Palladium Books® – Press Release – July 3, 2008

The Rifter® #43 – Swimsuit & Wujcik Tribute Issue – July 14
Rifts® Anthology: Tales of the Chi-Town ‘Burbs™ – July 25
Robotech® The Shadow Chronicles® RPG “Deluxe Edition” – August 6
Robotech® The Macross Saga™ sourcebook – August (rescheduled)
Robotech® The Masters Saga™ sourcebook – September (rescheduled)
The Rifter® #44 – Monster Spectacular – October (on schedule)
Dead Reign™ (Zombie) RPG – October (on schedule)
Rifts® Dimension Book™ 11: Dyval™, Hell Unleashed (Minion War™) – Fall (Sept./Oct.)
Rifts® Dimension Book™ 12: Dimensional Outbreak™ (Minion War™) – Fall (Nov.)
Rifts® Heroes of the Megaverse® (Minion War™) – Fall
Heroes Unlimited™/Rifts®: Armageddon Unlimited™ (Minion War™) – Fall or Winter
Rifts® Megaverse® in Flames™ – Winter
Mysteries of Magic™ – Fall or Winter
Nightbane® Sourcebook – Fall or Winter
And More . . .

The Rifter® #43 – Ships July 14 – At the printer
Swimsuit Pinup Issue & Tribute to Erick Wujcik

The Rifter® #43 is nothing short of great! At least we think so. Cool femme fatale characters, great art by fan favorite artists, and a wonderful, uplifting tribute to Erick Wujcik. You’re really missing out if you don’t pick up this issue.

Twenty-three femme fatales illustrated by popular Palladium artists and statted out by Palladium writers, each one easy to drop into any ongoing campaign.

As a tribute to Erick Wujcik, Kevin Siembieda and 17 other artists say goodbye and good gaming by drawing inspiration for their pinup pages from the many RPG settings created by Erick. Each femme fatale is statted out for various Palladium RPG settings by one of Palladium’s many freelance authors.

The Rifter® is your doorway to unlimited imagination and numerous Palladium role-playing worlds. It offers new heroes, powers, weapons, magic and adventure for your games. It presents new villains, monsters and dangers to battle, and new ideas to consider.

  • 23 femme fatales from across the Megaverse®.
  • A special tribute to Erick Wujcik.
  • Art by Larry Elmore, Apollo Okamura, Mike Wilson, Brian Manning, Allen Manning, Nick Bradshaw, Kent Burles, Mike Mumah, Mark Evans, Mark Dudley, Chuck Walton, Mike Dubisch, Kevin Siembieda and other artists.
  • Written by Kevin Siembieda, Jason Marker, Josh Sinsapaugh, Jason Richards, Carl Gleba, Josh Hilden, Brandon Aten, Taylor White, Mark Oberle, Erin Lindsey and other favorite freelance writers.
  • The latest chapter of Hammer of the Forge™, fiction.
  • News, conventions, coming attractions and more.
  • Cover by Mark Evans. Special farewell by Kevin Siembieda.
  • $10.95 retail – 96 pages – Cat. No. 143.
  • Ships July 14, 2008. At the printer.

    Tales of the Chi-Town ‘Burbs – July 25
    A book of short stories for Rifts®

    In final production and expected to go to the printer next week!

    We are very excited about this book of new and original short stories by Kevin Siembieda and a dozen other Palladium writers. It is going to surprise and please a lot of Rifts® fans. Not only does it provide fun insight, history and information about the Coalition States, the Bloody Campaign and the Chi-Town ‘Burbs, but it provides plenty of ideas for your own Rifts® campaigns.

    Each story delves into the life of a person who lives in the shadowy no-man’s land of the Chi-Town ‘Burbs. Some of these characters are heroes, some are villains, others are adventurers, and some innocent bystanders, but all are interesting.

    The ‘Burbs are a collection of people waiting for admission into one of the fortified city havens of the Coalition States. The Chi-Town ‘Burbs are the most famous of these shanty towns, tent cities and sprawling megalopolises that do not officially exist, and therefore have no formal government or laws. Refugees, D-Bees, fugitives, adventurers, outlaws and dreamers of every stripe make their home in the ‘Burbs or visit to sell their wares, get a little R&R, or cause some trouble. This also attracts opportunists and criminals who prey upon the innocent and the gullible.

