There's a dozen other RPGs I could have used as well, but Pathfinder is the meme one.
I mean, Pathfinder is literally D&D with a few changes.
this post was submitted on 10 Oct 2026
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Less so in 2e, but yeah.
God I love 2e, I know it isn't as popular as 1e for the hardcore crowd but for actually giving new people who only know DnD something with more substance and interesting character building choice, it is absolutely awesome. I'm also not a big fan of everything stacking like crazy in 1e so there is that.
I'm a PF2e fan who came from PF1e (we do exist!), and one of my favorite parts is that there aren't really any unviable build options, from either a player side or a GM side. Sure, there are combinations that are more optimal than others, but a player's going to be able to have fun and contribute meaningfully with just about any ancestry/class combination. And since the encounter math actually works, pretty much any mathematically-correct combination of monsters a GM throws at a party will probably present the desired challenge.
So, yes! Agreed.
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But the name is pretty dumb. You know what you're getting with D&D. Dungeons, Dragons, probably a fantasy world. Pathfinder is... you go hiking? I have no idea.
It's named after the main adventuring guild in the world, the Pathfinder Society. Which is also the name of Paizo's irl community
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A "Pathfinder" isn't just hiking. It's a person who goes first into the unknown to make the path so others may follow. It's a name for an adventurer/traveler or another way to say "Trailblazer".
To be fair, there’s a lot of people arguing for D&D to be about Dungeons and Dragons. That implies that lots of people play it without neither Dungeons nor Dragons.
You can’t be serious, right?
I am serious. And don't call me Right.
But I've never played Pathfinder so I'm just basing my opinion on the name. I've heard good things about it.
I mean, the three action system alone puts it over DND, imho.
Pathfinder is the sooo good. So much customization!
One time I made spider man. But he could only web swing thrice per day, was weaker than every enemy, and kind of just died randomly due to lack of spidey sense. But he had a wicked 6 paragraph alter-ego mechanic that the goblins appreciated
I’m glad my friend got me into D&D. Definitely daunting at first, but once you start to realize no one is the main character and you can focus on your own story as an individual, the ability to play how you want starts to open up. It’s all about committing to the bit.
That and it takes time. Lots and lots of time.
As a player, I can certainly say that the choices my character makes are not the ones I would.
My character spent an entire session running towards the fight where he knew that there were like fifty people fighting the rest of our team. He was looking for the first opportunity to let loose a fireball to assist his teammates.
I, the player, knew that the team was surviving pretty ok and didn't need me to cast anything. I, the player, knew that up casting fireball at forth level was a terrible idea. I, the player, knew there was only one enemy left with 3hp.
My character on the other hand did 32 damage to this lone zombie and alerted the other 150 enemies further away down the battlefield to our presence.
Now, we had to scramble to come up with a way to get an 8h long rest to heal and get spell slots back even though the army was less than 2 hours away and coming towards us.
Step 1: Pathfinder Step 2: Savage Pathfinder Step 3: Other Savage Worlds games Step 4: Become a proper TTRPG nerd
An annoying part about wanting to break away from D&D is that all the "experimental" games etc. Get away with having fewer rules. I want another system that can be as complex as D&D but with different focuses.
Forged in the dark is a good example of something close to what I like. What it lacks in combat/interaction diversity it definitely makes up for with the gamified secret base you can customize and the various "down time" interactions you can have.
That's why I like GURPS. The core mechanics are simple enough, but there are so many optional mechanics you can get as complex as you like.
See, you want Night Shift: Devil Division. It's based on the Draw Steel engine, so it's about as complex as D&D with great combat rules. But instead of medieval fantasy, it's 90s anime.
https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/slightly-reckless-games/night-shift-devil-division
Or possibly Eclipse Phase
Eclipse Phase mentioned!
Transhumanism is cool. Fuck Elon Musk.
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I'm currently on step 2, running Curse of the Crimson Throne. Not the official conversion though, because I bought the 3.5 version (it actually predates Pathfinder 1e) of that AP like 10 years ago. And converting to Savage Worlds is really easy anyway.
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Play anything that isn't WotC.
Loved Pathfinder when it came out, currently into Draw Steel.
My old boss at WotC said his game group played Pathfinder because it was better than D&D.
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I want to play Starfinder again. I had a single session...
I had a short campaign and feel the same.
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I don't understand how everyone doesn't just invent or cobble together their own system. It's so fun! And with cool players, you can build up the rules over time.
You might have to befriend some drama nerds. I used to think tabletop games sucked but it's because I was playing with [unimaginative] engineering types.
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Reading about it actually makes me think id like it better but I would have to play the variant that removes the linear stat increases so low-level enemies arent trivial.
Can you link me to these rules? Sounds interesting. I'm writing a campaign for my group, and I'd like a way to have typical bandits still be an issue throughout the game.
https://2e.aonprd.com/Rules.aspx?ID=2762
Proficiency without Level
This variant removes a character's level from their proficiency bonus, scaling it differently for a style of game that's outside the norm. This is a significant change to the system. The proficiency rank progression in Player Core is designed for heroic fantasy games where heroes rise from humble origins to world-shattering strength. For some games, this narrative arc doesn't fit. Such games are about hedging bets in an uncertain and gritty world, in which even the world's best fighter can't guarantee a win against a large group of moderately skilled brigands.
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I tried getting into Pathfinder but the constant buffing is just too tedious and it only gets worse as the game progresses, like way worse.
You're talking about first edition Pathfinder, aren't you? You should give second edition a try. It takes pretty much only the best from first edition, DnD 4e, a liitle 5e and some original ideas. It's a great and beginner-friendly middle ground between Pathfinder 1e's crunch and DnD 5e's oversimplification.
Yeah I just checked, the game I tried was Pathfinder:Kingmaker and that is indeed the 1st edition.
Sadly all Owlcat Pathfinder games use the 1st edition, but if I ever get the chance I'll revisit Pathfinder, now that I know 2nd edition is indeed worth trying, thanks for the heads up!
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