THIS IS HOT GARBAGE | Iron Kingdoms Requiem Review

Well, better late than never I guess. My Iron Kingdoms Requiem books finally showed up... and boy am I let down. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, and I guess I'm officially done buying products from one of my all time favorite gaming companies. So long lads, and thanks for all the fish.

[@danacoleman4007]

it's a real shame what happened to this company. once upon a time they had a really great thing going!

[@jimd.8028]

Man this review is "HOT" Garbage...... As a reviewer, I would expect you to reach out prior to posting information that is "TRUE" but taken out of context. Blaming a company for things out of their control and not getting a full picture, is wrong as well. Just terrible reporting tbh. I work as an Analyst in the Logistics Industry. It's a HOT mess! Would it be best for PP to produce within the US and not rely on outsourced work? Yes! But your issue with the books stems from heat. How do I know? My father was a book printer for 35 years and I have worked in the printing industry as well. And have left books in a vehicle in the hot sun/heat and experienced the same issues. I would suspect that PP ordered printing to be done in China. Then shipped via Ocean in a container (takes 35+ days), the shipment(s) got held up off shore to unload and then got held up due to the customs container issues in customs (No thanks to Covid). The bent books, glue coming undone is a by-product of excessive heat. If you leave a book in your car, in 130o F conditions.....same thing happens. Honestly....PP just released this in the worst time frame. Logisitics was more than likely the issue.....which they have little control over. I have clients that I handle that experience severe delays because of shipment containers held at custom because the containers are buried.... China basically started shipping faster than the ports can handle....Again outside of privateer press's scope...they can't control that. What you can control is to let PP know about your issues and let them reprint/ship. Issues like this are tracked as its costly for all parties involved :( BUT....if you would like to pay $3500 in air express shipping directly from china to your door and bypass all of that. Go for it :) These shipping issues have nothing to do with quality, have nothing to do with manufacturer or PP but with the state of the transportation industry, I would suspect. If you are that unhappy with PP for using 5e: Forge your legacy in the award-winning setting of the Iron Kingdoms with the celebrated 5th edition roleplaying game rules.- www.kickstarter.com/projects/privateerpress/iron-kingdoms-requiem-5e Please read the kickstarter before complaining about them using 5e. You got what you paid for....It clearly says 5e

[@HowToRollDice]

I find your response foolish, and disagree with you entirely. That being said, I appreciate you watching and taking the time to respond. Best wishes, The garbage reviewer guy

[@jimd.8028]

​@@HowToRollDice Well Foolish would be correct for explaining how the Transportation industry is currently. But someone to subscribe or follow your channel. -1 here.

[@nrais76]

I'm genuinely curious about the bindings. For instance, what is Lightning Source's excuse? Every hardcover I've had from them falls apart within 6 to 8 months, and I take care of my books. Printed amd shipped in the US. Doesn't seem to matter when. I have hardcovers WotC printed in China in 2000 with bindings so strong you could probably zipline with the book. These Iron Kingdoms books, I'm sure you're right about some of the conditions, but honestly they seem like they had cheap bindings to begin with. Heck I still have 2nd and 1st edition ad&d books, some of them from rummage sales and were NOT treated well, that have very solid bindings still. It's not solely a weather thing. But I'd really like to learn more about the processes here, so if I ever get round to publishing, I know what ridiculously overpriced thing I'm asking for.

[@beast0290]

i still only use their d6 iron kingdom. i love it. i can use it with my old table top modules and just enjoyed how combat felt

[@jimzecca3961]

I also backed this Kickstarter and the binding on my core book is pretty loose as well. I've been reading to see how it will hold up. It definitely lays flatter than any hardback I own. If it feels like it is getting any worse I might contact Privateer Press about it but I won't wait long to make that call. I haven't seen any issues with the other books or the GM screen so far. Somehow I didn't realize that my backing pledge level included the GM screen because I ended up stupidly buying a second one. Grrrr. So many of these KS make it really hard to tell exactly what print and PDF products you are due to receive.

[@Docsfortune]

I completely disagree with you. My copies showed up 5 months late as well, but they communicated that. It was due to the pandemic. When I did get them they were everything promised. Have you tried contacting PP about the defects in the products you were unhappy with? They have the best customer service in the world and would likely replace the products for free.

[@malex2200]

I was thinking the same thing as the rant about the products began. He even said he could have reached out, but decided not to and made a complaining video.

[@Guboo]

This is sad. I have most of the old modules and books from waaaaaay back in the day (before the miniatures game even) and always loved the setting and lore. The funniest part to me is that it was originally a D20 licensed product and now it’s come back and seems to be the lesser for it.

[@KainMalice]

Ah, so you aren’t mad at the content. Thats fair. I only backed the digital pdfs, but thats because I have been wanting to get rid of a lot of my clutter.

[@jackeldridge4225]

So coming into this late. It being August 22. I have to say this saddens me. I as you could guess always had a love for this company as well. And like many of the comments below THE best thing to come out of D20 system, possibly even #1 thing, considering it kept me interested in D20 as a system, and that is even including stuff I worked on during the D20 product boom. I am still debating sticking a ton of work into turning this into a Pathfinder 2e game for Foundry, but the amount of work would make it a labor of true love.

