Forums of the Megaverse®

Please Help Save Palladium from Going Under

An open letter from Kevin Siembieda, President & Owner.

A Crisis of Treachery

At a time when Palladium Books’ future has never looked more promising, we have been dealt a crippling blow.

For legal reasons, I cannot go into details about exactly what happened. Suffice it to say that betrayal of trust, theft, and embezzlement has inflicted what we estimate to be $850,000 to 1.3 million dollars in damages to Palladium.

It is a blow from which Palladium cannot recover. At least, not without YOUR help.

Out of options . . .

I have borrowed tens of thousands in loans and sunk every dime I’ve had into Palladium Books. I’m selling everything I own to keep Palladium going. That’s the real reason I’m selling my 25 year old toy collection, art and other items at the Palladium Open House.

But it’s not enough.

For the last year I had kept Palladium going with the hope that something would break in our favor. After all, we had all kinds of exciting things going on behind the scenes, and the huge loss seemed, for a while, like something we could overcome. Then a string of misfortune.

A series of unfortunate events

- The truly wonderful Rifts® videogame – Rifts® Promise of Power – was stillborn. The N-Gage platform never took off in North America. That meant the N-Gage and Rifts® Promise of Power would NOT be available on the mass market in the USA and Canada. Finding it anywhere in North America required an act of God.

- There would be no Nokia royalty-based revenue stream.

- Nor would there be a Nokia videogame sequel and the money that might come from it.

Note: Nokia treated me nothing short of GREAT. They lost truckloads of money on this venture. We’re both the victims of marketing fallout. Please don’t blame these wonderful people for Palladium’s woes – circumstance just didn’t make them part of our solution.

- Minimal gains into the book trade (Barnes & Noble, Borders, Hastings, etc.). PSI’s (Publisher Services Inc.) efforts to get Palladium RPG products into the book trade have been slow to say the least. Although we are confident PSI will be a good partner and get us into many national bookstore chains, it is taking much longer than anticipated.

- The Rifts movie? Stalled. Until Jerry Bruckheimer has a script he loves, the movie can’t get the green light. That makes perfect sense, but it doesn’t help Palladium’s bottom line right now.

- There were discussions with a company interested in doing a Rifts® MMOG but it didn’t pan out.

- Other potential deals have moved forward at a snail’s pace or have fallen to the wayside.

- Going public with this appeal may very well cost us getting the Robotech® license renewal.

- It doesn’t help that the role-playing game industry is in a slump and going through a transitional phase.

- Palladium has a team of amazing writers and artists brimming with ideas and enthusiasm. We have dozens and dozens of ideas and opportunities that will knock your socks off, but not the money to implement them.

- Palladium’s writers and artists have been troopers, waiting months to get paid, but their generosity is not enough.

- Treachery and skullduggery from within threatens to put us out of business.

Please help save Palladium Books®

I struggled and struggled with whether or not I should turn to YOU for help. Palladium and I have always had a close relationship with our fan base. Everything we do, we do with you in mind. We buck the trends, keep prices low, produce The Rifter®, and try to bring happiness with our annual X-Mas Grab Bag offer. We love gaming and gamers.

The irony is, we should be doing fine except for the treachery that has crippled us.

It was actually trusted fan-friends and freelancers who gave me the idea to turn to you, the people who are most important to our survival on so many levels.

Time and time again, each person I spoke to would be stunned by the news that Palladium was facing the possibility of closing its doors soon.

Time and time again, the person would say something heartfelt like, “I can’t believe it. I can’t imagine a world without Palladium in it. Kevin, if I had the money I’d give it to you in a heartbeat.”

I heard this so many times, almost word for word, that it gave me an idea. What if I went public and told all our fans about our trouble? Would they help?

It seemed like a viable solution, but was it right to ask our fans for . . . a helping hand?

My friend, Teresa Mead, helped me decide that this was the best solution when she said to me, “Kevin, I know your fans, and I think they’d be angry if you didn’t turn to them. They care about Palladium. If they find out they had a chance to save it, but Palladium’s gone because you didn’t ask them, it will make them furious. They’ll feel cheated and betrayed.”

