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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Manbearcat" data-source="post: 6198498" data-attributes="member: 6696971">Starting to run out of material to pursue here so I'm going to run down a different angle of the conversation; "how do we make the 3.x fighter better."I may break out a post about issues with the Fighter in combat at a later point (which I have a few, related to tactical inflexibility, lack of dynamism in decision-points, and lack of mobility - which is as much a product of the action economy as anything else), but I want to keep this post short and relatively focused.  So for now, I'm just going to give my take on:Non-Combat, Conflict Resolution  I'm going to break out some points that I posted in the recent Pathfinder Skill Consolidation thread.  There are multiple issues working against the fighter here.1 - First and foremost is their primary shtick (Athletics) is broken out into component parts Climb, Jump, Swim.  The Fighter needs to be functional to good at these things by default.2 - The Fighter's Trained Skill pool is deeply contracted.3 - The Fighter's Skill Points/level are a meager 2 + Int.4 - The Fighter's primary modes of resolution dictate that Intelligence is a dump stat.5 - The Fighter's primary modes of resolution dictate that Charisma is a dump stat.6 - The Fighter gains no Features that improve non-combat, conflict resolution.1-6 creates a fairly predictable level of incompetence in non-combat conflict resolution.  3 + 4 ensures that the number of Skill Points to invest will be the leanest of the lean.  1 compounds matters as the Fighter is spending his meager 2 (lowest possible) + Int (primary dump stat) Skill Points 3 ways just for minimum functionality in their thematic center (Athletics).  That is rough.  2 ensures that the Fighter has little to no breadth available to diversify expertise (not that he would have the resources to do so even if he could).  4 (along with no trained skills) ensures no functionality with Knowledge Skills or any of the various Int skills.  5 painfully ensures that another area of thematic potential (Leader of Men) is rendered inert as the Leadership feat is as useful for the Fighter as any character it could be for.  What's more, any investment into Social Skills (or the thematic Intimidate) will have a net yield of average to slightly below average functionality (and it will cost the Fighter in Athletics).  Obviously, 6 isn't in the fold to mitigate the compounding issues of 1-5.So, given that these things could each use a significant bump in functionality and it wouldn't perturb the balance of the game anywhere in the vicinity of overpowering the Fighter, it bears out the Fighters position in The Tier System and says to me that the Fighter needs a lot of help closing the gap.  So what are some of the options here?  I proposed a few in the aforementioned Pathfinder Skill Consolidation thread.- If consolidating Climb, Jump, and Swim (into Athletics) is off the table, then I think the Fighter (and probably Ranger) needs a scaling (with level) bonus to all 3 of these  skills so they don't have to invest so deeply (with their already  limited skill points) just to have base competency in their primary shtick (Athletics). - For the social/Leader of Men shtick, a robust, scaling (with level) bonus to Intimidate and  Leadership score (with automatic gain of Leadership at 7th level) would  get the job done in softening the blow of being spread thin twice-over  (low number of skill points + primary shtick "Athletics" being split  across multiple skills).  - Giving Fighters an extra bonus for the "Bonus"  option of Hero Points if they use it for a skill (eg a + 12 or even + 15  bonus) wouldn't be the worst idea in the world either.  - Finally, you  could give Fighters 2 free Traits amongst a specified list of Equipment,  Regional, and Social that are thematically Fighter-ey.  Any combination  thereof would go a long way toward establishing a "thematic center" for  the  Fighter, simultaneously providing base competency and giving  players a cue as to their natural role in non-combat resolution.  Personally, however, at epic tier of play, I'm strongly of the position you MUST provide metagame resources for martial characters to play to the thematic weight of their forebears and to load-bear any of the responsibility of resolving non-combat conflicts.  This is particularly true of a game where spells possess so much inherent fiat power in the non-combat conflicts.</blockquote>

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