Palladium Books® Weekly Update – July 3, 2014

By Kevin Siembieda

Happy Independence Day. May it be fun and safe.

Since it’s the holiday weekend, and we are busy as all get out, I’m going to keep this update very short.

I’m giving most of the Palladium crew Friday, Saturday and Sunday off. Trust me, they deserve it. I’m afraid Matthew Clements and I will be working at least part of the weekend, though I do need to take at least one day off. I've been working so many long hours and days in a row that I have no clue what day it is and I’m feeling pretty exhausted.

The good news is that writing is still going along well and we have all kinds of good stuff in the final throes of development. Megaverse® in Flames, The Rifter® #67, Dead Reign™ Sourcebook: Graveyard Earth™ and a surprise (one of our secret projects) should all go to the print in a week or so.

UPDATE: Robotech® RPG Tactics is being manufactured

Everything is being printed and manufactured and moving along on this front. We have not provided more info at this time because the delivery schedule keeps changing. I almost posted something two weeks ago, but I am so glad I didn’t. Since then, there was a four day delay with the printer making the rule book and stat cards. Just the other day one of the factories in China lost an entire day due to a power loss! The US West Coast port strike gave us a start and still has the potential to cause problems and delays, though right now, things are looking pretty good. All of this has delayed us from what we were anticipating two weeks ago (still waiting for the final analysis). Nerve-wracking as hell. Fingers crossed for no more glitches or delays. Not even another day. Oh, and the product is looking great.

We should know much more next week. Meanwhile, Wayne and I continue to work on logistics while the guys have been putting up pallet racks and clearing the warehouse floor.

What follows are the last two Updates Wayne had done for the Kickstarter backers.


Robotech® RPG Tactics is in manufacturing... but what exactly does that mean?

June 26, 2014

We made the announcement two weeks ago that Robotech® RPG Tactics™ had gone into manufacturing, but some have speculated about just what that means, so I’m hoping to shed some light on that today.

What it literally meant at the time was that we had placed the order and paid a deposit, which had put things in motion and got the factory started actually making things. But Robotech® RPG Tactics™ is a complex product, made up of many varied components. Everything isn’t rolling off of production and assembly lines all at once. Here’s where things stand, in more detail.

The faction dice are being manufactured and painted.

This is pretty self-explanatory. We approved the dice, and yesterday I was told that about 50,000 of them were already done. That’s a good chunk of the total, so these are coming along nicely.

The decal sheets are being printed, or about to start.

We saw samples of these this week, and approved them pending one minor fix. They should begin printing any time, if they haven’t done so already.

Packaging and other print items have been approved.

We got a pile of print items this week, including the main game box, four of the six expansion boxes (and saw photos of the other two today), all the cards from the main box (and again, saw pics of the expansion pack cards today), and the instruction sheets. They have all been approved, and will begin printing any time now, if they haven’t already started.

The rulebook has been approved.

There was a snafu with the cover, but it has been resolved, and the rulebook has been approved to start printing. Should be any time now.

Zentraedi mecha are being made.

All of the Zentraedi game pieces were approved some time ago, and are in manufacturing. In fact, we got a big pile of them a couple days ago with the dice samples. They’re looking great.

UEDF mecha are all done with initial tooling.

We saw some initial test run photos of the UEDF sprues a few days ago, and identified some minor issues. Ninja John jumped right on it and got the factory working on fixing them. Meanwhile, Jeff has been looking them over and coordinating with John to catch everything. John received the test runs today, and we should get them tomorrow. I’ll include some photos of these below.

Final assembly begins next week.

Once all of the above is being made in quantity, the factory can begin final assembly of game boxes. That should start in about a week.

And now, some photos

First off, here are all those print materials I told you about.

And here are some Phalanxes, rather hastily assembled by the guys at the factory, but looking good all the same.

These are the Spartan test runs assembled by Ninja John today.

And finally, the Valkyries. As with the others, there are a few adjustments to be made, but otherwise they look pretty good.

Production in Full Swing

July 3, 2014

Hey, all. Lots of photos to show you this week, but first a few updates.

