Palladium Books® Weekly Update – June 6, 2013

By Kevin Siembieda

We continue to put in long hours of work on all fronts. We did more advertisements, talked with distributors, held strategy sessions, rearranged parts of the office, created an artist bullpen area, made plans for Gen Con, hammered out details on various projects, and continued to work on Rifts® Northern Gun™ One, Robotech® RPG Tactics™, and other good stuff.

REMINDER: Palladium Fantasy RPG® on SALE June, 2013 – 30% off to celebrate Palladium Fantasy’s 30th Anniversary

Palladium Fantasy RPG® turns 30 years old this year. It was originally released June, 1983, and was an instant success. We thought it appropriate to make the entire month of June Palladium Fantasy Month and celebrate by marking down ALL in-stock Fantasy titles by 30%. Enjoy.

UPDATE: Robotech® RPG Tactics™

Our focus is split between finishing up Robotech® RPG Tactics™ for sending to manufacturing and finishing Rifts® Northern Gun One™ and getting it to the printer. Both are coming along well.

UPDATE: Kickstarter Pledge Manager

Hey, everybody. Sorry for the long silence, but rest assured, we have been working feverishly behind the scenes.

First off, we’re working on setting up the pledge manager storefront for Kickstarter backers, and expect to have it up and running by the end of June. Some of you will be familiar with this sort of pledge manager system, which will allow Kickstarter backers to select their add-ons by essentially shopping in their own private store, using their pledged dollar amount as credit to select the items they want. You’ll even be able to add to your pledge amount so that you can pick up any add-ons that were unlocked toward the end of the Kickstarter, or which you may have missed before.

We’ll be sending out surveys in the next few weeks. By then or shortly thereafter, we’ll have many more details about the pledge manager and other questions you may have.

Finally, if you pledged for the Kickstarter but later learned it didn’t go through for some reason, please contact us at 734-721-2903. (For those of you overseas or otherwise unable to call us, send us a message through Kickstarter, just be aware it will take us longer to get back to you.) We’re not going to shut you out or let you get left behind. We greatly appreciate the tremendous support you’ve all given us, and we won’t be happy until every one of you is satisfied.

Thanks again, everyone. Watch for the survey coming in the next few weeks.

UPDATE: The Rifter® #62 – Available now

Don’t miss out on this outstanding issue. The Rifter® #62 is jam-packed with all kinds of epic source material – much of it “official.” See the full description elsewhere in this Update and the sneak preview at DriveThruRPG.com.

UPDATE: The Rifter® #63 – July release

Wayne has begun making his final selections for articles to go into this issue. Art to be assigned in the next few days. John Zeleznik is working on the cover; Fantasy, of course.

UPDATE: Rifts® Northern Gun One

Chuck Walton came by the office on Wednesday to work on additional artwork for Rifts® Northern Gun™ One (like the hover train and the approach to NG by travelers). He and I also discussed some ideas for NG-2 and Megaverse in Flames. We’re all working away.

UPDATE: Northern Gun Two

As reported in the last Weekly Update, Brian and Allen Manning and Amy Ashbaugh are already working on NG-2 art with more to be assigned.

DriveThruRPG.com – FREE Rifter® #62 Sneak Preview is available now; your place for PDFs of more than 90 Palladium titles

The FREE Sneak Preview of The Rifter® #62 is available now (includes the missing Experience Tables for Rifts® Black Market and Vampire Kingdoms™), as well as Rifts® Vampires Sourcebook and an early one for Rifts® Northern Gun One (with a newer one coming in a few weeks), 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).

Gen Con® Indy – Palladium Booth #1025 – August 14-18, 2013

We spent the better part of a day plotting out our Gen Con booth – a new layout to accommodate Robotech® RPG Tactics™ demos every day of the convention – as well as what products we’ll be bringing to sell and display, who and what goes where, etc. We also worked out Gen Con strategies and details. Palladium’s booth will also offer some convention specials, a few surprises and quite literally a truckload of products.

Gen Con will be a star-studded event for Palladium fans with the following Palladium creators present at Booth #1025:

Please come to the Palladium Booth #1025 to chat, get autographs, and find out the latest news. We’ll also have some sneak previews, original artwork by Chuck Walton and others, prints and special promo items (even some Robotech® RPG Tactics game pieces?) available, and you’ll be able to demo the game itself. Join the fun.

UPDATE: Mike Mumah

I had a nice email communication with artist Mike Mumah. He is continuing to recover from his stroke (last Christmas) and is in good spirits. His physical and speech therapy are coming along well and improving, though not at the pace Mike would like to see. Most of all, he is anxious to get back to doing artwork for Palladium. Hang tough, Mike, we can hardly wait till you’re back doing art for us.

I think that’s it for now. I have World Books and a game to wrap-up pronto. Game on.

