Crisis of Treachery 2007

Rebuilding Palladium Books^®

By Kevin Siembieda, Publisher & Owner

Okay, you can hit the various links and read the various message boards to see what has transpired before, the Crisis we’ve survived and the tremendous outpouring of fan support that helped make it possible.

Originals Details. October 2006 Update.
PayPal Donation Link:

The Crisis (the short version)

A trusted friend of 24 years, employee for 14, and my right-hand man, embezzles and steals. “Embezzlement” means he covered it all up, falsified invoices, etc. He also engages in acts of sabotage that cause more problems. The estimated damage is $850,000 to 1.2 million dollars. It is a crippling blow that could put Palladium Books out of business. Not only will I lose everything I have spent 25 years building, but a lot of good people – creditors, private investors, the Palladium staff, freelance artists and writers, and you, our fans, will all suffer for this wrongdoing. I can’t allow that, so I wrack my mind for a solution and consult with dozens of people.

I hatch a plan for recovery that may seem desperate, or even crazy to some people, because it hinges on Palladium’s legion of fans.

The Appeal to Our Fans

April 19, 2006, I make a public announcement about Palladium’s Crisis of Treachery, and I make my appeal to the fans. In a nutshell, I tell folks we’ve been laid low and it looks like we may go out of business unless we get a huge, fast shot in the arm.

And that’s where our fans come in. I ask them for help. To buy those backstock books they’ve been meaning to buy, but haven’t gotten around to yet. To purchase a special, limited edition print I will draw. I call it A Megaverse® United, I personalize and number every print, and I promise the names of EVERY purchaser will see print in a future Palladium sourcebook. I also ask that people spread the word.

We all hoped for a good response, but none of us at Palladium Books® could have anticipated the magnitude of the response we got. Fans and industry people alike spread the word even as thousands of orders poured in and hundreds upon hundreds of emails lit up our message boards with well wishes, testimonials and pledges of support (most are still up and available for reading). Orders came from just about every country on the planet.

It was nothing short of amazing. Humbling, joyous and amazing as Palladium fans around the globe pitched in to help their favorite game company. We had no intention of taking donations, but fans and parents of fans called and emailed and begged us to accept donations. They pointed out that not everyone could afford a book, T-shirt or art print, but that they wanted to do what they could to help by donating something, even if it were only a few dollars. It was an impassioned request, so we capitulated and set up a PayPal donation system in response to fan demands.

Thank you, everyone who made a purchase, sent a donation (small or large), spread the word and prayed for our recovery. Again, you can read about all this elsewhere on the Palladium website and follow the chronological trail of postings, Murmurs from the Megaverse®, Press Releases, and commentary over the last year, so there is no reason for me to go into detail here. Let me recap by saying what I often remind the Palladium staff and tell friends: “One creep laid Palladium low, thousands of friends helped raise us back up.”

Where We’re at Today

The sales of art prints, RPGs, sourcebooks and many other products helped us weather the granddaddy of storms. We were able to get caught up on our taxes and bills, pay freelancers, and pay down debt.

We continue to work hard, put in an insane amount of work hours every week, and have put into motion a carefully thought out plan to rebuild Palladium’s foundation, get back on our feet and kick some . . . um, I mean, get Palladium strong and healthy again. We are light years better than we were a year ago.

Palladium continues to make smart moves, work hard and take measured and calculated risks that should grow Palladium Books and its presence in the RPG market. That includes dynamic new products, reprints of vital back stock titles, expanding into the book trade, producing RPG related product (T-shirts, prints, posters, etc.), other RPG related products that should appeal to different but related markets (e.g., graphic novel/comics with Machinations of Doom, the mainstream with the new Zeleznik art book, the Robotech® RPG license to attract the manga/anime market), calculated experiments with advertising and marketing, and a stronger presence online (Murmurs of the Megaverse®, more frequent Press Releases, greater participation from Palladium freelancers, and coming soon: The Rifter® Zero, plus downloadable adventures for purchase, interviews, video interviews, contests and more).

Is Palladium Saved?

Not yet, but we’re working hard to get there as fast as possible. We’ve already accomplished more than any of our expert advisors thought possible, and at a breakneck pace. The damage inflicted upon us by the Crisis of Treachery was deep and severe. It will take at least 2-3 years before Palladium is completely back on its feet. That having been said, we have made Herculean strides and are doing much better, much faster than anyone (but us) imagined.

Lingering Problems

Not enough time and money to do everything we need to do to get Palladium completely restored. We have a lot of ideas that should make money and help Palladium recover, but not the money or time/staff to get it done as quickly as we’d like. It’s frustrating, but that’s why patience is a virtue, and Palladium is still making good headway and marked improvement.

New product drives sales of new and back stock titles, but producing and releasing “quality” product is hard work and time consuming. Ideally, we want to release two new RPGs/sourcebooks a month. That has been difficult as we deal with a multitude of other business and creative issues. However, we think the worst of the product logjam is over. And we have gathered some of the greatest talent in the history of Palladium Books, so watch out.

