My parents were in town for a visit this past couple of days, and after a tasty Indian dinner last night, they and my girlfriend and I happened to walk past my favorite local game store, into which I couldn't resist poking my head, and guess what they had, to my delight? A pristine used copy of the 1e AD&D Monster Manual, the last of the original AD&D core rulebooks I need for my (newly restored) collection. Sweetening the deal was the fact that my mom bought it for me. . . just like she and dad bought me that first Holmes D&D Boxed set back in '82. Truly, some things never change. A big score -- thanks mom!
That Monster Manual haul was a harbinger of further happy things to come, because today, after suffering through a bit of a cash flow slowdown over the past couple of weeks, some unexpected money came into the coffers, so I immediately rushed online and ordered my own print copy of the Labyrinth Lord Revised Edition -- up until now I have been making do with a print copy of the un-revised LL rulebook lent to me by my generous friend (and Mutant Lord) Carl, as well as a free download of the Revised Edition Core Rules pdf. Further, while I was at the Goblinoid Games online print store I also bought an additional secret goodie that I will be reviewing with an eye for possible incorporation into my upcoming Arandish Labyrinth Lord campaign. Since I am one of those people who fetishizes books and printed things, I am extremely thrilled to think that my LL books are being bound as I type this and are soon to be shipped my way! Huzzah!
Now I just have to wait for James Raggi IV to get The Grinding Gear up on the Lamentations of the Flame Princess web store. . .
What game store? I'm in Eugene too, just wondering what place carries used or older stuff like that...
ReplyDelete@ze bulette - Man, there are all kinds of stores in the Eugene area that carry used/old stuff. Both Smith Family Bookstores (campus and 5th street locations) have a small selection of used RPGs, and if you go to the campus one, poke your head in Emerald Comics (same building as Smith Family, just across the hall from the main entrance to the bookstore) because they have a large selection of RPGs, both new and used. Just across the bridge into Springfield is Second Story Books, which is a great little book store and the owner is a cool old codger - he has, in addition to a couple of shelves of RPGs that are displayed, BOXES of used RPG stuff that he sells online and will sell you for 25% off if you buy it at the store. Plus he has cut me a deal every time I have ever bought stuff there, slicing a few bucks off here and there - for instance, I bought Carter a copy of the 1e Player's Handbook just last week from Second Story Books because I knew he was looking for it, and even though it was marked at $7, he gave it to me for $5!
ReplyDeleteThere is another store on 11th in between Wilamette and Oak called something like Addictive Behaviors, they mostly have Magic and other collectible trading card games but they have a small shelf of used/old and discounted RPGs. They also have some very reasonable prices on the newer D&D minis if you are interested in such a thing. There is another game store that I have never actually been in next to Sundance grocery store on 24th and Hilyard called something like Black Sun, I have been meaning to check that out but I never get around to it!
Last but certainly not least, the St. Vinnies Bookstore on 11th and Pearl is the absolute cheapest place to buy anything that you can find there, RPGs included. D&D books disappear almost as fast as they come in, but paperbacks are only $1.25 (!) and hardcovers are $2.50 (!!!) so if you get lucky and find something you can't beat the price. They also have a decent selection of fantasy and sci-fi books, so check it out!
Yes, Carl is actually the MASTER at finding out-of-print stuff in the Eugene-Springfield area, yet interestingly the store I went to Friday night is that one he refers to down on Hilyard and 24th (next door to Taste of India and Black Sun Books) called Evolution Gaming. I like Evolution better than Addictive Behaviors up on 11th -- it is a bigger, nicer store and the staff is quite friendly. Maybe not an abundance of 1e stuff -- in fact there seemed to much more newer (3.0 onward) D&D stuff plus books from other non-D&D systems that I cannot recall right now (I hazily remember a bunch of White Wolf products like VAMPIRE etc.), so I may have simply lucked out on the MM purchase. but the proprietor said he buys any used stuff that comes in the door, so it is certainly worth a look from time to time. I (or rather, my mom) paid $10 for the (extremely pristine) Monster Manual.
ReplyDeleteIn related news, I have been TENTATIVELY pondering the idea of becoming a volunteer Labyrinth Lord game rep. sometime next year, and if I decide to pursue that, Evolution Gaming would be the first shop I would hit up to host an LL demo session. It's a really classy place with lots of folks in there playing Warhammer and a few Magic-esque card-based games.
Ah! I'm aware of all of those places, I just didn't realize that they ever had older rpg stuff, I'll have to look a little harder next time I visit. It's funny that you mention Emerald Comics, I once asked the owner (well, the guy behind the counter anyhow) if he had any old school stuff and he basically said no and directed me to the last copy of Hackmaster on the shelf. I'll poke around in there a bit more next time I'm in the neighborhood. Black Sun is an excellent bookstore, it's next door to the game store which I can't remember the name of either - it's a good game store, seems very heavily Warhammer and mini focused.
ReplyDeleteEmerald Comics is hit or miss, depending on what used stuff walks in the door. There are a fair amount of 1e hardcovers in there right now, as well as a smattering of 2e stuff. I lucked out and got a whole pile of the classic 1e adventures for $3 each from Emerald, as well as a lot of other random stuff (a fair amount of old mystara D&D books, the dragonlance 5th age game for shits and giggles, some dark sun monster manuals, the B/X rule books, and more that I can't remember right now). Like I said, it just depends on what has come in the door recently, because it tends to get snapped up.
ReplyDeleteI got a the AWESOME James Bond 007 game (I think that is what it is called) from the 5th street Smith Family Bookstore. Gotta love used and cheap RPGs.