Declassified

License

Backwater Static runs on 20 Below, a free, ORC-licensed system - and the setting follows the same open philosophy. The City, its people, its history, and everything we wrote to run a game in it are free for anyone to build their own stories on.

The one thing held back is the stuff built specifically to sell: the Adversary Index's monsters and the Anomalous Objects Index's cursed things - our original bestiary and item catalog. Everything else about Backwater Static is Licensed Material, same as 20 Below's core rules.

What's Open vs. Reserved

Open - Licensed Material

The City itself as written here - its locations, its NPCs, its history and throughlines, the Player Primer and GM Guide's narrative content, and any new mechanics introduced for the setting. Reference it, remix it, run your own game in it, build your own commercial supplement on top of it.

Reserved - Not Licensed

The Adversary Index (47 creature stat blocks) and the Anomalous Objects Index (22 cursed or haunted objects) - Backwater Static's own original bestiary and item catalog, kept back as our commercial content. The title "Backwater Static" and its branding are reserved as well.

The Legal Text