Palladium Books® Weekly Update – May 31, 2013

By Kevin Siembieda

There is so much going on it is difficult to know where to start, but here goes.

Work Progresses on All Fronts

It has been another wild week. Wayne and I returned from Anime North on Monday, yet somehow, that fun, long weekend seems like it happened weeks ago already (more on it later). We have spent much of this week trying to catch up on work and taking care of pressing business. EVERYTHING seemed to be due by the end of the week, which is why this Update is appearing on Friday, instead of Thursday. We had several advertisements due, Gen Con deadlines due, Alliance Trade Show deadlines, a printer deadline and a few other things ALL due by today, Friday, May 31! That made for a crazy last few days. At least I feel like I accomplished a lot, and I’ll be working through part of the weekend on Rifts® Northern Gun.

Super-Sale on Palladium Fantasy RPG^® throughout June, 2013 – 30% off to celebrate Palladium Fantasy’s 30th Anniversary

Palladium Fantasy RPG® turns 30 years old this year. It was originally released June, 1983, and was an instant success. We thought it appropriate to make the entire month of June Palladium Fantasy Month and celebrate by marking down ALL in-stock Fantasy titles by 30%. Enjoy.

UPDATE: Robotech^® RPG Tactics^™

Our focus is split between finishing up Robotech® RPG Tactics™ and sending it in for manufacturing, and finishing Rifts® Northern Gun One™ and getting it to the printer. Both are coming along well.

UPDATE: Robotech^® RPG Tactics^™ Kickstarter

Kickstarter supporters, it will take a little while for us to get the survey sent out to you. Shortly after we get the survey back from you, Palladium Books will set up the Online Pledge Manager, and you will get an invitation for it. This will be set up like a store, exclusive to Kickstarter Backers, in which you will indicate which add-on items you wanted, and you can even add to your pledge should you desire to do so.

Did your pledge not go through, but you want to participate? Fear not, we will work something out for you. Palladium has been contacted by a number of Kickstarter supporters whose pledges were not processed for one reason or another. If that includes you, please contact Palladium Books, give us your contact information, the amount you pledged for which level, and the add-ons you want, and we WILL make sure you ARE included in the Pledge Manager and receive everything you want.

Did you miss out completely and wish you could have participated? Keep your eyes on the Palladium Website and these Weekly Updates. We are looking into ways to allow you to participate for a limited time. No promises, but give us some time to see if we can get you included.

All of this should be in place by the end of June or sooner. Palladium’s whiz kid, Rex Barkdoll, is already on it and working on getting everything set up to process and prepare Kickstarter pledges.

Release date for the physical Kickstarter pledge items: Fall, probably November sometime, before product is shipped to distributors. Sooner if possible. The Palladium and Ninja Division crews are working away.

UPDATE: The Rifter^® #62 – Available now

The Rifter® #62 shipped last week and is available right now. It is a great issue jam-packed with all kinds of epic source material – much of it “official” – for Rifts®, Palladium Fantasy®, Heroes Unlimited™, and more. Check it out, you won’t be disappointed. See the full description elsewhere in this Update.

UPDATE: Rifts^® Northern Gun^™ One

Chuck Walton turned in the last of the robot illustrations yesterday afternoon. They are fantastic. He’s got 4-5 others he’s working on and then he’s off to work on Northern Gun™ Two. I want to get this book to the printer pronto. I think there are something like 25 new robots, some related vehicles and all kinds of weapons, background info and other good stuff. Lots and lots of it.

UPDATE: Northern Gun^™ Two

Brian and Allen Manning and Amy Ashbaugh are already working on NG-2 art I assigned before we left for Anime North. Chuck Walton has already done some art for this book but he’ll be doing more. I’ll be assigning the rest of the art this weekend or early next week.

DriveThruRPG.com – FREE Rifter^® #62 Sneak Preview is available now; your place for PDFs of more than 90 Palladium titles

The FREE Sneak Preview of The Rifter® #62 is available now (includes the missing Experience Tables for Rifts® Black Market and Vampire Kingdoms™), as well as Rifts® Vampires Sourcebook and an early one for Rifts® Northern Gun One (with a newer one coming in a few weeks), on DriveThruRPG.com for your enjoyment. There are also previews available for Rifts® Vampire Kingdoms™ (Revised Edition), Rifts® Black Market, Rifts® Lemuria, Dead Reign™ RPG, Endless Dead™ sourcebook and others. The original Rifts® Vampire Kingdoms World Book is also available as a PDF on DriveThruRPG, for those of you who may be interested.

