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CELEBRATING 35 YEARS OF RIFTS® – ONE GAME SYSTEM – EVERY GENRE – COUNTLESS WORLDS – ENDLESS ADVENTURE
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News & Fun – Palladium Books® – Weekly Update – August 8, 2025
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The Rifts® 35 Year Celebration Continues
The big Rifts Sale at Gen Con and the one previously offered through the Palladium online store is just the start of the celebration. You’ll have to wait and see what comes next, but more fun offers and surprises will continue throughout the year. In fact, we may make the entire month of September Rifts Month. Keep checking these Updates to learn more and spread the word.
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NEW every two weeks – The Official History of Palladium Books videos on the Palladium Books YouTube channel
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A new episode goes live every other week and the current themes are episodes about Erick Wujcik and the creation of Rifts®. Gamers are loving them all whether they are Palladium fans or just enjoy RPG history. I hope you find hearing about the creation process behind the scenes and learning more about the people behind the games you love to be entertaining and inspiring.
You can find a whole bunch of episodes and interviews on the Palladium Books YouTube channel. People are still discovering these even exist, so please spread the word. They are so much fun and dispel crazy rumors and false statements about Palladium’s history. Also see the fun chats with Legion of Myth and great podcasts with the Glitterbois. Oh, and Through Gamer Goggles as well. Hey Podcasters and YouTubers, we are happy to consider appearances on your shows too. Please reach out via the Help Desk. If you don’t hear back from us in a month, reach out again, because maybe your first inquiry got missed. We are juggling so much. Thanks.
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COMING! Yin-Sloth Expeditions
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With Gen Con and prep for it, I’m only now getting back to work on this big adventure sourcebook with 8 or so fully fleshed out adventures, 30 maps of notable locations and dungeons, new menaces, and other cool stuff. Before Gen Con I had finished the brand new Orcish Empire adventure. Looking forward to wrapping this book up and sending it to the printer.
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A Smash Hit – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles & Other Strangeness RPG Redux Editions
Though we could not sell them – we showcased the actual printed Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles & Other Strangeness RPG Redux books, Game Master Shield, and Mutagen Green Dice for gamers and our Kickstarter backers to handle and review. The Verdict: Gamers and TMNT fans went wild seeing that the updated and remastered TMNT & Other Strangeness RPG and sourcebooks are coming back in print later this year as deluxe, color, hardcover books with tons of extra material. And that also goes for the Black, White, and Red Editions, Game Master Shield and dice. There was so much excitement at seeing that the books, game screen and dice were made.
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We spoke to numerous Kickstarter backers who were pleased to see the books and rewards that will be coming to them later this year. All were very kind and understanding about the time it has taken to deliver the finished goods. Thank you, all.
Of course, there were hundreds of gamers and TMNT fans who were thrilled to learn about the Ninja Turtles & Other Strangeness RPG, Transdimensional Adventures sourcebook, G.M. Screen, and Mutagen Green Dice for the first time. And happy that it would hit stores in time for Christmas 2025. We would have sold hundreds of each of them had they been available for sale. Catalyst was our neighbor in the exhibitor’s area and they sold out the 650 copies of their new BattleTech release. We’re so glad for them and disappointed for ourselves that the TMNT Redux products were not yet available. Grrrrr.
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Gen Con – Rifts® 35th Anniversary Sale was a big hit too
Rifts® books and art prints were flying off of the shelves. Much like our recent online Rifts sale that you loved, Rifts fans were thrilled with the sale. We also met a number of gamers new to Rifts who wanted to give Rifts a try because they had heard so many fun things about it. Awesome. Note: More Rifts 35th anniversary fun is coming your way in the months ahead so continue to watch these Weekly Updates for announcements. Heck, we may turn September into Rifts Month. Bwahahaha. Um … I mean, stay tuned.
The other big sellers at Gen Con were Palladium Fantasy, After the Bomb®, Heroes Unlimited and the one that surprised me most was Dead Reign® (zombies). Don’t get me wrong, Dead Reign is a great setting and very fun game with unique, Palladium-style zombies. Personally, I love it. It’s one of my favorite games to run (along with Palladium Fantasy and Beyond the Supernatural), but its enduring, and even growing, popularity continues to delight and surprise me. If you haven’t done so, check out the RPG and its P.P.E. devouring zombies. Hmm, maybe it’s time for a Dead Reign/horror sale.