[@nrais76]

I might convert to Castles & Crusades. Once I can check out the updated version.

[@flameknightdragon]

i think the worst part is. they ignored a lot of player feedback when it came to the warcaster class. most of the play testers pointed out focus flat out didn't work. being both your spell and ability fuel and needing to take a rest after every fight was not a good thing. and what did they do? made the cap stone recharge focus, an ability most players will never see at lvl 18 and they expect people to multiclass to make faction based casters. leaving only 2 spare level if you want the warcaster to be playable. or the fact that your bonds take up attunement slots so if you want more then one jack (Which are stupidly weak cr 6s) you have to give up your armor or weapon. meaning no mater what you do you flat out loose out on class abilities.

[@abesolutzero]

That Mk3 hubris never went away, did it.

[@flameknightdragon]

@@abesolutzero nope it never did. like they through the class was the best thing every. and no one plays it since it turns out I was wrong. it takes until lvl 20 to be playable. the lvl cap of 5e. but seeing how their the flop the MK4 showcase was by kneecapping themselves by only having cygnar and khador, while forcing every once else into legacy format where you are going to be weaker. compared to the new stuff. as well pulling GW level BS with $200 STRATER PRODUCTS and excusive models that will only be in $175 "expansion" sets that you need to buy more then 1 of.

[@depecher6s311]

I’m starting a new campaign where the DM is using bits and pieces of this setting and some rules for inspiration so I decided to look it up to get more prepared, I definitely laughed when I saw this as the first video to come up hahaha. I appreciate the review! Love the background music btw

[@HowToRollDice]

Thanks! Sorry if I poopoo'ed on your hopes for the ruleset. The setting is superb, top notch. The mechanics leave much to be desired, at least in this edition anyways.

[@depecher6s311]

@@HowToRollDice I don’t think a lot of the rules are being used but I’m incredibly excited to play my new Trollkin blacksmith character haha

[@ejohnson1767]

I played the 3.5E Iron Kingdoms. When their ruleset came out for the 2nd Ed of the game none of my friends wanted to learn the new system. I have been playing the 5E setting with some friends but I see the limitations with 5E. There has been balance issues with the classes introduced. Don't have the physical copy of the book. Just bought pdf. I am happy I didn't buy a physical copy.

[@HowToRollDice]

Good call. I'll use them as tomes of lore, but that's about it.

[@Spam387]

the way you feel about this prematurely ending what is the 2nd edition (d6/Warmahordes), is how I feel re: d6 edition and mini game replacing the d20 version (1st edition), I wish they had just ironed it out...or ironed out the d6 one. Hoping to mash it into pathfinder 1e, will see how it goes!

[@TheBasicExpert]

Those look like my 5e PHB and MM first run books. Haha. What a bummer.

[@davidbowman2501]

This is sad, but I had this problem with their last books for the custom setting.

[@HowToRollDice]

I had one or two issues with the books from their previous setting, but even then it was a very different experience. I picked those books up in a store, they were released as regular retail products. So when I realized one was damaged or misassembled, I simply returned to the store and exchanged it, and the store handled the back end process of working with privateer press to resolve this. In this case, I had to pay up front, had to wait an extra 5 months beyond projected release, meaning the item took almost 2x the advertised time, and now that it is damaged, I can't simply drive 10 minutes down the road and exchange my copy. I have to contact the manufacturer myself, and assuming my complaint is handled promptly, wait at least a few weeks for my new product to arrive. This is one of the biggest red flags to me. They used kickstarter, which is meant to prevent delays in development my frontloading all of the financial gains and laying a clear runway for the product. It's a huge advantage, you get to know exactly what demand is prior to making the bulk of your investment and development decisions. Meaning the whole process should go smoother, not worse. And yet here we are, in a far worse situation than I ever remember with any other books PPS ever released on their own, without kickstarter. And I'm not just talking about IK books. I'm old enough to remember that PPS used to release a monthly magazine plus 1 or 2 hard cover books every 6 months, and did it all through traditional retail channels, and never had any of these issues. So, what's going on? How is it they are now using a development and release method that is meant to make their life easier at the expense of their customers, who take on the financial risk, and yet the product has taken longer to release and gotten worse in overall quality and reliability? In my opinion, whatever that's worth, by every measure, this is a poor showing. Maybe the content is great, and I'm currently exploring that myself, but even then, the product will be marred by this release.

[@davidbowman2501]

@@HowToRollDice I completely agree. I used to play Warmahordes, but it go to the point everything changed every 6 months and I just couldn't keep up. From what I understand they pissed off their table top war game community as well, at least in my area. Apparently they up and changed a complete rule set way too quickly after just releasing one. I don't because I quit the game and sold most of my stuff. I do however love the world and was GM'ing their custom system for quite a long time, but ran out of content because they didn't support it hardly at all. I loved the previous system as I thought it was much more engaging than D&D and more "realistic". Not sure if that's the word I'm looking for, but in D&D your character is really never dead unless you just don't want to bring them back. In IK death was a real result if you didn't play intelligently. I also loved the spell system. I just have always hated the way D&D did spells. I've always wanted to come up with a spell system for D&D similar to IK, but just haven't had the time to figure it out. So, I didn't back this project frankly because I found out about it too late. I probably would have if I'd known. I'm glad I didn't now. My question is I was going to move to IK5e when I can get my hands on the books. Do you think it's a good move?

