perfect for my desires to allow third parties to use my material.

Yeah, I just have one question: Why?? Why are people so eager to use some license? Why do they think they NEED to use some license? How does using a license (when you are not just copying and pasting word-for-word) help in any way? I just don't get it. Oh well. To each his own.

I'm guessing you've never had to take anything to court (plaintiff or defendant).

People are naturally risk averse. Uncertainty keeps a lot of people who'd otherwise act from choosing to do all sorts of things. Particularly when the idea of being sued and all the associated costs in US courts is basically a nightmare scenario for most ordinary people.

Sure, anyone can take any part of a game, make a work using parts of it and claim fair use. But unless you're already well experienced and familiar with copyright law you're basically just guessing where the line is. So in the face of uncertainty of where that line is a lot of people who have a cool idea just won't even try.

A clear license that tells a third party creator where the safe lines are is a huge benefit to all those people who have a cool idea, but don't want to risk getting sued. Having clear lines means all they have to worry about is polishing their cool idea to make it as awesome as possible. They don't have to wonder if this part or that part might get them a C&D notice or other legal actions they don't have the time or money to deal with dropped in their lap.

Again, I am approaching this not from the PoV of USING a license. I'm approaching it from the perspective of OFFERING a license. I want content creators with cool ideas (that don't want to build their own system) to feel safe using my system to present their ideas because we both win from that.

I am a retired trial lawyer! hahahahahahahaha!

I will never use a license to avoid having to come up with my own original content (again... yeah I fell for the OGL and perhaps that is why I am so bitter at my own stupidity -- I should have known better!). However, I do use the CC in order to make it easier for other people to use my content, at least for some items. And it is quite satisfactory at that.

I was actually talking to someone about this issue this morning... how ignorant the game community is about the laws that affect them. If I talk to a real estate agent, most of them know more about real estate law than I do. The same for almost every other area of human endeavor. It makes sense. They have to deal with this stuff every damned day and their livelihood depends upon them making the right decisions. But when you talk to gamers and game designers you get a bunch of people who know nothing while holding themselves out as world renowned experts. Very odd.

I'd suggest then that your familiarity with the law might be why you're not nearly as risk averse to ending up in the middle of a dispute over it. You don't see the importance of a license to the layman because you're the proverbial fish in the ocean who doesn't understand why an airbreather would want a SCUBA tank to go exploring underwater because you can breathe just fine. What is easily navigable to you is quite dangerous to those without the right equipment and training.

I also suspect that the reasons most gamers and writers aren't up on the whole copyright thing is, in general, they aren't dealing with it every damned day nor does their livelihood depend on interacting with it daily. What they are dealing with every day is rather creative expression and how to effectively communicate the ideas in their head into various mediums. The legal elements are ancillary and often obstacles in that process you only interact with at selected points and only bother to learn to the bare extent needed to to not have to deal with them at all.

Again, this is the advantage of a clear license agreement for laymen. A clear license means the creators don't have to split their focus between learning the law and learning the tools of the trade for producing creative works. Follow clear rule X, Y, Z and you don't have to worry about being dragged into the legal arena you really want no part of at all.

Quote from: squirewaldo on January 26, 2023, 02:03:49 PM

Quote from: Chris24601 on January 26, 2023, 11:26:49 AM

Quote from: squirewaldo on January 26, 2023, 10:43:16 AM

Quote from: Chris24601 on January 26, 2023, 10:09:14 AM

Interesting, but I won't be using it. There is no reason to use any license unless you just have to produce games using the word-for-word content of the original. I don't see anyone breaking my door down in the future demanding that of me.

I was thinking about using ORC if it's terms were good, but after FingerRod showed me the Lamentations of the Flame Princess use license (aka the "don't be a jerk" license) I think something very much like that that with some actual clarification for non-lawyers of what is and isn't fair use (ie. "yes, you can reproduce monster stat blocks in full" and "yes, you can reference the setting lore, in your work," but "no, you can't just cut and paste the whole thing into your work.") will actually be about perfect for my desires to allow third parties to use my material.

Yeah, I just have one question: Why?? Why are people so eager to use some license? Why do they think they NEED to use some license? How does using a license (when you are not just copying and pasting word-for-word) help in any way? I just don't get it. Oh well. To each his own.

I'm guessing you've never had to take anything to court (plaintiff or defendant).

People are naturally risk averse. Uncertainty keeps a lot of people who'd otherwise act from choosing to do all sorts of things. Particularly when the idea of being sued and all the associated costs in US courts is basically a nightmare scenario for most ordinary people.

