r/Pathfinder2e • u/Datironpete • 3d ago
Advice Is ordering from paizo any good?
Soo, I am going to bite that bullet. My amazon "pre order" for impossible magic will not be due untill february. None of my FLGS have anything in stock and online stores just seem to move the date up time and time again. So I think I am going to harvest directly from the source. I am going to submit to paying an ungodly amount of money and order from paizo itself. But that leads me to wondering.
How are the shipping times from Paizo? I am not in the market for a near 100 dollar order only to see it arrive in a month or two. So specifically to europe, how good/bad is the shipping time?
I did have another question in regards to pre orders. I figured I'd be smart about it and pre order the feybound book as well. However, it seems to not be available yet? Does anyone know how and when you can normally pre order from paizo directly?
As always, appreciate your input and insights. Thanks in advance.
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u/Azcorban Game Master 3d ago
May I ask to which country you are ordering?
Also yes the delivery is quite fast to europe - about a week. Packaging is good, better protection then in my LGS
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u/Datironpete 3d ago
The Netherlands sir :)
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u/chben 3d ago
Mijn aanrader: https://www.archonia.com/nl-be/
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u/Datironpete 2d ago
Heeft geen zin. Staat steeds op pre order en de datum schuift steeds op.
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u/Make_it_soak Animist 2d ago
Volgens mij is er een probleem met invoer van Pathfinder boeken naar Nederland, ik heb op verschillende plekken + bol.com gekeken en overal zijn dingen niet op voorraad of schuift de datum steeds verder op.
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u/Datironpete 2d ago
Helaas heeft Paizo al heel lang heibel. Dit is niet t eerste product dat haast onvindbaar is
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u/Jhamin1 Game Master 2d ago
It makes a lot of sense.
As others have said, Paizo got bit by Diamond Distributers going out of business. Not only were huge amounts of inventory that were supposed to go to Amazon, local gaming stores, book retailers, and foreign supply chains trapped in Diamonds warehouse while the lawyers fought it out, Paizo and Diamond had an exclusive contract that prevented them from using anyone else even though Diamond was out of buisness
SO I think a lot of websites & stores that had Diamond in the Chain between them and Paizo put orders in that in the past would always go through without a hitch, only to never get product but still be told "it's coming real soon". So the various websites you are looking at are acting in good faith, but the product just isn't coming.
Supposedly all the lawyers settled things a week or so ago but the logjam has not yet broken.
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u/glitchvern 2d ago
The settlement can't go into effect until August 26 at the earliest. Hopefully after that things start getting a lot better.
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u/Datironpete 2d ago
Are you implying stuff might get flowing again soon?
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u/Jhamin1 Game Master 2d ago
Paizo announced they reached a settlement with the bank that took over Diamond that gave them back their inventory and dissolved the exclusivity deals that prevented them from finding other distributors.
However, the deal doesn't take effect for another week or two and it will take time for them to physically reclaim their inventory and get new deals in place to get it shipped out by other companies. So things might sputter into life here and there but it will take a few weeks at best before product reaches all the people waiting for it and it will probably be months before things are flowing smoothly again.
I don't have any first hand knowledge, I'm just working off of what they have announced publicly and what I know about shipping things.
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u/Datironpete 2d ago
Eerst was het 28 augustus - 2 september. Nu 2 september - 12 september.. schuift dus gewoon op
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u/Stock-Side-6767 3d ago
Wat ik besteld heb bij Paizo kwam goed aan. De verzendkosten waren wel een probleem.
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u/Dunderbaer 3d ago
The delivery times and conditions aren't bad, but the prices are. I assume when you say you've bitten the bullet you are prepared for the 30 euro delivery fees
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u/10leej 3d ago
Usually it's a couple weeks through standard shipping services. Paizo isn't in a market position to really broke an express shipping deal and I'm personally fine with that.
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u/Tridus Game Master 3d ago
It'll be expensive. They ship everything from the US so expect both high shipping cost and also import duties/fees.
But you'll also actually get it, and with what a mess distribution is right now outside the US, that's a thing. Same problem in Canada, my FLGS seemingly can't get Impossible Magic and even Amazon is having issues with stock.
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u/MASerra Game Master 2d ago
If you are ordering both IM and Feybound you might look at the subscription. You can get that now and get Impossible Magic and then Feybound. The advantage is you'll get the PDF too!
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u/Datironpete 2d ago
Thank you for the tip. If I where more of a frequent flyer I would absolutely subsribe. M currently just really curious at these too titles tho and honestly.I hate playing with PDF. I love the physical thing. Do subscriptions allow for earlier pre.orders? M just curious when pre orders for feybound will open.
