Should I buy the PDFs?


Pathfinder Second Edition General Discussion


Pathfinder Lost Omens, Rulebook Subscriber

I always preferred physical books, but if they're not going to be releasing errata, it might be worth it to just get the PDFs if they are continually updated.


Pathfinder Lost Omens, Rulebook Subscriber

Recently I've been actually planning out my campaigns because online play requires more preparation. I've found having PDFs to pull pictures and rules snippets from has been invaluable.

When we play at the table again, I might not go back to pulling out books to show pictures.


I like the dead tree books for teaching yourself the game (and just reading through). If I need to find a reference to something, it's quicker to find it on AoN than it is to find it in either a book or a PDF anyway.


I printed out the plaguestone PDF because I just found it easier to read from it than a laptop or tablet but the PDF was invaluable when we had to switch to online due to lockdown.


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I only buy books if I don't get a choice to buy it some other way. But that is because the bookshelves in my place are full and I've still got 4 boxes of books in storage. Electronic books are just easier to get and better to search.

For me in Australia, the postage cost is almost as much as the books. Which is stupid as there are plenty of cheaper ways to send parcels. But Paizo has some of the highest international shipping rates for their products.

Dark Archive

In this age of plague and roll20 games, I've found the PDFs particularly useful, because I can just have them open in another window and Ctrl+F to find things quickly.

I played a couple games in an online con and even though I literally had the paper book a foot away from me I never picked it up or opened it, I just used the PDF.


Thomas Keller wrote:
I always preferred physical books, but if they're not going to be releasing errata, it might be worth it to just get the PDFs if they are continually updated.

Well, what are your options?

I recommend buying the PDFs over pirating them.

I recommend buying both the PDFs and the physical books if money isn't an issue. If you're committed to buying the books, the PDFs are a relatively small cost on top of that. If you're committed to buying the PDFs, the physical books are a large investment on top. But both the physical books and PDFs have plusses and minuses.

I recommend printing out the errata and keeping a copy with your physical book over not printing out the errata and forgetting. I recommend keeping the errata separate over marking up your existing physical copy.

I don't recommend setting an expectation that Paizo is going to separately, physically print the errata and somehow deliver a hard copy to everyone who bought the books. That expectation is unlikely to be met.


I've gotten the PDFs for the current edition mainly because at the time it was easier for me to afford them and then just rely on an old iPad for actual reading when I'm not at the computer.

I personally like books better, but they do come with a few large issues for me: cost, durability, and updates. I actually got a Starfinder book when it came out, and now feel just slightly put out about a new printing that I can't just redownload.

Granted, this happened to me with another RPG fifteen years ago (Spycraft), and I got the second book when I could there.

As noted above, errata for print edition users would be hard to actually distribute, so I do understand.


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Pathfinder Lost Omens, Rulebook Subscriber

I think a better choice for me might be to just subscribe to the rulebooks and Lost Omens. I buy all the books anyway, and then I would get the PDFs for free.


Pathfinder Lost Omens, Rulebook Subscriber
Thomas Keller wrote:
I think a better choice for me might be to just subscribe to the rulebooks and Lost Omens. I buy all the books anyway, and then I would get the PDFs for free.

This is what I do, and I am very satisfied with it-- you'll get most things somewhat early this way as well, which my players really love.

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