Hi

Could someone (FFG?) clarify how we are allowed to use artwork from descent on fansites and/or wikipedia?

I'm editing pages on the wikia descent2e page [1].

I would like to make visually appealing templates to describe the various cards.

What i found so far is [2] which states that:

You are not allowed to show scans of more than 72 dpi (FFG legal)

Does this mean it's ok to show whatever artwork by FFG as long as the scans are not above 72 dpi?

What about the graphics found in the news sections e.g. [3]

There are quite high quality images of the cards like [4]. Are we allowed to use these images on other sides?

If yes, under what kind of license? I should/need to specify a license when uploading something to a wiki.

I see there are in the delete-log [5] of the wiki a lot of entries which remove files with the remark " Copyright violation".

These images appear to have been scans of whole cards. There is/was a discussion on the descent2e wiki (i can't find it anymore), which states that it is ok to use cropped images but not a scan of a whole card. Is this an official statement by FFG? If yes, could i please get a source on this?

TL;DR:

What are the rules on using artwork by FFG.

Best regards

Matthias

[1]: http://descent2e.wikia.com

[2]: http://www.descentinthedark.com/2nd/

[3]: https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/news/2014/5/20/forge-your-path/

[4]: https://images-cdn.fantasyflightgames.com/ffg_content/descent-second-ed/guest-articles/cards/solidarity.png

[5]: http://descent2e.wikia.com/wiki/Special:Log/delete

I got this response from FFG regarding the use of images on my d2etracker.com website. Don't know if its any help in this case:

FFG has an email for questions of this nature. While Atom4geVampire's response is likely accurate, I recommend contacting FFG legal directly:

https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/more/legal-information/

I'm almost positive that they're okay with people using artwork and such, but not full scans of cards. People can print out the full scans and make their own cards to avoid paying FFG for their materials. I could be wrong, but that's how I've always taken it.

I'd be interested to see what they say if you do indeed email them, though.

Thank you for your replies.

I have sent an email

Just so you know, it took about 10 days before I got a reply

Sorry for not responding sooner.

I gathered the results of my inquiries here:

http://descent2e.wikia.com/wiki/Legal

Best Regards

Matthias

When it comes to stuff like this, the best general approach is "Don't ask, don't tell" .

Companies tend to be legally obligated to enforce their IP:s, or they risk losing the right to them, fully or partially. Since a lot of companies do not want to be 'tards about the whole thing, they tend to ignore anything and everything that could conceivably go under fair use, provided they don't think that you're using it unfavourably, or using it for monetary gain. Furthermore, in the vast majority of cases where the holders of an IP have to intervene or disagree with your usage of their IP, they have to give you a warning first and ask you to take whatever it is down. Rarely does anything like this go to court or enter the realm of courts and legalese unless the one using or abusing the IP in question act maliciously or not in good faith.

So in a nutshell, don't ask, because you might not like the answer, and rest assured that if they want to give you an answer, they will, whether you asked or not.

In the very-most strictest sense of the situation, they could probably stop us from making custom content, too. Especially if you actually print it. But they likely have no interest in doing so, despite the legal technicalities involved, and they'd probably hate to tell you to stop doing so. In most cases, it's free exposure and popularization of their brand.

This doesn't apply specifically to FFG, by the way, but in general. Only the craziest companies will attempt to hunt down individuals doing not-for-profit projects of limited scope that does not defame the company or the product.