What order should I buy the Pathfinder books in?


Pathfinder First Edition General Discussion


Hello,

Just a couple weeks ago I picked up the Core Rulebook, and in a little while I'm going to be buying the Bestiary, as I've seen it's the other book essential for play (I am aware they're all online for free, but having the information laid out before me in a book is more satisfying and easier I've found). A few days ago I was flipping through the Advanced Class Guide in my local bookstore and I saw some spell names or feat names without description, instead referring me to the Advanced Player's Guide. This made me curious to know about what order I should buy all of the Pathfinder books in without buying a book that requires information from a book I don't have yet. Does anyone know about this order? If so, please let me know. Thank You!


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This page lists Pathfinder releases by the year they came out.

Also, all the spells, feats, classes, etc. from the hardcover book line can be found online here for free, so you can look up those spells.


Joana wrote:

This page lists Pathfinder releases by the year they came out.

Also, all the spells, feats, classes, etc. from the hardcover book line can be found online here for free, so you can look up those spells.

Amazing, thank you very much!

Dark Archive

I'm going to strongly advise picking up the Advaced Player's Guide. It has a load of new classes that are really fun to play. It includes the Alchemist and the Inquisitor, the classes often touted as the gold standard for balace in power for design.

Plus, it introduces you to Traits and Archetypes, two wonderful features that really help you tweak and flavor a character.

Personally, I consider it more 'core' to the Pathfinder experience than the D&D 3rd ed legacy classes.


I'll second the Advanced Player's Guide.

Using the Core Rulebook and the APG as your game's body of rules is something a lot of GMs and groups do, and for good reasons. As Rosc already mentioned, the APG introduces new concepts found in many later releases, and it represents the first stage of modifications (mainly through archetypes) of the eleven core classes. Especially if you have inexperienced but eager players, it often makes sense to ease them into Pathfinder's more advanced mechanics by giving them the APG - it builds upon content they'll likely know (the Core Rulebook) and the level of complexity is still very reasonable (in general of course; I know that you can build crazy complicated druids, oradins or alchemists, that's not the point).

The Advanced Class Guide is of course glorious and offers a lot of shiny new toys, but it builds upon contents and concepts introduced in the APG and you'll probably get a lot more mileage out of getting the APG first and then the ACG.

Also, and this is just a personal thing of mine, ask yourself which books you really want to include in your game, and why. Do you want your players to build cool and interesting characters (mechanically), or do you just keep your game 'up to date' in terms of content, or do you - or the players - need some specific content because the adventure will profit greatly from it? Can your players even fully utilize what you're offering? I'm not saying this to dissuade you from getting additional Pathfinder books, just to be sure why :)

Liberty's Edge

APG is a must. Magus from Ultimate Magic and Ninja from Ultimate Combat are popular too.

I routinely use Ultimate Equipment too as my Go to book for referencing items both magical and mundane.

Unchained is seeing some use too for the altered classes, the VMC options and the stamina rules


Pick them up in the order you plan on using them and if you find something that isn't covered in the book just use the PRD to read up on it.


Personally I'd go
Core
Beastiary 1 2
A p g
Ultimate equipment
Inner sea world guide
Ultimate combat
A C G

Then just flow from there. Use the dates released to go along. If you buy an adventure path remember that newer ones will use the new Beastiary books more than older ones.


The order in which you need them.


Wow, I got great responses here, thank you everyone! As soon as I get the Bestiary 1, I'll likely buy the APG next.