Uneven cash flow. One month we’re doing great, the next, cash is tight. Part of the problem is uneven releases of new product (new product drives everything, remember). Another is slow pay by distributors. On top of everything else, the RPG market is sluggish and some distributors are struggling. That means periods where paying their bills is difficult and that hurts Palladium’s cash flow. We have a good relationship with all of our distributors, so they do their best to get caught back up as quickly as they can, but the lag times still hurt.

Lingering debt. The Crisis dropped Palladium into an abyss that the perpetrator and many observers never thought we’d recover from. Well, we are climbing out of that pit faster than anyone imagined, while maintaining ongoing business operations. However, we still have a ways to go. To help us on this journey, our private investors are waiting patiently, many have even foregone interest in an effort to help.

Some of Palladium’s Solutions

Cultivate new customers with fun and exciting new product and revitalized existing product. Cutting edge RPG products that challenge and excite the imagination. That can also be done with licenses that have broad appeal, like Robotech®.

Try new types of products (and advertising) that might cross into other existing markets.

Improve distribution/availability of products for obvious reasons.

Expand into the book trade – national chain stores like Barnes & Noble, Borders, Hastings and others.

Expand into other market areas such as art prints, T-shirts, comic books, novels, greeting cards, and other fun and related ancillary products.

Palladium has the trust and support of its many business partners, our printer, banker, private investors, freelance creators, and potential new licensors (like Harmony Gold), all thanks to our reputation, trust and decades of solid business practices. This is critical.

Palladium has the trust and support of its fans. That’s more important than you might realize. And important to us on many levels, from sales to inspiration. This is huge.

Online fun, electronic products/downloads, greater interaction with Palladium creators, information, and so on.

Development of Palladium’s own unique and proven intellectual properties. This has the greatest long term potential, but is more difficult to achieve than many people think. We often get comments like, “You should do a Rifts® (or Nightbane® or whatever) videogame or online game.” Yes, we’d LOVE to see videogames, MMOGs, films, TV shows, etc. Only it’s not that simple. We need to find a company that believes in our product and is willing and able to spend the millions of dollars and 2-4 years it takes to make a quality videogame, MMOG, film, etc. We also need to find a company that shares our vision and will create a game or film you, our fans, will recognize and enjoy. That’s harder than you might think.

Having Jerry Bruckheimer and Walt Disney Pictures “option” Rifts® for development into a live action movie is thrilling. But will they ever make a movie? Who knows. They like the ideas and characters and visuals, but can they figure out what to do with it? Only time will tell. And we’ve been contacted by other film makers about some of Palladium’s other game properties and we’ve had a few nibbles, but so far, nothing has panned out. We think it’s only a matter of time, but when?

What can you, our fans, do to help?

Keep doing what you’ve been doing. The game market is changing, so we need your continued support, input and help spreading the word.

Spread the word about Palladium Books®, its exciting new products, your long-time favorites, and the joy of role-playing.

Buy those books, T-Shirts, prints and specialty items that strike your fancy or you’ve been meaning to purchase, but haven’t gotten around to.

Take advantage of the Palladium Collectibles & Art Auctions we’ve started to hold on eBay every month or so. It’s an opportunity for you to acquire out of print books, rare limited editions, original artwork and cool, weird and rare collectibles (many from Palladium’s archives and my personal collection), and it’s an opportunity for Palladium to bolster its cash flow.

Run Palladium gaming events at local conventions and retail stores willing to host gaming and demos.

Talk to the “new guy or gal” who has expressed an interest in role-playing games. Tell them about Palladium Books. Suggest some games and sourcebooks you think they might enjoy. Tell them about the Palladium website and give them our web address. Give them that extra Palladium catalog you have tucked away. NEVER UNDERESTIMATE THE POWER OF WORD OF MOUTH.

Give us constructive feedback, comments and suggestions. Tell us what you like and don’t like, what you’d like to see next or have no interest in. We want to know. We need to know.

Come on down to the Palladium Open House events and other conventions where we are guests to chat, get autographs and share ideas.

And have fun. Ultimately, that’s what role-playing games are all about, fun and camaraderie. Fun spinning epic stories. Fun with friends. Fun unleashing your imagination.

Palladium Books has a five year plan in place. We hope to be 100% and going strong in another two (maybe less). Provided we get your continued support, we can grow our market, and build other related areas. We have many talented people, great ideas, and high hopes for the future.

Remember, we listen to you, and want to know your ideas and concerns. You have a question, ask. Send me a private message, write a letter or call the office, or talk to any of Palladium’s staff members, creators and freelancers online. They are always happy to try to answer questions and help in any way they can. We’re RPG fan boys just like you, only we get to publish our ideas in game books. Palladium Books has always been more of a gathering of friends and family than a faceless corporation, as anybody who has met us at conventions or attended the Palladium Open House can attest to.

Don’t forget about us, keep the faith, support us with purchases of product that calls to you, cross your fingers, game on, and keep those imaginations burning bright. :)