The SRD & the Open Game
The other great D&D story: how the game was opened, who built on it, and the month in 2023 when the hobby fought to keep it open. Document links are added as each is verified.
2000 — The Open Game License
WotC publishes the OGL 1.0a and the d20 System License — anyone may build on the game's core rules. The third-party d20 bloom follows immediately.
WotC publishes the OGL 1.0a and the d20 System License — anyone may build on the game's core rules. The third-party d20 bloom follows immediately.
2000–2003 — The SRD era opens
The System Reference Document puts the 3.0 rules into the open; Pathfinder and the OSR both grow from this soil.
The System Reference Document puts the 3.0 rules into the open; Pathfinder and the OSR both grow from this soil.
2003 — SRD 3.5
The reference document is revised alongside the 3.5 rules.
The reference document is revised alongside the 3.5 rules.
2016 — SRD 5.1
The 5e reference document is released under the OGL.
The 5e reference document is released under the OGL.
January 2023 — The OGL 1.1 controversy
A leaked draft license sparks a hobby-wide backlash; WotC reverses course and places SRD 5.1 into Creative Commons (CC-BY-4.0) — irrevocably open.
A leaked draft license sparks a hobby-wide backlash; WotC reverses course and places SRD 5.1 into Creative Commons (CC-BY-4.0) — irrevocably open.
2025 — SRD 5.2
The updated reference document for the revised 5e rules, released under Creative Commons.
The updated reference document for the revised 5e rules, released under Creative Commons.