Sure, anyone can take any part of a game, make a work using parts of it and claim fair use. But unless you're already well experienced and familiar with copyright law you're basically just guessing where the line is. So in the face of uncertainty of where that line is a lot of people who have a cool idea just won't even try.

A clear license that tells a third party creator where the safe lines are is a huge benefit to all those people who have a cool idea, but don't want to risk getting sued. Having clear lines means all they have to worry about is polishing their cool idea to make it as awesome as possible. They don't have to wonder if this part or that part might get them a C&D notice or other legal actions they don't have the time or money to deal with dropped in their lap.

Again, I am approaching this not from the PoV of USING a license. I'm approaching it from the perspective of OFFERING a license. I want content creators with cool ideas (that don't want to build their own system) to feel safe using my system to present their ideas because we both win from that.

I am a retired trial lawyer! hahahahahahahaha!

I will never use a license to avoid having to come up with my own original content (again... yeah I fell for the OGL and perhaps that is why I am so bitter at my own stupidity -- I should have known better!). However, I do use the CC in order to make it easier for other people to use my content, at least for some items. And it is quite satisfactory at that.

I was actually talking to someone about this issue this morning... how ignorant the game community is about the laws that affect them. If I talk to a real estate agent, most of them know more about real estate law than I do. The same for almost every other area of human endeavor. It makes sense. They have to deal with this stuff every damned day and their livelihood depends upon them making the right decisions. But when you talk to gamers and game designers you get a bunch of people who know nothing while holding themselves out as world renowned experts. Very odd.

Trial lawyer =/= Copyright Lawyer

Or people want to create content for a game they enjoy, but you go ahead and characterize them as lazy.

I prefer relying on Fair Use than dealing with any OGL

UNLESS

I was selling a product that I wanted to be 100% compatible with another company's game.

Very few D&D players went off the TSR plantation because unless it said "Approved for AD&D", there was a level of conversion effort with any of the unlicensed 3PP products of the era.

When the D20 license hit, D&D players had the safety blanket of (mis)believing the D20 products were just as accurate to 3e's rules as any official WotC release. And that faith continued onto many OGL products.

That's the value of the OGL. It gives faith to purchasers that your product can be used without any extra effort out of the box with their current edition D&D.

Yes, we know lots of people on this forum are the kind to tinker and convert anything to anything. Heck, I've turned Traveller deckplans into OD&D dungeons for fun. But converters are a minority among gamers.

I saw plenty of posts of Dragonsfoot back in the early 00s about people who won't use AD&D 1e products in their 2e campaigns, let alone something from B/X and whenever anything OSR is mentioned, they want to know which TSR edition it's compatible with. And by compatible, they want McIntosh to McIntosh, not just apples to apples.

Quote from: Spinachcat on January 26, 2023, 05:01:24 PM
I prefer relying on Fair Use than dealing with any OGL

UNLESS

I was selling a product that I wanted to be 100% compatible with another company's game.

I generally agree and, now that I know it exists, I absolutely adore the simplicity of this as a basis;

LotFP Compatibility License Terms 1.4
This license allows non-affiliated "third party" publishers to release free or commercial publications for use with, and declaring compatibility with, LotFP Weird Fantasy Role-Playing. You do not have to pay a licensing fee nor submit your product for review prior to publication.

1) Your product must comply with all applicable trademark and copyright laws. LotFP is not responsible for any infringement claims against your product.

2) The title of the work may not contain "Lamentations of the Flame Princess," "LotFP," nor have a three word product name beginning with "Death" and ending with "Doom."

3) The compatibility statement/logo must be smaller than your product's title and your company's logo.

4) Your product must not in any other way give the impression that it is an official LotFP release.

5) In your legal text, and on the website you promote the work, you must include the following: "This product is an independent production by [Your Company Name] and is not affiliated with Lamentations of the Flame Princess. Lamentations of the Flame Princess is a registered trademark owned by James Edward Raggi IV."

6) You must submit one copy of your product, in every format it is published, to LotFP after publication.

That's IT. Less than 200 words.

I'd want to tweak it slightly for my own use... my own company ID, I don't care about the supplement's title, I want to give some clear examples of fair use for those who haven't recently had a course on "art, trademark & copyright law" (It was a required course while I was in art school, but it's been twenty years and I wouldn't trust what I remember), etc... but it's basically just "fair use and don't be a dick."

Quote from: Chris24601 on January 26, 2023, 05:43:18 PM

Quote from: Spinachcat on January 26, 2023, 05:01:24 PM
I prefer relying on Fair Use than dealing with any OGL

UNLESS

I was selling a product that I wanted to be 100% compatible with another company's game.