[@alukemckool]

What’s your opinion on the content does it hold muster to other 5e settings. Are the monsters accurate to the setting ect.

[@HowToRollDice]

I'm going to do a thorough content review soon, maybe even a game play review, assuming the books survive that long.

[@abesolutzero]

@@HowToRollDice I'm running Legend of the Witchfire. Gameplay wise, this is mostly fine so far, but 5e has a lot of annoying limitations they didn't bother getting around, like proper crafting rules. Borderlands and Beyond has custom gear rules but they rely on "Throw money at NPC to make it for you" more or less. Or you get proficiency with tools and use them in whatever way 5e uses tools. Classes like Mechanik are weird since crafting isn't really a THING in the traditional skillcheck sense.

[@HowToRollDice]

Solid info. Thanks for the feedback. I'm curious to hear if you come across any other low or high points.

[@abesolutzero]

@@HowToRollDice We're only at level 2 so not much. Content wise, though, a lot of weird stuff is missing. No concrete section on the gods, for instance- the most you get is a list of religious symbols in a GM-specific side PDF that came out. Due to the SRD limitations there's a lot of stuff they can't mention concretely, like for example, other domains the setting's gods can make use of. They are referenced in a roundabout fashion to avoid licensing fees. Pain of healing is still there. They incorporated the archetype/second career system from the second edition as an alternative to using racial stat bonuses. IE: PIck an archetype, get bonuses from it as well as specific feats. Setting-specific backgrounds now come with a whole bunch of stuff, and if you go the Archetype route, you get the stat increases from there too. If you go that route, you ignore the stat increases on the races' side but you still get everything else. So it gives you options for both methods of character creation.

[@danielfreitas9301]

The boost mechanic was such a great rule. I detest the fact that DnD has a linear probability curve in increments of 5% only. I loved the bell curve of the boost mechanic.

[@FMD-FullMetalDragon]

The original d20 Iron Kingdoms was one of the best d20 settings in that decade. The switch to their house system was okay but it didn't hold a candle to the d20 version. You are confirming what I thought the 5e version would turn out to be... another company selling out to using 5e for their rpg. However, that background music is horrible. It's way loud and repetitive.

[@HowToRollDice]

I never got to play the original, but I did really enjoy the D6 version once I house ruled a few things. Frankly I'm just sick of D20 systems. We've got an entire world of possible randomization and game play mechanics, and yet 75% of RPGs just default to D20s with Stat based static roll mods. The music thing cannot be helped. It's a headphone/monitor leveling thing. I'll always set my music to 1/3rd to 1/4th the level of my vocals by average peak dB. Beyond that, depending on how you listen, whether it be over ear headphones, airpods, a TV with surround, your phone speakers, your car, etc.. The default EQ and natural levels of the speakers you are using is going to change the sound output. For example in most cars, my music vanishes entirely. Same goes in most TV sound bars. But in a solid speaker monitor, with good mids, the music really comes through. And as far as the repetition goes, there isn't really a 12 minute song unless I go classic orchestral pieces haha. And rather than use 3 or 4 tracks, which would be even more distracting in my opinion, I simply use the remix feature in Adobe audition and select a maximum beat value before resizing the track to the length needed for the video.

[@Spam387]

100% agree - loved the original setting (currently trying to mash witchfire trilogy into pathfinder 1e) and also +1 the comment re: background music but good channel, subbed!

[@Docsfortune]

They didn’t sell out anything, they kick started a campaign in the most popular and widely used system to date. People backed and bought the system. That’s why they kick started it, to see if anyone was interested. They hit every single goal. That’s not a sel out that’s just business

[@HowToRollDice]

To be fair, giving up on developing your own unique product line in order to ride the coat tails of a larger more successful brand because it makes more business sense... Is sort of the definition of selling out. It may be a smart business move, but then again selling out usually is. The idea is you are choosing money over control/originality. Some people see that as simply smart, other people see it as dropping your principles to earn a quick buck. But business and selling out are not mutually exclusive. In fact often times they mean the exact same thing. So it seems you guys actually agree in the reality of things but disagree in the symantics. Tomato tohmahto. As for the kickstarter comment, yes, that is the purpose of kickstarter, but there is a reason large successful companies don't use it. Does MTG use kickstarter? Does Games Workshop rely on it? Wyrd miniatures? No, not really. They may occasionally use the platform for a limited run or side project here or there, but their mainline is designed to be a retail good, which is the opposite of kickstarter. Kickstarter is generally used most heavily by indie groups and startups with little to no financial backing. When you see a large 20 year old company, who have had years of success, suddenly revert to kickstarter for 50% of their product line, there's a good chance things are not going so well for them.

[@jakeapplegate6642]

@@HowToRollDice just cut the music altogether. It’s unwatchable as is.

[@MrMeanSpeaks]

its a blatant cash grab. I am with you as far as the original rpg went I really enjoyed it. I wish they would have loved to see it come full circle! I did not back it and the company is dead to me unless they bring back the original version or at least license it out to another company!