Love for the Two New Rifts Book Covers
The new cover on Rifts Black Market and new cover and title for Rifts Psi-Ops: Psychic War both met with resounding approval. We’re also seeing that in online sales and comments from fans and friends.
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Gen Con Panel Talks
Somehow both panel talks got rescheduled for 10:00 AM, but that didn’t stop a couple dozen folks attending each. Both went very well and people had fun. They were very happy to hear about new books coming in the months ahead: Yin-Sloth Expeditions (fantasy), Rifts Bestiary Volume 2, Rifts Chaos Earth: First Responders, among other things in the works.
A lot of folks were not aware of the new Palladium website and online store with special RPG bundles, the ability to order PDF books directly from Palladium, wish lists and collection tracker, and a whole bunch of new things. We’re still making improvements on the back end to speed things up, but I think we have worked out most of the bugs, so take a look.
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Gen Con Fun
On a more personal level, there were many great moments with fans and friends.
Jim Zub is one of my favorite comic book writers and his booth was down the same aisle as Palladium Books. His work on Titan Comics’ Conan the Barbarian is fantastic. It’s as if he’s directly channeling Robert E. Howard. When we met it was a ridiculous lovefest. “Jim, I love your work. It’s some of the best in comics. I think you’re my favorite comic book author,” I said. Then he saw my name badge. “Kevin Siembieda! Wow! I’m having a fan boy moment. I love your RPG work. The Ninja Turtles. Rifts,” said Jim as we both continued to heap praise upon each other. Very fun and one of the highlights of Gen Con 2025 for me.
Another highlight was Jordan Weisman stopping by the Palladium booth to say hello and catch up. I love and respect Jordan Weisman. He was my first true friend in the RPG industry during the 1980s. He’s a genius at game design and a visionary who doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. It filled me with great joy to see him, introduce him to Sean (a huge BattleTech fan), and have a pleasant conversation.
Michael Stackpole. Everyone will tell you Mike is a great guy, because it’s true. Since we were next to the Catalyst booth, he stopped by Palladium to chat a few times which was very nice. It’s always a pleasure chatting with Mike.
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Michael Pondsmith of R. Talsorian Games (Cyberpunk) swung by to say hello as well. Mike and I go waaaay back. We only kidded around for a few minutes at Gen Con, but I got to spend an hour with him at the GAMA Trade Show in January.
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Frank Uchmanowicz and Tim Brown of Studio 2 are always fun. Frank is another long-time gaming buddy who’s a joy to hang out with and talk about everything from business and publishing to movies and family. We saw a lot of each other and he kindly treated me and the Palladium crew to dinner at our favorite restaurant. I look forward to when he and his wife come to visit in October.
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Jodie and Clint Black are a cool power couple and creative sweethearts. They both work at Pinnacle Entertainment Group (Savage Worlds). Simon Lucas from PEG also popped over. All good people.
My pals J-M DeFoggi (the Official History of Palladium Books on the Palladium YouTube Channel) and his friend and business partner Molly Osmus dropped by the booth and went to dinner with us one night. I didn’t get the chance to hang with them as much as I would have liked, but that’s Gen Con – so many people to see and stuff to do.
Shawn and Lisa Hall are two of my dearest friends. They came to have some fun and help out at the Palladium booth, and boy did they help. They were incredible during booth set up and tear down, as well as being wonderful friends and companions.
James, Diane, and Connor Brown are another one of my favorite families. Each one an awesome human being I’m proud to call my friend. We finally enjoyed dinner and an evening of delightful conversation. Connor is growing up to be a fine young man and I swear he’s a foot taller than last year!
Glen Evans and Katie Gorski are two more friends and Palladium helpers. Glen is one of Palladium’s freelance writers (Bizantium) and Game Masters running events that people love. Katie is just one of the nicest and kindest people on the planet.
Matthew Balent and his son Corvus were part of our entourage this year. Matthew is my pal from the Detroit Gaming Center days and the creative force behind the Palladium Weapon Series (Weapons & Armour, etc.) and Valley of the Pharaohs as well as contributing to other Palladium products in the 1980s like Monsters & Animals. (Note: Matt’s super-expanded 40th anniversary Valley of the Pharaohs edition softcover and hardcover RPG are back in stock in the Palladium online store). It was fun hanging out with my old friend as well as Corvus, another promising young man. I look forward to spending a whole weekend with Matt and his daughter at PAGE (the Philadelphia Area Game Expo) in January 2026.
