T5 LBBs - New concept

[tlindsey]

Here are some ideas of what I'd like to see in a Traveller 5th Edition Little Black Book series.

Instead of going with the traditional saddle binding of the old LBBs, use standard 5.5" x 8.5" pages that are punched for a three ring binder. A nice three ring binder with a silk screened cover that included the core rules could be sold as "Volume 1 - Core Rules". Additional binders with the Traveller 5 logo could be purchased as well so that players could assemble their own volumes. I guess we'd have to call these "Little Black Binders".

Individual books could be purchased separately and inserted in a T5 binder. Players could assemble customized binders that contained the books they were most interested in. The binder would make the integration of errata and advanced rules very simple.

In addition, inexpensive 5.5" x 8.5" filler paper could be used for notes and house rules and inserted directly into the binder. People could even print their own pages on 8.5" x 11" paper, fold it in half, and insert it into the binder.

As for the design and layout of the books, there is something very special about the LBBs. Their design was a bit stark for many peoples tastes but it was clean and elegant and has stood the test of time. Not many RPG brands have the kind of instant recognition that the black field with red bar and Traveller logo still has. There have been some incredible artists doing work for Traveller over the years and I'd like to see the best of it come back and be integrated into the layout where it is appropriate and relevant to the textual content.

Thoughts?

- Ted

 

[plop101]

Yes! I already use black binders to keep all the stuff I print, generate and/or use. This works very well.

 

[Secrect Cow Level]

I like it! Columbia Games does this for Harnmaster (although they use standard size pages) and it works out great. A binder lies flat on the table and is easy to read.

 

[BeRKA]

Neat, I like it!

 

[Lord Iron Wolf]

Sweet, I like the layout and the graphic presentation you did. It looks like a good idea but playing devil's advocate, I can see a couple of problems:

*How to keep the 3-ring binders from getting crushed during shipment?
*Cracking or splitting of vinyl during years of use.
*Kinkos or other copy shops being used to duplicate pages for cheapskates/thieves/buddies.
*Holes being torn out from constant use. Reinforcement rings will double thickness of paper stack.
*Scanning as PDF to website for piracy/free download

I know there are ways past this including:
*Heavier paper--70# or heavier...
*Sell printed color inserts for cover, back and spine eliminating the need for 3-ring binder. replace 3-ring binders as needed.
*A background graphic (Imperial Sunburst) that blackens upon copying but is translucent upon first printing.

I've seen this type of system used for Star Fleet Battles and Pirates of Dark Water and thought it to be flexible and useful. It makes it easy to insert errata and updates. It's something to consider.

Lord Iron Wolf

A batch of printed, color-coded tabs to keep the sections seperated would be nice too

 

[tlindsey]

Originally posted by Lord Iron Wolf:

*How to keep the 3-ring binders from getting crushed during shipment?
*Cracking or splitting of vinyl during years of use.
*Kinkos or other copy shops being used to duplicate pages for cheapskates/thieves/buddies.
*Holes being torn out from constant use. Reinforcement rings will double thickness of paper stack.
*Scanning as PDF to website for piracy/free download

Lord Iron Wolf raises from excellent points. This is the kind of questioning of a concept that leads to better ideas.

Here are some thoughts about some the concerns.

All of the issues regarding physical sturdiness of the format and duplication are addressed by FFE selling high quality inserts that are resistant to wear. Someone can go out and photocopy ANY printed material today but the costs of having it printed in color, double-sided on good quality stock, cutting it to size and punching it are probably not worth the expenditure for most folks.

On a side note, I don't believe that selling PDF documents will ever be a profitable venture for anyone because there is no way to bring additional value, such as materials quality, to the product while duplication and distribution costs for people who want to pirate the material is nil. If someone wants to pirate the product, they can do so in 2 seconds. Pirating a physical product by photocopying takes some time, effort and money.

The ideas about section tabs are very good. I was going to add section tabs to the concept image but it was getting late and I wanted to post it. The idea of a watermark on every page that prevents copying is brilliant!

There are quite a few accessories that FFE could sell for this format. Just look at what Franklin Covey sells for their line of organizers to get an idea of what could be inserted in the binders. In fact, you could actually use a Franklin Covey binder for holding T5 materials if you have their seven hole punch.

Thanks for the feedback,
Ted

 

[Veilheim]

Originally posted by BeRKA:
Neat, I like it!

BERKA! Of COURSE you would like it! You do these on your site!

Brennan

 

[PVernon]

Ted, I like it! Looks good has the same clean look of the original yet is also "up to date" in it's apperance. Good Job!

 

[thomryng]

Beautiful.

Pushing on to the future of Traveller, while keeping its feet firmly planted in the game's history.

I'm pretty sure I'd sell my cat to get a copy of this, if it were available now.

Stars fer ya!

cheers,

thom

 

[WarriorKnight]

Very nice.Great job Ted.

