OSR Dragonslayer RPG truly delivers.

[Jahydin]

When you consider that a text book is a piece need to expand professional growth (most of the time) that has been arbitrarily inflated before the current economic price gauging and Barrowmaze is a hobby book then no it's not a bargain.
I can appreciate a large dungeon adventure but the pdf for Rappan Athuk isn't even as much as the Barrowmaze pdf, and RA is nearly double in size.

Confused at what you're getting at here. Greg's works are overpriced because they are "hobby books" that are arbitrarily inflated text books too.
My comment was poking fun at that fact.

 

[thirdkingdom]

I'm uncomfortable criticizing a creator for how they've chosen to price their work. RPG products are priced lower than they should be, to the point where it is near impossible to make a living in the industry. I think there's plenty to criticize Gillespie over without resorting to their decisions on pricing. Also, for what it is worth, the pdf is 35.00, not 80.00.

 

[bulletmeat]

Confused at what you're getting at here. Greg's works are overpriced because they are "hobby books" that are arbitrarily inflated text books too.
My comment was poking fun at that fact.

Sorry, didn't read as poking fun at the high price point.

 

[bulletmeat]

I'm uncomfortable criticizing a creator for how they've chosen to price their work. RPG products are priced lower than they should be, to the point where it is near impossible to make a living in the industry. I think there's plenty to criticize Gillespie over without resorting to their decisions on pricing. Also, for what it is worth, the pdf is 35.00, not 80.00.

While I don't agree w/you, I can understand that point.
I was looking as the zip & pdf of each, not print.

 

[eyeheartawk]

I'm uncomfortable criticizing a creator for how they've chosen to price their work. RPG products are priced lower than they should be, to the point where it is near impossible to make a living in the industry. I think there's plenty to criticize Gillespie over without resorting to their decisions on pricing. Also, for what it is worth, the pdf is 35.00, not 80.00.

This is such a weird take.

Of course you can. We can rag on their twitter but not their prices?

 

[Jahydin]

I'm uncomfortable criticizing a creator for how they've chosen to price their work. RPG products are priced lower than they should be, to the point where it is near impossible to make a living in the industry. I think there's plenty to criticize Gillespie over without resorting to their decisions on pricing. Also, for what it is worth, the pdf is 35.00, not 80.00.

I understand where you're coming from. I think RPG PDF prices are certainly undervalued too.

The OSR space is a bit different though. Considering the rules are stolen (let's be honest), most of the real work has been done already (not to mention the decades of playtesting), so high prices certainly deserve a raised eyebrow.

This is addressing Dragonslayer's price specifically.

 

[Shardstone]

I read the PDF and came to the conclusion it is just another slightly different OSR system. I am weary of these systems. It's no offense to the creator, but with a name like "Dragonslayer," I really expected something with a lot more visceral flavor, not yet another "dude with a 5hp and a sword" RPG.

 

[thirdkingdom]

This is such a weird take.

Of course you can. We can rag on their twitter but not their prices?

It's not a weird take for creators trying to make a living, I can guarantee you that. I don't know if you've ever tried to sell anything you've made -- whether it be an rpg supplement, a painting, heck, even pies at a farmer's market. I can promise you that every single person who sells the products of their labor and imagination has heard some variation of: "you want how much for that?! My five-year old could do that in their sleep."

I own a custom cabinet shop IRL, which alread self-selects for a certain price point, but every month I get people reach out to me asking me to price stuff and then act amazed at how much things cost. For awhile I tried to make a living building furniture. I was pretty good, I think. I was juried into the Smithsonian Craft Show two out of the three years I applied. It's harder to get into that show as an artisan than Harvard or Yale. I was selected to show at the Philly Museum of Art show as a Best Emerging Artist. Do you have any idea how hard it is to make a living building furniture? Even super high-end stuff? Virtually impossible. You design and price something and the client looks at it and says "Oh, that's too much. I can find something like that on etsy for 500.00, and they'll throw in free shipping." There's a reason I went back to doing cabinetry, because it's easier to make a living doing that than one-off, high-end furniture.

It's just as hard to make a living writing rpg products, to the extent that the vast majority of people who do it are either barely making minimum wage or do it as a side gig. Even Kevin Crawford, who I hold up as one of the exemplars of rpg publishing, doesn't write for a living. Especially now, with the advent of AI threatening the literal livelihoods of people who depend on their art for a living, I don't think defending someone's right to price their work what they need to make a living wage is too much to ask.

So, yes, I am sensitive to people criticizing artists for how they price things. Like I said, there's plenty to be critical of Gillespie for without resorting to critiquing how he prices things.

 

[eyeheartawk]

It's not a weird take for creators trying to make a living, I can guarantee you that. I don't know if you've ever tried to sell anything you've made -- whether it be an rpg supplement, a painting, heck, even pies at a farmer's market. I can promise you that every single person who sells the products of their labor and imagination has heard some variation of: "you want how much for that?! My five-year old could do that in their sleep."

I own a custom cabinet shop IRL, which alread self-selects for a certain price point, but every month I get people reach out to me asking me to price stuff and then act amazed at how much things cost. For awhile I tried to make a living building furniture. I was pretty good, I think. I was juried into the Smithsonian Craft Show two out of the three years I applied. It's harder to get into that show as an artisan than Harvard or Yale. I was selected to show at the Philly Museum of Art show as a Best Emerging Artist. Do you have any idea how hard it is to make a living building furniture? Even super high-end stuff? Virtually impossible. You design and price something and the client looks at it and says "Oh, that's too much. I can find something like that on etsy for 500.00, and they'll throw in free shipping." There's a reason I went back to doing cabinetry, because it's easier to make a living doing that than one-off, high-end furniture.

It's just as hard to make a living writing rpg products, to the extent that the vast majority of people who do it are either barely making minimum wage or do it as a side gig. Even Kevin Crawford, who I hold up as one of the exemplars of rpg publishing, doesn't write for a living. Especially now, with the advent of AI threatening the literal livelihoods of people who depend on their art for a living, I don't think defending someone's right to price their work what they need to make a living wage is too much to ask.

So, yes, I am sensitive to people criticizing artists for how they price things. Like I said, there's plenty to be critical of Gillespie for without resorting to critiquing how he prices things.

I'm no fan of capitalism, but RPGs exist in a marketplace like any other good or service. It will get compared to other products in the space to determine a relative "value". That's just how the cookie crumbles. Saying something is too expensive is like, the most milquetoast criticism there is. I'm sorry that art has to exist in a marketplace, but it does.

 

[Jahydin]

I read the PDF and came to the conclusion it is just another slightly different OSR system. I am weary of these systems. It's no offense to the creator, but with a name like "Dragonslayer," I really expected something with a lot more visceral flavor, not yet another "dude with a 5hp and a sword" RPG.

"Slightly different" is of course subjective, but on further passthroughs I think you'll find lots of hidden tweaks that really make it "more different" than the other clones out there right now.

For me, that visceral flavor comes from the art:

But what exactly were you hoping for? Maybe I can recommend a better game for you?