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Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Beginner Box (OGL) PDF

4.70/5 (based on 39 ratings)
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Beginner Box (OGL)

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Adventure Awaits!

Take your first step into an exciting world of fantasy adventure with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Beginner Box! Within you'll find simple rules for creating and customizing your own hero, as well as a robust system for running your character through challenging adventures and deadly battles against villainous monsters like goblins and dragons! Will you master weapons and magic to become a courageous fighter, a wise cleric, a witty rogue, or a brilliant wizard? All the details of your character are yours to control. The only limit it your imagination!

The Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Beginner Box is packed with everything you need to get started with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, an imaginative tabletop fantasy adventure game for 2-5 players. Tons of monsters, challenges, and advice give gamers the tools to create their own worlds and adventures, providing countless hours of gaming excitement. With streamlined rules and a focus on action-packed heroic adventure, this deluxe boxed set is the ideal introduction to the world of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, and the best starting point for a lifetime of pulse-pounding adventure!

The Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Beginner Box includes:

  • A 64-page Hero's Handbook, detailing character creation, spells, equipment, and general rules for playing the game
  • A 96-page Game Master's Guide packed with adventure, monsters, magic treasures, and advice on how to create and narrate tales all your own
  • A 16-page Transition Guide to bring your hero to the full Pathfinder Roleplaying Game!
  • A complete set of 7 polyhedral dice
  • More than 80 full-color pawns depicting diverse heroes and monsters
  • Four pregenerated character sheets to throw you right into the action
  • Four blank character sheets to record the abilities of your custom-made hero
  • A durable, resuable, double-sided Flip-Mat play surface that works with any kind of marker

And don't forget to check out the prepainted Pathfinder Beginner Box Heroes Miniatures Set from WizKids, featuring the pregenerated heroes included in the Beginner Box!

Pawns Included in the Beginner Box
Air Elemental
Animated Statue (2)
Barghest
Black Dragon
Boar
Boggard
Dire Rat (3)
Doppelganger
Dwarf Cleric (Female)
Dwarf Cleric (Male)
Dwarf Fighter (Female)
Dwarf Fighter (Male)
Dwarf Rogue (Female)
Dwarf Rogue (Male)
Dwarf Wizard (Female)
Dwarf Wizard (Male)
Earth Elemental 		Elf Cleric (Female)
Elf Cleric (Male)
Elf Fighter (Female)
Elf Fighter (Male)
Elf Rogue (Female)
Elf Rogue (Male)
Elf Wizard (Female)
Elf Wizard (Male)
Ezren (Iconic Wizard)
Fire Elemental
Gargoyle (2)
Ghost
Ghoul (2)
Giant Centipede
Giant Spider (2)
Goblin (4)
Goblin Boss 		Goblin Dog
Gray Ooze
Green Hag
Hell Hound (2)
Human Cleric (Female)
Human Cleric (Male)
Human Fighter (Female)
Human Fighter (Male)
Human Rogue (Female)
Human Rogue (Male)
Human Wizard (Female)
Human Wizard (Male)
Kyra (Iconic Cleric)
Manticore
Medusa
Merisiel (Iconic Rogue)
Mimic 		Mummy
Ogre
Orc (2)
Orc Boss
Reefclaw
Salamander
Serpentfolk
Skeletal Champion
Skeleton (4)
Troglodyte (2)
Valeros (Iconic Fighter)
Venomous Snake
Water Elemental
Werewolf (2)
Will-O'-Wisp
Wolf (2)
Zombie (2)

ISBN-13: 978-1-60125-630-0

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Looking for more? Check out the Resources and Free Downloads available for the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.

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Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Beginner Box (OGL)

Product Availability

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Are there errors or omissions in this product information? Got corrections? Let us know at store@paizo.com.

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4.70/5 (based on 39 ratings)

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Simply Brilliant

5/5 —

Frankly, it just doesn't get any better than the Beginner Box when it comes to an introductory role-playing product. This sturdy little box contains an impressive assortment of materials, all play-tested with sample groups of RPG newcomers to ensure clarity. I got this for my son when he was around eight, and I can safely say he's spent more time with it than any other gift I've ever bought him.

* PAWNS: Dozens of characters and monsters are represented in thick cardboard pawns designed to slot into little plastic bases (also included) so they stand upright. There's a really nice assortment of possibilities for a PC, as well as at least one for every monster in the box's Game Master's Guide. I've also used a few of them in my normal gaming tables because they're hard to find elsewhere! These pawns are durable little things, and hold up well to heavy and repeated play. They're really the nicest and most cost-effective alternative to buying (and sorting, and storing) dozens of plastic miniatures.

