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Post Posted: Sun Aug 02, 2009 9:43 pm 
 

Yup! We'll have to wait and see how this one turns out, plenty of watchers and a low starting price.  After watching all the BIN copies that were out there I figured it was the safest place to start.


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Post Posted: Sun Aug 02, 2009 10:36 pm 
 

Plaag wrote:Someone hover around that booth and offer more for some of the stuff that gets mentioned in these boards if people are idiotic to sell for 10 cents on the dollar.

Nothing at all for 1e? ;)
"Hover" sounds like not a bad idea, "just in case".


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Post Posted: Mon Aug 03, 2009 2:35 am 
 

FormCritic wrote:http://paizo.com/store/sale

A tip for D20 collectors.

Click on this link.

Scroll down to the Green Ronin Apocalypse sale.

There's stuff on here you won't find on sale again...for $2 or $5.

Look at the other listings as well.  Some of the "clearance" items are 50% off...which means they are close to what should have been their base price.  But, there are other bargains for D20 people hidden in the the various sale listings.


The Book of the Righteous Hardcover is probably the most acclaimed of the items for sale. It received rave reviews. Also interesting are the Red Star d20 campaign setting (after the comic series), Hamunaptra (fantasy Egyptian setting), Eternal Rome and Testament (Roleplaying in the Biblical Era) d20 settings. Also Sidewinder Recoiled RPG (d20) is the update of the ENNIE winning Sidewinder: Wild West Adventures for the d20 Modern system.

  

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Post Posted: Mon Aug 03, 2009 2:51 am 
 

Of the items on sale, I thought Hamunaptra was the most impressive.


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Post Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 12:45 am 
 

FormCritic wrote:My advice as self-appointed D20 faerie is that you go there and snap them up.  If you found anything I have written above both comprehensible and interesting then these books are worth a read and stand a fair chance of increasing in value.


A few days late, but I'm going to pop in and second FormCritic's recommendation of these ones.  They're good stuff that sadly never got supported beyond the free adventure and a pair of 3rd-party PDFs.


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Post Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 6:27 am 
 

Press release by Paizo; I though it might be of interest.

Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook Sold Out!
All Preordered Copies Now in Distribution Channel, New Print Run to Arrive in Early November
02:00 AM
Ten days before the launch of their much-anticipated Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Core Rulebook, Paizo Publishing today announced that the first print run of the book has sold out, with all preordered copies on their way to stores for an August 13 release. With preorders more than five times greater than for any previous product in Paizo's seven-year history, orders for the Core Rulebook continue to mount even as the company speeds to produce another print run. Paizo.com has retained enough copies to handle all paizo.com subscriptions and pre-orders. Customers who have not already placed a pre-order with paizo.com or their game or book retailer are encouraged to seek out a copy immediately following the book's retail release, as supplies are expected to run out well before the arrival of a second print run in early November.
"We thought we had printed enough to last us at least until the end of this year, but skyrocketing demand from our customers and distributors has us reprinting already," Lisa Stevens, CEO of Paizo said. "We have a healthy amount heading to Gen Con, but we think even those will go fast, so don't delay in picking up your copy!"
The Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Core Rulebook is the first release in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game line of hardcover tabletop RPG rulebooks. Clocking in at a whopping 576 pages and at a weight of more than four pounds, this $49.99 rulebook is the newest incarnation of the 3.5 version of the world's best-selling roleplaying game. Playtested by more than 50,000 players over the last year, the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook is the most hotly anticipated tabletop RPG release of 2009. A massive electronic download file ($9.99) will remain available at paizo.com.
"The phenomenal support of the constantly growing community of Pathfinder RPG players has been a staggering sight to behold," said Paizo Publisher Erik Mona. "To sell out a hugely ambitious print run before the release date just goes to show what an immense audience this game will enjoy in the years to come."

  

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Post Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 10:49 am 
 

http://cgi.ebay.com/Codex-of-Erde-TLG-1 ... 286.c0.m14



This is a nice gazetteer type of book for any D20 game or campaign.

