Friday, July 29, 2011

[LPJ Design] Debatable Actions (PFRPG) now available


Louis Porter Jr. Design has released Debatable Actions: The Non-Combat Resolution Sourcebook for the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game at RPGNow.com and DriveThruRPG.com.  Here is information on this product:
Debatable Actions: The Non-Combat Resolution Sourcebook is a PDF that focus on the arena of resolving conflict without violence but with words. The PDF creates three systems can be used to adjudicate debates of various types from legal to political to economical. Simple debates are used for minor confrontations, "super-simple" debates for easily decided sidetracks, and complex debates for situations central to the plot of the campaign. It's up to the GM to decide which is appropriate for the circumstances. This 23 page PDF includes a 36 card deck to help with gameplay is just the sort of thing needed for GMs to add depth to any great Pathfinder campaign world, including NeoExodus: A House Divided. This sourcebook includes:
  • Simple and Complex Debate Rules
  • Debate Maneuvers
  • New Uses for Skills like Appraise, Diplomacy and Perform
  • Over 15 New feats including Arbitrate Dispute, Determine Objective, Looking For Trouble, Public Support and Sense Of The Room.
  • Nearly 20 New Spells including Absorb Information, Cryptic Mark, Forget, Instant Fact, Scyjack and Weaken Resistance.
  • Nearly 15 New Wondrous items including Clever Table, Courier’s Pouch, Echo Gem, Loyal Pen and Shrinking Vellum.

Written by Louis Porter Jr. and Jonathan Palmer. Available at RPGNow.com: http://lpjdesign.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=93481

Thursday, July 28, 2011

[RANT] My two new nemeses - Sarah Robinson & Crystal Frasier

When it come to great looking products for the Pathfinder Role Playing Game, I think LPJ Design is at the top of the list.  This isn't me being cocky or arrogant. This is a true statement.  We have AWESOME artwork and graphic design for NeoExodus: A House Divided!  Point blank. Don't believe me?  Compare our artwork to theirs: Enemies of NeoExodus: Folding Circle,  Enemies of NeoExodus: First Ones, NeoExodus Chronicles: Races of NeoExodus. and many more.  That should be proof enough for our level of artistic and graphic design quality.

[RANT ON] But, I will let you in on a little secret. There are two names, that when I hear them, they always get me worried. These two ARE the best at what they do.  They are always forcing me to improve my design and look of mt artwork and graphic design. They are always there pushing me to work harder and find better artists.  Who are these two people? They are Sarah Robinson and Crystal Frasier. They are the "Dynamic Duo" of Paizo's Graphic design an presentation of products. They understand how to make great design and artwork work together in a way to make products come alive and feel real.  Any time you see either of their names on a Paizo project, it just drips excellence.  Their artwork is considered to be the best in the industry. Having Wayne Reynolds in your corner as a cover and character design artist doesn't hurt either.  What those two do it is beyond quality, it is graphic excellence. And with that, they have made a new enemy of LPJ Design. Don't worry ladies, you are safe as long as we never meet in public. But if we do, get ready to throw down with some artistic and graphic design excellence.  You two are now on my list. [RANT OFF] 

PS: The Jade Regent Player's Guide is a AMAZING book. Get your copy now. Talk to you later...

Warhammer 40K Space Marine Trailer

Batman: Arkham City Trailer

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

The Mercury Men - Episode 2 Skyscraper Saboteurs


Jack and Edward trail the Mercury Men through the mammoth skyscraper to discover their destructive plans.

If I am so busy, why isn't more of my work getting done...

