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<blockquote data-quote="Obryn" data-source="post: 4672583" data-attributes="member: 11821">That's not really what I'm talking about.&nbsp; I'm talking about a game style wherein characters are mostly defined by their skills rather than their classes.&nbsp; Don't get me wrong - I'm a fan of the 4e skill system - but if you are running a game where skills are the primary focus of character differentiation, players can more easily tweak a 3e character.How characters are differentiated is a major contributor to gameplay.&nbsp; For some kinds of games, it's important that someone have access to most any skill.&nbsp; For others, it's more important to have specialized characters who don't always have the perfect tool for the job.&nbsp; And, for some campaign styles, this is important.As a non-D&amp;D example, I'm running Call of Cthulhu d20 right now.&nbsp; I would never consider using the 4e skill system for it.&nbsp; The 4e system does an awesome job for my group when we're playing D&amp;D; in a game like CoC d20, skills are really all you have.It's also important for some campaign styles that skills be more granular.&nbsp; That is, instead of a skill like &quot;Science&quot; or whatnot, it would help to have &quot;Biology,&quot; &quot;Physics,&quot; &quot;Chemistry&quot; and so on.That's what I'm talking about when I'm referring to a skill-based campaign.&nbsp; No, I don't think it's the default way of playing D&amp;D.&nbsp; It is, however, a way of playing D&amp;D.&nbsp; Are there better systems out there for a skill-based campaign?&nbsp; Personally, I think so, but if you want to play one of the D&amp;D's, 3e offers a degree of character customization that 4e presently does not.I agree 100% that the math can get wacky at high levels for 3e skills - high level math is a problem endemic to the entire system.&nbsp; And yes, skill challenges are an excellent framework for non-combat encounters.Both ways of approaching skills have their perks and their problems.&nbsp; It's silly to speak in general terms about which one is better.&nbsp; I think, though, that there's an interesting conversation to be had about which system is better for which style of gameplay.-O</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Obryn, post: 4672583, member: 11821"] That's not really what I'm talking about. I'm talking about a game style wherein characters are mostly defined by their skills rather than their classes. Don't get me wrong - I'm a fan of the 4e skill system - but if you are running a game where skills are the primary focus of [i]character differentiation[/I], players can more easily tweak a 3e character. How characters are differentiated is a major contributor to gameplay. For some kinds of games, it's important that someone have access to most any skill. For others, it's more important to have specialized characters who don't always have the perfect tool for the job. And, for some campaign styles, this is important. As a non-D&D example, I'm running Call of Cthulhu d20 right now. I would never consider using the 4e skill system for it. The 4e system does an awesome job for my group when we're playing D&D; in a game like CoC d20, skills are really all you have. It's also important for some campaign styles that skills be more granular. That is, instead of a skill like "Science" or whatnot, it would help to have "Biology," "Physics," "Chemistry" and so on. That's what I'm talking about when I'm referring to a skill-based campaign. No, I don't think it's the default way of playing D&D. It is, however, [I]a[/I] way of playing D&D. Are there better systems out there for a skill-based campaign? Personally, I think so, but if you want to play one of the D&D's, 3e offers a degree of character customization that 4e presently does not. I agree 100% that the math can get wacky at high levels for 3e skills - high level math is a problem endemic to the entire system. And yes, skill challenges are an excellent framework for non-combat encounters. Both ways of approaching skills have their perks and their problems. It's silly to speak in general terms about which one is better. I think, though, that there's an interesting conversation to be had about which system is better for which style of gameplay. -O [/QUOTE]

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