By Kevin Siembieda
One game system – every genre – countless worlds – endless adventure
Tomorrow is December First and Christmas is just over three weeks away (the start of Hanukkah is even sooner). If you have not placed your Christmas Surprise Package order, you should do so very SOON. Please remember, processing, pulling and packing the order adds an extra day or two to ship time, and as we get closer to the holidays (Hanukkah, Christmas, etc.) the delivery of packages takes longer due to heavy volume. And experts are projecting this season will see more packages shipped than ever before. We recommend ordering this weekend and next to guarantee arrival for Christmas.
Speaking of the holidays, we hope your Thanksgiving Day weekend was full of joy, love and fun, and maybe some Black Friday shopping. Our thanks to those of you who participated in our Cyber-Monday and Tuesday sales, as well as the annual Surprise Package offer. We are seeing a lot of new faces too.
This is a time for celebration and gift-giving in which we can show our love and appreciation to all the people who matter to us. I think that is a wonderful tradition. But while gifts are nice, a hug and the words, “I love you,” and “You mean so much you mean to me, I’m glad you are in my life,” are priceless. And they don’t cost you a dime. Please spread them around.
We want you to know that you, our fans and friends, mean the world to us at Palladium. That’s why we have done the Palladium Christmas Surprise Package sale for 19 years now. And why we put our hearts and souls into every book we create. We’re not fat-cat executives. We are a small company built and run by gaming fans just like you. We love games, science fiction, fantasy, and the work we do, and the people we do it all for. You. We appreciate you all year long, and your support and kind words get us through the tough times and make us soar higher during the good times. I just want you to know that. Happy Holidays.
UPDATE: Christmas Surprise Package
Time is running out to get a Christmas Surprise Package – orders are pouring in for the best deal in gaming – 3 weeks till Christmas – less when you factor in shipping time
Christmas Surprise Package orders have been pouring in since Black Friday. We are happy to see them, and have been shipping them out as fast as they come in. I have been loading them up and trying to make them all special. Keep them pouring in and we’ll keep them shipping out! See the shipping dates below to help you gauge when you NEED to place orders to get them in time for Christmas.
What is a Palladium Christmas Surprise Package? It’s a fun bargain for you, and it’s our way of saying thank you to Palladium fans around the world. Fill holes in your collection, try new games and world settings, get gifts for your gaming pals, and if you want, we’ll sign every book.
For those of you who don’t know what a Palladium Christmas Surprise Package is, it’s usually $90-$95 worth of Palladium RPG books (sometimes more!) for only $45 plus shipping and handling. And because you guys and gals mean so much to us, I often pack in more than $96 worth of product. Oh, and each book will be signed by me (Kevin Siembieda) and available Palladium staff and freelancers if you request it. It is our way of saying thanks to all of you for your support and kindness.
- Palladium Surprise Packages make the perfect holiday gifts for the gamers in your life – Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or the Winter Solstice, or you’re looking for a gift for a birthday, anniversary, Valentine’s Day, or any special occasion that falls between now and February, a Surprise Package may be the ideal way to go. You get a ton of stuff on the cheap, you can get a bunch of autographs, and you look like you spent a fortune.
- Fill holes in your own collection.
- Try new game settings (Rifts®, Robotech®, Palladium Fantasy®, Heroes Unlimited™, Splicers®, Nightbane®, Dead Reign®, Beyond the Supernatural™, Ninjas & Superspies™, After the Bomb®, and all the rest).
- Get cool stuff (miniatures, bookmarks, maps, greeting cards, etc.).
- Get autographs from the Palladium crew and available freelancers.
- Be surprised when the package arrives.
- All items selected and comments read by Santa Kevin, himself. Ho, ho, ho!
The best deal of the holidays! You are likely to pay $50 for just a single core rule book, but for $45 plus shipping, you can get 4-6 books in a Surprise Package, depending on their retail value. Or you can get that core rule book and 2-4 sourcebooks. And we will sign the books if you request it. How do you beat that? It is the best deal in gaming! Our way of giving back to the fans and making the holidays special for you.
Don’t take our word for it, check out some of the unboxing videos on line. You can find a few of them here: https://youtube.com/user/evancass/videos
Please spread the word to gamers everywhere. People only learn about the Palladium Christmas Surprise Package offer by word of mouth, The Rifter® and our website, so please post and spread the word everywhere. The Grab Bags are a great way to try Robotech® or Robotech® RPG Tactics, Rifts®, Palladium Fantasy RPG® and any of our games. Pick up one for yourself and for every gamer you know!
Shipping guidelines for Christmas delivery – approximately 3 weeks till Christmas weekend
IF YOU WANT YOUR ORDER or SURPRISE PACKAGE IN TIME FOR CHRISTMAS, YOU NEED TO ORDER IN THE NEXT 14 DAYS! For those of you in the USA, placing an order over the next 14 days guarantees you to get your Christmas Surprise Packages in time for Christmas without any concern. And without having to pay for a better, faster method of shipping! That gives you till December 14 to place your order. The only exception is Media Mail, as it is slower and less reliable. If shipping by Media Mail, place your order BEFORE December 11 (but there is no guarantee whenever you use Media Mail). Note: When you place your order now and over the next 14 days, you avoid the Christmas rush and reduce the chance of your package getting lost or delayed in the mail!
