From pendragon-l@theurgy.digex.net Tue Jul 28 01:57:06 1998 Date: Tue, 28 Jul 1998 01:57:05 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <199807280556.WAA01045@pcorless-sun.cisco.com> From: Peter Corless Subject: [PENDRAGON-L:3322] "Pendragon" Major News To all, Thanks for the prompting of David Scott & Tim Ellis on this list. Many people know about this privately, yet now I wanted to go "public" with the news. I hope, if it is a surprise, it is a pleasant one. Also, forgive if this is a very "formal" sounding letter, and also rather long. I am hoping it anticipates, presents and answers any business issues you may have. Future letters should be a bit more playful. Pete Owns Pendragon I (Peter Corless) now own the Trademark and all Copyrights associated with "King Arthur Pendragon(TM)". I wanted to share with you the background on how this came to happen, plus provide an update to the current state and future fate of "Pendragon." Last June, I assisted Chaosium with a financial loan. The terms were quite favorable -- zero percent interest, with a repayment term of one year. The only security I asked for was to hold the "King Arthur Pendragon" trademark and all associated copyrights and licenses in case of failure to repay. My entire intent was to ensure Chaosium could continue to operate and sell their products at a profitable, sustainable level. My desire was to solve troubles caused by a cash-flow shortage in an unrelated Chaosium product line. Yet I love the tales of King Arthur, love the Pendragon games, and would love to make certain current and new generations of players find it there waiting, a discoverable treasure, in print and in stock. So, I asked for no "usury" -- no interest -- but did ensure to my friends and family I wasn't insane for putting no obligation of repayment on Chaosium. The owners of Chaosium and I agreed, given Chaosium's core focus on Call of Cthulhu, and their state of affairs, plus my own substantial work founding Celebrate History (www.celebratehistory.com), there was not much opportunity through 1997-1998 to produce anything other than a point product or two in the "Pendragon" product line: Liam Routt continued to work remotely on products, and separately a reprint of "Boy King" appeared. Chaosium was responsible for the production of all of these products. Current State of Affairs In June of 1998, Chaosium indicated it was ready to transfer Pendragon to me, rather than repay the principle of the loan. I also declined to convert my loan into shares of ownership in Chaosium. Instead, Chaosium and I are currently operating under an agreement whereby Chaosium continues to retain all income generated and pay all costs for products covered under the "Pendragon" trademark. In return, Chaosium cannot print any new materials or reprint any existing materials without my permission. Only the ownership of the intellectual property (IP) has changed hands so far. This agreement is in effect now, and we hope to have something more permanent in place by August. Through June and July, I have been familiarizing myself with the state of "Pendragon", talking with the owners and staff of Chaosium, and brainstorming ideas with friends and members of the gaming community. I attended Origins '98 in Ohio, to talk with various companies and individuals about ideas, and I wanted to share these here with you as well. Plenty of Stock Onhand: Both Good Thing & Bad Thing? Chaosium has a good amount of stock for current titles in print. I'd like to change that by encouraging you to get all of your friends to buy a complete set of books. Be like Saint Patrick and "convert the heathen." ;-) Liam Routt & Products In Pipeline Liam and I have discussed at length the current titles in the production schedule, the outstanding obligations to writers and artists, and so on. Liam is interested in remaining line developer for now, and is as concerned as we all are for the smooth transition into the future. Basically, both he and I want to make sure that we publish products, and all associated parties are properly paid for their efforts. I can assure you I want to maintain a sane and maintainable production schedule, and to create the best products for the best line in the gaming industry. I have no further specific commitments at this time, other than to say we are hoping to have a present for all Pendragon fans around the world by Christmas-time. Whither the Withering Gaming Market? The last few years have been brutal for gaming. Too many titles flooded the market, and the choice of media -- from online gaming to collectible card games, etc. -- have spread the marketbase way too thin. As a result, too many companies have failed financially, both old and new. The world is seeming to grow increasingly faster and more complex, and the rate of turnover of game companies is frightening. In this is both the destruction of the current gaming industry, and the birth of the new one. SPI gave way to TSR, which gave way to WOTC. The cycle can and will turn again. The question is, of course, when and how. Some friends frankly think it's foolish for me to be financially involved in gaming at all. I think one of the advantages of doing "Pendragon" is I don't care if it's wildly profitable. I just know I have to try. And, like most chivalric tales of adventure, hopelessly romantic fools believe there may actually be a way they can succeed. My opinion is there is a desire for simplicity and