Palladium Books® Weekly Update – October 7, 2010
By Kevin Siembieda
UPDATE: Henry Siembieda. As all of you know, my father has been fighting cancer and has suffered numerous setbacks and complications. Yesterday, I made the painful decision to have him removed from the ventilator and Do Not Resuscitate. We expect him to pass in a few days. I know this is best for my Dad, and I know it is what my father wants, because we had discussed it. Somehow, that doesn't make it any easier. We were so optimistic when my Dad went in for surgery that we never expected this outcome. Ironically, the surgery went great and healed beautifully. It has been all the ups and downs, setbacks and complications that have led to this. I can't believe he won't be around. It all feels so surreal and heartbreaking.
I’m trying to be as positive as possible. Like the passing of my mother and Erick Wujcik, there are no words left unsaid between my Dad and me. I know this is what he’d want. I have good memories of my Dad right up to the end, and he lived a long, good life. He’s a good man, good father and has suffered his share of heartbreak and struggle. Funny though, some of those good memories make me smile and laugh, while others make me cry.
Palladium Books is like a family, so this has been a very difficult time for, not only me, but the Palladium staff and freelancers like Mark Dudley. You may not know this, but Henry Siembieda worked in the Palladium warehouse for 20 years, until he retired in March of 2008. He would turn 80 years old on December 14, 2010.
I know he loved working here, because he told me many, many times. “I have the greatest job in the world, a great boss, and get to see my son every day.” I know he was proud of me and impressed with Palladium fans. Dad had never gone to a convention, so his first exposure to gaming fandom was the 2006 Palladium Open House, where he was blown away. He pulled me aside at one point and whispered, as if it were a secret, “Kev, you’re like a movie star! These people love you. I’ve never felt prouder. And they even want my autograph. I don’t know why, I only ship the books.”
That’s my Dad. Sweet, caring, loving. Self-effacing, he never stopped to give himself credit for helping to make me the man I am. That he helped nurture and encourage my creativity and imagination. That it was he who showed me how to draw. That he was always there for his family, as best he could, and in all the ways that matter. That he was always proud of me and my brother. His words of advice, “It doesn’t matter whether you’re rich or poor as long are you’re happy. Be happy.” Don’t get me wrong, my Dad had his faults, but don’t we all? In his old age we teased him that he was a curmudgeon. But he was our curmudgeon.
Of course, he’s not gone yet, but it should be only a matter of days.
Perhaps needless to say, the situation with my father has played havoc with my creativity and our release schedule. I know you understand and I appreciate that.
I hope to throw myself into work and still get the next 3-4 books out by the end of the year. Work is always therapeutic for me, that’s a good thing. In many cases, covers and interior artwork are already done, and manuscripts are in our hands. We just need to do a final edit, rewrites and get the books laid out to send to the printer.
Other stuff
I’m afraid I have not been in the office much the last week or so. I’m sure there is stuff going on that I have failed to mention. We’re all pretty distracted. More next week.
Christmas Grab Bags. ‘Tis the season to be jolly. Okay, with Halloween coming up in three weeks, ‘tis the season to be scary. However, that jolly season of giving, family and joy is coming up fast! That means it’s time for Palladium’s annual Christmas Surprise Package. You know, $80-$90 (or more) worth of Palladium products – autographed if you want them to be – for $37 (plus shipping and handling).
I don’t know about you, but I sure need some Christmas joy this year. I want to make people smile with delight. Let me ship some gamer joy your way as Christmas Surprise Packages hand selected by me and autographed by me and the Palladium crew. It can be books, T-shirts, artwork, coffee mugs and other good stuff. It’s Palladium’s way of giving back to you, having fun and creating holiday smiles.
This year, when so many of us are dealing with one struggle or another, I want to weave some holiday magic with our Palladium X-Mas Grab Bags. Please take advantage of this special offer from the heart. Ask for autographs, prints, books, T-shirts, etc., and let us make your Christmas a little more fun.
Note: Please be sure to list 8-12 or more currently available products in your wish list. We’ve already gotten a few orders with only 3-4 items listed. Well, we have bad news for those of you who do so. You will NOT get all 3-4 of those items. You’ll only get one or two and the rest will be random surprises – and these “surprises” may not be items you want or like (duplicate books, prints you don’t want, etc.). So send those long Wish Lists or you might be disappointed. We might even reject and refund orders that don’t send a Wish List of 8-12+ in stock items. Fair warning.
UPDATE: The Rifter® #52 is at the printer. Wayne approved the proof copy a couple days ago, and the printer has given us a delivery date of October 15. However, I suspect it will ship a day or two sooner.
