I am trying, and have been off and on for weeks, to update the Shoppe's postage calculator so it uses the U.S. Postal Service's rate API (as my old method is no longer working). Their API is an absolute pile of crap, and their technical support is just as bad. I have tried everything I can think of to fix it, so I am down to asking for assistance.

I will offer your choice of any item from the Shoppe, excluding ultra-rarities, to anyone who is able to figure it out. Please contact me if you wish to undertake The Challenge, and I shall provide the full details.

I have a case open with them, but for now you'll need to go to the page itself (there's a link in the YOIS error message) and choose the postage option you want. Then I'll either send you a PayPal invoice, or you can initiate a payment and manually specify the item cost and the shipping cost.

Another collector, Jason Joyce, wrote to me saying he had found a Zork Trilogy which appeared to be complete, except the zorkmid was not an original. In his exact words:

"After I got it back home, I noticed the Zorkmid didn't look or feel right. Significantly lighter than the other Zorkmid I have. After a casual inspection turned up a seam on the edge of the coin (not centered, but toward the obverse side of the coin), I knew why.

Apparently someone's gone in to the Zorkmid "minting" business by cold casting coins with a mold, resin and bronze powder."

This thread is a fascinating step-by-step of how he did it, complete with photos, including a comparison between an original and his re-mint showing the difference in the metal. The discussion is a couple of years old, but I wasn't aware of it until Jason pointed me toward it. I'd heard of interest in making new zorkmids before, most notably Robin Lionheart's Zorkmid Project, but this thread is the first time I've actually seen one made.

My position on this remains the same as I told Robin years ago. So long as the recasts are clearly identifiable and are not being sold as originals, I have no problem with this. The creator, whose name appears to be Todd, clearly states his intent to mint more of them, and if he has it would definitely explain how one ended up in the original package Jason found. Even if Todd is honest, you can bet there are people who are not, and who may try to pass a replica off as an original. Be careful if buying on eBay, and always ask to see pictures of both sides, and the edge to check for seams. They were originally in a small plastic baggie, not loose, so that's a good indicator of authenticity. Zorkmids are valuable and highly sought after these days, which makes them an obvious target for counterfeiters.