After a long hiatus....

[Undead Pete]

I've finally returned to gaming after an involuntary absence of nearly 2 years. Occasionally I would crack open my books, but life would always get in the way (namely marriage and a new baby).

I'm back DMing a mid-level run with coworkers on a biweekly basis, and I'm not sure whether I want to invest in 3.5 to replace my 3rd Edition books. Is there that much of a change from 3.0?? Is it worth the $90+ for the 3 core rulebooks? Do I need all 3? Or is one less necessary to change.

I'm considering submitting ideas to various places, and I assume I would need 3.5 for that, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

So, I'm basically asking for honest opinions on 3.5.

 

[Shallown]

It think its a better than 3.0 but am not a diehard defender. 3.0 Works well enough.

Somewhere there is a conversion document that list all the changes and Wizards has a document that updates some of the other books as well.

It depends on how important it is to you. If your doing it casually then I wouldn't worry about it honestly.

If you are actually serious about writing and submitting then I would go ahead and get 3.5 just to save trying to forget and relearn new rules that are similiar but different.

Me I'm a systems junkie so I got it but since I quit running and am only playing the only t hings I have gotten are the complete series since the GM is running Core with the complete books only which gives plenty of choice.

Later

 

[Undead Pete]

Thanks, I think I'm gonna lurk on eBay and try to get a bargain on the 3.5 books. Occasionally someone posts an auction that is poorly worded and gets minimal views, allowing cheap bastards like me to save oodles of cash

 

[Plane Sailing]

Why not download the SRD and read through it? That will give you an excellent idea about key changes.

 

[Yair]

PlaneSailing is right, but there are several changes you won't really spot in the SRD, and others that will be hard to spot.
Essentially I think it depends on your budget. 3.5e is a bit better than 3E, IMHO, but it isn't a huge improvement. Either way I prefer to work with books rather than the SRD in printed form (in-game; preperation is another story).

 

[jaerdaph]

You can also check out the D&D v.3.5 Accessory Update Booklet from WotC:

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/20030718a