More than 90 other Palladium titles can be found on DriveThruRPG.com as PDFs, including Splicers®, Rifts® RPG (the edition before RUE), The Rifter® #1-52, and first edition rule books and sourcebooks for Palladium Fantasy RPG®, Heroes Unlimited™, The Mechanoid Invasion® Trilogy, Beyond the Supernatural™ and lots of other good titles. DriveThruRPG.com also offers the Rifts® and Palladium Fantasy® Game Master Kits ($5 each; both written by Carl Gleba and complete with maps, combat matrix, character sheets, spell list, and 20 pre-rolled characters created by Julius Rosenstein).

Gen Con^® Indy – Palladium Booth #1025 – August 14-18, 2013

Gen Con is always a blast, but this year the Palladium booth will be hopping more than usual. We’ll be running demos for Robotech® RPG Tactics all day, EVERY DAY! Plus we’ll have some convention specials, a few surprises, a truckload of product, some sneak previews and many Palladium creators.

Gen Con will be a star-studded event for Palladium fans with the following Palladium creators present at Booth #1025:

• Kevin Siembieda – Publisher, writer and Lead Game Designer at Palladium Books.
• Carmen Bellaire – Writer (Splicers®, Powers Unlimited™ series, etc.) and co-game designer of Robotech® RPG Tactics™ to run demos, talk about the game and sign autographs.
• David Freeman – Lead game designer of Robotech® RPG Tactics™ to run demos, talk about the game and sign autographs.
• Various other Ninja Division personalities and creators.
• Wayne Smith – Palladium Editor and Editor-in-Chief of The Rifter®.
• Matthew Clements – Writer (Rifts® Black Market, Northern Gun 1 & 2, The Rifter®, etc.).
• Charles Walton – Artist (Rifts® Lemuria, NG 1 & 2, and many others).
• Brandon Aten – Writer (Rifts® Triax 2, Madhaven, Sovietski, and The Rifter®).
• Mark Oberle – Writer (Nightbane® Survival Guide, The Rifter®, etc.).
• Mike Leonard – Writer and Artist.
• Jeff Burke – Robotech® consultant, artist and writer.
• Thomas Roache – Play-tester and writer.

Join us for a peek at Robotech® RPG Tactics and some of the game pieces, get the latest info on other Palladium products, inside information, original art, miniatures, and have tons of fun.

Anime North Report

I’m going to try to keep this Anime North Report brief, with snippets of highlights of the event.

- 26,000+ people in attendance; 70% in costume. Include guests, staff and volunteers and that number is closer to 28,000 people. We were impressed.

- A large, varied Dealers’ Room. I got a couple of birthday presents for Kathy and a few other people, and some books for myself. There was so much cool stuff I had to avoid the place lest I be tempted to spend too much. Fun.

- Carmen Bellaire, one of the principle game designers, ran non-stop demos of Robotech® RPG Tactics. People LOVED that the game was fast, easy to learn, and captured Robotech! We heard nothing but positive feedback. People also loved the size and quality of the game pieces.

- We met many nice Palladium fans, some of whom came to the convention just to meet us. And sales were solid. I signed a lot of books for people and had a wonderful time chatting.

- Opening and Closing Ceremonies. Both were impressive, with live entertainment from Japan, speeches and laughs.

- Momiji Award Winner. It turns out I am the first Gaming Guest to win the Momiji Award. The Award brunch was delicious, people were friendly and kind, those in attendance told me they enjoyed my acceptance speech, and I am honored to win the award. Thank you so very much.

- A Wonderful Guest Dinner. Saturday evening, the convention organizers trucked the many guests to a Japanese restaurant where we all gorged ourselves on an endless array of appetizers, sushi, and a fabulous meal prepared right in front of us with acrobatic flair. I sat among a number of the voice actors and had a blast. Subjects ranged from anime and movies to religion and stories of all kinds. It was a wonderful night.

