RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 8
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Someone in my area is selling a plethora of books (3.0/3.5) for 5 bucks each. I have some money burning a hole in my pocket, and even though I don't play those editions anymore, made the Pathfinder switch, there's still a wealth of good material in older books. For example, Fiendish Codex 2: Tyrants of the Nine Hells is a great insight into the minds of devils.
So here's my question, what should I buy? Ideally I'm looking for books with good advice/fluff for worldbuilding/character creation/GMing
Player's Handbook 3.5
Dungeonmaster's Guide 2
Expanded Psionic's Handbook
Monsters Manual 2
Monsters Manual 3
Monsters Manual 4
Monsters Manual 5
Fiend Folio
Dangerous Denizens
Races of the Wild
Races of Destiny
Races of the Dragon
Races of Stone
Savage Species
Complete Mage
Complete Arcane
Complete Adventurer
Complete Warrior
Complete Divine
Complete Psionic
Stormwrack
Cityscape
Frostburn
Sandstorm
Tome of Magic
Magic Incarnum
Libris Mortis: Book of the Undead
Lords of Madness
The Book of Aberrations
Ghostwalk
Tome of Battle
Miniatures Handbook
Heroes of Horror
Heroes of Battle
Fiendish Codex 1: Hordes of the Abyss
Fiendish Codex 2: Tyrants of the Nine Hells
Manual of the Planes
Book of Vile Darkness
Book of Exalted Deeds
Planar Handbook
Weapons of Legacy
Expedition to Castle Ravenloft
Villains Design Handbook
Draconomicon: The Book of the Dragons
Forgotten Realms: Serpent Kingdoms
Forgotten Realms: Lost Empires of Faerun
Forgotten Realms: City of the Spiderqueen
Forgotten Realms: Champions of Ruin
Forgotten Realms: Drow of the Underdark
Forgotten Realms: Unapproachable East
Forgotten Realms: Silvermarches
Forgotten Realms: City of Splendors: Waterdeep
Forgotten Realms: Players Guide to Faerun
Forgotten Realms: Races of Faerun
Dragonlance: Dragonlance Campaign Setting
Dragonlance: Age of Mortals
Dragonlance: Beastiary of Krynn
Legends of the Five Rings: Oriental Adventures
Legends of the Five Rings: Rokugan
Legends of the Five Rings: Way of the Ninja
Legends of the Five RIngs: Way of the Samurai
Legends of the Five Rings: Way of the Shugenja
Legends of the Five Rings: Creatures of Rokugan
Thanks!
That is a list containing a lot of good books that I have.
These are good for getting roleplaying of alignment to be really good and offers some really good options and insight into good and evil.
Book of Vile Darkness
Book of Exalted Deeds
The Complete series offers loads of player and some GM options, but the content became more broken as time went on. These are the least broken ones
Complete Arcane
Complete Adventurer
Complete Warrior
Complete Divine
The Races of series offers some really great racial options, from feats racial subs, and information on their covered races.
The Fiendish Codexs are gold for covering evil outsiders, but offer few player options, but some sweet GM stuff.
Frostburn, and Sandstorm to a unknown extent on Stormwrack
Cityscape. They are good if you want some really nice rules on specific environments, and nicely themed character options, items, magic, and bestiaries.
The Miniatures Handbook is great if you want mass combat rules with getting the kingmaker AP, it does contain player options though I recall some are crazy broken, A bestiary and some other stuff.
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RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 8
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Thanks for the timely reviews! I actually have some of the completes and possibly stormrack/sandstorm, it's been ages since I looked at them though so I'll double check before writing them off. Cityscape sounds pretty interesting, I need to flex my creative muscle more and it looks like it could do just that.
Get the 3.5 handbook, as you will probably never find another sucker....I mean former player, selling it for that cheap again. Seriously, finding it for less that $30-40 is almost impossible, or at least was a year or two ago.
Someone in my area is selling a plethora of books (3.0/3.5) for 5 bucks each. I have some money burning a hole in my pocket, and even though I don't play those editions anymore, made the Pathfinder switch, there's still a wealth of good material in older books. For example, Fiendish Codex 2: Tyrants of the Nine Hells is a great insight into the minds of devils.
So here's my question, what should I buy? Ideally I'm looking for books with good advice/fluff for worldbuilding/character creation/GMing
** spoiler omitted **...
Do you know if the person would consider shipping them to someone that wanted to buy them?
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Hmmm...
Considering character creation, while I own most of the books on the list, I haven't used any of the 3.5 options for pathfinder, not because I wouldn't have the work of converting them or because I only want to use PF, but because I find the many options in the Pathfinder Ruleboks to allow me to build most character variations in a more convenient way - I, in other words, would probably not buy the races/complete books on the list.
The enviromental books (Frostburn, Sandstorm, Stormwrack and - sadly the worst of the four but still quite useful - cityscape) I still use. They have plenty of options for building encounters / regions of the enviroment presented, plus monsters, prestige classes feats and the like that can be adopted to PF when playing there. I would strongly advice getting them.
Monster Manuals - unless you must have every monster published for 3.0/3.5 don't get them. Paizo publishes many monsters every year (even in case there won't be a Bestiary IV, there are still the AP Monsters and critters in the Golarion line that you should never run out of fresh, strange beats.
