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penbed400
2010-10-10, 05:21 PM
So after playing D&D 3.0/3.5 for the past 8 years or so I might be playing a Pathfinder game tonight. I've looked up the rules a bit online at the Pathfinder srd and the changes seem minor but I thought I would ask the playground if there was anything else that I should know.

It doesn't seem very different but are there any subtle things that affect game play?

How is the balance compared to 3.5?

etc. Feel free to share your own experiences with the system as they might help as well. Thanks ahead of time for any responses.

Sillycomic
2010-10-10, 05:47 PM
All of the super complicated grappling, disarming type of stuff is simplified. That's good.

The skills are simplified... and awesome. You don't get penalized for taking ranks in cross class skills.

All of the core classes are now super charged and awesome. No dead levels and tons of fun stuff to do with each new class.

Balance? There is more balance than 3.5, but casters are still better than non casters. It's harder to find broken spells, but you can still super cheese a wizard if you really feel up to it. But, so long as you don't intend to break the game, you'll be fine.

I personally like pathfinder. It's easy, and fun, and since there's more class features for all classes, there's always something cool to do.

If you have a decent GM, you will have a great time playing.

Snake-Aes
2010-10-10, 05:56 PM
Hmm...
All maneuvers are based off cmb/cmd. I didn't find it particularly easier, but it is faster to use since it has less rolls and you only need to differentiate maneuvers when you specialize in them. To me that's a plus.
On the subtle side? Well...tumbling around enemies is harder (instead of dc 15, it's the enemy's CMD, which will always be higher than 15 if the enemy has more than 5 points spread over str, dex and bab).
Also, when using core spells, make sure there isn't any significant difference (Divine Power is significantly weaker, grease has a clause to avoid having to balance, force cages can be broken)
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Halfway into a campaign(about a year) my Long group converted to PF and it was some work since it was gestalt and about half of the classes weren't core. We had a blast. Power wise little changed, but we had many, many more options available to pull stunts. My character discovered she could sing well all along :p, leading our already dance-ish bard + dervish duo to become a full band, and stat allocation was more permissive with the condensed/extra skill points.
That campaign finished by June, and we started another on the same world with a different setup. We adapted more classes in and so far it's being a blast too.

Saph
2010-10-10, 06:13 PM
I wrote a 3.5 -> Pathfinder guide a while back. Check here (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=136890) for the full text, it should cover what you're looking for.