Non-PF feats in PF

[Blastin]

So we have been playing in a PF game now for about a month. So far I find I like a fair amount of the changes they have made in the system. We are still low level (Just made 5th), so I don't know if it fixes my issues with high level play yet though.
My question for the folks who have been playing/running PF for a while now: Do you allow feats from the 3.5 WOTC books? If you have, how has that worked out?
In leveling my character and looking at 3.5 feats, I see some that plain won't work with PF. I have also seen some that would work with some tweaks, and some that seem fine. Just wondering what others with more experience with the system have found.

 

[jreyst]

In general, if I were running, I would restrict to Pathfinder core feats only.

While many of the 3.5 feats might be fine, many would require extensive reworking. If the DM is up to the task of rewording the feats so that they adhere to general PF structure and rules and makes a point to try to see that they don't allow crazy combinations, many might be fine.

 

[Doc Eldritch]

As part of my "houserules" setup for a game, I am slowing going through some of my 3.5 books and looking for feats that have the right fit to me. I am mostly looking for flavor type feats and feats that do things you can not do in game right now, but that I want available. In all, I don't expect to add a ton of feats (many were just crazy overpowered in 3.5 and I banned them from games in the first place), but there are some metamagic feats I always thought were neat, as well as a few others.

Same thing with prestige classes, slowly going through the lists and adding in just a few. Again, mostly ones that have a focus, to try to keep to the original vision of Prestige Classes, much as Pathfinder seems to have done so far. I am also trying to balance them to have a somewhat equal number available for each class

 

[Gorbacz]

I allow all the feats from PHB2 (some really great ones there, such as Bounding Assualt or Robilar's Gambit).

 

[DaveMage]

I'd be interested in hearing what 3.5 feats you think DON'T work with Pathfinder.

I would hope the list would be small...

 

[Blastin]

well....the one's that pop up immediatly: ones replaced with new versions in PF and those that modify class abilities that have changed in PF.

 

[Erekose]

I'd be interested in hearing what 3.5 feats you think DON'T work with Pathfinder.

I would hope the list would be small...

Same here - I thought compatibility was one of the design goals??? (Although feats weren't specifically mentioned . . .)

 

[Remathilis]

I'd be interested in hearing what 3.5 feats you think DON'T work with Pathfinder.

I would hope the list would be small...

Well, as a DM who does allow 3.5 era feats in PF, I can name a few off the top of my head...

* All Sorcerer-Heritage Feats (superseded by bloodlines).
* All Divine Feats (Divine Metamagic, Empowered Turning)
* Disciple of the Sun
* Melee/Ranged Weapon Mastery (superseded by Fighter Weapon Training)
* Some Wild Feats (esp those that rely on a specific form).
* Improved Toughness (superseded by Toughness).

That's my short list, and that's just the few I can think of off the top of my head. Most of those feats either referenced changed mechanics OR are replaced by better class features that I don't want to stack.

 

[Doc Eldritch]

Remathilis has an excellent list there, even if personally I don't have too much of an issue with the Melee/Ranged Weapon Mastery ones.

The problem with the feats (and prestige classes) was that 3.5 suffered from a LOT of bloat. There were just tons and tons of them, and many were...unbalanced, to be nice.

Pathfinder seems to have reigned that in quite a bit, and I am loathe to unbalance it more. That said, in writing up my game stuff, I went through all the Complete books, the PHB2, and a few other books, and compiled a list of something like 75 feats I plan to allow, once I have gone through and "Pathfinder-ized" them. Oddly, many of the feats I snagged from Complete Fighter and PHB2 were the least "offensive" in terms of being unbalanced and what might need changing. Some I could put in as is, and probably never notice a thing.
Same with prestige classes, though that was a MUCH smaller list (something like 16 PrCs), and aimed mainly at filling in some "holes" in the base PrC list and some flavor things. I'll probably add more homebrew ones, that fit a specific campaign world (like Knightly orders, unusual mages, that kinda thing). I also tend to be a fan of the 5 level prestige class, as opposed to the 10 level ones. Something that adds a bit of zing to a class, but is not a new focus.

 

[pawsplay]

Same here - I thought compatibility was one of the design goals??? (Although feats weren't specifically mentioned . . .)

Compatibility is not the same as substitution. You can drop a Pathfinder character into a 3.5 module, but that doesn't mean you can use ALL the rules of both systems at the same time. 3.0 and 3.5 are of course highly compatible, but some of the stuff doesn't work together.

Most of the metamagic feats still work, although some of them were never my favorites in the first place. Still, Transdimensional Spell and Consecrated Spell work the same they always have.

A lot of feats have been replaced by Pathfinder equivalents... Vital Strike replaces all the "wind up" type feats, Lunge replaces a number of options for gaining reach, grappling has been expanded, and so forth.

Skill feats require the most work. Obviously, the correct skill needs to be identified, but in some cases, there are other issues, such as the changes in how some checks are worked, or some balance issues with the Pathfinder skill covering more ground.

I was looking at the 3pp Love & War book, a great book, but honestly, many of those feats, fairly specialized but solid enough under 3.5, fell behind stuff in the PHBII and really are hardly worth taking in Pathfinder. To be really useful, they need to be redesigned along the same lines, but with enough punch to be competitive with the Pathfinder core options. For the most part, Pathfinder feats are designed to be about equally effective, whereas 3.5 feats have historically varied widely in utility.