UPDATE: Armageddon Unlimited™ (for Heroes Unlimited™ and the Minion War™). I’m afraid I haven’t worked on it in a week. It is an outstanding Minion War™ crossover book for the Heroes Unlimited™ setting, but easily adapted to Rifts®, Phase World®/Three Galaxies™ or Nightbane®. One of the cool things about this book is that it is packed with new powers, power categories, weapons and information that can be used in the Minion War™ setting or a setting or campaign that has nothing to do with the war.
UPDATE: Rifts® Thundercloud Galaxy™. I intend to get this book out as soon as possible, probably early November. It’s another fine addition to the Three Galaxies™ setting.
UPDATE: Online Sales. I’m glad to report that sales picked up this week.
UPDATE: Palladium Collectibles Auctions. With everything else going on, I haven’t decided if we are going to do any more auctions this year. I’m leaning heavily toward not. Sorry.
Kathy Simmons’ scary, life-sized Halloween props. Kathy plans to plop a few new “ghouls” into queenofghouls.com, her Ebay store. However, for the past week, she has been busy putting up her own massive Halloween display. She’s adding many new features this year, including a mad doctor’s Chop Shop and laboratory of horror. It’s awesome and I helped. We’ll try to get pictures up next week.
If you want something truly unique and scary, check out her monstrous props. You will not be disappointed. Zombies, Dark Jester, Mad Doctor and his Nurse Assistant, witches, wizards, and more continue to roll out of Kathy Simmons’ garage. Kathy makes one of a kind, life-sized Halloween props for sale in her online store at queenofghouls.com. She’s got a new crawling zombie, a standing zombie, a walking zombie, jester and more available in her online store right now. If you are looking for scary and fun, life-size Halloween props for your Halloween party or yard display, take a look at queenofghouls.com. They are awesome.
– Kevin Siembieda, President & Writer
Coming from Palladium in the next 10 weeks:
The Rifter® #52 – October 15, 2010 (at the printer).
Armageddon Unlimited™ – End of October or early November.
Rifts® Dimension Book 14: Thundercloud Galaxy™ (November).
Rifts® Vampire Kingdoms™ Revised and Expanded (November).
Rifts® Vampires Sourcebook™ (early December, tentative).
Dead Reign™ Sourcebook Three (December, tentative).
Early 2011: Robotech® New Generation™ Sourcebook and/or Rifts® Lemuria.
2010 Christmas Surprise Package
It’s Christmas Grab Bag season again and that means the Palladium Christmas Surprise Package!
$37 (plus shipping and handling) gets you a minimum of $80 worth of product! In many cases, the recipient gets $82-$90 worth of product, sometimes more! Wayne and the guys often have to rein “Santa Kevin” in before he gives away the entire warehouse. Our goal is to make every recipient smile with delight.
It’s our way of showing our appreciation to you, our valuable fans, and has become a fun and beloved holiday tradition that has been going on for 12 or 13 years now.
It’s a great way to get gifts for your gaming buddies, treat yourself, try new RPGs, get back issues of The Rifter® (or special issues like #50, the 20 Year Rifts® Anniversary issue) or fill holes in your game collection. Suitable for Christmas, Hanukkah, birthdays, anniversaries and any gift giving occasion.
PLEASE make sure your address is complete. Include your Apt. Number. We highly recommend UPS. It costs more but you can trace the package. Priority Mail is a good alternative. Media Mail is the slowest and most unreliable means of delivery, and can take 2-5 weeks to reach you – we do not recommend it and you take the FULL risk and liability of it getting lost in the mail when sent via Media Mail. Surprise Packages lost in the mail are NOT replaced by Palladium Books.
Surprise Packages start shipping Monday, October 11, 2010.
Click here for more information on how to make your Wish List, and to place an order.
Heroes of the Megaverse®
– Available now
The Book of Heroes is an ancient magic tome that empowers those with that potential for greatness. (Your player character?) In times of fear and darkness the Book is said to appear to make sure the forces of evil don’t get the upper hand. The Minion War™ is such a dark time as the forces of Hell ripple across the Megaverse bringing death and destruction. Are the legends true? Is there a magic book that inspires and empowers new heroes to rise up and make a difference when they are needed most?
Heroes of the Megaverse™ presents the Book of Heroes, its powers and influence. It also lists the names of 2,000 of the greatest champions the Megaverse has ever known and offers rules for turning them into legendary Heroes of the Megaverse. This magic artifact is said to be a hero maker able to find beings with the spirit of a hero and bestow upon them incredible power to do battle against evil. Only one copy of the book is known to exist, and everyone wants to get their hands on it – good guys and bad (demons, Deevils, the Splugorth, the Dominators, the Kreeghor, etc.). According to legend, he who controls the Book of Heroes and wields the “Power of the Two Thousand” can rule the universe. The book has been missing for millennia. No one knows its fate or the true power contained within its List of Heroes. No one except YOU – the current keepers of this legendary Rune Book.
