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D&D 3.0 Beta Books...
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Invincible Overlord
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Posted: Mon Aug 08, 2011 11:21 am

Now that I have the PHB And DMG Beta Books for 3.0, I was wondering if there was ever a Beta Book for the Monster Manual?

RPGâ€™s, D&D in particular has had a major influence in my life. Itâ€™s bonded me together with life long friends...itâ€™s that bond in life not just as friends, but in our jokes, our mannerisms, and what we find funny. Invincible Overlord

Phentari
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Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2011 11:34 pm

All I can tell you on that count is that we didn't receive them. We were sent copies of the PHB and DMG, and that was it.

Mars
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Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2011 11:46 pm

I can vaguely recall seeing one in an Ebay auction. But I don't think it was available to RPGA members like the PH and DMG copies.

Phentari
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Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2011 12:25 am

If so, they also weren't sending it to companies vying for licensed status, which is how I got my PHB and DMG. It's possible; I just don't know.

Mars
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Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:13 am

I may be thinking of the copy that Burntwire Bros have/had:

Monte Cook's personal Pre-Pub copy 3E Monster Manual w/ stack of in-house copies pre-pub artwork, signed.

It may not have been as mainstream as the PH and DMG but I am now pretty sure it exists - remember it being in the same format as the other two books.

Invincible Overlord
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 11:49 am

I got a response back from Monte Cook this morning:
-------------------------------------------------------------
Andrew,

I am about 90% certain that there was no beta-copy of the MM. I also believe that there were a lot more PHB betas than DMG betas, for what that's worth.

Monte
------------------------------------------------------------

faro
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Posted: Fri Aug 12, 2011 2:21 pm

My money's on the 10%...

"7.3 ORGANIZING THE PARTY: Always have a keg, even if it's BYOB...
7.4 TAKING THE GAME SERIOUSLY: Don't"

Invincible Overlord
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Posted: Fri Aug 12, 2011 4:19 pm

faro wrote:My money's on the 10%...

I'm sure that he would have some notes, or something of the such...

... alright... enough prodding... I'll pursue the matter further.

faro
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Posted: Fri Aug 12, 2011 4:54 pm

And I'll have a dig through the files, too.

I guess it would make sense /if/ the MM pre-pub was in-house only and that PHBs were more common (+thx) but I don't think anyone had documented the full story.

"7.3 ORGANIZING THE PARTY: Always have a keg, even if it's BYOB...
7.4 TAKING THE GAME SERIOUSLY: Don't"

Invincible Overlord
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Posted: Sat Aug 13, 2011 2:13 pm

faro wrote:And I'll have a dig through the files, too.

I guess it would make sense /if/ the MM pre-pub was in-house only and that PHBs were more common (+thx) but I don't think anyone had documented the full story.

I was sitting next to Phentari when I won his DMG 3.0 beta copy, then the guy in front of us turned behind us to chat a bit.

He mention that he was the guy who ran the AD&D Open tournaments for 15+ years and was one of the guys who got the playtest books for 3.0. And he mentioned that his playtest groups got a ratio of 8:1 PHB's to DMG's, which makes the DMG's that much rarer.

Phentari
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Posted: Sat Aug 13, 2011 2:28 pm

Invincible Overlord wrote:
I was sitting next to Phentari when I won his DMG 3.0 beta copy, then the guy in front of us turned behind us to chat a bit.

He mention that he was the guy who ran the AD&D Open tournaments for 15+ years and was one of the guys who got the playtest books for 3.0. And he mentioned that his playtest groups got a ratio of 8:1 PHB's to DMG's, which makes the DMG's that much rarer.

I find it sort of funny that you pinpointed the price before the auction ever happened. I should've just sold it to you directly and saved myself the commission fees.

Invincible Overlord
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Posted: Sat Aug 13, 2011 2:38 pm

*chuckle*

Told ya... :geek:

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