  • Trade paperback size (6 x 9 inches).
  • Erin Tarn’s unique view of the ‘Burbs and the good they serve.
  • Stories written by Kevin Siembieda, Jason Marker, Braden Campbell, Carl Gleba, Josh Hilden, Jason Richards, Jeffry Scott Hansen, Josh Sinsapaugh, John Philpott, Brandon Aten, Taylor White and other fan favorite Palladium authors.
  • $12.95 retail – 224 pages (tentative, may be expanded) – Cat. No. 304.
  • July 25, 2008. If sales are strong (and we think they will be), this is likely to be the first of a series of new Rifts® novels and anthology books.

    Robotech®: The Shadow Chronicles® RPG
    8½ x 11 Deluxe Hardcover Edition

    At the printers. This sharp book is a full-size 8½ x 11 hardcover edition of the Robotech®: The Shadow Chronicles® RPG. It has been completely redone and laid out as if it were a new title to best suit the larger size.

    The Deluxe Edition is filled with additional artwork throughout, offers superior reproduction of toned artwork, better paper stock, larger type-face, and the addition of some additional text, including two Haydonite spaceships, three UEEF ships, space combat rules and a handful of additional vehicles. Some of you requested a larger, hardcover edition of the core rule book and we’re happy to comply.

  • New, large illustrations throughout.
  • Some additional text for a few new weapons and vehicles.
  • New, text on Haydonite and UEEF spacecraft.
  • Spaceship combat rules.
  • Veritech Fighters, Cyclones, Bioroid Interceptor and more.
  • Invid mecha and adventure ideas.
  • Haydonites, the Wraith, Infiltrator and spaceships.
  • Fast character creation, skills and options.
  • Superior quality paper and reproduction.
  • A complete role-playing game. Everything you need to play.
  • 8½ x 11 full book size, hardcover, core rules.
  • 224 pages – $30.95 retail – Cat. No. 550HC.
  • “Gold” Edition – Signed and numbered (only 500 copies) – $70.00 retail – Cat. No. 5500HC. Sold on a first come, first served basis.
  • August 6th release. At the printer.

    Three convention appearances for Palladium in 2008

    - Gen Con® Indy – Indianapolis, Indiana – August 14-17
    - GallowsCon™ – Merrillville, Indiana – October 11
    - Youmacon 2008 – Dearborn, Michigan – October 30-November 2
    - Plus plans are being made for the 2009 Palladium Open House

    Gen Con® Indy – Booth 501
    August 14-17, 2008

    Gen Con. The big game convention of the year. We’ll be there with new releases (at least four: The Rifter® #43, Tales of the Chi-Town ‘Burbs™, The Robotech® Deluxe Hardcover RPG and Robotech® Deluxe Gold Hardcover, and maybe one or two other new items).

    We’re at Booth #501, in the front, on the side where the videogames are located. It’s a nice big, six booth island featuring our new releases, back stock titles, original artwork, prints, T-shirts, and special guests and presentations. We’ll also be giving away a thousand copies of The Rifter® while supplies last.

    The following Palladium creators hope to be in attendance. All will be available to sign autographs and chat with fans, and some will be running Palladium gaming events.
    Kevin Siembieda (publisher, writer, artist) – confirmed
    Wayne Smith (editor) – confirmed
    Jason Marker (writer) – confirmed
    Apollo Okamura (artist) – confirmed
    Josh Hilden (writer) – confirmed
    Jason Richards (writer) – confirmed
    Mark Oberle (writer; tentative)
    Carl Gleba (writer; tentative)
    Teresa Mead (sales; tentative)
    Paul Deckert (associate) – confirmed
    James Brown (Megaversal Ambassador) – confirmed
    And others . . .

    Note: You know that big announcement we were talking about? Looks like we may NOT be able to reveal it at Gen Con after all. Sorry. Hmm, maybe we could just make something up?

    GallowsCon – Saturday, October 11, 2008
    The Best One Day of Fun in Gaming

    You might be wondering, is it really worth going to a one day event? The answer is a resounding YES, when it’s GallowsCon!

