Pathfinder and 3.5

[AzureKnight]

Just a quick question, how interchangable are the 2 games?

[FinnDarkblade]

It varies from item to item. It's pretty common to port 3.5 stuff into Pathfinder though, as 3.5 is a touch bloated and many feel Pathfinder is in dire need of splattiness. In general though, they are quite compatible.
*edit* Oh, and if you plan on doing a lot of porting then you should definitely download Paizo's conversion guide.

[Psyren]

The major area to keep an eye on is the spells chapter, because a lot of subtle changes were made that drastically alter how some spells work in practice and they are easy to miss. Monster abilities had some heavy yet easy-to-miss alterations as well, such as the abolition of the Giant type, changes to negative levels and regeneration, and of course the CMB/CMD stats.

[Kelb_Panthera]

They're very compatible. Virtually any class or feat can be ported one way or the other as long as you translate the skills properly. I'll defer to psyren's expertise on the spell issue since I'm not familiar with the changes made in that area.

[Corlindale]

Yeah, it's pretty easy to port most stuff into Pathfinder.

Most base classes just need to reflect the various skills that were consolidated (like Hide and Move Silently into Stealth, or Spot, Listen and Search into Perception).

Most PRCs can be converted using the "take skill requirements for the PRC, subtract 3 across the board" principle. There might be some balance concerns, though, as most PRCs are weaker in PF (though most seem to agree that they tend to be 'too' weak in PF, whereas they were too strong in 3.5).

Spells seem to be the main problem area because some were changed quite heavily. For example, any class or PRC that interacts heavily with the 3.5 polymorph rules/spells would need heavy rework to fit into PF (like the Master Transmogrifist, for example).

[supermonkeyjoe]

Going from 3.5 to pathfinder is only a little bit more complex than going from 3.0 to 3.5. In my game I've gone the other way and back-ported a few rules to 3.5, namely the combat manoeuvre system and the new skill list.

[Susano-wo]

I play in a 3.p game (started out in 3.5), and there has been little trouble, though I'm helping the GM (my wife) stat up an NPC and there is a corner case where concentration being a caster level check now screws with Diamond Mind's concentration check maneuvers from ToB. (incidentally, does anyone have a good fix for that? the best I can think of is making it an initiator level check, but then there's getting jacked if you are multiclassing)

[Craft (Cheese)]

I play in a 3.p game (started out in 3.5), and there has been little trouble, though I'm helping the GM (my wife) stat up an NPC and there is a corner case where concentration being a caster level check now screws with Diamond Mind's concentration check maneuvers from ToB. (incidentally, does anyone have a good fix for that? the best I can think of is making it an initiator level check, but then there's getting jacked if you are multiclassing)

One popular solution is to make it keyed off another skill. Personally, I'd use Perception.

[Novawurmson]

One popular solution is to make it keyed off another skill. Personally, I'd use Perception.

I like Autohypnosis and Sense Motive, too.

[FinnDarkblade]

Going from 3.5 to pathfinder is only a little bit more complex than going from 3.0 to 3.5. In my game I've gone the other way and back-ported a few rules to 3.5, namely the combat manoeuvre system and the new skill list.

Do you port over the entire skill system or just the skill list? That few skills with 3.5 class skill points would be a bit ridiculous but if you give the classes PF amounts of skill points then the cross-classing penalties would be murder.

[Susano-wo]

One popular solution is to make it keyed off another skill. Personally, I'd use Perception.

Thats funny--the GM was thinking of doing that with that exact same skill. While I have no problem with the idea, I find making perception, probably the most all around usefull skill (acrobatics for certain characters might come close) even more valuable for diamond minders. (though something like auto-hypnosis might be good--keeps the psychic synergy feel)

[Luciandevine]

I encountered the same problem, and one skill that I found to work well for this is Knowledge (Martial Lore). All 3 of the ToB classes get it, and it actually gives you a reason to put points in it.

[Coidzor]

I encountered the same problem, and one skill that I found to work well for this is Knowledge (Martial Lore). All 3 of the ToB classes get it, and it actually gives you a reason to put points in it.

Makes sense, yeah.