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My two 3.x campaigns have been put on hold as the players' personal lives draw them away. Right now I'm playing/running in a couple of 4e campaigns -- and enjoying them -- with other, different, players, but I know the other groups will soon want to resume the 3.x campaigns.
Here's the problem. I don't want to return to using the 3.x rules. I like the Pathfinder RPG as presented in the alpha and beta testings. I played in no less than three PRPG beta games and enjoyed them immensely. Before the break, I asked the 3.x players to consider switching to Pathfinder but all said no.
I'm giving serious thought of starting an Pathfinder RPG campaign once the official rules are released in August. Anyone else in this bind?
Not really. My regular 3.X gang happily downloaded the Pathfinder rules and we're using them too, but the operative word is "too"--I've also got a pile of house rules, 1st edition books, revised Arduin and even (gasp!) 4e sitting next to my DMs chair and I'll pull out anything I need to for running the game.
I'll be happy when I have my nice Pathfinder hardback in my hands, but I'm hardly going to throw all the other books out the window--though I will ignore anything I please.
..., revised Arduin...I think I saw something of that nature at Strategicon earlier this month. Who's the new publisher?
Ah, by "revised Arduin" I meant the Arduin 2nd edition put out a few years ago with the Frank Kelly Freas art on the covers.
Most of it's a little too weird or too powerful for the average D&D game, but I use the list of social classes for random rolling for starting characters. It makes a good way to come up with backstories.
I'm playing basically in two circles:
Circle One:
We have switched over to PF Beta wholesale, and will change over to the final rules as soon as we have them. We'll probably use them for Legacy of Fire and beyond, since we're about 1 - 1 1/2 adventure paths behind (we're getting to Skeletons of Scarwall this saturday.)
All are big fans of the changes, or at least most of the changes.
We also play some nWoD (custom scenario, with a lot of Cloverfield/ The Mist going on, and quite combat-heavy, which is quite unusual for nWoD) and Serenity, and some McWod wouldn't be out of the question, either.
I'm the GM for the Pathfinder APs there (which is our primary campaign), and play in the rest. The Serenity is the second-most often campaign, and the nWoD is played every now and then. There's also a Shackled City game, but that one's in Limbo right now.
Circle Two:
Still playing 3.5 here (though I managed to sneak in the PF bard and might be able to sneak in other classes as needed), but that's mainly because PF doesn't have German rules yet (and one player is dead set against using English rules - though she doesn't play right now for personal reasons). As soon as we get a translation for PF, we might switch.
We play two D&D games there, and I'm a player in both. One's Rise of the Runelords, the other a very weird netherworld/otherworld/elemental realms thing (but weird in a good way!).
Once one or the other campaign ends, I might step up and GM some PF stuff there, at which time I will insist on switching to PF.
Some of the people from that group also engage in a sporadical game, where they play some oWoD and some CoC, but since that coincides with my other games, I don't play in that.
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I will be getting the PF core book and MM when it comes out as I like what I see and no longer have my 3.5. books. That being said unless one is really dislike 3.5. rules I can't really recommend PF as it's basically 3.5 with a few rules changes. You have to balance your dislike of the 3.5 rules with wanting to reinvest about 100$ in the PF books. The PF campaign setting I do recommend as it's one of the best products I have read.
although I still have 3.5 books. We are pathfinder all the way; with my own changes to the monk, waiting to see what jason has done to the monk for the final version (we are just not going to use the bard at all until the final version)
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I'm on the fence.
With group #1 (I'm the DM), current rules include a number of sources, mainly from the Book of Iron Might (freeform combat maneuvers) and the Complete Book of Eldritch Might (variant bard, specialist sorcerer spell list, a handful of feats), Vitality/Wounds and Armor as DR from Unearthed Arcana.
We agreed to cut out a bunch of so-far used sources such as the various Complete Whatever, as deemed unbalancing or outright unnecessary.
We played both Alpha and Beta PFRPG, but I'm waiting to see the final release, and how it solves some issues and how much it's compatible with the aforementioned sources.
With group #2 (I co-DM), current rules are strictly 3.5, but every player at the table has expressed interest both in the PFRPG and in the solutions from the Book of Experimental Might, especially for casters and healing.
Disciplines in particular are really exiting.
However there's some concern regarding balance and power level - we prefer to play "underpowered".
With group #3 (I'm a player), current rules are AD&D 2e, and there's a bland interest in 3.X rules, wheter they be PFRPG or not. Half the group is willing to try, the other half is not.
I had that problem too when I first downloaded PF. At first my group was "No". So the next gaming session I brough the Beta over on a laptop. Two of my players were busy finishing up a PS3 game they were playing the rogue and I were in the room and I showed him Pathfinder. He went over it and by the time the other 2 got the table the rogue player was half way through converting his rogue to a PF rogue. The other saw this and they loved what PF did to the fighter. Especially the armor training. I had this knight in my group who rolled a high dex but it didn't fit his character concept to where light armor. Suddenly armor training was what sold him. My other fighter who was archer was sold on the extra feats. Those few extra feats meant he could blow a few on making him self at least semi useful with a sword. Now they LOVE Pathfinder and are all eagerly waiting for the final publication to come out in August as am I. I don't much care for gaming with PDF books.
I had the same reaction from my group when I suggested 3.5 to them over 3e. Until I demonstrated some of the improvements to some of the more wayward classes (Bards, Rangers). From the short test game I ran with them for PFBeta they were happy with most of the changes... they're just waiting for my 'gift' of a few PFRPG books when the game is finished.
Fortunately that does give a bit of lead time this summer to create a list of 'house approved' revisions to existing 3.5 content. Various closed content stuff. The good part is that it is not an all or nothing proposition. Just like the 3e to 3.5 we can (and likely will) choose to use some of the older rules we like in place of the newer ones. Anyone remember apprentice levels?
