Palladium Books® Weekly Update – May 2, 2013

By Kevin Siembieda

We can’t believe it is already May 2nd. We’ve been putting in such ridiculously long hours of work that the last four months blew by in the blink of an eye. This week we’ve done work all over the place. Did some work on Rifts® Northern Gun™ One and continue to do work on Robotech® RPG Tactics™ (to make it an Autumn release it has to go into manufacturing by June!). There was, of course, work related to the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Kickstarter, as well as a number of things going on behind the scenes. In addition to our work on Northern Gun One and Two, we want to get a number of hotly anticipated titles into your hands as quickly as possible. New releases that will be so good, they will make you smile and squeal like little girls. :) On top of that, we have plans for all kinds of fun, new RPG releases. However, until we get the books you are waiting for in your hands, we don’t want to make any new promises or hint at too much.

A lot of this week has been hijacked by business and marketing. Everything seemed to come due this week, so Wayne and I have been banging things out to meet deadlines. We worked on four different ads, we did a promotional postcard drop-in for Anime Central, took care of Customs and some other details related to Anime North, made several online and Facebook postings and website updates, and prep work for Gen Con.

We have also been in frequent contact with Ninja Division and Harmony Gold about Robotech®, continuing the development for its writing, rules, and sculpts and approvals for artwork and other elements to Robotech® RPG Tactics™, as well as matters involving the Kickstarter.

I’m typically at work by 7:00 AM and these past several weeks, I’m lucky if I’m home by 10:00 PM. Wayne and Alex have been putting in long hours, too. The days just zoom by, but everything is moving along nicely. It’s all very exciting, if exhausting.

UPDATE: Robotech® New Generation – Second Printing

New Generation is that exciting era of Robotech® where the mecha, vehicles and weapons (not to mention the soldiers) that have survived the prior two Robotech Wars can be combined with the mecha of the UEEF. Freedom Fighters and survivors of UEEF liberation fleets join forces to battle the Invid invaders. We even introduce the concept of “Frankenmecha” that combine the salvaged weapons and body parts of two or more mecha to create a hybrid. When we realized we were down to our last 100 copies, we made sure to send this fan fave setting back to the printer. There should be no break in the availability of this title. See the full description elsewhere. Game on!

UPDATE: Robotech® RPG sale

Folks are loving this sale and we are seeing a large number of new faces. Welcome, and unleash your imaginations. All books have been marked down by 20% until the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Kickstarter ends (the prices listed in our online store already include the discount).

Robotech RPG Tactics

UPDATE: Robotech® RPG Tactics Kickstarter at $475,000 – 18 days to go!

Thank you for your support. Please keep spreading the word. Robotech® RPG Tactics™ is an outstanding addition the expanding Robotech® RPG game line, and the Kickstarter is doing fantastic. At the time I am writing this Update, the pledge amount has just passed $475,000 and we still have 18 days left to go!

The greater the success of the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Kickstarter, the more we can do to make the product line amazing, and get the boxed set and expansion packs out faster. We’ll be able to make the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ game line bigger and better, and that helps ensure a successful retail launch later this year. Increased resources will bring more eyeballs, and that means increased awareness of ALL our games. And we have a lot of great RPG products in development. Please support the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ Kickstarter, even in small ways, and spread the word about it everywhere. But only spend what you can afford.

For those of you new to Kickstarters, you’ll want to check out the FAQ at the bottom of the page and the small Update tab at the top of the page for more info, insight and updates. Something NEW is added every day or two, sometimes more than once per day – new stretch goals, new add-on items, new photos and information, etc. – so check back often. Thanks for your support.

Interviews with Kevin Siembieda at MTV Geek. I had been told Part Two of my interview would appear a day or two after Part One, but it didn't get posted till this week. It’s available now. Here’s the link, enjoy: http://geek-news.mtv.com/2013/04/29/robotech-rpg-kickstarter-2/

You can also see the interview I did with Brant Polkowski at cravengames.com about Robotech® RPG Tactics™ a couple days before the Kickstarter launch.

