Emails with Forgeworld (IA vol 10 lists)

[Gothmog Lord of Balrogs]

Just thought I would share my email exchanges with Forgeworld trying to get the to release, or at least let us publically host, the IA Vol 10 Maelstrom Zone lists. My emails will be black, FW replies Blue

27 May 2013
To whom it may concern,

I am contacting you in hopes that a PDF of the fleet lists and unique vessels for Battlefleet Gothic contained in IA Vol 10 can be made freely available, or at least permission for players to make a PDF and to put those rules online.

All other BFG resources, including the Tau Kor'or'vesh first included in IA Vol 3, are available online for free and are either hosted by GW themselves or on the specialist games forums:
http://www.forum.specialist-arms.com/index.php

With the abbrupt cancellation of the BFG model line (as well as all other Specialist Games), there won't be many new players or demand for BFG resources, so it only makes sense to make the existing resources availble to the enthusiatic community of veterans that remains.

Respectfully,
"Gothmog"

9 June 2013
To whom it may concern,

I was just following up on this and seeing if there was any potential for this to be allowed. I don't want to encourage piracy or break any copyright laws, so permission to host these BFG resources would mean alot to the BFG community.

Respectfully,
"Gothmog'

10 June 2013
Hi there.
                Please accept our apologies for the delay in replying to your e-mail.  It is our aim to reply to all of the e-mails that we receive but  we are a small team and due to the high volume  that we receive, we are unfortunately not always able to answer them all as quickly as we would like.

The Tau Fleet rules were originally released separately as the Taros Book was out of print for several years. We had meant to remove them from the 2nd edition printing of this book but it had already gone to the printers by the time our BFG Tau stock had been depleted.  However, as IA volume 10 is still available we try to avoid publishing rules separately when they are available in an in print book.  Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience caused.

Regards,
Forgeworld

10 June 2013
I would just ask that it be reconsidered by some sort of management/executive, if for however briefly.

Both the core rules and the armada rules were available free and still are available free from Gamesworkshop, even while the books were still available from the company.
http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/content/article.jsp?catId=cat480005a&categoryId=6700003a&section=&aId=21500018a

This was the case with all the of the Specialist games actually.

It just seems silly at best and blantantly uncaring for hobbyists at worst that for a game no longer supported, with no production of minis ongoing or forthcoming, than we are expected to purchase a 52 GBP, over 80 USD book, more than the core rulebook (and more than the core boxgame was) for 2 fleet lists. And not even entirely original fleet lists, but ones that are built upon rules that already exist free online (and now are only available free online) and can't be used without those rules. Sure there are also 5 new vessels, but these are character ships and/or are a variant of an existing ship.  As well alot of people aren't even aware that IA Vol 10 contains any BFG rules what so ever, so it is made even more unlikely to be purchased for that reason.

The fact that they were intended to be removed from IA3 shows that the target audience of the IA books is not BFG, that it is no longer cared for or supported, and the fate of it matters little. Allowing the rules to be in the hands of the small dedicated community that still exists around this game would mean a great deal to the players and hobbyists that remain. And it would be a shame to see the Maelstrom zone lists fade into even greater oblivion than BFG as no one plays them, because no one has the rules to know they are even there.

Respectfully,
"Gothmog"

11 June 2013
Hi there.

We appreciate your concern with this but please don't misunderstand, although the BFG information from the Badab books is not currently available separately this does not rule out that it will be available separately in the future.

Regards,
Forgeworld

[Gothmog Lord of Balrogs]

My take away is that we may one day be allowed to get them, but since their policy is to not release things that are covered in the books, and they had intended to remove it from IA3 2nd Ed, we are going to have to wait for IA10 2nd Ed to ever see a possibility.

Though if more people email about this, we may get the rules released.

[afterimagedan]

Wait, why do you want them to give it out freely? They are selling their books for money. I just don't get the point. They are selling books of information. That hasn't changed. Letting it be in the hands of the community would be nice, but I don't understand pushing beyond respectful request. No offense.

[horizon]

Hmm,
I understand the reasoning:
GW: sold the book but also had the rules online.
FW: sold the book but had no rules online.

Plus: FW did have the IA3 Tau rules online for a couple of years.

[Gothmog Lord of Balrogs]

Wait, why do you want them to give it out freely? They are selling their books for money. I just don't get the point. They are selling books of information. That hasn't changed. Letting it be in the hands of the community would be nice, but I don't understand pushing beyond respectful request. No offense.

No offense taken. I understand that they are selling their books and that they don't just give out free stuff. I had little hope it would work. And as long as the game was supported, I would have never even have bothered to ask. But here is a short list of why I did:

1- All other BFG (and specialist games) resources are free and available online. 100%. Even if some are no longer available from the company specifically, they are fine with them being available in the public domain.
2- This includes their own Tau CPF lists and ships (setting a precedent)
3- BFG is no longer supported and is not a target market for the company
4- The Badab War books are marketed and priced for 40k, not BFG. Releasing 3 pages would not see their profits diminished, as it would still sell to the primary market. It would actually probably lower piracy of the Badab War books, as anyone looking for just the BFG rules could just get that and not download all the background, artwork and 40k rules (and probably IA9 as well to complete that) . They are selling a 40k book that had a bonus BFG content for the most dedicated of hobbyists. If it were a complete BFG campaign system and extensive rules, I'd see an argument otherwise, but it is 5 variant/character ships and a hybridization of already existing fleet lists.
6- Based on point 5, to expect some one to pay $80 for 3 pages of BFG rules is silly. No one will. They may buy it for the 40k rules (I did), but no one if buying it just for the BFG rules.
7- Alot of people don't even know about these lists or have never seen them. To make the available to the community would increase awareness and use, and be a nice parting gift from the company with the game. Alot better one than a White Dwarf t-ahirt for $40 IMO.
8- I had hoped to put the Maelstrom Zone stuff in ASC 2.0, but I wanted to make sure that the rules were legally available first. I don't want to put them in, even if they are altered, without the baseline rules in the poublic domain.