I thought about that a lot, and I think she’s right. So here’s goes.


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How you can help

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Purchase the limited edition print “A Megaverse® United”

- I, Kevin Siembieda, will draw a special, pencil drawing with key characters from our entire game line to be made into a simple, black and white, toned piece of artwork, 11 x 14 inches, printed on a good quality paper.

- Each print will be hand signed by me. I’ll indicate which number that print is (i.e. #1, 2, 100, 1000, 2010, etc.). I don’t know how many there will be in the end; I pray for thousands!

- EVERYONE who purchases the print will see their names appear in the back pages of a major book listed as “Heroes of the Megaverse®!”

- The print will sell for $50.00 plus shipping and materials (envelope, protective cardboard, etc.), probably about $2.00-$5.00 by regular first class mail.

- We need those sales NOW!!! If 4,000 or 5,000 people all order that darn print within a month or two, it should give us the money we need to get back on our feet! Without a shot in the arm of some big cash, and fast, I fear Palladium is gone. That kind of jump start should carry us through the year and should enable us to do the other things we need to do to keep the company going for years to come!

YOU can make a real difference

This is one of those rare moments in life when YOU, as an individual, can make a real difference. You can be a real hero by purchasing one of those prints and encouraging every Palladium gamer you know to do the same. Spread the word online, at conventions, at game stores, everywhere. Encourage every Palladium fan who has ever enjoyed our games, purchased a Grab Bag, or visited us at a convention to run home and place an order.

I would never ask this great kindness of you if I didn’t think it would really work to save Palladium and keep us going for years.

This is easier than it may sound.

Four or five thousand may seem like a big number, but that’s not even close to the number of gamers who purchased the Rifts® Ultimate Edition within the first few weeks of its release!

Palladium has a mailing list of 14,000 fans who buy from us throughout the year.

We sold 2000+ Christmas Grab Bags last year alone.

We get 25,000-50,000 hits on the website every month, with some months exceeding 100,000!!!

Millions of gamers around the world have played our games over the years — Rifts®, Ninja Turtles®, Robotech®, Palladium Fantasy RPG®, Heroes Unlimited, Nightbane® and others. MILLIONS!

With YOUR help Palladium CAN survive, but we need a rapid infusion of cash. That means we need YOU to spread the word about Palladium’s situation and encourage others to buy a print too. And as soon as possible.

YOUR help is real

Any amount we can sell will make a difference. 2000 prints sold is a big help and “should” enable us to limp through the rest of the year working toward getting into the book trade and launching new products that can make a difference. 4000 prints sold “should” free us of the most crushing debt, and help get us standing on our feet. 5000 prints or more should help enable us to release a range of amazing role-playing games, sourcebooks and related products. With the cash we need, Palladium can do all of the following.

Release the stockpile of exciting new sourcebooks and products created by Palladium’s unbelievable crew of talented freelance writers and artists.

Palladium can release new RPGs and publish more products for ALL its game lines, hopefully boosting overall sales and making Palladium strong again.

Palladium can reprint key titles.

Palladium can expand vital advertising.

Palladium can keep doing the X-Mas Grab Bag that makes Christmas that much brighter for so many people.

With your help, a little luck and hard work, this will be the boost we need to keep Palladium going for years and years to come.

Without giving away too many secrets, we’ve been looking into a number of exciting licenses and new product areas you guys and gals have been asking for over the years, including novels, comic books and toys. Things that would already have been in production except for the crisis of treachery.

YOU will be a bigger, intrinsic part of the Palladium Megaverse than ever before. You’ll be true champions who did something noble, kind and significant.

YOU have my word that fans will always come first and I will repay you by keeping Palladium’s quality high, our prices reasonable, and giving back whenever I can.

What else can you do?

- Come to the Palladium Open House and celebrate the past, present and future, buy back-stock items, toys, art and rare collectibles.

- Keep supporting Palladium by purchasing our games at stores and online from Palladium Books.

- Spread the word about Palladium’s role-playing games to other gamers. The greatest sales tool there is, especially in this age of the internet, is “word of mouth.” Encourage others to play Palladium games, run games and demos at your favorite game store or local game convention.