More interviews. I need to respond to a couple of other interview requests, and I suspect there will be interviews with other creators behind Robotech® RPG Tactics™. NOTE: I and others involved in the creation of Robotech® RPG Tactics™ are happy to do interviews, podcasts and such, with any interested news and gaming venues. Just give the Palladium office a call to make arrangements (734-721-2903). We want to spread the word everywhere. Thanks.

Palladium at Anime North – May 24-26, 2013

Wayne and I spent the better part of the day in Canada, today, getting things taken care of at Customs. While in town we had to stop at Harvey’s to grab a hamburger. Yum.

Palladium Books and many of our creators will be invading Anime North, running games, selling product, signing autographs and having a blast. This will be my first time at a major convention in Canada (Toronto area) in something like 20 years. So please come on down and have some fun with the Palladium crew!

Palladium Related Anime North Highlights:

Anime North is a mixed media event that includes gaming, anime, cosplay, and fun. For more information go to http://www.animenorth.com

Rifts® Vampires Sourcebook Sneak Preview – available now on DriveThruRPG.com

Don’t forget, the FREE Sneak Preview of Rifts® Vampires Sourcebook is available on DriveThruRPG.com for your enjoyment. There are also previews available for Rifts® Vampire Kingdoms (Revised Edition), Rifts® Black Market, Rifts® Lemuria, Dead Reign™ RPG, Endless Dead™ sourcebook and others. The original Rifts® Vampire Kingdoms World Book is also available as a PDF on DriveThruRPG, for those of you who may be interested.

More than 90 other Palladium titles can be found on DriveThruRPG.com as PDFs, including Splicers®, Rifts® RPG (the edition before RUE), The Rifter® #1-52, and first edition rule books and sourcebooks for Palladium Fantasy RPG®, Heroes Unlimited™, The Mechanoid Invasion® Trilogy, Beyond the Supernatural™ and lots of other good titles. DriveThruRPG.com also offers the Rifts® and Palladium Fantasy® Game Master Kits ($5 each; both written by Carl Gleba and complete with maps, combat matrix, character sheets, spell list, and 20 pre-rolled characters created by Julius Rosenstein).

UPDATE: Palladium Fantasy Old Ones – BACK IN PRINT – Available Now

The book is in and ready to ship. This ever popular Fantasy title contains nearly 50 different locations, each mapped and described, plus adventures, adventure ideas, O.C.C.s like the Monk, Illusionist, Witch and Chaos Priest, and the Old Ones. It is back in print as a special, short run printing. Written by Kevin Siembieda. 224 pages – $24.95 retail – Cat. No. 453. Back in stock and ready to ship right now.

UPDATE: The Rifter® #62 will ship in May

We have been so buried with work and other demands of our attention that Wayne and I have yet to get this issue finished and to the printer. Gaaaahhh. Almost done. Will be to the printer by Monday. This is only the second time in The Rifter’s 16 year history that an issue has missed its scheduled month of release. We did what we could, but the demands on Wayne’s time were such that we just couldn’t get the issue done. Fear not, this issue of The Rifter® is outstanding and filled with dynamic official and unofficial source material: 20 pages of “official” Rifts® Vampires source material, “official” new Necromancy spells, a Northern Gun sneak peek of a combat mecha, Heroes Unlimited material and a castle with dozens of maps and detailed floor plans for any campaign requiring a castle. Plus the usual news and information. See the more complete description later in this update.

UPDATE: Rifts® Northern Gun One and Two

Chuck Walton and I are working on both books. I’m trying to incorporate a number of new, cool additions that you’ll enjoy and finish the book to get it to the printer. The art, designs and concepts for Rifts® Northern Gun™ One are going to be really something. Northern Gun™ Two is the book we dive into after that.

Other Titles

Just because we are not talking about them right now, does not mean other titles are not being finished or developed. Stay frosty. This is going to be a very good year for Palladium and its legion of gamers.