- Old Friends. Greg and Jenn Diaczyk, and Braden Campbell hung out and helped at the Palladium booth much of the convention. It was so nice to see them again. We also got to visit with Kent Burles, who had a table in the art area, and though it was nice to see Christine Bellaire and family, we were all so busy we didn’t get a chance to visit much. The day before the convention we also got to visit with my ol’ pal and artist Ramon K. Perez. We visited Ramon at his art studio and took a walk to his home several blocks away. What a nice time. Convention organizer Todd Spencley served as our “native guide” (and I also now count Todd among our not-so-old friends). Wayne Smith, Matthew Clements and Jeff Burke came down to Anime North with me, and they were part of my crew wherever we went. It was nice to spend time with them doing something other than work. There was more, but to write about everything would fill several more pages.

- Convention Organizers, Staff and Volunteers were amazing. Everyone was so nice, helpful, available and friendly. Anime North is one of the best convention experiences I have ever had. No wonder the convention is so successful. Thank you, everyone. Great job. I would recommend Anime North to anyone who loves anime, costumes, cosplay, Japanese entertainment, great panel discussions and a good time. For more information go to http://www.animenorth.com

- Lastly, I need to single out Todd Spencley for his time, attention and kindness. Todd was a big reason we had so much fun at the convention and away from it (a driving tour of Toronto, a trip to Fort York, our visit with Ramon, etc.). Thanks, Todd, for caring so much and for being one of the good guys. Game on!

Back to work

As productive as Anime North was, running demos, chatting with fans, making new friends and contacts, discussing various manuscripts and new projects with freelance writers (including Rob Symons), we hit the ground running upon our return. There was no time for a break. We all dived right back into work. (For some reason, I feel like shouting, “Cowabunga!”) And there’s more, but that’s enough for now. We are full of excitement and working hard on the products you want. They are coming! Keep the faith. Be excited. A new era for Palladium Books has arrived.

– Kevin Siembieda, Publisher, Writer and Game Designer

The Rifter^® #62 – Available now

The Rifter® #62 is truly special, with page after page of “official” source material and one great idea after another. Do not miss out on this issue.

Each and every issue of The Rifter® is an idea factory that helps players and Game Masters to generate new ideas and keep their games fresh. It provides useful, ready to go, source material gamers can just drop into their ongoing games. A doorway to new possibilities and numerous Palladium role-playing worlds.

The Rifter® Number 62 includes:

• Rifts® – OFFICIAL Rifts® Vampires Sourcebook Bonus Material by Matthew Clements and Kevin Siembieda. Awesome, fun stuff we cut from the sourcebook due to page count considerations. Heck, we had already increased the Rifts® Vampires Sourcebook from 96 pages to 128, and then to 160. The book finally topped out at 176 pages and we still had source material and ideas that Kevin Siembieda finished up for inclusion in this issue of The Rifter®.
  - More about the secret vampire special forces organization, Deathspike.
  - More Deathspike O.C.C.s including Werewolf Agents.
  - Two notable Deathspike leaders.
  - The vampires’ Top Ten Enemies List.
  - Vampire Harvesters and their “Meat Wagons.”
  - Some additional vampire fighting gear.
  - 11 Hook, Line and Sinker Adventures.
• Rifts® – OFFICIAL Black Market O.C.C. Experience Tables by Kevin Siembieda. Please note that the Experience Tables will also be made available online for free in the next week or so. Please make sure people who purchased Rifts® Black Market know about that.
• Rifts® – OFFICIAL Necromancy and Bone Magic spells by Jeff Duncan. What else is there to say than more magic and darkness for your Necromancers (and the African Witch)?
• Rifts® Northern Gun™ Sneak Preview of the Gunbot Robot-Killer by Matthew Clements and Kevin Siembieda. Text and art to give you another taste of what’s coming in NG-1. Also see the more expansive, FREE Rifts® Northern Gun™ Advance Preview that has been available on DriveThruRPG.com.
• Palladium Fantasy® source material by Michael Long. A very detailed presentation of a castle with dozens of maps and floor plans, plus a general description.
• Heroes Unlimited™ – World Association of Super-Humans by Thomas Morrison. A peacekeeping organization with international credentials that works with law enforcement agencies and governments around the world.
• All Settings – An in-depth look at the Climbing skill and its many uses, by Michael Strom.
• News, coming attractions, product descriptions and more.
• 96 pages – Still only $11.95 retail – Cat. No. 162. Available now.
• Check out the free Sneak Preview on DriveThruRPG.com!