Shipping Considerations: When ordering, you need to factor in time for Palladium to process those orders (usually 24 hours, not counting weekends) and the actual transit time of shipping itself (generally 3-5 business days in the USA depending on where you live, 5-10 days in Canada). Do NOT include Saturday or Sunday as shipping days, because they are not. Get those orders in NOW to get your order or Surprise Packages guaranteed in time for Christmas without having to pay an arm and a leg for expedited shipping!
A long Wish List prevents delays. The Palladium Surprise Packages are designed to simulate the fun, joy and surprise of the Christmas Season of Giving. To do this, you submit a “Wish List” of 10-15 Palladium products (or more) FOR EACH Surprise Package you order. This list of 10-15 items for EACH Grab Bag is critical, because you will not know which items you’ll be getting. That makes it just like a Christmas gift because it is a surprise! Plus, Santa Kevin, who personally hand-picks every item for every Grab Bag, may toss in something extra like a limited edition print or T-shirt, or issue of The Rifter®, or something else he thinks you’ll enjoy.
Shipping Guidelines for Christmas Delivery:
Remember, Palladium needs a day or two to process and pack orders, and we cannot ship on the weekends. Make sure your address is complete (include Apt. Number) and your order is clear. And send a long Wish List.
- Media Mail: Least expensive but risky. Place your order via Media Mail by December 10 and you should get your Surprise Package by Christmas, HOWEVER, Palladium will NOT guarantee any package shipped via Media Mail to arrive before Christmas. Use this method at your own risk. Note: Media Mail, which applies only to paper goods, is the least expensive method of shipping, BUT also the slowest and least reliable method. The USPS will tell you 4-10 days for delivery, HOWEVER, experience has shown us that delivery time is more like 7-21 days during the Christmas season. Ship at your own risk. Note: If you want your 2017 Surprise Package quickly, DO NOT ship via Media Mail, use UPS or Priority Mail. Rare books and one-of-a-kind items like original art, prints and gold editions CANNOT be replaced if lost or damaged in the mail. The risk and the loss is YOURS and the items will NOT be replaced.
- UPS Ground in the USA is 3-5 days delivery. Place your order by December 14 to guarantee Christmas delivery. Those of you who live east of the Mississippi River may have till December 18. Since Christmas is on Monday, those of you east of the Mississippi should get your order in time, as UPS Ground ships to most locations in the east in 2-3 days, but it is a small gamble. Those of you living west of the Mississippi need to get orders to us no later than December 13 to absolutely guarantee delivery by Friday, December 22. Barring unexpected weather or accidents, of course.
- Priority Mail in the USA – Place your order by December 13 (should be a bit cheaper than UPS 3-Day Select).
Express Shipping Methods:
- UPS 3-Day Select in the USA – Place your order by December 18 for guaranteed Christmas delivery.
- UPS 2nd Day Air in the USA – Place your order by December 19.
- UPS Next Day Air in the USA – Place your order by December 20.
- Express Mail in the USA – Place your order by December 19.
- Parcel Post in the USA – NOT ADVISED. Placing an order by December 13 means you MAY get your order in time for Christmas, but probably not. There is only a 33% chance. We CANNOT guarantee a Christmas delivery using Parcel Post at this time.
- December 7 – to our friends in Canada and overseas – We suggest ordering no later than December 7, but we cannot guarantee delivery in time for Christmas. You should get it in time, but if there are delays at Customs, it might miss. Order sooner rather than later. Happy Holidays, one and all!
Surprise Package mitigates overseas shipping costs – take advantage of this while you can
The low cost of the Surprise Package mitigates the cost of shipping. It is, in effect, the equivalent of getting the books you want at retail, plus autographs, and paying the equivalent of only $5-$20 for overseas shipping!
How can that be? Well, if you factor in that you are getting say, $100 in product, but only paying $45 for them, and shipping is, say $60 or $70, that’s $105 or $115 total – which is like $5-$15 in shipping for $100+ worth of product. And I always load up foreign Surprise Packages, so make sure you send a long Wish List! Of course, the purchaser is responsible for any Customs fees, taxes and other fees, but since we are selling you a $45 Surprise Package (not $100+ in books) you should only pay on a $45 purchase.
MANY overseas customers take advantage of the Surprise Packages for this reason! And it is likely the ONLY way for you to get autographs. Give it a try, we don’t think you will be disappointed. This is the time for our friends and fans overseas to load up on the Palladium products they have been wanting! Enjoy.
Please note that Palladium Books has NO control over the cost of shipping/postage, nor the brokerage fees, Customs charges or any other related fees charged by other countries. Within the USA, Media Mail is the least expensive method of shipping, but also the least reliable and slowest. To our Canadian customers, we have no idea why it costs so much to mail books and product to you. So much for NAFTA making things easier. Game on.
Click here to get all the details or to place a Surprise Package order.