TLDR: due to tariff reasons, prices will at some point change. However, we won't preemptively change any prices on items in-store until we need to order new stock.
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Andrew has a joke he likes to tell; he wrote it himself and he's very proud of it.
It goes something like this;
"Two guys are going on a road trip together, and they pack all of the essentials. On the way out the door, one of them stops at the fridge and grabs a single spear of Asparagus. The other guy gives him a look, and the guy with the spear says "better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it." Ok, that's weird, but it doesn't hurt anyone, so the asparagus goes with them. They get in the car, and start driving. They get on the highway that leads to a highway, that leads to another highway, and after a few hundred miles, "POP!" and they find themselves in the middle of nowhere with a flat tire. They get out of the car, and the other guy starts panicking because they haven't seen a gas station or a car or even a road sign in like, an hour. The first guy though, he's as cool as a cucumber, and he tells his friend its gonna be ok. He pulls the asparagus spear out of his pocket and says "good thing I brought a spare, I guess."
Pretty good joke.
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Being prepared for everything is impossible. We'd all love to get ahead by scheming and saving and scraping, but as the Yiddish proverb goes, "man plans and God laughs." I've never seen an episode of Doomsday Preppers, but I understand the impulse to secure what I can for my loved ones, to make sure we can all see tomorrow together. Its human.
But while we're talking about TV, there's an Adventure Time episode from season seven called "Bad Jubies" that I think about, when it comes to being prepared for the worst. In it, Finn and friends prepare a bunker for a storm as one rationally would; by making sure its weatherproof and outfitted with the amenities one needs for survival. Everyone contributes in a material way, except for Jake the Dog, who's contribution is revealed to be a beat-box of nature sounds, which end up comforting everyone and saving the day.
As much as we prepare against harm, its also important to prepare for joy.
If you're reading this in 2025, you know what's up. To put it mildly, its spooky out there, and many of us are preparing for the worst. To get it out of the way, prices will go up at some point as the tariffs impact our industry and it'll be weird and bad and sad for a lot of people. Brighter bulbs have already said as much here and here and here, and now that its said we can move on to the next part.
That said, we won't be raising prices on items we already have in store. When we restock, then we'll worry, but for now our plan is to do our best by you while we navigate these strange tides.
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Since things have felt a bit grim when you look out the window, I've been asking folks about their Bugout Bags, and what they'll bring in case they feel the need to go. It's a bit gallows humor, but if its good enough for the Great Depression, its good enough for whatever I've got too. Many of the ideas I've been offered are normal and reasonable things to take in emergency situations, which is awesome. I love knowing that you're all taking steps to take care of yourselves, the ones you love, your fellow nerds, and everyone else. It warms my heart, truly.
Then I ask them point blank, "what games are you bringing," and they go quiet for a bit, absolutely stumped.
Why should you bring a fun thing when you're trying to survive? Survival shouldn't be fun; it's life or death! Well that's true, survival is life or death, but survival isn't always about fighting zombies, or doing parkour, or setting up a water-purification station. It's also about taking care of your communities, preserving your cultures, and not letting the world fill your brain with worms. Until we're done waiting for shoes to drop, we'll have to survive both in body and spirit, and pass the time until these times have passed.
Suffice to say, we've been giving this a lot of thought. Maybe not as much as the folks on Preppers, but more than enough that we've looped back a few times, and have even found a silver lining of sorts.
There's no one we'd rather be stuck in this storm with than you.
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After some thought, the people I asked did have some ideas. Here they are with no links, (because that's not what this post is about,) and in no particular order.
- two decks of playing cards; one to use, and one to keep as backup.
- pen and paper
- a set of polyhedrals, with extra d6's
- compact, easy to learn card games, without too many little pieces
- a small book you find entertaining, with at least 100 pages
- a bag of scrabble tiles
We hope this helps. Thank you for your time today, and be excellent to each other.
Ben Doane has been a member of the Pandemonium Team since 2019, and has been playing wargames, rpgs, and tcgs since 2004 and earlier. When not blogging, Ben runs the wargames and mailing departments, and also puts together the store's newsletters. She is currently reading Grey Seer by C. L. Werner.