Best 3.0/3.5 Resources

Dissatisfied with 4E, I am planning to 'reboot' my 3.5 D&D campaign. Apart from the (rather expensive) chore of repurchasing the 3.5 core rulebooks, what resources would you recommend that I check out? I already have SORD and it looks really keen. I am looking for books, PDFs, websites, podcasts; anything really that well help make my game better.

In my mind, 3.5 doesn't need a lot of rules supplements. I find that the WoTC stuff alone is overkill and I run with just a subset of that.

Are you creating your own campaign or running a published one? If you want a published one, you have a lot of good choices; I'd read reviews of

1) Ptolus
2) Wilderlands of High Fantasy
3) all of the Paizo adventure paths
4) Rappan Athuk Reloaded
5) Castle Whiterock

And pick whichever one seems to fit your group's style best.

Need more info.

What kind of game do you want to run? (eg. genre, style, etc)

Are you good with buying/using/adapting adventures?

How much total are you willing to spend/looking to get?

And so on.



The more details you provide, the better help the community can be

Well, at least one or two of these sites are probably no-brainers, but you didn't say 'except this, this and this' or whatever, so. . .

The Hypertext d20 SRD (v3.5 d20 System Reference Document) :: d20srd.org (natch)
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/arch/dnd (of course)
d20 NPC Wiki (some good stuff; always needs more)
http://realmshelps.dandello.net/index.shtml (not just useful for the Realms)
http://mikael.borjesson.net/dnd/monster-list.asp (3.5 monsters in MMIV format)
http://www.enworld.org/forum/blogs/shark/ (SHARK is the rock. well, probably not The Rock, but still...)

I'll add more as I think of them. It would also help to know where you stand on WotC supplements (any or all), third party books and PDFs, your own probable house rules, and those of others (of which there are many, many examples online, some of them great).

The Book of Templates and Advanced Bestiary were some of my favorite books while DMing 3.5. They both get big endorsements from me!

Aberzanzorax said:

What kind of game do you want to run? (eg. genre, style, etc)

Are you good with buying/using/adapting adventures?

How much total are you willing to spend/looking to get?

And so on.

The more details you provide, the better help the community can be

Click to expand...

I am running pretty generic fantasy. Mixture of roleplaying and dungeon crawling. My own 'world', but I do sometimes adapt adventures. Price is not a HUGE factor. I picked up the PDF of Castle Whiterock and I plan to probably use pieces of it for sure. I have the Hypertext SRD website backed up to CD. I actually got it before they took down all the images....

I am mainly looking for resources that people consider outstanding or almost indispensable. I will definitely check out the links that Aus Snow provided.

Gotcha, thanks for the clarification.

Ptolus would be my first instinct based on what you said. It has both city and dungeon crawl, tons of material, and is likely the best done 3rd edition product in existence.

Open gaming project has Halls of the Mountain King right now, and if you join up, you can also get Tales of Zobek. Combine those two and you've got both city and a more dungeon crawlish adventure (though halls has waaay too much plot to be considered a pure dungeon crawl).

Other adventures:
Just about anything by Necromancer Games.
Check into the WotC archives and the older free "Dungeon" emags. There were a bunch of great materials there.
The old dungeon and dragon magazines, especially the adventure paths.

Monsters:

Monsternomicon I and II are stellar (even outside of steampunk, though a few monsters would not be usable without a retrofit, they're the best general monster books I own). So are Tome of Horrors 1-III.

Book of fiends by green ronin is great for your lower planar denizens.

Settings:
Arcanis is a setting worth checking out, and has a TON of adventures on their living arcanis page. I don't know if it is "generic" enough for you, but it is rich with ideas.

