By Kevin Siembieda

One game system – every genre – countless worlds – endless adventure

Whew. I think I have finally cleared the deck so that I can just write away for several weeks and finish Garden of the Gods™ (Fantasy) before moving into In the Face of Death™ (zombies), The Rifter® #84, Psychic Scream™ for Chaos Earth® and Rifts® Titan Robotics™.

It has been a very busy week. I’ve had a few meetings, various business matters to contend with, and dealing with some unexpected printer issues. But mostly I have been signing, drawing sketches, collating and handing off Rifts® Bestiary™ Megaverse® Insider items to pack and ship to the many supporters of our Insider offer. I love our fans and always want to make these unique Insider offers truly special and fun. That means a lot of signed prints, signing and numbering hundreds of books and drawing scores of dragon head sketches over the past several days, among other things. I think everyone will be pleased with the special editions (and other goodies for the higher level tiers) coming their way.

The Rifts® Bestiary™ Gold Edition hardcover is also back from the printer and shipping now. And because I’m in the groove of drawing dragon head sketches, I have been randomly adding such a large dragon head sketch to many of the Gold Edition pre-orders, and will continue to do so for books sold throughout the weekend and into next week, so this is a good time to place an order, especially if the Gold Edition is a birthday or anniversary present.

Something like 40 or 50 “color cover” hardcovers (gorgeous) shipped yesterday or today to Palladium Insiders. The Benefactors also shipped today, and I think Ultimate Insiders and the Ultimate Benefactor will ship today or tomorrow. The rest will ship as soon as possible.

Speaking of Rifts® Bestiary™ Megaverse® Insider items, the PDF of Rifts® Bestiary Volume One should start being emailed to Cyber-Insiders and everyone else who gets it next week.

Like I said, we’ve been busy. Now it’s back to writing and getting new books to the printer.

Oh, before I forget, the sale in my Ebay Store continues for another week. It includes Negatives that are on sale at half price, and almost everything else is on sale at a less steep discount, including artwork by Charles Walton, collectible books and toys. We are also adding a handful of collectible items, including HU2 hardcovers, Northern Gun and Lemuria hardcovers, and a few other out of print items. The two Palladium Fantasy RPG® hardcovers we put up sold out in a couple of days. I think I only have 2-3 left that I’ll probably save for the auction at the 2021 Palladium Open House. To see what’s available go to: http://stores.ebay.com/kevinstoys-artandcollectibles

Now Shipping – Rifts^® Bestiary^™ Vol. One – “Gold Edition” Hardcover – Signed and Numbered

A deluxe, limited, Gold Edition hardcover, signed and numbered by Palladium staff and maybe a few freelancers. And I’ve drawn one of my trademarked dragon head sketches (large) in many of them and will continue to do so on orders that arrive now through next week. Note: Historically, Palladium Books’ Gold Editions have doubled, tripled or increased in value many times over. Valued as cherished collectibles. Sold on a first come, first served basis, while supplies last. Please note the slight increase in price to $55.

• Gold foil on a black faux leather hardcover.
• Sewn and glued for long-lasting durability.
• Only 300 signed and numbered copies. Only from Palladium Books.
• Sold on a first come, first served basis while supplies last.
• Signed by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium staff.
• 80+ creatures of Rifts North America described in detail.
• Same contents as the softcover edition.
• Easily adapted to any Palladium setting; basic S.D.C. stats included for each creature description.
• 256 pages – $55.00 retail – Cat. No. 896HC (Volume One).
• Shipping now! Starting with #1 of 300.

UPDATE: Garden of the Gods^™ (Fantasy) – in final production

At the moment I am writing blessings, miracles and curses from the gods (the latter from dark gods). They’re all interrelated so I’m bouncing between one or the other. Fun, but time consuming as they involve stats and game balance. Of course, you’ll love them. Garden of the Gods™ is epic, and just one of several Palladium Fantasy titles in the works or done and waiting for final edit and tweaking.

Garden of the Gods™ is packed with magic artifacts, holy weapons, blessings, miracles, visions, curses, intrigue, and all kinds of great stuff for players and hundreds of adventure hooks for Game Masters. This book has so much flavor it should give players and Game Masters all kinds of avenues of adventure. There are some unexpected dangers and bad guys, and good guy NPCs or player characters like the Knights Fossar, the super-cool and redefined Fossar Wardens (keepers of the Order’s secrets), Champions of the Gods, and so much more. You will absolutely love this book.

UPDATE: The Rifter^® #84 – September release

The articles have been selected. The material is being edited, and I have been assigning artwork. Another great issue full of fun and ideas.

UPDATE: Dead Reign^®: In the Face of Death^™

I’m itching to finish writing this book. Getting some feedback and ideas from some of my freelance writers too. An end of September or more likely October release.

UPDATE: Rifts^® Chaos Earth^® – Psychic Scream^™

I got some of the artwork for Psychic Scream just yesterday, along with some notes and ideas for additional material. Very inspiring. I need to assign the rest pronto. If the description for Psychic Scream™ doesn’t get your heart pumping, I don’t know what will! Fall release.