The one thing that can be an issue with working as a PDF publisher, is how the "real world" interferes with my "business work". This in turn makes my life very busy which in turns means I don't get a lot of sleep. I used to only get 4.5 to 5 hours a day, but I have increased in to 6 hours now after having my son.  Over the last few weeks I have been only getting 5 hours and it is finally starting to show on my face.  Everyone who sees me lately is like, "Louis go take a nap." But with so much going on, it also is hard to organize what is going on. At least in my head.  JP Chapleau has done a bunch of work that I need to look at including the NeoExodus Campaign book, Magic of the First Ones, and some other stuff I can't talk about. We also have several writers working on the new Legendary weapons of NeoExodus and with all this going on I have created a new advertising campaign for NeoExodus (see image in this blog) and have started developing a new product series of Pathfinder inspired by Steve over at Rite Publishing. Plus I have the NeoExodus Novella Kickstarter project to get ready and look for more artist (like always). Lots of balls in the air and I have to find a way to catch them all. Talk to you later...

Monday, July 25, 2011

The Mercury Men - Episode 1 Invasion


Edward Borman becomes trapped when deadly creatures from the planet Mercury overrun his office building, killing anyone in their path.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Is Kickstarter.com concept the venture capitalist business model for small publishers?

While looking over the AMAZING job Gareth is doing with Far West (Good work and I am professionally jealous. Got to give credit when credit is due), reading The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss, I was thinking about what I would define Kickstarter.com as being.  Kickstarter defines it self as a new way to Fund and Follow Creativity. But if you look further you might say their business model is that of venture capitalist. Venture capital is defined in wikipedia as financial capital provided to early-stage, high-potential, high risk, growth startup companies. The venture capital fund makes money by owning equity in the companies it invests in, which usually have a novel technology or business model in high technology industries, such as biotechnology, IT, software, etc.  While this is not exactly what Kickstarter does, you can see a relationship between the ideas of a venture capitalist and a kickstarter project supporter. So the question is, Is Kickstarter.com concept the venture capitalist business model for small publishers?  What do you think.  Talk to you later...

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

[LPJDesign] Enemies of NeoExodus: Widowmaker Scarlet released


Louis Porter Jr. Design has released its newest supplement line for d20 fantasy punk setting, NeoExodus: A House Divided.  Here is information on the Enemies of NeoExodus: Widowmaker Scarlet:

If the First Ones are the boogeymen that terrorize the people of Exodus, what scares the First Ones? What could scare the First Ones to such a degree that merely mentioning it would cause them to fall dead of fright? If the First Ones are not afraid of death, pain or torture, then what are they afraid of? First Ones fear the loss of their identity, loss of themselves, or loss of their free will. A single creature has the power and the ability to do precisely that. Such a creature terrorizes the First One so much that her name is never spoken out loud to avoid drawing her attention. The name “Widowmaker Scarlet” is not used by the First Ones. It was given to her by scholars from Exodus because her true name is unknown. Most of the information found in this document was gathered from tattered scrolls and lost books which were created from incomplete and secondhand accounts. Since knowledge about Widowmaker Scarlet is considered heretical by the Sanguine Covenant, most such documents have been destroyed. The Order of Kaga considers Widowmaker Scarlet to be the single most dangerous threat to Exodus today, even if no direct conflict with her has ever been reported. This supplement includes:

This supplement includes:
  • All the information to use Widowmaker Scarlet as NPC villain including history, relations and how to use Widowmaker Scarlet in your gaming sessions.
  • Four all new spells: Immediate Possession; Immediate Possession, Greater; Oath of Khayne and Word of Khayne.
  • Statistics, abilities and rules for Widowmaker Scarlet (CR 15, 18 & 20)
  • New Creature Types: First One Subtype
  • New magic item: Singiver
  • Initiative and Monster Cards
Written by JP Chapleau with Louis Porter Jr. Available at RPGNow.com: http://lpjdesign.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=93235

Available at Paizo.com:

New LPJ Design website is up!

Well after weeks of work, we have the "soft" relaunch of the LPJ Design website. I will be making changes and adding material to the website over the next few weeks. Hope you enjoy!