The legend and magic of the Book of Heroes.
The powers of the book itself.
The ability to empower and turn worthy heroes into superhumans.
101 detailed super abilities (not reprints from other books).
Hero Avatars, Hero Mentors, and their powers.
Quick roll creation tables and ways to turn the 2,000 named in the book into Heroes of the Megaverse® for your campaigns.
Why the book must never fall into the hands of any Lord of Hell.
Nearly a dozen NPC heroes and surprises.
For use with Rifts® and Phase World®/The Three Galaxies, as well as Heroes Unlimited™, Palladium Fantasy RPG® and other S.D.C. settings. Includes stats and conversions for M.D. and S.D.C. settings.
Contains the names of nearly 2,000 real life gamers who purchased the special Mega-Print during Palladium’s Crisis of Treachery (and other heroes).
Cover by Apollo Okamura.
Art by Mike Mumah, Mark Dudley, Nick Bradshaw and others.
Written by Kevin Siembieda.
96 pages – $16.95 retail – Cat. No. 877. Available now.
The Rifter® #52
Horror Issue – Ships October 15, 2010
The Rifter® #52 is our annual horror issue. It is packed with magic, magic items, and scary stuff.
The Rifter® is your doorway to unlimited imagination and numerous Palladium role-playing worlds. It offers new heroes, powers, weapons, magic and adventure for your games. It presents new villains, monsters and dangers to battle, and new ideas to consider.
Issue #52 Presents:
Rifts®: The Crusaders & The Black Crusade™ – Source material for Rifts® based on a pair of interrelated short stories that appear this issue. Source material includes 35 new Magic Tattoos, a dozen new pieces of equipment and weapons, new variant Sunaj O.C.C.s and more.
For the Palladium Fantasy RPG®: Cannibal Magic. Perfect material for our horror issue.
For the Palladium Fantasy RPG®: From Ruins to Runes (easily adaptable to Rifts® and other other settings). Several completely new types of super-rare Rune Weapons from the Elf-Dwarf War.
The latest chapter of Hammer of the Forge™, fiction.
News, coming attractions and much more.
$11.95 retail – 96 pages – Cat. No. 152. At the printer. Ships October 15.
Armageddon Unlimited™
For Heroes Unlimited™ – Ships end of October or early November, 2010
Demons and Deevils are trying to turn Earth into one of their playgrounds. It’s worse than you think. The plan is to bring about Armageddon to unleash a powerful force that could change the tide of the Minion War™. Only Earth’s greatest superheroes (that’s your characters) stand in their way. Can be played as a Minion War™ crossover bringing in heroes from across the Megaverse, or as a stand-alone adventure setting for Heroes Unlimited™.
A dozen new super abilities.
Enchanted and Demonic Weapons.
Demon Hunter Power Category and abilities.
Demonic Immortal Power Category and abilities.
Crusader of Light Power Category and abilities.
Magically Bestowed Variant Power Categories and abilities.
Hellion monster creation table – NPC villains.
Arcane orders, secret societies, and magic guilds.
The Chaos Generator and the coming of Armageddon.
Notable villains, people and places.
The Armageddon scenario and adventure ideas.
Written by Carl Gleba.
160 pages – $20.95 retail – Cat. No. 527. We’re trying to get this book out as fast as possible. Shooting for end of October or November 8 at the latest.
Coming:
Rifts® Dimension Book™ 14: Thundercloud Galaxy™
Thundercloud Galaxy™ is the perfect companion to Rifts® Dimensional Outbreak™ to expand one’s gaming Megaverse in the Three Galaxies. History, aliens, weapons, spacecraft, and adventure in a galaxy far, far away.
The galaxy described; history and time-line.
16 new alien R.C.C.s, plus notes on the Exiles and Dominators.
6 new O.C.C.s.
Monster and Animal Creation Tables.
Guidelines for Magic Weapon Making.
Notable weapons and technology.
Notable organizations and secret societies.
The Trensik Mercenaries.
The Vortex Region.
The Splugorth Kingdom of Desslyth and many other notable worlds.
New worlds of adventure.
Written by Braden Campbell.
160 pages – $20.95 retail – Cat. No. 883. November.
Rifts® World Book One:
Vampire Kingdoms™, Expanded & Updated
Kevin Siembieda is reorganizing, tweaking, expanding and updating one of the most popular Rifts® World Books ever published: Vampire Kingdoms™. This will include some new artwork and an expanded page count. The book will be updated and expanded in much the same way as Kevin did with Rifts® Sourcebook One a couple years ago. Best of all, it will be accompanied by the Rifts® Vampires Sourcebook.