UPDATE: Rifts^® Titan Robotics^™ – Fall release

Another epic new title with robots and power armor galore, but also the inner workings of Titan Robotics and Archie Three’s schemes. More and more finished artwork and concept sketches are arriving every week and are looking fabulous. I continue to make notes and we are all pumped up about this power armor, robot, and weapon filled sourcebook.

UPDATE: Rifts^® Antarctica^™ – Fall or Winter Release

Nothing new to report. I think Rifts® Antarctica™ is going to surprise and delight a lot of people. It is also a great example of the fun you can have with the Raw Editions. The sold out Rifts® Antarctica Raw Edition is a far cry from what the finished book is going to be. Those of you who bought the Raw Edition get a glimpse at Palladium’s creative process. When you compare the two, you’ll see what we kept, what we eliminated, what we added, and how we embellished the material to reach the creative finale of the finished book coming this fall or winter. Fun and educational for those of you who aspire to be writers yourself or just like to have the inside track at Palladium. And true of all Raw Editions vs the finished book. Probably a fall or winter release.

UPDATE: Rifts^® Bestiary^™, Volume Two – Winter Release

Nothing new on this front, but we all want it to be released as quickly as possible. Looking at a winter release.

UPDATE: The Disavowed^™, Living Nowhere^™, Beyond the Supernatural^™ sourcebooks, and other titles

These titles and several others are NOT forgotten and are in various stages of active production or waiting for production. As always, just because a book is not specifically listed in every Weekly Update, it does not mean it is discontinued or in limbo, it means there are more immediate things to talk about or there’s no substantive news to report. We are anxious to put as many of the books you’ve been waiting for into your hands as possible over the next 18 months. That includes Chaos Earth® First Responders™, Rifts® Antarctica, Rifts® CS Arsenal™, Rifts® Living Nowhere™, Beyond the Supernatural™ sourcebooks, more Fantasy sourcebooks and other titles. So if a book you are waiting for is not mentioned in an Update, it means there is nothing new to report, but it should still be in the pipeline and news for it will be coming in the weeks or months ahead. Right now, we are focused on releases for the next six months, which by our count is 6-7 titles. And many of them are in various stages of production or development.

NEW on DriveThruRPG.com – The Rifter^® #81

Available tomorrow, August 23, 2019: The Rifter® #81: A big 112 page issue filled with “official” source material for Palladium Fantasy RPG® (a complete, 33 page, Wolfen Vampire adventure by Kevin Siembieda with 20+ NPCs, and a 20 page Gnomes of the Ophid’s Grasslands), Rifts® Chaos Earth® Nebraska Part 2, Heroes Unlimited™ (Super Sleuth), and more. And don’t forget to check out the very helpful Palladium Fantasy RPG® Interactive Character Sheet: A Microsoft Excel-based character management system available on DriveThru.

Also new this month on DriveThruRPG.com is Rifts® Dimension Book™ 15: Secrets of the Atlanteans™. It features True Atlanteans, their tribes, goals, and history, more about the Sunaj, new Magic Tattoos, new Shadow Magic™, new Shadow monsters, maps and descriptions of Atlantean Stone Pyramids, and more about the wicked Sunaj’s secret agenda. An awesome resource and fun read.

A number of new products will be coming your way on DriveThruRPG.com in the weeks ahead. This includes the re-edited and improved three original Rifts® Novels from the 1990's, one every two weeks or so. We may also make them available as Print on Demand (POD) books from DriveThru.

Recent PDF additions include the free Rifts® Bestiary™ Volume One Sneak Preview: See what's in this great new sourcebook before you buy it! The Rifter® #80: A big 112 page issue filled with “official” source material for Palladium Fantasy RPG® Rifts® Chaos Earth® (setting and monsters), Splicers® (desert setting), Heroes Unlimited™ (villains), and more. Palladium Fantasy RPG® Interactive Character Sheet: a Microsoft Excel-based character management system. Packed with features and data collected from every official Palladium Fantasy sourcebook to enable you to create Fantasy characters quickly (25 minutes!) and help you to update and manage them for years to come. The Rifter® #79 (Rifts®, Palladium Fantasy®, Heroes Unlimited™, Gaming through History, G.M., and more), The Rifter® #78 (the Modern Necromancer, Palladium Fantasy®, Rifts®, Splicers®, more); Rifts® Heroes of Humanity™, the Coalition’s response to the escalating Minion War™ crisis, Psi-Battalion, CS Demon Hunter, special training and more).

