I'm happy to announce that, at long last, the
Thousand Suns: Rulebook is available for sale, in both PDF and print forms (either softcover or hardcover). The rulebook is a complete 276-page science fiction roleplaying game consisting of 15 chapters that cover everything from character generation to starship combat to world and alien lifeform design. I wrote
Thousand Suns as a straightforward, flexible toolbox game that draws heavily on the "imperial" science fiction literature of the '50s, '60s, and '70s -- authors like Poul Anderson, Isaac Asimov, Bertram Chandler, Gordon Dickson, and H. Beam Piper, among others -- and I'm very pleased with how it turned out. I'm especially proud of the book's presentation, for which I owe a big debt of thanks to my graphic designer, Adam Jury, and to the many artists who contributed to it. This rulebook is a real labor of love and I hope others might enjoy it as much as I do.
Congrats!
ReplyDeleteThe grammar of the title bugs me though :p
Congrats. With your love of Traveller I am very excited to see this game.
ReplyDeleteOn may way to RPGnow!
Some of my favorite writers! I'll definitely need to grab this one.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the launch!
ReplyDeleteThe preview looks good! Congratulations!
ReplyDeleteBah! A new RPG? Humbug! A poor excuse for picking a man's pocket near the twenty-fifth of December!
ReplyDeleteBut I suppose I must have it...
Finishing a project his large is a definite achievement. Looking forward to giving it a go.
ReplyDeleteJames, as an owner of the original edition of THOUSAND SUNS, what new coolness do I gain by buying this new edition?
ReplyDeleteSteven,
ReplyDeleteThe primary improvement of this new edition over the old is organization and presentation. The new game is 90%+ compatible with the old one, so there's no need to get it, provided you don't mind the frankly awful layout of the original. I personally can't stand to look at the old one anymore, but I'd never recommend anyone buy it just for looks if they're happy with the old one.
(That said, there are a few small additions to the revised edition that might make it worthwhile, primarily in the starship, world generation, and alien lifeform chapters)
How long will the game be available with a 50% discount...?
ReplyDeleteTo be contrary to James: I almost always recommend buying things that are more beautiful. And have better hyperlinks. And better tables of contents. And tons of bookmarks.
ReplyDeleteOr if you're the kinky spacefaring type: there's a hardcover version.
El-ad David Amir: The prices you see are the prices. The PDF "discount" is simply based off the hardcover print price.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! I look forward to purchasing a copy!
ReplyDeleteExcellent! I think I prefer this cover to the 1st edition.
ReplyDeleteIn a related, but mysterious and enigmatic, side note: expect a fairly long email from em in the next couple of days.
Well done James, an inspiration to us all to do our bit for self publishing OSR/OGL (even if it is only homebrew on a blog).
ReplyDeleteHope you sell millions and get to retire :)
Cheers
Damian
Well done, it looks great.
ReplyDeleteExcellent work -- and well priced! HB + PDF looks to be a great deal. More winter reading is not a bad thing.
ReplyDeleteKeep up the good work!
-BJ
James, can you give us a little info about the system? I know that you're a big Traveller fan, so I'm wondering if this is inspired by Miller or something completely original.
ReplyDeleteRobert: The PDF preview that you can download from RPGNow includes the entire first chapter, which has the basic mechanics.
ReplyDeleteLovely! Might have to see about getting a copy in the new year.
ReplyDeleteWasn't there some talk about an epub version?
ReplyDeleteLove that cover!
ReplyDeleteFor the extra $5, I ordered the hardcover. Presently, I'm reading the PDF that comes bundled for free with your print order (make sure you check that option!). Congratulations, James. :)
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, James.
ReplyDeleteOut of curiosity - why isn't this a Rogue Games release, like the first version?
As someone working on a sci fi RPG, my hat's off to you. You handle some of the problems with the genre elegantly and have made a game I'd love to play. I've been reading it over the last couple of days. Really terrific!
