Pathfinder 1E I get the feeling Paizo isn't worried about Wizards of the Coast.

[DEFCON 1]

Must.....spread....xp.....

You did miss the ugly 1E to 2E transition though.

That's cause EN World hadn't started yet.

 

[Scrivener of Doom]

I think the stronger point is that the D&D brand is so strong that it can easily survive six months of RPG hibernation.

But hibernation isn't even the right word anyway. The 4E products are still on the shelves. People are still playing the game and occasionally buying the game. Just because there isn't a "new shiny" on the shelf the next time a player walks into the Barnes & Noble games section doesn't mean the game is dead. And for a great many players... if there isn't a brand-new "Draconomicon 2" on the shelf in March, maybe one of those other six or seven 4E books they haven't bought yet will be an adequate replacement purchase.

I chose hibernation because it means to sleep for a season and then wake up again. And you could look at the products on the shelves as the extra body fat to sustain the hibernation.

See, it's the right word.

 

[ren1999]

I think Paizo should be worried. I continue to test Pathfinder and there are some real mechanical problems with the game including bloat. The rulebooks are too thick full of similar spells and feats.

Pathfinder Module Adventures are beautiful, but game play combat takes too long.

5th Edition is looking very streamlined and it feels as fun and fast as earlier editions of D&D.

So why have I changed my mind? The addition of the Reaction and a few Multiple Actions is really going to add a new layer of fun to 5E. And monsters die faster but are still threats.

In summary, 5E's game mechanics are superior to Pathfinder's. I did not always say this before. I'm saying it now.

Paizo shouldn't worry if WOTC doesn't put out high quality adventures that look as nice as Paizo's.

I have always correctly predicted the success or failure of software and gadgets in the past.

If WOTC has a similar subscriber system to Paizo's, it will be a winner too.

Paizo and WOTC could work together.

kira3696.tripod.com <-- My 5E Game Tracker

 

[DEFCON 1]

I chose hibernation because it means to sleep for a season and then wake up again. And you could look at the products on the shelves as the extra body fat to sustain the hibernation.

See, it's the right word.

I'll accept it.

 

[Nikosandros]

That's cause EN World hadn't started yet.

At the time of the 1e - 2e transition I had no Internet (or BBS) access, I didn't read Dragon; I was completely disconnected from what was happening in the RPG "scene".

I still remember wondering why Gygax wasn't listed as an author in the 2e PHB...

 

[Matthew Ashburn]

I don't know what it is, but I get the feeling that Wizards of the Coast are worried about Paizo and Pathfinder, but Paizo isn't worried about Wizards of the Coast. I've never really gotten the impression that Paizo is trying to pull customers away from D&D over to Pathfinder. It's like the company is so comfortable in their own skin that they just continue forward without a care in the world what Wizards does.

Now I could be wrong entirely, but that is the impression I am under.

I thought i was the only one who felt this way. for a while after our group switched to pathfinder,i actually felt guilty . but the fact of the matter is Paizo just does it better,and they know it. if WOTC steps their game up, I'm sure Paizo will become a little more concerned.

 

[pming]

Hiya.

Paizo doesn't have to worry unless WotC starts to focus on putting out good, solid, entertaining non-rules-based stuff (re: modules, adventure paths, campaign worlds, campaign stuff, etc.), and leaves the rules-stuff for a once or maybe twice a year thing. IMHO, this is one of the main reasons people stick with Pathfinder; not because it is a "great system" (I don't think it is at all, really), but because it is supported with a LOT of "stuff to actually PLAY a 5 hour PF session".

Alas, I don't think WotC has it in them to start producing actual, decent, fun adventures. Thus...Paizo has nothing to worry about.

^_^

Paul L. Ming

 

[DaveMage]

In summary, 5E's game mechanics are superior to Pathfinder's.

And, you can dance to them.

 

[Mistwell]

Hiya.

Paizo doesn't have to worry unless WotC starts to focus on putting out good, solid, entertaining non-rules-based stuff (re: modules, adventure paths, campaign worlds, campaign stuff, etc.), and leaves the rules-stuff for a once or maybe twice a year thing. IMHO, this is one of the main reasons people stick with Pathfinder; not because it is a "great system" (I don't think it is at all, really), but because it is supported with a LOT of "stuff to actually PLAY a 5 hour PF session".

Alas, I don't think WotC has it in them to start producing actual, decent, fun adventures. Thus...Paizo has nothing to worry about.

^_^

Paul L. Ming

I keep hearing claims like this, as if it's 2011 still.

Things have changed with Pathfinder. Did nobody notice that the current Adventure Path references:

Advanced Player’s Guide
Bestiary
Bestiary 2
Bestiary 3
GameMastery Guide
Lords of Chaos, Book of the Damned, Vol. 2
NPC Codex
Paths of Prestige
Ultimate Combat
Ultimate Equipment
Ultimate Magic
Mythic Rules

In addition to the Core rules.

That's not once or twice a year anymore guys. And that is stuff actually directly referenced in the AP! As Morrus recently said, it feels to him like the number of announcements of new products from Paizo for Pathfinder is approach 2e TSR days at the peak of their product churn.

I sense this is like that boiling frog parable. That people don't realize just how much rules bloat has occurred with Pathfinder because it happened slowly relative to the even greater WOTC rules bloat at the time. But damn, compare that to a new edition, and the mass of rules bloat from Pathfinder will be a pretty stark contrast.

 

[MerricB]

That's not once or twice a year anymore guys. And that is stuff actually directly referenced in the AP! As Morrus recently said, it feels to him like the number of announcements of new products from Paizo for Pathfinder is approach 2e TSR days at the peak of their product churn.

It's not quite at that level, but there is a fair amount of product put out each year from Paizo - even more if you count the Pathfinder Society adventure downloads. (At its peak, TSR had an insane amount of product per month).

Paizo have actually cut back a small amount by basically stopping their non-Adventure Path adventures. But their Player Guide and Campaign books roll on...

Cheers!