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I would suggest reading Black Diamond games blog specificly This one and This one They deal with your queestions
Owner - Black Diamond Games
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After the hardcovers, the most current adventure paths would be my next choice. After that, you could do supplements that tie into those adventure paths. Some stand alone adventures might be worthwhile, knowing that they'll be the usual slow sellers.
Map Packs and Flip Mats are useful for both D&D and Pathfinder, with Flip Mats being the more popular of those. Focus on the Basic mat, taverns, and common outdoor scenery, like forests, river crossings, etc.
The strategy I employ involves carrying the full line. I can't compete on price, but I can compete on selection and service (when combined with Pathfinder Society play and knowledgeable staff). The last time I checked, it was probably a $3,000 investment. That's cheap compared to most hobby games.
mmm i never play a module... but if i can tell you something is this:
Game Mastery Guide is the worst book from paizo, and i dont know personaly to no one who has buyed it
If you gonna sell some dices, sell this ones and forget Chessex [same price, beter designs]
http://q-workshop.com/select.php
It's the least popular of the hard covers, due to its narrow focus, but it's still worth carrying.
I'm very surprised by that. Thanks for the perspective. When your sample size is basically one its easy to draw the wrong conclusions.
*blinks* GMG is incredibly useful. I suppose it really only appeals to GMs, and of those probably a certain subset. Any GMs out there, I hope you consider checking GMG out.
In terms of modules, I'd be tempted to carry the Skull & Shackles line to coincide with the release of the Pathfinder Battles minis line dedicated to it (coming in the summer). Rise of the Runelords is a path that gets a lot of (well-deserved) hype.
One-shots may be less intimidating for some potential buyers.
What about pathfinder 3pps? Do you recommend carrying some? Which ones?
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What about pathfinder 3pps? Do you recommend carrying some? Which ones?
I think it depends on your clients.. After a few months, when you know your big RPG buys, ask them if there are any 3PP they want to you to order for them. whatever they order, order an extra for the store. (thats how we used to do warhammer, worked pretty well)
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Owner - Black Diamond Games
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It will depend. The problem with 3PP is the incredible rate at which Paizo puts out high quality products. Most people who follow Paizo don't have the mental bandwidth to deviate too far from the source. We sell a ton of Pathfinder but have difficulty with most 3PP.
Honestly, with Pathfinder as the new D&D, I think it's reasonable for a store to carry the full line. It's what you would expect to do with D&D. The full line of every Pathfinder item is about $3,000, which is a tiny bit of inventory compared to other investments. 3PP is something to consider after you've got all the Paizo stuff.
All of this product integrates and builds off each other, so the more you have, the more you sell. You're also trying to be the reliable source for Pathfinder products, so having the full line means your customers can come to you first.
I would look through the PFS threads and see what people view as "essential" gaming items:
http://paizo.com/threads/rzs2pkzx?Starting-to-GM-for-Pathfinder-Society
tl;dr? Ignore my prices; repasted my "essential" GM stuff.
- Two blank Paizo flipmats ($15/ea)
- Two packs of Vis-a-vis wet erase markers ($5/ea)
- Two packs of Bic mechanical pencils ($3/ea)
- Pack of mini legal pads ($2/ea)
- Two cheap "dollar store" mini white erase boards ($1/ea)
- Fantasy Flight Tokens, Red ($3/ea)
- Fantasy Flight Tokens, Blue ($3/ea)
- Fantasy Flight Tokens, Gold ($3/ea)
- Fantasy Flight Tokens, Silver ($3/ea)
- Fantasy Flight Tokens, Green ($3/ea)
- Pathfinder Beginner Box minis ($12/ea)
- Boxes of Starburst candy ($1/ea)
- Bestiary Box ($25/ea)
- Core Rulebook ($35/ea)
- Bestiary ($30/ea)
- Advanced Player's Guide ($30/ea)
- PFS Field Guide ($15/ea)
- PFS Guide to Organized Play, printed and bound ($5/ea)
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My recommendation after everything I have bought from my local game store is to carry one of all the Hard Covers with the exception of the Core Rule book which you should always have 2 of. My local store also has 1 copy of each hard cover as a "store copy" which you can use when there. (Though they rarely get used as players and GMs tend to want to own their own copy. It helps though.)
If you are going to host PFS I would recommend one of each of the modules that is sanctioned. 1 copy of RotRL, 1 of Shattered Start, 1 of Reign of Winter, 1 of Skull & Shackles, assorted flip maps and map packs (mostly basic terrains). The mini boosters sell well at our store but your milage may be different there. 1 pack of Critical Hit cards, 1 of critical fumbles, 1 of item cards for each AP you stock, status effect cards, and 1 map folio for each AP you have.
An assortment of battle mats, packs of Vis a Vis markers. The 5 pack that has 2x blacks, 1 blue, 1 red, and 1 green are the best IMO.
Always keep a beginners box there as well as a Bestiary box. The Pathfinder field guide....
I would steer clear of non sanctioned modules unless someone asks for them. The other thing you can do is offer to order whatever Pathfinder Items a player needs and just roll it into your weekly order. I would also (based on my experience) purchase a color laser printer for your shop. If a player needs to print a module/PFS scenario, you can sell the ink that way. There will always been a need for a printer there if you run PFS out of your store.
