Pathfinder Second Edition Compatibility License Released

[Vic Wertz]

Today, Paizo released the Pathfinder® Second Edition Compatibility License, and interested parties may now sign up for it at paizo.com/pathfinder/compatibility.

Note that this is a separate license from the First Edition Compatibility License, though its terms are very similar. If you wish to use the new Pathfinder Second Edition Compatibility Logo, you must agree to this license, even if you have already agreed to the prior license.

We are also now ready to begin providing early access for qualified publishers to certain Pathfinder Second Edition files in order to help you prepare your products for launch alongside Second Edition on August 1. In order to qualify, you'll need to meet the following criteria:

• You must agree to the new Pathfinder Second Edition Compatibility License at paizo.com/pathfinder/compatibility.
• You must be an active RPG publisher with products currently available through either paizo.com or Alliance Game Distributors.
• You must agree to a Non-Disclosure Agreement that prevents you from sharing the information you gain from early access until the public release date.

Paizo reserves the right to additionally qualify or disqualify parties at our discretion.

If you desire early access and believe you meet the criteria, first register for the Pathfinder Second Edition Compatibility License at the URL listed above, then send an email to [e-mail] including your company name as you registered it and either 1) a link to one of your products for sale on paizo.com (along with the email of your paizo.com account if it is a consigned product), or 2) the Alliance product code (such as PZO2101) for one of your products for sale through Alliance Game Distributors.

Please note that validating a product code through AGD will take us longer than validating a link on paizo.com, so we recommend that you send a paizo.com link if possible.

Once you have been approved for early access, you will be emailed instructions on how to electronically sign the required non-disclosure agreement and obtain the early access package.

If you have already sent an email to [e-mail] regarding this license, you will need to first agree to the license at the link above, then resend your email including the required information.

For those who do not qualify for early access, print and PDF editions of the new rules will be available for sale on August 1, and the Pathfinder Reference Document website will be available for free at pfrd.info.

[Edge93]

I have a question about the license. Say you make a 3pp class and it's going to have one or more class feats from the CRB, either the same or slightly different from their CRB forms (like how some class feats in the Playtest are available to multiple classes, sometimes with minor differences). Do you have to put for that feat entry "see (class name) feats in chapter x of the Pathfinder Second Edition Core Rulebook" and then qualify any differences in that class' version, or would you be allowed to actually put the feat entry there, complete with any changes for your class, since you're actually giving them that ability and not referencing an existing ability like in the example given in the license?

I suppose the same question by extension applies to universal or semi-universal abilities like Weapon Specialization or the increases to weapon proficiency (or even the basic progression parts of the class table like when and how you get skill feats), which leans me towards assuming you could just put the text for those abilities in because otherwise 3pp classes would probably look a mess, with constant flipping back to the CRB to do anything at all.

I apologize if this is an obvious question but it's something I'd like to be quite sure on before making content.

[Vic Wertz]

The Compatibility License doesn't have any specific requirements or restrictions on how you handle things like that. (The closest it comes is section 6, which tells you how to reference a product from the list of products in Exhibit C.)

Keep in mind that the Compatibility License is to be used in conjunction with the OGL, and the OGL tells you can "use" (specifically, "use, Distribute, copy, edit, format, modify, translate and otherwise create Derivative Material of") Open Game Content. The OGL is Wizards of the Coast's license, not Paizo's, so I can't provide any binding advice on that; I'll just say that in my view, that sentence gives you a lot of leeway in your approach.

[Edge93]

Vic Wertz wrote:

The Compatibility License doesn't have any specific requirements or restrictions on how you handle things like that. (The closest it comes is section 6, which tells you how to reference a product from the list of products in Exhibit C.)

Keep in mind that the Compatibility License is to be used in conjunction with the OGL, and the OGL tells you can "use" (specifically, "use, Distribute, copy, edit, format, modify, translate and otherwise create Derivative Material of") Open Game Content. The OGL is Wizards of the Coast's license, not Paizo's, so I can't provide any binding advice on that; I'll just say that in my view, that sentence gives you a lot of leeway in your approach.

Excellent, thank you. Much appreciated.

[Elorebaen]

Good to hear, Vic!

[Staffan Johansson]

Edge93 wrote:

I have a question about the license. Say you make a 3pp class and it's going to have one or more class feats from the CRB, either the same or slightly different from their CRB forms (like how some class feats in the Playtest are available to multiple classes, sometimes with minor differences). Do you have to put for that feat entry "see (class name) feats in chapter x of the Pathfinder Second Edition Core Rulebook" and then qualify any differences in that class' version, or would you be allowed to actually put the feat entry there, complete with any changes for your class, since you're actually giving them that ability and not referencing an existing ability like in the example given in the license?

As I understand it (and I am not a lawyer), the section you're referring to only limits how you may refer back to the Pathfinder books. For example, let's say you're making an adventure and the adventure has a bunch of orcs in it. You could then write "4 gnolls (see Pathfinder Second Edition Bestiary)." You could not write "4 gnolls (See Bestiary, page 123)."

On the other hand, you could likely get away with using the actual stat block (as long as proper OGL references are made), but if you do you must make sure not to include any product identity. For example, if the gnolls have an ability named "Hunger of Lamashtu", you probably need to rename that ability (depending on what Paizo declares as product identity in PF2, of course).

[Jason Nelson]

Staffan Johansson wrote:

Edge93 wrote:

I have a question about the license. Say you make a 3pp class and it's going to have one or more class feats from the CRB, either the same or slightly different from their CRB forms (like how some class feats in the Playtest are available to multiple classes, sometimes with minor differences). Do you have to put for that feat entry "see (class name) feats in chapter x of the Pathfinder Second Edition Core Rulebook" and then qualify any differences in that class' version, or would you be allowed to actually put the feat entry there, complete with any changes for your class, since you're actually giving them that ability and not referencing an existing ability like in the example given in the license?

As I understand it (and I am not a lawyer), the section you're referring to only limits how you may refer back to the Pathfinder books. For example, let's say you're making an adventure and the adventure has a bunch of orcs in it. You could then write "4 gnolls (see Pathfinder Second Edition Bestiary)." You could not write "4 gnolls (See Bestiary, page 123)."

On the other hand, you could likely get away with using the actual stat block (as long as proper OGL references are made), but if you do you must make sure not to include any product identity. For example, if the gnolls have an ability named "Hunger of Lamashtu", you probably need to rename that ability (depending on what Paizo declares as product identity in PF2, of course).

As a general rule, proper names are almost always Product Identity, unless they are the proper names of real-world people, places, things, or mythological entities, like Asmodeus, Orcus, Tiamat, or the Mesopotamian demon/goddess Lamashtu.

[Kubetz]

Ron Lundeen wrote a review of the compatibility license on his site.

[DDragonWarden]

Will there be a Community Use Policy
Applicable to Non-Commercial Activity similar to that for 1st edition?

[Vic Wertz]

The existing Community Use Policy isn't edition-specific or even game-specific. It already applies to 1E, 2E, Starfinder, the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game, and more.

[CobaltCrusader]

Vic Wertz wrote:

The existing Community Use Policy isn't edition-specific or even game-specific. It already applies to 1E, 2E, Starfinder, the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game, and more.

Are there any plans to include the 2nd edition action symbols as a part of the community use license?

[Vic Wertz]

We should probably do that.

In the meantime, if your Community Use Project involves PF2-compatible rules content, and is a book, electronic book, or freely available website, you can use the Compatibility License for it, and get access to the symbol font that way.

[CobaltCrusader]

Vic Wertz wrote:

We should probably do that.

In the meantime, if your Community Use Project involves PF2-compatible rules content, and is a book, electronic book, or freely available website, you can use the Compatibility License for it, and get access to the symbol font that way.

Thanks Vic!

[Data Lore]

I applied for the use license to make freely available stuff. I hope the turn around isnt too long. Really need that fonts.

[Vic Wertz]

Compatibility License applications are automatically accepted at this time. As soon as you submitted it, you should have seen confirmation of that, including a notice that the Compatibility Logos have been added to your My Downloads page. If you see them there, you're good to go. If you don't see them there, something unfortunate happened, and you should resubmit your application.

[FallenDabus]

When we apply for the license, it asks us to list the products we intend to make. What it if we don’t have specific plans at the time of application or come up with new products at a later date? Do we need to reapply?

[Vic Wertz]

You don't need to be super specific. Note that you can update your registry entry at any time.

[FallenDabus]

Vic Wertz wrote:

You don't need to be super specific. Note that you can update your registry entry at any time.

Ah, cool, I hadn’t realized that. Thanks Vic!

[Ravingdork]

Do I need to register my Crazy Character Emporiums under the Community Use Registry or the 1st/2nd Edition Compatibility Licenses? At the moment, they exist only on the Paizo forums (with links to character sheet files and a few tools on OneDrive), but I may want to make it into a dedicated website some day.

Ravingdork's Crazy Character Emporium
Ravingdork's Crazy Character Emporium (2nd Edition)
Ravingdork's Crazy Character Emporium (Starfinder Edition)

I'm also wondering about Part 4 of the Compatibility License where it says "You may not use Paizo's trade dress for your Products or advertisements—that is, you may not design your Products or advertisements to look confusingly similar to Paizo's products or advertisements."

I've been attempting to make my 2nd Edition stat blocks look as much like those presented in the 2nd Edition Bestiary as possible (even going so far as to license the same fonts used in the books and to download the action icon images from this site). Am I not allowed to do that under this license? Or is that more for stuff like the window dressing around the stat blocks, such as the general book design and layout?

I just want to make sure all my i's are dotted and t's are crossed.

[Tender Tendrils]

Vic Wertz wrote:

We should probably do that.

In the meantime, if your Community Use Project involves PF2-compatible rules content, and is a book, electronic book, or freely available website, you can use the Compatibility License for it, and get access to the symbol font that way.

I second the desire for this - I have been writing up the setting and rules elements for my campaign, and it would be helpful to have access to the symbols to present that information in a manner consistent to the books (especially when writing custom creatures and magic items, and quick character creation guides for my players) and I am not sure if the compatibility license applies to a personal project like typing things up just for my table with no intention to make it into a published thing?

[Vic Wertz]

Ravingdork wrote:

Do I need to register my Crazy Character Emporiums under the Community Use Registry or the 1st/2nd Edition Compatibility Licenses? At the moment, they exist only on the Paizo forums (with links to character sheet files and a few tools on OneDrive), but I may want to make it into a dedicated website some day.

Ravingdork's Crazy Character Emporium
Ravingdork's Crazy Character Emporium (2nd Edition)
Ravingdork's Crazy Character Emporium (Starfinder Edition)

I'm also wondering about Part 4 of the Compatibility License where it says "You may not use Paizo's trade dress for your Products or advertisements—that is, you may not design your Products or advertisements to look confusingly similar to Paizo's products or advertisements."

I've been attempting to make my 2nd Edition stat blocks look as much like those presented in the 2nd Edition Bestiary as possible (even going so far as to license the same fonts used in the books and to download the action icon images from this site). Am I not allowed to do that under this license? Or is that more for stuff like the window dressing around the stat blocks, such as the general book design and layout?

I just want to make sure all my i's are dotted and t's are crossed.

Legally, you need to use and abide by Wizards' OGL for the game mechanics, and Paizo's Community Use Policy for our setting content. You can use the Compatibility License if you like—effectively, the only significant thing it does is let you use the compatibility logo.

As far as trade dress goes, both the CUP and the Compatibility License have similar clauses. The point of both is that we don't want people confused into thinking that your products are official or are made by us. (Our lawyer would use the phrase "confusingly similar.")

[atanamarsunyata]

Out of curiousity, if you're into telling us, what exactly are the fonts in the books (your sheets look amazing), and where did you license them from?
Appreciate it.

Ravingdork wrote:

Do I need to register my Crazy Character Emporiums under the Community Use Registry or the 1st/2nd Edition Compatibility Licenses? At the moment, they exist only on the Paizo forums (with links to character sheet files and a few tools on OneDrive), but I may want to make it into a dedicated website some day.

Ravingdork's Crazy Character Emporium
Ravingdork's Crazy Character Emporium (2nd Edition)
Ravingdork's Crazy Character Emporium (Starfinder Edition)

I'm also wondering about Part 4 of the Compatibility License where it says "You may not use Paizo's trade dress for your Products or advertisements—that is, you may not design your Products or advertisements to look confusingly similar to Paizo's products or advertisements."

I've been attempting to make my 2nd Edition stat blocks look as much like those presented in the 2nd Edition Bestiary as possible (even going so far as to license the same fonts used in the books and to download the action icon images from this site). Am I not allowed to do that under this license? Or is that more for stuff like the window dressing around the stat blocks, such as the general book design and layout?

I just want to make sure all my i's are dotted and t's are crossed.

[Ravingdork]

atanamarsunyata wrote:

Out of curiosity, if you're into telling us, what exactly are the fonts in the books (your sheets look amazing), and where did you license them from?

Appreciate it.

Finding out the fonts is easy enough. Open a PDF, go to the FILE menu, select PROPERTIES, then navigate to the FONTS tab on the opened dialog. It will display a list of all the fonts used in the PDF.

I picked my up licensing through myfonts.com and through Adobe Fonts via my Adobe Creative Cloud subscription.

[Ed Reppert]

"Open a PDF" in Acrobat Reader. Preview doesn't have that menu item anywhere that I can find. :-)

[Marc Radle]

You want Acrobat Pro ...

[Ed Reppert]

Do I? How much is that gonna cost me?

[Marc Radle]

Well, I guess I meant you want Acrobat Pro if you want to do things with PDFs beyond just what the free Adobe Reader can do.

It’s not cheap, and not for the faint of heart, but it’s very powerful and well worth the price. If you want to get into publishing and such, it’s pretty much a necessity.

It comes as part of some flavors of the Adobe Creative Cloud package ...

