"Printing PDF Rule Books" Topic

Well, I can't change that title spelling…

Imagine a new rule book you are interested in is available for free, but only as a PDF file AND you want to play a game of it with your friends / group. Its small at maybe 25 pages.

Would you:

1. Prefer to print it to paper or to have it handy on a tablet or other device. I know both are an option, but if you could only do one, what is your preference?

2. If you did print it, do you prefer it be in greyscale, full color, or don't care?

3. If you didn't print it, do you prefer greyscale or color or don't care?

4. What page size would you prefer? Letter, A4, half-letter… letter folded in half so you can staple the booklet in the center, or other…?

I'm working on a rue set, and I'd like to get ideas regarding "customers" delivery preferences.

Thanks!

BTW, Assume the rulebook has graphics throughout.

Make a print friendly version, no background and only illustrations of rules not filler pictures.

+1 Stephen M

My ideal is a black & white, double sided letter (so 8.5 x 11" for us 'Mericans). I print books like this so I can mark them up, add rosters or other QRS sheets, highlight etc.

B/W would be my preference, If the examples of play are color then I would print it in color.

I tend to print them 2 pages on 1, whack and blight or colour if they are in colour…as a booklet.

+1 to Stephen M and Extra Crispy

If the tables etc use colour e.g. a coloured heading bar, then print in colour. And I think judicious use of colour for formatting (I don't mean picture) aids readability.

1. Prefer to print it to paper or to have it handy on a tablet or other device. I know both are an option, but if you could only do one, what is your preference?

Paper & PDF: makes it easier to print out Reference Sheets, which I laminate for use at the table.

2. If you did print it, do you prefer it be in greyscale, full color, or don't care?

Color: I can always choose to print it B&W, but without color in the original…

3. If you didn't print it, do you prefer greyscale or color or don't care?

N/A. I will print it.

4. What page size would you prefer? Letter, A4, half-letter… letter folded in half so you can staple the booklet in the center, or other…?

Letter, for me, all the way, all the time. However, if necessary, I can enlarge/reduce it for printing.

Cheers!

I'll print. Might go either way on color/BW, but color for clarity and/or beautiful illustrations, please, and not just because you can. At 25 pages, half-letter might be tempting. Do remember it's going to be coil bound so it will lie flat, and give me suitable margin.

Love the margin… really good suggestion robert

I always print stuff like this out. Black and White, and usually just do 2 pages on 1.

Just keep it clean and simple with no horrible background watermark please.

Doing booklets or whatever requires a degree of home printer skill I just don't possess. If you want to do stuff like that, put it on Lulu instead (or as well).

PDF rules are why I have a tablet (read iPad / Samsung Galaxy Tab / etc.). The only part of a set of rules I will print would be a QRS. The older I get, the more of a hippy I become.

Print one or two in full colour, but plan to use a tablet. If it goes crazy, you have back up.

Print, black and white, 8.5x11.

I appreciate all of the great feedback. I'm wrapping up a set of convention / easy play Zombie rules and will share them on TMP when available. The focus is "Movie Like" and there are some definite Left for Dead video game characteristics.

I have several more historical period rule sets in the works after this one.

If I'm actually going to do a game with the rules, I prefer to print them up.

When I print rules, I put them in a binder and slide a title sheet into the front--that would be a good use for color printing. Lots of big, color photos, not so much. I can see the value of having color photos I could print as an option if needed to provide a painting guide when I add the 18th Feldboot Regiment to my army.

Page size? I'm in the United States, our standard 8.5 X 11 is convenient for me, however I did have a (paper) tablet cut down for a European made portable drawing board I have, so I can manage.

Margins and extra space after charts are great ideas. You know we're going to take your Israeli War of Independence rules and use them for Tanga and need space to write in all the early World War I equipment (and the bees).

Grelber

I would print it. Printing is cheap now. Shrinking it just means we need our glasses. I'm going to print it at its normal size, with the graphics. If there are good reference sheets I'm printing several. If the reference sheets are missing or poor I will make new ones and print several. The game is not going to suffer because I saved some ink.

I agree with Andrew Walters.

1. Prefer to print it to paper or to have it handy on a tablet or other device

Print to paper.

2. If you did print it, do you prefer it be in greyscale, full color, or don't care?

Grayscale.

3. If you didn't print it, do you prefer greyscale or color or don't care?

Don't care.

4. What page size would you prefer? Letter, A4, half-letter… letter folded in half so you can staple the booklet in the center, or other…?