- Take advantage of online offers and sales, like the 25th Anniversary items.

- Tell stores that you want our books and wish they’d carry them (but only if it’s true).

- Share your thoughts and ideas with us.

- Forgive me for having to bother you with our troubles. I hope this appeal doesn’t offend anybody. I’ve run out of options.

- Please do not try to assess blame or blast the person or persons who may be responsible. It can only lead to more trouble for Palladium. Besides, we need you to focus on the positive with us. Palladium CAN be saved with some help from its friends.

If Palladium Books should come to an end, I have no regrets. I’ll know I did everything possible to keep going and do right by everyone. I have nothing but wonderful memories I will cherish forever. Palladium Books has allowed me to touch the lives of millions of people, meet thousands of fans, and become friends with scores of wonderful people.

– Kevin Siembieda, Publisher – Spring 2006

Copyright 2006 Palladium Books Inc. All rights reserved.
This Press Release may be used and portions reprinted with Palladium's permission for the purpose of news and promotion. Rifts®, Megaverse® and Palladium Books® are registered trademarks of Palladium Books Inc. and Kevin Siembieda. Heroes Unlimited, Powers Unlimited, Beyond the Supernatural, Tome Grotesque, Beyond Arcanum, Splicers, MercTown, Merc Ops, Dinosaur Swamp, Chaos Earth, NEMA and all other titles and names are trademarks of Palladium Books.

Well I for one have ordered four. I'll do anything and everything to help out Palladium. For the hours/days/weeks/months of fun and entertainment this company has given the gaming community its the least I can do.

How can we order this print?

And can we simply send a donation?

I will be ordering at least two of these prints once my tax return comes in. After all that Palladium has given me over all these years I feel that it is my duty and HONOR to help them in ANY way that I can.

I feel as if I have been kicked in the gut.

Palladium has been one of the few constants in a life that has not always been happy or safe.

In 1983, when I was 6 or 7 my Stepfather got me my first copy of PFRPG because he knew I loved D and D. I was hooked in 10 minutes. I have run hundreds of campaigns and thousands of oners over the years.

My home was broken early and my father was a raging alcoholic and my mother was a prescription drug addict. My little brother and I spent my lonely and scary nights when we were left home alone all night, becoming heroic elves super powered heroes and eventually those awesome Ninja Turtles!

As I got older and, thank the gods ~yours and mine~ we moved in with my grandparents with our new babybrother. It was there that my dark and moody preteen self discovered After the Bomb and I still say to this day that it changed my life. My love of the postapocoliptic genre and survival against the odds grew from this game. I still run it to this day.

I got a little older and moved in with my now sobber father and my stepmother who barely tolerated me and my "stupid games". Robotech was my game of choice, until Rifts.

Rifts inspired me and caused me to flex my creative muscle to a degree that I thought impossible. It made me a writer and a dreamer.

I got a little older and moved to Dayton Ohio after graduation to return to the only loving home I had ever known, with my grandparents.

For a few years I ran some pickup games and read all the books that came out. When I was married in 1996 and was blessed with 3 wonderful stepchildren and then 2 more of my own I saw in them the same love of games and fantasy in their eyes that I am sure once shined in mine.

My children dabbled in games for several years, and my oldest read my books voraciously.

Last January it all changed and I began running my wife, my kids, my baby brother, and several of our friends into a game that has flourished till this day.

To put it very simply, Palladium has spent 23 years of my life making me HAPPY!

I will buy this print, as will my oldest son (he has just informed me as he watched me write this).

Palladium is part of my family. And when your family needs you, you don't ask questions, you just lace up your boots and do what needs doing.

My thoughts and prayers go out to the Palladium Family.

Sorry. Added a link above.

Here's another one:
"A Megaverse United" Print

Wayne Smith
Palladium Books

Yeah I don't see this print too order either....?

Thanks!

ordered!

You can count on your fanbase to help you out.
I must be one of the few people who owns the RIfts Nokia N Gage game.

If I bought a Nokia N Gage just for that game, you can count on me helping out how I can.

The least I can do since I also won a Rifts base book silver edition signed by a bunch of you guys n gals at Palladium.