So much material that you might never use half of it.



It is the world that was previously created ny the folks that ran a campaign that eventually became Castle and Crusades.

This books data can be slid into that system with no trouble too.



I got one in a lot once, and after reading it I bought another copy for my grandson to use for his home games.


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Post Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 1:59 pm 
 

ericthecleric wrote:Press release by Paizo; I though it might be of interest.



Just to put that into perspective, it means they won't have any in their warehouse after GenCon/Preorders through them.  So people should be able to find a 1st print of this easily enough for now.  I hope my Amazon preorder though isn't delayed because of this.

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Post Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 2:30 pm 
 

And apparently, a 2nd printing won't be available until November or so.

  

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Post Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 4:15 pm 
 

Gnat the Beggar wrote:
** expired/removed eBay auction **


This is a nice gazetteer type of book for any D20 game or campaign.
So much material that you might never use half of it.

It is the world that was previously created ny the folks that ran a campaign that eventually became Castle and Crusades.
This books data can be slid into that system with no trouble too.

I got one in a lot once, and after reading it I bought another copy for my grandson to use for his home games.




The Codex of Erde is a fairly good publication...especially at that price.


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Post Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 4:16 pm 
 

Plaag wrote:
Just to put that into perspective, it means they won't have any in their warehouse after GenCon/Preorders through them.  So people should be able to find a 1st print of this easily enough for now.  I hope my Amazon preorder though isn't delayed because of this.

ShaneG.


I'm wondering if there isn't a bit of double-speak in the announcement meant to cause a rush to local stores.

Still, hurrah for Paizo and Pathfinder!


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Post Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 12:14 am 
 

FormCritic wrote:http://paizo.com/store/sale

A tip for D20 collectors.

Click on this link.

Scroll down to the Green Ronin Apocalypse sale.

There's stuff on here you won't find on sale again...for $2 or $5.

Look at the other listings as well.  Some of the "clearance" items are 50% off...which means they are close to what should have been their base price.  But, there are other bargains for D20 people hidden in the the various sale listings.


Are there any 'promotional codes' we can/should enter at checkout?


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Post Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 2:37 am 
 

davidc wrote:
Are there any 'promotional codes' we can/should enter at checkout?


None that I know of.  Try just typing "Acaeum."  :D


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Post Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 10:22 am 
 

FormCritic: Out of curiosity, have you taken a look at any of Atlas's Penumbra line of d20 stuff?  Some of them looked interesting, and I'm curious as to what people thought before I grab a few.


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Post Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 2:06 pm 
 

g026r wrote:FormCritic: Out of curiosity, have you taken a look at any of Atlas's Penumbra line of d20 stuff?  Some of them looked interesting, and I'm curious as to what people thought before I grab a few.


The few I have are pretty meaty even if you don't use 3E, with some nice plots and locales.

Mike B.


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Post Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 2:46 pm 
 

Badmike wrote:The few I have are pretty meaty even if you don't use 3E, with some nice plots and locales.


I sort of assumed as much, given that I've generally been impressed by Atlas's products for other game-lines.

(Though I'm not coming at it completely blank, as I do alreay have the Penumbra Fantasy Bestiary -- which I will admit impressed me mightily just for the amount of work that obviously went into it.)


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Post Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 2:04 am 
 

.......>

*Answering from a question in the 3.0 versus 3.5 strand posted elsewhere*

Just for reference, the first official 3.5 version Dragon magazine was #309 on July 2003.

3.5 is a re-write of the 3.0 rules.

There are changes meant to fix glitches and oversights in the rules, as well as additions or adjustments to character class skills or progression of class features in order to balance out the classes.  

In places, the rules have been clarified to remove loopholes and clear up questions.  

For instance:  A shield spell gives a "cover bonus" to armor class.  "Cover" is a technical term in 3rd Edition.  According to the rules for "attack of opportunity," you cannot take attacks of opportunity against opponents with "cover".  Ergo, a character using a shield spell could move at will, so long as his shield spell was turned at least partially toward his opponent.  This was obviously never intended by the rule writers.  In 3.5 the spell description was amended to erase this loophole, and the shield spell was made to apply to all opponents, not just those on a certain side of the character.

