What books for Pathfinder default setting?

[OmniMage]

What books should I read to learn about the default setting for Pathfinder? What order should I read them?

The default setting for Pathfinder is called Golarion, right?

[Rhys Grey]

The Inner Sea World Guide would be useful for you. Check out the different regions and select a Campaign Setting sourcebook that further details that region (for example, if you really liked the section about Qadira, get the book Qadira, Jewel of the East).

That said, some sourcebooks are out of print, and not all regions have sourcebooks yet.

EDIT: Yes, Golarion is the Pathfinder Campaign Setting. You mustn't necessarily read them in a specific order, I don't think.

[CrystalSeas]

Rhys Grey wrote:

That said, some sourcebooks are out of print

But they are all still available as PDFs.

[Steve Geddes]

This is the Inner Sea World Guide. As others have mentioned it’s kind of the “encyclopaedia” of Golarion and is a great overview of the Inner Sea Region, which forms the core part of the game world.

From there, you might try looking here if you find a region you’re interested in reading more about. In addition to the various regional guides, there are also a few more thematic titles (focussed on one aspect of Golarion rather than a specific region).

If you’re not too stressed about mechanics, I’d definitely recommend browsing these titles also. They predate Pathfinder and were written for D&D 3.5. Nonetheless, some of the regional books are exceptional. Guide to Korvosa, in particular still ranks as the gold standard, in my view.

For me, the thing that makes or breaks a setting is often the religion/faith aspects of the setting. In that vein, I’d thoroughly recommend Inner Sea Gods which provides lots of information on the various pantheons.

[OmniMage]

I figured that the inner sea world guide was important. However, I couldn't find it. After much searching, I found the file. Apparently I should have been searching for *the* inner sea world guide. All is good now.

As for the tips I got, thanks for the help.

[Bellona]

It also depends upon whether or not you are approaching this from the GM or regular player perspective. For those who are not planning on being the GM, I suggest the Inner Sea Primer. It gives a half-column summary of the various nations/states in the Inner Sea region.

ETA:

And it's basically spoiler-free.

One thing though: at least one of the archetypes at the back has been officially changed. The correct version of the Aldori Swordlord archetype (re-named to Aldori Defender) is now in the Adventurer's Guide, not the IS Primer.

[Steve Geddes]

Yeah, I was going to link that too. It’s an excellent player handout, imo.