The initial test runs for all of the Wave One UEDF game pieces arrived at the Palladium offices on Saturday, and we immediately assembled some of them to check for any issues that needed to be corrected. There were a few minor adjustments to be made, but the factory jumped right on them, and we’ve been approving their fixes all week.

Just about everything for Wave One is now in manufacturing, with a few exceptions.

Some adjustments were made to the Tomahawk and Defender molds over the last couple of days, we saw photos of the new test runs this morning, and there are one or two more slight fixes still needed. We should be able to approve them tomorrow, so they can start production tomorrow night (Saturday, China time; they’re 12 hours ahead of us).

There was a fix done last night for the Valkyrie Battloid, we saw photos this morning, and it has been approved. It will begin production tonight.

Everything else is now in production, with final assembly of main box and expansion kit components starting early next week.

More of the UEDF Test Runs

We showed you Ninja John’s photos of these last week, but today we thought we’d show you pics of some assembled figures along with their sprues, showing what’s left after assembling one of each game piece.

Here’s the Valkyrie Battloid. As you may notice, two of these come on one sprue, so after assembling one, there are still parts left over to make one more, plus multiple arm pose and head options.

For the Valkyrie Guardian, the only parts left over are a set of arms in a different pose, a few missiles and MLOPs pods, and the other head options.

The Valkyrie Fighter is much the same, with missile and head options left over.

The Defender, like the Battloid above, comes two per sprue, so there’s a second Defender left to assemble here.

Same for the Tomahawk. Here we've assembled the one with open missile ports in the chest, so there’s one Tomahawk left with closed ports, plus two Destroid Command Modules.

Once again, there’s a second Phalanx left to assemble here, plus the experimental arm options and two Destroid Command Modules.

And finally, the Spartan. In the background are the parts for a second Spartan, plus several extra arm pose options, including another club and two GU-11 gun pods.

I’m hoping to assemble the rest next week, and when I do, more photos will be coming. I actually recorded video of myself assembling the second Phalanx today, but the camera stopped recording just as I was attaching the legs to the pelvis. I’ll keep working on that.

In the meantime, tomorrow is a holiday in the USA, so we wish you all a safe and happy weekend.


UPDATE: Rifts® Megaverse® in Flames

Looking great! Reading fantastic. Matthew and I are working away on it. Anticipating a July release.

UPDATE: The Rifter® #67

Wayne has made his selections and art has been assigned. End of July release!

UPDATE: Dead Reign: Graveyard Earth

Art has been assigned and coming in. Still shooting for a July release. Plus we’re expecting the manuscript for the next Dead Reign™ sourcebook in a few weeks.

UPDATE: Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines Sourcebook One

– Formerly titled ‘UEEF Marines’

Artwork is being assigned. Summer release. See the description later in this Update.

Find issues of The Rifter® and 90+ out of print Palladium Titles on DriveThruRPG.com

Wayne will continue to add a couple issues of The Rifter® to the 90+ PDF products available on DriveThruRPG.com every week or two for your enjoyment. Amongst the 90+ Palladium RPG books already available are Splicers® RPG, the original Rifts® RPG, The Rifts® Coalition Wars®/Siege on Tolkeen series, the Rifts® Game Shield, the original Rifts® Vampire Kingdoms™ World Book, the original Beyond the Supernatural™ RPG, first edition rules and sourcebooks for the Palladium Fantasy RPG® and Heroes Unlimited™, The Rifter® issues 1-54 (with new ones being added) and many others. There are also FREE previews on DriveThruRPG.com for Rifts® Northern Gun™ One and Two, Rifts® Vampires Sourcebook, Rifts® Vampire Kingdoms™ (Revised Edition), Rifts® Black Market, Rifts® Lemuria, Dragons and Gods™, Dead Reign™ RPG, Endless Dead™ sourcebook and others, too. Plus there is special Game Master supplemental material by Carl Gleba and Julius Rosenstein (character sheets, tables, tips and more) and we plan to add more G.M. material and other sneak previews. COMING SOON: Fantasy paper miniatures designed and created by “Madman” Mike Leonard, so check out all the goodies on DriveThruRPG.com.