Wayne Smith’s Birthday

Wayne’s birthday was yesterday, but we were so swamped, the poor guy was here working till 10:00 PM. Don’t feel too bad for him, I did give him one of his birthday gifts and we’ll be celebrating his birthday Friday evening. Happy Birthday, Wayne.

Stay positive, keep the faith and game on. Big things are coming. More to come next week. Gotta get back to work.

– Kevin Siembieda, Publisher, Writer and Gamer

Robotech New Generation Sourcebook

Robotech® New Generation Sourcebook

The Third Robotech War begins with the alien Invid laying siege to planet Earth. The Army of the Southern Cross is overwhelmed by the superior numbers of the enemy. Earth falls and is occupied by the Invid, but the war continues. Human resistance fighters wage a guerilla war while they await the return of Admiral Rick Hunter and the UEEF fleet to liberate the Earth.

You play a new generation of bold heroes who dare to oppose the frightening and enigmatic alien overlords known as the Invid. You defend the human race against impossible odds and rescue the innocent from the alien tyrants.

Rifts Vampires Sourcebook

Rifts® Vampires Sourcebook – Available Now

New secrets, new monsters and danger, new places to explore, new magic to wield, dark magic and forces to fear, new trouble and adventure in Mexico and the Yucatan. New conflicts between rival forces are brewing as Doc Reid prepares to take his private war with the vampires to a whole new level. Meanwhile, the vampires live like smug tyrants and gods, dominating an underclass of slaves and people used as cattle to feed upon. Learn more about the vampires, their rivals, allies and the humans who willingly serve them. A must-have guide for those who wish to travel deeper into the Vampire Kingdoms or play as vampires and their human minions.

Old Ones

BACK IN PRINT: Palladium Fantasy® Book Two: Old Ones

This is a massive adventure book, with maps and descriptions of more than 50 locations in the Timiro Kingdom. As if that were not enough to make this the ultimate adventure book, there is also information about the Old Ones and a few O.C.C.s.

Rifts Free Quebec

BACK IN PRINT: Rifts® World Book 22: Free Quebec

This World Book contains a wealth of information about Free Quebec, Glitter Boys and notable people and places.

The Rifter #62

The Rifter® #62 – Ships May 14, 2013

Sorry for the rare delay of this product, but this issue of The Rifter® is truly going to be spectacular with as many as 48 pages of “official” source material for Rifts® (20 pages of “official” Rifts® Vampires source material, new Necromancy spells, a Northern Gun mech, and the missing Rifts® Black Market experience tables!), detailed castle floor plans and descriptions that can be dropped into any Palladium Fantasy® campaign anywhere you need one, some epic Heroes Unlimited source material I may expand into a complete sourcebook in the future, plus news and information.

Since 2013 is the Palladium Fantasy® RPG’s 30 Year Anniversary, we are trying to include something special for the Fantasy RPG line in every issue. This issue has that detailed castle and many maps/floor plans, and the cover reprints the popular Kevin Long Palladium Fantasy RPG® cover from the 1980s. In fact, EVERY cover of The Rifter® in 2013 will be a fantasy illustration. Last issue was Amy L. Ashbaugh, this issue a classic Kevin Long, next issue’s cover will be by John Zeleznik and the October issue will be by Chuck Walton (we want to keep Charles working away on Northern Gun). Note: Writers & Game Masters, if you have some awesome Fantasy material (large or small) you’ve been thinking about sending in for The Rifter®, this is the time to do so. Thanks!

And The Rifter® is a bargain. Since this publication is a special product, it only costs $11.95 for a 96 page book. That’s less than what we charge for a 64 page sourcebook!

Each and 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 monsters, villains, 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® Number 62 includes:

Rifts Northern Gun One

Rifts® World Book 33: Northern Gun One

Northern Gun™ is the largest independent manufacturer of high-tech weapons, robots and vehicles in North America. Outside of the Coalition States, one could argue, no other kingdom is as powerful or influential, at least when it comes to technology and weapons. The manufacture and sale of Northern Gun weapons and vehicles has given virtually every kingdom, town, colony of settlers and adventurer group a chance to survive and prosper. Located in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, NG has been the premier outfitter of mercenaries, adventurers and upstart kingdoms for generations. Now, for the first time ever, learn Northern Gun’s history, goals and plans for the future. Of course, that means new weapons, robots, power armor, vehicles and gear.

