So, I'm confused by something. I know that PF is supposed to be 3.5 compatible, but I've also heard of people "converting" 3.5 products to work with PF rules. Whenever I've used 3.5 material, the only converting I've had to do is translate names (like feats to their pf equivalent). Is that all there is to it or am I missing something? I was expecting balance issues and such.
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Like any 3rd party products, you might have to watch for unintended consequences of the rules, but for the most part you are right that you can just plug 3.5 into Pathfinder. When people talk about converting rules they mean changing Spot to Perception or figuring out how a bonus to grapple checks applies. (In 3.5 grapple was an opposed roll, so some of the rules for that don't work with the CMB/D rules of Pathfinder.) There are also other little changes that make some 3.5 feats and the like redundant. (You no longer choose one opponent to gain Dodge against, so some feats in the Dodge tree make no sense now.)
Like any 3rd party products, you might have to watch for unintended consequences of the rules, but for the most part you are right that you can just plug 3.5 into Pathfinder. When people talk about converting rules they mean changing Spot to Perception or figuring out how a bonus to grapple checks applies. (In 3.5 grapple was an opposed roll, so some of the rules for that don't work with the CMB/D rules of Pathfinder.) There are also other little changes that make some 3.5 feats and the like redundant. (You no longer choose one opponent to gain Dodge against, so some feats in the Dodge tree make no sense now.)
Thanks. I've only played 1E and now PF. And 1E was just a handful of times when I was a kid. So I'm not real familiar with 3.5. I thought I was missing something but it sounds like I'm not.
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The funny thing is that despite Pathfinder being compitable with 3.5 I keep reading here, elsewhere and in person how so many in the hobby refuse to use 3.5 material. Almost like one of the main design goals for Pathfinder was wasted imo.
As for converting feats skills spells are almost a straight conversion. Classes can be more time consuming.
Additionally, some of the design goals for Pathfinder are different than they were in 3.5. Especially with spells, you might have to keep an eye out for unexpected balance issues. Classes in particular have pretty much entirely kicked out the idea of dead levels, and class features are more abundant, so if you just pull, say, the warlock straight from 3.5 it's going to feel weaker and emptier than a PF class.
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The funny thing is that despite Pathfinder being compitable with 3.5 I keep reading here, elsewhere and in person how so many in the hobby refuse to use 3.5 material. Almost like one of the main design goals for Pathfinder was wasted imo.
As for converting feats skills spells are almost a straight conversion. Classes can be more time consuming.
Pathfinder started with the goal of being backward compatable, in large part so that people who liked 3.5 and had a bunch of books would buy it, since many didn't like 4e much.
However, overall Pathfinder is better balanced than 3.5, so keeping out 3.5 can help from a balance perspective, especially now that Pathfinder has plenty of its own material.
So, I'm confused by something. I know that PF is supposed to be 3.5 compatible, but I've also heard of people "converting" 3.5 products to work with PF rules. Whenever I've used 3.5 material, the only converting I've had to do is translate names (like feats to their pf equivalent). Is that all there is to it or am I missing something? I was expecting balance issues and such.
Both are d20 games and are mostly compatible but there are some areas of mechanical incompatibility that can trip you up a little.
Pathfinder is a slightly higher power level than 3.5 for classes, races, and monsters in general across the board. Everything gets feats every two levels instead of every three. About half a level or so tougher over all I'd say.
Skill lists changed, some 3.5 skills were condensed into one skill in pathfinder and fly was added to the list.
Combat maneuver mechanisms changed going from one grapple modifier to combat maneuver bonus and combat maneuver defense score using different formulae. 3.5 monster stat blocks have the grapple modifier listed and no CMB/CMD.
You can use a 3.5 group in a Pathfinder module or a PF group in a 3.5 module or mix and match NPCs and monsters with little problem, mostly just figuring out CMB/D stuff.
Other little things like which monster types are vulnerable to sneak attacks, how poison works, etc. are a little different.
I've done it often and easily.
The math scales differently--more feats, more monster HP, etc. There's a free conversion guide somewhere on this site that goes over the details. Basically, if you use 3.5 stuff directly, it will be a little underwhelming at times and unnoticeable at other times.
