D&D publisher requests injunction against newly resurrected TSR

Dungeons & Dragons publisher Wizards of the Coast has filed an injunction that could prevent the publication of content it calls “despicable” and “blatantly racist and transphobic.” The request, made before a federal judge in Seattle on Thursday, aims to immediately halt the production of Star Frontiers New GenesisA reboot of the classic Star Frontiers Tabletop role-playing games were first published in 1982. TSR, which Wizards acquired in 1997, is the object of the injunction request.

Justin LaNasa, a budding game publisher, owns the newly formed TSR, Inc. He claims residence in North Carolina, where he’s best known for a chain of tattoo parlors — and also for a failed political campaign that was torpedoed by, among other things, reports that he once asked several female employees to wrestle in a tub filled with warm grits. LaNasa was promoting the reboot of his original. Star FrontiersThe game was inactive for over a year. In July, what appeared to be an early version of the game that was being played by testers, leaked. Wizards claims that this was so unacceptable, Wizards felt the need to immediately take steps to safeguard its brand.

Image: Wizards of the Coast

This 23-page letter (which is embedded in its entirety below) presents evidence against LaNasa. The vast majority of it he seems to have written or edited by himself. As part of its argument, Wizards includes excerpts of what it alleges to be an early draft of LaNasa’s manuscript for New Genesis. The document appears to include game features that position Black characters as mechanically inferior to other characters due to their perceived lower base intelligence scores and other “latent issues” with what the playtest refers to as a “Sub race” [sic]. The manuscript also goes out of its way to note that the modern-day Black Lives Matter movement is “radical,” and specifically disallows trans characters of any type. Wizards criticized these parts of the manuscript as they may adversely affect consumer sentiment for its brand.

Image: Wizards of the Coast

“Wizards has long embraced an inclusive culture for gaming, including for its Dungeons & Dragons products,” Wizards said in the request for injunction. “All players are welcome in Wizards’ games. Wizards has increased its efforts to promote diversity and inclusion in recent years. For example, Wizards is updating its descriptions of people when reprinting older Dungeons & Dragons products to remove racially insensitive material. In order to make sure that the storytelling it produces reflects its values, they increasingly use diversity specialists and sensitive readers. New products no longer include cultural traits like languages and acknowledge a range of physical characteristics for character races.”

Wizards’ filing also seeks to undermine LaNasa’s most powerful argument — that Wizards abandoned TSR and other related trademarks, thus opening the door to his usurping of the brand and its games.

“Counterclaim Defendants claim ownership of the prior TSR, Inc.’s intellectual property,” Wizards wrote. It goes on to state that regardless of TSR’s claim, it continues to use the IP in question, including through sales by its official licensee OneBookShelf and in the recent Spelljammer – Adventures in Space books.

Here’s where things get complicated. Wizards admitted that it didn’t file necessary paperwork to register TSR. Star FrontiersAs required by federal law, you must promptly register any related marks and trademarks. But through continued sales of related products and use of the related IP, the company claims ownership via “common law trademark rights.” It will be up to a jury to determine if that is, in fact, the case.

Wizards’ request for an injunction against the sale of Star Frontiers New Genesis is expected to get a response by the end of September. A judge will be hearing the issue of TSR’s ownership and other related marks in October 2023.

Thursday’s request for injunction comes on the heels of an embarrassing episode for Wizards. It’s Spelljammer – Adventures in SpaceFans and critics were critical of the product’s inclusions of stereotypes and racist tropes. Wizards has since retracted all digital versions. SpelljammerHe has also promised to delete the offensive content from future reprints. That entire episode was actually included in the request for an injunction — as a positive sign of Wizards’ efforts toward inclusion in its work.

Wizards refused to provide further details when Polygon reached out to them. Polygon reached Justin LaNasa for comment but was not able to get a reply before publication.