Fantasy · Pathfinder · Pathfinder 2e · Remaster
Pathfinder Player Core Review
The remastered Pathfinder 2e player's book: edicts and anathema instead of alignment, a build-your-character-in-order layout, and four editions from a $16.99 pocket book to a faux-leather special edition.
From Paizo
- Format
- Hardcover, Special, Pocket, Sketch, PDF
- Pages
- 464
- Price
- $16.99 pocket to $79.99 special
- Type
- Rulebooks
- Best for
- Every Pathfinder 2e player
Joe no score/20Went to the tavern and never came back.
Filed under rulebooks and starter sets. How we score
What works
- Edicts and anathema replace alignment, so a character's values are the player's choice
- Holy and unholy replace good and evil for divine characters
- Builds a character in the order you make one: ancestry, background, class, skills, feats, gear, spells
- Players keep their own book open while the GM uses GM Core
- Four editions, from a pocket book to a faux-leather special edition with two ribbons
What doesn't
- Renamed spells and abilities trip up anyone who knows the original 2e
- Less of Golarion than the original Core Rulebook
- GMs now need two core books where one used to do
Affiliate link. It costs you nothing extra, and we may earn a small commission. Rather we not get a cut? Here's the plain link.
Other editions: Special EditionPocket Edition (affiliate links)
The Player Core is the book every Pathfinder 2e player needs, and the remaster made it better than the book it replaced. Moral choices belong to the players now, the layout walks you through building a character, and Paizo sells it in enough formats that there's one for every budget. It's a 16 out of 20, a Hit. The catch is for GMs, who now need two core books instead of one.
This review covers the book. For the system itself, why I've played Pathfinder since the 3.5 days and why I love Golarion, see our Pathfinder 2e review.
What I reviewed
My special edition hardcover, faux leather with two ribbon bookmarks, plus the PDF from my Paizo subscription. It's the first of the remaster's two player books, out November 15, 2023: 464 pages with eight ancestries and eight classes (Bard, Cleric, Druid, Fighter, Ranger, Rogue, Witch and Wizard). It folds in four years of errata from the original 2e, including a reworked Witch. The rest of the main classes are in Player Core 2. I've run several campaigns with it, including Curse of the Crimson Throne after the remaster.
Rules15/20
The three-action turn is the same, and it's still the foundation. What changed is everything around it. Alignment is gone. Divine characters are sanctified as holy or unholy instead, and edicts and anathema take alignment's place. That's a better system. Your character's values become a choice you make, not a box you tick, and it forces real decisions about who your character is.
Paizo also renamed a lot of spells and abilities when it moved away from the OGL. Magic Missile is Force Barrage now, for example. If you know 2e cold, the new names throw you off at first. The switch felt a lot like the jump from 1e to 2e did, and you adjust.
Layout17/20
The book follows the order you build a character in: an introduction, then ancestries and backgrounds, classes, skills, feats, equipment, spells, and finally the rules for playing. A new player can build a character just by reading forward, with no flipping around. It even opens by explaining what a roleplaying game is, which I appreciate, even if most people buying it already know.
The art sets the tone for every section, with Wayne Reynolds and a roster of top artists. Paizo's art budget shows. It's laid out like every Paizo book, so once you know one, you know them all. It does the job without friction.
Setting15/20
I love Golarion, and on our system review it's a 20. But this score is for what's in this book, and the Player Core gives you a short tour on purpose: an overview of the regions, the major deities and their faiths. It's enough to orient a player without burying them, and a player who buys it won't be lost.
It's less than the original Core Rulebook gave you, though, and the full picture of the world now lives in the Lost Omens books.
Value15/20
The original 2e Core Rulebook was one book. The remaster is two: the Player Core and GM Core. Players only need this one, but for GMs that's a real added cost, and tables that switched to the remaster felt pressure to rebuy books they already owned.
What Paizo does well is give you options:
| Edition | Price |
|---|---|
| Hardcover | $69.99 list, $26.99 on Amazon when I checked |
| Special Edition (faux leather, ribbon) | $79.99 at Paizo |
| Pocket Edition | $16.99 on Amazon when I checked |
| Sketch Edition (pencil-sketch cover) | limited |
| $29.99 at Paizo |
Most publishers don't offer anything like that range. And if you want to try before you buy, the rules are free online at Archives of Nethys, Paizo's official rules site.
I pay for the special edition ($79.99 at Paizo) because faux leather lasts longer on a book that comes to every session. That's my taste. The pocket edition is the smart buy for a player who wants their own copy at the table.
Who it's for
Every Pathfinder 2e player, and anyone starting the system fresh. If your group plays the Champion, Sorcerer, Monk or other classes from Player Core 2, you'll want that book too.
The verdict
A 16, a Hit. The remaster's best changes live in this book, and with a pocket edition this cheap, there's no reason for a player not to own one.
Affiliate link. It costs you nothing extra, and we may earn a small commission. Rather we not get a cut? Here's the plain link.
Other editions: Special EditionPocket Edition (affiliate links)
