Hey gang,

As I was 'hanging out' at my FLGS (Favorite Local Game Shop) I happened to be there when there was a bunch of 'kids' (20+ years) setting up to play 4th Ed.  I asked how it played and how it compared to AD&D, 2nd or 3rd and they said "Don't know man, we only played 4th".  Which I actually found encouraging for the hobby since it means there's new blood being created in the hobby without the long legacy of grognards and old-school DMs dragging our kids, nieces and nephews into our hobby.

Anyway, so a brief chat ensued and I mentioned that I collect 'old school' stuff and they were surprised that any of it still exists(!).  They were moderately intrigued and I told them, in my opinion, the original modules are the first instances of interactive literature, the way many are referring to video/internet games today.  Etc..  5 minutes later I had created some new hobbyists(maybe.. or perhaps they decided to humor the old guy so that I wouldn't beat them with my cane), given a sales pitch on The Acaeum and told them how to search Ebay for stuff.

It occurred to me that perhaps we, as the 'premiere D&D collecting group' (ahem), should maybe create a collecting primer in PDF form.  Something 'marketable' that describes the hobby, highlights different elements of the hobby, throws in screen shots of some of 'the rares' and tells people how to participate.

Then, to help spread the word include the piece (I'm thinking 1-2 pages) in all our auctions.

I do not know whether it's a good idea to particularly promote The Acaeum as I think it's kind of nice that there's a level of obscurity to the community so the super-noobs don't generally find us.  Then again, it'd be fun to have new collectors and future experts get excited about the shiny new B2 they just scored off Ebay.

Still with me? (Verbosity is a virtue I tell you!)

Here's my stab at an outline for collecting with an idea of putting noobs on a path to get good info, be smart about buying, be GOOD about selling and how to share the joy of collecting and remembering these old classics.

New Collector Primer
1. Why Collect Old D&D Stuff?
 -Fun
 -Interest/Memories
 -History
 -Value
2. What Should I Look For?
 -"Main Modules"
 -"The Rares"
 -Series and Scenarios (Ravenloft/Planescape etc..)
3. How do I find this old stuff?
 - Ebay
 - Craigslist
 - Yard Sales/Estate Sales
 - Used Book Stores
 - Online sites that specialize
 - Burnt Wire's Attic
4. How to buy carefully
 - Don't buy PDFs
 - A word on rarity and condition
 - Buying Lots and Collections
 - Seller's reputation/handling complaints
5. How to be a good seller
 - Grading your items
 - Describing your items
 - Getting help in putting a value on it
 - Don't get burned by Ebay or bad buyers
6. Share the Fun
 - Sites that talk about old-school gaming
 - Cons and Events
 - FLGS support
 - Setting up your own site
7. Stories about collecting
  (A few excerpts of epic finds and discoveries)
 - My $40 Woodgrain find..heh.
 - Rediscovering 'lost works'
8. How to collect NOW
 - Talk about grabbing up all the stuff that's floating around now


Anyway... That's my brain dump.  

The primary benefit to US is a larger hobby and potentially recruit some old-school types who have stories to tell, original lore or art, or cache's of old D&D stuff that may enter the market.  Maybe improve the level of Ebay exchanges and dislodge some new material once people know there's a market for it.

If successful, it may create more competition for auctions which could be 'bad' for some, but I doubt this will ever be a speculative bubble-type of community so I think the more the merrier.


Do you think it's a good idea?

Any interest in contributing?

One would hope that anyone interested in collecting would have the mindset to, at minimum, use common sense and when that fails, use a thing called research. Collecting is not something one just falls into -- it is a disease you actively search to keep.

1) Elements of it, I think, could be of use to even those who are well within the affliction such as a good source of "the rares" and even other ways to find these damned things. Some of it could be of use to fresh faces, too. I really don't think a new person needs to be told how "fun" it is -- they are either doing it because they want or expect it to be fun, or because they expect to make a profit. I'd rather a primer cover pitfalls and traps, like mold, rust, and who to not buy from (which it seems is in other sections of the proposal.)

2) Yes. Most of it. The valuation is harder to do, though.

3) People have to write it, first... that takes an ungodly amount of time. I know I would say I would contribute, but I have my own stuff I'm doing, and would it would likely never happen. Honesty is honesty, and while I want to say it would happen... it probably would not unless someone got a bug and cranked it like a ho with meth lipstick.

Go for it, but I don't see it selling. If someone collects, they don't really need a "Collecting D&D For Dummies" book to tell them how to suck eggs. Not even the stupidest of collectors are that stupid. They collect because they used to play. Most collect because they used to DM. That means they have always had brains. They don't need to 'learn' what you propose to teach. Most are accomplished and highly intelligent in walks of life that provide enough money and free time to allow them to indulge in such frippery as nostalgic collection of games. These people have no real use for what you propose. Maybe some might buy out of some sence of support or morbid curiosity, but I doubt neither the cudos of being published nor the trickle of any revenue would make the venture worthwhile. It seems like self indulgent back patting, more about wanting to be a writer than actually doing anything worthwhile.

