D&D 3.5 vs 4.0

[GlorySeeker]

Ive played every edition. Including first. I love DnD, 3.5, is by far my favorite, but Currently were Im participating in a 4th ed game. Every other week, I Dm a 3rd ed game. 4th ed to me, is fun. It shines and more than excels at combat. 4th is a little restrictive, and thats being nice, but the best way to compare it, is to play it.

 

[Coop83]

I gave up on D&D many many years ago... it's all about the White Wolf now, d10's FTW.

From what I hear, 4.0 is crap.

What sort of White Wolf games do you play? The new World of Darkness stuff is alright, though give me Exalted any day!

Regarding what you've heard about D&D 4.0, I'd suggest you play it yourself, before making your decision. Personally, I didn't like it, much preferring Pathfinder, which has a few rule tweaks on the system and seems to make things more balanced. It's not as major a shift as moving from 2nd to 3rd edition, with the abolition of THAC0, for example, but these changes make all the difference.

At the end of the day, the rules are merely a vessel for your role playing experience, as are the dice you roll to determine the outcome. What matters, when you get right down to it is the Role Playing and the story that is told.

 

[Ultra_Caboose]

I've actually used 3.0 Oriental Adventures characters in Pathfinder and it's not caused any trouble.

Really? because Iaijutsu focus(OA) + gnomish quick-razor(RoS) + sneak-attack heavy character. Is cheesy without any further optimization. Eggshell grenades are pretty crazy too.

I've never tried that combo. I've only played a human samurai. Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever played a gnome. Either way, my character worked just fine, no overpowered abilities or anything.

 

[Pumpkin_Eater]

4e is a lot simpler. A lot of rules and mechanics have been cleaned up, but there are much fewer customization options. Good for newbs. Pathfinder is essentially a more balanced, somewhat polished 3.5 (I'm in my first PF campaign right now). PF also rewards you for committing to your base class much more than either D&D version.