Thursday, July 14, 2011

[LPJDesign] NeoExodus Chronicles: Psionic Cavian released

Louis Porter Jr. Design has released its newest supplement line for d20 fantasy punk setting, NeoExodus: A House Divided.  Here is information on the NeoExodus Chronicles: Psionic Cavian:

Creatures of myth, whispered in legend, lost in the mists of history – and now returned for reasons unknown to any but themselves. Such are the cavians, a race of humanoid rodents noted for their incredible psionic abilities. All Cavians have innate mental abilities, most often displayed in their hive mind ability. Some Cavians, however, have innate psionic ability above and beyond this mental connection. These Cavians are often more cerebral and logical, where their non-psionic brethren are more intuitive and instinctual in their abilities. Although both psionic and non-psionic Cavians have similar abilities, the differences are enough that rivalries between the two breeds are not unknown. This supplement includes:

  • All the information to play the Psionic Cavian as PC Race including Personality and Relations.
  • Plus an all new Psionic Cavian Paragon Class
  • Three new Alternate Racial Traits including Alien Aura, Collective Power and Independent
  • Psionic Cavian Counters
  • Initiative and Monster Cards
Written by Joshua Cole, JP Chapleau and Jeremy Smith with Louis Porter Jr. Available here at RPGNow.com.

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Ideas for the NeoExodus Novella Kickstarter rewards

So last night I spoke to Robin D. Laws about the upcoming Kickstarter project, NeoExodus Novella. I gave him some additional information about the setting in the form our gazetteer for NeoExodus. We spoke a little bit about the type of story I wanted him to write, and what influences he could use to help with the feel of what I wanted from this project. At the end of the call, we both felt good about the project and what we wanted. He had his assignments and I has mine, and one of mine was to write up what rewards should we give out for this project.  So I thought it would be best to start out to see what others have done use them as a basis. After a few hours I came up with the following rewards. While none of these are solid in stone, here are some ideas that I think will help people see what we think is reasonable.  Take a second a see what you like, don't like or what we could do better.  Any and all constructive input in welcome.


NeoExodus Novella Pledge Levels:
Pledge $1 or more 
  • A heartfelt thank you from all of us from LPJ Design.
Pledge $5 or more 
  • If you ever meet me in person, Louis Porter Jr. owes you a free hug . . . but just one.
Pledge $10 or more - Friend of NeoExodus
  • You get listed in the online web page credits for your patronage with special thanks from us.
Pledge $20 or more - Fellow of NeoExodus
  • You get listed in the online web page credits for your patronage with special thanks from us.
  • If you ever meet me in person, Louis Porter Jr. owes you a free hug . . . but just one.
  • You get listed in the ePub and PDF version credits for your patronage with special thanks from us.
Pledge $50 or more -  Citizen of NeoExodus
  • You get listed in the online web page credits for your patronage with special thanks from us.
  • If you ever meet me in person, Louis Porter Jr. owes you a free hug . . . but just one.
  • You get listed in the ePub and PDF version credits for your patronage with special thanks from us.
  • A soft cover Print-On-Demand copy of the will be shipped to you directly from LPJ Design.
  • Backers, please add $5 for shipping for U.S. residents, $10 for International shipping for pledges at this level.
Pledge $100 or more - Imperial Alliance Citizen
  • You get listed in the online web page credits for your patronage with special thanks from us.
  • You get listed in the ePub and PDF version credits for your patronage with special thanks from us.
  • A soft cover Print-On-Demand copy of the will be shipped to you directly from LPJ Design.
  • A soft cover Print-On-Demand copy of the will be shipped to the library of your choosing (provide shipping address). We will note that you are the donor if you wish. You may pledge for multiple copies for the library or libraries.
  • Backers, please add $5 for shipping for U.S. residents, $10 for International shipping for pledges at this level.
Pledge $200 or more (Limited to 5) - Imperial Alliance Special Operative
  • You get listed in the online web page credits for your patronage with special thanks from us.
  • You get listed in the ePub and PDF version credits for your patronage with special thanks from us.
  • A soft cover Print-On-Demand copy of the will be shipped to you directly from LPJ Design.
  • A soft cover Print-On-Demand copy of the will be shipped to the library of your choosing (provide shipping address). We will note that you are the donor if you wish. You may pledge for multiple copies for the library or libraries.
  • Backers, please add $5 for shipping for U.S. residents, $10 for International shipping for pledges at this level.
Pledge $500 or more (Limited to 3) - Imperial Alliance Senator
  • You get listed in the online web page credits for your patronage with special thanks from us.
  • You get listed in the ePub and PDF version credits for your patronage with special thanks from us.
  • A soft cover Print-On-Demand copy of the will be shipped to you directly from LPJ Design.
  • A hard cover full color Print-On-Demand limited edition copy of the will be shipped to you directly from LPJ Design signed by Robin D. Laws and Louis Porter Jr.
  • A soft cover Print-On-Demand copy of the will be shipped to the library of your choosing (provide shipping address). We will note that you are the donor if you wish. You may pledge for multiple copies for the library or libraries.
  • One hour group Skype video call with Robin D. Laws and Louis Porter Jr. which we will record to place on the LPJ Design website.
  • Backers, please add $5 for shipping for U.S. residents, $10 for International shipping for pledges at this level.