* FLIP-MAT: This double-sided mat has one-inch grids on each side (so the pawns fit like they should). One side is blank so the Game Master can draw whatever scene they want (buildings for an urban encounter, trees for a forest, etc.), while the other side contains a dungeon that cleverly matches the introductory adventure. This side has lots of little detail and features, and is very cool. The idea with flip-mats like this is that that you can use wet erase markers or dry erase (whiteboard) markers and easily wipe your drawing away when you're done.

* PRE-GENERATED CHARACTER SHEETS: The game comes with four pre-made character sheets for a Fighter, a Wizard, a Rogue, and a Cleric. These are lovely little four-page sheets that show exactly how the blank character sheets should be filled out. But in addition, they have customized instructions in the margin to remind players what particular abilities or numbers mean. There's a full-colour picture of the character on the front, and a background and personality section on the back. A lot of time went into designing these for new players, and it shows.

* BLANK CHARACTER SHEET: A very smartly laid-out sheet for players to make their own characters. You'll want to make several photocopies of this before using it (or print out extras from the Paizo website).

* DICE: A standard, quality set of dice.

* TRANSITION GUIDE: This 16-page book is designed to help players who love the Beginner Box but are starting to feel ready for the "real thing" to make the transition to the full Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. The guide goes over what books are the most important ones to buy when starting out (essentially, the Pathfinder Core Rulebook, a Bestiary, and perhaps a module). The emphasis in this guide is on how to add what you like from the Core Rulebook without feeling overwhelmed by its size and options. The guide spends four pages summarising things from the full game (like attacks of opportunities and combat maneuvers) in a very clear way, complete with page numbers. Other pages show how to read a spell stat block from the Core Rulebook and a monster stat block from the Bestiary. There's a section on how to take 5th level PCs from the Beginner Box up to sixth level and beyond using the Core Rulebook, and a really handy intro to using pre-made adventures with Master of the Fallen Fortress (a free download) as an example. It's a really nicely-done guide that serves well as either an intro or a review.

* HERO'S HANDBOOK: This 64-page book is designed for players, and features excellent artwork and brilliant layout. It starts with a solo adventure called Skeleton's King Crypt that teaches a player some of the rules by using a short "choose your own adventure" style experience. The book then moves into character creation, presenting three races (human, elf, and dwarf) and four classes (fighter, wizard, rogue, and cleric). It presents suggested "packages" of feats, skills, and equipment for players who want to get started quickly, but also allows individual choices for players who like to spend more time and thought on your character. I especially like how the game limits options to reduce "choice paralysis" but doesn't change the rules of anything from normal Pathfinder (thus making a future transition far easier). The last third of the book goes through things like moving and exploring, and spends several pages on combat. I think perhaps this combat section could be better organised by emphasizing the most common options first. The book concludes with a glossary of common terms and the back cover's Combat Reference Guide is great.

* GAME MASTER'S GUIDE: This 96-page book starts with a full introductory adventure, Black Fang's Dungeon. The adventure includes tons of extra guidance to the Game Master on how to run it, as well as a good variety of encounters, traps, and puzzles. After a clear overview on what it means to be the Game Master, the book goes into how to create a new adventure, using a follow-up to Black Fang's Dungeon as a natural starting point. The remainder of the book presents useful resources to the Game Master, such as details on various environments and terrain features (I'm envious of how clearly this is all presented compared to the Pathfinder Core Rulebook!), magic items, a bestiary (stat blocks for monsters and other characters, with special abilities presented in a masterwork of concision), tables for rolling up random encounters, a introduction to a sample town (Sandpoint) that could serve well as the group's home base, and more. It's important to realise that this book contains a lot that's useful for the Game Master, but it's not like the instructions to a board game--a Game Master certainly doesn't need to learn all 96 pages in order to get started and have fun!

It's really an impressive package--especially when compared to the cheap "starter sets" for other RPGs I've seen. My kid has spent untold hours with the stuff in this box, and, a year later, still takes the Hero's Handbook and Game Master's Guide with him on trips and in his school backpack! I always try to give balanced reviews with the pros and cons of a product, but I really can't praise this one enough. As a side note, don't forget that the Paizo website has free supplementary material (like extra adventures and the barbarian class).

Best Way to Start Pathfinder

5/5 —

I recently gave this to my brother and his 7 year old kids, since he was unsure of whether his kids would like the game.

The box includes everything you need to start: An erasable flip mat, some paper minis for your characters and monsters, dice, a starting adventure, and easy rules.

