[TML] Copyright issues

[shadow at shadowgard.com]

On 30 Aug 2007 at 10:53, Bruce Johnson wrote:

> On Aug 29, 2007, at 5:31 PM, GDWGAMES at aol.com wrote:
> 
> >>>> We were preparing several dozen examples of prior art, but never  
> >>>> got to
> >> use
> >>>> them.
> >>>
> >>> This is an interesting statement.  I know war games used dice for  
> >>> combat
> >>> before D&D, but does the prior art include creating characters?
> >
> > Yes. Down to characteristics, personality traits, and even a  
> > distinction
> > between characters controlled by a player and those controlled by the
> > umpire/referee/GM/whatever (NPCs in other words). My reference  
> > material for this is
> > currently in storage, so I'm afraid I cannot previde specific  
> > citations, but I refer
> > to a number of 1:1 skirmish games played with 54mm figures in the  
> > 1960s and
> > 1970s, as well as other types of games.
> 
> Wasn't D&D itself a derivation of a minis game called Chainmail?

Yes, but since Chainmail was a TSR product (I still have my copy) 
that only helped TSR's position.

--
Leonard Erickson (aka shadow)
shadow at shadowgard dot com