Monday, July 11, 2011

Interview by GMS Magazine about LPJ Design, PDF Publishing, Pathfinder and more...

A few weeks ago, I was interviewed by the folks over at GMS Magazine about LPJ Design in general, the business of PDF publishing, The creation and development of NeoExodus, working with Paizo and Pathfinder,  and I even manage to make a few comments and crazy moments about venture captain JP Chapleau too.  If you are interested in the world of PDF publishing, I think you will find it interesting listing to this podcast. Enjoy!

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Nothing worst then having a lot of projects ready to go, but nothing can go out...

Here are just images of some of the projects we are working on. The sad part it this doesn't include the other six adventures we are working on including the NeoExodus updates of Cold Visitor, Gel (Which has been renamed to Curse of Lannil Island), Origin of Man, Encounter at Ramat Bridge, Drunberg Incident (written by a very special writer with the announcement coming soon) and Three Sides of the Truth written by Tim Hitchcock of GM Gems: A Tome of Inspiration for Fantasy Game MastersEyes of the Lich Queen and Pathfinder Adventure Path: The Serpent's Skull Part 2 - Racing to Ruin fame. 
Lots of work done, just waiting until the NeoExodus Campaign Setting book is released in August so we can release these products. August can't come soon enough for me, plus I have decided to go to NeonCon this year with JP Chapleau and possibly even with the guys from Gamer Ingenuity.  Busy, Busy, busy. Talk to you later.

Friday, July 8, 2011

What's in your art inspiration file?

The one thing that makes me very happy with LPJ Design and what we do is all the comments we get about the quality of the artwork we do for our products. I always get a lot of questions of who does my art (Sorry if I don't respond to those, It took me a long time to find these guys and I don't like sharing them), how much do I pay them (What I can afford to pay them) and the other question I get the most is where do I come up with the description of the artwork I want?  I always answer that one the same, It depends on what I have in my art inspiration files.  Then people ask the the scariest question I ever hear when dealing with artwork: Whats are art inspiration files?

Even though I am a graphic & web design with 20 years of experience, I CAN NOT DRAW AT ALL. Not a lick.  But I do like GOOD artwork and I know what I would like to see in my products.  So what I do is go to DeviantArt and search the word "Paizo". Then I start lookinf through all that artwork for pieces I like. If I find artwork a like or would like to use in a product (if I could) and might be able to use later, I save it to a file on my computer.  I keep doing this for about 30 to 45 minutes and go though as much artwork as I can.  I do this one a week.  Now my art inspiration file is over 800 images just for the NeoExodus: A House Divided products.

