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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mustrum_Ridcully" data-source="post: 3725019" data-attributes="member: 710">Is it really optimizing? It might be from a purely number crunching point of view, but what does this optimization really mean in game? Outside of the encounters with the NPC, most things are entirely up to the DM and the adventure plot. I doubt that there are any adventures whose outcome or direction are based on the "off-screen" roll of a NPC (which was only decided one way because of the extra 5 skill points). During the encounter, only very few skills are ever needed, you don't take 10 or 20 on these skills, and roll so seldom that most of the outcome is based on the general competency (not precise skill modifier) and the die result. So in essence, the optimization was for little effect.If there are options, they should be meaningful. A +2 bonus to a specific skill is not meaningful. The decision whether my NPC is at all good at a skill, or if he can power attack, cast a specific spell, that's what is meaningful. It affects his personality, if affects his role in the adventure, it affects its abilities in combat. It might be a bit different for a PC. Mostly because a PC actually uses a skill fairly often, has a lot of chance to take 10 or 20, and there are no "Off-Screen" rolls for a PC. A PC is always on screen. He might actually care about all the bonuses he can get, because he will have a considerable effect on the character performance. But on the other hand, does he really need to? If the system does give him only, say 4 general competence levels* for a skill (based on his level), is that so bad? Sure, it might take out the fun of the optimizing (provided that it's easy to advance these 4 "general competence levels"), but would gameplay be hurt by it? Note also that this means that while the character has only "4" options for a individual skill, this also means he doesn't have to spend more than 4 of his total option points (measured in # of feat, skill ranks, class or race options)  "spendable" for this specific skill. He can spend the rest to get other options. Which reduces the risk of a character being only good at one thing and in the cases where this one thing isn't applicable, he will be less enjoyable to play.*)[Spoiler]In the Starwars Saga edition, there are basically 4 options to select from: Untrained, Trained, Skill Focus and Trained, Reroll Ability with skill.[/Spoiler]</blockquote>

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