Last Updated: 2023 Jan 08

Blog: Cephalon Stallman

Cephalon Stallman started as a silly idea but grew more than I expected.

If you have played with 3D printing (real life), the concept of STL files disappearing upon print is silly. But in Warframe, blueprints are ordinarily expended without explanation. Maybe non-reusable blueprints have Orokin DRM (digital rights management)? From the perspective of game design, the phenomenon can be inferred as a means for blueprints to maintain market value.

Warframe is a free-to-play, looter and action-shooter video game. Like most free-to-play games, the multiplayer experience develops an economy of virtual items such as weapon parts or cosmetics. I don’t like the game much, but if I’m bored enough I might launch it. It just so happens that Warframe is the kind of game that suits a copyright vs copyleft parody well.

When I wrote Cephalon Stallman, the plan was to write two chapters that joke about the blueprints and cover the breadth of copyleft (or copyright reform). After I wrote Chapter 3, Chapter 4 is coming to me in bits and pieces. But those bits and pieces might be challenging to put together.

Usually, I post works onto ArchiveOfOurOwn first; after some final edits, I repost onto Neocities. For a change, when I manage to cobble together Chappter 4, I’ll be posting the draft on Neocities first and asking for feedback.

TL;DR I have ideas for Chapter 4 but haven’t come up with a way to write it without potentially coming across uneducated in a topic. But throwing it out there:

Is Cephalon Galuel (Stephane Laborde) too crazy of an idea? I think he might fit in with the Perrin Sequence of Warframe.

Caption: (left to right) Richard Stallman, Théo Bondolfi, Stéphane Laborde, Thierry Crouzet

Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/rezonance/5169191820/

Cephalon Stallman is on ArchiveOfOurOwn. The comments section is open to unregistered users. You can use it to comment on this blog too.