nostalgia brewing: the desire for familiar subject matters and pleasing formats. People don't want to be intimidated by rules; they want to be entertained. They want to spend as little time getting the hang of things possible, such as the way many people intuitively dive into "shoot-em-ups" like Quake or CCGs, which are actually difficult to master or are byzantinely convoluted, but have seemingly low barriers to entry. The same is true for the "LARPable" rules of the Worlds of Darkness (Vampire, Werewolf, etc.) The romantic/nostalgic growth is for something to "unplug" the Internet generation, to provide a little optimism in a stark post-industrial, antisocial world. A counter to the "Worlds of Darkness", which was the game for the Grunge Generation. We're now getting closer to the turn of the millenia, an opporunity to reflect on the past, and to look ahead. I am hoping "King Arthur Pendragon" -- the "Once and Future King" -- could be at the center of a good and timely "counter-revolution" in gaming. I hope it becomes "the game" you buy for yourself, your friends, or your kids. A game about the way thing used to be, or ought to be, played the way they used to, or ought to be played. Dice, paper, pencils, the inspiration of wonderful books, and your own imagination. Mix, and you have adventure! Pendragon As A "Trustmark" What I'd like to do is to turn "King Arthur Pendragon" from a trademark to a "trustmark". Something that you see and recognize. Something you hear about and smile. High brand-name recognition is cause for major dollars. Across industries, think about the Nike "swoosh", think about the ears of Mickey Mouse on all those Disney products. Within the hobby game industry, think about "Magic the Gathering," or "D&D" during it's heyday. These are "trustmarks". This means, designing in mind for a new generation of players -- aiming to capture the 12-16 year old crowd -- and also scaling up to those in the audience who have carried the love for gaming throughout their lives. "King Arthur Pendragon" is a "name-brand" as it were, which has existed for centuries. His name alone sells titles, as do other names, like "Merlin" "Lancelot", "Guenevere", or other famous Arthurian these as "Knights of the Round Table," the "Ladies of the Lake," the "Holy Grail," "Camelot," "Avalon", and so forth. These are names that inspire and last, even as one game or another, or even one media or the other can come or go. Other media should be added, even and especially the Internet, but I think I'd like to infuse these with the dark ages/medieval culture and ideas. The central themes and characters of "King Arthur Pendragon" should pour like water into the imagination of the public. But this will take time to build out from the current core of fans to new markets. Necessary Split from Chaosium Pendragon has somewhat suffered under Chaosium's management, in my opinion, because it was never given a full-time line manager over the last decade. Someone to craft the vision, to execute the plans, and to oversee the progress of the line as a work-as-a-whole. Because of that, one of the greatest potential, popular-culture games, one that can appeal as much to women as to men, to adults as to children, has lain fallow, abused, like a gorgeous old castle in ruins. As an aside, the very name of "Chaosium" is almost counter to the powerful Arthurian themes of knights of chivalry, the law and order of Camelot, the search for meaning and purpose in the pursuit of the Grail, and so on. It's always just seemed an aesthetic conflict in my mind. As well, the current finances of Chaosium dictate "Pendragon" should remain separate in operations from Chaosium, probably published under a different name, to allow each part of the business to sustain focus on core interests. "Pendragon" needs a publisher and line developer, while Chaosium must focus on sales and distribution, plus Call of Cthulhu as its core intellectual property. Therefore, as the relationship develops, I expect to create a separate company with a name more appropriate to hold the "King Arthur Pendragon" trademark. This company will be the "publisher" of Pendragon products, even if they are still sold and distributed by Chaosium, Inc., carried in Wizard's Attic, and so on. The trademark is still officially and currently on file at the PTO under Chaosium's name until we can get this new company founded. The Grand Plan Many people know some of the Pendragon roleplaying ideas I've had in the past. Now I have the opportunity to finance them personally, and the ownership necessary to control directions and strategies. It will be up to you to judge my progress, and I hope to bring some fun and excitement back to the game line. The greatest value "Pendragon" has is to provide an understandable view of the world of Arthurian legend, with mechanics and guidelines to create your own points of entry. Most of the "supplements" already exist in many ways, from Penguin paperbacks of great Arthurian literature, to guidebooks and maps of the British Isles, to web sites, to movies, and more. What "Pendragon" as a product line provides is the "key" to this world of fantasy, myth, literature, and history, allowing the player to enter and participate themselves -- to add their own new chapters and tales. In order to make it a sustainable, long-term venture, it will require building back the brand equity. This means perhaps more products, perhaps of higher quality