Bane War Open Fan Creation & Derivative Works License

Licensor: Jeffer Nightwind / Digital Ruby, LLC

Effective Date: September 20, 2026

TL;DR: You are free to write, illustrate, animate, adapt, and share works based on the characters, lore, and world of the Bane War universe, including for commercial use, provided you follow the terms of use below.

1. Scope of Grant (Text, Art, Audio, and Video)

Licensor grants you a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to create, display, perform, adapt, reproduce, and distribute derivative community works based on the Bane War universe. This applies to:

Written Works: Novels, novellas, short stories, web serials, fan fiction, scripts, and tabletop campaigns.
Visual Art & Audio: Illustrations, digital paintings, comics, audio dramas, podcasts, and original music.
Video & Moving Images: All motion video formats—including YouTube (Standard & Shorts), TikTok, Instagram Reels, streaming, web series, broadcast, cinema/theatrical screenings, physical media, CGI, animations, live-action, and AI-generated video—subject strictly to the duration caps in Section 2.

2. Video Duration Limits Across All Formats

Maximum Length (30 Seconds): Regardless of medium, distribution channel, or format (including, but not limited to, YouTube, social media platforms, web series, film festivals, broadcast television, streaming services, or theatrical/cinema release), any standalone video or compiled sequence that depicts, adapts, or references Bane War characters, settings, lore, or audio is capped at a total running time of no more than thirty (30) seconds.
Written Consent Required for Longer Works: Any video project exceeding 30 seconds in duration—or any series of interconnected clips—strictly requires express prior written consent from Jeffer Nightwind. Requests for extended video, episodic, film, or cinema permissions can be submitted to [email protected].

3. Commercial Use & Monetization

Permitted Monetization: You may commercially exploit your eligible derivative works without paying royalties or licensing fees. This includes direct sales (e.g., self-published print-on-demand, ebooks via digital retailers), ad revenue (e.g., qualifying short-form video monetization under 30 seconds, blogs, web serial platforms), crowdfunding, platform creator funds, and subscription tiers (e.g., Patreon, Substack).
Mass Merchandising Carve-Out: This license covers expressive, narrative-driven, or artistic creations. It does not grant rights to manufacture mass physical merchandise unconnected to your specific derivative work (such as standalone character apparel, enamel pins, action figures, or board games) without a separate written agreement.

4. Mandatory Disclaimer & Attribution

Every publication, distribution, listing, video, or upload of your work must prominently display the following verbatim notice in its front matter, product description, video description, or credits screen:

“This is a work of fan fiction or fan art based on the Bane War series by Jeffer Nightwind. See banewar.com. Its characters, places, plot, and universe are the intellectual property of Jeffer Nightwind and Digital Ruby, LLC. This work is not approved, sponsored, affiliated with, or endorsed by Jeffer Nightwind or Digital Ruby, LLC.”

5. Branding, Trademarks, and Consumer Confusion

No Official Imprimatur: You may not present, market, or package your work in any manner that implies it is an official release, canonical continuation, or endorsed by Jeffer Nightwind or Digital Ruby, LLC.
Protected Assets: You may not copy or reuse official book cover art, illustrations, official logos, trade dress, or author photos from official Bane War releases.
Titling & Domains: Your work’s primary title should be your own. You may use phrases such as “A Story in the Bane War Universe” as a subtitle, but you may not name your business, brand, domain name, or social media handles after Bane War or its distinctive trademarks, book titles, or any other officially released Bane War material.

6. Intellectual Property & Idea Inevitability Protection

Underlying Rights: Jeffer Nightwind and Digital Ruby, LLC retain all exclusive rights, title, copyright, and interest in and to the Bane War universe, including existing and future canon, core characters, worldbuilding, settings, magic systems, and plots.
Creator Ownership: You retain full ownership of the original text, artwork, audio recordings, or visual production created solely by you.
Idea Inevitability & Non-Assertion: You acknowledge that Jeffer Nightwind continues to develop works set in the Bane War universe. By publishing under this license, you agree that if official future works coincidentally feature similar tropes, storylines, dialogue, character developments, or scenarios to your derivative work, you cannot assert any copyright, trade secret, or idea-theft claims against Jeffer Nightwind, Digital Ruby, LLC, or their licensees.

7. Submissions and Featuring Work

Want to share your work? Email [email protected]. Your work might be featured in the fan-fiction section of the website.

You grant the Licensor permission to feature, excerpt, link to, or showcase your work and credit you on banewar.com and related promotional social channels.
Submitting your work is voluntary and does not form a partnership, agency, employment, or compensation obligation.

8. Conduct & Termination

Revocability: This license is granted automatically to anyone abiding by these terms. Licensor reserves the right to revoke permission to use the Bane War intellectual property for any specific work that is defamatory, illegal, or infringes on third-party intellectual property.
Governing Law: This agreement is governed by the laws of the State of Texas, without regard to its conflict of laws principles.

Now go and live your best life.

— Jeffer Nightwind