Palladium Collectibles Available in Kevin’s Online Toy & Collectibles Store

We have added some new collectibles and out of print titles to my online store, including a couple of printer proofs of Palladium Fantasy RPG® and Heroes Unlimited™ 30th Anniversary Hardcovers, and some other odds and ends. I still haven’t had time to dig out and select a few Chuck Walton original pencil illustrations and sketches to post in the store. Oh, and we have a new, unique item coming in a few weeks that we think collectors will enjoy. Meanwhile, we’ll keep adding items as supplies allow, and as I find other odds and ends as we do more spring cleaning and reorganization. As usual, there are out of print titles, redlined proofreader photocopies signed by me and the staff, signed manuscripts with editors’ corrections, some original art, hardcover books (including Rifts® Northern Gun™ One) and other items you’ll enjoy. There are also hundreds of toys and action figures. All items in the store are from my own personal archives and collection. Take a look every few days as new items are added. There may be some items that are perfect for upcoming birthdays and anniversaries.

http://stores.ebay.com/kevinstoys-artandcollectibles

UPDATE: Palladium Books at Gen Con Indy – Booth 1223

Everyone who has seen our both design loves it. Simple. Dynamic. Effective. We’ve been taking care of other Gen Con 2014 matters. Most of the 50+ official Palladium role-playing game events scheduled are sold out, but there are still a few with some open slots, like a couple of Rifts® Chaos Earth games. Plus we will have FREE gaming events at the Palladium Booth (#1223), near Fantasy Flight, and demos of Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Wave One. Of course the store will have new releases, back stock titles, limited edition books, original artwork, art prints, one-of-a-kind items, miniatures and other good stuff for sale. Palladium creators such as myself (Kevin Siembieda), Wayne Smith, Carmen Bellaire, Matthew Clements, Carl Gleba, Brandon Aten, Nick Bradshaw, “Madman” Mike Leonard, Chuck Walton, and others will be present to chat and sign autographs! Join the fun at the Palladium booth, #1223.

Busting our tails

This has been a super productive week on many fronts. Jeff and I began the physical transformation of the Palladium warehouse as soon as new racking materials arrived at 8:00 AM this morning (Thursday). Jeff, Julius, Matthew, and Alex are back there as I write this Update. Looking fantastic as we clear the floor for the coming of Robotech® RPG Tactics™. It’s one of those things that cannot wait till the last minute. Plus today was a cold snap, dropping us from several days of humid, 86-90 degree weather to only 65. Perfect weather for physical labor. We opened the bay doors to let the cool temps in and have been working away. Meanwhile, I’ll be diving back into finishing Rifts® Megaverse® in Flames™. Whew. That’s it for now. Have some sunny, summer fun over the long weekend and game on!

– Kevin Siembieda, Publisher, Writer and Game Designer

The Rifter #66

NEW! The Rifter® #66 – Available now

The Rifter® #66 is about people and exotic places. There are the space pirates of Phase World® and the Three Galaxies™; notable Rifts® Black Marketeers, some contraband goods and a Black Market trade town in Rifts® Black Market, Part Two; the Splicers Ranger O.C.C. and a host of genetically manipulated creatures in The Splicers® Bestiary; the villainous Snake Men gang in a Heroes Unlimited™ adventure; and travel from Lazlo to Atlantis in the Rifts® short story. Plus news, coming attractions, and more.

Every issue of The Rifter® is an idea factory for players and Game Masters to generate new ideas, and find new avenues of adventure. It provides useful, ready to go, source material you can just drop into your ongoing games. A doorway to new possibilities and numerous Palladium role-playing worlds. And the many new characters, O.C.C.s, powers, magic, weapons, villains, monsters, adventures and ideas for one setting can be easily adapted to any Palladium setting. Every issue has material for Rifts® and at least 2-3 other Palladium game lines. And don’t forget, most of the material can be easily adapted for use in ANY Palladium game setting.