[@nrais76]

They've had problems with delivery since some time during Mk II when they switched to printing in China, and just never went away. The Iron Kingdoms started as a trilogy of adventure modules for D&D 3rd edition. Pre-Warmachine. Later they printed up a bunch of stuff for 3.5. THEN their in-house RPG came, and it was sadly undersupported. Yes, they did several supplements, and a weekly free thing on their website. But the web download frequently got buried in all the other announcements on their blog, and they never finished it by covering the non-human kingdoms of Cryx, Ios, and Rhul in the bug hardcover they were supposed to get, and Eastern Immoren got one (comparatively) tiny softcover on the Skorne Empire, the Monsternomicon for IK RPG was pathetic compared even to the d20 version, and they never covered the southern continent like they promised, either. They also never fixed the problems with integrating warjacks into IK RPG (they worked very well in d20, on the other hand). Then they wrecked WarmaHordes - not just rules-wise - with Mk III, trying to move to a different model for books, then abandoning print books entirely, and now no one could follow the storyline, and you were out money when you realized you had to print a new set of stat cards every time you played, since all the armies were getting constant tweaks and updates. Then the Harrowing or whatever it was called happened, then a couple of weird games came out, and before I knew it they were trying to hawk a far future warcaster game set on a spaceship after the whole Iron Kingdoms solar system blew up or something. It was confusing. Then along came this product and Mk IV amd I thought we'd get an update to the original setting finally, but I decided not to get Mk IV when I found I could not use my $12k of existing miniatures, and I missed out on the 5e books.

[@andrepurchases]

I know this is going waaaaaay back in time to ... cripes I'm thinking close to the year 2000? But I'm wondering what your thoughts were on the "original" 3rd edition D&D Iron Kingdoms books.. Iron Kingdoms Character Guide, Iron Kingdoms World Guide, Monsternomicon vol's 1 and 2 for 3rd edition D&D, Liber Mechanika, Five Fingers Port of Deceit, the various (again waaay back around year 2000 and onwards) New Quarter magazines with those wonderful (in my opinion) articles that brought various aspects of the Iron Kingdoms to life ( detailed looks at say the Trencher combatants in Cygnar's army, Widowmakers of Khador's army, a detailed look at Tharmar's cults .. think it was called The Shroud?.... detailed look at the Golden Crucible, Fraternal Order of Wizardry, stats for various steamjacks).. I definitely gathered from your replies to comments below that you are not a fan of the D&D 3rd edition rules or as more people think of it nowadays in my opinion "Pathfinder" :) .. and I totally respect that , rulesets are one of those things where the opinion is going to vary wildly from player to player and GM to GM as far as what they like and dislike ... but I still find myself recommending those older books to people simply because of the writing and sheer amount of lore/world building/"fluff" in it.. heck the Iron Kingdoms World Guide barely has any rules content at all and reads much like a lovingly detailed encyclopedia of the Iron Kingdoms Campaign setting... I love this sort of thing and I think it's what attracted and kept Iron Kingdoms fans back in the day. The sad thing is , unless I'm terribly wrong, Privateer Press doesn't make these older titles available say in drivethrurpg which is a real shame.. I get that they may want to drive revenue towards their later editions of Iron Kingdoms but .. well look at World of Darkness, they readily make their VERY old (circa 1990's ) 1st edition Vampire books for example available for sale through drivethru rpg and you don't see the Vampire RPG shutting down or going out of business :) .. even if events in the Iron Kingdoms campaign setting have moved beyond year 603 (if memory serves me correctly) with the infernals and all , I'd argue these books with their richly detailed focus on the campaign setting are well worth the read if nothing else because knowing the history of the campaign world would still help enormously even if things have changed since then. Cripes that was a long wall of text wasn't it? Sorry about that :) ... getting back to my original question, I was just wondering if you'd had a chance to read those older books I mentioned? Or did your love for the IK setting start with the Privateer Press exclusive non D&D ruleset that you mentioned earlier?

[@andrepurchases]

Cripes I'm forced to reply to my own comment since I can't edit it :P .. I just wanted to clarify further that in case anyone sees my comment as a criticism of Privateer Press.. it's not.. I will admit that my experiences with them are very dated .. I bought Iron Kingdoms, Kings Nations and Gods primarily because of the rich amount of lore and "world building" info in it but didn't bother with the PP unique ruleset that Josh (the KZbinr posting this review) loves... not because I disagree with Josh :) but rather because, again, I was so happy with the original PP content I mentioned above that I didn't see the need to use an updated ruleset , plus I find myself preferring the D&D 3.5 ruleset those books use since it's , while more "clunky" and "crunchy rules based", also offers more customization as far as your approach to the game for the same reason (which is why I'm ignoring the 5th edition Requiem rules too, I read about the differences between 5th and 3rd edition and find myself liking 3rd more for the same reasons)... seriously if you have some way to get a hold of those books I cited above get them and read them as well as the first edition Monsternomicon and Monsternomicon volume 2 , you'll love it I promise. I did notice that there are a lot of " Man Privateer Press was good, not so good now" type comments.. again I'm not in a position to address these comments since I'm stuck in the past with PP's excellent products that I fell in love with :) ... but it's worth noting the " Man Privateer Press was good" part of these comments... in my honest opinion (and again limiting myself to the older books I mentioned above) the campaign setting is outstanding, the finest D&D campaign setting I've ever encountered or read, period. If you prefer 5th to 3rd edition rules just buy say the digital pdf's of IK Requiem and set your campaign in the 3rd edition of D&D books lore in the books I mentioned above.