Rifts^® World Book 33: Northern Gun^™ One

Northern Gun™ is the largest independent manufacturer of high-tech weapons, robots and vehicles in North America. Outside of the Coalition States, one could argue, no other kingdom is as powerful or influential, at least when it comes to technology and weapons. The manufacture and sale of Northern Gun weapons and vehicles has given virtually every kingdom, town, colony of settlers and adventurer group a chance to survive and prosper. Located in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, NG has been the premier outfitter of mercenaries, adventurers and upstart kingdoms for generations. Now, for the first time ever, learn Northern Gun’s history, goals and plans for the future. Of course, that means new weapons, robots, power armor, vehicles and gear.

• In-depth look at Northern Gun and its business operations.
• Ishpeming, the face and people of Northern Gun.
• Northern Gun weapons and combat gear; new and old.
• Northern Gun robot drones; new and old.
• Northern Gun giant combat robots; new and old.
• Northern Gun freighters and hover trains.
• Northern Gun O.C.C.s and enforcers.
• The NG Mercenary army and police.
• The NG Bounty Board, the largest collection of bounties and mercenary contracts anywhere on Rifts® Earth.
• Key locations, people and sales outlets in and around Northern Gun.
• Northern Gun’s relationship with the Coalition States, Triax Industries, the Black Market and others.
• Written by Matthew Clements and Kevin Siembieda.
• Interior Artwork by Chuck Walton, Nick Bradshaw, and others.
• Wraparound cover by Chuck Walton.
• 160 pages – $20.95 retail – Cat. No. 887 – June release.
• Check out the free Advance Preview on DriveThruRPG.com!

Rifts^® World Book 34: Northern Gun^™ Two

More information about the weapons, vehicles and practices of Northern Gun, including the new rage of robot gladiatorial combat.

• Northern Gun body armor; new and old.
• Bionic and cybernetic services.
• Northern Gun power armors; new and old.
• Northern Gun hovercycles & land vehicles; new and old.
• Northern Gun aircraft; new and old.
• Northern Gun boats, ships and submarines; new and old.
• Northern Gun Robot Gladiatorial Arena; new!
• Robot Gladiator O.C.C. and robot gladiators.
• Pirates and more.
• Written by Matthew Clements and Kevin Siembieda.
• Interior Artwork by Chuck Walton, Nick Bradshaw, and others.
• Wraparound cover by John Zeleznik.
• 160 pages – $20.95 retail – Cat. No. 888 – July release.

Rifts^® World Book 35: Megaverse^® in Flames^™

The Minion War spills across Rifts Earth, where demons and infernals hope to recruit allies and use the Rifts as gateways of destruction. Their influence shakes things up across the planet, especially at locations where demons and Deevils already have a strong presence. Demons, Deevils and supernatural beings run rampant and wreak havoc across the world.

• Demon plagues and mystic blights.
• Soulmancy and Blood Magic revealed.
• Magical and demonic weapons and war machines.
• Demonic armies, strongholds and places of evil.
• Hell Pits and Rune Forges.
• Many Demon Lords, their minions and plans.
• Calgary, the Kingdom of Monsters; in detail.
• Ciudad de Diablo, Harpies’ Island and other notable Hell holes on Earth.
• Lord Doom, Pain and other demonic leaders.
• Horune treachery, Dimension Stormers and other villains.
• Notable demonic generals, mercenaries, people and places.
• Battleground: Earth – as demons and infernals amass their legions.
• Global chaos and the places most dramatically affected by the Demon Plagues.
• Epic battles and adventure ideas galore.
• Written by Carl Gleba. Part of the Minion War “Crossover” series.
• 192 pages – $24.95 retail – Cat. No. 876. Summer 2013 release.

Rifts^® Vampires Sourcebook^™ – Available Now

New secrets, new monsters and danger, new places to explore, new magic to wield, dark magic and forces to fear, new trouble and adventure in Mexico and the Yucatan. New conflicts between rival forces are brewing as Doc Reid prepares to take his private war with the vampires to a whole new level. Meanwhile, the vampires live like smug tyrants and gods, dominating an underclass of slaves and people used as cattle to feed upon. Learn more about the vampires, their rivals, allies and the humans who willingly serve them. A must-have guide for those who wish to travel deeper into the Vampire Kingdoms or play as vampires and their human minions.