Dead Reign® Paper Miniatures Volume Three: Zombies, Dead Reign® Paper Miniatures Volume Two: Civilians and Dead Reign® Paper Miniatures Volume One: Survivors. There are also paper miniatures for Heroes Unlimited™, Palladium Fantasy® and Rifts®. A new, up-to-date, PDF Palladium Books Catalog. Nightbane® Dark Designs™ sourcebook with 60 new Common Talents, 38 new Elite Talents, 18 new Morphus Tables, all other Morphus Tables collected and more. Systems Failure™ RPG, a 160 page RPG that deals with alien invasion and a post-apocalypse setting that is fun and dynamic. Civilization is on the verge of collapse when the so-called "bugs" invade and turn humans into zombie-like slaves. Monsters, heroes and fun. A complete RPG and setting. Rifts® World Book 34: Northern Gun™ Two: 256 pages of technology and fun. 30+ power armors, 30+ body armors, 15 combat vehicles, 45 vehicles (hovercycles, etc.), 10 robot haulers, the Robodome and more. Bizantium and the Northern Islands™: the northernmost part of the Known World, the Cold Born, Necromancy ships made from dead sea serpents, 15 creatures, Random Sea Monster Generator, and more. Rifts® Northern Gun™ One. This fan favorite might be thought of as the big book of giant robots – an in-depth look at Northern Gun, 70+ weapons, 27 robots, NG O.C.C.s, key people and places, and much more. Mysteries of Magic™ Book One: The Heart of Magic™ with Wizards, their Apprentices, nearly 60 new magic spells and remember, magic and monsters in the Fantasy RPG are easily adapted to Rifts®, Chaos Earth®, HU2 and other settings. Wolfen Empire™ Fantasy sourcebook, the Great Northern Wilderness and Killer Winters, 12 Wolfen Tribes, Wolfen military and society, 15+ creatures, 5 full adventures, 101 adventure ideas, random encounter tables, notable people, places, plus FREE Sneak Previews of The Rifter® #80, The Rifter® #81, The Rifter® #82, and more on DriveThruRPG.com.

By Kevin Siembieda

One game system – every genre – countless worlds – endless adventure

It has been wildly busy since returning from Gen Con. Busy with all kinds of stuff. Post Gen Con contacts follow-ups, Rifts® Savage Worlds approvals, prep to ship out the Rifts® Bestiary™ Megaverse Insider items (getting prints made, building boxes, signing prints, etc.), as well as dealing with business, personal and creative stuff.

The Hardcover Editions of the Rifts® Bestiary™ have arrived at the Palladium warehouse! We are busy sorting through, signing and numbering them so we can ship them out by early next week. That also means the Gold Edition Hardcover will ship next week too. The Gold Edition is limited to only around 300 copies.

We are very pleased with the positive response to Rifts® Bestiary™. Awesome to know our hard work has paid off and you love it. You’ll be finding that all of our upcoming releases also push the envelope and open up new avenues of adventure while supplying players (and Game Masters) with all kinds of new, cool resources, weapons, gear, critters, and opportunities.

New Sales. To keep the excitement going we thought we’d offer a sale or two. All Rifters®, except those we are running really low on, are on sale at an impressive discount.

On my Ebay Store, Negatives are on sale at half price, and almost everything else is on sale at a less steep discount, including artwork by Charles Walton. We are also adding a handful of collectible items, including a couple Palladium Fantasy RPG® hardcovers (among the last of my archives), HU2 hardcovers, Northern Gun and Lemuria hardcovers, and a few other out of print items. Go to: http://stores.ebay.com/kevinstoys-artandcollectibles

In addition to trying to finish the writing on Garden of the Gods™ for Palladium Fantasy (it’s epic), I continue to coordinate several other projects, assigning art and writing snippets for a number of them as inspiration strikes. They include Rifts® Chaos Earth® Psychic Scream™, The Rifter® #84, Rifts® Titan Robotics™, In the Face of Death™ (Dead Reign®), and several other titles (including a Lopan Fantasy sourcebook by Glen Evans) and projects for DriveThruRPG and other venues, as well as others best left unnamed at the moment. To say we are busy is an understatement. Gen Con is exciting and inspiring, but it takes a while to get caught-up and back into the creative writing groove. Happy to say, I’m finally rockin’ ‘n rollin’.

SALE! The Rifter^® Summmer’s End Sale

All available issues of The Rifter®, except those we are running really low on, are on sale at an impressive discount. This sale even includes recent issues of The Rifter®. Enjoy.

Note: PDFs of The Rifter® #1-80 are also on sale at DriveThruRPG.com — and it is a good way to get issues that are out of print. Palladium’s sales for physical books and PDFs on DriveThru both run thru August 21, 2019.

UPDATE: Garden of the Gods^™ (Fantasy) – in final production

I have been bombarded with so many demands on my time, that I have not had the time I want to finish the writing on Garden of the Gods™, but when I have been writing, I’m hot! Thankfully, I think I have cleared my plate and will be able to devote most of my time to finishing it and diving into finishing other titles.

As I have said, this sourcebook is so darn good it makes me happy every time I work on it. Garden of the Gods™ is packed with magic artifacts, holy weapons, blessings, miracles, visions, curses, and all kinds of great stuff for players and hundreds of adventure hooks for Game Masters. Plus it is just full of flavor, some unexpected dangers and bad guys, and good guy NPCs or player characters like the Knights Fossar, the super-cool and redefined Fossar Wardens (keepers of secrets), Champion of the Gods, and so much more. You will absolutely love this book. See the new description later in this Update and in our online store for more details.