[@royrogers3133]

I still have dreams of playing war machine with my family. Nobody plays anymore now.

[@dayminkaynin]

How hath they fallen?

[@jeffreysas5888]

I'm one of the kickstarters of the product. My copies didn't turn out as bad as yours, but still subpar. That being said, I was keeping up on the emails that PP was sending out explaining that they were stuck on ships and ports for those several months. Probably the worst environment to keep books in. Probably won't change your mind, but something that should be pointed out. I think it's something that should be factored in the review instead of being omitted.

[@HowToRollDice]

Oh I've kept up as well. But like I said in my video, this is far from the first time this has happened with PPS. And I've tried to overlook the issues based on how much I like the company and want to continue to support them, but at this point my patients is worn out.

[@Pers0n97]

This should honestly have been titled "Iron Kingdoms Requiem Paper Review since it literally only cover the quality of the physical objects and not the game itself. While all your points are great and really highlight how garbage the quality of the physical products are, that video was extremely lacking in any relevant information about the game itself.

[@HowToRollDice]

I agree, I did a follow-up video after this one where I actually going to the content within the book. My goal was originally to cover the book and the contents in this first video but I ended up renting for so long that I felt it would have been too long of a video to cover both. So I broke it into two halves, which led to the name of the first video seeming somewhat misleading.

[@Pers0n97]

@@HowToRollDice Nice, I'll check that followup then !

[@malex2200]

I look at the 3e, d6, and 5e IK books as a long single story - like Shadowrun. That allows me to use the lore as I see fit. I have been using Pathfinder 1e with the 3e IK corebooks for about a year now.

[@HowToRollDice]

That's basically how I look at them now. They are extended lore compendiums.

[@RafeLaet]

but what about the new Rules?

[@HowToRollDice]

I've glanced over the digital PDFs a handful of times, but I digest way better with a physical copy, so I've been waiting for the books to show. Now that they are here in going to give them a good read front to back, and possibly run a couple of sessions, maybe some one shots, I'll do a proper review on the contents.

[@chrisj5505]

I have to disagree. I absolutely love Iron Kingdoms Requiem. It is my favourite setting ever. The only qualms I have is thr book does not have a detailed chapter on the deities and ascendents or a world map. The classes are largely decent if a bit weak for my power gamer style games. Mind you it is a gritty setting and meant to be a bit more challenging. Having read the novellas and fiction I would use Spheres of Power and Spheres of Might from Drop Dead Studios to augment the classes.

[@mjb91]

The binding problem was disappointing, but the class mechanics were even more of a let down... Still looking for a good system to run IK, since I'm not a fan of their d6 RPG.

[@malex2200]

Savage Worlds or Pathfinder.

[@leatherguru8904]

Just one of many kickstarters that have been disappointing I have 5 that I waited 3 years on

[@mattj1871]

What % of the KS you back get delivered on time? My track record is less than 10%. IKRPG 5 months late in a pandemic with concomitant supply chain and shipping problems? Try Grimmerspace that was due well before the pandemic and STILL isn't even anywhere near completion. Yes, they are poor quality. Not disputing that. Got mine replaced by PP with decent copies.

[@HowToRollDice]

Funny enough, I've only ever backed about 8-10 kickstarters, and 3 or 4 of those have been privateer press, and the only late arrivals (and certainly the only damaged products) were from privateer press. Like I've mentioned. If this was the first time it'd happened with them, different story. If they were a small company or new company, different story. Hell if it was a very small humber of product, perhaps even that would be more digestible. But none of that is true, and all of it stacks up to make this unacceptable to me, IMO.

[@MagnusCross]

hahah "Toss-in" yeah right...

[@mansad143]

I think the first part of the video wasn't for me because I want examples of how the did Iron kingdoms in 5e which is what they sold. But I appreciate the review of the quality in the rest

[@HowToRollDice]

I did make a video addressing the content later on. Sorry for what may have seemed like a bait and switch. Wasn't my intention haha.

[@guardianofsummerset451]

...Yeah. I have the d6 Core book from Iron Kingdoms, I must have bought it at... Maybe 2015? It was nice from the start, I didn't realize anything wrong about the tears and such things, as I don't own many things like that book. I have used it dozens of times in the last 8 years, the book is _destroyed_ It barely holds together, I have the Dragon Age core book from 2016, used just as much and it looks almost new. Maybe it is just the newbooks from this review, but I have the same problem with a brazilian edition from 2015, so... I think it is just privateer press for a while now.

[@unkelTP]

Sounds perfect for a newbie to roleplayer. Great Work PP!

[@HowToRollDice]

Nailed it LOL.

[@420GameTimeColorado]

if you have a car messed up by a shop while they are working on it. you wouldn't let them fix it for free? that's dumb!