Then when I have a character design that I need a pull 5 to 10 images that I send to my artist with the line, "The character design I want you to draw should look like they exist in a world with these images I am sending you." and I let them go.  Let the artists do what they do best, be creative and draw!!! Stand out of their way and they will do better images then you even can imagine.  My motto: Let professional do professional work.If you need a specific image just give them a rough idea visually what you want, do what I told you to do and you will be VERY happy with the results.  Talk to you later...

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

[LPJDesign] Races of NeoExodus: Psionic Cavian released

Louis Porter Jr. Design has released its newest supplement line for d20 fantasy punk setting, NeoExodus: A House Divided.  Here is information on the Races of NeoExodus: Psionic Cavian:

Creatures of myth, whispered in legend, lost in the mists of history – and now returned for reasons unknown to any but themselves. Such are the cavians, a race of humanoid rodents noted for their incredible psionic abilities. All Cavians have innate mental abilities, most often displayed in their hive mind ability. Some Cavians, however, have innate psionic ability above and beyond this mental connection. These Cavians are often more cerebral and logical, where their non-psionic brethren are more intuitive and instinctual in their abilities. Although both psionic and non-psionic Cavians have similar abilities, the differences are enough that rivalries between the two breeds are not unknown. This supplement includes:

This supplement includes:
  • All the information to play the Psionic Cavian as PC Race including Personality and Relations.
  • Plus an all new Psionic Cavian Paragon Class
  • Three new Alternate Racial Traits including Alien Aura, Collective Power and Independent
  • Psionic Cavian Counters
  • Initiative and Monster Cards
Written by J Joshua Cole, JP Chapleau and Jeremy Smith with Louis Porter Jr. Available EXCLUSIVELY HERE!

Fan Made Sith SWTOR Trailer

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Why aren't you using Pulley and Big Cartel for your store for your website?


OK a while back (like a few months back) I heard on Webcomics Weekly during an interview with Scottie Young that he was using Pulley and Big Cartel to sell products from his website.  Since I’ve been in the PDF publishing business for a while I have heard of LOTS of services that act as a web store for you to sell your products online. None of them really appealed to me for various reasons but while listening to this interview, it answered almost all the issues I had had with other companies’ web store programs. 

One of the main issues that I had in the past were the percentage rates. On RPGNow I pay them 35% of the sale and on Paizo I pay them 25%.  When I first got into this business I was paying 20% at RPGnow, so you can understand that I might be a little upset with 75% increase in the cost to do business at RPGNow over and decade. Since I am always on the lookout to save money and keep that money in my pocket, I always check out any good money saving ideas I hear. So like any highly intelligent and highly educated business person, when I heard about Pulley and Big Cartel I rushed right over there, Right? Hell no, I didn’t do that. That would have been smart. The reason why I didn’t? I don’t know. Most likely I was distracted by something else “shiny” and “new” (That happens a lot in the world of business) and forgot about Pulley and Big Cartel.

Fast forward to this last weekend while working on the new website design from LPJ Design, I kept thinking about what links I was going to add to the web store and out of the blue, I remembered about Pulley and Big Cartel.  I decided now was a good time to check them out and that made a complete difference. Pulley and Big Cartel do exactly what I want my web store to do: make it easy for me to sell my products online as either print-on-demand, PDF or both.  Pulley and Big Cartel work great separately and work even better together. I am amazed how much I like them both. Best of all, they give me the ability to make very specialized products that I can sell at a low to reasonable price and still make a good profit on them and the money side is handled by Paypal.  There is a lot of WIN in these two sites. On top of all that goodness, you can check the both out for free (Pulley gives you 14 days to try it out for free then you have to pay. Their lowest monthly rate is $6; Big Cartel gives you the ability to try it free indefinitely, if you have five products or less). Just something to think about when you are trying to put together your web store.  Talk to you later…

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Slow week with BBQ...

This has been a slow week with the July 4th holiday coming up.  Expect to see some cool stuff next week, but now I am off to do some BBQ! Talk to you later...