• Vampire Hunter weapons and equipment.
• Techno-Wizard weapons and special gear.
• Lemurian gifts to better fight vampires.
• The horror of Soulcrafting and Dark Weapons.
• Hero Necromancers and their role in fighting vampires.
• Fort Reid, an entire city devoted to hunting the undead.
• The history and stats for Doc Reid, his top leaders and Reid’s Rangers.
• Deathspike – the vampires’ own high-tech answer to Vampire Hunters.
• The Yucatan Peninsula and its many monsters and mysteries.
• Animated dead, mummies and zombies used to fight vampires.
• New strategies and tactics for fighting vampires, plus Mage Vampire Hunters, D-Bee Vampire Hunters, Bandit Vampire Hunters, and other slayers of the undead.
• Werejaguar Vampire Hunters and other werebeasts.
• Firefighting robots, hover firetrucks and more anti-vampire gear.
• Tampico Military Protectorate expanded with much more detail.
• The human strongholds such as Tampico, Monterrey, Silver City, the Crystal Caves, Acapulco, Ocotlan and 2others.
• The Mayan god Camazotz, Lord of Bats and Darkness.
• Desert Survival rules and more. Yes, more!
• Cover by Michael C. Hayes.
• Art by Amy L. Ashbaugh, Nick Bradshaw, Kent Burles, Mark Dudley, Kevin Long, Allen and Brian Manning, Mike Mumah and Chuck Walton.
• Written by Kevin Siembieda, Matthew Clements, Christopher Kluge and Braden Campbell.
• 176 pages – $20.95 – Cat. No. 884. Available now. Place your order.
• Check out the free Sneak Preview on DriveThruRPG.com!

BACK IN PRINT: Palladium Fantasy^® Book Two: Old Ones

This is a massive adventure book, with maps and descriptions of more than 50 locations in the Timiro Kingdom. As if that were not enough to make this the ultimate adventure book, there is also information about the Old Ones and a few O.C.C.s.

• 50+ cities, towns, and forts described and mapped. Each suitable as a place for adventure.
• 7 fully fleshed out adventures and scores of adventure ideas.
• Includes the fabled “Place of Magic,” an ancient Dwarven Ruin reputed to date back to the Elf-Dwarf War.
• Minotaur R.C.C., Illusionist P.C.C. and Monk/Scholar O.C.C.
• Background and rumors about the Old Ones and adventure galore.
• Travel notes, world information about Timiro and more.
• Written by Kevin Siembieda.
• $24.95 – 224 pages. Cat. No. 453. Available now.

BACK IN PRINT: Rifts^® World Book 22: Free Quebec

This World Book contains a wealth of information about Free Quebec, Glitter Boys and notable people and places.

• Overview of Free Quebec and its military.
• 6 Quebec Military O.C.C.s including variant Glitter Boy Pilots.
• 6 types of Glitter Boys plus the Glitter Boy Sidekick.
• Pale Death SAMAS and other Quebec power armor.
• Free Quebec’s Navy, Cyborgs and technology.
• Notable places, including Old Bones and various combat groups.
• Many adventure ideas and more.
• Written by Kevin Siembieda and Francois DesRochers.
• 192 pages – $24.95 retail – Cat. No. 837. Ships May 1.

PDF downloads from DriveThruRPG.com

This is a great resource for getting out of print Palladium titles and other select books. We’ve made 90 titles available as PDF digital downloads from DriveThruRPG.com. This is a great way to try Palladium products and get access to out of print RPG source material. Some notable titles include:

• The Rifter® #49-52 recently added – available now.
• Splicers® RPG.
• Beyond the Supernatural™ RPG, First Edition Rules.
• Boxed Nightmares™ for BTS, First Edition Rules.
• Nightbane® Book Four: Shadows of Light™.
• The Mechanoids® RPG and The Mechanoid Invasion® RPG Trilogy.
• Palladium Fantasy RPG®, First Edition Rules and select 1st Edition sourcebooks.
• After the Bomb® RPG and sourcebooks.
• The Rifter® issues 1-52.
• The Best of The Rifter®.
• Deluxe Revised RECON® RPG and Advanced RECON® Sourcebook.
• And more – go to DriveThruRPG.com and check ‘em out.

