Sale Last Days – Palladium Books® – Mini-Update – January 8, 2025

ONE GAME SYSTEM – EVERY GENRE – COUNTLESS WORLDS – ENDLESS ADVENTURE

BY KEVIN SIEMBIEDA

Sale Last Days – Palladium Books^® – Mini-Update – January 8, 2025

Hi, everyone. We are in the New Year and with it comes a new sense of excitement here at Palladium. In the next day or two, we’ll be issuing a Special Report on the Future of Palladium Books. You are part of our extended family and we want you to know what’s going on behind the scenes and share some of our plans for the future without getting into the weeds with too much detail. Please watch for it Thursday or Friday.

This mini-update covers some immediate topics of the week and offers more fan comments. First and foremost …

- The annual Palladium Christmas Surprise Package Sale ends in 7 days. The Surprise Package is NOT just for Christmas. It is a great opportunity to get RPG books at a steep discount that averages out to between a 40-52% discount. Plus we happily sign your books if you’d like us to do so and it’s a fun surprise because you don’t know exactly what you are going to get! This is a great way to try new world settings, fill holes in your collection, get ideas for new campaigns, replace worn out copies of favorite books, treat yourself, and buy gifts for birthdays, anniversaries and any upcoming gift-giving occasion. This sale will NOT be extended again. Miss out and you’ll have to wait till the Christmas season. Surprise Package sale ENDS in 7 days.

See complete details below or click on the button to get yours.

- Shipping to Canada has resumed. We’ve already seen several Canadians place orders. There is still time to get a late Christmas Surprise Package for those of you living in Canada.

- What’s selling this week at Palladium? Dead Reign® (the Zombie Apocalypse with fun twists), Palladium Fantasy RPG, and Heroes Unlimited (and by extension After the Bomb®) are blazing hot and blowing out the door. Rifts® also, but Rifts® is always hugely popular (thank goodness) and a strong seller. Oh, and the Valley of the Pharaohs Expanded 40th Anniversary RPG.

- BACK IN STOCK! Valley of the Pharaohs Expanded 40th Anniversary Edition RPG was selling so well, we nearly sold out in something like 2 weeks and had to order more hardcovers from the author/publisher Matthew Balent. Stock has been replenished and both the hardcover and softcover are available now. See the RPG description elsewhere in this update and in the online store.

- NEW! The Rifter® #81 Archival Edition – available now. Due to popular demand, Palladium Books is testing the viability of re-releasing fan-fave out of print issues of The Rifter® that sell on the secondary collector’s market for $50-$100 dollars. The Rifter #81 is the latest Archival release. It is filled with official Fantasy RPG source material including a full adventure featuring Wolfen Vampires written by Kevin Siembieda, Fantasy Gnomes by Hendrik Härterich, and source material for Heroes Unlimited, Chaos Earth®, and Rifts®. 96 pages – $20.99 retail – Cat. No. 181 – available now.

Other Rifter® Archival Editions:

The Rifter #48

The Rifter #58

The Rifter #65

More Archival Editions are likely to follow in the months ahead.

Note: All issues of The Rifter® are available on DriveThruRPG.com as PDF books.

- Check out the growing number of videos on the Palladium Books YouTube channel. J-M DeFoggi and I (Kevin Siembieda) are doing a series about the history of Palladium Books before we expand into other subjects.The history of Palladium is just the beginning.

Last chance – 7 days left to get Surprise Package deal – will not be extended further

Besides being the best deal in gaming – $100+ worth of goodies (often more) for $60 (plus shipping) – it’s a smile and a hug that comes in a box filled with signed game books from available Palladium staff and freelancers at PDF prices. That can nab you four or more items when these days one core rule book can cost you that alone.

Surprise Packages are a great way to build your collection, try new settings, and replace battered old favorite titles as well as make the perfect gamer gift for birthdays, anniversaries, Valentine’s Day, or any gift-giving occasion. And remember, if you request autographs from available staff we happily sign each book!

These Surprise Packages are our way of saying thank you for your support and showing you our love and appreciation. It’s a surprise because you never know exactly what you’re going to get or who will sign your books, because we pick from your Wish List and may surprise you with stuff you are not expecting. Extra items may include other RPGs, sourcebooks, issues of the Rifter®, novels, miniatures, prints, art books, greeting cards, T-shirts, negatives, and other items. Some books may be slightly damaged (scuffs, scratches, dings, a crunched corner, etc.) so we can send you more. We can only extend the holiday season for so long. Get one while you still can – the Surprise Package offer ENDS January 15, 2025.

