What core and source books should i get

Hey everybody,

I'm going to pick up the main three 3.5 version books. But what I was wondering is what sourcebooks should I keep my eyes out open for. I'm kind of looking at tome of magic but what sourcebooks do you like and why?

Well you cant go wrong with:

Complete Divine and Arcane as they help you build some good PCs.
Unearthed Arcana is good as well. If you are going to play in a certain Campaign, get that Campaigns source book.

Almost All Of The Complete Books Are Must-Haves,Except For The Mage And Scroundrels,They Were Poorly Made.

You Want The Player's Handbook 2 As Well For All The New Classes And Spell Compendium For Magic.

If You Plan On Playing Forgotten Realms,Be Sure To Pick Up Faiths And Pantheons.

I would go with the Spell Compendium For Magic and the one for magic items also. they are almost must haves, unless your player then you would just need the spell one.

Are you going to be a player or DM?

If you're just going to be a player, then I wouldn't even bother with the DMG or the MM. If you'll be playing in Eberron, Forgotton Realms or another established setting then I would get that sourcebook and maybe one of the books that focuses on the type of character you want to play.

If you're going to DM, then I would get the three Core books and probably a "splat" book. If you'll be using Aberrations (Lords of Madness), Dragons (Draconomicon), Undead (Libris Mortis), Devils or Demons (Fiendish Codex II or I respectively), etc.

I also happen to like Weapons of Legacy. That's really more a subjective taste and I think that the book really isn't very well put together (information-wise) for the cost and should have been filled out in several areas (and thinned down in a couple others).

Thanks everybody. I'll go through the book suggestions and read up on the books and see what books that would help my play style out. Will probably be a player at first for those wondering.