I don't know who is in charge of the Pathfinder product line but he/she/they are doing one hell of a job. The books look great and the content is very good as well. I do have some questions but I did as well when playing Gurps. I am still early days using the system but so far I am very impressed. WELL DONE! May you continue the same high quality pathfinder products for many years to come.
Some highlights for me so far.
Great artwork, I also really like the reoccuring characters in various books along with the new artwork. It makes everything FEEL more tightly integrated. "Hey, I recognize that cleric!"
Paper quality and the page layouts - excellent.
Well written books, although I would love more examples of rule usage included in the texts but nonetheless very well written and pretty much easy to understand and follow.
I am beginning to understand why so many went this path (pun intended) instead of going the other direction.
Yeah, the character designs are very memorable and inspiring. There are even miniatures of the iconic characters which you can buy, though I imagine the Sorcerer is often sold out.
The books truly are of great quality, to the point where someone who could just get the PDF might instead/also want the physical book as a piece of art or a collector's item.
There are indeed a lot of questions people have about Pathfinder, often simply due to a feature in one part of one book that depends on one little rule in a different section or book. As far as questions and rules clarity are concerned, I think you'll find that Paizo is pretty impressive in that staff members do their fair share of answering questions on these forums (which have been compiled in FAQs as well).
Are there pathfinder rules faqs around here somewhere?
Are there pathfinder rules faqs around here somewhere?
Click on the "Pathfinder Roleplaying Game" logo on the top of the left hand collumn of the page. Then click on the Core Rulebook as though you were interested in placing an order for a copy. There should be a tab near the product reviews which is labeled "Frequently Asked Questions".
Thanks. These forums have been GREAT HELP so far.
The "Rules Questions" forum is a great place to get answers.
"...although I would love more examples of rule usage included in the texts but nonetheless very well written and pretty much easy to understand and follow."
There are a set of "iconic" characters that have been created to represent an interesting example of each class, and they provide insight into how to create a character. (There are also numerous guides on these forums that help you get the most out of a class - perhaps someone could provide a link?) Beyond that, I don't really know of any examples that show how the rules are used. I would love to see the designers walk us through a combat involving tripping, grappling (including improved grab) flying and other confusing parts of the rules. Some of this stuff might exist as YouTube videos, but I don't know of anything specific. Perhaps Design Tuesdays on the Paizo blog could address these things?
Just to add a few of my thoughts as well and I'll try to be somewhat critical also. :)
Pathfinder books look great and they are at least on par with what used to be published for 3/3.5. I can't really comment on 4e as I am not playing it.
- I am under impression that 3.5 rules were written in a more concise way. Pathfinder rules are sometimes ambiguous or lacking critical information.
Example - Sorcerer Protean bloodline power:
Reality Wrinkle (Sp): At 9th level, you can surround yourself with a mobile, 10-foot-radius emanation of mutable reality. This rippling distortion is similar to solid fog but does not provide concealment or block line of sight. Your movement is not slowed by this aura. Attacks from outside the aura suffer a 20% miss chance against targets inside the aura. You may use this ability a number of rounds per day equal to your sorcerer level, though this duration need not be continuous
What kind of action does this ability consume? Is it a standard action ? A free action ? I understand this is a spell like ability and as such it's probably a standard action, but it should be noted somewhere in the descriptive text for clarification purposes. There are swift action spells so I am not sure how this should be treated.
It's the same or sometimes even worse with some spells. Dispel Magic and Antimagic Field comes to my mind.
- While I think that Bestiaries look great I really dislike one monster per page policy of Pathfinder bestiaries. In many cases monster description is lackluster and it amounts only to a few sentences, which is not enough to actually describe a monster. In most cases there is very little or no information about monster ecology for example. In my opinion it's a quantity over quality approach and I don't really like it.
@HansiIsMyGod
I think that every sp requires a standart action to activate by default, so unless an individual power says otherwise then it's a standart action.
I am with you about the images on the bestiaries, i really would like more images.
- While I think that Bestiaries look great I really dislike one monster per page policy of Pathfinder bestiaries. In many cases monster description is lackluster and it amounts only to a few sentences, which is not enough to actually describe a monster. In most cases there is very little or no information about monster ecology for example. In my opinion it's a quantity over quality approach and I don't really like it.
Don't the Pathfinder Chronicles get into more details on Monsters?
I believe the wordcounts show that the PF bestiaries have more accompanying text than the previous edition of the game. That's not to say that we can't desire even more than that, but I think it ought to be acknowledged that there is more now than there was.
Number of monsters vs. detail on each monster will always be a balancing act. I would rather have the flavor text at its current volume and have Paizo keep releasing themed books on monster groups that go into great depth, like the revisited line.
In other words, if you want more monster ecology, there is a whole group of books (the "revisited/redeemed") you should be looking at!
- While I think that Bestiaries look great I really dislike one monster per page policy of Pathfinder bestiaries. In many cases monster description is lackluster and it amounts only to a few sentences, which is not enough to actually describe a monster. In most cases there is very little or no information about monster ecology for example. In my opinion it's a quantity over quality approach and I don't really like it.
It's actually the opposite. The Pathfinder Bestiary has the same number of pages as the WotC Monster Manual, while it has a lower number of monsters. So each monster gets more space (on average), not less.
So, the approach they've taken is in fact quality and ease-of-reading over quantity. The MM squeezes multiple monsters together on one page several times, and almost all creatures begin on one page and end on another.
I am seriously loving Pathfinder myself.
The classes, the books, everything.
And the community here is great as well!
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I'm of the opinion that it's not Pathfinder, necessarily, but Paizo. Everything they put out is of excellent quality (except for Pathfinder Society Modules - several of those need some work - but they are created much differently than the rulebooks)
If you find mistakes - such as the protean bloodline, see if it has been fixed in errata, or mention it as a possible errata change after it has been clarified on the boards.
It's actually the opposite. The Pathfinder Bestiary has the same number of pages as the WotC Monster Manual, while it has a lower number of monsters. So each monster gets more space (on average), not less.So, the approach they've taken is in fact quality and ease-of-reading over quantity. The MM squeezes multiple monsters together on one page several times, and almost all creatures begin on one page and end on another.
To clarify my thoughts I wasn't strictly comparing pf bestiaries to 3.5 monster manual, but I think MM5 was an improvement over previous ones.
My whine has more to do with the general direction monster books are taking. I am an old time D&D player and I still remember 2nd ed MM with small stat blocks and descriptions taking over half of the page.
Call me nostalgic, but 2nd ed mm was better than both 3/3.5 and PF ones. :P
+1
I agree with HansiIsMyGod.
Also, 2nd edition had the best artwork as well.
I am an old time D&D player and I still remember 2nd ed MM with small stat blocks and descriptions taking over half of the page.
Now your complaint makes much more sense :)
Yes, the Planescape monster books were pretty awesome in the description department.
I suggest you take a look at the "<monster> Revisited" line of books; each creature gets 6-8 pages worth of description in those books.