Dead Reign^™ RPG – Back in print, and hot, hot, hot

Can you survive the zombie apocalypse?

Yes, you may think so. But there is only one way to find out for sure: Play the Dead Reign™ RPG. The core rule book is all you need to start playing. Rules are easy. Character creation is fast and fun. Combat, quick and deadly. Survival? Harder than you might think. Good luck.

Dead Reign™ RPG is the aftermath of the zombie apocalypse. Civilization is gone, the dead reign, and the living fight to survive against impossible odds. Battle zombies, mad men and death cultists in a post-apocalyptic world where the last of humanity struggles to survive. Think you know zombies? Think again.

• Easy to learn, easy to play, and fast paced.
• Clean, simple rules and quick character generation, and a depth of information and setting.
• 7 different types of zombies.
• Zombie combat and survival tips.
• 6 Apocalyptic Character Classes & Ordinary People. 40+ occupations to choose from.
• 101 Random Scenarios, Encounters and Settings.
• 100 Random Corpse Searches and other tables.
• Weapons, vehicles, and places of note.
• Death Cults, their Priests, power over zombies and goals.
• Quick Roll Character Creation tables (10 minutes).
• A complete role-playing game.
• Written by Kevin Siembieda, Josh Hilden and Joshua Sanford.
• $22.95 retail – 224 pages – Cat. No. 230. Available now.

Dead Reign^™ Sourcebooks

Civilization Gone™: Dead Reign™ Sourcebook One. There is no army, no government, no help coming. You are on your own and things are only getting worse. Villains include madmen and pychopaths, bandits and raiders. Many random tables for encounters, houses, and survivor camp creation, and more. $12.95 – 64 pages. Cat. No. 231.

Dark Places™: Dead Reign™ Sourcebook Two. Using railroad tracks and subways, sewer tunnels, steam tunnels and other dark places to travel undetected by zombies. Many tables for random encounters, boxcar contents, zombies and more. Survival tips, new zombies like the Bug Boy, Sewer Crawler and Impersonator. $12.95 – 64 pages. Cat. No. 232.

Endless Dead™: Dead Reign™ Sourcebook Three. Zombie hordes grow in number and strangeness. Where is the military? What’s next for the living survivors? Many new types of zombies, new O.C.C.s like the Wheelman and Zombie Hunter, the military and random tables for military bases, police and other places. Plus weaponizing vehicles, vehicle combat, Survivor caravans, and more. $16.95 – 96 pages. Cat. No. 233.

Upcoming Appearances

Anime North – May 24-26, 2013 – Toronto, Canada – www.animenorth.com

Kevin Siembieda is one of the Guests of Honor, but several Palladium creators will also be at Anime North in Toronto, Canada, to meet and game with you. The event takes place Memorial Day weekend, May 24-26, 2013. Wayne Smith and other Palladium creators will also be present to chat and sign autographs. We are bringing a pile of books, prints and other goodies to sell in the dealers’ room. www.animenorth.com

Gen Con^® Indy – August 15-18, 2013 – Indianapolis, Indiana

We can hardly wait for Gen Con this year as we hope to have advance copies of Robotech® RPG Tactics™ there. Not to mention a stock of new releases from throughout the year. We may even need to expand the size of our booth. Hope to see many of you there.

Note: There will be no Palladium Open House in 2013 or 2014.

© Copyright 2013 Palladium Books Inc. All rights reserved.

Rifts®, The Rifter®, RECON®, Splicers®, Palladium Books®, The Palladium Fantasy Role-Playing Game®, Phase World®, Nightbane®, Megaverse®, The Mechanoids®, The Mechanoid Invasion®, Coalition Wars® and After the Bomb® are Registered Trademarks of Palladium Books Inc. Beyond the Supernatural™, Chaos Earth, Coalition States, Dead Reign, Heroes Unlimited, Ninjas & Superspies, Minion War, Mysteries of Magic, SAMAS, Thundercloud Galaxy, Three Galaxies, Vampire Kingdoms, and other published book titles, names, slogans and likenesses are trademarks of Palladium Books Inc., and Kevin Siembieda.

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

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