Races of Destiny available as pdf through Drivethrurpg

[Turjan]

I actually don't see how you can discuss this topic without price considerations. To me, it's a very simple equation. PDFs are only bought by customers that are used to buying things on the internet. That's the ballpark where this PDF plays. Then the comparison reads like this:

Races of Destiny (PDF); DriveThruRPG.com: $29.95
Races of Destiny (print); amazon.com: $19.77

Draw your own conclusions.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

i went to 2 Waldenbooks and 1 B.Dalton yesterday.

i was told in all three stores that the book hasn't been released yet.

even though, i know from threads all over the internet that people have it.

just another reason to buy online vs. at LGS.

I don't have mine yet, but that's because these.... Persons from the Postal haven't brought it (it has been sent, and should be there tomorrow). And I'm from Germany (as is the store I bougth it from).

About the PDF-Thing: I won't buy it. It's worthless. I want hardcover. Or something else with paper. If I get something as PDF, I don't want it to have any restrictions and I sure as hell want to profit from the fact that it is much cheaper than the print version (which costs printing and paper). I won't pay the same price as I pay for the real book.

They could have included a coupon for the PDF in the print version (either for a free PDF or for a discount).

 

[Staffan]

Would someone from Australia care to comment on shipping rates vs. printing costs?

I'm not from Australia - quite the opposite (Sweden), but I think that still qualifies me for commenting on shipping rates and local prices and so on.

I'm looking at Races of Stone as a price comparison, since Races of Destiny isn't out here yet. The online mail-order stores here in Sweden charge between 250 and 300 kr for it ($36-44). The local store would probably charge 330 kr ($48), but I wouldn't have to pay for shipping which I would with the others (probably another $10).

Buying from Amazon would cost approximately $30 including the "medium" shipping option (Expedited International Shipping, takes 5-10 business days). If I buy more than one book at a time, things get cheaper since the shipping is split into a $7.50 per-shipment fee and a $3 per-book fee. On the other hand, most of the mail-order stores also provide various levels of discounts for large orders.

 

[johnsemlak]

I actually don't see how you can discuss this topic without price considerations. To me, it's a very simple equation. PDFs are only bought by customers that are used to buying things on the internet. That's the ballpark where this PDF plays. Then the comparison reads like this:

Races of Destiny (PDF); DriveThruRPG.com: $29.95
Races of Destiny (print); amazon.com: $19.77

Draw your own conclusions.

Hmm for me the picture is somewhat different:

Races of Destiny (PDF): DTRPG: $29.95, delivery instant
Races of Destiny (print): amazon.com $19.77 + $7-10 via the slow shipping option, delivery about 3 weeks or (possibly much) longer.

Admittedly, not a lot of gamers live in Russia, but plenty live overseas, and overseas shipping costs money and takes time.

 

[Gez]

Even for free, I don't think I would be interested.

• DRM PDFs do not interest me.
• Races of Destiny does not interest me.

Add a and b together, and you get a resounding "meh".

 

[Wraith Form]

To be honest my normal box (computer) has been out of commision for the last two months (it started leaking, water cooled), so i've been a bit out of the 'scene' (having been stuck on a less then quick laptop with not all my 'stuff' within reach). So what your saying is that someone cracked the Frostburn pdf from drivethrurpg (very simple really) and it's available on some channel, right? If that is the case, then i'm very suprised by this release. If on the otherhand your saying that someone scanned the book and made a pdf of it, then i say, what else is new...

I'm not saying anything. I don't know anything. I don't have any knowledge of what you're talking about. I've had no association with the PDF in question. I puffed but I didn't inhale.

Peltier cooling? Groovy!

 

[Warden]

Even up here in Canada, I'd still pay an extra $5-$10 shipping and handling to bring up any book, unless I can find a good Canadian site to deal with.

We did an interview with Steve Wieck a couple of months ago, and Steve seems to be of the opinion that WotC is looking to experiment with the impact that PDF could have from an international POV. Are foreign customers looking to replace the high costs of picking up their products for a PDF version of it? Are North American customers willing to the do the same thing? And, if so, are there particular types of sourcebook that it would be safe to conduct this for? It's all a big experiment by WotC without being a really BIG experiment (meaning cost deficient). They believe that with the DRM assurances of DTRPG, they can study this possibility without concerns for "handing over the keys to the car," as someone else put it already.

I don't think we'll see any of these other ideas that have been shot out until someone who has been involved in the PDF field gets hired on to WotC (and isn't the cousin of a Hasbro exec). Or PDF makes such a huge impact on the gaming market that large entities begin to take it more seriously. Either version is a shot in the dark.

 

[Imret]

Races of Destiny (PDF); DriveThruRPG.com: $29.95
Races of Destiny (print); amazon.com: $19.77

Draw your own conclusions.

That depends...to my experience thus far, and clearly, YMMV, amazon.com has actually delivered about 30% of the things I've ordered. Everything else I've had to send streams of emails after 6 months to get a refund. I'm not terribly impressed with their "Pay real money and never, ever get it" technology.

If DTRPG could beat those odds, they might have something going.

Of course, I want Races of Destiny about as much as I want a hole drilled through my visual cortex, so it's a moot point. But I'd love to see an online store where you could actually RECEIVE products you buy.
/hijack

 

[Remathilis]

Hi-JAK

I've never had a problem with Amazon. Ever.

EBay... Oh I have stories

/Hi-JAK

 

[Kae'Yoss]

I'll file in the report for Germany:

D&D material is available here early enough at the right stores (my races of destiny was shipped on monday - I actually got the note of dispatch on sunday), shipping is often free (my favourite online store offers free shipping) and is fast enough (sometimes the other day, half a week at worst). Prices aren't bad, either (I paid 25,20 Euro for my Races of Destiny, that's something like 34 dollars at the moment.). They also have quite a good selection of RPG material.