UPDATE: Dead Reign^®: In the Face of Death^™ – September release

As soon as I am finished with Garden of the Gods, I am back to work on In the Face of Death™. A September release.

UPDATE: Rifts^® Chaos Earth^® – Psychic Scream^™ – September or October release

A ton of interior artwork has been finished with additional material being turned out. If the new description for Psychic Scream™ doesn’t get your heart pumping, I don’t know what will! Rescheduled for a September or October release. Shooting for September.

UPDATE: Rifts^® Titan Robotics^™ – Fall release

Man, oh man, this book is going to be epic. More finished artwork and concept sketches come in every few day and are looking fabulous. I continue to make notes and we are all pumped up about this power armor, robot, and weapon filled sourcebook.

UPDATE: The Rifter^® #84 – September release

Wayne has made his selections and I have been assigning artwork. Another great issue full of fun and ideas.

UPDATE: Rifts^® Antarctica^™ – Fall or Winter Release

Nothing new to report. I think Rifts® Antarctica™ is going to surprise and delight a lot of people. It is also a great example of the fun you can have with the Raw Editions. The sold out Rifts® Antarctica Raw Edition is a far cry from what the finished book is going to be. Those of you who bought the Raw Edition get a glimpse at Palladium’s creative process. When you compare the two, you’ll see what we kept, what we eliminated, what we added, and how we embellished the material to reach the creative finale of the finished book coming this fall or winter. Fun and educational for those of you who aspire to be writers yourself or just like to have the inside track at Palladium. And true of all Raw Editions vs the finished book. Probably a fall or winter release.

UPDATE: Rifts^® Bestiary^™, Volume Two – Winter Release

Nothing new on this front, but we all want it to be released as quickly as possible. Looking at a winter release.

UPDATE: The Disavowed^™, Living Nowhere^™, Beyond the Supernatural^™ sourcebooks, and other titles

These titles and several others are NOT forgotten and are in various stages of active production or waiting for production. As always, just because a book is not specifically listed in every Weekly Update, it does not mean it is discontinued or in limbo, it means there are more immediate things to talk about or there’s no substantive news to report. We are anxious to put as many of the books you’ve been waiting for into your hands as possible over the next 18 months. That includes Chaos Earth® First Responders™, Rifts® Antarctica, Rifts® CS Arsenal™, Rifts® Living Nowhere™, Beyond the Supernatural™ sourcebooks, more Fantasy sourcebooks and other titles. So if a book you are waiting for is not mentioned in an Update, it means there is nothing new to report, but it should still be in the pipeline and news for it will be coming in the weeks or months ahead. Right now, we are focused on releases for the next six months, which by our count is 6-7 titles. And many of them are in various stages of production or development.

NEW on DriveThruRPG.com – The Rifter^® Sale and Rifts^® Dimension Book^™ 15: Secrets of the Atlanteans^™

SALE: All issues of The Rifter® #1-80 are on sale as PDF editions from DriveThruRPG.com, right now! Physical issues of The Rifter® are also available from palladiumbooks.com at PDF prices.

Also new on DriveThruRPG.com is Rifts® Dimension Book™ 15: Secrets of the Atlanteans™, made available last week. It features True Atlanteans, their tribes, goals, and history, more about the Sunaj, new Magic Tattoos, new Shadow Magic™, new Shadow monsters, maps and description of Atlantean Stone Pyramids, and more about the wicked Sunaj’s secret agenda. An awesome resource and fun read.

A number of new products will be coming your way on DriveThruRPG.com in the weeks ahead. This includes the re-edited and improved three original Rifts® Novels from the 1990's, one every two weeks or so. We may also make them available as Print on Demand (POD) books from DriveThru.

Recent PDF additions include the free Rifts® Bestiary™ Volume One Sneak Preview: See what's in this great new sourcebook before you buy it! The Rifter® #80: A big 112 page issue filled with “official” source material for Palladium Fantasy RPG® Rifts® Chaos Earth® (setting and monsters), Splicers® (desert setting), Heroes Unlimited™ (villains), and more. Palladium Fantasy RPG® Interactive Character Sheet: a Microsoft Excel-based character management system. Packed with features and data collected from every official Palladium Fantasy sourcebook to enable you to create Fantasy characters quickly (25 minutes!) and help you to update and manage them for years to come. The Rifter® #79 (Rifts®, Palladium Fantasy®, Heroes Unlimited™, Gaming through History, G.M., and more), The Rifter® #78 (the Modern Necromancer, Palladium Fantasy®, Rifts®, Splicers®, more); Rifts® Heroes of Humanity™, the Coalition’s response to the escalating Minion War™ crisis, Psi-Battalion, CS Demon Hunter, special training and more).

