Free RPG Day

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Free RPG Day is an annual promotional event by the Tabletop_role-playing_game industry. [1] The event rules are fairly simple: participating publishers provide special free copies of games to participating game stores; the game store agrees to provide one free game to any person who requests a free game on Free RPG Day. [2]

History[]

Shannon Appelcline discussed Kenzer & Company's comics "Crisis in Raimiton (2004), an "Adventure Guide to D&D" that Wizards gave away on Free Comic Book Day '04. It told the story of gamers playing D&D, and then the story of the characters they created. Wizards' interest in the free giveaway foreshadowed the industry's interest in a free giveaway day of their own: Free RPG Day."[3]: 91  Appelcline noted that 's "most successful advertising program is one that continues today: Free RPG Day. Beginning in 2007, Impressions has every year coordinated the give-away of original RPG products in game stores across the country, resulting in considerable buzz and interest in those products — which is exactly what Impressions, an advertising and marketing company, was looking for.[4]: 65 

Inspired by Free Comic Book Day, Free RPG Day was started in 2007. [5] The free RPG event was coordinated worldwide by Impressions, a game distributor, from 2007 to 2013.[6]

Appelcline noted that "Goodman Games' last stand against the dying d20 market was Free RPG Day 2007. Where most companies were offering up a single product of variable quality, Goodman contributed three different books to Free RPG Day, each one of them a top-quality production."[4]: 90  Paizo Publishing previewed the new GameMastery Modules series with D0: Hollow's Last Hope (2007), which showed up on June 23, 2007, at the first Free RPG Day.[4]: 218  Flying Buffalo put together quick-start editions (2007, 2008, 2011) of Tunnels & Trolls for three of the Free RPG Days.[3]: 132  Margaret Weis Productions put out the Castlemourn Cortex System Quickstart (2008) for the second Free RPG Day before closing down the line.[7]: 349  Green Ronin first new RPG was A Song of Ice and Fire Roleplaying (2009) had been previewed the previous year at Free RPG Day 2008.[4]: 36  From 2007-2011, Troll Lord Games issued a Castles & Crusades "quick start" at each Free RPG Day, to bring new players; science-fiction game StarSIEGE: Event Horizon (2008) was also previewed at Free RPG Day 2008.[4]: 50  Pinnacle Entertainment Group offered The Wild Hunt (2011) as a "Savage Worlds Test Drive" for Free RPG Day 2011.[7]: 292 

Shannon Appelcline outlined that Columbia Games "produced adventures for two of the Free RPG Days: Field of Daisies (2008) and Dead Weight (2010). However, the latter product was more a teaser than anything. Stores only received one copy of the adventure when they purchased a box of Free RPG Day products; Columbia has since started selling the rest of the print run — and even admonished websites that reviewed Dead Weight as a "free" release. More recently they produced a map of Hârn (2012) for Free RPG Day 2012."[8]: 240–241 

Related Events[]

Germany's first event was February 2, 2013; it included 9 games. The German version of Free RPG Day is called Gratisrollenspieltag, also known as Gratis Rollenspieltag.[9]

Participation[]

The industry participants include the publishers of the participating games, the event organizer which coordinates delivery of the free product to the stores, and the brick-and-mortar store owners who agree to provide the free games to end users/gamers. Some publishers produce quick start adventures geared toward players unfamiliar with the game system or new to tabletop role-playing games in general. The games are distributed worldwide through participating stores.


The 1st annual Free RPG Day (June 23, 2007)

The first annual event in 2007 featured quick start adventures from 16 different publishers:

  • Bits of Magicka:Pocket Items
  • Black Arrow Run
  • Castles & Crusades Quick Start Rules
  • Changeling: The Lost Free Rules and Adventure
  • D0: Hollow's Last Hope / 1st level, Andoran, Darkmoon Vale
  • Fisticuffs at O'Leary's Place
  • Imperial Town of Tell Qa
  • Vajra Enterprises / Little Boy Lost
  • Mutants & Masterminds Beginner's Guide
  • The Pig, the Witch and Her Lover
  • Quick Start Cthulhu
  • Septimus Quickstart
  • The Sinister Secret of Whiterock
  • Temple of Blood
  • Tunnels & Trolls Featuring Goblin Lake Solitaire Adventure
  • Xcrawl: Dungeonbattle Brooklyn[10]

The 2nd annual Free RPG Day (June 21, 2008)

The second annual event featured:

  • Bloodwood
  • Castlemourn Quickstart
  • Castles & Crusades Quick Start Rules 2008
  • D1.5: Revenge of the Kobold King // 5th level, Andoran, Darkmoon Vale, kobolds
  • Field of Daises; Heirs to Olympia
  • Hollow Earth Expedition Free RPG Day Quickstart Rules & Adventure 2008 "Stranded in the Hollow Earth."
  • Hunter: The Vigil Free Rules And Adventure
  • Murder at Miskatonic
  • The Murderer of Thomas Fell
  • Punjar: The Tarnished Jewel
  • A Song of Ice and Fire Roleplaying Quickstart
  • : Event Horizon Introductory Manual
  • Take the Money
  • Traveller Book 0: An Introduction to Traveller
  • Treasure of Talon Pass.[11][12]