Rifts Northern Gun Two

Rifts® World Book 34: Northern Gun Two

More information about the weapons, vehicles and practices of Northern Gun, including the new rage of robot gladiatorial combat.

Rifts Megaverse in Flames

Rifts® World Book 35: Megaverse® in Flames

The Minion War spills across Rifts Earth, where demons and infernals hope to recruit allies and use the Rifts as gateways of destruction. Their influence shakes things up across the planet, especially at locations where demons and Deevils already have a strong presence. Demons, Deevils and supernatural beings run rampant and wreak havoc across the world.

Robotech RPG Tactics

Robotech® RPG Tactics

Robotech® RPG Tactics™ is a fast-paced, strategy battle game that expands on the popular Palladium role-playing system to enter new realms of adventure.

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.

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:

Dead Reign RPG

Dead Reign RPG – Back in print, and hot, hot, hot

Can you survive the zombie apocalypse?

Yes, you may think so. But there is only one way to find out for sure: Play the Dead Reign™ RPG. The core rule book is all you need to start playing. Rules are easy. Character creation is fast and fun. Combat, quick and deadly. Survival? Harder than you might think. Good luck.

Dead Reign™ RPG is the aftermath of the zombie apocalypse. Civilization is gone, the dead reign, and the living fight to survive against impossible odds. Battle zombies, mad men and death cultists in a post-apocalyptic world where the last of humanity struggles to survive. Think you know zombies? Think again.

Civilization Gone Dark Places Endless Dead

Dead Reign Sourcebooks

Civilization Gone™: Dead Reign™ Sourcebook One. There is no army, no government, no help coming. You are on your own and things are only getting worse. Villains include madmen and pychopaths, bandits and raiders. Many random tables for encounters, houses, and survivor camp creation, and more. $12.95 – 64 pages. Cat. No. 231.

Dark Places™: Dead Reign™ Sourcebook Two. Using railroad tracks and subways, sewer tunnels, steam tunnels and other dark places to travel undetected by zombies. Many tables for random encounters, boxcar contents, zombies and more. Survival tips, new zombies like the Bug Boy, Sewer Crawler and Impersonator. $12.95 – 64 pages. Cat. No. 232.

Endless Dead™: Dead Reign™ Sourcebook Three. Zombie hordes grow in number and strangeness. Where is the military? What’s next for the living survivors? Many new types of zombies, new O.C.C.s like the Wheelman and Zombie Hunter, the military and random tables for military bases, police and other places. Plus weaponizing vehicles, vehicle combat, Survivor caravans, and more. $16.95 – 96 pages. Cat. No. 233.

Upcoming Appearances

Anime North – May 24-26, 2013 – Toronto, Canada – www.animenorth.com

Kevin Siembieda is one of the Guests of Honor, but several Palladium creators will be at Anime North in Toronto, Canada, to meet and game with you. The event takes place Memorial Day weekend, May 24-26, 2013. Wayne Smith and one or two other Palladium creators will also be present to chat and sign autographs. We are bringing a pile of books, prints and other goodies to sell in the dealers’ room. www.animenorth.com

Gen Con® Indy – August 15-18, 2013 – Indianapolis, Indiana

We can hardly wait for Gen Con this year as we hope to have advance copies of Robotech® RPG Tactics™: Defense of Macross Island™ there. Not to mention a stock of new releases from throughout the year. We may even need to expand the size of our booth. Hope to see many of you there.

Game Masters, submit your events by tomorrow, March 15 to get into the Gen Con program book! See http://www.gencon.com/host/eo-gm for more details.

Note: There will be no Palladium Open House in 2013 or 2014.

© Copyright 2013 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® and After the Bomb® are Registered Trademarks of Palladium Books Inc. Beyond the Supernatural™, Chaos Earth, 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.