So It Is Written, So It Is Done - LaNasa v. Tenkar - Case Dismissed With Prejudice

What can I say other than to thank everyone for their support and kind words over the last year and a half. No more shackles ;)

The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. The Tavern DOES NOT do "Paid For" Articles and discloses personal connections to products and creators written about when applicable.

DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.  You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube,  or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar  

Dave Johnson's (Star Frontiers New Genesis/nuTSR Writer) Has a Website (apparently created by a third-party) Devoted to His Hateful & Bigoted Tweets

I was shown the below link late this afternoon. It took me a while to digest what I was seeing and to reconcile how any sane individual could share so much hateful and bigoted content.

I'm not going to share the content on The Tavern, but I will link to the site below, as well as Dave's Twitter account, which as I type this still has the tweets collected on the below website.

https://nohateingames.wixsite.com/home

https://twitter.com/DavefilmsUs

Contest - Write up the Lanasian Craptor and You May Win a $50 DTRPG Gift Certificate

Well, I've been parodied twice thus far by NuTSR - not that it matters much because apparently, TSR can't ship anything.

Fugli was kind enough to gift me with parody art of the LanasaCraptor Lanasian Craptor (edit - you can write for either title, but I like the second better ;), and I do think it captures a bit of Justin's inner self.

Not one to let a good piece of art go to waste, I've decided to run a contest to see who can do the best write-up of the above creature, using the OSR ruleset of their choice (or no ruleset - "generic" - if that is your choice).

To enter, simply comment below with a small stat block and at least a paragraph or two describing the Lanasian Craptor's habits, environment, tactics - whatever awaken's your inner muse.

Entries must be in by Noon Eastern, Friday, March 25th, 2022 - so you have four days. Results will be announced Saturday, March 26th, 2022 at 6 PM on the blog side and 8 PM on the Gamers' Health Livestream.

Note, entries will be judged for creativity and entertainment value, as well as in-game useability. You may enter more than once.

One winner will receive a $50 DTRPG Gift Certificate and possible inclusion in a future issue of Torchlight. The Tavern reserves the right to award additional prizes if so decided.

Good luck to all.

The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern. 

You can catch the daily Tavern Chat podcast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar  

It's Just Like the Pre-Retconned Star Wars Movie - WotC DID Strike First against TSR3 (Filing Download Included)

This is purely going to be a data dump, as folks have been asking me for the legal action WotC filed against TSR3 THE DAY BEFORE TSR filed legal action against WotC.

Filing of WotC vs TSR DropBox Link

https://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/v?pno=92078589&pty=CAN&eno=1 (US Patent and Trademark Office link)

Edit: So, an individual, likely associated with the "TSR Army" - barely a Fire Team at best, decided to dox me. I'm sharing my response here because I have NOTHING to hide:

So, VP-APNI just spammed the channel with 10 posts, with my "real" last name, because of "reasons". The posts are deleted, not because he's was posting my "real" last name - Stiene - which is in Swords & Wizardry Light, Swords & Wizardry Complete, AND listed on BoardGame Geeks, but because he was spamming the channel with literal spam. Ah, the TSR ARMY, an army of one special individual. BTW, there never was a deli on Haspel Street VP-APNI. Now get your shinebox!

The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern. 

You can catch the daily Tavern Chat podcast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar 

News - TSR Voluntarily Dismisses Legal Action Against WotC Without Prejudice

I'm just sharing this for newsworthiness. I don't have any inside information as to WHY the dismissal was filed.

Nite, "without prejudice" means TSR reserves the right to file again in the future.

The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern. 

You can catch the daily Tavern Chat podcast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar 

TSR3 Files "Complaint for Declaratory of Judgement" Regarding Trademark and Copyright Disputes with WotC

TSR vs WotC

Exhibit A

Indiegogo

See links above for the filing and Exhibit A.

Note that this filing is about trademarks and copyrights. It has NOTHING to do with the infamous "WotC Legacy Disclaimer". It has nothing to do with slander or libel.

I'm going to share the rest of the screenshots of Exhibit A:

It appears that the announcement of the "new" Star Frontiers title, shared on Facebook with the cover of the original release from the "old" TSR was the catalyst for the letter from WotC's attorney (as it was sent six days after the Facebook post in question.)

This begs the question: how much did WotC actually care about the apparent graphical trademark usurpation by TSR3, before TSR3 committed an unforced foul in using the original Star Frontiers Alpha Dawn cover to announce their reboot? Is this an "in for a penny, in for a pound" situation, where if you don't assert ownership of all, you could lose ownership of all? Also, this email was sent, right around the TSR3 social media meltdown. Was that too much for WotC to ignore? Again, an unforced foul.

From the filing itself, we get some insight into Evil Hat's abandonment of the Star Frontiers TM:

Interesting times ;)

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You can catch the daily Tavern Chat podcast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar 

Has Wonderfilled Taken up Trolling TSR3 for the Holidays?

You know it must be the time of giving, as Steve Dineheart, AKA Wonderfilled, is trying to sell some TSR-themed URLs. You see, Wonderfilled wants YOU to give them big bucks for some useless TSR URLs. Hmmm... is this like paying for coal in your stockings?

I'm guessing these are URLs that Dineheart snagged back when Wonderfilled and TSR were united as one, and then when it was time for irreconcilable differences, Wonderfilled ran off with these.

They are useless to anyone unless you intend to do some fairly expensive trolling of TSR3 (both currently redirect to Wonderfilled Games' Homepage).

Oh, and I hate to break it to y'all, but if you were hoping to snag a copy of the Giantlands pre-order, you can't. As of 22 minutes ago, as I type this, preorders closed. You'll have to find another way to cosplay with masks and plastic ponchos during the Christmas Holiday.

The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern. 

You can catch the daily Tavern Chat podcast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar 

TSR Con 2022 is Now the Same Weekend as Gary Con - March 24-27, 2022

Late this afternoon, the above convention flyer was shared by TSR CON on the TSR CON Facebook page (and elsewhere on Facebook).

Note, the venue is no longer Horticultural Hall but the Dungeon Hobby Shop Museum. This should lower expenses for the convention itself, as LaNassa owns the Dungeon Hobby Shop Museum. It is unclear how much attendance will cost and the maximum occupancy of the venue is not currently stated.

Also note, the timing is no longer the 4th of July weekend (July 1-3, 2022) but the same weekend as Gary Con (March 24-27, 2022). The timing is NOT coincidental and appears to be an attempt to piggyback off of Gary Con and the convention attendees. 

I've heard rumors from multiple sources that LaNassa was attempting to get paid by Gary Con for the use of the Dungeon Hobby Shop Museum and was rebuffed. I've also heard that the Dungeon Hobby Shop Museum had requested that Gary Con provide free shuttle service from Gary Con to the museum and the museum was rebuffed.

As an observation, this is the first time in my recollection that a gaming convention has announced dates and a venue location to coincide with an established convention.

For reference, the original flyer with the original date is still available on the TSR CON Facebook page. It is reproduced here for ease of reference.

It appears TSR CON has gained a sponsor (Smugglers Coffee). Now, only three out of five sponsors are entities owned by Justin LaNassa.

Note, Smugglers Coffee has a website and it appears gamers are behind the brand. I'm not a coffee drinker, but maybe you are. If so, here's the link for Smugglers Coffee.

The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.  You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube,  or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar