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I like the warhammer universe but I think it needs more than a few twicks.
So if I were to merge real names, people,creatures, places, events... from Warhammer 40 000 with some of my ideas and decide to publish them
and possibly make money out of it, does GW have the authority to sue me for using some of their ideas and creatures for creating a new universe?

Games Workshop will.
Relic not, they do not own it.
But if you take people from Warhammer 40k and places and all, or just the fluff with renaming, yes.

if you include any copyrighted material into your books, then yes, GW will sue you.

So long as you include no concepts or names that are copyrighted, you should be fine, but thats going to be a lot more work than you bargained for.


Practically a brand new setting.

What if I aknowledge that GW had the original Idea and I'm just offering an alternative to the original concept?
Like making a cover of a song but rejecting any ownership over the original idea.

Under the best of condition's GW is militant about "piracy" to the point of self parody. They don't like you using Mantic pieces as squats; don't give them a real reason to sue you.

However, if you wanted to make your own homebrew fluff/codex and distribute them free it wouldn't be a problem. Only making money off of it is the issue.

MARTINELECA wrote:
What if I aknowledge that GW had the original Idea and I'm just offering an alternative to the original concept?
Like making a cover of a song but rejecting any ownership over the original idea.

In the music world, that would get you sued as well. You'd still need to get in contact with whoever owns the rights to that song. Unless you changed it so much to the point where it's unrecognizable, you'd need permission, or they will sue.

Hell, videos with 3 seconds worth of copyrighted music are getting pulled on youtube.

An entire book aping content from 40k would get shut down and any money you made would probably be taken to recover "damages" for GW.

Webcomics like Go to Ground and Turn Signals on a Landraider ran into this problem, as even though their settings had lots of original ideas, the mere fact that they contained things from GW meant they would never be able to be sold for profit.

They surely can't sue me for using things like the Orcs - only the anglo-saxons that are long dead can do that.
But what about things like the Tau Empire, the Forces of Chaos and the Eldar.
If i aknowledge that they were originally created by GW on what grounds can they sue me - placating their products?

Because you have created a deriviative work without authorisation from the copyright holder. You understand copyright law yes?

Tau, Very yes, Chaos, probably not, unless you start specifically mentioning Khorne, Nurgle, etc. Eldar, probably, if you mentioned stuff like their specific characters or any of their names.

GW has copyrighted a lot of unit names, which is where you tend to run into trouble.

MARTINELECA wrote:
They surely can't sue me for using things like the Orcs - only the anglo-saxons that are long dead can do that.
But what about thing like the Tau Empire, the Forces of Chaos and the Eldar.
If i aknowledge that they were originally created by GW on what grounds can they sue me - placating their products?

If you are trying to make money from it, you cannot use anything created by Games Workshop without their express permission. Having a race called Eldar or Tau in your work would be copyright infringement and grounds for a lawsuit.

OK so if I like ask the boss of GW for permission to do all that stuff , which he probably won't give me, everything will be okay?

If you can get written permission to create a derivative work, then yes. They dont do that, so good luck with that.

I'll need to find Alan Shore to win me the trial!

MARTINELECA wrote:
What if I aknowledge that GW had the original Idea and I'm just offering an alternative to the original concept?
Like making a cover of a song but rejecting any ownership over the original idea.

So wait, you are rejecting ownership and giving them credit... but still making a profit off of someone else's material? Doesn't work that way

IF, the planets aligned and GW's lawyers gave you the okay (Not going to happen), you'd still have to give them practically 90% of your profits in royalties.

Just create your own setting, it'd be much easier.

My advice;

If you really want to use GW characters, it has to be for free. There's a page of 40k/MLP FIM crossover fic on the web. No one will complain about it.

If you want to sell it, you have to expy everything. In essence, this is what other games like warpath do. (They have orx, dwarves twilight kin=dark eldar, speehs marheens=enforcers.) GW can rant and rave, but they do it themselves. (Marbo=Rambo, ect.) There's a limit to that though. Make a game called Battlesledge 3900 about a dead but powerful king on a silver throne and you can still get sued.

If you're really going to re-write for profit take warning that it's a huge endeavour, and even the companies with weight behind them are basically a tiny niche compared to GW.

MARTINELECA wrote:
I like the warhammer universe but I think it needs more than a few twicks.
So if I were to merge real names, people,creatures, places, events... from Warhammer 40 000 with some of my ideas and decide to publish them
and possibly make money out of it, does GW have the authority to sue me for using some of their ideas and creatures for creating a new universe?

This is 2012.

You can get sued for anything.

This is actually in a totally different setting, the only thing the two ideas have in common are a couple dozen places and people that are mandatory.
You know even if I did create a brand new race how can I explain why it looks a lot like the Tau Empire, just with a diferent name?

