My 1st printing of Melanda is about 58 pages, has no page numbering, and has no numbering X of X copies. Looks to be a straightforward unnumbers edition.

My 2c then... (which is probably about all my opinion is worth)

Pricing is irrelevant - You'll either sell something or you won't. People will buy what they feel is good value, or a good invenstment, for them. It's a private transaction and I don't buy into the idea that people are fleeced by sellers online. If a fool is parted from his money by anyone, the fault is with the fool provided the seller does not lie.
Investment prospects are moot - You have demostrated the volume of availablility and that somewhat draws a ceiling on people's perceptions of rarity, and therefor the prosepct of appreciation in the future. Your buyer isn't going to buy a set because it'll be worth more in real terms in the future. He may buy because D&D is not depreciating like his currency, but that holds true for far more suitable hedges that Wilmark Dynasty's lineup.
Price point - It's a turkey shoot really, but you've set the bar high and set out your stall as a reseller. This indication is that this is about making money, which everyone is entitled to do, so more power to you and I wish you luck.
Collectability - Yes, they are collectable, but do you know who your buyer is?
The products - The products as a whole (actual writing quality and presentation) are sh!t. The best of the bunch is probably Journey to the Centre of the Circle.
The target buyer - People who have $900 to drop on filling a long standing hole in their non-TSR D&D collection are already intelligent enough to earn the income necessary to have that level of disposable income, and have the levels of disposable income during a time of economic crisis that your price is largely irrelevant. They also have both the time and inclination to build such an extensive collection of non-TSR D&D products that have resulted in Wilmark Dynasty being the hole that needs filling. No-one starts their D&D collecting with Wilmark Dynasty at $900 given the quality of the product, unless by accident of inheritence, or a lucky yardsale find. Those who do have such a gap in their colelctions tend to have reached a stage in collecting whereby they have an accurate handle on the value of the money in their pocket, have refined their collections to the point where they know what they want and what they expect to get from their purchases, and have learned to be patient in their spending.

On the whole, at your chosen price point, your pool of prospective buyers is probably not in three digits. As others have pointed out, they will likely sell, but it will take time. I don't think your price point is excessive, but then non-TSR was my main area of focus when I was collecting, and I already know the quality of writing that awaits anyone who opens one of these modules.

Also, more than a few of those who have already chimed in have the sorts of collections accummulated over decades, that may well have holes in their non-TSR side that your products fill. The defensive posturing, justifications etc. may not be the most econominally productive position to take. You need buyers far more than they need your products. By all means hold your price, but develop a thicker skin and a less aggressive posture. Even if your buyers have not posted in the thread, the odds are high that they are well aware of Acaeum, or that they will find the thread on Google prior to buying.

Good luck.

This reminds me of the thread with the guy who wanted to reprint the Islandia stuff, banged on about it for a couple of years, dressed it up like he was doing collectors a service, but had no interest in listening to any of the advice he asked for, and the result was no further action five or more years on.

Zenonmarfat wrote in Wilmark Dynasty Estate Acquisition:I dare say that any self-respecting collector would love to have one of these in their collection, it's just a matter of at what price? That's for each collector to decide.

You can do a quick search in these forums to find some old reviews of these products - they generally rank fairly low.  The good news is that for most small press collectors, quality of material is rarely a concern; however, for a broader audience it can be an issue.

Zenonmarfat wrote in Wilmark Dynasty Estate Acquisition:The ultimate irony, and it is almost laughable if it weren't so sad, is that this place, the Acaeum, the ultimate D&D collector's community, just happens to be the place (and the ONLY place) where I've had shade thrown on this acquisition.

I find this comment rather naive.  You acknowledge that the Acaeum is a knowledgeable group of collectors but give us no respect.  Many of us have been aware of these modules for 10 or 15 or more years and know that they can be bought from Days of Knights - direct from the authors, signed if requested.  You then come here and essentially post that you have bought all their copies, cornered the market and are now charging triple of what Days of Knights was actively selling them for a few months ago.  You were then expecting us to enthusiastic about this?  To be honest, from a collector community perspective, that sucks!  For reference, here's a link to Days of Knights from Sept 2022:
web.archive.org/web/20220926055002/http ... 81/1341133

They were charging $65 for Melanda, $35 for each of the other modules and had various amounts of stock listed for sale.

On the flip side, I respect your business decision and think that is exciting to following.  You've made your projections and think the financials will work out. You've taken the risk and are hoping for a big reward. I can respect your gamble and the work you are willing to put in to get sales and ship things out. We are here playing the equivalent of fantasy football trying to guess which way it will go and I think it will be interesting to see where this ends up.

Mars wrote in Wilmark Dynasty Estate Acquisition: For reference, here's a link to Days of Knights from Sept 2022:
web.archive.org/web/20220926055002/http ... 81/1341133

They were charging $65 for Melanda, $35 for each of the other modules and had various amounts of stock listed for sale.

Strangely enough, i can't find Melanda modules sold by Days of Knights as of today on their website, alas.

vault keeper wrote:
Strangely enough, i can't find Melanda modules sold by Days of Knights as of today on their website, alas.

The listings are still there but they are now sold out.

https://www.daysofknights.com/advanced_ ... _id_eq%5D=

Mars wrote in Wilmark Dynasty Estate Acquisition:You can do a quick search in these forums to find some old reviews of these products - they generally rank fairly low.  The good news is that for most small press collectors, quality of material is rarely a concern; however, for a broader audience it can be an issue.

Ooh, I'm a broader audience! If it's not good enough to be potentially useful, then I don't need it, at any price.

Recouping the investment seems possible, but selling them all at those prices I find unlikely. We'll see.

grodog wrote in Wilmark Dynasty Estate Acquisition:
My few copies are all open, I believe.  I will take a look and see.



Thank you for looking.  I can pull my copies out to look as well, so don't go to any additional trouble if don't have the information at the tip of your tongue.



Good to know, thank you!


4) I do not own the IP rights to Wilmark Dynasty, that belongs to the Estate of the Late John Corradin.

That sounds interesting, do please keep us in the loop as things develop.

Zenonmarfat wrote in Wilmark Dynasty Estate Acquisition:I wish I could help you with your long search for the missing Greyhawk tournament adventure, however, I am located in Canada and did not attend any conventions in the the US Northeast at the time ( I was only 10 or 14 at the time). I did look over the link you posted though, and I will contact Micaela about this particular adventure and see if it rings a bell with her. Since she is still regularly in touch with Lee McCormik, I'll ask if she can also inquire with him. Both Mica and Lee, along with John, were regulars on the east coast convention circuit at that time, it's possible they might have some knowledge. In the worst case, at least you can close off another lead. I will get back to you with the results.

Thank you, inquiries with Micael and Lee would be very appreciated.  I've pretty much given up hope on ever finding it, and am resolved to recreating what I can of it from memory, but it's still my "top most wanted" RPG item, probably even moreso than the original Castle Greyhawk at this point

Allan.[/quote]

Hi Allen,

I'm still waiting on a response from Micaela but I hope to have a response shortly!

- Richard

Maybe it was the 1st print Melanda Supplement that had 50 copies printed and not the 1st print Melanda?

grodog wrote in Wilmark Dynasty Estate Acquisition:FWIW, I also discovered that I have a set of Melanda character sheets as well.

Allan.

Ooh. Do post a piccie if you can. There was a loose leaf character sheet with the 1st printing Melanda, but any Melanda supplement or a character sheet pack are products I’m not aware of. So any info would be most welcomed.

The Melanda character sheet pack is a set of 5 each of the 6 character classes races for Melanda.