| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Lemernis |
Posted - 27 Oct 2012 : 11:22:00
Are the following 2nd edition AD&D books all available for free now as downloads in various places out there on the Interweb?:
- Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting - A Grand Tour of the Realms
- 2nd edition AD&D Monstrous Manual
- AD&D Player's Handbook 2nd Edition
- AD&D Core Rulebook - Dungeon Master's Guide
And is there still an official location for people to buy them such that the authors can receive royalties?
Also, for 2e Forgotten Realms books, modules, etc., I recall much (all?) of that was available for free download from WotC years ago. Is that still the case? And is there also a place where those books can be downloaded such that authors might continue to receive a royalty check?
Thanking you in advance! |
| 21 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Dark Wizard |
Posted - 30 Mar 2013 : 03:12:27
I started with the covers these premium reprints were based on. As much as I'm fond of those books, I have to agree the original 2E covers had a certain energy to them. I heard the mid-90s black spine 2E books had better organization and color art which makes the interior appear more modern. Kind of wished they mixed the revision interior with the original cover art. Then it would be something sort of unique. I don't have the books with the original cover and it would be an excuse to get these new reprints. I still have near pristine copies of the mid-90s 2E core books, so these would be redundant. |
| 9thChapter |
Posted - 28 Mar 2013 : 06:20:40
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
I prefered the original, dude-on-horseback (not to be confused with Dûd Onahorz!  ) cover for the 2E PHB. I saw a lot of that particular cover, back in the day.
I agree. These new covers don't relate to me in the way the originals do. The artwork was beautiful on those covers. Seems a shame to cover it/limit it by black space, |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 28 Mar 2013 : 03:38:01
I prefered the original, dude-on-horseback (not to be confused with Dûd Onahorz! ) cover for the 2E PHB. I saw a lot of that particular cover, back in the day. |
| Dark Wizard |
Posted - 27 Mar 2013 : 23:19:37
WotC updated their product page with the refreshed cover for the AD&D 2nd Edition Premium Reprints.
I really like the clean, solid look of the cover redesign. The darker colors is a nice nod to the black borders of the mid-90s revision they're basing this reprint on.
PHB: http://www.wizards.com/DnD/Product.aspx?x=dnd/products/dndacc/35740000
DMG: http://www.wizards.com/DnD/Product.aspx?x=dnd/products/dndacc/35760000
MM: http://www.wizards.com/DnD/Product.aspx?x=dnd/products/dndacc/35750000 |
| The Masked Mage |
Posted - 21 Mar 2013 : 04:45:03
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Dalor Darden
Between Wooly and MT...I think there is a Candlekeep book assassin going about torching good books!
In my case, it was Talos. My stuff was in storage, and the place was struck by lightning.
Who knew Talos and Talona hooked up in our world? |
| NetDiver |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 07:57:53
Wizards very recently opened their back catalog for digital download via DriveThruRPG. They now have their own dedicated subsite, dndclassics.com. It's no longer entirely free (not sure if they've ever been that way), but the download library seems to be growing at a steady rate. Some of the material might have been available previously as there are quite a few very old reviews. Some complain about the scan quality, but it seems WOTC has rescanned most of its newly re-released material. I haven't downloaded any WOTC stuff yet, so I can't comment on the scan quality. Previews seem fine.
There seems to be a divide between the material that might get reprinted and the material that'll be re-release in digital format. So to answer the OP's question, I don't think the core books for AD&D 2nd edition will be available as digital downloads any time soon as I would imagine that Wizards want to sell the coming reprints. There are a few retro clones of 2nd edition available and New Haven Games's Myth & Magic seems to be getting high reviews and seem to regarded as "Pathfinder" of the AD&D 2nd edition. The starter guides for players and GMs are free. |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 21 Nov 2012 : 04:43:14
quote:
Originally posted by Dalor Darden
Between Wooly and MT...I think there is a Candlekeep book assassin going about torching good books!
In my case, it was Talos. My stuff was in storage, and the place was struck by lightning. |
| Vaeldroth |
Posted - 20 Nov 2012 : 22:24:15
I'm all over this. I have several copies of the PHB, but there never seems to be enough to go around. |
| Dalor Darden |
Posted - 18 Nov 2012 : 19:18:00
Between Wooly and MT...I think there is a Candlekeep book assassin going about torching good books! |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 18 Nov 2012 : 19:12:45
quote:
Originally posted by crazedventurers
Aye the 2E core rulebooks will be available early'ish next year
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Premium+2nd+Edition+Advanced+Dungeons
Cheers
Damian
And I, for one, am all over replacing my 2E PHB and DMG! I'd like to see reprints of the 2E Tome of Magic and Book of Artifacts, as well.