– Kevin Siembieda, Publisher, Writer and Game Designer

Palladium Fantasy RPG® Anniversary Sale – 30% price reduction

Love Game of Thrones? Use Palladium Fantasy® to create your own epic fantasy adventures in the frozen north dominated by the Wolfen. Explore the decadent wonders of the Western Empire. Help build and defend the burgeoning kingdoms of the Eastern Territory, or explore the monster-filled lands of the Baalgor Wastelands. Or perhaps fight pirates or explore the Floenry Island chain or the foreboding Mount Nimro region, land of Giants. And those are just a few of the places that await you.

Have you wondered what the Palladium Fantasy RPG® is like? Now’s the perfect time to give it a try and find out.

Do you already love Palladium Fantasy® like we do, and have you been thinking about getting more sourcebooks for it? This is the time to expand your collection.

Fantasy Sale! Palladium Fantasy turns 30 years old this month, and to celebrate, we have reduced the price of every title in the game line by 30%. So give it a try or expand your collection. It will also give you a leg up for when Palladium Books releases several new and expanded Fantasy titles next year. We have exciting plans for Palladium Fantasy.

Palladium Fantasy RPG

Palladium Fantasy Role-Playing Game®, 2nd Edition

It is a world steeped in tens of thousands of years of history, magic and dark, dark secrets. At the moment, it is humans who dominate the land, as the times of Titans, Dwarves, Elves and others are long past. Still, the future of humanity is uncertain, as the Wolfen and the other canine races in the north challenge their dominance, and monsters gather in the fabled lands of the Old Kingdom.

Non-human races provide a host of unusual beings as player characters, including Changelings (who can assume the shape and appearance of any humanoid), Wolfen, Trolls, Ogres, Goblins, Kobolds, Gnomes, Elves, Dwarves, humans, and dozens of “optional” creatures found in both the Palladium Fantasy RPG®, Monsters & Animals and other titles.

Wolfen Empire

Wolfen Empire Sourcebook

The Wolfen Empire boasts some of the greatest warriors in the world and dreams of world domination. This sourcebook outlines Wolfen society, land holdings and culture, helping to set the stage for the coming Wolfen War. The adventures are set in the Great Northern Wilderness and lead our heroes into the heart of the Wolfen Empire.

Monsters and Animals

Monsters and Animals, 2nd Edition

The Palladium World is said to be the creation of the Great and Dreaded Old Ones. That means there are ancient magicks and monsters that defy imagination. This big, juicy book of strange and exotic creatures, monsters and animals is the perfect resource for bringing danger and adventure twists to any campaign.

Most of the 90 monsters are new and original, not the usual fare of typical monsters pulled from myth. Many, like the Bearman, Coyle, Eandroth, giant Rahu-Man, Ratling, Dwarvling, Lizard Mage, and others are available as optional player character races. Monstrous beasts include the conniving Waternix, the ferocious Devil Digger, Bogeymen, Beast Dragon, Rock Crawler, Scorpion Devil, Snaggletooth Gobbler, Serpent Beast, Tri-Fang, Waterbat and Wing Tips, which are but a few of the wondrous creatures waiting to fill your campaign.

Dragons and Gods

Dragons & Gods

The power, personalities and quirks of dragons and gods of the Palladium World are explored in this dynamic book; co-authored with Erick Wujcik. Includes sections about the Church of Dragonwright, the Gods of Taut, Elementals, Demon Lords, dragons, and the forces of light and dark.

Old Ones

Palladium Fantasy RPG® Book 2: Old Ones, 2nd Edition

The Palladium World is the creation of deific monsters said to slumber deep within the bowels of the planet. The Old Ones World Book draws upon the legends of the Old Ones as a giant adventure sourcebook that is, to our knowledge, the largest collection of cities and towns ever published for an RPG! All locations clearly mapped and described with notable shops, temples, guilds and personalities. The entire Timiro Kingdom is laid at your fingertips.

Adventures on the High Seas

Palladium Fantasy RPG® Book 3: Adventures on the High Seas

Explore more of the Palladium World and enjoy six big adventures on the high seas. Be carried from an uncharted island in the Sea of Despair to the noble walls of the Bizantium Kingdom, the isles of Y-Oda and Zy, then south to the pirate and serpent infested waters of the Floenry Isles (all 14 islands are described!), and finally, west to the seldom visited Island of the Cyclops and its four sister islands. A truly comprehensive addition to the Palladium RPG fantasy system.

Yin-Sloth Jungles

The Palladium RPG Book 7 (1st Edition Rules): Yin-Sloth Jungles

The infamous Yin-Sloth Jungles are finally mapped and described. This tome is filled with new character classes, monsters, skills, places, villains and adventures.

Western Empire

Palladium Fantasy RPG® Book 8: The Western Empire

The nefarious “Empire of Sin” is at last revealed, beginning with its history and continuing on with its politics, Noble Houses, Emperor Itomas, its greatest cities and developing wars.