GamesGuy wrote:Hey gang,
4. How to buy carefully
 - Don't buy PDFs

A final note. If you're going to write a book ostensibly about collecting RPGs or D&D, KEEP IT FACTUAL. Do not express your own personal opinios about what should or should not be collected, or how to market, research or buy or sell goods without being able to back your conclusions up with facts. While some people may buy a book based on facts, they will not buy a book based on your opinions about what they should do. Ank either keep the subject matter tight, or make sure you know what you're talking about. The statement quoted above would seem to indicate a big gap in your knowledge base. Some PDFs are worth money. SOme are rare. Some exchange hands for substatial sums of cash. This is going to change in the future, especially seeing as companies like Necromancer Games used to publish certain titles in PDF form and no longer do so, Troll Lord Games too, and those titles are remarkably hard to come by. Digital information has marketable value and whilst it is currently illegal to resell it once it has been purchased, that has yet to be proven in law in any country in the world.

Just telling it like it is.

Well, I've been gone a long while but I'm well aware that the Acaeum comes with 'sharp edges'.  Good thing I've got a solid -2 Forum AC.

So a couple of points to clear up:

I wasn't proposing "The Acaeum" officially do this, but that we might have something to say since we've suffered the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune of collecting.

It's not a book for cryin' out loud.  More like one or two sides of a sheet of paper. Think of it as 'Player Handout' with 'Flavor Text' for the 'D&D Collecting Adventure for Levels 0-1'  Make more sense?

It's not for people who ARE collectors.  It's for people who never even considered collecting but might become interested.

I like to work on things like this with people but I value the opinion of the community and if there's no takers or interest and the general feeling is "bad idea" then I have a LOOONG list of other things I want to do so this is easy to drop.

I forgot that many of you take this very seriously so attracting people may not be a plus.  Fair enough.  It gives me more time to work on my board game.

Gnat the Beggar wrote:GG, sorry if some replies seemed harsh.
As you astutely acknowledged, those who are already collectors might be hesitant to welcome new blood; some of us more than others.
I would support a small handout of clues for newbie collectors though a larger book format would, as you stated be too cumbersome.

This I do not understand.

Do we not want to promote our hobby (D&D?), or are we just that competitive in our collecting that we're afraid that some newb is going to snipe our bids?

mbassoc2003 wrote:I'm all for promoting collecting and expanding the community at large. It increases demand and drives up prices, and one or two in every hundred newbies move up to the rares and the uniques, and perhaps ten in every hundred move away from TSR and look seriously at the non-TSR. Without this type of propegation, we are all sitting on depreciating collections. New blood brings in new money, and occasionally new knowledge and new discoveries.

Mars is a case in point. In the four/five years he's been here, he's single-handedly done more to expand and share his discoveries of non-TSR small print works than anyone in a long time. And whilst he is now more restrained, wise and frugal about his purchases (experience does that to collectors), in the early years he brought a lot of money to eBay and bought and sold a lot of stuff at good prices.

As a reseller, the first two years of new collectors' careers are very important times. They account for a lot of business.



As regards length of article, I cannot for the life of me understand why a one or two side article on how to be a collector of D&D would be able to either be of any benefit to a newbie, or impart any quantity of useful knowledge. Unless of course the audience were dense, in which case they'd be better off being encouraged to collect beer mats.

I get the impression you do not understand your potential reader, their intelligence level, or their motivations. I would have thought understanding your target audience were the most important single factor you need to know. Unless of course this were some personal pat on the head.

Again... what Ian said.
Do not think we should discourage newbies at all.
Just dont see a lot of helpfulness in an introduction/how to collect article as explained above.
I do not see it and cannot understand what it is suppose to do for the newbies when (IMO) all you need do is give them a list of helpdful web sites.
Like this one.
That would push them to do their own research from reading fan/collector forums and reviewing product lists, such as those available here.
Once one is written (how to collect article) and provided for review here, perhaps I will change my thoughts on it.
At this time, I do not see how you can tell any collector what or how to collect.
THEY will figure those things out for themselves, or they will fall to the wayside... and go back to watching old movies, playing video games, tinkering with building stuff, whittling small pieces of wood, or some other form of entertainment.

In case any of you are wondering, I've elected not to pursue this further so, be at ease collectors.  I will do nothing to upset the delicate balance of the collector ecosystem from this venue.

Close thread. Move on.  Nothing to see here.