I generally agree and, now that I know it exists, I absolutely adore the simplicity of this as a basis;

LotFP Compatibility License Terms 1.4
This license allows non-affiliated "third party" publishers to release free or commercial publications for use with, and declaring compatibility with, LotFP Weird Fantasy Role-Playing. You do not have to pay a licensing fee nor submit your product for review prior to publication.

1) Your product must comply with all applicable trademark and copyright laws. LotFP is not responsible for any infringement claims against your product.

2) The title of the work may not contain "Lamentations of the Flame Princess," "LotFP," nor have a three word product name beginning with "Death" and ending with "Doom."

3) The compatibility statement/logo must be smaller than your product's title and your company's logo.

4) Your product must not in any other way give the impression that it is an official LotFP release.

5) In your legal text, and on the website you promote the work, you must include the following: "This product is an independent production by [Your Company Name] and is not affiliated with Lamentations of the Flame Princess. Lamentations of the Flame Princess is a registered trademark owned by James Edward Raggi IV."

6) You must submit one copy of your product, in every format it is published, to LotFP after publication.

That's IT. Less than 200 words.

I'd want to tweak it slightly for my own use... my own company ID, I don't care about the supplement's title, I want to give some clear examples of fair use for those who haven't recently had a course on "art, trademark & copyright law" (It was a required course while I was in art school, but it's been twenty years and I wouldn't trust what I remember), etc... but it's basically just "fair use and don't be a dick."

I might be wrong but IMHO, points 1 thru 5 are the actual USA law just stated in layman's terms

And point 6 means that in exchange for Raggi allowing you to do what the law allows you to do you have to give him one copy of your work on every format published.

Unless I missed the part about using his IP without worries?

In short, the "don't be a dick" license, shows Raggi to be one.

Quote from: GeekyBugle on January 26, 2023, 06:37:26 PM

Quote from: Chris24601 on January 26, 2023, 05:43:18 PM

Quote from: Spinachcat on January 26, 2023, 05:01:24 PM
I prefer relying on Fair Use than dealing with any OGL

UNLESS

I was selling a product that I wanted to be 100% compatible with another company's game.

I generally agree and, now that I know it exists, I absolutely adore the simplicity of this as a basis;

LotFP Compatibility License Terms 1.4
This license allows non-affiliated "third party" publishers to release free or commercial publications for use with, and declaring compatibility with, LotFP Weird Fantasy Role-Playing. You do not have to pay a licensing fee nor submit your product for review prior to publication.

1) Your product must comply with all applicable trademark and copyright laws. LotFP is not responsible for any infringement claims against your product.

2) The title of the work may not contain "Lamentations of the Flame Princess," "LotFP," nor have a three word product name beginning with "Death" and ending with "Doom."

3) The compatibility statement/logo must be smaller than your product's title and your company's logo.

4) Your product must not in any other way give the impression that it is an official LotFP release.

5) In your legal text, and on the website you promote the work, you must include the following: "This product is an independent production by [Your Company Name] and is not affiliated with Lamentations of the Flame Princess. Lamentations of the Flame Princess is a registered trademark owned by James Edward Raggi IV."

6) You must submit one copy of your product, in every format it is published, to LotFP after publication.

That's IT. Less than 200 words.

I'd want to tweak it slightly for my own use... my own company ID, I don't care about the supplement's title, I want to give some clear examples of fair use for those who haven't recently had a course on "art, trademark & copyright law" (It was a required course while I was in art school, but it's been twenty years and I wouldn't trust what I remember), etc... but it's basically just "fair use and don't be a dick."

I might be wrong but IMHO, points 1 thru 5 are the actual USA law just stated in layman's terms

And point 6 means that in exchange for Raggi allowing you to do what the law allows you to do you have to give him one copy of your work on every format published.

Unless I missed the part about using his IP without worries?

In short, the "don't be a dick" license, shows Raggi to be one.

Sometimes stating things in layman's terms is important for getting a layman to make use of an opportunity that otherwise only lawyers would feel confident enough to do (or even realize IS an option). Just because you happen to be familiar with IP law enough to realize you can make "compatible with" products doesn't mean everyone is. I'd wager the vast majority of players and GM's have no idea they could actually write up and sell their adventures for money without infringing on the game system they're using's copyrights.

THAT is where a "layman's license" is quite useful. Personally, I'd just ask for a PDF of the material for reference (so I know what other content creators are doing. I don't demand perpetual irrevocable royalty-free licenses to others works so I want to know what others are doing so I don't infringe on THEIR copyright either... but again, I'd want someone helping me navigate IP matters without needing to shell out hundreds of dollars to a lawyer to have a copy of what I'd done with their material anyway.