[PR Silverthorne] Book of Templates Deluxe - Coming Soon!

[Frilf]

The wait will soon be over! The Book of Templates: Deluxe Edition is coming soon!

This exciting new release from Silverthorne Games will be a significant evolution of the best-selling Book of Templates product. Co-written by Ian Johnston and Chris Sims, Book of Templates: Deluxe Edition will be packed to the brim with crunchy d20 goodness:

* 60 templates total - double the number in the original Book of Templates, including templates from top designers Chris Sims, Sean K. Reynolds, Erica Balsley (Demon Queen of Templates), and Greg Ragland!
* Rules for using multiple templates
* Ideas & suggestions for altering and modifying the templates
* Rules for using the templates with PCs (level adjustments)
* Variants for existing core-rules templates
* Example creatures for every template (and then some!)
* Adventure hook ideas
* New PC races
* New monsters (i.e., "stable" races created with the templates)
* New, unique characters and creatures
* New spells
* New treasures
* All new art by Christopher Shy (cover), Jeremy Mohler, and Cara Mitten!
* All-new layout and graphic design by industry veteran Philip J. Reed!
* And much more!

We believe the Book of Templates: Deluxe Edition will be the best and most comprehensive book on creature templates for the d20 System and we hope that it will serve as a valuable resource to DMs everywhere who want to spice up their campaigns and (most importantly) keep their players on their toes!

Special Note
Purchasers of the original Book of Templates will receive the Deluxe Edition for free! It's our way of saying "thank you" to our loyal customers for their support. Owners of the original BoT will receive a link from RPG Now when the new version is released.

Don't own the original Book of Templates? Jump straight to the upgrade! The Deluxe Edition will be priced at $7.00 (same cost as the original) and will be on a special introductory sale at RPG Now for only $6.00! And keep in mind the "classic" Book of Templates will still be available with a shiny, new, low retail price of just $3.00! Your players will never know what hit them!

 

[senodam]

Any chance we'll ever see a print version of this? I do really like the sound of the book, but I just don't like the whole PDF thing.

 

[Leopold]

this books just plain ole rocks. I have used it extensively and my players have rejoiced at the challenge and run in fear at the sheer amount of wickedness a DM can dish out with this puppy! I HIGHLY recommend it!

 

[Voadam]

How much new art?

One piece for every template?

Will it explain what to do with double hit dice templates (such as the half-giant) when creatures have levels?

Is it 3.5 or 3.0 for DR rules and such?

Are the old web enhancements and freebies rolled in so that they are all in one file?

 

[Sir Whiskers]

I'm helping with the editing of the BoTD and can answer some of the questions posed here. I'll pass the questions on to Ian for a more complete answer, but for the time being:

senodam:

Silverthorne is actively pursuing the possibility of publishing the BoTD as a hardback accessory. There's nothing definite yet, and things change all the time, so I can't share the few details Ian's passed on to me. In the meantime, I believe RPGNow offers print-on-demand, which is an option to consider. Alternatively, you can order the pdf on cd-rom from RPGNow, then take the file to a Kinko's (or work - but I didn't say that) and print it off using a high-speed digital printer/copier.

Voadam:

1. Art. Ian has mentioned that there will definitely be art in this version. In fact, he's told me of several pieces he's already received, including a non-euclidian hydra that should blow you away. I'll find out if there will be art for every sample creature (I doubt it), or one per template, or just selected templates.

2. Double hit dice. Ian and I were just discussing this Saturday. As Chris Sims pointed out, if a template maximizes the hit points of a creature, you've effectively doubled its hit dice (at least, for purposes of damage absorption). Since increasing hit dice adds complexity (Does the creature's size increase? Do you double class levels, or only racial dice? How much do you increase BAB, saves, skill points, etc.?), I suspect the only template that will retain increased hit dice will be Apocalyptic (for obvious reasons).

3. DR. The last I checked, Ian does not have anything official from WOTC on the new DR rules. As such, the book will use the 3.0 rules. I expect (after the new core books are released) that it will be very simple to publish a web enhancement that corrects this part of the book. Making other changes from the 3.5 rules? That depends on what changes.

4. Will the free material be included? I don't believe so. The latest table of contents I have shows all the old templates from the first book, plus a ton of new ones. In fact, one reason not to include the free templates is size: this book has continued to grow since Silverthorne first conceived it. The last time time I checked, it's around 150 pages (without art). Since the book may someday be available in print, Silverthorne needs to make every page count.

 

[HellHound]

senodam:

Silverthorne is actively pursuing the possibility of publishing the BoTD as a hardback accessory. There's nothing definite yet, and things change all the time, so I can't share the few details Ian's passed on to me. In the meantime, I believe RPGNow offers print-on-demand, which is an option to consider.

Unfortunately, that is not something that a customer can consider unless the publisher has already considered it. RPGNow does not do PoD runs of books that the publisher has not already signed up to have a PoD run done for.

Thus it is something for Ian / Silverthorne Games to consider. Personally, I 100% recommend the PoD system @ RPGnow (heck, you can find my endorsement on their PoD page... here is the quote from http://www.rpgnow.com/pod.php

"I totally recommend the PoD service from RPGnow, but I also recommend that it be applied AT product launch... " states M Jason Parent of E.N. Publishing who has already had to restock his first POD shippment. "I have sold an additional 5 copies to a [local gaming store], who didn't even BLINK at the print quality of the book. It looks like a professional full print run release in their opinion. I am also QUITE happy with the print quality. "

 

[Frilf]

What Sir Whiskers says is definitely true in most cases.