I do full conversions because I feel that creatures in a Pathfinder module should have Pathfinder stats, feats, and abilities. It's a lot of work, though, and you can definitely play without converting if you like. There are even shortcuts you can use to approximate the difference, like applying a simple template or something.
For the most part, you don't have to do much to use both except the few things that TOZ mentioned. Most stuff in 3.5 is slightly weaker than PF, so few of the players I've met still have any real use for their 3.5 stuff.
However, there were a few things that have never been 'redone' in PF that some people really love like the warlock, artificer, warforged, etc... So you get some people still wanting to use them even if they are a bit less powerful.
Mostly when I see someone still wanting to use 3.5 material it is someone who has a whole bookcase full of 3.5 books and doesn't have many of the PF books, a GM that wants to use an old module that he remembers fondly from the past, or 'the optimizer.'
Every once in a while in a campaign that uses both rule sets, you will have a player that will search through umpteen dozen books looking for some odd combination of spells, abilities, and feats that has some unexpected consequences (I have to admit that has occasionally been me).
I really don't remember these problem builds much anymore, but there was some weird stuff put together with Ebberon dragon marks, dimensional agility, psionic traveler, and old version of haste that gave a truly horrendous number of actions in a single round.
Seems like there was another with the PF true summoner class and a 3.5 outsider summoning PrC that was pretty amazing.
So you might have to make some rules modifications when those weird corner cases come up.
Mostly I've been using modules that are 3.5 and for low-level players. I'm introducing my daughter (18) to PF this weekend and I'm using some of Goodman Games' adventures for 3.5. I haven't run across too much in the way of balance but that may be due to my looking at lower levels only. I didn't think about using 3.5 classes and such, but that sounds like it could be problematic unless I'm very familiar with the rules (which I'm not yet).
Any advice for converting spells and feats? I've been taking the name of them and looking for a PF equivalent that's description matches what I interpret the 3.5 name to mean.
Mostly I've been using modules that are 3.5 and for low-level players. I'm introducing my daughter (18) to PF this weekend and I'm using some of Goodman Games' adventures for 3.5. I haven't run across too much in the way of balance but that may be due to my looking at lower levels only. I didn't think about using 3.5 classes and such, but that sounds like it could be problematic unless I'm very familiar with the rules (which I'm not yet).
Any advice for converting spells and feats? I've been taking the name of them and looking for a PF equivalent that's description matches what I interpret the 3.5 name to mean.
Perfect for new players, that is more than sufficient.
Using all the 3.5 stuff is not really a problem most of the time, but it can be a headache. The 3.5 Haste is not exactly the same as the PF Haste. Etc...
Our group eventually decided to drop all the 3.5 stuff except when there was some particular thing that was not converted to PF that someone wanted to try. It really hasn't come up that much since then.
The only thing I might suggest is try to branch out a little bit more as you get more comfortable with the rules. A lot of the old 3.5 stuff (I'm not specifically familiar with that source) tended to use the same feats and spells over and over again. Instead of yet another Mirror Image giver the sorc an Eruptive Pustules. Instead of the 19th example of Burning Hands use an Ear Piercing Scream. Instead of a Power Attack, give the enemy a Lunge so he can hit them from unexpectedly far away. Etc... It is a minor thing, but players like to see something different and it can give them some incentive to try some of the weirder spells/feats themselves.
Mostly I've been using modules that are 3.5 and for low-level players. I'm introducing my daughter (18) to PF this weekend and I'm using some of Goodman Games' adventures for 3.5. I haven't run across too much in the way of balance but that may be due to my looking at lower levels only. I didn't think about using 3.5 classes and such, but that sounds like it could be problematic unless I'm very familiar with the rules (which I'm not yet).
Any advice for converting spells and feats? I've been taking the name of them and looking for a PF equivalent that's description matches what I interpret the 3.5 name to mean.
Use the Pathfinder versions of spells and feats and you will be fine.
Don't sweat small stuff that is different between editions. 3.5 sorcerers don't have bloodlines. If you have an NPC sorcerer in a Goodman module you do not need to give him a full bloodline in your pathfinder game. Using the statblock without bloodline powers given in the 3.5 module will work out fine in play. If you have the time and want to do full conversion that's fine, but not doing so will not screw up the game.