The Rifter® Number 66 includes:

Rifts Northern Gun Two

NEW! Rifts® World Book 34: Northern Gun Two – Available now

Shipping right now. Order yours today. Rifts® Northern Gun™ Two is the biggest book of vehicles and equipment Palladium has ever produced. You get power armor galore, plus hovercycles, body armor, robot drones, amphibious vehicles, combat vehicles, ground vehicles, and other gear, plus gladiators of the Robodome and hints about things to come and NG’s relationship with the Coalition States. EXPANDED from 160 pages to 256 pages. Epic adventure. Available now.

Rifts Northern Gun One

HOT! Rifts® World Book 33: Northern Gun One – Available Now!

If you are getting NG-2 you’ll want NG-1, even though both titles stand alone. Rifts® Northern Gun™ One is the most tech-filled World Book Palladium has ever produced, and gamers are loving every page of new weapons, robots, power armor, vehicles and NG background.

Rifts Megaverse in Flames

NEW! Rifts® World Book 35: Megaverse® in Flames – Ships July

The Minion War spills across Rifts Earth, where demons and infernals hope to recruit allies and use the Rifts as gateways of destruction across the Megaverse. Their influence shakes things up all over the planet, especially at locations where demons and Deevils already have a strong presence. Demonic supernatural beings run rampant and wreak havoc across the world. Megaverse® in Flames™ is in final production and ships in July.

The Rifter #66

NEW! The Rifter® #67 – Ships July

Every issue of The Rifter® is an idea factory that helps players and Game Masters to generate new ideas and keep their games fresh. It provides useful, ready to go, source material gamers can just drop into their ongoing games. A doorway to new possibilities and numerous Palladium role-playing worlds. It offers new characters, O.C.C.s, powers, magic, weapons, adventure and ideas for your games. It presents new villains, monsters and dangers to battle, and new ideas to consider. Every issue has material for Rifts® and at least two or three other Palladium game lines.

The Rifter® #67 – July, 2014:

Dead Reign Graveyard Earth

NEW! Dead Reign Sourcebook 5: Graveyard Earth – Ships July

When the dead rise and communications and power grids collapse, nothing matters except your own survival. But what about the rest of the world? What’s happening in other places? Has any government survived? Is anyplace safe? Dead Reign™ Graveyard Earth™ tries to answer those questions and others. And in doing so, provides gamers and G.M.s with more fuel for adventure.

Robotech UEEF Marines Sourcebook One

NEW! Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines Sourcebook One

– Formerly titled ‘UEEF Marines’

Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines sourcebook is set in space with the UEEF (United Earth Expeditionary Force) led by Admiral Rick Hunter. This valiant force of mecha clad heroes travel across the galaxy liberating planets from the bondage of the Invid Regent, the Robotech Masters and other tyrants and monsters.

Chaos Earth Rise of Magic

Coming BACK IN PRINT – Rise of Magic

A Rifts® Chaos Earth® Sourcebook – Summer

Rescheduled for a summer release.

The return of magic has empowered humans with strange and wondrous powers, unlike anything quite yet seen (and different from most conventional types of magic). This only complicates things for Earth’s defenders as the line of distinction between “good guys” and “bad guys” begins to blur.

Heroes Unlimited 30th Anniversary Hardcover

Heroes Unlimited 30th Anniversary Hardcover Edition – only $40 while supplies last

Half of the Heroes Unlimited™ RPG Hardcovers are already sold. ONLY 200 copies remain. This HU2 30th Anniversary Edition is visibly different (and cool) than the original hardcover and cannot be confused with the earlier printing. We have kept the price an unprecedented, low $40 for a hardcover Gold Edition of this size. We want to give Heroes Unlimited™ fans a crack at purchasing one before the price skyrockets on the secondary collectors’ market. The original HU2 hardcover sold for $50 and has since become a collector’s item that sells for $200-$350 on the secondary market. Enjoy and game on!

Just a few notable Heroes Unlimited Sourcebooks:

Instantly expand your playing experience with these and other HU2 sourcebooks.