Dead Reign® Paper Miniatures Volume Three: Zombies, Dead Reign® Paper Miniatures Volume Two: Civilians and Dead Reign® Paper Miniatures Volume One: Survivors. There are also paper miniatures for Heroes Unlimited™, Palladium Fantasy® and Rifts®. A new, up-to-date, PDF Palladium Books Catalog. Nightbane® Dark Designs™ sourcebook with 60 new Common Talents, 38 new Elite Talents, 18 new Morphus Tables, all other Morphus Tables collected and more. Systems Failure™ RPG, a 160 page RPG that deals with alien invasion and a post-apocalypse setting that is fun and dynamic. Civilization is on the verge of collapse when the so-called "bugs" invade and turn humans into zombie-like slaves. Monsters, heroes and fun. A complete RPG and setting. Rifts® World Book 34: Northern Gun™ Two: 256 pages of technology and fun. 30+ power armors, 30+ body armors, 15 combat vehicles, 45 vehicles (hovercycles, etc.), 10 robot haulers, the Robodome and more. Bizantium and the Northern Islands™: the northernmost part of the Known World, the Cold Born, Necromancy ships made from dead sea serpents, 15 creatures, Random Sea Monster Generator, and more. Rifts® Northern Gun™ One. This fan favorite might be thought of as the big book of giant robots – an in-depth look at Northern Gun, 70+ weapons, 27 robots, NG O.C.C.s, key people and places, and much more. Mysteries of Magic™ Book One: The Heart of Magic™ with Wizards, their Apprentices, nearly 60 new magic spells and remember, magic and monsters in the Fantasy RPG are easily adapted to Rifts®, Chaos Earth®, HU2 and other settings. Wolfen Empire™ Fantasy sourcebook, the Great Northern Wilderness and Killer Winters, 12 Wolfen Tribes, Wolfen military and society, 15+ creatures, 5 full adventures, 101 adventure ideas, random encounter tables, notable people, places, plus FREE Sneak Previews of The Rifter® #80, The Rifter® #81, The Rifter® #82, and more on DriveThruRPG.com.

By Kevin Siembieda

One game system – every genre – countless worlds – endless adventure

Hey everyone, we are back from Gen Con. As usual, it was both exhilarating and exhausting. We loved meeting and chatting with friends and fans as well as meeting new people and making new fans. We signed lots of books, shook lots of hands and I had many photos taken with me. My favorite part of Gen Con is spending time with our fans, and this year I seemed to be more busy doing that than ever. One fan insisted on giving me $10 to get a drink on him for all the years of enjoyment I gave him and his friend, and another said that meeting me was the equivalent of meeting Stan Lee. I appreciated both generous moments, which I found kind and touching.

The Rifts® Bestiary™ was a smash hit, with people happily diving right into reading it. Numerous convention attendees told me they were happy to see bears, canines and felines included. That was a relief, because I wrestled with whether or not I should include such ordinary animals. Other comments included liking the diversity of creatures and the artwork, and everyone loved the Erin Tarn intro, the maps, and the adventure hooks most creatures offer. One ferocious fan boy said, “The Bestiary is bloody awesome. Between the writing and the artwork, it is amazing. Doing my second read-through now.” It is very satisfying to know all our hard work and effort paid off.

I was a bit surprised by the wildly positive and excited response to The Rifter® #83. I don’t know why I was surprised, because it is just packed with great source material for Rifts® (50 new magic items), Palladium Fantasy®, Heroes Unlimited™, and a wonderful Beyond the Supernatural™ adventure. The level of enthusiasm and excitement over it was welcomed.

I brought one-of-a-kind negatives for Phase World, Cyber-Knights and MercTown as well as Vampire Kingdoms, and they were selling like crazy. So glad people are enjoying them. More about Gen Con in my report below.

I am already getting back to work on finishing Garden of the Gods, and yes, we know there is a national park in Colorado of the same name.

New on DriveThruRPG.com – Rifts® Dimension Book™ 15: Secrets of the Atlanteans™. If you love the Rifts® Atlantis World Book and the Atlanteans in general, then this book is a must! It describes the Atlanteans and their tribes, their goals, new Magic Tattoos, new Shadow Magic, new Shadow monsters, Magic Pyramids, and more about the Sunaj. An awesome resource and fun read. A slate of new product will be coming your way on DriveThruRPG.com in the weeks ahead. This includes the re-edited and improved three original Rifts® Novels from the 1990's, one every two weeks or so. We may also make them available as Print on Demand (POD) books from DriveThru.

The rest of this Update focuses mainly on Gen Con. Enjoy.

2019 Gen Con^® Report

Gen Con® is always a blast and this one felt especially memorable. Both good and bad.

I jinxed us the day before we left by saying our Gen Con prep and truck loading was the smoothest and most trouble-free ever. What a dope.

Wednesday morning, we set out for Gen Con right on time and feeling great. Then, after a few minutes on the road, Wayne pulled over in the rental truck and asked us to ride alongside of him because something was wrong. The cab was shaking violently whenever the truck went over 50 mph.