[@DONTworryIgotTHIS]

Like I get that the production quality is part of a review but legit never talking about any of the content is annoying AF. This isn't a review of the RPG, its a review of the physical book the rpg was contained within. This is like clicking on a link to a Marvel Movie review and the dude talks about how bad the Blue Ray case's quality was the whole time. Like it sucks that the container's quality sucks but what about the actual RPG!?!?!

[@HowToRollDice]

Firstly... Hi. Thanks for watching. To address your point, using a slightly more accurate analogy, this is more like I wanted to review a marvel comic for you, but my copy, and many other people's copies, were so damaged beyond repair right out of the packaging that they could hardly even be considered readable. At that point does the content matter? Do you want to buy a product that has such a high chance of showing up damaged? Now, to be clear, I have since made a video focused specifically on the content of the game, but that point, to me, felt moot. My review of the product is that no one should buy it. Content aside. The company is no longer producing quality products or behaving in a way that shows they give a damn at all about their customers. Again, simply cause analogies are fun, if I was reviewing a car, do I really need to keep going if the engine won't start? Do you care what the radio sounds like or what the leather seats feel like at that point? It's a bad car. Don't buy it. The rest doesn't matter. Review over. Now, that's just my two cents. Maybe you don't want a physical copy anyways. Maybe you want a pdf or something. Fine. I still don't think you should buy it, but incase you want to, that's the point of my other video delving into all of the problems I have with the content. Hope this helps. And again, thanks for watching :)

[@artvandelay8830]

If a book is flawed, send it back to the company. They will send you a good copy.

[@flameknightdragon]

it should not have been sent out flawed in the first place. it was clearly a rush job. it is why they ignored player feed back

[@HowToRollDice]

Hey Art, I did end up requesting a replacement copy, which I did receive, but as Flame mentioned, this is more of a last straw that broke the camels back. This is very far from the first flawed effort I've had to deal with from PPS over the last few years. If it was the first time, or even the 2nd, I would have had a far gentler response. Thanks for the input though. And thanks for watching.

[@firebringeraxel]

I will never support the vanilla-fication of IKRPG. Their system is so good that I'll only ever use it.

[@ArnandKularajah]

The saddest part is their shelving the forums that contained tons of fan-created content. All of our 2d6 content is lost forever.

[@zacheryeckard3051]

Wayback machine?

[@ArnandKularajah]

@@zacheryeckard3051 Tried that, most of the forum posts are missing post 2015.

[@sasugashogun]

This is why I don't preorder, I don't kickstart from big companies, and I don't buy early-access/beta. Kickstart is great for startup companies who have neat ideas, but a company that's been around a while shouldn't need the money upfront. They should have money from their previous sales that they can rollover into their next project(s). If they don't have the money for that, then they've failed as a business. I see so many companies going onto kickstarter and ripping people off.

[@thiagom5195]

Man, you do 12 min video complaning only about the quality of the print and cover. But we wanna know the structure of the game.

[@HowToRollDice]

The game design is as bad as the product quality. If you'd like more detail there has been a video up on my channel for about 2 months now addressing the content of the game. Honestly I'm bored talking about it. There are far better games to discuss. It's a shame, but it is what it is.

[@avan5902]

I had the same problems. They sent me better copies.

[@grungyape]

PP is not without blame, but also bear in mind that most of this is printing company issues, and C19 and shipping mess. They have announced that they have made a change moving forward with who and where it prints. Iron Kingdoms 5e still stands well. If you played the older 3.5 and are now a 5e person, this will fit in well.

[@HowToRollDice]

Final quality check is always the responsibility of the publisher. That's PP. I agree their printer screwed up. And PP screwed up by not catching it. Maybe the butcher didn't seal the meat well. But if the restaurant cooks it and serves it to me without checking it, the restaurant is the one that made me sick. Loved 3.5, loved 4 (what can I say I like minis), loved 5e. None are my favorite, but they are solid RPGs. Oddly enough as I type this I'm editing my final video on requiem. I hope you get the chance to check it out :)

[@chuckfarley2764]

I can agree that the endless delays and excuses got real old. Then they made decisions like Americans would get fulfillment last so these books were shipped from China to the US and the say US to Australia, nearly circumnavigating the globe before I got mine. I was planning a campaign when I backed this but ended up buying Dungeon of the Mad Mage in November and started that instead. Now I dont even know what Im going to do with these books, stick them on a shelf I suppose, because they are so late Ive lost interest. However, backing a 5e kickstarter and then griping about it being 5e seems pretty self inflicted. No one was obscuring what was being offered... just when.

[@chuckfarley2764]

The binding is "lay flat" and according to a printer/backer of a good quality for that style. I still would have prefered a more traditional binding.

[@HowToRollDice]

Totally agree on the 5E thing. Like I mentioned in my first video, I was worried about that from the get go, but I love the setting so much I was hoping that would offset my distaste for the ruleset, and in that, I believe now I underestimated how clunky the mash up was goes to be from a rules perspective. I was thinking something more like 5E dice, death saves, priority, and some other foundational mechanics, with the rest of the bulk being straight IK. Heres a way to look at it: I thought I was ordering a pizza made with 5E dough and with everything else (sauce, cheese, toppings) made by privateer press. Instead what I got was a complete 5E pizza that has some IK pepperoni on it.

