What makes a TTRPG purchase "worth it" to you?

[Joshua Randall]

“Cover art is lame. 1/5 stars.”

“Noticed a typo on page 371. 2/5 stars, mostly unplayable.”

“Game mechanics use how many times you stab yourself in the eye for task resolution, and half the text is in ancient Sumerian. However does contain accurate demon-summoning ritual. 5/5 stars.”

 

[dragoner]

Basically if I feel I want it I will buy it, I have cut back in recent years though, I have a lot of books. Certainly there is some criteria, if it's popular I might buy it to check it out, if it falls within a range of my tastes, like hardish sci-fi or something, that will appeal to me more than standard fantasy. However, the rules are not hard and fast, sometimes it is just a spur of the moment purchase. An interesting book in front of me is more attractive.

 

[sabrinathecat]

"Will I actually use this? Does it have adventure ideas? Does it queue up adventure ideas in my imagination? Does it at least have cool artwork?"
I'm keeping my 2 copies of the original Secret of Saltmarsh, because I may use them again, even though I have the 5e conversion, just because the classic art makes me happy.
I'm keeping my copies of 4e UltraModern because I may one day get a chance to use it.
Lamentations of the Flame Princess modules need some heavy converting, but I'm going to keep them because.
Heck, I have some silly rules/items/powers based on ridiculous legal terms that I got from the youtube channel Legal Eagle.
I'm keeping/getting new copies of 2nd edition Spelljammer, but I'm not convinced that the 5E set would be worth my purchase (given that I don't play or run 5E).
And there are the kickstarter mods that I backed for a few $, including some with, um, "adult themes" and double entendre titles.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I'm trying to stick with a "will I use it in the foreseeable future" rule for hard copy purchases. It doesn't always work -- I'm weak for some high concept stuff or anything with Oz -- but it's been a largely successful strategy to rein in spending and keep my physical collection largely under control.

 

[Ath'kethin]

"Am I supporting a small-press creator making something cool for a great game?" If yes, the odds of me buying it go way up.

I can point to a bookshelf full of 3rd Party DCC products to attest to this one.

I'll also buy stuff if it looks interestiong to read or has compelling artwork; I a bunch of 2nd Edition Astonishing Swordsment and Sorcerers of Hyperboria stuff on my bookshelf attests to this one.

I also almost always buy physical products (which often come with PDFs anyway). I'm FAR less likely to buy something if there is no physical copy available.

I, um, don't necessarily have the budget to support this approach. But it's how I think.

 

[Retreater]

My mentality of collecting was shaped on FOMO. Now that PDFs typically stay available for purchase for years, I'm learning to not collect things I don't intend to play soon.
I recently had to back off on getting Shadowdark and realize that the Starter Set PDFs would be sufficient for my gaming needs.
If my group decides to play it, we can use the starter set. If we finish the starter set I can get the PDF rulebook.

 

[delericho]

If I actually make reasonable use of it, it's worth it.

For one of the big $50 hardback books, that means it needs to see regular use for most or all of a campaign. For a smaller adventure, it means that the adventure has to be run.

The upshot of that is that the core rulebooks of any game I actually play represents absurdly good value for money. And almost everything else has been money I shouldn't have spent.

 

[sabrinathecat]

Heck, I just found my "Central Casting" books by Paul Jaques from the early 90s. There were three (fantasy, SciFi, Present) books where you could random roll events in your character history if you needed ideas. I also used them for villains. The bindings have fallen to pieces, but I got some plastic sleeves and binders, and now I can re-use them all over again.

 

[Reynard]

Heck, I just found my "Central Casting" books by Paul Jaques from the early 90s. There were three (fantasy, SciFi, Present) books where you could random roll events in your character history if you needed ideas. I also used them for villains. The bindings have fallen to pieces, but I got some plastic sleeves and binders, and now I can re-use them all over again.

But you "just found them". How many years did you NOT use them?

 

[aramis erak]

I use $2/hour/person for video, board, and card games.
I assume about $3/hour/person for RPGs since COVID. So, a $25 book is "worth it" if I get 8 hours of enjoyment from it without play... if I get play with 2 others, that $25 only needs 2 hours of fun to be worth it.