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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Hawken" data-source="post: 5043434" data-attributes="member: 23619">Take a look at the Star Wars Saga rules regarding skills. They've done a lot of consolidating and they present it in a logical format. The biggest problems with 3.5 skills isn't so much the list as the mechanics. 1) Skill check vs. anything else is broken. Skills should be opposed by skills and they should be opposed by a person not a flat DC. --Diplomacy. Flat DCs don't take into account the insight, experience or relationship with the person you're trying to diplomacize. --Intimidate. Opposed by a level check, the level check will fail nearly every time. --Sleight of Hand. There is no mechanic for actually stopping the theft, only noticing it. Broken. 2) Knowledge skills provide no tangible benefits. They should be able to provide at the least a +1 or 2 circumstance bonus against something. 3) The rank system. After level 5, you're going to be acing just about every skill check unless its an opposed check. The DCs should be based on the difficulty relative to the person making the check. Something that is of average difficulty for a 10th level character would be pretty easy for a 20th level, while something easy for them would be nearly impossible for a 1st level character.4) Since rogues are skill monkeys, even with a consolidated list you're going to have to either give them a lot of skills or give them a bonus to the skills they do have. Or maybe consolidate skills ONLY for them. Rogues might be so good at sneaking around that for them Hide and Move Silently is a single skill (Stealth), but for everyone else, its Hide and Move Silently. Maybe rogues are so alert that Listen, Search and Spot are a single skill for them (Perception), but for everyone else (except maybe elves), its 3 different skills.5) Have skills that actually get used in your game. Get rid of the others. Really, how often has anyone used Balance, Forgery, or Use Rope? Make Balance a part of tumble because if someone is doing flips and springing around, you've got to reasonably believe they've got enough balance to do it. Forgery? Anyone can do it. Its a lie (Bluff) on paper, good enough to pass quick visual (Spot) inspection, but for someone to closely examine it (Search), the ruse is up unless it was "professionally" done (Craft: Forgery). Use Rope? To throw a grappling hook? Attack roll, your BAB vs. the "AC" of the wall. To tie someone up? Grapple check with a +10 bonus and the target starts off in a Pin. Tying ropes together? Int/Dex check.</blockquote>

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