So, you're thinking about switching games to Pathfinder 2nd Edition from Dungeons & Dragons 5e! Not sure where to start, how to start or why to start? Fear not, adventurers! This little thread will give you everything you need to know about Pathfinder and how to start!

==WHAT IS PF2?==
Pathfinder is a game that started off as a spin-off of D&D 3rd Edition when 4e was released. It follows the same class-based D20 system with many of the same monsters and creatures as 5e, and for a while, was actually more popular than D&D too!

PF2e is the evolution of that original game; while 1e was notorious for being EXTREMELY rules heavy, PF2 is much smoother and easy to run while somehow also being far more customizable (and still satisfyingly crunchy, too!) I'd best describe it as D&D meets Monster Of The Week!

==WHY PF2?==
@paizo is a company that's long been a group in favour of making the TTRPG experience more inclusive. It's written by a diverse team with both queer and BIPOC leads, writes oodles of canon queer stuff, did the whole "no evil races" thing years ago. They rule!

==GAME FEATURES==
D&D tends to focus on you being "run of the mill adventurers", but that's not the case in PF2. You're heroes. Even at low levels, you're a cut above the rest! At lvl 1, you're a daring, would-be adventurer; at lvl 20, a living God!

In 5e, you pick your class and race, and other than a choice made at 3rd level or so, you're locked in- no more decisions. In PF, you make choices EVERY. LEVEL. New ways to play your class! New unlocked skill abilities! Grow into your race (now called ancestry) more!

No two characters are the same. I've had a player play a Champion (the Paladin class!) three times, each WILDLY different. Do I want to be a Reinhardt type Shield Tank? A holy Liberator fighting against slavery with a sword? A merciful redeemer giving out second chances?

The game is exceptionally well balanced. Martial characters have incredible athletic abilities casters can only dream of; Fighters jumping 30 feet into the air, Barbarians shapeshifting into dragons, Rogues running across clouds or water... you name it!

Casters are also strong as ever- some even more than before! There are no half-casters. Bards for example are now Level 10 Casters, just like Druids or Wizards, and Sorcerers get to choose the spell list they want depending on their bloodline, making them a totally unique class!

(Level 10 casters?!) That's right. At high levels-- and most parties WILL get to high levels, with Level 20 being the goal for most campaigns!-- casters unlock 10th level spells, stuff on the level of Wish or Time Stop. It really makes playing casters a blast!

The Action Economy is the most widely praised part of the game. On your turn you get three Actions. You can use an Action to do any one thing; run, jump, attack, you name it! You can do these as many times as you want; you can run twice, attack once, attack three times, etc!

(Some stuff, like casting spells, take two actions-- this is to stop casters from blasting 3 fireballs in a row on their turn!)

Proficiency is broken down into Untrained, Trained, Master, Expert or Legendary at something. This follows a formula of Ability Score + Your Level + Proficiency Mod. This means every level, your AC will rise, your Attack Mod will rise, etc. Imagine having a +34 to hit at lvl 20!

Crits & Fumbles also work really nicely! When you roll against a DC of some sort (including AC), rolling 10 above the DC gives you the effects of a Critical Success, as if you rolled a Nat 20! Meanwhile, rolling 10 below a DC gives you a Critical Failure, as if you rolled Nat 1.

Initiative? Ha! There's no one Initiative Roll. You roll whatever skill is most applicable for a fight! Facing off against an enemy in front of you? Roll Perception to see who jumps to action first! Swinging off a chandelier? Roll Acrobatics! Sneaking up on someone? STEALTH!

Race (now Ancestry) has dozens of subraces called Heritages. Sure you're an elf- but are you a forest elf? An arctic elf? Hell, maybe you're a Tiefling Elf or a Dhampir Elf! Each has their own benefits and abilities you can choose as you level up!

Lastly, the lore of Pathfinder is fantastic. With an expansive setting on the planet Golarion, virtually every culture has an equivalent here- the Philippines has the nation of Minata, Revolutionary France has Galt, Transylvannia has Ustalav... the world's your oyster, literally!

A lot of research goes into exploring these places-- and there's a LOT of canon adventures. The monthly Adventure Path series releases critically acclaimed adventures from Level 1-20 exploring Golarion and tell STUNNING stories. I've been running these for years! They ROCK!

A final note- the deities in Pathfinder are EXTREMELY well fleshed out. Gods have relationships, backstories and can even curse or bless you depending on your actions! The God of Adventure accidentally became a god while drunk, and the Goddesses of the Moon, Art & Sun are poly!

==RESOURCES==
That's enough explaining the game and what makes it so awesome: here's a few resources you can use to get YOUR adventure in the world of Golarion started!

ARCHIVES OF NETHYS
This has EVERYTHING. I'm talking this is an official repository that has ALL of PF2's rules online. For FREE. Can't afford books? All you're missing is the pretty layout. It's all online for free, word for word as presented in the book.
http://2e.aonprd.com/ 

PF2 EASY LIBRARY
Know the name of a feat, monster or item, and don't want to trawl the archives? Slap it in there for super fast reference! Much quicker and accessible at times. Has filters galore, a spell library, you name it!
https://pf2.easytool.es/ 

PF2 TOOLS
This is your catchall for everything else. I mean EVERYTHING. Homebrew resources? Podcasts? Character sheets? Anything else you might want is stored here. These 3 resources alone are fantastic, and definitely enough to get you started!
http://pf2.tools 

ROLL20
Everyone knows Roll20, of course. But Pathfinder's Roll20 Experience is especially great! IMO it, the best character sheet. R20 also has a few free tutorial adventures like The Blooming Catastrophe with premade maps and monsters ready for you! https://marketplace.roll20.net/browse/module/5933/pathfinder-society-number-1-15-the-blooming-catastrophe

If you haven't ever used Roll20, though, don't look to me- look to the master, and a friend of mine, Ediwir, with his tutorial on how to dress Roll20 up like a real pro! https://www.reddit.com/r/Pathfinder2e/comments/fl13x1/new_edition_new_gms_roll20_tips_from_a_lazy_old/

If you want to try the system out for yourself before jumping into a game, I have a solution for you! I run a Massively Multiplayer Play By Post Discord Server for PF2 called Caliphas: City Of Shrouds. Make a character and try the system for yourself! https://discord.gg/h9pXuz6 

Podcasts are of course a fantastic way to learn too. Our show, Dice Will Roll, ran an adventure path all the way from 1 to 20 as we built and ruled our own kingdom in the wild woods of the Stolen Lands! We recommend this episode for a taste of PF2 combat! https://open.spotify.com/episode/4S24ffiKCcRAOo6sXEdc8a

Lastly, something to note: unlike 5e, Pathfinder regularly releases content. Other than the monthly Adventure Paths, you can expect new ancestries, new classes and a bajillion new feats and spells on the regular! In fact, at the end of the month, the Advanced Player Guide is out!

10 new Ancestries, 4 new classes (The Investigator, The Witch, The Swashbuckler and the Oracle, all completely unique and fantastic) and 40 (40!!!) new archetypes (subclasses!) for you to play with! Ratfolk, Tengu, Kobolds, oh my-- and that's only 1 year after the game is out.

This really is only the start for Pathfinder 2nd Edition. Make sure to support this game if you want to see a change in the mainstream TTRPG world, have fun telling new heights of adventures, and above all else... go save the world, everyone!