D&D 3E/3.5 New to gaming - Should I wait for 4E or should buy the 3E Core Rules?

[Kida]

As the title says, I am very new to gaming. My cousin raves about 3E, but has also told me of the impending 4E release next June. I'm not sure what to do. Please help.

 

[Nadaka]

Are you planning to start gaming right away? if so 3.5e might be the better choice.
However, no one really knows what 4e will be like.
And even if we did, our personal preferences may differ from your own.

You can likely "make due" with just a PHB or the System Reference Document http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=d20/article/srd35 until june comes around.

Then is likely the best time to make the decision because you will be able to look through both PHB's and decide for yourself.

If you decide to stay with 3.5, the books will likely be on sale for less than prior to the release of 4e.

If you go with 4e, you won't really have lost anything either.

 

[Kida]

Oh, I didn't even know about the SRD. Thanks for that.

 

[delericho]

See if you can get a really cheap copy of the 3.5e core rules. You've got seven and a bit months to get your money's worth out of them, which should be plenty. Certainly, I wouldn't pay full price at the present time.

 

[Snapdragyn]

Yeah, I'd make do with the SRD until 4e comes out. I came into 3.x just ahead of 3.5 release, so I just muddled through until it came out rather than buy the old books.

I'd recommend the hypertext SRD for ease of online use - just google D&D 3.5 & it'll be the 3rd or 4th hit.

 

[Kida]

Looks like there are plenty of options in the SRD.

Psionics, eh? Never understood how that fit into fantasy.

 

[DaveMage]

As the title says, I am very new to gaming. My cousin raves about 3E, but has also told me of the impending 4E release next June. I'm not sure what to do. Please help.

From what I've read about 4E, you might want to go that route as a new gamer.

 

[Michael Silverbane]

Psionics, eh? Never understood how that fit into fantasy.

Like magic!

Later
silver

 

[Kida]

Like magic!

Later
silver

I seem to think that exerting a power mentally is different than maipulating arcane energies to produce a desired effect.

 

[Delta]

The hypetext SRD I always turn to: http://www.d20srd.org/

Note that there's no XP rewards or advancement chart in the SRD (which WOTC keeps as an incentive to buy the core rules).