Sure enough, both front wheels were wobbling like crazy and the cab was bouncing up and down. Fearing a broken axle or something else equally dangerous, we called the rental company and headed back. We had to unload the truck, get a new truck, and reload it all. When we arrived at the truck rental, they told us they could have a truck for us by 2:00 or 3:00 PM. That would be terrible, because it is a 5 hour trip under ideal conditions and we could unload at the Gen Con docks no later than 8:00 PM. Would we miss Gen Con this year and forfeit our booth?

That’s what we feared. Thankfully, the truck rental had another truck available, if we wanted it. We said, yes! Only then, they couldn’t find the keys to that truck. After what seemed like an hour of the hunt for the keys, it turned out another truck reserved by another customer had become available, so we took that one, but after the paperwork and reloading the truck back at the Palladium warehouse, we were not back on the road until 1:30 PM. We called the Gen Con convention organizers to let them know we were delayed, but on our way. We arrived at the Convention Center at 6:30 PM, and we set up most of the booth in record time, thanks to the small army of friends and helpers waiting for us. They were incredible and got everything together and set up in record time. Thank you, Sarah, Brandon, Mark, Glen, NMI, Mike, Reed, Mike, Kyle, Matt, Tom, Nathaniel, and everyone! Whew. Disaster averted. I also want to thank the Gen Con® coordinators who were very understanding and helpful.

We got to the hotel around 9:00 PM Wednesday night, ordered pizza around 10, ate, and crashed. We had to be at the hall by 9:00 AM to finish setting up the booth. Though I tripped and took a tumble on hard concrete on Saturday heading out for a quick lunch, only my pride was hurt and everything else went smoothly.

Highlights of Gen Con^® 2019

I enjoyed a nice conversation with James at Larry Elmore’s booth. I really like this gent and we chatted about a bunch of stuff for a solid 45 minutes. Poor Larry was endlessly swamped by fans, so other than saying hello and getting my Eye of the Beholder®, the Art of Dungeons & Dragons® Blu-Ray signed, I left the poor guy alone. I love Larry. He is the salt of the Earth and a fun guy who I can talk to for endless hours at a time. But I figured I can call him anytime, so I left him to the fans who only see him once a year.

If you love Fantasy Art and D&D, you need this DVD

Eye of the Beholder® (available on DVD and Blu-Ray) is freakin’ awesome. A friend, Brian Stillman, is the co-Director of the DVD, and an all around great guy. The DVD is awesome, packed with 40 interviews with the likes of Jeff Easley, Larry Elmore, Brom, Tony DeTerlizzi, Margaret Weiss, and many others.

Eye of the Beholder® is produced by Cavegirl Productions & X-Ray Films, and is distributed by The Nacelle Company. It is co-directed by Kelley Slagle and Brian Stillman. The movie is available through a variety of streaming services, including Amazon Video, iTunes, Google Play, Vudu, PlayStation, DirecTV, and more. Direct links to many of the formats can be found at http://www.EyeOfTheBeholderMovie.com/watch

The Ninja Turtles^® connection

I met Brian Stillman when he video-interviewed me for Netflix’s The Toys that Made Us series, last year. They made a TMNT episode airing in Season Three coming up sometime in the next six months. Most people don’t know this, but the Ninja Turtles animated series, movies, toys, etc., as you know them today, might never have happened if I had not introduced Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird to the man who went on to make the Turtles into a mass market sensation, Mark Freedman. I actually had to convince Kev and Pete to talk to Mark, telling them there was no harm in hearing what he had to say. They did, and the rest is history. But if I had not sent Mark a copy of the TMNT® RPG (his first introduction to the Turtles), and spent months talking up the Ninja Turtles® with him over a period of a year, it might not have ever happened. Wild, right? I’m a piece of toy history. Very cool. I love it.

I was happy to help my friends Kevin and Peter who had trusted my little RPG company in 1986 to make a role-playing game based on their cool independent comic book, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles®. Palladium Books® was their first or second licensee (I contend we were first, but they say second). Btw, I have no idea if I’m in the Toys that Made Us segment for 3 seconds or 3 minutes. The whole interview with me was a good 30-45 minutes, maybe even an hour. Very fun. Anyway, that’s how I met Brian Stillman. He and I share a number of common interests: the Ninja Turtles, D&D, RPGs, movies and artwork, and we hit it off immediately. We have kept in touch ever since and we had a chance to chat briefly at Gen Con. In fact, he bought one of my last Judge’s Guild illustrations from 1979 that I had brought to Gen Con.

The Gamers: Live! Gen Con^® Event

Friday morning, Madman Mike Leonard introduced me to Christian Doyle, a very nice guy and one of the masterminds behind The Gamers DVD movies as well as online RPG shows (Twitch, etc.). We had a very nice chat and hit it off. So much so, that on Friday evening, August 2, 2019, Christian Doyle and Chris Ode of Zombie Orpheus Entertainment (ZOE for short) were inspired to host their 11th annual The Gamers: Live! Gen Con® event as a Rifts® event, instead of D&D®. Wow! That blew me away. I am humbled.