[@HowToRollDice]

Ya I don't mind that they went with a "lay flat" binding, but it seems like trying to fix something that wasn't really a problem to begin with, and in doing so they made a bunch of new problems. In fact, this seems like a perfect example of why people say "If it ain't broke don't fix it." Now I've seen the binding gap and 'poor handling' test videos that they've put up, and I definitely have a out 4x the binding gap that they have, as well as numerous torn and partialy loose pages in both core and monster, so I'm guess I got a bad batch.

[@jameslind9195]

I've stuck to pathfinder, didn't like 4e, i haven't played 5e, getting a chance soon, with this of all things. I refused to kick this Because they dumped the d6 system that id invested in fully, GM screen set whole nine yards, and they just dumped it, id kicked their video game way back too, so this, eh, I'm so glad I threw my hands up and refused to jump in on it for 5e, especially given what's going on with WotC and 5e right now. And the quality of what you got is terrible, the other books for the older editions where pricy, but lovly books, so what happened between the quality from the d6 books to these.

[@Wabbasha]

video starts at 1:20

[@HowToRollDice]

I personally feel like it really get's going around 5:38 myself.

[@Geerladenlad]

I would make them make it right. Then never buy from them again.

[@Denbak80]

I get it, the publication quality is garbage. But you never reviewed the game, just the print quality.

[@hawkthetraveler6344]

holy shit that music is irritating. I'm going to try and make it through this review cause I care, but that music will keep me from trying your other material. It would have been good to hear some comment about the content of the book (classes, races, spells, how is a warcaster presented in 5e). Guess this was just an unboxing video.

[@HowToRollDice]

Thanks for watching.

[@sidhenihilist]

Heavy Karen vibes.

[@HowToRollDice]

Good call. Gotta pop out and get me that haircut.

[@alexmeeres5072]

I also backed this on Kickstarter. My products had no printing problems whatsoever. Privateer kept me informed continuously through this project of what the project was, where it was, and when it was coming. And when it arrived, it was an impressive set of books and goodies. I appreciate an insightful look at the downsides of products, but I don't feel this is a fair review. You got a lemon. That is no indication that the publisher has died, that they don't care, that the world is ending. I am 100% satisfied with the manufacturing of the product I received. Out of 8,000 backers, I doubt I'm in the minority.

[@HowToRollDice]

I'm glad your products, and the products of most others, were fine. I, and everyone else, was also made aware of the delays and issues the company was dealing with. However merely informing your customers does not excuse the occurrence. If I sit down at a restaurant, for which I have pre-paid quite a bit for my meal, and the staff keeps coming to my table to explain why no food has arrived after several hours, I'm leaving, and I'm giving them a negative review. Especially when the same thing has happened with this same company numerous times in the past several years. Of course there are some things that come up unexpected, but this isn't a group of 5 year olds getting rained out and having to close down their lemonade stand. This is a veteran company, that has been around for over 20 years, that ran a kickstarter resulting in over $500,000. They should know how to vet vendors, plan for manufacturing hiccups, work around delays, and at the very least, after realizing that their vendors, printers, or otherwise, may have been rushing or otherwise cutting corners to complete these orders, should have spent a considerable effort running quality checks on these products before shipping to customers. When you say I got a lemon, you seem to be rounding down quite heavily. I, and many others, got a product of unacceptably low quality. So many people reported this issue that it lead to privateer press releasing a series of update posts regarding the issues on their kickstarter, as well as revisiting their quality checks on their remaining inventory, something that likely should have been done prior to releasing product to customers. And I say this as someone who has worked in Quality Assurance and Logistics for over a decade. And again, this is not the first time this has been an issue with this company in recent years. A company that, I'll point out again, created such amazing products that I enjoyed so much, that I have a memorial to them etched into my flesh. This is a trend, not a single data point. This trend is what leads me, and many many others, to believe that the company is heading, and has been heading, in a very bad direction. Their player base is down, their new product lines in recent years have been dead on arrival compared to their core products, and the quality of their product overall is falling. The bar for defining a flawed release is not 100% defective, it is far less. Hell if even 1% of iPhones had cracked screens out of the box, do you realize how quickly Apples market share would tank? That would be considered a catastrophic failure. Everyone in the departments responsible for the rollout of those products would be fired. That day. In this case 1% is 80 customers, and I'm willing to bet there are at least that many with issues. Again I am glad you are satisfied with your product. I was very much hoping to be satisfied with my product. I'm sure the others with damaged goods were too. But what we got is not acceptable, and to many, myself included, is the final straw in a series of letdowns. There are too many other companies putting out quality components and innovating without running into these constant issues, and frankly at this point, I just don't believe in Privateer Press anymore. As always, thanks for watching, and I hope you have a blast with Requiem.

[@muxe80]

First off. Almost every company is having shipping problems, supply problems, staffing problems currently. Frosthaven anyone? So unless you are a god, it is understood shipping delays etc are a way of life now post covid. Secondly. You lost me when you went on you rant about how you don't like 5th edition but bought the book anyways because you were hoping it wouldn't be 5th edition. Come on man. Really? You are essentially saying I don't like onions but I going to review this onion soup. I already know how that review is going to go.