Palladium Fantasy RPG 30th Anniversary Hardcover

NEW! Palladium Fantasy RPG® 30th Anniversary Hardcover Edition – only $40 while supplies last

The Palladium Fantasy® Special 30th Anniversary Hardcover is selling even faster than the Heroes Unlimited hardcover. We sold 200 copies in half the time! Only 250 copies remain! This Palladium Fantasy® 30th Anniversary Edition is visibly different than the original hardcover and cannot be confused with the earlier printing. We have kept the price an unprecedented, low $40 for a hardcover Gold Edition of this size. We want to give Palladium Fantasy® fans a crack at purchasing one before the price skyrockets on the secondary collectors’ market. The original Crimson Edition sold for $50 and has since become a collector’s item that sells for $250-$400 on the secondary market.

To preserve the value of the “original” Palladium Fantasy RPG® Crimson Edition Hardcover, we have made the 30th Anniversary Edition as visibly different looking on the outside as possible. The material used for the cover is a brown leatherette imprinted with “Elemental Green” foil, different art on the cover, and the words “Special 30th Anniversary Edition.” Even the spine is different looking and the end sheets are without artwork. All the elements described above should make the Palladium Fantasy RPG® 30th Anniversary Hardcover impossible to mistake for the original signed and numbered HC edition.

Second Edition rules. Please note that this hardcover edition is the SECOND Edition rules, exactly the same as the current material in the softcover book. Enjoy and unleash those imaginations.

Robotech RPG Tactics

Robotech® RPG Tactics – Coming Summer 2014

This is the game Robotech® fans have wanted for decades.

Robotech® RPG Tactics™ is a fast-paced, tabletop combat game that captures the action and adventure of the Robotech® anime. Two or more players can engage in small squad skirmishes or scale up to massive battles. Relive the clashes of the First Robotech War, engage in stand-alone tactical games, or use the dynamic game pieces to enhance your Robotech® RPG experience. Or simply collect your favorite mecha from an expanding range of top-notch game pieces.

Mecha vs Mecha. Take command of the fighting forces of the United Earth Defense Force (UEDF) valiantly defending Earth from alien annihilation. Or lead the massive clone armies of the Zentraedi Armada to recover an alien artifact of immense power and enslave humankind.

Robotech® RPG Tactics Box Set – Cat. No. 55100

The First Six Robotech® RPG Tactics Expansion Packs

The first six expansion packs will be available to retail at the same time as the main box game. Here are the “official” SKUs and retail prices.

UEDF Valkyrie Wing

UEDF Valkyrie Wing

Build your fleet of Earth defenders with the Valkyrie Veritech Fighter; six figures total.

UEDF Tomahawk/Defender Destroids

UEDF Tomahawk/Defender Destroids

Expand your Destroid squad with these formidable walking tanks; four figures total.

UEDF Spartan/Phalanx Destroids

UEDF Spartan/Phalanx Destroids

Add some long range power and up-close punch to your army with these valuable Destroids; four figures total.

Zentraedi Regult Battlepods

Zentraedi Regult Battlepods

Expand your Zentraedi forces with their main infantry battle mecha; six figures total.

Zentraedi Artillery Battlepods

Zentraedi Artillery Battlepods

Give your Zentraedi legion greater firepower with these artillery and support Battlepods; four figures total.

Zentraedi Glaug Command Pack

Zentraedi Glaug Command Pack

This diverse pack provides your Zentraedi forces with greater tactical capabilities; three figures total.

Robotech Macross Saga Sourcebook

Robotech® Macross® Saga Sourcebook – New 8½ x 11 size – Available now

All the famous mecha and action of Robotech® starts here with the Macross® Saga when an alien armada enters Earth orbit. They have come to reclaim a lost spacecraft that crash-landed on Earth 10 years earlier. A space fortress that Earth’s protectors have rebuilt into their own flagship against alien invasion. The resulting conflict gives birth to heroes and becomes the stuff of legend, but the Earth will never be the same. Robotech® The Macross® Saga Sourcebook is now available as an 8½ x 11 inch sourcebook.

Note: This is the setting for Robotech® RPG Tactics™, so if you’re looking for more information about the mecha, Earth’s defenders, the Zentraedi invaders, and Macross Saga setting, this is the book for you. Epic adventure awaits.