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  • Beginner's Box: Start here if you did not play D&D previously. It has a nice map (both blank and with a pre-made dungeon), paper minis, dice, and basic rules for fighter, wizard, rogue, and cleric. Also buy a dry erase pen.
  • Core Rulebook: Start here if you are a refugee from D&D. It has the 11 core classes and the base rules not covered in the Beginner's Box. While mostly a copy/paste from 3.5, it has it's own subtle tweaks to the system that make it different. Find the barbarian, bard, druid, monk, paladin, ranger, sorcerer, and wizard here. Also more robust versions of the fighter, wizard, rogue, and wizard than the Beginner's Box.
  • Advanced Player's Guide: This is the book that made Pathfinder it's own game. Brilliant new base classes like the alchemist, summoner, and witch differentiated it in flavor from 3.5 before it. Traits add extra opportunities to add roleplaying elements to your characters. Class archetypes are introduced here. Also find the cavalier, inquisitor, and oracle here. This is Pathfinder.
  • Game Mastery Guide: If you are a GM and have no experience from D&D then get this. It also has some pre-made NPCs, drugs, poisons, and dungeon building advice. You can save it for later if you like.
  • Bestiary 1: Yes, it's the standard fantasy monsters. Skeletons, orcs, dragons, vampires, and so on. You do need it, but it is a little dull.
  • Bestiary 2: A second defining book for Pathfinder. Here you can see their preference for historical and folklore monsters take shape. Lots of evil faeries, creatures from Alice in Wonderland, and weird things from Call of Cthulhu creations. Also, it introduces the living weapons known as The Tane (the Jabberwock is one of them).
  • Ultimate Combat: Or how I learned to stop worrying and love guns in a fantasy game. It has the gunslinger as another great base class. Then lots of goodies for the martial-type classes. Also the ninja and Samurai show up as "alternative" takes on the rogue and cavalier. Nice things about duels and gladiatorial combat too.
  • Ultimate Campaign: Expanded traits and material on downtime activities, character backgrounds, contacts, armies, and more.
  • Advanced Race Guide: Options for standard races and lots of other races with stats, archetypes, spells, and equipment. A (much too short but useful) section on creating your own races too.
  • Bestiary 3: More great monsters.
  • Ultimate Equipment: The nearly nearly definitive book of weapons, armor, and items in one place.
  • Bestiary 4: I love monsters, don't you?
  • Occult Adventures: Or how I learned to stop hating and love psionics in fantasy RPGs. Great classes like the Kineticist (think Last Airbender) and mesmerist (look into my eyes). It covers a psychic magic system that actually fits pretty well into a fantasy world (think crystal balls and 19th century occult craze.) Also find the medium, occultist, psychic, and spiritualist here.
  • Ultimate Magic: The Magus base class is here for all your "gish" and "bladesinger" builds and so on. Also, the optional (and sadly neglected) Words of Power system, spell duels, and some great archetypes and spells.
  • Bestiary 5: Aliens. (Insert meme picture with funny haired guy here).
  • Advanced Class Guide: All the "hybrid" classes (actually just more 20-level classes). Best ones here are the bloodrager, investigator, shaman, and swashbuckler. More feats, archetypes, spells, and equipment. There are a few pages on making your own classes. Also find the arcanist, brawler, hunter, skald, slayer, and warpriest here.
  • Monster Codex: Monsters can have classes too! It's basically an ARG for monsters. It has new equipment, archetypes, spells, and options for making monsters cooler than their stock versions. Want help to stat out a ghoul assassin? Look here.
  • Ultimate Intrigue: The vigilante base class is medieval Batman (OK, more like the Scarlet Pimpernel, Zorro, or The Daring Dragoon from Jack of All Trades). It has some interesting archetypes and a few good feats. Also has some nice spells like they know (convince the target that everybody knows his darkest secret). Some fun in here, but mostly stuff that is not as good as the books before.
  • NPC Codex: Very interesting ready-made NPCS for the GM to use. If of use to you, get it. Otherwise, it has no new information, unlike the Monster Codex).
  • Mythic Adventures: No, it's not an epic level guide. Basically it's how to make characters that demigods like Hercules. It has some interesting suggestions on making steroiding up monsters by giving them "mythic" ranks. It's sort of more like the advice on divinity in the Deities & Demigods book from D&D but without all the different pantheons.

All of these are online here.

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