ReplyDeleteI'm really enjoying it. I wish I had a group of players interested in sci-fi. My only gripe is that when choosing a non-human race I have to jump a chapter ahead and then come back. Just a pet peeve of mine. It seems that every rpg book ever made has some bit of jumping chapters during character creation... anyway, Thousand Suns is truly a stellar(HA!) product.
ReplyDeleteWow, that looks like a massive undertaking. Congrats!
ReplyDeleteexpect a fairly long email from em in the next couple of days.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to it! My apologies for not being better in touch recently, but I've been distracted between getting this book done and sundry holiday-related preparations.
Out of curiosity - why isn't this a Rogue Games release, like the first version?
ReplyDeleteQuite simply I wanted to have a go at shepherding the line myself. The release of a new edition of the rulebook seemed the best time to have a go at this.
As someone working on a sci fi RPG, my hat's off to you. You handle some of the problems with the genre elegantly and have made a game I'd love to play. I've been reading it over the last couple of days. Really terrific!
ReplyDeleteThanks kindly. I can't tell you how pleased I am to hear you say this.
Will it be for sale at other venues than POD? The shipping charges for those of us serving oversea are horrendous in terms of money and time.
ReplyDeleteWill it be for sale at other venues than POD? The shipping charges for those of us serving oversea are horrendous in terms of money and time.
ReplyDeleteThere are no current plans for anything but POD, but that may change if there's sufficient demand. Where are you located?
Okinawa...I ordered a copy and had it sent to my parents. It takes a bit more than a week to get here by Priority, and over 6 weeks by media mail. I figure with it being shipped this way it'll get here that much quicker. I am guessing on the times from my experience in Yokosuka, but Okinawa is even further off the beaten track.
ReplyDeleteI ordered the hardcover/pdf combo. I am really impressed so far, both with the game itself and the physical object. Thank you for the hard work that obviously went into this project. Well done.
ReplyDeleteI got my hardcover yesterday, and it looks great. A little smaller than I expected (6-1/4"x9-1/2"), but that is fine.
ReplyDeleteOne thing you might go in and correct for future purchases is the bleed tab on the chapter 9 starships section. It is in the same position (bottom of 3 tabs) as chapter 8. Chapter 10 is in the correct position in the middle tab, so if you correct the pdfs to move it to the top tab, that should be fine.
Good day sir! Very good product you have there. I have read other 12° products and I have to say this one has the best rules and the best layout.
ReplyDeleteI was gonna go an buy some of the other books in the line - Starships, Foundation Transmissions, etc. - but they are not available on drivethrurpg.com...
Any plans of releasing these books soon?
James, is the hardcover option gone for good? It seems to be gone now from Rpgnowmand Drivethrurpg.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the hard work that obviously went into this project. Well done.
ReplyDeleteYou have no idea how pleased I am to hear you say this. Thanks so much for the kind words.
One thing you might go in and correct for future purchases is the bleed tab on the chapter 9 starships section. It is in the same position (bottom of 3 tabs) as chapter 8. Chapter 10 is in the correct position in the middle tab, so if you correct the pdfs to move it to the top tab, that should be fine.
ReplyDeleteI'll mention that to Adam. One of the nice things about POD is that it's relatively easy to correct errors like this quickly.
I was gonna go an buy some of the other books in the line - Starships, Foundation Transmissions, etc. - but they are not available on drivethrurpg.com...
ReplyDeleteAny plans of releasing these books soon?
Yes. I plan to make most of the earlier books available again in PDF form. However, I have plans to give them all new layouts and additional art later, but that takes time. Until that happens, I won't likely have POD options for these other books, but you can expect to see that option sometime this year. The content of the books won't change much, just the appearance.
James, is the hardcover option gone for good? It seems to be gone now from Rpgnowmand Drivethrurpg.
ReplyDeleteIt's a temporary thing. The hardcover should be available again in a few days.