It's really too bad this box wasn't promoted more in game shops and conventions, it's a cheap and easy way to get into Pathfinder.

They fixed the flaws!

5/5 —

To anyone who's read the reviews in this page and are bothered by the following:

1. No large bases for the large creature tokens
2. Errata (found in the GM's Kit and Player's Pack downloads)

Note that Paizo has rectified this! I bought the Beginner Box recently and found that there are large bases included in my set, and that the errata has been incorporated in the Hero's Handbook and GM's Guide! So I'm very happy with the product.

On top of these, once you are ready to move on to the full Pathfinder experience via Corebook and Bestiary, note that the smaller softcover Pocket editions fit inside the box with room to spare for dice and minis :)

5/5 —

This Box Rocks!

5/5 —

After I bought the Core Rulebook, I was a bit overwhelmed. So I picked up the Beginner Box next. The rule books made the game much more accessible to me. Rules I didn't quite get from the Core Rulebook were simplified in a way that made sense to me. Also, the introductory adventure was easy to run and the suggestions for expanding sparked my creativity. I liked the explanations the GM's book gave for the several different kinds of adventures and the content that makes them up.

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Woo hoo!
Silver Crusade

Nice!

Might have to get this as I've got kids that I'd like to introduce to dad's hobbies.
Shadow Lodge

I think I'm going to get this just to expand my Pathfinder collection!

The 80 pawns help too...
Scarab Sages

Will this be part of the RPG subscription?
Wicht wrote:
Will this be part of the RPG subscription?
Product Description wrote:
Note: This product is part of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Subscription.

:)

(I was actually about to ask the same question when I noticed that.)

Count me in!!! :-D

Cheers, JohnH / Wanda
Sovereign Court

Holy heck, am I dreaming? That's so awesome to see a pathfinder box! I can't wait to get start gifting these to people. :)
Liberty's Edge

Being part of my subscription means that I have one less thing to worry about! Now which kid on my Christmas list is going to be lucky! :-)
Silver Crusade
Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

Hey, since we get a free PDF as subscribers, does that mean a PDF of dice? ;)

What exactly is a "pawn" in this context?

Also, glad to see the wizard made it on the core four instead of the sorcerer. Old School.
Paizo Employee Creative Director

Beyond what we've posted in the blog above... we're not yet ready to say anything more about this product. We'll reveal more at the PaizoCon banquet.
2 people marked this as FAQ candidate. 2 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber

As much as I would like a copy of this, please please please do not make it part of an existing subscription.

Because it is a game rather than a book (because it contains dice), it will be subject to import tax into the UK (~10% = $3.50). On top of this the post office add a £8 (~$14) 'handling' fee, AND I then have to go and collect it while they are open (~$5 fuel and parking)

So a $35 + postage box becomes a ~$58 + postage box and it is not even delivered directly to me.

As far as non-books are concerned it is NOT a good idea to include non-books in the subscriptions for international customers.

Please don't force me to have to cancel my subscription and re-establish it later just to avoid the costs associated with this.

Regards,

Antony
Jon Brazer Enterprises

I know this is a funny question, but will there be a PDF?
RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32

I removed a vulgar post and the replies to it. Flag it and move on, folks.

Ah no information on where the adventure takes place yet but this does look awesome.
Paizo Employee Director of Game Design

Just as a note to everyone in this thread,

We will not be answering any further questions about the product at this time. Other than the info in the blog post and this product description, we are going to play it close to the vest until the banquet at Paizocon!

I, personally, cannot wait.

Jason Bulmahn
Lead Designer
Paizo Publishing
Dale McCoy Jr wrote:
I know this is a funny question, but will there be a PDF?

I dare say a free or cheap PDF of the books might be an excellent move for recruitment. Barring that, just including a beginner section on the PRD would do the trick.

Contributor

Man, I want to be a kid again so I can relive that thrill of opening a boxed set and seeing all these new stories and ideas unfold in front of me.
Pathfinder Adventure, Adventure Path, Lost Omens Subscriber

I am so buying an extra copy to send to my niece and nephew (7 and 5).
Jon Brazer Enterprises

The good news I know what I am getting my daughter and my nieces and nephew for Christmas.
Sovereign Court

I'm pretty curious as to what they mean by "pawns" myself. I'm hoping for plastic figures rather than tokens or standees, but I doubt it.
Sovereign Court

Is that the actual box art?
Sovereign Court
Evil Lincoln wrote:


I dare say a free or cheap PDF of the books might be an excellent move for recruitment. Barring that, just including a beginner section on the PRD would do the trick.