Baalgor Wastelands

Palladium Fantasy RPG® Book 9: Baalgor Wastelands

This is an epic adventure sourcebook detailing the notorious Baalgor Wastelands, the massive desert of the Palladium World. Eandroth tribes, Gromek war bands, monstrous raiders, forgotten catacombs, pirates, Minotaurs and much more can all be found amongst the shifting sands.

Mount Nimro

Palladium Fantasy RPG® Book 10: Mount Nimro

Domain of Giants – Jotan, Nimro, Gigantes, Cyclops, Trolls and others – playground for the bravest of adventurers. A gathering of clans, tribes and refugees that is quickly becoming a true “kingdom” rather than a motley collection of giant misanthropes. The small races of the world beware, because the Giants have joined forces and seek power and revenge upon the humans, Elves and others who have persecuted them for generations as “monsters.”

Eastern Territory

Palladium Fantasy RPG® Book 11: The Eastern Territory

The newest domain of man holds its share of secrets and treachery, committed at the hands of humans and nonhumans alike. All of this makes for a fertile land of adventure. A place where heroes, adventurers and opportunists (even rogues) can carve out a reputation, become famous and build a fortune or maybe even their own kingdom!

Library of Bletherad

Palladium Fantasy RPG® Book 12: Library of Bletherad

Library of Bletherad is a treasure trove of magic and adventure built around the secrets of this legendary place. It is filled with secrets of arcane knowledge, maps and half-forgotten history. Bletherad is a stepping stone for mystery and intrigue that can carry adventurers around the Palladium World.

Northern Hinterlands

Palladium Fantasy RPG® Book 13: The Northern Hinterlands

Before one can enter the Land of the Damned, they must first cross the haunted and monster-filled Northern Hinterlands. This sourcebook contains towns, villages, ancient secrets, monsters and adventure in the Ophid’s Grasslands and other remote regions at the doorstep of the mountain barrier that walls off the Land of the Damned.

Chaos Lands

Palladium Fantasy RPG® Book 14: Land of the Damned 1: Chaos Lands

The legendary Land of the Damned is presented as three “stand-alone” books that explore and describe the various unexplored regions of this forbidding land. They also reveal the strange creatures and beings who dominate the Land of the Damned™, many extinct elsewhere in the world, as well as the dark powers that rule over mortals and lesser beings.

Eternal Torment

Palladium Fantasy RPG® Book 15: Land of the Damned 2: Eternal Torment

The Land of Eternal Torment is a place dominated by species of undead not known to the outside world. There is also a magical Faerie kingdom corrupted by the Old Ones, and a forest ruled by Were-Beasts.

Palladium Fantasy RPG® Book 16: Land of the Damned 2: The Citadel – Coming in 2014

The much awaited Land of the Damned Three will be written by Kevin Siembieda next year. It will be based on the adventures and location developed for his original campaign that inspired the creation of the Palladium Fantasy® game, and first explored by the fabled heroes known as the Defilers.

The Heart of Magic

Mysteries of Magic Book One: The Heart of Magic

The Palladium World has forgotten more civilizations and types of magic than many planets ever know. This is the first of a new series of magic books for the Palladium Fantasy RPG® that explore the mysteries of magic: How it works, nuances and details about magic, historic revelations, and more. Each book in the series will include additional information and details about magic, new and specialized areas of magic, and in most cases, new spells and other types of magic.

Book One: The Heart of Magic includes:

More for Palladium Fantasy . . .

Kevin and company have been plotting and planning new Fantasy releases for a while now, and hope to release several exciting, new titles for it next year.

Weapons and Armor Weapons and Castles Weapons and Assassins

Palladium Weapon Series – For use with ANY game system

Weapons & Armor: Over 600 different weapons and 35 types of armor from around the world. ALL illustrated. Includes armor and weapons from ancient Rome, medieval Europe, the Vikings, Mongols, Assyrians, Greeks, Persians, Indians, Pacific Islanders, Native Americans, Chinese, Japanese and more. $8.95 retail, 48 pages, striking color cover. Cat. No. 401. Available now.

Weapons & Castles: Different types of bows and arrows, crossbows, siege weapons and 15 real world castles complete with basic floor plans, moats, drawbridges and other defensive measures. ALL illustrated. $8.95 retail, 48 pages, striking color cover. Cat. No. 402. Available now.

Weapons & Assassins: Ninja, Thuggee, Assassins of India, their background, training, and “tools of the trade” – weapons, poisons, and tools of some of the most famous assassin guilds in history. ALL illustrated. Written by Erick Wujcik. $8.95 retail, 48 pages. Cat. No. 403. Available now.

The Rifter #62

The Rifter® #62 – Available now

The Rifter® #62 is truly special, with page after page of “official” source material and one great idea after another. Do not miss out on this issue.

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.

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.

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.

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

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™ 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.

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.