For another example:  A haste spell allows a character who does not move more than five feet to take a second "partial action" or "standard action."  Casting a spell is a standard action.  Ergo, haste allowed a spell caster to hurl two spells per round.  This was obviously wrong and was corrected in the changes between 3.0 and 3.5.

The 3.5 Monster Manual has some significant changes to stats in a very few areas.  There are also examples of advanced monsters in the text to show how this is done.  If you don't pay attention to how a monster has been slightly upped in power between editions it can cause trouble.

A few character and monster feats are added.

The way that space and reach are handled is changed.  Instead of a variety of space ratings depending on the monster, pretty much all medium creatures take up a 5 x 5 square and all large creatures take up a 10 x 10 square.  This makes the larger monsters harder for the DM to move around and be clever with.  For instance, a 5 x 5 giant is a lot easier to move about than a 10' x 10' giant.  A huge or colossal monster was so large on the battlefield as to be very limited in movement...or able to take advantage of special movement rules.

There are just enough differences to the rules to trip you up if you don't watch out.  One of the largest set of changes is found in the descriptions of spells, where a number of spells have been nerfed in order to fix problems.  Since spells are most often looked up once or twice and then run from memory, there can be times when someone remembers "wrong" due to a change.

Very few published modules were updated for 3.5.

A few hardback books (other than the core rule books) were updated.  

Pretty much, publishers either quickly made the switch or they went under.

Goodman Games would be an example of one company that successfully straddled the 3.0 to 3.5 gap and most or all of the Dungeon Crawl Classics line is in the 3.5 era.

A number of companies went under around that time...including quite a few that...well...deserved to go under either because of poor management or because their products were of low value and/or just plain bad.

Even with the tricksy changes between editions, only a very sad sack DM would not be able to plug a 3.0 module into a 3.5 game.

The collecting value of 3.0 and 3.5 modules is virtually the same.  However, the collecting value of the 3.0 core rulebooks is quite a bit below the value of the 3.5 core books.


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Post Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 3:22 am 
 

g026r wrote:FormCritic: Out of curiosity, have you taken a look at any of Atlas's Penumbra line of d20 stuff?  Some of them looked interesting, and I'm curious as to what people thought before I grab a few.


Overall, I like the Penumbra line, but it can be a bit uneven in quality.  I can be a tough critic of certain factors in a publication.  My particular pet peeves are bad bad artwork (as opposed to good bad artwork) and useless or non-existent maps.

For instance, The Ebon Mirror is based on a clever idea (visit an alternative world where humans and elves are the baddies and orcs and goblin types are the civilized goodguys) that really isn't that clever.  I was hoping for a smash-up on the Plane of Shadows or something cool like that.

Beyond the Veil is a classic adventure into a slain dragon's lair that is hampered by bad artwork.

Sacred Ground is a book full of inventive holy sites.  It is hampered by computer-generated maps.  This trend ruined many many 3rd Edition publications.  Maps made on one of the popular map-maker programs may seem like a good idea.  In practice, these programs make rather uninspiring maps that just do not measure up artistically.  Add to that the problem of a color map printed in the interior of a trade paperback in black and white with the result being useless mush.  :x   God!  Why even bother!  :?:

Three Days to Kill is hampered by the bad maps (including an off-the-rack computer town map) but it isn't a bad module.  The module itself is an excellent first adventure for a new campaign of well-mixed character classes.  Pretty much, you kill things...like the title says and like any good adventuring group ought to do a lot.  There are also a couple of good situations like a local festival and plots surrounding it.

In the Belly of the Beast, by Mike Mearls, is of higher quality.  It places heavy demands on the DM to balance and run a number of NPC's.  It is heavier on role-playing than combat.  The art and maps are of slightly higher quality.  It's a good adventure for a party with a bard, but there is some combat for the rest of us.