[Ed Reppert]

I had dreamweaver back before all this cloud stuff, but the price, given I wasn't using it professionally any more, was too high.

[Alchemist Assassin]

O.M.F.G. W.T.F. Pathfinder went "5ED", and they weren't when I was first introduced to them; that's why I have 55 of Pathfinder's publications. Now what? pathfinder wants us to repurchase all of the rule book just as Wizards do?

[Ezekieru]

Uh, what?

[Diego Pisa Artworks]

When making compatible products, is there any obligation to use the standard Pathfinder fonts or we can use different ones also? Thank you guys.

[ProjektMyra]

Will apply for the compatibility license (for our "outside of Golarion worldbuilding material", i.e. our mostly noncommercial campaign world) as soon as that works again. Currently the button doesn't do anything for me.

In the meantime, I'll continue as a contracted freelancer working on one of the official 2e license translations for one of the companies listed. :-)

[CrystalSeas]

ProjektMyra wrote:

Will apply for the compatibility license (for our "outside of Golarion worldbuilding material", i.e. our mostly noncommercial campaign world) as soon as that works again. Currently the button doesn't do anything for me.

In the meantime, I'll continue as a contracted freelancer working on one of the official 2e license translations for one of the companies listed. :-)

Which button doesn't work?

[AdamantiteAdventurer]

Alchemist Assassin wrote:

O.M.F.G. W.T.F. Pathfinder went "5ED", and they weren't when I was first introduced to them; that's why I have 55 of Pathfinder's publications. Now what? pathfinder wants us to repurchase all of the rule book just as Wizards do?

Ummm... Pathfinder 2e is pretty different from Pathfinder 1e. Plus it's not like you have to buy any of the 2e stuff. Lots of people, myself included find 2e to be a huge improvement over 1e.

[RiverMesa]

Is it intentional that Bestiary 3 and other core products such as Secrets of Magic and Guns & Gears are not on the list of reference-able products?

[Aaron Shanks]

RiverMesa wrote:

Is it intentional that Bestiary 3 and other core products such as Secrets of Magic and Guns & Gears are not on the list of reference-able products?

No, I think we are just behind.

[JOHNATHAN FINFINIS]

I just bought PATHFINDER THE CORE SET 2nd edition and when I receive it I hope you guys can help me with any rules I might have trouble with. Thank you!! Johnathan

[breithauptclan]

Well, you can always ask us amateur community members here in the rules forum.

[Ched Greyfell]

Is this different from the ORC that was talked about?

[YuriP]

This compatibility license only. It's rules the creation of material using "Compatibility Logo and Font". It don't cover the rules and SRD these still in OGL.

[Dancing Wind]

Ched Greyfell wrote:

Is this different from the ORC that was talked about?

Yes. This post dates to 2019, just after PF2 was released. It has nothing to do with the OGL (1.0a, 1.1, or 1.2) or the ORC. It only has to do with a few Paizo intellectual property items, not with the game itself.

[Ched Greyfell]

Ohhh. I didn't look at the post date. My bad. I just saw it pop up in the forum.
So this is just where people can put the logo on their games indicating compatibility.

[Oni Shogun]

So how do I get to ask questions of Luis and others in charge of Pathfinder? I'd like to know if Tian Xia will have ninja and samurai in some form or another? Also any lore on them? I'm interested in Rougauru as well and I heard he said they would be back in 2e?

[Themetricsystem]

Your best bet is on Twitter but there is an exceedingly low chance they'll be able to answer questions about any future releases as they reserve all such discussion for promotional events, blogs, and the like. Similarly if you have a rules question there is practically no chance it will be addressed directly as they have a whole team dedicated to updating rules and errata that does not typically comment on changes or clarifications in advance of the actual errata release drop.

If your question relates to known/printed lore or the like you will have better luck though as that's not something that's closely guarded and at the same time asking them for their personal thoughts/feelings about the setting, world, or interpretations of culture and the like may have a fair reception too but regarding the exact question you posed here... you are not likely to see any form or answer other than "I can't answer that" from Paizo writers or staff in any public forum.

[Creator of Darknoth Chronicles]

Is this the appropriate place to ask specific questions of Pathfinder 2 licensing material? Such as what is useable and what is not? If not, can someone direct me to the correct place?

[Finoan]

You might email [e-mail].

As is recommended in the Pathfinder Compatibility licensing information.

Most of that page still looks like it is referencing the OGL license and needs updated, but the email address should be accurate.

[Creator of Darknoth Chronicles]

Finoan wrote:

You might email [e-mail].

As is recommended in the Pathfinder Compatibility licensing information.

Most of that page still looks like it is referencing the OGL license and needs updated, but the email address should be accurate.

I did send them an email a few weeks ago, they never responded back.