In these The Gamers: Live events, Christian and others from ZOE portray their characters from The Gamers Movie series that they produce, playing an RPG on stage. When the Game Master (played by Christian) rings a bell, the players must get up and portray their characters. Fans who have purchased Deluxe tickets can not only call out to adjust rolls made, but actually roll the dice for the event and participate as NPCs! Very cool. Since the event is much like Who’s Line is it Anyway?®, there is quite a bit of comedy involved. The characters were a half dragon-half Faerie Headhunter with a laser toe, a Juicer Glitter Boy, a Corgie Dog Boy Professional Wrestler Burster, and Sir Osrick the Paladin of Therin, Goddess of Light from the fantasy world of Fartherall, where The Gamers Movies take place.

The audience was sold out as usual (1,000 people!), and I’m told everyone enjoyed the two-hour show/event. Though Christian invited me to join them that afternoon, I had already scheduled a business meeting and restaurant reservation for the exact same time as the event, so I could not attend. I’m also excited that Christian intends to start running Rifts® on his weekly Twitch streamed game. Awesome.

Steve Jackson at Gen Con^®

So there I was, restocking books at the Palladium booth on Saturday morning, and I hear a familiar voice say, “Hello, Kevin.” I turn around and Steve Jackson is standing there. We had a pleasant chat before the hall opened up to catch up a bit on each other’s lives. Steve and I came up together in the game industry and always liked and respected each other. We had talked about doing something together, off and on for decades. A few hours later, Phil Reed invites me to come over to the SJG booth to chat. It was a very friendly, joyful conversation. More about the outcome of that meeting in the months ahead as we nail things down together. I’m excited. You will be too.

Good times and friends at Gen Con^®

I saw and spent time with countless fans, dear friends, acquaintances and industry folk. In artist alley, I stopped to chat with Tyler Walpole and he gave me a copy of his gorgeous, new art book, Blood of Dragons. Wow. I need to get Tyler to do a cover for us in the future. I also had the pleasant experience of meeting David Wendel, best known for his Dwarves and Fantasy artistry. His work was a bit of an influence on my own artwork and I’m happy to say he was very nice man. It was his first visit to Gen Con.

I had the distinct pleasure of meeting and chatting with Sean Roberson, the current driving force behind Rifts® for Savage Worlds. Sean and I had exchanged many emails and spoke on the phone a few times, but had never met. He and I had several good talks about Rifts® and Savage Worlds and games. Meeting him in person and our chats every day were among of the true highlights of this Gen Con for me and I look forward to continuing to work with him.

Jodi and Clint Black from Pinnacle Entertainment also dropped by to say hello. So did my old pal Frank Uchmanowicz at Studio2. He’s a good guy. Insightful and smart. We sat and talked for quite a while. Our conversation broken by a cavalcade of book signings and a couple of photo ops with fans. It’s always nice to see Frank.

Mike Pondsmith and Don Rentz (Chessex Dice) dropped by to say hello, and I had a nice, long chat with Steve Wieck and Mike Stackpole. I enjoy all these fine gentlemen and it is always a pleasure to see them. It was great seeing Jolly and Barbara Blackburn, two of my favorite people on the planet. Also spent some time with fan friends and freelancers, Matt Reed, Robert, and Andrew, but my time is in such high demand, I never get to chat as much as I want to with them, but they chatted a lot with Chuck Walton. I’m excited about many of their ideas. Including cards that add to any adventure situation. Three other favorite people on the planet came by too, James “the Senator,” Diane “the Goddess” and Connor “Buzz” Brown. It was great to see them and a surprise to see Diane on Sunday, because she had been away on business the rest of Gen Con. Three great human beings and awesome gamers.

I got to say hello to Peter, Shannon and Anthony Pidrak (boy, those kids have grown), Dave Kenzer, Dan Rains, Peter Hartman, Ryan, and many other friends and made the acquaintance of many others friends and fans and had a wonderful time with everyone. Thank you. My favorite part of Gen Con is meeting and talking with fellow gamers.

Matt Lemke and his lovely wife swung by to say hi and to do a video interview with me on Thursday for Through Gamer Goggles (just one of many). I was pretty wiped out so I don’t know how well I came across.

As you can see from these accounts, I seldom left the Palladium Booth and never saw much of the convention. I was too busy talking with fans and friends and signing lots and lots of books.

I was thrilled for some of my long time friends who enjoyed a very special Gen Con. First, Brandon Aten had a smash hit with his new, Never Coming Home RPG. He brought 200 copies and it sold out by Sunday! Several other Never Coming Home related products had sold out by Saturday morning. This was one of the surprise hits of the convention. Brandon and his partners, Matthew and Sarah were over the moon. We were all so happy for them and glad to be there to share the excitement of their first big hit. Nice. You can get the Never Coming Home RPG, sourcebook and other Wet Ink Games by reaching out to Brandon at WetInkGames{at}gmail.com or get digital versions thru DriveThruRPG.com. Apparently, they are working on setting up the Wet Ink website.

