Can't find a used PHB v.3.5 for under $45 USD

[Mark]

That's kind of like my situation. Even though I bought a lot of 3.5 books, our group never updated our core books. (Indeed, at the time, we kind of resented doing so.)

Nevertheless, our group wants to update to 3.5 now. I've bought the DMG and MM for reasonable prices but the PHB is hard to find cheap. And it doesn't help the situation that I need to buy multiple copies!

PM Ktulu and the other people who have made kind offers in this thread. Find out how much each of them will charge to unload their PHs and the shipping charges to your location. Be sure to post to this thread with the results since there are probably other people in your situation who would love to pick up any additional PHs you do not want.

 

[aboyd]

I have the opposite experience here in California. Almost nothing but 4th Edition games.

The thing is, we can verify your statement by looking at which games actually get run at California meetups and such. For example, here is last week's meetup for Silicon Valley (San Jose, Fremont):

GAME DAY 2009 - The Bay Area Dungeon's & Dragons Meetup Group (Fremont, CA) - Meetup.com

First session? D&D 3.5 or Shadowrun. Second session? D&D 3.5 or 4.0.

I'm sure "nothing but 4th edition" exists somewhere, but not in my part of California.

EDIT: I just checked EnWorld's "Gamers Seeking Gamers" forum. In 2009 there have been 7 or 8 posts about California games. More posts are about 3.5/2nd/Pathfinder than about 4th Edition.

 

[Knightfall]

Weird, a little to the south here, I can't even give my books away. My bro went up there for the weekend, I should have sent them up there with him to take to Whyte Knight.

You could just send them to me. Heh.

 

[dogoftheunderworld]

I had the same problem trying to pick up a copy of Spell Compendium. Obviously smaller print run than PHB, but still, I couldn't find a used copy for retail price or less. I ended up buying the [official] .pdf.

(FWIW, I didn't pick it up when it came out becuase my gaming options were dwindling... now things have picked back up...)

 

[w_earle_wheeler]

Right after Christmas there were more 4e books for sale at my local used bookstores than 3.5 books! Now the balance has shifted back to mostly 3.5 stuff, however.

 

[Ourph]

EDIT: I just checked EnWorld's "Gamers Seeking Gamers" forum. In 2009 there have been 7 or 8 posts about California games. More posts are about 3.5/2nd/Pathfinder than about 4th Edition.

It sounds like 3.5/Pathfinder players are having problems finding games in their area.

 

[MichaelSomething]

Funny, my FLGS has a pratically complete collection of 3.5 WOTC books just waiting to be unloaded. There're even 20% off! Yet it seems that no one has jumped on those books yet.

 

[kitsune9]

I'm still on 3.0 books but wanted to update to 3.5 (yes, I'm a bit slow). What shocks me, however, is the insane prices sellers want. There must be millions of these books out there but I can't find one cheaper than $45 USD.

Also, the bidding on eBay for these tomes is fierce. I saw a mint condition one sell for $60 USD!

I've been through every edition of AD&D and never seen a phenomenom of this sort. Such a common book, by rights, should drop in value, not increase now that 4th edition is out.

I think if you search around, you'll find 3.5 in the bargain bin. Have you gone to your game store and checked their used RPG games section?

 

[Cergorach]

Distributors can still buy some of the 3.5E books from WotC. As a matter of fact, it seems that WotC is starting to dump their remaining 3.5E stock at a discount (to distributors). The selection is limited, and doesn't include the 3 core books, except in collectors edition. I expect that prices will drop on certain products (that are still orderable from WotC) while prices will rice for products that are OOP. After the current stock is gone prices will rice even further.

Mongoose used to make a relatively cheap pocket PHB, but it seems that they aren't selling any 3.5E material anymore since they started selling 4E. Maybe someone will see a hole in the market and start producing a 3.5E PHB, without the D&D logo on it ;-)

As for new 3.5E D&D players, it happens, I recently sold and spoke to someone who is relatively new to the game, but likes 3.5E better then 4E and is now collecting all the 3.0E and 3.5E books. Which of course spurred my own collectors spirit into overdrive, I just purchased ~60 3.5E books and need another ~40 to complete my collection... I stopped buying them a few years ago because I didn't have any room to put them, I moved last year and now have room for them.

 

[Kichwas]

I suspect that WoTC may have a better intuitive handle on what West Coast US gamers like than they do on gamers worldwide, or in the US heartlands. So I'm not surprised if 4e is doing well in California or Seattle.

Cali's a big state, with a diverse set of opinions.

Now which part of Cali are ya'll talking about?

Personally... all I know is 4E is about the point where my gaming group died. Multiple reasons for that, and a disagreement over system choice was only one of them.