There will be art - over 1/3 of the 60 templates will have an example creature illustrated. Our artists have really outdone themselves on this and I can't wait to get the feedback from the images. We will post an example or two on our website soon.

There will be a POD version of BoTDE. However, purchasers of the original BoT will not be able to receive this version for the free upgrade price. They'll just get the PDF version. But, if you purchase the POD version, you've got both formats for just the cost of the POD.

My co-author, Chris Sims, is working on the mechanical details and other game-related fineries as we speak. He's meticulous and very thorough, so I know the rules issues should be rock-solid. That would include info on double HD, etc. I'll post more later when I've had a chance to chat with him more. (Perhaps I'll direct him here).

With regard to damage reduction, there will be a few 3.5 tidbits in the initial product. Those will be expanded on as more information becomes available to us (since we have no print products to-date, we are not a "real" publisher in the eyes of WotC. Therefore, no sneak peek at 3.5). However, from what we've heard from sources here and there, we have put some DR stuff in like DR X/bludgeoning, etc. Mostly, though, we're talking 3.0 rules - as Sir Whiskers pointed out.

Free material will remain as a web-enhancement. It will be expanded, edited, and otherwise made to match the new look and "feel" of the BoT.

Hope this helps!
Ian

 

[Khur]

Rules! We got some rules around here!

Chris Sims here.

Double HD: Like Sir Whiskers (Bruce R. Tillotson, an editor on this project) pointed out might be so, the "double HD" issue is taken care of completely. It won't be any harder to add a class to a half-giant than it is to add one to an ogre or a hill giant. Many creatures that had double HD no longer do, while at one that didn't now does (with very specific definitions). How these HD function within the scope of affecting advancement is solidly clear in each case. Doubling of HD was not really as "within the rules" as I like game writing to be, so I eliminated it where I felt it was confusing and/or too over the top (many places).

Damage Reduction: We've taken liberties with DR where it makes sense, as Frilf (Ian Johnston, author and prime unit for Silverthorne Games) points out. There's nothing stopping us from using 3.5e-like DRs, and many of the DRs in the book tend toward my impression of what 3.5 will look like based on reading everything I can get my hands on with hints and innuendo (Dragon articles, and etc.). On the other hand, though I know a stone golem's DR is going to be lower in 3.5e, I didn't lower it in the first run of the Book of Templates: Deluxe Edition where the creature was used in a sample.

What's in it for you: The book has plenty of examples that show how the template applies and can be nudged in the direction a DM wants the creature to go. It has ways to help the user think about how he or she wants his or her game to feel when it comes to certain monsters. That necessitates three things: options, options, and options. Oh, and flexibility. That's four things, I know!

What I mean by flexibility is that many of the templates now take the base creature more into account and scale to meet that. Many abilities that were static in the original Book of Templates now function on a sliding scale. Challenge Rating, always an art, has also been mucked about with to see if it can't give a better picture of this variability.

What I mean by options is that when Ian says 60 templates, he means it—but there's another factor at work. Some of the templates offer possibilities that make them more than one template by themselves. I can think of one example at the moment that offers DMs the opportunity to make four slightly different creatures with one template. A few others allow combinations that make determining just how many differing critters someone could create with the template a mathematical uncertainty (at least to me). (They told me algebra would be useful someday, but I wouldn't listen!)

BotDe also takes it to the table by giving some options for players. I personally wouldn't want a player running a Dreadnaught pixie, but hey, it's your game. In all seriousness, there are crunchies for both sides of the screen, though the book does favor the DM.

We all know, being DMs ourselves, that DMs love to tinker, so we've tried to facilitate that aspect of meta-game within the game. We've also facilitated the DM in knowing just how a monster came to be, with one or more options in many of the templates. Of course, some are still just cursed or blessed creatures. Further, unique creatures are just a few steps away, and there are samples of those in the book too!

Art: The artists are outstanding. (I've always been impressed with Ian's ability to get great art.) Look the artists up online if you haven't seen their work. You won't regret it.

Shamelessly Self-Aggrandizing Conclusion: (They say it ain't bragging if it's true, but I beg you to be the judge. Send me hate mail if I'm wrong.) Those of you who get the new PDF for free need to be sitting down when you open it. It'll knock you down if you aren't. In my opinion, this offer is super-generous, considering what the new book has to offer in the way of upgrade. This isn't a mere revision; it's an overhaul with all new parts, a shiny paint job, and a red ribbon for gift giving. It's like trading in a car you've driven for a couple of years for a new one at no extra charge! (I'm given to hyperbole, but hopefully you'll forgive me.)

It may be that some of the free material is included in a print version, if I may be so bold. Ian will correct if I'm wrong. It all depends on the final page count. I definitely want to see this book in print.

Let me just say, I'm a hard-nosed and picky when it comes to some things (which anyone who reads my reviews or editing annotations knows). Even though I'm the editor of this project, along with Bruce, and a contributing author, I can honestly say this book would be one I'd take pride in owning. I sincerely hope those who end up with one feel as good about their copy.

 

[Frilf]

Deleted. More later.

 

[Leopold]

please let it be released soon!!!!!