Oh my! That would be terrific. If at the very least, make the Hero's Handbook a free PDF to pass out to friends, that would help TREMENDOUSLY to getting the interest of new players. If you can't make it free, a special gifting mechanism where you can pass out four extra copies (for each hero PC), much like gifting co-op games on Steam works.

This looks fantastic and as one who never bought the classic red box, I'm excited to get my hands on this.
Paizo Employee Director of Game Design
Callous Jack wrote:
Is that the actual box art?

Yes, yes it is.

Jason Bulmahn
Lead Designer
Paizo Publishing

Super Double Frakkin AWESEOME WAFFLE CONE!
Jason Bulmahn wrote:

Just as a note to everyone in this thread,

We will not be answering any further questions about the product at this time. Other than the info in the blog post and this product description, we are going to play it close to the vest until the banquet at Paizocon!

I, personally, cannot wait.

Jason Bulmahn
Lead Designer
Paizo Publishing

Jason Bulmahn wrote:
Callous Jack wrote:
Is that the actual box art?

Yes, yes it is.

Jason Bulmahn
Lead Designer
Paizo Publishing

Aha, gotcha.

Pathfinder Adventure, Adventure Path, Lost Omens Subscriber
Vanulf Wulfson wrote:


Jason Bulmahn wrote:

We will not be answering any further questions about the product at this time. Other than the info in the blog post and this product description, we are going to play it close to the vest until the banquet at Paizocon!

Jason Bulmahn wrote:
Callous Jack wrote:
Is that the actual box art?

Yes, yes it is.

Aha, gotcha.

Confirming info already in the product description isn't exactly answering further questions. ;)

Paizo Employee Director of Game Design
Vanulf Wulfson wrote:


Aha, gotcha.

That is of course, not to say that I will not confirm what is posted as part of these releases, I just cannot speculate or give further information about things not in these posts...

That.. and I am being a bit cheeky..

Jason Bulmahn
Lead Designer
Paizo Publishing
Scarab Sages
Joana wrote:
Wicht wrote:
Will this be part of the RPG subscription?
Product Description wrote:
Note: This product is part of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Subscription.

:)

(I was actually about to ask the same question when I noticed that.)

Doh.

Thanks. :)

Here is one subscriber happy to have it in the subscription, though I do feel for foreign subscribers who will have a hassle because of it.
Antony Walls wrote:

As much as I would like a copy of this, please please please do not make it part of an existing subscription.

Because it is a game rather than a book (because it contains dice), it will be subject to import tax into the UK (~10% = $3.50). On top of this the post office add a £8 (~$14) 'handling' fee, AND I then have to go and collect it while they are open (~$5 fuel and parking)

So a $35 + postage box becomes a ~$58 + postage box and it is not even delivered directly to me.

As far as non-books are concerned it is NOT a good idea to include non-books in the subscriptions for international customers.

Please don't force me to have to cancel my subscription and re-establish it later just to avoid the costs associated with this.

Regards,

Antony

As rough as that sounds, I'm sure that the vast majority of subscribers are happy to receive this as part of their normal subscription. I feel for you, because I know how stupid mail can get, but I have a feeling yours is a corner case, and you'll have to take one for the team, either from your wallet or the time you spend cancelling/resubscribing.

It's going to be more than welcome around here!

Note: The younger ones are less able to deal with "second languages". It might be significant if that product goes through the translations that have been covered for Core. (French, Spanish and German I think?)
Contributor
Dale McCoy Jr wrote:
The good news I know what I am getting my daughter and my nieces and nephew for Christmas.

Yeah, my sister and nephew are gonna get them some gaming goodness! :D

Lantern Lodge
Liz Courts wrote:
Dale McCoy Jr wrote:
The good news I know what I am getting my daughter and my nieces and nephew for Christmas.
Yeah, my sister and nephew are gonna get them some gaming goodness! :D

And my brother will also be getting a set :)

Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Charter Superscriber

That is super fricking cool!!!! I cannot wait to infect a whole new generation!!
Dark Archive

Well to congrats to the Paizo staff for this product and making a very solid effort to get new blood into the community.
Pathfinder Adventure Path, Lost Omens, Rulebook Subscriber

What age groups is this targeting? Is this intended to introduce kids (under age 10 or so) to gaming or more for the preteen/teenage crowd?
I started the Red Box with my Dad when I was 7~8 as my first exposure to gaming. This seems right along those lines but the game was a little simpler back then. Will the language be such that a kid can understand the concepts or will it take a broader understanding of things and/or someone to interpret it to their level of understanding?