A Robotech® Role-Playing Game Sourcebook:

Gen Con Indy – August 14-17, 2014

Gen Con Indy is going to be the premier convention event for Palladium Books this year. A large booth, special display, a ton of product including Robotech® RPG Tactics™, and all our role-playing games and sourcebooks, art prints, original art, and all kinds of good stuff. There will also be many Palladium creators available at the booth throughout the convention to chat and sign autographs, including writers Brandon Aten, Matthew Clements, Carl Gleba, Carmen Bellaire, Mark Oberle (tentative), me (Kevin Siembieda), Palladium staffers like Wayne Smith and Jeff Burke, and artists including Nick Bradshaw, Mike Leonard, Chuck Walton, and others. And it looks like there will be 50+ Palladium Books RPG events in the official Gen Con program. My heartfelt thanks to the Megaversal Ambassadors spearheading this project, as well as the Game Masters volunteering to run so many events for our many game lines. Awesome.

Palladium Books Gen Con Highlights:

2015 Palladium Open House – May 14-17, 2015

The 2015 Palladium Open House is officially on! This is an event unlike any you have ever experienced. It is more like a family reunion than a gaming convention, with incredible access to Palladium creators (artists, writers, editors, etc.). We hope to see many of you next May in 2015! More information will be posted soon, but start planning for it now and reserve your hotel rooms as soon as possible.

$109.00 (plus tax) per room at the Comfort Inn, aka “Plymouth Clock Tower Hotel.” This is the hotel everyone knows and wants. You can start placing hotel reservations for the 2015 Palladium Open House right now, but make sure you tell them the Group Code “Palladium Books.” This is a must to get the superior group rate.

That’s $109 (plus tax) for a room with two queen beds or one king with a sofa that has a pull-out sleeper. ALL rooms have a micro-fridge, FREE high-speed wired/wireless Internet and there is a FREE hot breakfast from 6 A.M. to 10 A.M. near the lobby. The hotel also offers a heated indoor swimming pool, a fitness center (24 hours), and a coin operated laundry. And the large conference room is ours to use, around the clock for open gaming.

Comfort Inn

40455 Ann Arbor Road
Plymouth, MI 48170
Phone: 734-455-8100

Group Code: Palladium Books – you MUST request the Group Code “Palladium Books” at the time of booking to ensure the correct rate will be quoted and billed to you.

Dates of the 2015 Palladium Open House (POH): May 15-17 (May 14 is VIP Thursday), 2015.

If you know you are coming to the 2015 Palladium Open House, we recommend you reserve your room as soon as possible to get this superior rate. Call 734-455-8100 to make your reservation. The hotel does NOT charge your credit card until a few days before the event (next year!) and you can cancel up until May 10, 2015. So there is no reason to wait. Get your room(s) reserved right away. More information about the 2015 Palladium Open House is coming soon. Game on!

DriveThruRPG

PDF downloads from DriveThruRPG.com

This is a great resource for getting out of print Palladium titles and other select books. We’ve made 90 titles available as PDF digital downloads from DriveThruRPG.com. This is a great way to try Palladium products and get access to out of print RPG source material. Some notable titles include:

© Copyright 2014 Palladium Books Inc. All rights reserved.

Rifts®, The Rifter®, RECON®, Splicers®, Palladium Books®, The Palladium Fantasy Role-Playing Game®, Phase World®, Nightbane®, Megaverse®, The Mechanoids®, The Mechanoid Invasion®, Coalition Wars®, Chaos Earth®, and After the Bomb® are Registered Trademarks of Palladium Books Inc. RPG Tactics™, Beyond the Supernatural, Coalition States, Dead Reign, Heroes Unlimited, Ninjas & Superspies, Minion War, Mysteries of Magic, SAMAS, Thundercloud Galaxy, Three Galaxies, Vampire Kingdoms, and other published book titles, names, slogans and likenesses are trademarks of Palladium Books Inc., and Kevin Siembieda.

Robotech® and Robotech® The Shadow Chronicles® are Registered Trademarks of Harmony Gold USA, Inc.

This press release may be reprinted, reposted, linked and shared for the sole purpose of advertising, promotion and sales solicitation.