Leaving out both Adamant products (which are no longer available) and Dragonwing/Bastion products(because I still I haven't seen them despite the good reviews), my list includes:

DM Tools and Alternate Rules

• Unearthed Arcana (WOTC)
• Trailblazer Preview (Bad Axe Games):
• Fewer Absolutes (Sean K Reynolds website): this is a web article
• d20 Status Cards (EN Publishing)
• Advanced Rules for Beginners (EN Publsihing)
• Artificer's Handbook (Mystic Eye Games): Alternate Magic Item Creation Rules
• Book of Iron Might (Malhavoc)
• Experts 3.5 (Skirmisher Press)
• Poisoncraft (Blue Devil): Alternate Poison Rules
• Toolbox (AEG)
• Advanced Bestiary (Green Ronin)* : A big book of monster templates
• Book of Templates, Deluxe Revised (Silverthorne (print version by Goodman Games)* : A big book of Monster templates

* Note: I listed these here as well as in the Monster section below, because these books are such a great tool.

Classes

• Book of Roguish Luck (Malhavoc)
• Cavalier's Handbook (Green Ronin)
• Holy Warrior's Handbook (Green Ronin)/Book of the Righteous (Green Ronin)
• Psychic's Handbook (Green Ronin)
• Shaman's Handbook (Green Ronin)
• Unholy Warrior's Handbook (Green Ronin)
• Witch's Handbook (Green Ronin)
• Mercenaries (AEG)

Cityscape Web Enhancement 1 (WOTC website): Urban Class features

Equipment

• From Stone to Steel (Highmoon/Monkey God): A great equipment book with lists by real world cultures.

Alternate Magic Systems

• Elements of Magic: Revised: Alternate Magic System
• Elements of Magic: Lyceian Arcana: Alternate Magic System

Monster Books

• Advanced Bestiary (Green Ronin)
• Book of Templates, Deluxe Revised (Silverthorne (print version by Goodman Games)
• MM2 (WOTC)
• Fiend Folio (WOTC)
• Fiendish Codex I (WOTC): Unearthed Arcana might be my most usednon-core 3e WOTC book, but this is, imo, the best quality 3e WOTC book in terms of quality from start to finish.
• Lords of Madness (WOTC)
• Book of Fiends (Green Ronin)

Campaign Building (Depending upon the campaign) and Misc.

• Beyond Countess Doorways (Malhavoc)
• Book of the Righteous (Green Ronin)
• Crime and Punishment (Atlas Games)
• Dynasties and Demogogues (Atlas Games
• Frost and Fur (Highmoon/ Monkey God)
• Heroes of Horror (WOTC)
• Ink and Quill (Dragonwing/Bastion Press): I think this is still free.
• Love and War (Atlas Games)</li>
• Magical Medieval Society: Western Europe (Expeditious Retreat)
• New Argonauts (Sean Reynolds): I think this is still free
• Noble Steeds (Avalanche): It's a book about mounts that focuses on horses. Pretty informative if you don't know much about horses. It also provides rules/mechanics for different types of horses and customizing them as well as rules for other mounts.
• Redhurst Academy (Human Head)
• Seafarer's Handbook (Fantasy Flight): if you run aquatic adventures
• Stormwrack (WOTC): if you run aquatic adventures

Free Web Magazines at the EN webstore, RPGNow, and DrivethruRpg

• Asgard (EN Publishing:
  issues 1-7 free
• d20zine (Dragonwing)
• Downloader (OneShelf)
• Dragon Whisper (Layonora)
• Pheonix Lore (Pheonix Lore)
• Poor Gamer's Almanac (Alea): Not all of these are free
• Shadow of the Tower (Mindforge)
• Silven Trumpeter (12 to Midnight): Some of these are not free. You can find more via the Wayback Machine if you do silvenpublishing.com, but only half are still available.

Websites (naturally, these are in additon to ENWorld)
www.wizards.com: article archives, web enhancements, product previews

• WOTC DND 3e Archives
• WOTC Web Enhancement Archives
• Cityscape Web Enhancement 1: Urban Class features (WOTC website) Alternate class features for barbarians, druids, scouts, rangers to make them urban based.
• CItyscape Web Enhancement 2: Urban Magic. New Vestiges and Shadowcaster material
• Cityscape Web Enhancement 3: Urban Tools new equipment.
• Designing Your own Vestige: Part 1
• Desigining Your own Vestige: Part2
• Fiendish Codex I: Aspects A pdf compiling the four web enhancements for Fiendish Codex I.
• Wild Cohort feat (WOTC) :animal companions for anyone

www.greenronin.com

• Advanced Bestiary Web Enhancement: Avian Creatures Template
• Advanced Bestiary Web Enhancement: Chaosborne Template
• Advanced Bestiary Web Enhancement: Drider Template
• Advanced Bestiary Web Enhancement: Eye King Template
• Shaman's Handbook 3.5 update

www.montecook.com: lots of good resources for download and some good threads

www.seankreynolds.com: lots of good resources to download in the RPG section, but not much DND activity on the forums.