Vampires: Their strengths, weaknesses and powers.
The Vampire Kingdoms expanded.
Vampire strategies and plans for conquest.
Vampire hunters and Techno-Wizard slayer devices (new and old).
Key locations including Juarez and El Paso.
The mystery of the Yucatan Peninsula.
Traveling Shows, Freak Shows and Circuses.
Monsters, D-Bees, and adventure ideas galore.
Updated and revised to 110 P.A.
Cover by E.M. Gist.
Written by Kevin Siembieda.
192 to 224 pages – $24.95 retail – Cat. No. 802-E.
Rifts® Vampires Sourcebook™
Trouble is stirring in the Vampire Kingdoms as ambitious vampire lords, ladies and misanthropes seek to expand their power to dominate more mortal life forms.
Written by Kevin Siembieda and a handpicked selection of other writers, this sourcebook explores the vampires of Mexico and their kingdoms in ways you never imagined. Tons of new data, adventure ideas and revelations.
Vampire protectors and guardians.
Vampire rogues, mercenaries and warlords.
Vampire operations away from the Kingdoms.
Vampire incursions along the southern borderlands.
New vampire hunters and human strongholds.
Vampire hunter “exterminators.”
Frightful revelations, secrets, and adventure ideas.
And much, much more.
Cover by Michael C. Hayes.
Written by Kevin Siembieda, Braden Campbell and Mark Dudley.
128 pages – $16.95 retail – Cat. No. 884.
Coming:
Rifts® World Book: Lemuria™
At last, the underwater realm of Lemuria. The people and history of Lemuria, new magic, sea herbs and healing, sea monsters, and more.
The Lemurians, their race, history and society.
New O.C.C.s including the Serpent Hunter, Shriekers, Oceanic Guardsman, Aquatic Biomancer and others.
The Stone Guardians of Easter Island and other mysteries.
Biomancer Gardens and Aquatic Biomancy.
Bio-Armor, Bio-Weapons and Bio-Construct Symbiotes.
New psionic abilities.
Sea Serpents, monsters, adventure ideas, and more.
Written by Greg Diaczyk.
160 pages – $20.95 retail – Cat. No. 885. Final page count and price may be subject to expansion and increase.
Robotech® New Generation™ Sourcebook
We’re hoping to squeak this Robotech® sourcebook out in time for Christmas, otherwise it will be an early 2011 release.
The heroes and mecha of New Generation.
Freedom Fighters and salvaged mecha.
Mecha from all four eras of the Robotech saga, adventures, and more.
Written by Irvin Jackson and Kevin Siembieda.
A “manga” size sourcebook.
192-256 pages – $16.95 retail – Cat. No. 554. Final page count and price may be subject to change.
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:
- Splicers® RPG
- Beyond the Supernatural™ RPG, First Edition Rules.
- Boxed Nightmares™ for BTS, First Edition Rules.
- Nightbane® Book Four: Shadows of Light™.
- The Mechanoids® RPG and The Mechanoid Invasion® RPG Trilogy.
- Palladium Fantasy RPG®, First Edition Rules and select 1st edition sourcebooks.
- After the Bomb® RPG and sourcebooks.
- The Rifter® issues 1-40.
- The Best of The Rifter®
- Deluxe Revised RECON® RPG and Advanced RECON® Sourcebook.
- And more – go to DriveThruRPG.com and check ‘em out.
The Queen of Ghouls: Life-Sized Halloween Props
Scary. Life sized (most are 6 feet or taller). Unique. Palladium’s very own Kathy Simmons makes and sells all-weather, life-sized Halloween props. Each is a one-of-a-kind work of art. Each looks frighteningly “real.” Can survive all types of weather. All come apart and fold down to slightly larger than a king-size pillow for easy storage. Come with easy instructions, a storage bag, and the lawn stake to stand them up in your front yard. Indoor stand sold separately.
Types of “Ghouls” include: Zombies (all kinds!), killer clowns, wizards, witches, devils, grave ghouls, scarecrows, executioners, mad doctors, deadly nurses, vampires, werewolves, and more. Kathy’s also now offering an array of hand-painted Halloween signs, signs with heads and bodies hanging from them, witch’s brewing pots, Halloween centerpieces and more. Best of all, her high quality creations are much more affordable and imaginative than most competitors or mass produced items in a store, making them affordable Halloween fun.
If you think the photos online look good, you should see them in person. A typical “ghoul,” as she calls her creations, costs $89-$150. You can see some of her work at her Queen of Ghouls™ Ebay store – queenofghouls.com.
© Copyright 2010 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, Warpath, 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.