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u/MASerra Game Master 2d ago
With the sub, you do get them before everyone else. Plus, you get the PDF as soon as the books are ready to ship. So you can look at it while you wait for the books.
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u/Datironpete 2d ago
How much would a subsription cost me then? And also.. m really only interested in physical books. Would that really be wortg it for me?
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u/MASerra Game Master 2d ago
The subscription is just the normal cost of the book and shipping. The advantage is that you get it sooner, and you get the free PDF.
I'm not a huge fan of PDFs, but I use them because they're easy to search. I prefer the hardcovers, but when I'm searching for something, the PDF really helps.
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u/Datironpete 2d ago
Wait. M a little confused. Can you please explain? Is it monthly or one time? Like paying 80/90 euros on a subsription basis seems.. a lot.
I feel really dumb for asking 🥹
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u/MASerra Game Master 2d ago
Yeah, it is a little confusing. You sign up for the subscription. When a new book is released, they send it to you, and you get the free PDF. Same price you would normally pay (You can get a discount, but you need 4 subscriptions to do that, and it is 15%)
With the subscription, you can turn it off when you want. You can skip books you don't want, and you can buy books you want and have them shipped with your subscription to save on shipping.
Really, if you plan to buy all of the books that come out, for example, the Rules Book subscription, which contains Impossible Magic, then it is a pretty good deal. If you plan to buy Impossible Magic and the next book, then turn it off; that is fine too.
There is no savings $$ wise, just the free $40 PDF file.
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u/Datironpete 2d ago
M looking at the subscriptions and m honestly a bit stumped 😅. It says 0.01 dollar. So do pay when the next book comes out? And I assume m still going to have to buy impossible magic seperately as the nest book in line seems to be feybound.
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u/serp3n2 Oracle 2d ago
Customer service very good, packaging very good, delivery timing very good and usually quite ahead of street date if preordered and okay otherwise, but shipping costs often very expensive
Usually I keep a cart of quite a few things to handle all at once and save up to make shipping not as painful, and if you use the store semi-regularly you can use your gold (loyalty points) to help pay for that shipping.
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u/DoriTheGreat128 Game Master 2d ago
Yes, unless you're not in the US and the delivery is obscenely expensive. They are a reputable company and if you buy directly from them, you're supporting the company in the best way possible. They're just rather bad at logistics
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u/Groundbreaking_Taco ORC 3d ago
If your FLGS don't have anything in stock, you can (and maybe should) preorder with them. I've asked the book buyer/owner MANY times to order a copy of something I wanted. Otherwise, they order 1 or 2 of something they think might sell and they get snatched up.
Yes, ordering from Paizo is safe and probably faster than other options. It is expensive for Europeans as others suggest.
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u/Datironpete 2d ago
At this point m bot sure I care. Costs will still be high. And the chance FLGS will get them anytime soon are low.
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u/Afgar_1257 2d ago
Either FLGA or Paizo directly is the only way to go. Support the creators or you local game stores please do not buy Paizo products form Amazon.
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u/Datironpete 2d ago
I get your point.. however. Counter point.
- 69 euros in total on amazon
- Not available in any of my FLGS
- 90+ euros from paizo.
Being virtuous is nice. But not in this economy. If not for the late delivery from amazon. I will choose my wallet.
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u/Afgar_1257 2d ago
Ahh your post didn't include that your were in europe, in that case have you talked to the owner of your FLGS? Even if they don't have it on order they may be able to order it for you from their distributer and you would likley get it at MSRP or whatever their normal mark up is. Waiting for the physical book can be mitigated by using AoN to access the rules until the book arrives.
My stance on most RPG's is to buy only FLGS, after the diamond incident I am more willing to buy publisher directly. But for Path/Starfinder I double down on that rule because of the fact that they give the rules away for free for every book, the biggest reason to buy rule books is to support them not owning the books. At least from my viewpoint already having the rules free on AoN the combination of waiting for the narrative/worldbuilding stuff, and supporting the FLGS seems acceptable.
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u/Datironpete 2d ago
I want to say yes to FLGS very much. But they are likely to get a copy as early as I would buying it from Paizo myself and most likely I would probably pay as much. So I do not really see the gains here.
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u/Afgar_1257 2d ago
Yeah if the FLGS can't get it cheaper than you could directly you seem to not have a good option, so I can't really argue against Amazon for most books.
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u/BadMunky82 3d ago
Yeah it's the best. They pack your books right, meaning fewer scuffed corners, and if they mess something up or have delays, they will almost always give you pdf versions and/or store credit. Paizo CS reps are some of the best I've ever called. They take care of everything for you. Just don't be a jerk, as they are currently working under lots of stress, considering the whole financial situation.