Modern20, True20, and RPGO/Chuck Rice

[jezter6]

Question for Vigilance:

I know you wrote up a few True20 books, and it looked like things were cooking for RPGO and yourself to roll full steam with True20. But, since then, Modern20 and Martial Arts20 has hit the shelves, and (being your own internal house system), is likely to see many more supplements.

Does that mean RPGO conversions to True20 are dead from this point forward?

 

[Vigilance]

Dead is way too strong.

I'm a fan of True20 and that hasn't changed.

Heck, I've done 4 books for True 20, Legends of Excalibur, Blood and Fists, Darwin's World and Wild West for GR/Ronin Arts. That's more support for the system than any other 3rd party that I'm aware.

So dead? Certainly not, I've thrown quite a bit of support behind the system already.

However, there are some complications to doing True20 books, mostly on the license side. If we want to do new True20 books, there's a nominal fee.

It's VERY nominal, but as the man said, 100 bucks is 100 bucks. So that made us consider whether we were going to do multiple True 20 books in the coming year.

Now True20 sold well for us, no complaints there, but its sales were nowhere near at the level of support that we saw for Modern20, which is the biggest sales success we've had since Blood and Guts 1e.

So in short, from a business standpoint, to justify paying the license fee, I had to look at our product schedule and see room for two or more large size True 20 books and for this year, I don't think I see that.

That does not equal dead.

Every year at RPGO, we look back at the past year and take stock. So as we do more Modern20 books, there will be constant evaluation of the sales and discussions of whether or not what we're doing is the BEST thing we could do.

Which is really what it all comes down to. The most competitive process we have at RPGO is an internal one, where we decide what goes on the schedule and what doesn't.

Since we're basically a three man show (me, Chris and Dom), it's not a matter of saying "X project is worthwhile", it's a matter of saying "X is the single most worthwhile thing we could do".

True 20 meets the first test, but for right now, it isn't a more worthwhile thing for us to do than Modern20.

In the future that very well may change.

 

[jezter6]

Didn't mean to say you didn't support it. You did support it very well.

However, I was only questioning if it's likely that we will see NEW RPGO True20 in the short term future, which seems to be a 'unlikely' happening. Which I'm OK with, I was just looking to see if anything was coming down the pike.

 

[Vigilance]

Didn't mean to say you didn't support it. You did support it very well.

However, I was only questioning if it's likely that we will see NEW RPGO True20 in the short term future, which seems to be a 'unlikely' happening. Which I'm OK with, I was just looking to see if anything was coming down the pike.

Right, I got where you were coming from, I just keep talkin and the next thing I know, I've rambled on

Anyway, we have no plans for True20 in 2008, that's really all I can speak to. As I said, having just done our annual "look back a year look forward a year" review, we decided to support Modern20 a lot in the coming year, on the basis of customer response.

 

[Razuur]

That saddens me immensely, as my group is pretty much running True20 exclusively right now and I love your products.

I know you said didn't say 'never' and you need to do what makes the most business sense, but let me just say that the True20 fanbase will miss your products.

My group gobbles up everything True20 so we are doing our part. But we wish there were more products coming out for it. We are thanksful for what has, because it has been quality stuff.

It is too bad the license fee gets in the way of getting new quality product.

Razuur

 

[Dragon-Slayer]

That saddens me immensely, as my group is pretty much running True20 exclusively right now and I love your products.

I know you said didn't say 'never' and you need to do what makes the most business sense, but let me just say that the True20 fanbase will miss your products.

My group gobbles up everything True20 so we are doing our part. But we wish there were more products coming out for it. We are thanksful for what has, because it has been quality stuff.

It is too bad the license fee gets in the way of getting new quality product.

Razuur

I would agree with everything in your post; I love True 20 and the group is leaning towards it as their favored system, 4E will not affect our using the True 20 system at all, however, I have to say that the license fee, although it may seem a bit steep, does keep an overabundance of less than quality True 20 material from flooding shelfspace.

 

[Vigilance]

I totally understand the reasons why the True 20 license is the way it is and I think it's a good idea.

I don't even think it's steep. It is enough that I wouldn't want to pay it if I only planned on doing one book in a year, or, as in this case, if I couldn't say with certainty room in the schedule for a True 20 book was going to open up for us this year.

Thanks to everyone in this thread for your kind words, it's nice to know people out there dug our True 20 stuff.

Chuck

 

[JoeGKushner]

That saddens me immensely, as my group is pretty much running True20 exclusively right now and I love your products.

I know you said didn't say 'never' and you need to do what makes the most business sense, but let me just say that the True20 fanbase will miss your products.

My group gobbles up everything True20 so we are doing our part. But we wish there were more products coming out for it. We are thanksful for what has, because it has been quality stuff.

It is too bad the license fee gets in the way of getting new quality product.

Razuur

Have you and you friends posted reviews at say RPG.net or other sites? Word of mouth to get the word out on the value of these books may increase their sales.

 

[Salcor]

I have recently picked up Modern^20 and True 20, and they both have there merits. I like the simplicity of True 20, but for a modern/sci-fi game I like a little more depth (more developed runs in some areas, like vehicles etc). I was wondering in any of the True20 books is there anything like Modern^20 occupation system. I think that is one thing I True 20 had was a little bit more crunch tied to fluff. In D20 Modern, and Modern^20 if I am a member of a swat team there is a prestige class or an occupation that supports that. In True 20 I just say 'hey I am a swat team member." Has anyone developed anything like the occuptation system for True 20?

Also I forget is Modern^20 an open gaming liscence or a purchase to publish under it?

Salcor

 

[Vigilance]

I have recently picked up Modern^20 and True 20, and they both have there merits. I like the simplicity of True 20, but for a modern/sci-fi game I like a little more depth (more developed runs in some areas, like vehicles etc). I was wondering in any of the True20 books is there anything like Modern^20 occupation system. I think that is one thing I True 20 had was a little bit more crunch tied to fluff. In D20 Modern, and Modern^20 if I am a member of a swat team there is a prestige class or an occupation that supports that. In True 20 I just say 'hey I am a swat team member." Has anyone developed anything like the occuptation system for True 20?

Also I forget is Modern^20 an open gaming liscence or a purchase to publish under it?

Salcor

Modern20 is 100% OGC, except for the name. If we get a chance to see the product, we're open to allowing folks to use the name as well to indicate compatibility.