I finally got around to getting some Pathfinder books. Until now, I've been using my DM's books along with the online SRD. I had some extra cash lying around and decided to go headfirst and buy the Corebook, APG, Bestiary 1 and 2 along with Critical Hits and Conditions decks from Amazon. Yeah... that did a huge dent, but I'm excited. I've always wanted to get back into the GMs chair and I will now get the chance with Pathfinder!
Oh, when I do get my Corebook, I'll post whether it's the 3rd or 4th printing. I know some people where unsure what printing it was when ordering from Amazon.
Also, should I pick up the GM screen? I'm also considering the Paizo blank flip-mat along with some markers. The mat any good (my group doesn't use maps, but at times we do use grid paper for general positioning and so forth).
Now I got to find a spot to put this books... *walks off in deep thought*
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Also, should I pick up the GM screen?
You should pick up the screen. It is really high quality...
You should also look into getting the "Game Mastery Guide" as well. Even if you are an old pro when it comes to running a game, this book has some great stuff in it...
One other small thing you should look into buying. The Critical Fumble Deck (as it is a great companion to the Critical Hit Deck)...
-That One Digitalelf Fellow-
Aye. The GMG has some really good stuff.
Yeah I plan on getting the GMG along with ultimate magic next paycheck. Looks like I will also add the GM screen to the lot as well. I'll look into the critcals fumble deck too. It's been too long since I ran a game. I'm excited!
In my opinion the GMG is only worth it if you play quite exactly by the books, like PF society games.
It has a lot of useful stuff, but if you have a whimpy wallet, it might not be worth it.
Same is true for the fluip-mat if you don't use miniatures. A normal A3 paper with pens might do the trick just as well.
My advice is to slow down, and buy something when you think it's needed, after you had a session. Most of your eagerness to buy might come from the eagerness to play, as both are linked. It might be that after a session you see that noone owns a APG, and therefor the GM doesn't need one as well.
Just a tought, from someone sympathetic with your wallet.
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The GMG has tables for generating NPC, down to things like Names, quirks, and motivation. Heck, I built a PC for Temple of Elemental Evil entirely using it.
The Infectious Sage was a "southern good ol' boy" the worst teeth you could imagine. Even worse, he told stories about EVERY encounter he'd been in (a la Ellis from L4D2,) backed by knowledge Planes and Dungeoneering. This got so annoying to monster hunting group that they abandoned him in Hommlet.
This phase in "meat-building" (as opposed to character creation which kind of stopped around Generation 4 or 5 of the party), was worth the admission price. Plus, it's got a picture of (I think) Iconic Ranger with a spacey-looking laser and spacesuit. What's more awesome than that?
you know if your looking for somewhere to run a game...there are plenty of players around these parts and the pbp machanics aren't that bad here on the site...no I'm not trying to get into another game here...I have no idea what anyone is thinking. Honestly though if you are looking to DM here on the boards I'm sure you'll have no problem finding players.
Even if I didn't have a group I regularly game with, I wouldn't do pbp. I don't feel it's the same as a normal game, it's just not my style. If I was to do something online, sykpe and some kind of virtual board/dice roller would be the way to go. I think I'll be fine, thanks for the offer though. :)
In my opinion the GMG is only worth it if you play quite exactly by the books, like PF society games.
It has a lot of useful stuff, but if you have a whimpy wallet, it might not be worth it.
Same is true for the fluip-mat if you don't use miniatures. A normal A3 paper with pens might do the trick just as well.My advice is to slow down, and buy something when you think it's needed, after you had a session. Most of your eagerness to buy might come from the eagerness to play, as both are linked. It might be that after a session you see that noone owns a APG, and therefor the GM doesn't need one as well.
Just a tought, from someone sympathetic with your wallet.
Yeah, I had a feeling the flip-mat wouldn't be best for my group. We don't use miniatures at all. We tend to play without any kind of map for most combats and scenes. When we do require precision (usually for the climactic battle or an area with many hazards) we use grid paper. But, for $10, it is tempting. The grid paper is quite small and is not reusable like the mat. hmm...
Well, one of the reasons I'm so eager is that I haven't DMed a game since 4e was just released. After that experience (I felt absolutely bored and uninspired by 4e, and sadly the game suffered a bit because of it), I looked elsewhere for a game to run. I didn't want to go back to 3.5 even though I practically own the whole lot of books that came out and can run the game from memory for the most part, so I looked to other RPGs out there.
