The Scorpion Clan Coup is the first of our new monthly product plan releases. This new format allows us to get more players involved via the larger number of releases, and also allows us to simplify collecting (for players or collectors) the necessary number of cards. Note the flatter rarity in Dave's comments.

Here is the full blown (and long) spiel: This document outlines the basic concepts behind the Monthly Release System, and the effects of the System. These details are still changing as we continue to refine the System and talk to developers, distributors, retailers and consumers. As we make changes and adjust these details, we will update this Frequently Asked Question document to reflect those changes.

Q. What is the Monthly Release System?

A. Collectible Card Game Products in the Monthly Release System will be developed and published on a monthly, rather than a quarterly or "semi-annual" basis. The products in the System will have a nine-month story arc, then three months of "down time" before the next story arc commences. Each month's release will consist of a limited number of cards, plus storyline information on packaging and in the rulebooks.

Q. How will System Products be packaged?

A. Each product will be packed into either a: Combo POP display consisting of 6 sixty card Starter Decks and 24 fifteen card booster packs, or a Booster POP that consists of 48 fifteen card booster packs. Some cards will appear in more than one month's Starter Decks, while cards in booster packs will only appear during that month's release.

Q. What are the two displays for?

A. The Combo POP is a self contained unit for stores that have a moderate to small CCG following. It is intended to service three to four customers of any given card game, and then be gone until the next month's release. The Booster POP is intended as an add-on for higher volume or specialty CCG stores. It offers extra boosters for repeat customers, without the need to re-offer decks or a combo display. The booster POP is to maximize each stores saturation rate while minimizing excess stocking risk. Remember that each new player needs a starter deck to play and that all FRPG starter decks are keyed to one faction within a game and are required to use that faction.

Q. How many new cards will be produced each month?

A. Approximately 60 new cards will appear in each month's release. Some cards will be in both the Starters and the Boosters, but the majority will appear only in the Boosters. Each Starter will contain at least one card that appears only in that month's Starter Deck.

Q. Sounds like a gimmick to get me to buy a whole bunch of useless starters!

A. Nothing could be further from the truth. Each System product will be evolving over time, with the game environment changing due to ongoing story elements. The Starter Decks will contain all the information you need to stay current with this changing environment. Plus, the rulebook will be constantly updated as new card types enter the mix, and older card types find new uses. Finally, as in all Five Rings Publishing games, the Starters are actually used in play, as they determine which faction you are aligned with within the context of the story.

Q. What rarity levels will appear in the set?

A. There will be basically three types of rarity. In some cases, there will be a special "chase card" packed one or two per display (these details are still being worked out - RAGE is currently our only "chase card" game). Each Starter will contain at least one card that appears only in that month's Starter Deck. The rest of the cards in a given month will have the same rarity level.

Q. Yuck! You mean most of the cards will be "common"?

A. Hardly. Due to the lower print runs used in the Monthly System, and the fact that product is designed for a very short shelf life, none of the cards in System Products can be considered "common". Once sold out, they will be very, very difficult to find, and we expect the aftermarket for trades and single card sales to be brisk. A few days after each monthly release, the cards will not be "common", they will be scarce, a much more interesting situation.

Q. How many cards will a consumer have to buy to have a complete set?

A. To collect all of the cards in a single month with the exception of the chase card, a consumer will need to purchase two Starter Decks, and approximately 8 booster packs. Depending on the Suggested Retail Prices that are finally assigned to the product, a consumer will pay approximately $35 each month to stay current with the product. Those collectors who elect to pursue the chase cards will usually need to purchase a full display, which will carry an approximate Suggested Retail Price of $105.

Q. So what you're saying is that a consumer won't have to spend any more money with the Monthly System than they do to collect cards released in the traditional fashion?

A. Yes. A consumer will spend about the same amount to collect the same number of cards, and to have the same complete sets. This program has been created to expand the customer base itself and improve the product's marketing and retailing, not to increase the amount of money an individual consumer will need to pay.

Q. How many consumers will one POP Display support in a single store?

A. Normally, each POP will support three players.

Q. How will the concept of Story be expressed in the System Products?

A. Each product will have an integral storyline that will be expressed through three facets. First, certain cards in each month's release will have a direct bearing on the ongoing story. Second, materials in the Starter Decks will support the storyline framework directly, telling the players what has occurred in the current month's story installment, and exploring the relationships between the factions in the story. Finally, the packaging will be used to explore the story, with some elements of the Starter Deck packaging being used in play, while the POP Displays themselves will contain items relating to the story.

Q. What happens if a consumer becomes interested in the product after the first month?

A. Every four to five months, we will be releasing some form of a special boxed set which will collect many of the important cards from the previous three months, along with the materials needed to play the factions introduced in those month's releases. This set will not include the chase cards, or the special cards packed exclusively into the Starter Decks. Of the approximately 200+ cards of the preceding three months, perhaps as many as 50 of those cards would appear in the boxed set. This boxed set will be produced in sufficient quantities to allow new players to purchase it whenever they become interested in the game, and gives them the story background they need to become current with the ongoing storyline. In effect this become a constant stock "basic set" for our monthly products.

Q. What are the ordering advantages of the System?

A. Retailers will know how much product to order each month. If the store has six active player/collectors of a given game, the store should order two Combo POP displays. If those customers tend to purchase more than 2 starters and 8 boosters, the store can adjust their standard order upward to capture that additional revenue via the Booster POP Displays. A regular, standard order will reduce confusion and increase in-stock rates. The distributors will be stocking the product each month, and providing information on each month's release as a part of their standardized "new products" solicitation each and every month.

Q. What are the retail advantages of the System?

A. Consumers will become comfortable with a regular release of their favorite games. System Products will appear on the same calendar day each month. For instance, let us say the RAGE products are scheduled to appear on the third Friday of each month. The consumers will be able to schedule their trips to the Retailer, and the Retailer can schedule events to coincide with the monthly release - events like tournaments, or role playing sessions with derivative products.

Q. What are the consumer advantages of the System?

A. The consumers will develop the "buying habit" with a regular cycle. Most people become comfortable with a steady routine and enjoy the knowledge that an anticipated product will be available on a regular schedule. The consumers will also be able to purchase cards with a smaller monthly outlay of cash, allowing them to spread their purchases to other related gaming products, and avoiding the temptation to spend cash saved for a quarterly or semi-annual release on other entertainment products. This is of course key to the comic industry, but not widely stressed in the game industry.

Q. What are the marketing advantages of the System?

A. Because each System product is effectively a "new" product each month, the various genre magazines will be carrying more and expanded coverage of the game as they strive to inform their readers about the development of the products. Each month, the System products will appear in the "new releases" lists, and the magazines will have an incentive to publish checklists monthly as well. All of these factors will contribute to a constant and continuous presence in the genre magazines - instead of the sporadic coverage they currently devote to non-Magic, non-Star Wars products.

Q. What Five Rings Publishing Products will be in the System?

A. Legend of the Five Rings will become a System product in 1998, as will its sister product, Legend of the Burning Sands. Rage and Deadlands will both be System products from their inception. Dune will not be a System product, and will appear instead semi-annually in a more traditional format. Star Trek: The Next Generation Collectible Dice Game will be a semi-monthly release, with a release of new ships alternating each month with booster dice for previously released ships.