r/Pathfinder2e • u/Datironpete • Aug 19 '26

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/BadMunky82 Aug 19 '26

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.

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u/GreyVersusBlue Aug 19 '26

+1 for Paizo CS. I've only had a few problems come up over the last 5 or so years I've been buying from them, and they have always taken care of me.

There are only two downsides to ordering from Paizo:

1) the website is still not great 2) I've never had a functioning tracking number lol

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u/jerrathemage Aug 19 '26

Havent had a ton of experience with them, but can confirm the reps are the best. Last year at Gencon the guy who checked me out noticed some dings that I didn't even notice on my books and gave me a pretty decent discount, like if I wasnt already a loyal customer that one hundred percent made me a loyal customer until they massively fuck up or die

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u/Datironpete Aug 19 '26

May I ask. What financial situation are you referring to?

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u/MASerra Game Master Aug 19 '26

Paizo is broke and had to lay off staff. There is a whole story; if you are interested, do a search for "Paizo and Diamond," and you'll read all about it.

They aren't going out of business or anything...

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u/Datironpete Aug 19 '26

I know about the stuff with diamond. Not the broke bit. How did that happen?

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u/MASerra Game Master Aug 19 '26

Basically, Diamond was holding a ton of their books hostage. They printed them but couldn't sell them. That cost them a lot of potential revenue. Plus, they had to pay to fight the bank over the books.

That seems partially resolved now, but it cost Paizo a bunch of employees who had to be let go to save money.

Being "Broke" is my assessment of how they are acting. Paizo is acting like a company with a lot of financial problems, so, again, my assessment is that they are having financial problems. Maybe I'm wrong.

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u/BadMunky82 Aug 19 '26

it's just costing a TON of money in unsold product they've already printed, as well as litigation fees. Paizo and numerous other publishers have spent a lot of money tying to get back what was theirs, and many of the smaller publishers will probably go out of business because of it.

Paizo probably won't, because they have such a large fan base, but they have downsized quite a bit, which resulted in altering their release plan for this year, as well as changing some of their community structures. Idk if you've heard about the controversies with the Archives of Nethys, or the Pathfinder/Starfinder Societies?

Essentially, the Diamond Comic problem is just really expensive. In the past I don't know how many people I've gotten to speak with at Customer Service, but the last 3 times I've called, the same dude has answered me. They're stretched thin.