I found some great ones that I would love to run one day (Witch Hunter the Invisible World, Eclipse Phase, Savage Worlds, Anima), but I just couldn't get myself to go the distance and get a game running, even though I had a regular group (I'm been a player in nWoD, D&D 4e, Warhammer 3e and Pathfinder). Hell, I didn't even want to create sample characters. I've been keeping track of Pathfinder since it was in beta and had that itch to run it, but I didn't want to go back to d20. I kept buying other RPGs tying to find that right game for me. But, after playing Pathfinder earlier this year, it felt nostalgic but exciting and new again; it just felt right.
There's a reason why I own nearly all the 3.5 book (and all the 3.0 books), the game just clicks for me. I'm most familiar with the system. Pathfinder just improves this formula and to be honest, this should've been a no-brainier when it comes to my go-to game, and that's why I'm excited. :)
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There's a reason why I own nearly all the 3.5 book (and all the 3.0 books), the game just clicks for me. I'm most familiar with the system. Pathfinder just improves this formula and to be honest, this should've been a no-brainier when it comes to my go-to game, and that's why I'm excited. :)
And with very little modification/conversion, all of your 3.0/3.5/3PP d20 books can be utilized with Pathfinder!
Also, should I pick up the GM screen?You should pick up the screen. It is really high quality...
You should also look into getting the "Game Mastery Guide" as well. Even if you are an old pro when it comes to running a game, this book has some great stuff in it...
One other small thing you should look into buying. The Critical Fumble Deck (as it is a great companion to the Critical Hit Deck)...
-That One Digitalelf Fellow-
The GM screen is awesome. It's the best GM screen that I have ever seen.
In my opinion the GMG is only worth it if you play quite exactly by the books, like PF society games.
I disagree. Some of the best stuff in the GMG isn't the rules content or tables. Things such as things to do if a TPK occurs, or if there is severe party imbalance. It's just some good pro-tips.
Well, most of my books came today so I'm stocked. My group (particularly my DM, he hasn't been a player for years) is excited to play PF. We're going back to D&D roots and we all agreed to do a classic dungeon crawl. Should be fun.
Also, the Corebook is the 4th printing for those who are wondering! :)
*runs off to read*
Most of your eagerness to buy might come from the eagerness to play, as both are linked. It might be that after a session you see that noone owns a APG, and therefor the GM doesn't need one as well.
Just a tought, from someone sympathetic with your wallet.
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The GMG is VERY nice, but REALLY not required. Vast pages of treasure charts and pre-built NPCs top my list of things I liked, but even so, the PDF is quite a bit cheaper.
The Critical & Fumble Decks can be VERY unpredictable and way more abusive to your players than it is to the monsters, over their adventuring careers... if they don't get decapitated that is, lol.
Flip-mats are awesome, as are the map packs, but if you don't use miniatures, than that's money spent elsewhere. Lots of money, between them and the miniatures... my wallet hates me for it. :D
The 3.5E books still work really well with Pathfinder, I recommend continued use of them to supplement your new Pathfinder goodness. The "Player's Handbook" is essentially replaced however. Our groups still use the Spell Compendium, Magic Item Compendium and "Complete" series.
The "Adventurer's Armory" is one of my favorites, basically a slimmed down Arms & Equipment Guide for Pathfinder. If you're looking for fluff (Golarion background), the "Campaign Setting" and "Inner Sea Guide" are what you want.
I generally PLAY(not DM), so I tend to only buy the books with a good portion of player-useable crunch, leaving the fluff up to the DM or to be purchased when I want a PDF to read. Monster Manuals (Bestiaries) being my only weakness, as I love the artwork! Currently hoarding MY copper pieces for Ultimate Magic and Ultimate Combat. :)
I personally think the flip mats are awesome, and the blank one is double-super awesome. I've played without minis before, but I enjoy the use of them. It's an extra layer of gameplay that seems to add a lot of fun in my experience.
EDIT: The minis can get expensive, though. They do, however, have a whole ton of paper minis and tokens and whatnot around here somewhere.
+1 for the GM Screen.
Best quality I have seen.
The minis can get expensive, though. They do, however, have a whole ton of paper minis and tokens and whatnot around here somewhere.