My original 2E books were still in very good shape... But books and fire are not the best combination, at least not when you're wanting to keep the books in good condition!  |
| crazedventurers |
Posted - 18 Nov 2012 : 17:12:56
Aye the 2E core rulebooks will be available early'ish next year
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Premium+2nd+Edition+Advanced+Dungeons
Cheers
Damian |
| Vaeldroth |
Posted - 17 Nov 2012 : 18:50:02
quote:
Originally posted by Lemernis
Thanks. It looks like Volo's Guide to the Sword Coast is out of print as well, as I don't see it listed on drivethrurpg.com, rpgnow.com, and rpgshop.com. It looks to me as though if one is purchasing a hard copy of these out-of-print books now it is through small distributors or individuals. I'm assuming that no royalties end up in the hands of the authors for those types of sales, which is the aspect that most concerns me.
You can wait till 2013 then, and see if Wizards publishes their back catalog in e-book format. I don't know if it'll be January, or if you will gt the products you desire.
You might also want to keep an eye on Wizards' web site. They might just reprint some of the 2e material if there is a demand for it. They're reprinting Unearthed Arcana, which shocked me a bit. |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 29 Oct 2012 : 13:17:33
quote:
Originally posted by Lemernis
I'm assuming that no royalties end up in the hands of the authors for those types of sales, which is the aspect that most concerns me.
I'm not really sure why this concerns you so much. Buying second hand copies of out of print books online or at a used book store is perfectly legal. It's not like someone is buying a new book and printing off copies for resale. |
| Brian R. James |
Posted - 29 Oct 2012 : 04:10:33
quote:
Originally posted by Lemernis
I'm assuming that no royalties end up in the hands of the authors for those types of sales, which is the aspect that most concerns me.
Game designers do not receive royalties. Freelancers are paid a one-time fee and full time employees receive their salary. Only novelists earn royalties. |
| Kentinal |
Posted - 28 Oct 2012 : 15:35:38
Lemernis resales person to person does not result in any income to authors.
|
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 28 Oct 2012 : 13:46:15
quote:
Originally posted by Lemernis
Thanks. It looks like Volo's Guide to the Sword Coast is out of print as well, as I don't see it listed on drivethrurpg.com, rpgnow.com, and rpgshop.com. It looks to me as though if one is purchasing a hard copy of these out-of-print books now it is through small distributors or individuals. I'm assuming that no royalties end up in the hands of the authors for those types of sales, which is the aspect that most concerns me.
Anything pre-4E is long out of print, with the exception of the recent, limited-time only releases of the 1E and 3.5 core rulebooks. The 2E core rulebooks are getting that treatment next year. |
| Lemernis |
Posted - 28 Oct 2012 : 07:49:16
Thanks. It looks like Volo's Guide to the Sword Coast is out of print as well, as I don't see it listed on drivethrurpg.com, rpgnow.com, and rpgshop.com. It looks to me as though if one is purchasing a hard copy of these out-of-print books now it is through small distributors or individuals. I'm assuming that no royalties end up in the hands of the authors for those types of sales, which is the aspect that most concerns me. |
| Kentinal |
Posted - 27 Oct 2012 : 18:04:46
Core rules did retail at about 60 to 40. It offered Hypertext or RTF format. Indeed does not offer the Pretty Darn Funny space consuming files. |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 27 Oct 2012 : 17:30:01
There are no longer any free legal downloads of TSR/WotC products.
They've promised to make back-catalog stuff available again, so this will hopefully include pdfs.
The 2E core rulebooks are available in digital format on the Core Rules CD-ROM, I believe. No idea how much one of those will run you, though... And as I recall, those CDs have RTF files instead of the handier pdfs. |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 27 Oct 2012 : 14:35:22
I believe all of the 2E books are out of print so you best bet is used book stores or eBay. |
| Zireael |
Posted - 27 Oct 2012 : 11:59:46
I'm afraid the Wizards official site with the downloads has been taken down when they redid their site again. |