The 3rd annual Free RPG Day (June 20, 2009)

Games included in the third Free RPG Day event were:

  • Bonus Bestiary
  • Citizen's Guide to Surviving Alpha Complex
  • Dragon Warriors Introductory Book
  • Forsaken Bounty
  • Geist: The Sin-Eaters Free Quickstart Rules and Adventure
  • Grab the Cache
  • Hollow Earth Expedition Free RPG Day Quickstart Rules & Adventure 2009 "Kidnapped in the Hollow Earth."
  • The Ice Temple
  • Immortal Heroes / Hearts of Chaos
  • Items Evolved: Rituals
  • Khyber's Harvest
  • Mythical Monstrosities
  • Oracle of Orcas Exploit[13]

The 4th annual Free RPG Day (June 19, 2010)

  • Abomination of the Amazon
  • Bloodsand Arena
  • Castles & Crusades 2010 Quick Start Rules
  • Dead Weight
  • The Dread Pirate Aldo
  • Final Sanction
  • Heroes Forever Free RPG Day Package
  • Hollow Earth Expedition Free RPG Day Quickstart Rules & Adventure 2010 "A Nightmare at the Museum."
  • Legacy of Disaster
  • Master of the Fallen Fortress [1st level, Absalom]
  • A Nightmare at the Museum
  • Roll d-Infinity: The Shape of Things to Come
  • Under the Rose

The 5th annual Free RPG Day (June 18, 2011)

  • Prime Directive Adventure "Starship Aldo" (both d20 & GURPS)
  • XDM Adventure: "Laser Squid Nemesis"
  • Dice Tower
  • Commemorative Dice For Store Owner
  • All Flesh Must Be Eaten Quickstart & Adventure
  • Hollow Earth Expedition Free RPG Day Quickstart Rules & Adventure 2011 "Trapped in the Aircraft Graveyard."
  • Black Crusade Quickstart and Adventure
  • Tunnels & Trolls solo adventure "Rescue Mission" and GM adventure "Riverboat Adventure"
  • DCC RPG Quickstart
  • DragonAge Quickstart
  • "We Be Goblins!" Pathfinder Adventure
  • Arcanis RPG Quickstart & Adventure
  • Savage Worlds Quickstart & Adventure, titled "The Wild Hunt"
  • Unique Elven-themed Dice
  • Aspect Quickstart Adventure
  • Castles & Crusades Quickstart and Adventure
  • Stellar Horizons Quickstart
  • World of Darkness Quickstart
  • "Domain of Dread: Histhaven" Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition Supplement to the box set "The Shadowfell: Gloomwrought and Beyond"
  • Free Bonus Item, Settlers of Catan: Catanimal Variant rules (single page paper insert)

The 6th annual Free RPG Day (June 16, 2012)

References[]

  1. ^ Walters, Ashleigh (15 June 2013). "Free RPG Day: Video gamers enjoy 'Free Role Playing Game Day'". WPTV News Channel 5. Scripps Media Inc. Scripps TV Station Group. Archived from the original on 18 June 2013. Retrieved 10 September 2013.
  2. ^ Callahan, Timothy (17 June 2013). "When Worlds Collide: Celebrating Free RPG Day" (Column). Comic Book Resources. Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 10 September 2013.
  3. ^ a b Shannon Appelcline (2014). Designers & Dragons: The '70s. Evil Hat Productions. ISBN 978-1-61317-075-5.
  4. ^ a b c d e Shannon Appelcline (2014). Designers & Dragons: The '00s. Evil Hat Productions. ISBN 978-1-61317-087-8.
  5. ^ Fletcher, NaShanta (14 June 2013). "Get ready for Free RPG Day!". Chicago Now. CTMG Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 10 September 2013.
  6. ^ Martin Ralya (2007-02-04). "Free RPG Day: Free Comic Day for Gamers". Treasure Tables. Retrieved 2010-02-17.
  7. ^ a b Shannon Appelcline (2014). Designers & Dragons: The '90s. Evil Hat Productions. ISBN 978-1-61317-084-7.
  8. ^ Shannon Appelcline (2014). Designers & Dragons: The '80s. Evil Hat Productions. ISBN 978-1-61317-081-6.
  9. ^ "Gratisrollenspieltag 13". RPG Geek. BoardGameGeek, LLC. Retrieved 11 September 2013.
  10. ^ "Series Listing, Free RPG Day". RPG.net. Retrieved 2010-02-17.
  11. ^ "Series Listing, Free RPG Day". RPG.net. Retrieved 2010-02-17.
  12. ^ Massawyrm (2008-06-20). "AICN Tabletop: FREE RPG DAY IS TOMORROW! And Massawyrm shares his picks of the litter!". Ain't It Cool News. Retrieved 2010-02-17.
  13. ^ "Series Listing, Free RPG Day". RPG.net. Retrieved 2010-02-17.

External links[]

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