My dear friend and writer Mark Oberle (Nightbane sourcebooks) and my long-time pal Mike Leonard (artist and Game Master) were back to hang and help at the Palladium booth. This was Mark’s first time in a long while attending Gen Con as a fan. Mark is one of my favorite people in the world, so I’m glad he hung out at the booth a lot and helped talking with fans, signing books, and tearing down the booth. And it was fun hanging out with fan-friend John Wooten who we met in person at the last Palladium Open House, another great guy.
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Stephen Murenzi was our new addition to Palladium helpers. This was also his first time at a convention. He took a thousand photos and some video for us and was a huge help on many fronts including set up and tear down. He was fantastic at memorializing Gen Con 2025 for us. We were glad to have him with us and invited him to join us next year. He enjoyed Gen Con and fit in with the rest of us crazy Palladiumites so maybe he’ll be back.
Doing Business at Gen Con. In addition to selling product and meeting fans and industry friends and associates, Gen Con is great for networking with artists, printers, and other business people. Sean and I met with numerous reps from various printing companies in the US, China, Lithuania, and Turkey. We’ll be soliciting quotes for our future consideration on various projects. We did a series of fun interviews with Matt Lempki from Through Gamer Goggles on Wednesday afternoon before Gen Con officially started, so keep an eye out for them. We also spoke with Matthew Young from Alliance, Martyn from Backerkit, Neal Hoffman from FanRoll (sorry, Neal, we got so caught up in things we forgot to come by your darn booth to discuss a number of things. I’ll email you and see you at the Alliance Open House), podcasters, artists, and other folks.
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The World’s Greatest Fans! Meeting and chatting with wonderful, kind, sweet, and caring fans is always the main highlight for me. I’ve said it a million times: Palladium Fans are the greatest in the world. Your support, kind words and love are precious to us and we love you right back. It is always a joy to meet and chat with you all, sign books and exchange ideas. Our heartfelt thanks to those of you who stopped by the booth at Gen Con and came to our panel talks. And a special thank you and call out to Mike X and company (Alisa, Allen, Jake, Jake, and Peter – sorry if I missed naming one of you). These Real Gamers are generous and fun people. Our spending an evening with them is becoming a fun Gen Con tradition.
I’m sorry if I did not mention you by name. I’m sure I have forgotten to mention people by name who are special to us. No offense intended, but we meet and chat with a lot of folks, and I’m still worn out. It was great seeing all of you and we’ll be back to Gen Con next year. We already reserved our booth.
We’ll see more of you at the Alliance Open House and Granite State Comic Con in September.
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Books BACK IN STOCK and available now
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● Rifts® Black Market (new cover) – Cat. No. 886 – A toy box of weapons, gear, robots, villains, and resources for adventurers, mercenaries, criminals, and most any character. Black Market structure, operations, and most powerful Black Market factions. 10 Black Market O.C.C.s and their special abilities, Black Market Techno-Wizard devices and magic, 29 weapons, plus vehicles, power armor, and robots, including the Shadow Boy (a new Glitter Boy), Ironmage TW Glitter Boy! Traveling Show creation tables, and more. Available now.
● Rifts® Psi-Ops: Psychic War (formerly Rifts Coalition Manhunters, new cover & title) – Cat. No. 894 – Coalition State secrets about its psychic training program, secret psychic defenses, Psi-Ops Thought Police, and Emperor Prosek’s elite secret enforcers: The Coalition Manhunters. 80+ new psionics for investigation & man-hunting. 9 Manhunter O.C.C.s, skill packages, the psychology of CS society and its people, Dog Boys, Kill Hounds revisited, the 7 Dangers, D-Bees, and more. Available now.
● Rifts® Primer & Adventures – Cat. No. 824 – How to Play Rifts® by Gleba and Siembieda, tips on creating adventures, 4 full adventures and maps, 20 Hook, Line and Sinker™ adventures, new 101 Rifts® adventure hooks/ideas circa 109 P.A., Rifts character sheets, and more. Available now.
● Rifts® Bionics Sourcebook – Cat. No. 850 – A compendium of bionics and cybernetics from around the world. Info about partial cyborgs, Cyber-Humanoids, City Rats, combat cyborgs, and more. Includes: 160+ cybernetic systems – weapons, sensors, optics, implants, 120+ bionic weapons, tools, limbs and armor, 24 Black Market cybernetics, 47 commercial cybernetics, TW Cybernetics, 6 City Rat O.C.C.s, the Cyber-Snatcher and Cyber-Doc, repair rules, and more. Available now.
