So my group is switching to Pathfinder rules and the Pathfinder setting. It seems like there is soooo much stuff and beyond the Core Rules book, I'm at a loss of where to start. I played only D&D 3.5 and the New D&D playtest. Our group and the DM didn't care for the new D&D but didn't want to go back to 3.5 so Pathfinder is what we decided on. Our GM and some of the other players are familiar with it and have always wanted to play.
I see on here on the site that there are a lot of books. Are the Player Companion books considered core rules or are they optional rules? Are the Chronicles books more for DMs or are they for both players and DMs? Is picking up the Inner Guide PDF the best place to start?
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The Player Companion books are setting-specific and non-core, but not in the same 'optional' zone as armor-as-DR and wordcasting. You don't have to get all of them to play, though, and you can find the mechanical parts on d20pfsrd.
The Chronicles books have more of a DM-slant to them. There's PC options in some of them, but by-and-large they're a product for the DM. The Player Companion books are the main line intended for players.
The Inner Sea World Guide PDF is probably the best place to start, yes. I also suggest the Pathfinder Wiki as an excellent source of setting information.
If you want to start with something cheaper and not quite so dense as the Inner Sea World Guide, you could also check out the Inner Sea Primer, which is basically the TLDR version of the World Guide.
Also worth noting that all core rules are available for free online at www.paizo.com/prd.
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Both the above are great answers and are pretty much what I was going to say. Also if you decide to get printed books and your FLGS doesn't carry them (which mine doesn't as they are 90% wargames and 9% CCGs) then Amazon is a good place to go if you're looking to save a little cash when buying new books. Nice Bubble Gum Crisis reference by the way! You a classic fan or a 2040 fan?
Welcome to the boards, Priss!
The best place to start is the Inner Sea World Guide (which is 50% off the cover price through the end of the month, and only $10 for the PDF) if you're looking for the main setting of Golarion. For the most part, the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game line is setting neutral (and many of the rules are on the PRD).
Both the above are great answers and are pretty much what I was going to say. Also if you decide to get printed books and your FLGS doesn't carry them (which mine doesn't as they are 90% wargames and 9% CCGs) then Amazon is a good place to go if you're looking to save a little cash when buying new books. Nice Bubble Gum Crisis reference by the way! You a classic fan or a 2040 fan?
Classic Fan of course!
Thanks for all suggestions. I think I'll start with the guide and see what strikes me as the most interesting. Our GM is thinking of starting with an adventure path for our first campaign. I don't know which one but he said our characters can be from anywhere.