• Recharging Item variant
• Forge Ring Variant
• Poison as a Designator
• Continuing Poison Damage.
• Fleshbound Vampire Template Buffy and Blade style vampires. I think this was reprinted in Book of Templates, Deluxe without the rules for staking.

www.andycollins.net: again some good dowloads. If you look through the campaign material, you'll find one of his solutions for running a low magic game. The solution was interesting, but I thought it would have been better to alter the caster spell acquisition and throw in some other goodies.

the websites and RPG stores for many of the companies whose products that I mentioned above also have some free previews and goodies. They are definitely worth checking out to get familiar with their products.

I like a lot of the tweaks from Pathfinder Beta (found free at paizo.com).

I like importing healing surges from 4e.

I like a lot of variants from Unearthed Arcana (found free under variant rules at The Hypertext d20 SRD (v3.5 d20 System Reference Document) :: d20srd.org) particularly spontaneous divine casters and a modified version of recharge magic.

I like a lot of the options from the Trailblazer preview by Bad Axe Games.

Tome of Horrors Revised is a great 3.5 monster book converting tons of the old D&D monsters, great if you want to convert old modules. Tons of other great monster books to choose from.

Spell Compendium is a great spell resource, though you have to watch out for individual spells carefully.

I like Fantastic Science by EN Publishing, it has tech as a third/fourth magic source after arcane/divine/psionics that only works in suppressed magic and sports both a serious point based caster and a warlock style always useable caster class.

I really like the psionics mechanics of psionic focus and soulknife power recharging, so I go with srd/XRP psionics and expansions such as Untapped Potential (et al.) and Hyperconsciousness.

Magic Items: I hear good things about the magic item compendium. I also like Arms and Armor 3.5 and From Stone to Steel, for weapons and armor stuff (both magical and normal).

Campaign Settings: a ton of great options.

Modules: a ton of great options.

Counters: a ton of great options.

Maps: a ton of great options.

Class/Race/Terrain books: ton of great options.

My favorite 3rd Edition resources...

• Ancient Kingdoms: Mesopotamia (Necromancer Games)
• Anger of Angels (Malhavoc Press)
• Beyond Countless Doorways (Malhavoc Press)
• Bluffside: City on the Edge (Thunderhead / Mystic Eye Games)
• City of Brass (boxed set) (Necromancer Games)
• City State of the Invincible Overlord (Judges Guild)
• Classic Monsters Revisted (Paizo Publishing)
• Complete Book of Denizens, the (The Inner Circle) [PDF] -- I'm not sure if you can get this one anymore
• Complete books (WotC) -- the first four
• Creature Collection: Revised (Sword & Sorcery Studios)
• Crime and Punishment (Atlas Games)
• d20 Freeport Companion (Green Ronin) -- plus anything else Freeport related
• Fiendish Codex I & II (WotC)
• Frostburn; Sandstorm; and Stormwrack (WotC)
• Frost & Fur (MonkeyGod / Highmoon Media)
• Lore of the Gods (Bastion Press)
• Minions: Fearsome Foes (Bastion Press)
• Mythic Races (Fantasy Flight Games)
• Pathfinder Chronicles Campaign Setting (Paizo Publishing)
• Portals & Planes (Fantasy Flight Games)
• Requiem for a God (Malhavoc Press)
• Shelzar: City of Sins (Sword & Sorcery Studios)
• Streets of Silver (Living Imagination)
• Tome of Horrors (Revised) and Tome of Horrors II (Necromancer Games)
• Warriors (Skirmisher Press)

Note: The Seafarer's Handbook mentioned previously is from Fantasy Flight Games not Mongoose (with apologies to Greg K for me be anal).