● Rifts® Psyscape – Cat. No. 822 – Info about mythical Psyscape, 11 unique and powerful Psychic O.C.C.s, 28 special psychic abilities, 20 monsters, Nxla the Soul Harvester, plus Psi-Cola, Psi-Technology, and more. Available now.
● Beyond the Supernatural RPG – Cat. No. 700 – A complete game. Plausible modern horror setting that makes sense and will challenge your role-playing skills. 14 Psychic Character Classes. 42 occupations for “ordinary” people. 100+ psychic abilities, including Fire Walker abilities. Creatures of darkness, the Lazlo Agency, and more. Available now.
● Villains Unlimited – Cat. No. 501 – 80+ original villains to battle your superhuman heroes. 8 super-villain organizations. Rules for creating super-villain organizations, those who hunt superhumans, and more. Dynamic artwork throughout. Note: See Gramercy Island for 90+ additional villains (Cat. No. 517). Both titles are available now.
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Dungeon Dwelling Creatures Crowdfunder
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The cool twist of this Fantasy RPG is that you play the monsters that battle heroes and invaders of your dungeon home who attack you just because you’re a monster. It uses the DCC rules and is a project being produced by a friend. If it sounds fun to you, check it out and follow the crowdfunder campaign. Note: This project launched on August first, has already reached its goal, and is going strong, so take a look.
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COMING! Rifts® Phase World® Sourcebooks from Star Anvil
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COMING! Rifts® Phase World® Sourcebooks from Star Anvil, a new licensing partner. Their first Kickstarter probably launches in September (I misspoke when I said mid-July), but you can join their pre-launch campaign now. And you want to, because it’s gonna be great, with new settings, villains, spaceships, weapons, gear and more, easy to adapt to Palladium’s game system and any existing adventure campaign. As for you Savage Worlds players, you’ll be able to dive right in and run with it, because these books use the Savage Worlds game system. Personally, as someone who has seen the product outlines and art, I can’t wait to see these all new Phase World and the Three Galaxies™ sourcebooks. You’ll definitely want to follow and check it out.
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300+ RPG products on DriveThru – a dozen unique world settings – one game system – endless possibilities. No other game company offers game worlds for so many different genres. Best of all, learn to play one Palladium RPG and you can play them all, because each uses the same basic core rules and combat. There are differences, but the fundamentals are the same. This also means you can bring characters, villains, monsters, powers, magic, weapons, gear, and adventure ideas from one setting into another or mash them together!
In addition to PDF titles for entire game lines like Rifts®, Palladium Fantasy®, Heroes Unlimited™, Ninjas & Superspies™, After the Bomb®, Beyond the Supernatural™, Dead Reign® (zombies), Nightbane® (Urban Fantasy), Rifts Chaos Earth®, Systems Failure™, Splicers®, RECON®, The Rifter® #1-85, and others, there are Game Master and player aids, character generators, paper minis, map packs, and FREE Previews of books like Creature Feature™, Dead Reign, Coalition Manhunters, Titan Robotics™, Rifts Bestiary Volume One, World Books, Dimension Books, and more to give you a glimpse of what’s in the book. Enjoy endless adventures across the Megaverse®.
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SALE! Palladium Collectibles – at Kevin’s Online Toy & Collectibles eBay Store
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Palladium collectibles as well as action figures and other items from Kevin Siembieda’s personal collection are on sale!
One-of-a-kind Palladium Books negatives are always very popular items at the Palladium Open House, Gen Con, and conventions, and are catching on as rare collectibles, unique in and of themselves. Last year at Granite State Comic Con Kevin Eastman had TMNT negatives from the first comic book on display.
Before digital printing, pages of a book were laid out by hand on a board, and each page was photographed. These are the photographic negatives being sold as individual works of art and collectibles. When matted or framed on a white background they look like dynamic wood cut prints. And they are on sale right now!
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Game on
I’ve already talked plenty about Gen Con and it’s going on 9 PM Thursday night as I write this, so this Closing Thoughts is a short one.
Orders that came in over Gen Con have all been shipped and new orders are shipping out as fast as we get them, so keep ‘em coming.
Gamers are enjoying the new Rifts Black Market and Rifts Psi-Ops: Psychic War covers which is rewarding for us and the artists.
I’m happy to see so many people loving RPGs and anxiously waiting for new products to ship from Palladium Books. Don’t worry, it’s coming and they’re awesome.
I need to go home and collapse on my couch now. Game on.
– Kevin Siembieda, Publisher, Game Designer, Writer and Friend
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