[@HowToRollDice]

Hi! I work for a medical device company that ships parts and systems all over the world. We are a small startup, not a massive force. About 40 staff total. And I can get huge inventory shipments too and from US and Japan no problem. So I disagree with your first point. Covid increases the need for efficient systems, processes, and planning, and yes, if you don't implement those, you will have delays. What covid did was make it really easy to tell the companies with well designed logistics and quality systems from those without. I don't believe I ever said I don't like 5th edition, I simply think there are many better options. I've often compared 5th edition, and D&D in general, to vanilla ice cream. It's fine, it's just a little basic. It's still a classic, and it's always going to be on the menu, but over the last 60 years we've developed quite a few other flavors, some of which I find much more appealing. Doesn't mean something based on vanilla can't be delicious, hence the reason to give it a try. Imagine you didn't really care for the Final Fantasy Franchise, for whatever reason, but then you found out that the next dark souls - esque game was going to be a mash up with the final fantasy system, and maybe you love souls games. I bet you'd still want to give it a try and at the same time would be worried about how the end result was actually going to play. Your soup anology is a bit over simplified in my opinion, but allow me to spice it up a bit for improved accuracy: What I'm saying is I don't really care for onion soup, but I love chili, and this is a chili made with an onion soup base. My take was, at the time, maybe they are going to include enough of the chili ingredients into the soup (beans, a nice smoked brisket, peppers, spices, garlic, etc..) that it'll barely even be noticeable that it started at onion soup. And to conclude with this same example, unfortunately in this case for me, what we ended up getting was onion soup with some sliced jalepenos and ground beef on top.

[@richardrobb6937]

Oh. You got a defect and didn't manage your expectations about the content in the book. Guess that makes it Hot Garbage. Also, they released an email regarding the issues with your book. Hit them up for a correction.

[@HowToRollDice]

Appreciate the comment, and the view. I think you may have missed my bigger point. If you have the time, checkout some of my other comments down here and you'll see what I mean. Saying sorry and offering to fix something doesn't mean you didn't screw up in the first place, and doesn't isntantly remove disappointment. Especially when it's far from the first time it's happened.

[@mky5439]

@@HowToRollDice I agree, but you didn't even comment at all on the content inside the book.

[@HowToRollDice]

Ya I made a separate video focusing on that. As I mentioned, this was a first look, not a full review. I wanted to read through the full book before I gave a review on the content. That video is up now.

[@mattlowder]

Can I tell you, I watched this video two months ago, and recently returned to it, because you're meltdown here is both extremely intelligent and accurate. It's amazing you even took the time to make this video, but thanks for your public service.

[@theavocadoguitarist.1823]

I was really quite bothered by the fact that the only thing this video covered was printing quality, as though this issue would be the most prevalent to everybody else, forsake the rules/gameplay! How *does* the game play? What are the rule adaptations ACTUALLY LIKE? Is this a viable standalone that isn’t just all DND? Despite the fact you mentioned you had a PDF of the rulebook, you simply stated they didn’t deliver a unique DND variation that could be like a standalone game - you did not specify any particulars about rules you didn’t like. You did not specify anything about the c o r e of the game, which is communicating how you play it. And that’s exactly what it looked like you would promote in this video. I am bitterly disappointed that a review video, from somebody who clearly does seem intelligent, does not have a comprehensive take on the game for those of us brand new to it. Please consider more perspectives that presume someone doesn’t know much about this game - or at least the new variation - the next time you make a video like this. Thank you!

[@GreatBeeman]

I also think was a shame when they discarded the 2nd edition rules, it had so many good qualities... It just needed a little more love and some balance to it. But is gone. 7 years ago, this guys had the wargaming sphere in there hands, but they blow it, and blow it hard.

[@HowToRollDice]

Couldn't agree more.

[@gmjeremy3627]

I didn't need the first four or five minutes of this video, but after the rambling about how terrible life is going for ya it was a valuable video for me. You almost lost me, I fast-forwarded instead.

[@HowToRollDice]

How Jeremy prefers gaming videos: 'How's that new game looking Ollie?' 'IT'S KINDA CRAPPY!!!' 'Thanks Ollie.'

[@gmjeremy3627]

@@HowToRollDice lol. Sounds about right. :D

[@igorkirdeika4765]

Terrible Art Direction Choices. Maybe I`m old but this is not for me anymore.

[@christophemortier5878]

I came here for a review of the game but it was not it ...

[@davestory8614]

That was not a review. That was 10+ minutes of you crying. Please retitle your work to reflect what you are delivering - it is exactly the same argument that you were crying about in the rant: you did not deliver what your title stated.

[@leatherguru8904]

Stop crying about someone else explaining how disheartening it is to wait a year plus for a game that's s*****.

[@RathFox]

What a terrible video, let's buy something I don't want and cannot really play. Then review it a bad...lol so if this videowas a puddle let just say you can walk through without getting your feet wet

[@HowToRollDice]

Love it. Keep em coming. And thanks for watching.