Amethyst - New campaign setting

[Ulric]

I was checkin' out the art on the website. It really is good. You said you just lowered the price of the book because of a WOTC announcment? Explain that to me. Does it mean that you're going to update the book to 4e so you're selling the 3e/d20 version cheaper now? The book looks really good and the first three chapters are cool. I'll have to pick up a copy. Good work.

 

[Dias Ex Machina]

Thanks for the comments. Let me address your question and I will be honest. We had initially planned on turning over to 4.0 come the release some time ago but certain issues have arisen preventing that. The first and foremost reason is a clause in the GSL (detailed in the recent interview) that prevents the creation of science fiction RPGs or ones that could possibly use the D20 Modern rules set. Because Amethyst is a Science Fiction/Fantasy, we don't want to do a lot of work for nothing or be forced to wait an indeterminate amount pf time for an answer.

The reason why we dropped the price is simply due to the 6-month moratorium on the D20 STL. This version of Amethyst now only has six months to make an impression and build a following before it must be put to pasture. Sure, we could remove any mention of WOTC's books and replace the logo with the new one offered by a third party, but I feel this may be a band-aid solution.

The funds raised in this short time span will assist us in the creating of a replacement version. What exactly that will be should be announced in about a month. Regardless, the current book is complete in its scope, requiring nothing else to play (from us that is; you still require the 3.5 core books, of course), something a future variation (like an OGL version) will not be able to gloat.

We hope potential buyers are not dissuaded by the D20 STL termination and realize we have not put this game to pasture. We are aggressively pushing it to build up a base for future products. Besides, I also realized LULU charges a heavy shipping fee and we wanted to drop the price to encourage purchasing a solid book over the PDF.

Since the price drop, sales on RPGNow have doubled and the response has been encouraging. We are in it for the product. We have yet to be paid (other than the artists).

 

[Mamacat]

I was investigating the pricing, but there is no way to get Lulu to show me shipping costs without creating an account. Can you give me a ballpark of what shipping would be? I'm trying to decide if I should get this, Pathfinder, or just wait until something better comes out.

Thanx!

 

[Dias Ex Machina]

I was investigating the pricing, but there is no way to get Lulu to show me shipping costs without creating an account. Can you give me a ballpark of what shipping would be? I'm trying to decide if I should get this, Pathfinder, or just wait until something better comes out.

Thanx!

Something better? But Amethyst is the awesomest!

Luckily. I know how much it costs cause I ordered it. However, I imagine it depends on where you live. I know that for a shipment from the New York printers to Western Canada cost me 16$ For that, they wrap it in foam, shrink-wrap it to a piece of cardboard and place it in a larger box.

I hope that answers your question.

 

[Ulric]

Thanks DiasExMachina. Great response.

A few things come to mind. First of all, me personally, I really don't care too much about the crunch anyway--I've got another thread going right now: "What's your favorite fluff stuff?". And, because of that, whether or not the crunch will be updated later is no big deal to me as most of the fluff will likely be the same anyway.

As far as Lulu's shipping costs. I ordered the new Earthdawn hardcovers (2 books) and chose UPS shipping. It wasn't too bad, eleven or twelve dollars or something. Media mail was an option also which was about half that.

Anyway...

Thanks again for the response. I'm looking forward to reading the book.

 

[Dias Ex Machina]

...Looking forward to hearing what you think.

We discovered that we made certain compromises to accommodate the D20 3.5 STL. Now that it has been terminated, we have been looking about making the setting closer to the actual vision. Which rules system we will use has yet to be decided.

 

[Dias Ex Machina]

To everyone that posted on this thread, thank you. There is a huge question about what path Amethyst should take in the future, D&D 4.0 or OGL. I invite you all there to post your comments (or here) and state your opinion.

http://www.diasexmachina.com/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=52&p=162#p162

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

To everyone that posted on this thread, thank you. There is a huge question about what path Amethyst should take in the future, D&D 4.0 or OGL. I invite you all there to post your comments (or here) and state your opinion.

I posted on your board, but keep in mind that I don't own the book, and I think I will not do it, until I know it will later go 4E. I feel that is somewhat... unfair of me, but I just own to many books already that I probably will never use, and I am getting a bad conscience about it. :/

So, I think either way can work out, at least in the short run. Unless 4E fails though, I can't see an OGL version working long. You're "late" to the party, so to speak. People either already have found their favorite OGL game (Pathfinder, Spycraft, True20, M&M, etc - or just 3.5 as it is), or are going 4E.

Maybe wait for the GSL, wait for the sales report on 4E, the general feedback, and then decide.

 

[Crothian]

I have a copy now to just find a little time to look it over

 

[scourger]

There is a huge question about what path Amethyst should take in the future, D&D 4.0 or OGL.

Short answer: 4.0.

Long answer: it depends on what your business, design and publishing goals are. If I were in your position, I would look at where the market has been, where it is now, and where it likely will go in the future. Also, what piece of that market do you want? It seems pretty intuitive that D&D is the market leader. So, tying your product to it has the best chance for success. Many publishers are now in business because they did that successfully with d20. Now, some of them have the apparent option of continuing their own OGL games. It remains to be seen if those moves will remain successful in the face of 4.0. What is observable is that those companies were able to take advantage of the network externalities of d20 (whether 3.0 or 3.5) to position themselves now to decide if they will continue with their own OGL brands or make the switch to 4.0.

I do not perceive that you are in that position. Amethyst is a new product. 6-8 years ago, it may have caught on like wildfire in the d20 boom, but now it comes just as 4.0 launches. Although Amethyst is an intriguing concept, it is a niche product in a small market. It changes many of the rules in d20 which makes it less accessible as it prevents players from using their already-acquired mastery over the system to easily play your game. I like a few d20 niche products, but ones that prsent as few changes as possible to the underlying system to enable the setting. I think they overall fragment the market, which is why there are fewer and fewer of them around.

I think you will do better going with 4.0 with as few changes as possible.

P.S.: If you want a concrete example of the kind of game I'm talking about, see Omega World from the Polyhedron side of Dungeon #94. OW really takes the d20 system into the great (old) setting of Gamma World in just afew pages--about 40.

(For non-d20, see Savage Worlds.)