    Last year’s GallowsCon was one of the most fun conventions Palladium has ever attended! Yes, that’s EVER ATTENDED. The atmosphere is friendly and warm. The events are fun. The people are silly and kind. In fact, the atmosphere and pure gaming fun factor very much reminded us of Palladium’s very own Open House.

    This year, Palladium hopes to make GallowsCon even more fun by bringing more Palladium guests, running more Palladium gaming events and kicking up the gaming action several notches.

    In fact, Kevin Siembieda hopes to make GallowsCon our surrogate 2008 Palladium Open House. A taste of the fun you can expect at our place in 2009. That means Kevin will be running games at GallowsCon, chatting with fans, signing books, selling stuff, and bringing a bunch of “Palladium Guys” to also run games and have fun. We hope a lot of Palladium fans come and join the festivities. Heck, it’s the only convention in 2008 where Kevin will be running games.

    - Kevin Siembieda – G.M. running 2-3 RPG events. Palladium Fantasy® for sure. Maybe Robotech® and who knows what else.
    - Josh Hilden – G.M. & co-author of the Dead Reign™ RPG and will run at least one zombie game event.
    - Wayne Smith – Editor of The Rifter®.
    - James Brown – Game Master Supreme running 2 events.
    - Lonni Langston – Game Master running 2 events.
    - Glen Evans – Freelance Writer (tentative guest).
    - Brandon Aten – Freelance Writer & G.M. (tentative guest).
    - Taylor White – Freelance Writer (tentative guest).
    - And we hope to add several others to the list. How about it, ladies and gents? Make us look good. They actually think having Palladium creators as guests will attract more gamers. Help!

    Other GallowsCon Events:

    - A super-cool charity raffle. And I mean super-cool. Last year’s raffle had something like 40 really great prizes, from swords, toys, model kits and game items to Palladium gold editions (which we’ll be donating again). Not one clunker in the batch, and the proceeds all go to a good cause.
    - Miniature gaming.
    - Board games.
    - CCG games.
    Everyone in the Chicago, Fort Wayne, Valparaiso, and Indianapolis area should join the fun! Please pre-register so we know how many folks we need to accommodate with gaming events. And tell ‘em Palladium sent ya.
    Seriously, GallowsCon is an undiscovered gem. Total fun. Please join us for gaming fun, one-on-one conversation, autographs, photo-ops and more. Start making plans now and order soon!

    Location: FLC Banquet Hall, 7950 Marshall Street, Merrillville, Indiana, 46410
    Admission Price: $15 Pre-Registration (without a T-shirt).
    Hours: 9:30 A.M. till 11:00 P.M. Non-stop gaming.
    Contact/To Pre-Reg Go To: gallowscon.com

    Youmacon 2008 – Anime Convention
    October 30-November 2, 2008

    Michigan’s biggest anime convention is Youmacon, and Palladium Books will be there represented by me, Alex, Julius, Wayne and probably others. We’ll be available to chat and visit with fans, sign books, and offer Robotech® RPGs, sourcebooks and select other RPG titles and anime artwork for sale.

    This anime celebration has grown from an already impressive 1,200 attendees to nearly 4,000 in only three years!

    Great costumes, cosplay, Royal Masquerade Ball, videogame tournament, anime guests, panel discussions, anime shown around the clock, dealers’ room, parties and fun, fun, fun.

    Location: Hyatt Regency Dearborn – special room rate $97 per night.
    Dates: October 30-November 2, 2008
    Preregistration before Sept. 30th:
    3-Days: $40
    Platinum 3-Days: $100 (special privileges, priority seating, etc.)
    At the Door:
    3-Day registration: $45
    Friday or Sunday: $20
    Saturday Only: $25
    Contact: registration@youmacon.com
    Website: www.youmacon.com

    2009 Palladium Open House

    Three full days of gaming plus V.I.P. Thursday
    – May 1-3, 2009 (not counting V.I.P. Thursday, April 30) –

    We are so excited about the 2009 Palladium Open House, you’d think it was next month, not May 2009. Kathy Simmons has already been looking into hotels and food, Wayne Smith spent most of today designing the certificates of attendance and color name badges, and Kevin Siembieda has been busy organizing and expanding the event to THREE full days of gaming plus V.I.P. Thursday!