Ooooh - nice :) ! I'm getting this one, and my little sis might also find one under the Christmas tree.

I'm curious about the pawns too. Anything is better than the tokens that WotC has decided to implement in their game. I hate being mr. skeptical negative pants, but I hope they don't "change" the classes (ala D&D Essentials.)
Dark Archive

Very cool; my nephew is seven, and he will be getting this box as a christmas present!

This is definitely on the list for my nephew.

Since the pawns are described as "full-color", I sincerely doubt they are plastic.

At the very least, I am pleased that the old school wax crayon has been left out. I always hated coloring my own dice.
Grand Lodge
Quote:
but I hope they don't "change" the classes (ala D&D Essentials.)

Knowing paizo, it is all going to weave in pretty seamlessly. I'm guessing the Beginner Box classes will be a subset of Core, and that you can bring a Beginner Box class to something like, say, a PFS session, and it'll play totally fine.

Owner - House of Books and Games LLC

W00t!!!!!

Okay, so this is awesome, and I think I'll have to preorder some of these suckers for Christmas. Because, after all, my subscription copy is my copy and get yer stinking paws off of it! I'm just hoping that a preorder is a guarantee and they won't later on go "oh, sorry, we're going to have to limit it to one per customer."

I'm really really really hoping that the 'pawns' are standees kind of like the Pathfinder Paper Minis (though, no offense, I hope it's not the same cartoony artwork). Because I never ever liked the counters that WoTC was fond of. Ugh.

And I also am very very glad it's part of the subscription, though I do feel for those who will be paying extra for shipping.

This and the two Ultimate books and the fall Faiths book and the winter daemons book? This is quite a good year.
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber
Foghammer wrote:
Antony Walls wrote:

As much as I would like a copy of this, please please please do not make it part of an existing subscription.

Because it is a game rather than a book (because it contains dice), it will be subject to import tax into the UK (~10% = $3.50). On top of this the post office add a £8 (~$14) 'handling' fee, AND I then have to go and collect it while they are open (~$5 fuel and parking)

So a $35 + postage box becomes a ~$58 + postage box and it is not even delivered directly to me.

As far as non-books are concerned it is NOT a good idea to include non-books in the subscriptions for international customers.

Please don't force me to have to cancel my subscription and re-establish it later just to avoid the costs associated with this.

Regards,

Antony

As rough as that sounds, I'm sure that the vast majority of subscribers are happy to receive this as part of their normal subscription. I feel for you, because I know how stupid mail can get, but I have a feeling yours is a corner case, and you'll have to take one for the team, either from your wallet or the time you spend cancelling/resubscribing.

So every international customer is a 'corner case'?

I repeat - do not include GAMES as part of a BOOK subscription, alternatively offer international customers an alternative with the $30 dice and other plastic bits removed (you can leave the price the price at $35).
Sczarni RPG Superstar 2014 Top 16

I'd like to make a suggestion regarding the dice included in this set (and I fully understand that it may be too late for this). I think it would be very helpful if the dice are all different colors, as opposed to a "complete set" that all match. I have found that for beginning players, it is often difficult for them to pick up which dice are which, especially at first. Being able to say, "The d8 is the blue one," or, "Roll the orange d20 and add your attack bonus," is a big help for someone in their first few sessions.

I can't wait to see this!
Grand Lodge
Antony Walls wrote:

So every international customer is a 'corner case'?

I repeat - do not include GAMES as part of a BOOK subscription, alternatively offer international customers an alternative with the $30 dice and other plastic bits removed (you can leave the price the price at $35).

Not every international customer will be subject to import taxes on a game, or is exempt to them for books.

Pathfinder Adventure, Adventure Path, Lost Omens Subscriber
gbonehead wrote:


Okay, so this is awesome, and I think I'll have to preorder some of these suckers for Christmas. Because, after all, my subscription copy is my copy and get yer stinking paws off of it! I'm just hoping that a preorder is a guarantee and they won't later on go "oh, sorry, we're going to have to limit it to one per customer."

To hit that pics point they will need to print a ton. I doubt they will limit the number per customer. Paizo will be very happy to sell additional sets to subscribers. They want this thing to be everywhere.

Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber
Scribbling Rambler wrote:
Antony Walls wrote:

So every international customer is a 'corner case'?

I repeat - do not include GAMES as part of a BOOK subscription, alternatively offer international customers an alternative with the $30 dice and other plastic bits removed (you can leave the price the price at $35).

Not every international customer will be subject to import taxes on a game, or is exempt to them for books.

Perhaps not,but definately the whole of the EU poluation 500 million (compared to the US populat of 311 million).

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