Back in Stock – NEW! Valley of the Pharaohs RPG – 40th Anniversary Edition Hardcover – Also available as softcover

Valley of the Pharaohs is back with 200 additional pages of material as a softcover and hardcover RPG. It is written by the original author Matthew Balent (Palladium Weapon series), and includes the original artwork and map by Kevin Siembieda, but this is NOT the Palladium game system. It’s an original game system designed by Matt.

The original Valley of the Pharaohs RPG is a rare, expensive collectible if you can even find it. But now you can get the super-expanded, 254 page, 40th Anniversary Edition softcover – or – the 274 page hardcover with bonus material, from Palladium Books. The new, 40th Anniversary Valley of Pharaohs is written and published by the original author, Matthew Balent (Weapons and Armor, Weapons & Castles, etc.). Like the original game, it uses its own, unique game rules – not the Palladium game system – but they, like the game world and text, are unique and fun.

This game is authorized by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium Books and includes many of Kevin’s original VotP RPG illustrations and maps.

If you are a Palladium Books collector or you love Egyptian mythology and historical fiction, this game is a must. It is likely as close as you’ll come to owning the original Valley of the Pharaohs. Besides, this is a vastly expanded and improved edition that includes all those original ideas and much of the artwork vastly expanded and improved. The original rule book was only 64 or 96 pages, plus maps; this is a 250+ page tome by the scholarly Matthew Balent and is an alternative reality, ancient Egypt that is epic and well written. It’s a fun read filled with ideas, magic, monsters, and characters you can, with a little work, convert to Palladium Fantasy, Rifts, or any RPG world.

• Play humans or Bird People, Crocodilian People, Dog People, Snake People, and more!

• Character Classes include: Priest, Thief, Military, Scholar, and more.

• 300+ magic spells inspired by Egyptian myth and classic fantasy.

• Many magic items, magic pictures and more.

• Dozens of monsters and supernatural beings like the mummy, sphinx, sand slug, and others drawn from or inspired by Egyptian mythology.

• Learn about Ka (magic), Maat (alignment and order), and Kismet.

• Clear and concise Egyptian lore, its society, and history.

• Game rules and writing by Matthew Balent.

• A complete RPG with unique rules. Note: Does not use the Palladium game rules.

• $40.00 retail – 254 page softcover – Cat. No. 2621 – complete RPG.

• $60.00 retail – 274 page hardcover with bonus material – Cat. No. 2621HC – complete RPG.

Closing Thoughts

A Promising New Year

Like I said, I’m keeping this mini-update short. The Special Report on the Future of Palladium Books will shed light on what’s been going on behind the scenes and what you can expect in 2025. It’s all very positive. Spread the word that it is coming and watch for it.

Do likewise about the Surprise Package sale because it ends in 7 days and won’t be back till next Christmas season. It’s a phenomenal deal and we’d like as many gamers as possible to partake in the fun and savings. Now on to a bunch of new comments from fans like you. Enjoy and Happy New Year.

– Kevin Siembieda, Publisher, Game Designer, Friend, and Surrogate Santa

Surprise Package Comments from fans like you

Every year we like to post a selection of the comments we get from Surprise Package customers. It’s a nice acknowledgement and thank you to them (you know who you are) and you enjoy reading them. I read each and every comment that comes in the Surprise Packages, and they always brighten our day. We all appreciate your kind words, suggestions, and insights. In fact, the idea to do hardcover editions of core rule books came from fan comments in the Grab Bags. We get a lot so we can only offer a sampling of these comments in the Weekly Updates.

Our heartfelt thanks to all of you who have stuck with Palladium through thick and thin and now these new strange times. Please use our games to find escape from your day to day grind and worries. Use them to bring a little joy, laughter, and adventure to the holiday season and beyond.

Your comments and support mean the world to all of us. Thank you for making us smile and feel valued. As always, I have tried to write a short response [in brackets] to each comment. Happy holidays.

– Kevin Siembieda (and the Palladium Crew)

A.W. in Mountain Grove, Missouri, writes (in part): ... I have purchased 6 of these Surprise Packages to date and they are an amazing value! The retail cost of the books I’ve received, not counting shipping, is an average of $124 per package. That’s over double the actual $60! Meaning I was able to get all those books for 52% off on new, autographed, books for less than used book prices! For that I’d like to extend a truly heartfelt thank you to everyone at Palladium Books for all you do for us fans ... I wish you a happy and prosperous 2025.