    Plans for the 2009 Palladium Open House are underway to make it more days, more games, more guests, more fun and even more special.

    What is the Palladium Open House?

    It’s three days (four including V.I.P. Thursday) of nonstop role-playing excitement. That’s nonstop Palladium role-playing games – Rifts®, Robotech®, Palladium Fantasy RPG®, Nightbane®, Heroes Unlimited™, Ninjas & Superspies™, After the Bomb®, BTS™, and all the rest, with many of the games G.M.ed by the very people who designed and wrote them!

    It’s a blast gaming with the ladies and gents who created the games you loved. And all are friendly and fun-loving gamers just like you.

    There are also seminars, panel discussions, guest tables, a large dealers’ area, original artwork, auction, costume contest, and more.

    Just some of the writer guests and Game Masters at past Palladium Open House events have included Erick Wujcik, Kevin Siembieda, Julius Rosenstein, Carmen Bellaire, Jason Marker, Carl Gleba, Jason Richards, Brandon Aten, Taylor White, Josh Sinsapaugh, John Philpott, Irvin Jackson, and others.

    Just some of the artist guests in the past have included John Zeleznik, Scott Johnson, Apollo Okamura, Brian Manning, Allen Manning, Mark Dudley, Chuck Walton, Comfort Love, Adam Withers, and others, all at the same event.

    Not to mention, Kevin Siembieda and the Palladium staff are at your disposal.

    40+ Palladium creators gathered under one roof. Forty plus guests making themselves available to you for much of the three days. They are happy to chat and sign autographs, clown around, game and have fun. And many of the artists are willing to draw character sketches at reasonable prices, or sell prints and original artwork. That’s more Palladium guests than at any convention anywhere in the world! And it happens right at the Palladium offices and warehouse!

    Meet fellow gamers from around the world! Gamers come from across North America, coast to coast and everywhere in-between. Some even come from as far away as Germany, England and Australia!

    The Palladium Open House is unlike any convention you’ve ever attended. We call this gaming event the Palladium Open House, because we are inviting you into our home away from home and our hearts.

    This isn’t some big convention, we’re there to welcome and entertain you as if you were coming to a family get together at our home. We’re happy you’ve come and thrilled to see you, enjoy showing you “our place,” happy to game with you, and sit around and talk gaming, or movies, or just about anything.

    In this intimate setting you get to meet ALL the guests and staff, be the first to hear our new ideas, ask questions and have fun, face to face, one on one. It’s awesome.

    There is a sense of fun, family, intimacy and camaraderie that you do not find at most large conventions. You’ll have unparalleled access to game creators, and Kevin Siembieda is on the floor running games, hosting panel talks or just wandering around chatting and signing autographs all four days, from start till long into the night.

    EVERYONE who has attended a previous Palladium Open House has said they’ve never felt so welcomed or had so much fun at any convention they’ve ever attended. That’s because the Palladium staff and creators are totally accessible, friendly and just like you, gamers out to have a good time with you.

    Expanding the days of fun. Our first two Open Houses were only Saturday and Sunday (plus V.I.P. Friday), but so many fans have asked us to expand the days of gaming, that in 2009, Palladium will host three full days of gaming – Friday, Saturday and Sunday – plus V.I.P. Thursday!
    When: May 1, 2 & 3, 2009 (plus V.I.P. Thursday, April 30, for some).
    Where: Palladium Books Inc.
    39074 Webb Court
    Westland, MI 48185

    Hotel: A large number of inexpensive hotels and motels ($89 and less) are within one or two miles of Palladium’s office. Special rates will be arranged. More on that later.

    There are also a multitude of places to eat and shop literally down the street.

    Event Hours:
    V.I.P. Thursday: 4:00 P.M. to Midnight.
    Friday & Saturday: 9:30 A.M. till Midnight or later.
    Sunday: 9:30 A.M. till 5:00 P.M.

