Anything decent at Amazon for about $5?

brettmb2 · May 11, 2007, 04:48:10 PM

I'm ready to place an order for some out of print RPG stuff at Amazon, but I'm 56 cents for free shipping. Does anything exist in the $5 range for useful RPG materials? I'm not holding my breath, but there's got to be something. Please help.....

Silverlion · May 11, 2007, 04:54:52 PM

Quote from: pigames.netI'm ready to place an order for some out of print RPG stuff at Amazon, but I'm 56 cents for free shipping. Does anything exist in the $5 range for useful RPG materials? I'm not holding my breath, but there's got to be something. Please help.....

Do you like poetry? Seriouslly a lot of Dover Thrift Editions come in at 1.50 and you can load up on classics poems.
Useful for RPG's? Maybe not, useful for the mind and wooing girls? Darn straight.

Beyond that many of the non Copyrighted classics are cheap as well, might pick up a cheap copy of something you've not read: Beowulf perhaps, Shakespeare's plays--all of which cover some pretty interesting stories that have been retold and retold--especially good for game plots.

brettmb2 · May 11, 2007, 07:17:18 PM

I'm not too into poetry, but I'll look at the Dover books. Thanks.

JongWK · May 11, 2007, 07:33:59 PM

Some stuff I found:

Top secret: An espionage role playing game (used and new starting at $5.97)

Champions: The Super Role-Playing Game (Paperback) (used and new starting at $4.41)

Big Eyes, Small Mouth: A Universal Japanese Anime Role-Playing Game (Paperback) (used and new starting at $6.45)

brettmb2 · May 11, 2007, 07:36:15 PM

Unfortunately, those don't qualify for free shipping.

Gunslinger · May 11, 2007, 07:44:09 PM

You did just make me nostalgic for Top Secret.

JongWK · May 11, 2007, 08:09:13 PM

Quote from: pigames.netUnfortunately, those don't qualify for free shipping.

Woops, you're right. Seems only Amazon products qualify for it. I found a couple of items, but they are over $5:

Mutants Down Under (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Other Strangeness Role Playing Game Supplement) (Paperback) by Erick Wujcik, $7.95

Tri-Stat: Core System Role-Playing Game (Paperback) by Mark C. MacKinnon, $9.95

Dungeons & Dragons Dice with Cloth Dice Bag (Dungeons & Dragons Accessory) by Wizards of the Coast, $9.99

Exalted Dice Set: 10 Ten-Sided Dice and Felt Bag by White Wolf Publishing, $6.99

brettmb2 · May 11, 2007, 08:15:23 PM

Anyone know if The Secret of Zir An is any good?

J Arcane · May 11, 2007, 08:20:32 PM

Quote from: pigames.netAnyone know if The Secret of Zir An is any good?

IIRC, prior to release it was one of the great RPGnet darlings, and you couldn't go a day without hearing someone crow about it.

And then it came out and everyone hated it. Apparently some printing errors even rendered large portions of the book unreadable.

brettmb2 · May 11, 2007, 08:25:56 PM

Yikes! The moral of the story is never listen to propaganda

arminius · May 11, 2007, 08:32:29 PM

Yes, I picked up the main book recently off of eBay, and the printing error is severe in a couple sections of the book. However, the publisher has made those sections available as a free PDF (which arguably enhances the utility of one of the chapters on chargen).

As for the game system itself, I dunno, I have to admit I was suckered in completely by the pretty pictures for probably the first time in my life--I want to believe the game is like Moebius's The Airtight Garage, but I really have no idea as I've been reading other stuff.

brettmb2 · May 11, 2007, 09:05:23 PM

I think I'll pass on it then. Maybe I'll just throw a cheap little paperback on there just to get the minimum. I got tired of looking - Amazon has the worst search and browsing interface. Nothing related is even sorted together.

Thanks all

J Arcane · May 11, 2007, 09:07:57 PM

Quote from: pigames.netYikes! The moral of the story is never listen to propaganda

I learned my lesson on that after buying Cartoon Action Hour, another RPGnet darling of the moment that wound up being a waste of money.

brettmb2 · May 11, 2007, 09:12:53 PM

Quote from: J ArcaneI learned my lesson on that after buying Cartoon Action Hour, another RPGnet darling of the moment that wound up being a waste of money.

That's funny, because while I never picked it up, I have heard good things about it way past its release. Ah well -- everyone has different tastes. I used to like White Wolf products, but now I'm sick of all the rehashing, and the other books just don't grab my attention. They sound cool, but nothing that makes me want to spend money on them.

J Arcane · May 11, 2007, 09:16:48 PM

Quote from: pigames.netThat's funny, because while I never picked it up, I have heard good things about it way past its release. Ah well -- everyone has different tastes. I used to like White Wolf products, but now I'm sick of all the rehashing, and the other books just don't grab my attention. They sound cool, but nothing that makes me want to spend money on them.

It really does nothing that I couldn't do with a dozen other games, and it's really a pretty slipshod, half-assed product.

And yeah, I used to be big into the WoD stuff, but I just ahven't been able to get into the new stuff. I'm sure it's great but, it's just not the same game at all, so it's not really sometihng that appeals to me.