The in depth looks at certain creatures (fiendish codex 1+2, Lords of Madness, Libris Mortis, Draconomicon) are imho great books, well worth getting, many Ideas for campaign and world building regarding certain creatures can be found in there.
Ghostwalk is imho a classic, very fresh world/city/idea. For $5 get it. seriously, even if you never use the book, it is a great read and a stepping stone for your imagination. Highly recommended.
Book of Vile Darkness - I wouldn't want to live without it (I like the BoED, too, but that is more of a mixed bag), but if you can, take a look into it, first, there will be those who wouldn't touch it wit a 10' pole.
The Dragonlance and Forgotten Realms Books are mostly good, but from what I read, you are not really looking for a pr published setting, so they might not be your cup of tea. Consider City of the Spider Queen, though, it is a great high level module well worth the price.
Magic of Incarnum / Tome of Magic / Weapons of Legacy are a very mixed bag. Each offers some great Ideas and a sub-par implementation of those Ideas. Although I own all three, the only book I really got use of is WoL, and that only with very heavy modifications.
I really liked the DMG 2 - helpful, good articles, nice additions to nearly every game. For $5 I'd say its well worth the price even for Pathfinder.
I hope that helps a bit.
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RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 8
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Do you know if the person would consider shipping them to someone that wanted to buy them?Someone in my area is selling a plethora of books (3.0/3.5) for 5 bucks each. I have some money burning a hole in my pocket, and even though I don't play those editions anymore, made the Pathfinder switch, there's still a wealth of good material in older books. For example, Fiendish Codex 2: Tyrants of the Nine Hells is a great insight into the minds of devils.
So here's my question, what should I buy? Ideally I'm looking for books with good advice/fluff for worldbuilding/character creation/GMing
** spoiler omitted **...
Unsure, I'll ask when I go to pick up my pile next week. Given the advice people have said I'm probably getting at least the PHB3.5, Cityscape, Frostburn, Villain Design Handbook, Fiendish Codex I+II, Ghostwalk, Vile Darkness and City of the Spider Queen. I'll send you a PM if they'd be willing.
When you get BoVD it's a good idea to pick up it's partner BoED
For worldbuilding fluff and GM advice, I'd recommend:
Dungeonmaster's Guide 2 has lots of GM advice good for a novice GM to read.
Stormwrack, Cityscape, Frostburn, Sandstorm: These have lots of ideas for environment based/ worldbuilding stuff (I'm least familiar with cityscape).
Heros of Horror: If you want to run a horror campaign/ adventure, this has some great ideas in it. Very creepy stuff.
Expedition to Castle Raveloft (because you'll never find it for $5 again)
Monster Manual 1-5: because you can never go wrong with monster books
Weapons of Legacy: If you are interested in having weapons that level up with the characters, this will give you lots of options/ideas.
That's my 2 cents
Of the ones you list here are mine.
Top Five:
Dungeonmaster's Guide 2
Heroes of Horror
Book of Vile Darkness
Expedition to Castle Ravenloft
Libris Mortis: Book of the Undead
Others:
Expanded Psionic's Handbook
Monsters Manual 2
Monsters Manual 3
Monsters Manual 4
Monsters Manual 5
Fiend Folio
Savage Species
Complete Psionic
Stormwrack
Cityscape
Frostburn
Sandstorm
Tome of Magic
Lords of Madness
Miniatures Handbook
Heroes of Battle
Fiendish Codex 1: Hordes of the Abyss
Fiendish Codex 2: Tyrants of the Nine Hells
Manual of the Planes
Book of Exalted Deeds
Planar Handbook
L
Draconomicon, Libris Mortis and Lords Of Madness are great books. In my opinion possibly the best of 3.0/3.5 edition books made by Wizards Of The Coasts. IIRC James Jacobs cowriten some parts of Lords Of Madness. Aboleths, I think. Their description, if my memory serves me well, is valid part of Golarion Aboleth lore. And thus part of history of Azlant. And thus impacting Earthfall, Aroden, Absalom, Starstone, etc.
If you have the money, then pick them ALL up.
Loved:
MM 3, MM 5, Fiend Folio, Bo9S, ToM, Ghostwalk, Libris Mortis, FC 1, FR: Unapproachable East.
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That is a list containing a lot of good books that I have.
These are good for getting roleplaying of alignment to be really good and offers some really good options and insight into good and evil.
Book of Vile Darkness
Book of Exalted DeedsThe Complete series offers loads of player and some GM options, but the content became more broken as time went on. These are the least broken ones
Complete Arcane
Complete Adventurer
Complete Warrior
Complete DivineThe Races of series offers some really great racial options, from feats racial subs, and information on their covered races.
The Fiendish Codexs are gold for covering evil outsiders, but offer few player options, but some sweet GM stuff.
Frostburn, and Sandstorm to a unknown extent on Stormwrack
Cityscape. They are good if you want some really nice rules on specific environments, and nicely themed character options, items, magic, and bestiaries.The Miniatures Handbook is great if you want mass combat rules with getting the kingmaker AP, it does contain player options though I recall some are crazy broken, A bestiary and some other stuff.
Well said. Succinctly put, too. The BoVD and the BoED also get widely panned for the same reasons you critique the Miniatures Handbook, but for many reasons add a lot of good context and flavor. If used, like strong colors on a painting with a *feather light* touch, can provide some excellent artistic poignance and flavor.
If you have the money, then pick them ALL up.
...Truth!