 

[Lord Iron Wolf]

On the tabs it would be a good idea to make these heavier than normal (cardstock) and to place a plastic coating over the top of the whole page (plasticizing) to make the tabs more durable than the other pages as the tabs will be pulled first to open the sections. (heavier wear and tear)

If the paper between the tabs is glossy and a heavier/higher grade stock it will hold up well.

Lord Iron Wolf

 

[Ranger]

Too cool. But then again, I liked the ASL rule book, which was an 8.5 by 11 inch binder format.

Rob

 

[Ron]

Very good job. I hope it will inspire FFE in regarding to the publishing format. However, I wonder how store owners will react to this format. Would them assign a good shelf space to small books/binders?

Currently, I think that normal sized roleplaying books are a little bulky to carry around. Have anyone seen Eden Studios' games? Their non-d20 products, such as Witchcraft, All Flesh Must Be Eaten, Terra Primate, and Buffy are all in a small size format. Not as small as the original LBB, but still very convinient.

 

[T. Foster]

Very nice, provided the rules were actually written and laid out in such a way to make customizing/reorganizing practical. If the binding was a meaningless cosmetic gimmick (like it was with the AD&D2 Monster Manual) I'd be highly unimpressed. I'm a little curious about how much something like this would actually cost -- more or less than a traditionally-bound volume of equivalent page count? Also, how easy are binders of that size to find at standard office-supply stores -- would players be able to buy extra binders on their own or would they be wholly dependent on FFE?

 

[Lord Iron Wolf]

Out of curiousity, I went down to Office Max this morning and looked at the different half page/digest-sized, three-ring binders. I'd saw over a dozen types in every style from traditional chipboard/vinyl covering to heavy nylon zippered to the newer (and hi-tech looking) clamshell types that zip together.

I also saw in the nylon and/or zippered types pockets and pouches that were either sewn in or could be inserted to hold things like PDA's, calculators, dice, pens and pencils, drawing tools and a plethora of other things that the individual referee/player would find handy. If the notebook wasn't crammed with paper, it would be possible for a small case of miniatures to be carried.

I think for cost effectiveness and quality the binder would have to be a seperate item or it would up the costs.

Lord Iron Wolf

P.S. I believe the notebooks I looked at were the Mead brand and their Five Star line. It may be worth a web search to find their products. I don't know how many units would have to be ordered to make the customization on the notebook cover cost effective.

 

[tlindsey]

Thanks for all the positive feedback. I'm glad folks seem to generally like the idea.

Originally posted by T. Foster:
Very nice, provided the rules were actually written and laid out in such a way to make customizing/reorganizing practical. If the binding was a meaningless cosmetic gimmick (like it was with the AD&D2 Monster Manual) I'd be highly unimpressed. I'm a little curious about how much something like this would actually cost -- more or less than a traditionally-bound volume of equivalent page count? Also, how easy are binders of that size to find at standard office-supply stores -- would players be able to buy extra binders on their own or would they be wholly dependent on FFE?

I'm glad you reminded me about the Monster Manual debacle. It was a HUGE binder that made it virtually impossible to carry around and IIRC the pages tore out very easily. I would think that the smaller page and binder size would minimize the kind of problems seen in the Monster Manual.

I'm unsure of the costs/difficulty involved with printing content in this format as well. I had hoped that it would on par with standard printing and binding of the LBBs but I've heard that it might actually be a production nightmare.

This size binder and filler paper is easy to purchase at nearly any office supply store although FFE could sell "official" binders emblazoned with Traveller logos. If anyone is familiar with the "equipment cards" that Digest Group used to include in the Travellers Digest, this would be a very convenient concept and ideal for a binder. Each equipment card described a piece of equipment in detail with an illustration and common tasks associated with it.

 

[T. Foster]

If half-size binders are easy to find then I'm all for it (and I'm loving the idea of customizable insert-pockets to hold dice, pens, calculators, minis, etc. -- just like a good ol' boxed set!). I agree that the best move to keep costs reasonable would probably be to sell the binders separate from the books. FWIW I've actually got one of those 8 1/2 x 11 binders with the Traveller logo that GDW used to sell in the early 80s and it looks great and I'd love to see something like it revived, whether the books are made to fit them or not.

 

[Kentares]

What worries more is how much would that cost???

P.S. It´s excellent Tlindsey...

 

[notagoodusername]

The binders may be a little more expensive than normal ones, but that would be counteracted by the fact you aren't paying for binding making the books, and there are much smaller materials costs per book.

Shane

 

[Mysterion]

I think this could be a Very good Thing(tm).

There are the problems people have pointed out with portability, sheets ripping, etc.

On the other hand, expansions and errata/corrections would be very easy to do with this kind of packaging.

I it doesn't cost too much to do it this way, I'd buy it.