Castles & Crusades Hits 2nd Printing (TLG PR)

[Troll Lord]

TROLL LORD GAMES PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Stephen Chenault
Troll Lord Games
Phone: (501) 680-6597
Email: troll@trolllord.com
Website: www.trolllord.com

Castles & Crusades Players Handbook Hits Second Printing

LITTLE ROCK, AR – November 04, 2005 – Troll Lord Games announced today that the Castles & Crusades® Players Handbook has sold through its first printing. A second printing, originally scheduled for an early 2006 release, has been moved up to December 2005

Castles & Crusades® was first released in January 2005 and gained immediate recognition for its easy to learn attribute-based rules system. “I have no doubt that the $19.95 price tag on this book initially helped drive its sales,” remarked Stephen Chenault of Troll Lord Games, “However, we have found that the game’s growing popularity is due more to its ease of play and simplicity. Gamers are finding out that they can pick up their Castles & Crusades® Players Handbook and make a character in just a few minutes and start playing. The Castle Keeper has more control of the direction of the game, with less work.”

The second printing does not see any major changes from the first. Some minor issues, such as layout and editing, hare been addressed, the equipment list expanded, a character reference sheet and four sample encounters have been added.

Troll Lord Games has also announced the addition of the Character Reference Sheets and a Special Personalized Edition of the Castles & Crusades® Players Handbook to their Christmas releases. The special edition is by direct order only and allows fans of the game to customize their players handbook with imitation leather, end plates and more.

For more information visit the Troll Lord Games website at www.trolllord.com, to speak with or harangue the authors or any one of the Troll Lords visit the Troll Lord Games message boards!

About Troll Lord Games
Troll Lord Games debuted at GenCon 2000. Alongside its hallmark d20 line, Castles & Crusades®, Crusader Magazine and The Codex of Erde, TLG publishes the “Gygaxian Fantasy World” Series, Gary Gygax adventure modules and Necromancer Games. For more information, visit our web site www.trolllord.com. Copyright 2001, Troll Lord Games. “d20 System” and the d20 System logo and Dungeons and Dragons are Trademarks owned by Wizards of the Coast and are used with permission. Lejendary Adventure is Trademark Trigee Enterprises Company and is used here under license from the trademark holder. Castles & Crusades, Troll Con, Lake Geneva Gaming Convention are Trademark Troll Lord Games.

 

[JoeGKushner]

So we're looking at December for the 2nd printing? How will we be able to tell the 2nd from the first? Mongoose used "Atlantian" edition for their Conan game for example. Will the change in layout/extra material add to the price?

 

[jdrakeh]

The second printing does not see any major changes from the first. Some minor issues, such as layout and editing, hare been addressed, the equipment list expanded, a character reference sheet and four sample encounters have been added.

Thank you for this, as I would dearly like to purchase a copy of the second printing, but cannot due to financial hardship. It is nice to know that my first printing is still perfectly useable, as is

 

[Troll Lord]

hallo

Hey Joe,

The price stays the same. The second printing in no way trumps the first, so there is no real reason to own one over the other. With that in mind, we won't designate this printing anything other than what it is, a second printing. There are still first printings on retailer shelves and we don't want them to feel as if they have to pull those from the market...because they don't.

There might be some minor cover alterations, but nothing particularly noticable. When you open it up the layout will look different but that is it.

The stock code is different. TLG 8010 is the first printing and TLG 80102 is the second printing. There will be a legal designation on the title page that says 'second printing'.

JD: thanks and that's the response we were hoping for. The only thing my group is excited about in the second printing is the re-addition of HELMS. LOL I'm not sure how those got cut from the first print, but they were. Todd is still mad about that. Every the CK asks "Todd, what kind of helm do you have?" "HELM! I DON'T HAVE A HELM! IN THIS WORLD THEY DIDN'T INVENT HELMS!!!" or some such rant.

Steve

 

[jdrakeh]

thanks and that's the response we were hoping for.

Well, it's refreshing to see a company use a second printing to correct errors from a first without feeling the need to use it as an excuse to completely alter the system and call it a new edition. Very refreshing, indeed.

The only thing my group is excited about in the second printing is the re-addition of HELMS.

I'm easy - I just house-ruled them as granting a +1 armor bonus and -2 vision penalty, as I did when I played AD&D 1e

 

[JoeGKushner]

Well, it's refreshing to see a company use a second printing to correct errors from a first without feeling the need to use it as an excuse to completely alter the system and call it a new edition. Very refreshing, indeed.



I'm easy - I just house-ruled them as granting a +1 armor bonus and -2 vision penalty, as I did when I played AD&D 1e

Getting off on a tangent here, but don't most companies do that? Mutants & Masterminds for example, went through three printings before underoing a new edition. Not saying I can't see both sides of things mind you just wondering if you have any examples outside of the obvious 3.5 bit. (And heck, I believe there was even a reprinting of the core rules when they went from $19.95 to $29.95 without any internal changes.)

 

[jdrakeh]

Not saying I can't see both sides of things mind you just wondering if you have any examples outside of the obvious 3.5 bit.

Well, the 'new edition' bit was an exaggeration for effect, but I truly don't see too many companies issuing multiple print runs that don't incorporate rule changes on some level (note that the second printing of M&M actually addressed a number of problematic loopholes in the first printing, and the revised editions of BESM d20 and Hero 5th claimed to do this). Those are three examples that I can think of right off the top of my head.

In the case of M&M, revisions were arguably needed (a lot of people complained about those loopholes in the first printing), but in the case of BESM d20 and Hero 5th, they very arguably weren't (and in the case of BESM d20 Revised, GoO really dropped the ball by only changing a few minor things, while marketing the book as an essential fix for all things wonky in the initial release).

And heck, I believe there was even a reprinting of the core rules when they went from $19.95 to $29.95 without any internal changes.

There was a re-printing and it did contain some very minor internal changes, some of them needed, some of them not (the most noticable change was the removal of the quick start material from the back of the PHB, IIRC).

 

[Scorpionfolke]

I'm looking forward to the 2nd printing---just be nice to find some folks to game with so i could give somebody my first printing

Anywho, just as a side note---I'm enjoying C&C, I've actually started working on a homebrew with it to pass away the hours. I've got M&T & will soon have Assault on Blacktooth ridge---cant wait!!

 

[JoeBlank]

The one negative of announcing a second printing: I have C&C on my list of books to buy, and now I'll have to wait until I can be sure I get a second printing copy.

Congrats on the success, Troll Lords. Don't know if I'll ever get to play C&C regularly, but I like the idea and am impressed with what I have heard.

 

[jdrakeh]

I've got M&T & will soon have Assault on Blacktooth ridge---cant wait!!

AoBR has some heavy editing errors (the name of the main enemy stronghold is spelled at least three different ways throughout the module, for example). Mechanically, everything is sound (unless omething slipped by me), but a massive bunch of word substitution errors (like the previously mentioned problem with place names) make the last five or six pages very confusing. Just a 'heads up'.