![]() Gygax originally created 6 demons: Type I: Vrock, Type II: Hezrou, Type III: Glabrezu, Type IV: Nalfeshnee, Type V: Marilith and Type VI: Balrog.īut the Tolkien estate (or whomever) wouldn't allow him to use "Balrog" (or Ent or Hobbit, etc.). But, unfortunately, not in anything official. The copyright police won't come and break down your door and hand you a cease and desist order for something in your personal game. However, for legal issues and a desire to disassociate themselves with the fallen-from-grace boxer, they switched some of the names around.īack on topic- go ahead and call Balors Balrogs. Bison was (fairly bluntly) named after a certain other African-American boxer named M. ![]() The reason for the change? The African-American boxer M. Bison- whose current name originally belonged to the boxing fighter now called Balrog. The character originally called Vega was the red suit-wearing individual we all know and hate named M. ![]() Small bit of trivia- the boxing character in Street Fighter was actually not originally named Balrog- Balrog was the name of the claw-wielding masked fighter from Spain, more commonly known as Vega. Which defeats the point of the referential nod, which is really the only reason it's wanted in the first place. The Black Bard wrote: To have a Balrog in Pathfinder would require it to be unlike the one in Tolkien (like the boxing character in the American release of the Street Fighter video games). To have a Balrog in Pathfinder would require it to be unlike the one in Tolkien (like the boxing character in the American release of the Street Fighter video games). Copyright law existed back when Gygax named the demons, and while he may have thought of it as an amusing nod, a wispy tangential reference to LotR, it could also easily be seen, and held up in court, as him trying to profit in some way off of a creation of Tolkien. ![]() Unfortunately, Gygax was in the wrong in this case, innocent of malicious intent perhaps, but still in the wrong. Oh, and that series of books.īalrog is copyrighted, insofar as a a flaming demonic entity of smoke and shadow, armed with a whip and a sword. Tolkien's estate lawyers didn't let up twenty odd years ago, they sure aren't going to now with award-winning movies, multiple video games, action figures, board games, wedding rings, and the like. ![]()
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