New Mearls Article - Skills in D&D

[Markn]

Very interesting article.

Dungeons & Dragons Roleplaying Game Official Home Page - Article (Skills in D&D)

Has some crunch to where Mearls is going with all this.

Enjoy! Discuss!

Personally, I like the basics and would like to see more (especially with level advancement) and how that would work.

 

[SpydersWebbing]

I like where this is going, to be honest. Having floating modifiers that you can assign to certain "types" of tasks without being attached to a specific ability is a very good thing, and something that they should do in the next edition (NOT that there is one coming out or anything like that. I'm one of those people who have no problems with different editions being essentially different games.)

Please, Mr. Mearls. Continue to show me what you're thinking of.

 

[TwinBahamut]

I like this direction of thought. To be honest, I never really have been totally happy with the skill system as it has appeared in either 3e or 4e. The idea of skills being flexible additions to a baseline of abilities sits with me a lot better than things like skill ranks and such.

Honestly, I'd be happy if things like swimming and jumping never required players to roll dice at all. Basic things like movement should not slow the game down. At the same time, things like climbing, jumping, flying, etc are fun, and players could benefit a lot from having options regarding them. Turning those options into messy charts based on die rolls isn't a good solution, but something like this might be.

Of course, other "skills", like deception and such, do work very well as die rolls, so you don't want to abandon them altogether. I suppose part of the problem in the first place is using the same rules to describe things as wildly different as convincing a king to come to your aid (Diplomacy), performing routine work (profession/craft), or activating a magic rod (Use Magic Device). Different things sometimes just need different rules frameworks.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

These columns read so much to me like Mearls is quietly playing in a Castles & Crusades campaign now.

 

[SpydersWebbing]

I like this direction of thought. To be honest, I never really have been totally happy with the skill system as it has appeared in either 3e or 4e. The idea of skills being flexible additions to a baseline of abilities sits with me a lot better than things like skill ranks and such.

Honestly, I'd be happy if things like swimming and jumping never required players to roll dice at all. Basic things like movement should not slow the game down. At the same time, things like climbing, jumping, flying, etc are fun, and players could benefit a lot from having options regarding them. Turning those options into messy charts based on die rolls isn't a good solution, but something like this might be.

Of course, other "skills", like deception and such, do work very well as die rolls, so you don't want to abandon them altogether. I suppose part of the problem in the first place is using the same rules to describe things as wildly different as convincing a king to come to your aid (Diplomacy), performing routine work (profession/craft), or activating a magic rod (Use Magic Device). Different things sometimes just need different rules frameworks.

I don't know if I'd go that far, to be honest. I'd go a bit nuts if there was a whole plethora of resolution mechanics, as opposed to the one simple one.

But then again I like all classes having AEDU's, and can very easily imagine how a fighter could have a level 29 daily, so maybe it's just me.

 

[The Shaman]

Acrobatics is good; Climb, Jump, Tumble, and Swim are bad.

Ad hoc modifiers for trying something tricky are good; 'skill talents' that are part of a character build are bad.

All in my humble opinion and as a matter of personal preference, of course.

 

[SpydersWebbing]

Acrobatics is good; Climb, Jump, Tumble, and Swim are bad.

Ad hoc modifiers for trying something tricky are good; 'skill talents' that are part of a character build are bad.

All in my humble opinion and as a matter of personal preference, of course.

I'm not so certain about the skill talents, to be honest. Those could be quite flavorful and cool if done right, and I think it would be interesting to give a system like that a chance. Assuming that it doesn't already exist (and given my limited experience that means it probably does and I just haven't heard about it yet).

 

[Argyle King]

These columns read so much to me like Mearls is quietly playing in a Castles & Crusades campaign now.

Really? With the first few, I could have sworn he was playing GURPS -skill based system, modular, etc.


In all reality, I hope he is looking outside of D&D. I think it's good to seek out ideas from other places and challenge your way of looking at rpgs. Even if you try something and hate it, that still gives you an experience you can build off of.


I like this most recent article. I think having ways to modify your skills beyond just simple numbers is a good thing. Oddly, it seems a lot like something I've been working on lately.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Really? With the first few, I could have sworn he was playing GURPS -skill based system, modular, etc.

Most everything being ability score-based, and most (or all) skills being killed off in favor of ability scores and situational bonuses is the very heart of C&C.

But yes, I certainly believe he's looking at other games outside D&D. I have a friend who's played with him in the past, and said that Mearls used to be a real fan of trying out lots of different systems and seeing what they were good at, which is a very good thing in a designer.

 

[The Shaman]

I'm not so certain about the skill talents, to be honest. Those could be quite flavorful and cool if done right, and I think it would be interesting to give a system like that a chance.

Know what I want from a stereo? A volume control is mandatory. Bass, treble,and balance controls? Sure, okay - I'm most likely to set them once and then forget about them. Equalizer faders? No friggin' way I'm going to spend that much time, or want to spend that much time, effing around with the box - way too much like work when all I want to do is listen to some tunes.

In my experience, too many fiddly bits become an end in themselves. I know there are gamers out there who want to build the FAST CLIMBER! or the TEAM CLIMBER! and these rules are fine for them; I am not one of them, and I neither want to play nor am I willing to run a game in which this degree of specialization is considered necessary or desireable.

You want to scramble up a wall faster than the other guy? No problem, take a -4 on your Acrobatics check and get on with it. That's how I roll.