Personally, I prefer Pathfinder (2e for me, but 1e is tons of fun too).
I think the big thing that keeps me coming back to Pathfinder over 5e (I am running a game for newbies in 5e because they probably don’t want to complexity) is that there are actual, hard rules for almost anything you might want to do in the entirety of the game. DnD is always advertised as “do whatever you want and the DM will tell you how it goes!” but the rules for 5e are so combat-focused and simplistic that the DM will inevitably end up homebrewing…well, 80% of the game unless you players or crazily combat focused. Whereas 2e has extensive and widely available rules for freaking everything and it makes it feel so much more like a world compared to 5e. Also, their adventure paths are so awesome and exciting compared to 5e campaigns IMO.
I also am not a big fan of WOTC lately, so that is helping me stick to Pathfinder. Also, they are very LGBTQIA+ friendly!
I can’t go back to PF1e. I played the Wrath of the Righteous CRPG and I had a pretty good time but there’s an overwhelming amount of feat choices. I don’t think I want to spend that much time sifting through options in a tabletop environment, which, to its credit, 5e has done a great job keeping relatively streamlined.
Personally, I prefer Pathfinder (2e for me, but 1e is tons of fun too).
I think the big thing that keeps me coming back to Pathfinder over 5e (I am running a game for newbies in 5e because they probably don’t want to complexity) is that there are actual, hard rules for almost anything you might want to do in the entirety of the game. DnD is always advertised as “do whatever you want and the DM will tell you how it goes!” but the rules for 5e are so combat-focused and simplistic that the DM will inevitably end up homebrewing…well, 80% of the game unless you players or crazily combat focused. Whereas 2e has extensive and widely available rules for freaking everything and it makes it feel so much more like a world compared to 5e. Also, their adventure paths are so awesome and exciting compared to 5e campaigns IMO.
I also am not a big fan of WOTC lately, so that is helping me stick to Pathfinder. Also, they are very LGBTQIA+ friendly!
I can’t go back to PF1e. I played the Wrath of the Righteous CRPG and I had a pretty good time but there’s an overwhelming amount of feat choices. I don’t think I want to spend that much time sifting through options in a tabletop environment, which, to its credit, 5e has done a great job keeping relatively streamlined.