Letter (i.e., 8.5 x 11 inches), single-side printing. Then I can staple a corner, or punch holes in the top for a top Acco clip, or punch holes in the side for a 3-ring binder. If I were playing outside the USA, I would say A4, for the same reasons.

Actually, a lot of what we're discussing the local FedEx/Kinko's/Office Depot will do any way we ask them to.

Should note the closest I've come to this in real life was 15 pages including summary sheet. I just ran off a copy for the maximum number of players, double-sided with a blank page added so that the summary sheet was on the back and stapled at one corner. But that was a throwaway on game day, not a long-term thing.

Me I only print NECCESSARY pages in colour. Stupid illustrations not directly connected with the rules are in grey scale if unavioable. yhey are a waste of money and time. I do it double sided A4, stops them looking scary thick. Typically use one of those edge slides to bind the pages. I do print the cover in coloure IF I bother.

QR sheets, used to laminate them often in coloure as it helps of blocks are diffrent coloures. Nowdays just put them in a punched pocket.

For normal play I use a screen for the rules just in case an obscure rule you have not used for ages is needed. Did this recently, jeep in view while moving at very high speed over a narrow gap. Normaly soft vehicles are a stupid thing to use in a combat situation so it very relely occous.

If you are writing rules a VERY comprehensive list of contents and paragraph numbers are essentuial.

Last time I went online and checked prices at Staples, it was looking like a dollar plus per page in color, using their online service where I can upload the document and then go in and pick it up.

I just did another Google search and now it seems a lot cheaper. Maybe its a lot cheaper for just getting copies as opposed to printing a document? I'm a bit confused.

Anyway, thank you everyone for the great feedback!

1. Print
2. Greyscale (B&W is even better, but apparently not an option)
3. Don't care
4. A4

1. Generally print to paper. With a large set of rules I may only print the QRS, index and some "tricky" rules sections.

2. If colour serves a practical purpose (ie it's not just figure porn) then colour. Otherwise grey scale.

3. I don't care.

4. A4 is the standard here.

Having colour still allows players to print in black and white, just pick colours which print in Black and white and do the book in colour. Colour is required to attract new players, older players prefer black and white, as well as being easier to print. As most people have printers which print in A4, or whatever imperial system is used in the US/UK, design your rules for that. Assume double sided. I would also keep the rules as short as possible so they can be sued as a reference in the game and if you want extra bling create separate supplements. As many older player's will not have such keen eye sight, a font of 11p or 10p is optimal. I actually create three rules books, a one column 10p/11p version, a 2 column 9p and a 3 column 8p version. I have found everyone has a different preference and if you are going down the pdf path, creating three versions should be possible.

I only ant to print and play with 4 sides at most and I certainly don't want to waste paper and ink on pretty pictures. The other 21 pages can be what you like, but if you haven't distilled the important bits into 4 or less pages of tables then I will do it my self, or I will discard your rules.

Dal Gavan "Figure porn" love that term.

Ideally, once the rule book is mentally digested, players should only need reference sheets during game play.

Another aspect the rules writing author needs to decide upon, is the expertise level of audience they are writing for: veteran gamers need the core rules and concepts; beginners need an explanation of concepts as well as rules. Pick your audience's technical level, first, then write to that level of understanding.

While you could try and write to multiple experience levels, that could mean writing a separate work for each level. You could try writing alternating paragraphs: first, for the core rule concept; second, offering more explanation for the less experienced gamers, but this might prove annoying to every reader, grognards as well as novices, until they (hopefully?) figure out the style, and skip/read everything they do not/do need to read.

After that, choose your artwork to line up with your desired audience's technical level, making it relevant and illustrative over just eye candy and page filler.

Remember that if you are trying to write commercially, to make a profit, PDF security measures are easily defeated. If you offer only printed rule books, there are multiple POD platforms to sell your product through, with diverse options for color, binding styles, quality of paper, etc.

Do what you think best, but give it some thought, first, before you pull the trigger. Reach out to any professional contacts you might have, for some hopefully knowledgeable feedback to guide your decisions. Cheers!

I have a couple of rule systems in the works, but the ones I am nearest to completion with generally have a basic, convention ready rule system up front which can bring someone new to gaming up to speed rapidly with a few minutes spent on explanation while concurrently showing everyone how to look up this information on the quick reference sheets. More advanced and optional rules go later in the rules. I try to spell out a lot of the basic things that frequently lead to arguments when not explicit.

The rule set I am releasing first is free. Yes, I am aware that there isn't really anything that can be done to effectively protect PDF files.

Great feedback on the preference questions everyone!