Second, Sarah Orr Aten was able to get 20 advance copies of her first novel, The World Between, a big, 600 page, fantasy book. I’ve only read the first chapter, but the lady can write. You can find her Author’s Page on Facebook.

Third, we were offering copies of the Cthulhu inspired cookbook The Necronomnomnom. This is a gorgeous and funny cookbook with real recipes and astonishing artwork. Co-Creator Thomas Roache (our pal) and the artist, Kurt Komoda, were present to sign books, and the artist was doing drawings inside. You can get your copy of this 9x12 inch coffee table book from Redduke Games at https://www.reddukegames.com/products-view.php?pid=9&cid=4

We also had the pleasure of meeting Tom’s son, Nathaniel. It was his first Gen Con.

Those are my highlights. My apologies if I left someone out. I’m sure I must have. Unfortunately, we have so much going on at Gen Con, NONE of us ever seem to remember taking photographs. This year was worse than ever. We didn’t even take pictures of the Palladium booth or our multitude of wonderful friends. Gaaaahhh. Sorry. Will try to do better next year.

NEW on DriveThruRPG.com – Rifts^® Dimension Book^™ 15: Secrets of the Atlanteans^™

New on DriveThruRPG.com – Rifts® Dimension Book™ 15: Secrets of the Atlanteans™: The Atlanteans, their tribes, goals, and history, new Magic Tattoos, new Shadow Magic™, new Shadow monsters, maps and description of Atlantean Stone Pyramids, and more about the wicked Sunaj. An awesome resource and fun read.

A slate of new product will be coming your way on DriveThruRPG.com in the weeks ahead. This includes the re-edited and improved three original Rifts® Novels from the 1990's, one every two weeks or so. We may also make them available as Print on Demand (POD) books from DriveThru.

Recent PDF additions include the free Rifts® Bestiary™ Volume One Sneak Preview: See what's in this great new sourcebook before you buy it! The Rifter® #80: A big 112 page issue filled with “official” source material for Palladium Fantasy RPG® Rifts® Chaos Earth® (setting and monsters), Splicers® (desert setting), Heroes Unlimited™ (villains), and more. Palladium Fantasy RPG® Interactive Character Sheet: a Microsoft Excel-based character management system. Packed with features and data collected from every official Palladium Fantasy sourcebook to enable you to create Fantasy characters quickly (25 minutes!) and help you to update and manage them for years to come. The Rifter® #79 (Rifts®, Palladium Fantasy®, Heroes Unlimited™, Gaming through History, G.M., and more), The Rifter® #78 (the Modern Necromancer, Palladium Fantasy®, Rifts®, Splicers®, more); Rifts® Heroes of Humanity™, the Coalition’s response to the escalating Minion War™ crisis, Psi-Battalion, CS Demon Hunter, special training and more).

Dead Reign® Paper Miniatures Volume Three: Zombies, Dead Reign® Paper Miniatures Volume Two: Civilians and Dead Reign® Paper Miniatures Volume One: Survivors. There are also paper miniatures for Heroes Unlimited™, Palladium Fantasy® and Rifts®. A new, up-to-date, PDF Palladium Books Catalog. Nightbane® Dark Designs™ sourcebook with 60 new Common Talents, 38 new Elite Talents, 18 new Morphus Tables, all other Morphus Tables collected and more. Systems Failure™ RPG, a 160 page RPG that deals with alien invasion and a post-apocalypse setting that is fun and dynamic. Civilization is on the verge of collapse when the so-called "bugs" invade and turn humans into zombie-like slaves. Monsters, heroes and fun. A complete RPG and setting. Rifts® World Book 34: Northern Gun™ Two: 256 pages of technology and fun. 30+ power armors, 30+ body armors, 15 combat vehicles, 45 vehicles (hovercycles, etc.), 10 robot haulers, the Robodome and more. Bizantium and the Northern Islands™: the northernmost part of the Known World, the Cold Born, Necromancy ships made from dead sea serpents, 15 creatures, Random Sea Monster Generator, and more. Rifts® Northern Gun™ One. This fan favorite might be thought of as the big book of giant robots – an in-depth look at Northern Gun, 70+ weapons, 27 robots, NG O.C.C.s, key people and places, and much more. Mysteries of Magic™ Book One: The Heart of Magic™ with Wizards, their Apprentices, nearly 60 new magic spells and remember, magic and monsters in the Fantasy RPG are easily adapted to Rifts®, Chaos Earth®, HU2 and other settings. Wolfen Empire™ Fantasy sourcebook, the Great Northern Wilderness and Killer Winters, 12 Wolfen Tribes, Wolfen military and society, 15+ creatures, 5 full adventures, 101 adventure ideas, random encounter tables, notable people, places, plus FREE Sneak Previews of The Rifter® #80, The Rifter® #81, The Rifter® #82, and more on DriveThruRPG.com.