As part of our role as an advocacy organisation, the RPG Review Cooperative has decided to initiate a petition to Hasbro/WotC to convert Dungeons & Dragons, 4th edition, from the restrictive Game System License (D&D 4E GSL) to the Open Gaming License.

With third edition, WotC released the core D&D rules under the Open Gaming License, allowing third party products to produce various supplements. They have repeated this in the fifth edition.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Game_License

But fourth edition was released under a more restrictive license, the Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition Game System License (D&D 4E GSL).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_System_License

The GSL means there is no Open Game Content; not even monster statistic blocks etc can be reproduced by third party publishers. Instead, the 4th edition SRD specifies what named game elements can be referred to. Game terms cannot be redefined (e.g., character races).

For fans of 4th edition Dungeons & Dragons, supporting publications are restricted compared to 3rd and 5th editions of the game. The petition is an appeal for consistency and fairness for fans and publishers.