Thieves in the Forest is a playable adventure by John Nephew, a D&D writing veteran.  This module was published in 2000 and way too much space is taken up with technical details like explaining which boxes of text are open content ("As we go to press with this adventure the D20 System Trademark License is still a draft") or how to use the text boxes.   There is a two-sided color battle map stapled into the center of the module.  One great detail is that the monster stats are set aside in a very clear format that eases the DM's workload.  Even better...there's a wide selection of interesting stuff to kill.

By November of 2002, when Atlas published Splintered Peace, they were much more accomplished at production values, but somewhat hazy on the definition of "adventure."  Splintered Peace is a thin hardback that wins kudos from me by using the end papers to print two clear, hand-drawn maps of the city where the adventure takes place.  The city of Marchion is rife with racial tensions...between elves, dwarves and humans in the same town rather than between evil and good races.  

The result is more than a bit cloying.  For instance, chew on this quote from Splintered Peace:  "This campaign is about racism and the difficulties inherent in trying to oppose such beliefs."  And how about:  "It is not possible to rebuild trust by killing people, not even the people responsible for the hatred."  Great.  :x   Now even game designers feel the need to preach to us.  :pukel:   I started out liking the quality poduction values of this module.  I got angry as I read...at a game geek who presumes to help me to see the light of tolerance and PC hippy politics.  (see rant below)

Splintered Peace does not provide the area maps required for a town adventure.  It provides lots of adventure hooks but no adventure.  Unlike the Dungeon Crawl Classics you are actually not supposed to kill the intricate NPC's provided.  This module is a waste of time and I doubt even one gaming group ran more than two tedious game sessions in Marchion.

(Just as a clue to game designers:  Dungeons and Dragons is about the failure to communicate.  It is about situations that require alternative negotiations with swords.  It is about evil badguys with treasure who have it coming, baby!  They deserve to die just for being so perverse as to hide underground all the time!  Moral questions have always been a part of D&D, but not not not moralistic lessons.  Elves, dwarves, goblins and orcs are not intended as allegories of human races.  The moral implications of a fireball spell ought to be obvious.  Apparently, some people just don't get it.  :x   Contemplate this upon the Tree of Woe! :evil: )

Unhallowed Halls, by Christina Stiles,  is about a wizard university professor and his plot to create yet another classic army of darkness through alchemy.  Shazam!  Let's go!  The module's sales had to have been hampered by an almost unbelievably bad cover...a rummy-nosed comedy mage in a magic circle on a grey, wooden door.  It is an inexplicably bad intro to a solid adventure with interesting things to kill and a villain who absolutely has...it...coming.  Unfortunately, there had to have been a lot copies of this publication left on store shelves due to its bad cover art.  The insides are crunchy even though the outside is a bit soft.

Maiden Voyage, by Chad Brouilard, was printed in August 2001.  It is a nautical adventure aboard a doomed ship.  The characters are on board the Albers, which is headed toward a confrontation wth the cursed vessel, Sea Maiden.  Intended for 1st to 3rd level characters, this shipboard adventure places the characters in an interesting situation with elements of real horror.  It would be an excellent start to a campaign that leads somewhere like Freeport, Modron or Tarantia.  I like Maiden Voyage just about as much as I hate Splintered Peace, which means I like it a lot.  I haven't checked its collectible status but I think this module is worth owning even if it stays cheap.  Get it.

That's what I have on hand from Atlas and their Penumbra line....except for Nyambe, which deserves its own write-up.  I can't comment on the other modules in the series as I have not gotten my hands on them.  I have noticed that Atlas publications tend to go for somewhat higher than my casual collecting habits will usually reach.

Atlas was one D20 publisher that was willing to take risks, and you have to give them kudos for that even if sometimes you hate the results.  Maiden Voyage was my introduction to Atlas, so I have a high opinion of their company that maybe would have been lacking had I met Splintered Peace in a dark alley.


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