[d20] Limit class/race choices via point buy method

[Alzrius]

I just remembered : 6 CP is fine and dandy for further leveling, but how do I tell which classes/races are more powerful than others? We're not likely to get beyond lvl 15, where most d20 stuff breaks down still.

Looking at their CP expenditures is the most direct way to make a comparison. Here are pages for the basic 3.5 races and their Pathfinder counterparts.

Likewise, Eclipse has abbreviated breakdowns of the 3.5 classes, but you can find level-by-level breakdowns for the 3.5 classes in a six-part series: barbarian, bard, and cleric, druid, fighter, and sorcerer, paladin and ranger, rogue and wizard, psion and psychic warrior, and monk. The Pathfinder versions of the classes are all linked at the top of the article about the Pathfinder races (and there's an article on the 3.5 and third-party Pathfinder versions of the soul knife too).

Of course, just looking at how many points they spend isn't quite enough. You'll also want to note the use of things that grant various amounts of additional CPs, such as the use of duties (the cleric and other divine spellcasters use this), disadvantages, corruption and specialization, etc. The key here is how much the GM actually enforces these drawbacks in play. If someone takes a duty or a disadvantage that's social - rather than mechanical - in nature, and then doesn't bring it up in the course of the game, they're essentially getting free CPs. Hence why the GM needs to be sure to play up these things (without going overboard about it).