Order placed for, well, a lot of prints. Thanks for adding that link Wayne!

I'd say I was giving them to all my gamer friends for X-Mas, but I shall be quite upset if my gamer friends don't order their own!

I have been telling people all over the internet. Many have asked if there is a place for donations via paypal or whatever. Is there a way that could be up for those who can'tafford the print?

My son Joshua (gods bless his generous nature) just placed an order.

Does Palladium have gift certificates?
It might be a way for people who can't afford a print or outright donation to help out even a little bit. Buy gift certificates now and use them on later books when they come out.

i bought one of the prints and some books and other things just now.
I too have been alerting the internets.

Ordered. Only one because of my own precarious financial situation, but maybe I'll be able to order a couple more next month.

So, who's the rat bastard who screwed over my favorite RPG company?

I'll be odering one next week on payday.


I to am wondering what happened. Can we get any info about this?

Purchase is in and if I were not allready all caught up with my collection I would order more. I ordered Madhaven and really look forward to it.

Arzno I allready have.

i wish i culd help. do you need anythign done? story art? etc?

I'm in a bad spot right now money-wise, but I'll give what I can. I'll also push to get the word out. By damme, PB won't be closing on our watch!

You guys are incredible, I'm sitting here in tears at the generosity of Palladium fans. I've always (and I do mean always) said that Palladium has the greatest fans in the world and you guys are proving it.

Kudos to you all and my undying admiration

I just got the word put out on the Gen Con forums. Hopefully some folks there will remember the many years Palladium has shown up and celebrated with them.

I'll be buying it asap.

Kevin is not only a good friend, a great writer, he's one of nicest people I've ever met. Wayne and Alex, Hank and Jules are the kind of guys that bust their butts everyday to do good work. I've had the opportunity for the past year to see these guys working together and coming up with all kinds of ways to make great products. The Hell they have endured would've made any other company close up and give up long ago.

They have made me feel at home from day one and always make time to see how I'm doing. You can't find that anywhere else on this planet.

What has happened to Palladium is horrible, but by the response I've seen so far, Palladium Books will be better than ever.

Jeff Hansen

Just bought a couple prints and a few other books I was planning on picking up at the open house.

I've been playing Rifts since early 1993, where I rolled up an Elf headhunter that I still love to play to this day when I don't GM (level 12--and he's the only character I've played over the years who's still alive ) Palladium means a lot to me, it'd be like losing a good friend.

most of us, I am sure, grew up as geeks.

Then it was depressing, now we wear that name proudly!

Palladium is the standard we have always gathered around.

If we go down, they will remember us into the next generation.

Mine will be ordered the day after payday.Can't think of a better way to spend my book budget.

For the many hours I've spent playing Robotech & Rifts, I'll definitely be grabbing one!

But I agree with some of the others as well. A paypal account, for those who'd like to give but can't afford $50 would be nice, as well as Palladium Gift Certificates (I'd have a number of early Xmas gifts bought early that way! )...

As much as this news shocks me, and although I am more than willing to gladly order the print.....I can't.
Not on any grounds you might think of.....other than monetary.
Being unemployed at the moment, I've had to give up a lot of things. I know something of Kev's pain. But I can barely keep myself afloat.

This news hits hard. I don't want to see Palladium Books go. I try to help in my own way; I still pick up the books I like, I encourage new gamers to try the Palladium system out. I promote the lines to those who have never heard of them. I do what I can.

I hope this is NOT the end of Palladium Books.

Things must be pretty bad for Kevin to resort to this.

I want to help, but I may do it buy buying some more books direct from palladium.

I have to be honest - by the time my Rifters get here in the post they are usually bent in half and falling out of the package, I can't imagine what condition the print would be in by the time it got here. I also really can't stand Kevins art, sorry, I LOVE his writing, but I can't stand his drawing.

Prints would probablyl be in heavy duty poster tubes. I think it should be opk Zob. Do what you can

Been spreading word as best I can. Whats that print go for in in canadian funds? I can get one on friday.

but sadly I can do little esle at present. no major fundage.

Rimmerdal

You could always resell it on E-Bay or something.

I bought one. I'll let all my friends know.

