OGL and Monster description text

[TJSM]

Hi all,

As part of a project that is OGL/CUP compliant, can you use the descriptive text for monsters/NPCs from from the bestiaries/Adventures/APs/GMG?

Reading the product identity statement I don't believe that this text seems to necessarily fall under that, excluding, say, the description of a Red Mantis Assassin NPC which would clearly not fall under OGL but could fall under community use.

Specifically, I'm asking if it is acceptable to include (using arbiter as an example) the: "These spherical inevitables..." along with the stat block.

Thanks for the help!

[skizzerz]

Yes. The OGL applies to everything in the book, including descriptive text. The Product Identity statement then specifies things that are not OGL (e.g. the name “Red Mantis”). However, those bits of Golarion setting stuff are covered by the CUP, so if you’re using both you can reproduce it in full (provided you meet all requirements of using the CUP).

If you were OGL-only, you’d need to “file off the serial numbers” of anything mentioned as PI (such as replacing “Red Mantis” with “Assassin’s Guild” or just omitting it entirely, depending on what makes more sense in context).