And the most important... just listen to what your players are asking for. Pathfinders seem to be a more patient bunch of people. Oh and the Game Mastery Guide is an awesome book for new GM's. Sure, many call it a fluff book but I found it amazingly useful.
Modules are an interesting choice for a store, because their length may seem less daunting to a person who's just started playing Pathfinder. An AP is a huge investment (in time and money), so modules are a great alternative.
In this regard, my choice of modules for a store would mainly include low-level ones: Crypt of the Everflame, Godsmouth Heresy, Murder's Mark, Feast of Ravenmoor, Masks of the Living God, Midnight Mirror, City of Golden Death and Carrion Hill.
If you need to be more picky, I'd restrict my choice further to the Crypt-Masks-Golden Death trilogy, as well as The Feast of Ravenmoor and the excellent Lovecrtaftian adventure Carrion Hill. The latter in particuler may interest Call of Cthulhu players and catch their attention.
mmm i never play a module... but if i can tell you something is this:
Game Mastery Guide is the worst book from paizo, and i dont know personaly to no one who has buyed it
Huh. Actually, I find the GMG so useful, that I bought both the hardcover and the PDF. It's where you find rules for haunts, chases, ship-to-ship combat, drugs, afflictions, an NPC gallery (I use these almost every time I design an adventure), and of course random item generation tables that make an old-school gamer like myself salivate. (Although, sadly, no random harlot encoutner table.)
Of course, it's entirely focused for GMs, and has very little for players. If you're not a GM, don't buy it.
feast of ravenmoor is a quality module
Honestly, I'd like to buy more from my FLGS, I really would. They just have a serious problem with actually stocking anything. When a new release comes out they have it, but after those sell, they never reorder. Additionally, they have a serious problem with custom orders--they never get ordered. The service is driving me away from my FLGS, not to it.
For my FLGS, as well the game/hobby shop I was invited to work for in another city, the APs don't do too well. I think it's because of the price point ($30 CAD) and that they are a series, you can't really just buy one. That said, there is the endless railroad debate--a really long adventure that plays out like a movie, that players and DMs only have minimal control over.
I think the expanded modules will be quite popular, as they can be treated like mini-campaigns and DMs will want to modify them for their players. Hopefully these will be more like the Darkmoon Vale module series and have the flexability players are looking for. The item cards are also not popular, however the condition cards and critical hit/miss decks are quite popular.
In Canada, shipping hardcovers is very expensive, and so I have the incentive to drive to my FLGS and buy it. Since I'm there and just drove an hour to be there, I might as well buy some other books that catch my eye. Although I do subscribe, it's mostly to ensure I get what I want and don't have to deal with the lousy service.
The massive game store downtown buys and sells used books, which is actually an incentive for me to buy new books. I can sell the ones I don't like, allowing me to buy books I probably otherwise wouldn't. I get maybe a 1/4 of what they're worth, but to me it's a library with the option to keep. Also, open the sealed books and give us a store copy to thumb through where possible. The computer/game store has the staff paint the started boxed sets of Games Workshop minis and puts them out to be seen and touched. This garners interest in people who would otherwise not ever see this as a hobby for them.
Additionally, our computer/game store sells puzzles and board games and does very good business on these, especially at christmas. Unfortunatly this store no longer hosts a gaming room due to lack of space, however I feel this is vital in hobby stores. Gaming is a social hobby, unlike model railroading; the train store doesn't have any room for networking or workshops. Players who are interested may not want to invest because they don't have anyone to play with. This will help immensely. My FLGS also hosts meetup groups twice a month to play board games--this group has exploded recently and gets nosy regulars meeting potential new players.
Some food for thought anyway. Take it as you will, I work in safety and not business.
-Nicole
It's the least popular of the hard covers, due to its narrow focus, but it's still worth carrying.I'm very surprised by that. Thanks for the perspective. When your sample size is basically one its easy to draw the wrong conclusions.
For what it's worth, I bought three GMGs last year and sold all three over the course of about five conventions between May and December. They always sold in a group with the Core and at least one Bestiary, and all to GMs who had run some previous iteration of D&D, AND who had been recently running 4th, and were running Pathfinder for the first time.
Might be useful data for somebody.
I'm opening a gaming store in Chattanooga, TN (facebook.com/gameonchattanooga) and I'm wanting some help on what Pathfinder stuff to carry outside of the Rule Book and Bestiary books. What are the more popular modules to carry?
Dude! I live in East Brainerd. Where are you located? Might have to swing by =D
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Owner - Black Diamond Games
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Those card packs are the slowest selling items for us. I only carry them to be a completist and I kind of wish they would go away. Perhaps subscribers buy them more often, but not so much for us.
Also, not mentioned here, we actually sell the novels pretty regularly and stock the full line. If you decide to go "full line," don't forget those.
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Paizo puts out a lot of card decks that are kinda pointless, IMHO, with the exceptions being the condition cards, buff deck, and crit deck, which you should carry.
+1
These are the only cards I own. Buff and Condition cards have been used ever since I got them. The Crit deck is an option I let my players choose when they threaten to crit, though it is seldom used.