    Cost:
    - Weekend Ticket (Friday, Saturday, Sunday): $40 – a weekend pass gets you admission ALL 3 days.
    - Friday (single day): $16.00
    - Saturday (single day): $16.00
    - Sunday (single day): $12.00

    Order Today:
    Online: www.palladiumbooks.com – all credit cards accepted.
    By Telephone: (734) 721-2903, order line only.
    By Mail: Send a check or money order to the address above, along with your current and correct contact information: The full, real name (not online name) of EACH person you are buying a ticket for, and the address and telephone number of the main contact person.
    No refunds after March 1, 2009.

    We need to know if you are coming in advance.

    We can only squeeze so many people into our warehouse (about 320 people), so at a certain point, we may have to stop sales. To make sure we have enough games and other events to accommodate everybody coming (we had about 250 in years past) we NEED you to order your tickets as soon as possible. Ideally before March 1, 2009 (although tickets will be sold up to April 3, 2009, and at the door, room permitting).

    Start making your plans to join the fun NOW. The 2009 Palladium Open House is only 10 months away! Reservations should be placed by April 3, 2008 to get your commemorative certificate of admission and color name badge.


    V.I.P. ADVANCE NOTICE!
    V.I.P. Thursday is April 30, 2009
    Tickets will go on sale July 31, 2008

    Note: V.I.P. Thursday ALWAYS sells out in a matter of a few weeks, so we are giving you advance notice that tickets will go up for sale July 31, 2008. They are sold on a first come, first severed basis.


    V.I.P. Thursday is an extra, intimate and exclusive event that requires a separate admission. The cost is a little pricey at $60 per person, though some have said it’s a steal for all you get.

  • Limited to only 55-60 paying guests (that’s YOU) and Palladium staff and 15-25 other Palladium creators!

  • An intimate afternoon and evening with Kevin Siembieda, Henry Siembieda, Wayne Smith, Alex Marciniszyn, Julius Rosenstein, Jason Marker, Josh Hilden, Kathy Simmons, and all the Palladium Guests in town that we can squeeze in. Last year that was something like 23 additional writers and artists!

  • Buffet dinner masterfully prepared by Kathy Simmons, renowned for her cooking skill, catering and professional party planning.

  • An advance opportunity to meet many of the guests, one-on-one, in an intimate surrounding. In fact, you are able to chat with the many Palladium creators seated among you during dinner and throughout the evening. If you’re lucky, Kevin Siembieda will give you a private tour of Palladium’s new offices.

  • First chance to buy rare, out of print books, new titles, back stock, T-shirts, one of a kind artwork and more.

  • After dining, Kevin Siembieda gives a Welcome and State of Palladium presentation, that culminates with an hour of questions and answers. And you are free to ask questions about any subject.

  • Then it’s a night of gaming with celebrity G.M.s or spending the next 3-5 hours talking with Kevin Siembieda and other Palladium personalities. The whole shebang ends around 11:00 or Midnight.

    V.I.P. Thursday is limited to approximately 55 guests. Tickets are sold on a first-come, first served basis, and ALWAYS SELL OUT IN A MATTER OF WEEKS. Order by mail as soon as you read this or watch for when tickets go on sale online.
    Date: Thursday, April 30, 2009.
    Time: Starts at 4:00 P.M. Dinner served around 5:30 P.M.
    Attendance: Exclusive and limited.
    Cost: $60 per person. Available on a first come, first served basis, while allotted tickets last.

    Robotech® and Robotech® The Shadow Chronicles® are Registered Trademarks of Harmony Gold USA, Inc.

    © Copyright 2008 Palladium Books Inc. All rights reserved.
    Rifts®, The Rifter®, RECON®, Splicers®, Palladium Books®, Phase World®, The Palladium Fantasy Role-Playing Game®, Megaverse®, Nightbane®, The Mechanoids®, The Mechanoid Invasion®, Coalition Wars® and After the Bomb® are Registered Trademarks of Palladium Books Inc. Heroes Unlimited, Beyond the Supernatural, and other published book titles, names, slogans and likenesses are trademarks of Palladium Books Inc., and Kevin Siembieda.

    This press release may be reprinted, reposted, linked and shared for the sole purpose of advertising, promotion and sales solicitation.