Some book questions

[Sebastian1992]

Hey guys, I'm a college kid on a budget and was wondering what books were worth my money. I've got the core book, but that's it. Specifically, I've been looking into the APG, DM screen, DM guide and either the Bestiary 1 or 2. Any input on these would be great.

What I'm really interested in is the bestiaries. Which one is 'better'? Do they have different types of monsters, or are they about even?

Thanks all.

 

[maeljw]

Currently I have the Core game and bestiary 1, and did purchase the PDF for the Hells in pathfinder (forgot the title) and original Golarion campaign setting.

If you don't want to completely setup your own campaign setting Golarion is pretty good. Has a great "Greyhawk" or "Forgotten Realms Grey Box" kind of feel. Enough info to start a ton of plots and a ton of land to explore, but not every square inch having been trod upon by epic characters so that you have to think "can I put this here" constantly. I think the PDF was 15 bucks, not too bad, and I believe a new hardcover is coming in March.

 

[Wicht]

If you are planning on running a game the Bestiary is a must. If you are just planning on being a player, I would go for the APG first.

Of the two Bestiaries I would buy the first one first as it has the most commonly encountered monsters.

My general recomendation would be to buy them in this order as you have the money:
Bestiary
Advanced Players Guide
Gamemastery Guide or Bestiary 2 depending on your preference

The GM's screen is fantastic but if you are on a budget its not really necessary.

 

[coyote6]

If you are GMing, I'd go with the Bestiary first. If you are just playing, I'd go APG. I'd get Bestiary 2 before the GMG, especially if you have access to a previous edition's DMG or are using modules for adventures.

If you can deal with PDFs, the PDFs of the hardcover books are $10 each, so you could get a couple of PDFs instead of one of the hardcovers.

 

[Volaran]

For a lot of the GM information (Core rules, GMG, APG, and Bestiary 1) you can make due with the PRD provided by Paizo, but I would recommend the option of using the PDFs if possible, as they have produced a number of good books (and the Bestiary 2 is nor currently in the PRD). This assumes you have a laptop or other device to use to reference them while GMing.

If you do pick up hardcovers, I would suggest the Core Rules, and possibly the APG, as these books are useful to have physically at the table for player reference.

 

[Crothian]

Honestly, if you are on a tight budget I'd buy nothing more and just use the Pathfinder OGL web site. You can print out whatever you need especially if the college you are at has a good student printing policy.

 

[Tovec]

Core is a must.
Everything else is optional but I vastly prefer Bestiary 2 to Bestiary 1 for some reason. I REALLY enjoy the premade NPCs in the GMG but otherwise I haven't found its all that useful. APG seems an obvious choice if you want more options to add beyond the Core. I haven't used the APG much myself but my players are constantly bringing in characters with variants from it.

 

[Wicht]

I REALLY enjoy the premade NPCs in the GMG but otherwise I haven't found its all that useful.

The GMG has a lot of hidden gems.

The haunt rules being fully codified are a nice little bonus and my friend T.H. Gulliver has already used them in a product. I have likewise incorporated them into my own work(Kaidan - see sig).

The town-city rules are also very good and I have also adopted them whole-heartedly.

But these, and other little things like them, are only useful if you are actively creating as a DM or writer. The value added by the APG is more broadly applicable and more likely to be appreciated in any given game.

 

[JohnnFour]

I highly recommend making your own GM screen.

* Saves money
* Helps you learn the rules
* It becomes what you need it to be (combat help? skills? common feats? spell hints?)
* You can include campaign info


Ideas:

* Use a binder instead - print/replace new stuff at will
* Tape cardboard box pieces together; glue on screen info cut from print-outs
* Use cardboard with plastic sleeves glued
* Steal a restaurant menu (kidding!)

 

[Aus_Snow]

If you are planning on running a game the Bestiary is a must. If you are just planning on being a player, I would go for the APG first.

I would make a very similar suggestion... with one caveat: *only* bother buying "splats" (like the APG, f'rex) as a player, *if* the GM either has the same book and is allowing stuff from it, or is at least planning to get it, and allow stuff from it. Otherwise, it'd be dead weight - throwing money away.

As for the Bestiary, I don't know much about the second one yet, but the first is a must, if you're GMing. It's also just really well done. As impressive as the core book, I would say.