Just for fun - a poll on PDFs v. Books

[philreed]

As for material, I think again that there are many small, inexpensive PDFs out there that have some wonderful material. You can get away with publishing a PDF based upon one very focused idea taking only 5-10 pages and sell it for very little.

Can you list some of your favorite short PDFs? (In the hopes that there are one or two Ronin Arts PDFs in your list. )

 

[lmpjr007]

OK for all you who don't purchase PDFs, well how about PDF that have book versions of them, would you be interested in purchasing them?

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

Well from Ronin, the Mundane Treasures and several of the "A Dozen..." PDFs have been used to great effect in games I have run. I like the fact that the little touches these can add make me look like a creative genius.

Other PDFs that I have mined are Three Arrows, In the Saddle, and I'm always using Tournaments, Fairs and Taverns. That is one I would have bought as a book gladly, and I took the time and cost to print the entire thing and put it into a binder.

 

[philreed]

Well from Ronin, the Mundane Treasures and several of the "A Dozen..." PDFs have been used to great effect in games I have run. I like the fact that the little touches these can add make me look like a creative genius.

Hey, whatever it takes to capture the attention of your players and keep them coming back for more. There's no reason at all that they need to know where the items came from.

Here's an added bonus with PDFs I hadn't really put much thought into. If you have a player (or players) that buy every D&D book you can stump them by drawing material from PDFs (and third-party books). After all, we've all had the player that knows everything.

Of course, you could always just beat the player that knows everything. I recommend a 320+ page hardcover for player beatings.

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

Of course, you could always just beat the player that knows everything. I recommend a 320+ page hardcover for player beatings.

Book of the Righteous. So right in so many ways.

I use "The Book of Unusual Treasures" (Ronin Arts/Bad Axe) all the time. Way more fun than just finding a 50 gp gem-- I flip to the back, find a treasure worth 50 gp, and swap it in on the fly.

That's a no B.S. pimp right there.

 

[philreed]

Book of the Righteous. So right in so many ways.

I wonder what the DM should chant as he beats a player with Book of the Righteous. I mean, there has to be a chant to go with that book.

I use "The Book of Unusual Treasures" (Ronin Arts/Bad Axe) all the time. Way more fun than just finding a 50 gp gem-- I flip to the back, find a treasure worth 50 gp, and swap it in on the fly.

I'm surprised there aren't more treasure collections out there. I'm also surprised that more copies of this excellent 96-page book -- for only $13.95! -- haven't sold. Hmmmm. Was that too blatant?

Remember, folks. That's www.badaxegames.com to order the books that will make your players admire and love you.

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

Hey, whatever it takes to capture the attention of your players and keep them coming back for more. There's no reason at all that they need to know where the items came from.

Here's an added bonus with PDFs I hadn't really put much thought into. If you have a player (or players) that buy every D&D book you can stump them by drawing material from PDFs (and third-party books). After all, we've all had the player that knows everything.

Of course, you could always just beat the player that knows everything. I recommend a 320+ page hardcover for player beatings.

I have to admit, I am always a little torn about revealing my source for these things. The player I have the most issue with having every book is the other DM in the group. Part of me wants to tell him all about the things I've found and add to sales, the other part wants to keep it secret. Mines precious...

 

[philreed]

I have to admit, I am always a little torn about revealing my source for these things. The player I have the most issue with having every book is the other DM in the group. Part of me wants to tell him all about the things I've found and add to sales, the other part wants to keep it secret. Mines precious...

Ouch, that's a tough one for me personally since more sales would be very much appreciated -- but I can see where keeping some tricks secret can be a major benefit.

 

[Alhazred]

I've only purchased a couple of PDFs thus far, although I've been pleased with the quality. Stil, I prefer books; something about holding it in your hands, I suppose. (And, yes, I am aware that you can print PDFs )

 

[Doc_Klueless]

While I prefer books, I don't have a real problem with printing out and using PDFs.

Most of the time...

The problem is that many, many PDFs are still simply not printer ink friendly. Sure, some are worth it, such as the aforementioned Book of Unusual Treasures, but even that one with it's pretty page boarders sucks, sucks, suuuuuuucks my ink carts dry, dry, dry.

Of course, to cure this ill on my end, all I'd really need to do is purchase a good laser printer.