1st ed Mini rulebooks

Posts: 5 · Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 1:44 pm

OK, so I've got these:

They appear to be exact reproductions, measuring approximately 81mm x 104mm. On the inside front cover is the Wizards/TSR silver anniversary logo (so 1999 at the earliest). Inside back cover lists Twenty First Century Games S.r.l. of Monza, Italy. There are no new copyright dates.

I can't remember when or where I picked them up (probably one of the UK Gen Cons), but around the same time I saw a number of other 1st ed manuals in the same format. I'm also convinced I saw some boxed sets of the same size (Greyhawk maybe?)

Can anyone tell me anything about them? Publication date, print run, value, where I can get a PHB and MM, etc...

Posts: 1298 · Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 1:51 pm

Wow, I'm pretty sure these are rare. I'm also sure Mars will be able to direct you to the right place here, he and others are fountains of knowledge! Very Happy

The DMG looks to be in really good condition as well, I'd imagine its worth a fair few quid.

Posts: 3856 · Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 2:07 pm

The DMG is harder to find but the MM2 is fairly easy to find. A full set of the orange spine books were released along with the Fiend Folio. Also, some boxed sets such as Basic, Expert, Greyhawk, Undermountain, Dark Sun, Elminster Ecologies were also produced. Oh ya, the DL series modules were also released in a 2 volume set. There is a complete list here:

http://tomeoftreasures.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=367

I think they were done for the 25th anniversary and they were produced by an Italian company. I have a complete set of books but am missing a couple boxed sets.

Posts: 3413 · Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 2:17 pm

21st Century Games out of Italy published them. I dont consider them rare since they were all over the place when they came out. But since hardly anyone bought them ($10 for rulebooks you cant even read?) they may be rarer than I think. I dont know anything about print runs either.

You should be able to pick these up on Ebay fairly easily as long as you dont mind spending money.

Posts: 1298 · Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 2:21 pm

Kingofpain89 wrote:

You should be able to pick these up on Ebay fairly easily as long as you dont mind spending money.

I've fancied these books myself, but I've only ever seen them come up once (certainly on the UK ebay)

I'm guessing my tenners worth of bidding wouldn't suffice! Laughing

Posts: 1984 · Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 2:33 pm

@KoP: Would that not indicate that quite a number of people did buy them?

Not hugely rare, IMHO, but "popular" and many/most of those do appear to be selling for more than they were going for a few years back. (No danger of being stuck on 99 cents if listed half-decently and/or advertised, anyhow).

Posts: 3413 · Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 2:47 pm

faro wrote:

@KoP: Would that not indicate that quite a number of people did buy them?

Not hugely rare, IMHO, but "popular" and many/most of those do appear to be selling for more than they were going for a few years back. (No danger of being stuck on 99 cents if listed half-decently and/or advertised, anyhow).

The game store I frequented when these came out had buttloads of them. Hardly anyone purchased them because they are simply novelty items and they were expensive ($10 apiece for the books; they didnt have any of the box sets IIRC). That was back in '97 or '98 I think. Five or six years later I was still seeing them in stores for the same prices and still no one buying them. Maybe it was different in other parts of the world....people with squinty eyes and small hands may be able to read them better....I dunno.

The mini box sets I am sure are much rarer than the books....I should have noted that in my earlier post.

Posts: 1984 · Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 2:59 pm

Thanks; sounds like that tallies on timeframe, with stock lasting long enough to appear cheaply on eBay as "new" around/just after 2000. I'm unsure how many of those appearing now have simply being "recycled" from that (original) source rather than FLGS purchases.
*
That's a pretty long "in stock" run, anyhow, albeit those wouldn't exactly have taken up large quantities of valuable storage space. Would it even have been worth pulping these? Smile

Kingofpain89 wrote:

The mini box sets I am sure are much rarer than the books....I should have noted that in my earlier post.

*nods*

Posts: 5 · Posted: Fri Jul 03, 2009 6:31 am

Thanks for all the info guys.

And thanks especially for the Tome of Treasures link - can't believe I've missed that site up until now Rolling Eyes

Posts: 36 · Posted: Sat Jul 04, 2009 8:09 am

Interesting. Can the text be read at all?

Posts: 3856 · Posted: Sat Jul 04, 2009 9:04 am

Doug Williams wrote:

Interesting. Can the text be read at all?

yes, they are not so bad if you aren't visually impared like most of the molemen around here Wink

Posts: 4260 · Posted: Sat Jul 04, 2009 9:09 am

Anyone ever see a picture of the mini boxed sets of manuals?
I've seen the little basic and expert and dark sun etc. Just never seen anything about the mini manuals boxed set.

Posts: 3856 · Posted: Sat Jul 04, 2009 10:30 am

. wrote:

Just never seen anything about the mini manuals boxed set.

Which boxed sets do you mean? Do you mean the books inside the contents of the boxed sets?

Posts: 4260 · Posted: Sat Jul 04, 2009 10:38 am

I understand that the 12/13 mini hardback reproductions were presented prepacked as a set in a slipcase in shrink. IIRC, lawrenson said he had stocked a few way back in '98/99. Prior to that, I had always assumed the minis were only available as single books, as that's all I had seen in local games stores.

Posts: 3856 · Posted: Sat Jul 04, 2009 10:41 am

. wrote:

I understand that the 12/13 mini hardback reproductions were presented prepacked as a set in a slipcase in shrink.

Ah, I don't think I have seen them in a slipcase but I do remember seeing the set bundled in shrinkwrap package - it might have been in Malcolm's pictures.

Posts: 718 · Posted: Sun Jul 05, 2009 2:27 am

Doug Williams wrote:

Interesting. Can the text be read at all?

The text on my UA is EXTREMELY crisp... so reading it with a simple cheap magnifying-glass is easy.

I travel from NYC to CT for my monthly game so it's nice to have the smaller books for reference... I just wish they were not the hideous orange spined editions.

Posts: 966 · Posted: Sun Jul 05, 2009 8:13 am

Hi,

yes, they certainly came in the UK as a shrinkwrapped set ( but no box).

I would think it surprising if the distributor did that to them, so I guess they would come like that from the manufacturers.

Cheers,
malc

Posts: 5 · Posted: Sun Jul 05, 2009 10:10 am

A lot of hard searching led me to this page:
http://www.waynesbooks.com/ADD.html#minibox

with pictures of the boxed sets and their contents.

Is this definitely a complete list? It seems a bit odd that they would have done Elminster's Ecologies and not Forgotten Realms...

Posts: 4260 · Posted: Sun Jul 05, 2009 10:10 am

lawrenson wrote:

Hi,

yes, they certainly came in the UK as a shrinkwrapped set ( but no box).

I would think it surprising if the distributor did that to them, so I guess they would come like that from the manufacturers.

Cheers,
malc

Agree. Would be nice to find one of those shrinkwrapped sets, or a piccie.

Posts: 966 · Posted: Sun Jul 05, 2009 10:22 am

Your wish...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/malcolmlawrenson/2727881512/

Cheers,
Malc