in prose and presentation, and perhaps more outsourcing to 3rd-party licensees, with thought to overall directions and purpose. What Is Under Consideration? Right now, I am greatly in the "exploration phase" for the product line. My thoughts are "anything is possible, but cheaper is more likely." I am not a millionaire, but have enough money put aside for Pendragon projects to be able to produce a few titles a year. I'd rather build up a line of many lower-cost, lower-risk products, than to put all the eggs in one basket right now. For instance, I don't believe it would be prudent to just release a whole new edition of rules immediately. Liam has a good few manuscripts of knightly adventures & supplents on disk already; titles & schedules are TBD. Besides the standard fare of RPG books, I'd also be willing to consider ideas "outside the box", away from the realm of pure "dice & paper" and book-based roleplaying games. I'd like to produce a set of miniatures skirmish rules ("Tourneys & Jousting" for example) with some good figures in sets, plus perhaps a GM screen. Maybe even fund/sponsor a more-professional-looking low-end magazine (the publishers of "Beaumains" should contact me), plus a package of endorsed events for gaming conventions (i.e., sort of "RPGA-ize" Pendragon events -- imagine a "Pendragon Tourney", which would be a combination of a miniatures painting contest -- "The Helm Show" -- plus a battle-skirmish miniatures game, with heavy roleplaying elements). These are just ideas under consideration. But the examples are all "low-impact" and "back-to-basics" steps to heighten awareness and interest, while limiting initial costs. Meanwhile, the core income needs to be brought back to selling titles on hand, and saving up for the major new ventures -- online games that feel real swell & Arthurian, computer games etc. However, online games and computer games are "capital intensive" -- sometimes taking millions of dollars. Trade paperbacks and professional magazines are less capital intensive, but are proven revenue-generators. My friend Dana Lombardy is the publisher of "Napoleon" magazine, and we have discussed late into the night what a "King Arthur" magazine might also look like. Books, movies and television are also wild ideas, but would take years to develop. But I figure -- it's good to dream big dreams. To get back to core competencies, and to revivify the central RPG line, I'd like a unified set of rules in long run that make it suitable for all forms, such as "storytelling/dice & paper", tabletop miniatures/skirmishing, and for LARPing as well. I'd also love to do other game media like boardgames and CCGs, but only through licensing for now, or by waiting until the return on some initial investments. These are all long-term ideas. First we need to see if we can make the game viable again in the short-term & mid-term before we tackle "Year 2000" and beyond. If anyone else is interested in privately investing in development of any future "King Arthur Pendragon" products, or investing your time or energy in the line in general, please let me know. The Importance of You I'd like to ask you all to take an active role in providing your input and feedback. Please be courteous of my time, as this is the email address of my "day job"; I cannot devote full-time activities to Pendragon at this time. Yet feel free to shop your ideas to me. If you want to be paid for a great idea, tell me how much, and by when you could deliver. If you think a product is horrid and you want to shoot the author and artist, let me know. If you think you are sitting on the manuscript of the greatest adventure never published, let me know. Like any medieval lord, I'd like to have an "open court" to enterain all guests and any ideas they might have, and be a good "patron of the arts", allowing the artists and poets in our ranks to be able to earn a fair day's wages. The Glass into the Future Probably around August or September, Chaosium and I will address more detailed plans for production schedules, and for a formal, long-term business relationship. There's still a lot of questions and ideas we have to solidify, but so far, everything seems to be going rather well. In order to make any of this possible, I believe we need to continue to please you, as the core players and long term fans of "Pendragon-l". You must feel as if I am the proper steward for the "Pendragon" line, and enjoy this vision for the future. At the same time, I know Greg Stafford, the original visionary for Pendragon, plus the gang at Chaosium, the company that has devoted so much time over the years sheparding the line through the market, will have their input to the future of "King Arthur Pendragon" as well. I consider us all a community, bound by a common interest and love for Arthurian roleplaying, and everyone involved to be both good friends and associates. I look forward to your comments. Here's to a new future for "Pendragon"! Sincerely, -Peter Corless. pcorless@cisco.com p.s. Also, I'd like to thank someone for their inspiration over the last year: Anna Kovacs. (Yes, it's been a full year, and I never quite sent a thank you, did I?) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - "King Arthur Pendragon"(tm) is a registered trademark of Peter Corless, well, as soon as the paperwork gets signed over to me. Meanwhile, it's still on file at the Patent & Trademark Office (PTO) under Chaosium, Inc. All rights reserved.