...or keep it as a memento knowing that you did your part to help.

Good idea.
People should also spread word to other forums. Nationstates and RPGnet are the only ones I can think of off-hand that I go to.
(Yes, RPGnet will have a bunch of snickering idiots as it always does, but that doesn't mean that there aren't people there worth reaching, people willing to help out if they can, if only by buying a book or two)

I've covered rpg.net, Nutkinland/The RPG site, Treasure Tables, and 3 or 4 of my other haunts.

I've also posted this on my site:

http://www.rpgblog.org/rpg_blog/2006/04 ... _pall.html

My first ever order from the Palladium Catalog.

Not sure I'd invest in a print, but I'll definitely go the other route of direct-buying(and pre-investing) in some back-stock books and materials I've been putting off for a while now....Hope that helps...

I'll be ordering a print in about 2 weeks. I spread the news over to Pied Piper Publishing's boards, since I know there are a few Palladium fans there. Rob Kuntz <The REAL Lord Robilar of D&D fame> said recently that Palladium always 'put out righteous material', so I figured he might like to know as well.

Man, that sucks! Palladium has been a major part of my life since I was 12 and my grandpa bought me the ROBOTECH sourcebook. News of recent events has truly saddened me. I wish nothing but the best for all those who've invested money and so much more into Palladium Books! I've already spread the word to my pals and am encouraging them to buy books direct from Palladium's web site. Wow, this is just terrible news and I hope that it never goes beyond just that, TERRIBLE NEWS.

And if the worst should come to pass, I'd just like to say one thing to Kevin and the Palladium staff.

Thanks guys! Your company, your product, your DREAM changed my life. It gave me friends I would've never otherwise had and memories I'll carry for a lifetime. It gave me an outlet during dark times in my life and a great way to enjoy the good as well! What you do has inspired me to take up the pen again as I begin writing my own fiction to capture all those great gaming memories so that they are never lost. Good luck and God bless.

P.S. You can also count on my money!

I just ordered mine! C'mon folks dig deep and give freely, Kevin and crew have done it for you over the years, it's the least you can do for them.

Palladium libri pro umquam!

I'm in shock. I had inklings that Palladium might be suffering, but I never imagined it was this bad. I just thought it was the downturn in the market.

I've ordered some of the prints and another book. I'm going to be buying as much as I can every week for awhile.

This sounds like a great time for me to get those Rifters I've never bought!

To everyone at Palladium: If you need anything else, ask. If it's mine to give, it's your's. You have provided me so many hours of entertainment since the original Mechanoids came out, that I can't imagine this company not being here. I'll do whatever I can.

And I mean that....
Laz

For what help it brings, I have spread the word to Swankytown. You have the support of the Master of Post Fu.

I got a nice tax refund this year... so, I'm not just ordering the print. I think I'll round out my Palladium collection while I'm at it.

Would it be OK if i just ordered a smeg load of books ?

Can we purchase them at the open house?

This can't be! Palladium has been a part of my life for 23 years and I'm not gonna let it go without on hell of a fight! TMNT was my first RPG dammit! I'll be buying as much as I can as fast as I can and I'm getting the word out as far and wide as I can. If there's anything else I can do just say the word!

I know I was involved in a small CCG debackle (the Cyberpunk one if anyone's even seen it, I was a Judge and orginizer for it), and with that still weighing on my mind, I'm not going to let Palladium suffer the same fate. Besides, it'll be worth it just to see the wolfen wars : P

Cinos

This is horrible news!

I will try to buy a print and some more books if I can, but my funds are quite limited.

Three questions:
1. Will this effect the open house in May?

2. Will the prints be available at the open house if it is still on?

3. Will buying other books help at all?

I will spread the word to people I know. I give all you at Palladium my best wishes and I will keep you in my prayers.
It is our duty and privilege to be able to help the company that has given us so many good times over the years!

I can't believe this. I just got into Palladium (only been playing for about a year), and all I can think is, who the heck could do such a terrible thing!
Nail 'em in court; we'll do the rest.
In the meantime, I'm afraid I am unemployed at the moment. Anything else I can do?
Please hang in there, Mr. Smith.