Necromancer games?

[Save Vs. Death Ray]

I heard a rumor that Necromancer games was going out of business because they couldn't compete with Wizards of the Coast.

Huh? Is this true? And is/does/will anyone ever compete with Hasbro?

*confused*

[Mike_Ferguson]

I heard a rumor that Necromancer games was going out of business because they couldn't compete with Wizards of the Coast.

Huh? Is this true? And is/does/will anyone ever compete with Hasbro? Does this mean Goodman games is in trouble too?

*confused*

That's an oversimplification of the situation.

While it seems likely that WotC's recent shift towards producing adventure modules contributed to Necromancer's decision to close its doors, it's certainly not the only reason.

Here's Clark Peterson's stated reasons for the decision:

The current state of Necro sales is due to several things:

1. Kenzer. Just not doing the job. Period. I have been very disappointed with their sales and their ability to move books. And the scary part is that our books are some of their best sellers. Maybe that was me and Bill mis-evaluating what Kenzer would be able to do for us. But there was no real way to know that.
2. WotC inserting itself into the space that has been traditionally occupied by d20 publishers, and doing so with some excellent products.
3. WW's disappearance from the market and thus no effort on their part to move d20 products.

The full thread containing more details about this discussion can be found at the Necromancer Games boards. Here's a shortcut to the relevant thread:

http://p208.ezboard.com/fnecromancergam ... 1&stop=260

[Save Vs. Death Ray]

Mr. Ferguson,

Thanks for the link. I tracked it down and this part stuck out for me:

I dont have a low level distribution scheme as my goal. If I cant be there with WotC, I dont really want to be there.

???

Is he really saying that unless he is tied with Wizards, it isn't worth it? If every publisher that wasn't "there with WotC" quit tomorrow, there would be no d20 at all.

And I know you can't speak to what Clark intends, but ... man ... That just seems ludicrous.

[Save Vs. Death Ray]

Never mind. Clark just posted a retractment.

So they must have new plans for going toe-to-toe with Wizards.

http://p208.ezboard.com/fnecromancergam ... 1&stop=287

Now if it was really Orcus posting from his demonic palace, I could see it. But Hasbro would even give the demon god of undead a run for his money.

[Mike_Ferguson]

Is he really saying that unless he is tied with Wizards, it isn't worth it? If every publisher that wasn't "there with WotC" quit tomorrow, there would be no d20 at all.

If I had to guess - and this is entirely speculation on my part, so I could be 100% wrong - I think what he's saying is that he wants his distribution of product to be on an equal par with Wizards of the Coast. Not that he expects to sell an equal number of products - but wherever you find an official D&D sourcebook from Wizards of the Coast, you'd find one his books on the shelf next to it.

You used to be able to find Necromancer's stuff on the shelves in Borders, Barnes & Noble, and other big chain booksellers - right next to the D&D books, the Vampire books, and the other "big names". You can't anymore. That went bye-bye when White Wolf stopped distributing their stuff ... and I would guess that accounted for a decent portion of their sales. But I think that's the kind of distribution scheme they want, and at present, they aren't getting it.

Again, there's probably a lot going on here that isn't meant for public consumption, so I'm sure that there's much that I'm missing that's relevant to this. But I'm pretty sure he means that he wants distribution and product delivery channels on the same level as WotC - not sales $$$ on that level. (But I'm sure he wouldn't mind if it was!)

[Save Vs. Death Ray]

That makes a lot of sense --- and is a heck of a lot more reasonable than my presumption.

Still, I'd hate to see one of the big d20s go down. Necro, Goodman and Mongoose are the only things that make 3.5 worthwhile.

It's good to see Goodman products in the big booksellers. Hope we can expect to see more in the future.

[Argamae]

Oh - this is the first time I am reading about this!
How sad, indeed. I love Necros stuff, and I have a lot of their books/products - among them the fabulous WILDERNESS setting box as well as the Book of Taverns (a great read!) and the RAPPAN ATHUK RELOADED boxed set.

They will be sorely missed.

EDIT: Now, that I have read through the aforementioned thread I noticed that Clark might have found a way to continue to stay in business. He hints at something. Let's hope that it will work out with Necro!

[Treebore]

Well now we know they are partnered with Paizo. May they both have great success independent of WOTC.