[You are very welcome A.W., and you send great Wish Lists. As I have said many times, 1. I love Christmas and the spirit of giving. 2. I love you, our fans, you are the best in the entire world, and I mean that with my whole heart. 3. The Surprise Package is our way of saying thank you to our fans and giving back some of the love you show us all year long. So thank you, A.W., for being one of Palladium’s many wonderful fans. Happy New Year. May it be filled with good health, prosperity, and joy for us all. – Kevin]

R.S. in Tucson, Arizona, writes: [The Surprise Package is] always a treat for myself this time of year.

[Awesome, R.S., enjoy. – Kevin]

B.A. in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, writes: Favorites: Palladium Fantasy RPG mostly with hybridized characters from Rifts®. Love them all. We have 70 books! We’re ready for the new Fantasy sourcebooks.

[Hey, B.A., that Fantasy/Rifts® combo sounds fun. Glad you enjoy our games so much. New Fantasy sourcebooks are coming, B.A. Keep an eye out for them and keep that imagination burning bright. – Kevin]

J.N. in Springfield, Missouri, writes: Old school Palladium and quickly becoming a huge fan of the Dead Reign® series. Fan of everything Palladium Books.

[J.N., we are happy, flattered and humbled by such high regard for our work. Thank you and Happy New Year. – Kevin]

C.F. in Conway, Arizona, writes: I got back into Palladium Books a few years ago because of Legion of Myth. They’ve inspired me to collect all Rifters®, in and out of print.

[As you are discovering, C.F., The Rifter® issues are a fun and useful resource and offer a wealth of ideas whether the articles and source material are official or not. Enjoy them and welcome back to the Megaverse®. – Kevin]

A.C. in Ronkonkoma, New York, writes: I used to play a lot, a long time ago. The late 1980s and early 1990s were filled with all-night gaming sessions with my best buds. I’m the last of us, sadly, but I saw someone post about the Surprise Package thing and it brought back so many good memories. This will make a nice gift for myself.

[Reading your comment made me smile, A.C., and brought back memories of my own all-night gaming sessions, throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s. Great times. Great friends. Great memories. I hope you enjoyed your Surprise Package. Here’s to new memories. – Kevin]

I.X.S. in Rumford, Rhode Island, writes: Always look forward to Palladium’s X-Mas Grab Bag! Gives me a chance to fill any holes in my collections. Keep up the good work guys.

[Will do I.X.S., it was great seeing you at Granite State Comic Con. – Kevin]

M.C. in Casper, Wyoming, writes (in part): You have been my favorite gaming company since I discovered Ninjas & Superspies way back in 1988! Merry Christmas and all the best for the New Year.

[May the New Year be a great one for us all, M.C. Ninjas & Superspies is a pretty cool game so I can see how it hooked you. Wow, you’ve been playing our games for most of our existence. Nice. Game on, M.C., please, game on. – Kevin]

J.N. in Springfield, Missouri, writes: Thank you for making the Christmas sale available every year. It means a lot that you take the time and care to sign and send copies of our favorite gaming books.

[I love the Christmas season, J.N., and our fans, so it is our honor and pleasure to do so. Enjoy and stay awesome. – Kevin]

C.H.K. in Casselberry, Florida, writes (in part): ... The Magic of Palladium Books you guys sent me in my last package was a thrilling surprise. Great ideas within and quite a contrast to The Rifter® Annual 85 that accompanied it! What a blast. Dead Reign® is quite a trip ... As always, you guys just really bring so much into my gaming life. Ever will gaming be a part of me – just like Palladium.

[That’s beautiful, C.H.K., keep your spirit and imagination burning bright. – Kevin]

D.H. in Central City, Nebraska, writes: Play them all, sometimes all combined.

[D.H., I’m happy you are traversing the entire Megaverse. Game on. – Kevin]

D.L. in Killeen, Texas, writes (in part): Hi Guys, I just got another friend hooked on Palladium, so I’m sending him a Christmas Surprise Package as a gift ... I rediscovered my love for all things Palladium watching Legion of Myth on YouTube ... Thank you for your service, Sean, even though you were Air Force, all of us grunts still love you guys and the sound of fast-movers overhead during a firefight is as sweet as the sound of angels singing!

[Thanks for your service and kind words, D.L., you made us smile with your comments about the Air Force. Yeah, Legion of Myth, Glitterbois podcast, Palladium’s own YouTube chats, and many other YouTube shows and podcasts, large and small, like RealPlayGames and the Death Head Taco Truck podcasts, are spreading the fun about Palladium Books’ RPG worlds and making gamers smile. I love it. – Kevin]