Greetings!
Well, the whole facings rule isn't really relevant in my campaigns, because just about all of my players hate using minieatures in the game--they prefer that I just describe the scene as it is, and draw a quick map if necessary.
School Specialization: well, again, most of my players that play wizards play generalist mages, so this doesn't seem to have much of an impact. I'll have to review it more though. I don't really have much of a problem with the school specialization rules as they stand.
The others: I'll have to wait and see on them before making any judgments.
Pokemon Paladin: Eh. I have mixed feelings about this. Is it cool for one or a few paladins to have this ability? I think that might be really cool, but only in that context. I have used magic items that allow the same; but it isn't there for every paladin. I think providing this for every paladin is kinda dumb. As has been mentioned by Psion, not *every* class ability has to be *that* useful. In fact, some of the most dramatic moments in play have been where a paladin has seen his companion mount die heroically in battle. Being able to just whip up a new mount the next day seems kinda cheap to me, and more of a video-game effect.
Semper Fidelis,
SHARK