I'm converting my current D&D game from 3.5 to Pathfinder, so I wanted to buy myself a copy of the rulebook rather than mooching off my friend's. Naturally, in the game store, I also had to buy the Bestiary and Bestiary 2. I forgot how expensive gaming books are when you buy them new and not at the used bookstore. Jeez.I read through this book, skimming some parts I knew well, and reading others more closely. It's very well-written, more accessible, I think, than D&D is. Many of the rules are ex...

The book that got me interested in gaming again. I gave up after D&D 3.5 became an unmanageable mess of splatbooks and my interest in the industry faltered for a few years until I happened upon a review of this here mighty tome. After checking out the free pdf version online I ordered a hardcopy and instantly fell in love. It reminds me of the 90s, when game designers churned out books because they loved gaming, not because it was making them a ton of money (I'm looking at you WOTC!).You can tel...

This really is everything a beginning player would need to create a character or even DM their first pathfinder game.That said, it's based of the 3.5 version of Dungeons and Dragons so this is slightly complicated but this book breaks down everything nicely if you have a mind for gaming, or just enough patience to work it through. Though I will fault this book for placing some of the information in bizarre places (not in the chapter or place where one would expect) and I've had to use the index

Pathfinder is essentially a fork of Dungeons & Dragons (at version 3.5), and as forks go, it doesn't diverge all that much. In fact, you might consider it a parallel universe.Pathfinder retains the epic scope of D&D, it keeps the same tone, and the same general feel. It's a classic RPG system, with all the basic rules and intricate subtleties of a fully-developed system. Pathfinder has, impressively, managed to build up a rich and diverse lore for its world. You have to look for it a little hard...

Well organized, nice pictures.

And so, I have finally buckled down and read this weighty tome, which has become one of the standard-bearers of the modern role-playing game hobby and industry. I have nibbled at the edges of d20 rules systems for a few years now, but I decided to just dive in and read Pathfinder because I figured even if it's not my kind of game, knowing why that is will be good for me. Plus, I love Pathfinder books; they are beautiful pinnacles of production.The Pathfinder rules are fairly simple at their core...

It's a game rulebook! It's a massive weight and exercise tool! It's both! In all due seriousness, Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook is now ensconced on my permanant shelves of game books to refer to often. A very very well done expansion of the OGL D20 licence, Pathfinder further refines and updates the rules in many good ways. Whether you're new to fantasy role-playing or an old gaming dinosaur like myself (playing since 1982), there's much to love and enjoy about Pathfinder. Give it a look, regardl...

Pathfinder feels like the game Mousetrap. You spend way too long setting up complicated machinery that falls apart when you land on the wrong square.I have also read the 2nd edition rules, and have the same opinion about them.Why do I keep reading Pathfinder books if I don't like them? I honestly cannot answer that question. A complete lack of self-control and selective memory is the best answer I can provide. Hopefully, this is the last time.

The system is great, but at least for my play style not ideal. Combat can really take a long time if you use all the rules. It also isn't as engaging because you tend to focus on the rules the whole time rather than having a cinematic battle described. Some may enjoy this, but if I had to choose I would go with a system that had more engaging combat that can resolve faster. Or, simply go with a more fuzzy resolution of the rules and leave the battle grid at home.There less balance issues than D&...

The shadowy masterminds of the internet have been touting this as D&D 3.75, and truly, that is dead on. Front to back, it's everything from the PHB and DMG, but with a ton of clarifications and re-organizations. Also, all the races and classes have been buffed like they were working with a personal trainer three days a week.But hey, it works.NERD.

What I really like about the Pathfinder CRB is that almost everything you need to run your campaign can be found inside this book. Unlike the DnD-verse, in which you really need the PHB, DM Guide, and the Monster Manual in order to truly run a campaign, with Pathfinder you only need the CRB, mostly if you're just starting out as a GM. Lots of good materials inside.

While I greatly enjoy playing D&D 3.5, Pathfinder is a bit more enjoyable. The rules, skills, HP and feats are vastly easier to calculate/track than 3.5. The classes seem to be a bit more powerful as well. Only a few sessions in so we'll see how it goes but I like it so far. I don't feel as lost in leveling my character as with 3.5 and that makes me very happy :-)

This is what 4th edition should have been. Awesome job on making the game we love that much bettr.

(Please see my review for the Dungeons & Dragons Player's Handbook, v3.5 before proceeding here.)I'm very pleased that Jason Bulmahn and his colleagues had the sense to keep the D&D 3.5 rules active, and that they have continued to evolve the rules allowing them grow. Nothing against D&D 4th edition; it's a fine game, and if it's the game you prefer: more power to you. If you read my review of the D&D Player's Handbook, v3.5, you know my feelings on the matter -- I don't care what version you pl...

Basic Premise: Rules for Pathfinder, a roleplaying game that adapts (and improves upon) the open source d20 rules developed for Dungeons and Dragons 3.5.I waited for this book for a looooong time. This was probably the closest I've come to reading an RPG book from cover to cover since I last read a brand-new system and had to run it. That said, i didn't actually read it fully from cover to cover. Some parts I read very closely, others I skimmed.For those who are interested in playing the game, u...

Just finished a 2nd read through of this. I know I will probably catch flack for this as Pathfinder is hugely popular, but to me this isn't the best book. To me it's written for people who already played or play 3.5 D&D. It doesn't do a good job of introducing the game or the game concepts and contains a hugely crunch rules vs. fluff balance. There is actually nothing in here about the game world. Nothing that tells me what kind of stories I can tell with this. Nothing that really tells me "what...

Judging by the core rulebook, Pathfinder seems like a fairly good system, even if it has a few faults. It's basically a revised and improved version of D&D 3.5, with all the complexity that implies. There are some good things done to make the rules simpler or better. Classes have more features and options: paladins can chose between a magic war horse and the ability to customize their weapon with magic powers, sorcerers have bloodlines that define some of their special abilities, and so on. Also...

This book is what 3.5 should have been. In retrospect 3.5 was where D&D started to go downhill. I suspect that this is when corporate types that had no understanding of role-playing started making core decisions and started alienating their fan base, 3.5 did not really revisit 3rd edition, but instead made a few tweaks to the game that were nor really better or worse, but caused people to have rebuy the books or to work with two slightly different systems. In contrast Pathfinder revisited the ru...

As the spiritual successor to the original Dungeons and Dragons and as the gameplay successor to edition 3.5 of the same, this game does an excellent job ironing out the wrinkles of the latter without departing too much from the former. Though it seems like a hefty tome to read, the actual mechanics are a fraction of book which is devoted mostly to reference lists involving magic and some player character development. The rules themselves are minimal, and even better, definition of many specific...

Well, I had absolutely no idea this kind of book was on Goodreads, but seeing as it's been my role-playing bible for the last 2 years, I might as well review it!Pathfinder is undoubtedly one of the most intricate RPGs, especially where character creation is concerned. Even with the Core Rulebook, the amount of variety that can be accomplished using only the core classes/races is astonishing. There are rules that cover every kind of situation, but with enough flexibility to allow you to improvise...