MARTINELECA wrote:
This is actually in a totally different setting, the only thing the two ideas have in common are a couple dozen places and people that are mandatory.
You know even if I did create a brand new race how can I explain why it looks a lot like the Tau Empire, just with a diferent name?

You don't really. Make it just different enough not to get in trouble and then just sit back and laugh. Just like GW rips off Herbert, Lovecraft and Tolkien.

Just write them a new origin and tweak a few things, that part is up to you.

I know why the OP is asking this...

... He wants to create a sitcom involving Nurgle and Khorne.

It'll be called 'Nurgie and the K'. Ones a total neat freak the other is a disgusting slob and they share a studio apartment in San Francisco around the Mission district. It'll be about their misadventures in trying to figure out how they want to get to Union Square without having to worry about parking. Oh the hilarity!

...

OP: Maybe you can just add 'X' to the beginning of everything...it'll make things totally different. 'X-Kharn killed the X-Space Marine with X-Gorechild in front of his X-wife.'

EDIT: Seriously, how about creating a similar grimdark world but utilizing things from Bulgarian culture/history.

MARTINELECA wrote:
They surely can't sue me for using things like the Orcs - only the anglo-saxons that are long dead can do that.
But what about things like the Tau Empire, the Forces of Chaos and the Eldar.
If i aknowledge that they were originally created by GW on what grounds can they sue me - placating their products?

You have some options friend. First GW does not have a copy right on the races in 40K just the names of tyranids eldar, necron and tau. They could make a case over "imperium of man" but they would be hard pressed to win. The names of characters however would be off limits as you would be stealing their IP copyrights. So if you are willing to change the names of characters and players you are fine. Because everything GW has done is mostly a rip off of something else. So writing a story would not be hard to do.

The other option you have is to write up a story board or proposal get a Pattent pending and pitch through idea to GW. If they like the idea you have you could get paid to write the book by them and get a small royalty cut from book sales. This is important because if you want to make any money you need to get the book published and printed. Both are expensive processes. GW however would take that burden on for you if you have their support and write a quality book. (Which is much easier to do when you don't have to worry about monthly bills)

If you're trying to ridicule me it won't work.
Adlist I'm smart enough to know that the Sith Empire has nothing to do with 40K!

google eatatau, the web comic, the only comic i know that both uses gw Ip against their will and profits to to a decent knowledge of copyright law. bearing in mind that they are a direct rip of the universe.

MARTINELECA wrote:
If you're trying to ridicule me it won't work.
Adlist I'm smart enough to know that the Sith Empire has nothing to do with 40K!

I meant no offence. Honestly, I think its a nice that you are inspired to try to create some fluff/material.

Also, consider my EDIT, an amaglamation of aspects of Bulgaria and Grimdarkness might be cool.

EDIT: in regards to the 'sith empire'... as a DCM I can customize my rank so I chose 'sith empire' because I happen to be playing SWTOR.

 TheCaptain wrote:

MARTINELECA wrote:
I like the warhammer universe but I think it needs more than a few twicks.
So if I were to merge real names, people,creatures, places, events... from Warhammer 40 000 with some of my ideas and decide to publish them
and possibly make money out of it, does GW have the authority to sue me for using some of their ideas and creatures for creating a new universe?

This is 2012.

You can get sued for anything.

This. Furthermore, GW lawyers are incredibly trigger-happy, sitting in their office jumping at everyone (including forums!) that might even slightly violate any law. Think rabid dogs.

 Sigvatr wrote:

 TheCaptain wrote:

MARTINELECA wrote:
I like the warhammer universe but I think it needs more than a few twicks.
So if I were to merge real names, people,creatures, places, events... from Warhammer 40 000 with some of my ideas and decide to publish them
and possibly make money out of it, does GW have the authority to sue me for using some of their ideas and creatures for creating a new universe?

This is 2012.

You can get sued for anything.

This. Furthermore, GW lawyers are incredibly trigger-happy, sitting in their office jumping at everyone (including forums!) that might even slightly violate any law. Think rabid dogs.

Not so much much since chapterhouse.

 djphranq wrote:

... He wants to create a sitcom involving Nurgle and Khorne.

It'll be called 'Nurgie and the K'. Ones a total neat freak the other is a disgusting slob and they share a studio apartment in San Francisco around the Mission district. It'll be about their misadventures in trying to figure out how they want to get to Union Square without having to worry about parking. Oh the hilarity!.

I'd watch that

Only if Brian Blessed voices Khorne.
Slaanesh must be voiced by Tim Curry (or Michael Sheen)
Tzeentch can be voiced by Malcolm McDowell.
No idea who should voice Nurgle though. Jack Black?

I'm in.

What do you think this means?

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You wouldn't get published without your publisher checking all this gak first.

Your flag says you're from Bulgaria, is the market for Bulgarian 40k fiction really that big?